Collection: Helion: A Time of Knights

The Battle of Adrianople (378 CE) marked the dominance of heavy cavalry over infantry, signalling the decline of the Western Roman Empire and the rise of feudalism. Nobles, in exchange for land, provided knights who became Europe’s primary military force, clad in increasingly advanced armour. Beyond Europe, the Mongols relied on disciplined light cavalry, while the Islamic Caliphates combined light and heavy cavalry with trained infantry. China pioneered gunpowder weapons.

Castles and fortified cities shaped siege warfare, leading to increased use of artillery. By the late Medieval period, longbows, pikes, and firearms challenged knights’ battlefield dominance, ushering in military innovations that paved the way for the Early Modern era of warfare.