Tournaments

**__//By: Sadie Strakowski//__**

Tournaments were a popular form of entertainment in the Middle Ages. They were also a way for knights to practice their fighting skills. They were popular in the 12th century to the 16th century. Tournaments started out in France. They never spread to Asia because of the lack of communication between Europe and Asia. There were many kinds of tournaments. Joust a plaisance Tournament- a series of elimination jousts over several days. Passage of arms- a knight would send out a proclamation saying that he would meet challengers at a specific time and place. Melee a pied- teams of knights fighting on foot and Melee a cheval-teams on knights fighting on horseback. Noblemen set up the place tournaments would be held. They were usually held in a field near the nobleman's castle. They would also finance the prizes. It was a popular form of entertainment for them. Knights were the ones who fought in the tournaments. Knights would face each other. The winner of the tournament would get money and the challenger's armor and weapons for prizes. The knights gained fame and fortune. Even though tournaments were fun to watch, death and injuries were common. Each knight was on the horse. They had armor on and a lance in hand. The knights would ride toward each other and attempt to score points. One point would be awarded for a body hit and two for breaking the other's lance. Three points would be awarded if a knight knocked another off their horse. In 1241, about eighty knights and squires were killed in a single tournament. In 1881, the Church declared that anyone who died in tournaments would be denied a Christian burial. It helped form an important element of military life. It also developed social life. Tournaments developed overtime into safer forms of entertainment that are common in the world today. Tournaments ended as firearms became developed, but the competition continued. Jousting and other tournaments have developed into sports like lacrosse and soccer. These sports are popular forms of entertainment for today. They may not help with military skills, but they develop social life. 1. __Medieval Tournaments__ 4/13/09 [] 2. __Jousts and Tournaments__ 4/13/09 [] 3. __The Medieval Tournament__ 4/14/09 []
 * __Where tournaments occured__**
 * __Types of Tournaments__**
 * __The people's role__**
 * __Jousting description__**
 * __Important events__**
 * __Impact of Tournaments on Medieval Life__**
 * __Impact on Today__**
 * 1) MLA citations: