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Hello and welcome back history and art fans.
Today I will be commentating on the fourth set of entries in my sketchbook:
Teutonic Knights from 1226 and Praetorian Guardsmen from AD 41.
The Teutonic knights were a German order of crusader knights,
founded in 1190 and ran a hospital in the Holy Land.
As the crusades in the Holy Land wound down, the Teutonic order was transferred to Baltic
to help defend the Kingdom of Poland
against the remaining Pagan tribes of Prussia and Lithuania.
These knights are pictured in 1226, at the time of the Prussian Crusade
and three of the Order's officers are pictured here:
First is Hermann von Salza, the Hochmeister.
The Hochmeister, which literally means "high master" in German, was the grand master of the order.
He was elected by all the priests, brothers, and half-brothers, knights who did not their full monastic vows
of the order and usually served for life.
Hermann von Salza was Hochmeister from 1210 until his death in 1239.
During his time as master, he oversaw the annexation of Prussia into the Order's Land.
He was also a skilled diplomat, who helped resolve a conflict between Pope Gregory IX and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II.
Next is the Ordensmarschall, or Marshal of the Teutonic Order.
The Ordensmarschall was in command of the headquarters at Königsburg,
and responsible for all logistical matters.
He was one of five Großgebietiger, or high-ranking officers selected to serve by the Hochmeister himself.
Lastly, is one of the lowest rank of the order: a Komptur.
He was the regional commander of a small patch of land, or commandry.
With the Teutonic conquest of the Baltic region, the Order tried to colonize the area by settling Germans there.
And from the time of the Prussian Crusade until the end of World War II,
Prussia existed as a German nation.
All three of the knights are depicted wearing full chain mail armor,
developed in the previous century and remained the mainstay
until the introduction of plates later in the 13th Century.
For helmets they wear ornate horned great helms.
The great helm was the primary choice for knights in the thirteenth century.
These adornments were depicted in the manuscripts
of the time period as being worn for tournaments.
Whether they were worn into Battle is debatable, either they were deemed impractical,
or they were worn as a psychological weapon, designed to intimidate their opponents.
Next up, is the Roman Emperor's personal bodyguard: the Praetorian Guard.
The Praetorians were Rome's crack fighting men.
In peace, they protected the city of Rome and the Emperor's palace.
They were in fact, the only Roman military units
allowed in the city of Rome itself, during the Imperial period.
In war, they accompanied the Emperor on his campaigns
and served as elite units of infantry and cavalry.
They would also, if they felt the emperor had become too tyrannical, assassinate him.
These guardsmen are depicted in A.D. 41, when they assassinated the despised Emperor Caligula.
First is the Praetorian Prefect, the commander of the Praetorian Guard.
He has a knife drawn, although according to the varying sources,
the attempt was executed by the co-prefect, a tribune, and some centurions, and are described using their swords.
The Prefect's armor is depicted in a similar manner to a legatus, the commander of a legion,
and other high-ranking generals in the Roman army.
He wears a brass plated lorica musculata, or muscle cuirass over a leather subarmalis,
as well as a matching helmet and greaves, or lower leg guards.
Next, is a Centurion, commander of a century.
Although a century numbered 100 soldiers in the time of the Republic, as its name suggests,
by the time of the Empire, that number was reduced to 80.
The rank of the Centurion is denoted by his sideways crest and his vine stick, which served two purposes:
to point and beat insubordinate soldiers.
For armor, Centurions preferred the older lorica hamata, or chain mail,
like the other officers, he wears a leather subarmalis.
Finally, are two ordinary guardsmen.
Like other legionaries of their time, they wear the newly introduced lorica segmentata,made of overlapping iron plates.
They differ from ordinary Roman legionaries however, with their shields.
While the other legionaries carried the newer square scutum,
the Praetorians retained the more traditional oval shape,
dating back to the manipular organization during the Republic.
Because of the decorations found on the Praetorians' shields,
it was believed that they were black or dark blue, depicting night sky.
This has been widely disproved and they more likely would have been red,
the most likely color of the Roman soldier's uniform.
All of the Praetorians are depicted wearing armor, however while inside the walls of Rome,
the Praetorians were disallowed from wearing armor.
They simply wore their tunic and carried a sword.
This harkened back to the tradition of Republican Rome,
where the city was off limits to its legions, lest the military vie for power
which Caesar broke by marching on Rome.
The Praetorian Guards would not always follow this rule,
and many usurper emperors were former Praetorian officers.
This concludes the fourth entry of my vlog.
But, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, I am offering a sneak peak at my latest piece in the works:
Brian Boru's March.
This Good Friday will mark the millennial anniversary of the Irish King Brian Boru's
crushing victory over the Viking invaders at Clontarf in 1014.
Brian Boru was a King of Munster, in the South of Ireland, who united Connaught in the West
and waged war against Leinster, in the East around Dublin, which was under Norse rule.
The piece is named in honor of the Irish Folk song composed to commemorate him
and depicts him marching into Connaught in 997 to unite the regions under his rule.
Once completed, I will begin work on a battle scene of Clontarf.
Again, if any of you have any requests, or upcoming historical anniversaries that
I should be aware of, please let me know in the comments below, I do take requests.
If you have any other questions or comments, please leave them too.
If you enjoyed the artwork and commentary, please like the video.
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You can also visit my website at www.robertfisherhistoricalart.com
or you can also find me on Facebook.
Thank you for watching, I hope you enjoyed the art and presentation
and here's wishing you a happy St. Patrick's Day, which really isn't a big deal in Ireland,
but, it's just another American excuse to get drunk...
Whatever! Happy St. Patrick's Day!