170 A HISTORY OF CAVALRY. [pekiod ii. 



learned the art of provisioning an army, nor had they 

 the facilities for doing so with advantage. 



Under the system of warfare in Europe in that age, 

 the campaigns were of short duration, and armies sub- 

 sisted almost entirely upon the country in which they 

 fought,^ and rarely had either convoys of supplies fol 

 lowing them, or magazines established upon which to 

 rely. When compelled to concentrate either for battle 

 or to conduct a siege, the feudal armies constantly 

 suffered from want of food, and the crusaders, after 

 entering the enemy's country in Asia Minor, endured 

 greater hardships, and lost far more lives by famine, 

 than by the sword of the Saracen. 



This crusade under Godfrey and the other leaders 

 contained an immense number of cavalry and infantry. 

 The historians of the day compute the army at 100,000 

 horse and 500,000 foot. The cavalry alone were of any 

 value, the infantry being a mere undisciplined rabble, 

 unable to exercise any influence either in the open field 

 or in the siege of fortified towns. The force was divided 

 by nations, and each nation had its own quarters in 

 camp. The knights wore the hauoerk of chain armour, 

 and a casque or helmet, and carried the lance, the sword, 

 a poignard, a mace, and the bow and crossbow. The 

 infantry used the sling, and long bucklers. 



The Saracens fought principally on horseback, and 

 used the bow with great eflfect. They pursued the Par- 

 thian system of tactics, avoidiLg a direct charge, but 

 returning and pouring in fresh clouds of arrows, the 

 moment the crusaders withdrew from the pursuit. The 

 greater speed of their horses gave them a considerable 

 tv intage in their manoeuvres, especially as the heat of 

 the climate, and the weight of the armour of the Chris- 

 tions, rendered continued and violent exertion almost 

 impossible. 



The great distinction between the two hostile armies 

 may be briefly summed up in the words " heavy " and 

 "light." The Christian knights were emphatically 

 heavy cavalry. They formed in solid line for the charge, 



^ Hamley, FroissMU*t. 



