I realized that I write fantasy and never wrote a scene that involved jousting. I might have a few characters in my notes who use lances, but I never really put much thought into this activity. So, do I think I can write a post about it?
First, I guess I’ll explain what jousting is . . . Two people ride horses at each other and use lances. The object of the sport is to knock the opponent off first. I think modern versions also have a point system where you get them for breaking a lance and hitting specific areas as well as unhorsing. Sounds pretty simple in terms of the rules, but I’m only going over the basics. It has to be physically demanding on the rider and the horse.
There are places that do jousts like Ren Faires and some eateries that have a knight competition atmosphere. So, the activity hasn’t died out. Yet, I doubt everyone has heard of it or seen it. I have a vague memory of seeing one when I was a kid, but I didn’t really understand. That and I believe I was enjoying drinking soda out of a large, metal flagon that would normally hold beer. Probably no older than 9, so my interests were not as worldly. Anyway, I’m sure people can find a place to witness a joust if they look hard enough.
In terms of fiction, jousting really doesn’t have a variety of uses. It’s a form of entertainment, which is typically associated with nobles. Participants need horses, lances, armor, and some level of training, which typically doesn’t happen in lower classes. That is unless the story is about a peasant who is determined to become a jousting champion or knight through a contest. Yes, I know ‘A Knight’s Tale’ exists and will be mentioned in the comments. Beat you to it. Outside of that film’s underdog plot, it’s difficult to fit jousting into a story that doesn’t even noble entertainment. Adventurers might get thrown into it somehow, but they would at least have training in combat and horse-riding. You really have to stretch it a bit.
Maybe jousting works best as a background feature. For example, the characters might be going through a festival and happen to see a jousting contest. Perhaps they have a meeting within the crowd, which would be big enough to hide them. This shows jousting exists and you can demonstrate some of the rules, especially if a character has a bet on one of the knights. It can open the door for an adventurer to have a background in jousting, but again that can be limiting.
What do other people think of jousting? Do you think it could have some versatility in a story?
I’ve seen jousting at a Ren Faire. Very fun to watch. And I’ve read about it in stories of King Arthur, like The Once and Future King. So, sure, it could work in a story as a way to make money or to enhance a character’s skillset. It could even work in a revenge sequence somehow.
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Revenge sequence would be fun. I remember a lot of movies and shows that had various methods of cheating while jousting.
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Yes! Exactly!
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The “sport” evolved from actual warfare. Think cavalry whose job it was to skewer enemy combatants. In that sense I think it could fit into a story quite well. The challenge came when the enemy also had an armored knight and simple yeoman class solders had to wait for the tanks to sort it out.
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It’s interesting how many sports came from warfare, military training, or some type of violent competition.
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True.
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I’ve seen jousting and it’s highly entertaining. In addition to it ‘manly’ aspects it was also used as a romantic ploy by a jouster accepting token (scarf, ribbon) from the lady he was trying to impress. So I think it’s a great addition to a story.
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Was the love tokens common in jousting? Could never tell if that was real or part of fiction.
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Not sure. I’ll have to look that one up, but it makes sense.
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I found this:
Love tokens were indeed associated with jousting in the Middle Ages, often symbolizing support and admiration from noble ladies for the knights. These tokens, such as scarves or ribbons, were worn by knights during tournaments to signify their connection to a lady, enhancing the romantic and chivalric aspects of the sport.
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Thanks.
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Very good point!
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I think jousting could fit almost any story. In modern stories it could be a backdrop. (Ren fairs etc) I remember as a kid we used to get on our bikes and grab a clothes pole, (the thing that stopped sagging laundry lines) and trash can lids to play at jousting. Shudder to think of what could have happened.
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For some reason, jousting never crossed our minds as kids. Toy swords and toy guns were around. Never thought about biking at each other with poles. I wonder if it’s because my childhood was more about ninjas and pirates than knights.
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That could well be. We did the pirates, but ninjas were not known.
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Jousting is great,especially if you love horses and hunky men in armour. There are reenactments at castles, but I imagine they are very tame compared with the real thing long ago. Shire horses were supposed to have originated from the strong horses need to carry a knight in full armour. And what of the two ladies given the colours of each knight hoping to win their favour, must be a romantic story there.
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Definitely has a lot of potential. Wonder if you could even make it modern day. For some reason, I’m imagining jousting with motorcycles, which seems incredibly stupid.
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Jousting, to me, is very much associated with Arthurian lore. If you’re writing something Arthurian, there definitely would be jousting. That would mean doing some research and finding out about all the equipment needed, the techniques, etc. You could definitely work some plot turns into it, about trying to mess with someone’s equipment or hurt their horse to stop them participating.
An interesting connection, our local museum hosted a display of Medieval armor and weapons. They went into some of the history about how jousting armor was different than armor worn for ground combat. I didn’t pay close attention, but it seems jousting was really the last hold over of armored battle as we think of it. Fire arms were already becoming more important on the battlefield.
But jousting had the spectacle and still drew huge crowds. It eventually had to be banned because people were being hurt and killed. One of these was even England’s notorious King Henry VIII.
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Jousting always felt like an evolution of gladiator fights. So many cultures seem to have had combat-like competitions. Even a few modern sports feel that way given the commonality of injuries.
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