ARMOUR FROM THE BATTLE OF WISBY

On 27th July 1361, outside the Hanseatic League city of Wisby on the Swedish island of Gotland, 1800 peasants gathered to defend their rich city from the onslaught of Danish King Waldemar. Equipped with outmoded equipment, the city suffered a horrific defeat. Several days went by before the Danish victory was completed. In the meantime, the bodies decayed in the hot sun. When Wisby's inhabitants were finally able to emerge and bury the dead, all that could be done was to dig large pits and quickly lower the bodies, some still encased in their armour. The Battle of Wisby is perhaps the most celebrated medieval battle in Scandinavia, and yet were it not for the mass graves it would be all but unknown to Western students of medival history. The peat bog into which the bodies were buried preserved not only their bones but also elements of their harness and accoutrement, leaving what is without doubt the most important archeological record for the period. Preserved in the graves are the bones of the slain, recording their gruesome wounds for all time, elements of their armour, coins and dress accessories. The wealth of material is unmatched even in the recently released studies of the Tewksbury graves. Published originally in 1939, Bengt Thordeman's work remains the most important record of the battle. It has been cited in virtually every bibliography on the subject of arms and armour. Long out of print, the Chivalry Bookshelf reprint edition, produced in cooperation with the Swedish Academy of Sciences, aims to make this work more widely available, combining the original two volumes into one. A must for collectors, students of medieval history, arms and armour enthusiasts, wound pathologists, medieval archeologists, collectors of medieval artifacts and coins.