It is so surreal for me to know that Jason is the CEO of Rebellion. You just don´t see many CEO´s clad in full plate charging at full gallop atop a warhorse, lance in hand.

Thank you so much for this terrific series. I've studied medieval history (specialising in King John) for over 25 years but your series has illuminated so many aspects of knightly life that I've been intrigued about but have never really found to be satisfactorily explored, especially on screen. I love you calm yet enthusiastic style, the beautiful camera work and adore the music. I ride too (not well!) and especially loved meeting your magnificent steeds. Really hope there's more of this series fabulous to come. Wonderful.

Very pleased with this episode, the team did a great job of the dramatic scene at the beginning in particular.

The battle cry and the start of the gallop sent chills down my spine. There is just something unique about medieval warfare and charging knights. Amazing work !

Mr Kingsley, If the crown ever upgrades your OBE to a Knighthood, for the love of all things good, please ask them to let you accept whilst dressed 'Appropriately'

Well, to be honest this is currently my favorite historical series. I've promoted it within my Historical European Martial Arts School and the members very much enjoy it too. Another great work, sir. Thank you for providing fun and informative productions with this series.

That intro was fantastic and quite sad. The proud knight being brought down by the humble musketeer. What a great way to show the end of an age.

It is criminal that this man has not been knighted

Sir John Hawkwood is a perfect example. He is one of my ancestors. I am a direct descendant of Sir Robert Bell and Baroness Lady Dorothy Beaupre. I have been watching this series so I can see what my family did.

This is fabulous and your passion comes through making it so interesting to listen to and watch. You and your beautiful horse seem to have a lovely close bond. Thankyou for this.🏹😀

Jason needs a knighthood, come on HM, how many of your other knights can joust like that?

I like that you get some behind-the-scenes peeks in your Extras videos about campaigning in extremely hot weather and about acclimating Gossamer to gunfire. Your channel is very cinematic and it's fun to see the process of it.

oh my god i loved the part about Italian armies, so funny! they must be like " what do you mean actually fight?" when talking to the English Mercenaries ahhaha

This is great content. This is what the history channel should have been like.

I’ve got something in my eye. 😢 - that music gets me every time. Loved this series, well done Jason and team.

Yet the Cavalry charge didn't end until the machinegun.

Several years ago I spent a while apprenticing with a professional armorsmith. While I was, I once decided to take some square medium carbon steel plates that were 1mm, 1.5mm, 2mm, and 2.5mm thick, I hardened and tempered them and then took them out to shoot them point blank with a rifled blackpowder pistol. To my surprise at the time, every single plate stopped the shots and with the 2.5mm thick plate not even denting in the slightest after a single shot. I would love to do something like that again with a full size blackpowder rifle for the extra velocity.

The decline of the knight as fighter was closely related to the advent of modern armies, which was related to the evolution of weapons that did not require life-long training, and particularly to the proclivity of earlier military units (as noted in the video) to change sides or desert at the start of battles. Professional standing armies were more dependable in this regard. In seventeenth century Britain, this change to Professional standing armies was accompanied with the creation of the "baronet," which the transformation of the title of "knight" into an item of commerce, by means of a hereditary knighthood which was purchased for the cost of maintaining a company of soldiers for a year, but for which the "knight" himself was not actually involved in military training or leadership.

I love this series. There's a credibility when he speaks, and the production values are quite good. I wish this channel was used in schools... :)

the cinematography is breathtaking in this! combined with the calm music and your informative talk it really was a joy to watch! Im also looking forward to summer now :D

I have been watching your videos for years and just noticed I was not subscribed, because they just get recommended. Just subscribed, thanks for the countless hours of videos I have watched of yours.

You really need more subscribers. Amazing series!

I gotta say your videos keep improving and get more and more interesting. And the slight slowing down of your delivery is an improvement.

This series is absolutely brilliant.

You should do historical movies. That opening was epic!.

Love your channel. Started taking riding lessons about a year and a half ago because of your channel and channels like yours.

Adagio in D Minor, or The Surface of the Sun at the beginning. Trying to tug at the heartstrings, Sir? Well, I hope you're happy that you succeeded in evoking emotion in my stony heart.

This channel is brilliant, plain and simple.

The chivalrous ethos has not disappeared. He remained in honest people, respecting their honor and origin, keeping their word even to the detriment of themselves. In people who care for the weak and face the stronger.

Great series. This episode shows how the decline of the meaning of a knight goes from not only being symbol to your house and the people that you supported, but having to fight for your King and country and perhaps die for it, to now where a knighthood is a gesture to appease and those on the modern battlefield, to which a knight had to also prepare for and be accomplished in, hardly ever get. The requirements have fallen so low as to be with little meaning. Still think this is a great series, well done.

I have to share this story..I have always been a history geek,enjoy our family history working with horses and visited England in my 20s..so I just love this channel..one morning during coffee and of course watching my favorite channel I told my 17 yr old son"my gosh you should watch this GREAT channel I found called Modern History", it's really good!!..course being a young man of 17 the remark could have gone any which way...but i was gleefully surprised when he responded,"MOM,...OF COURSE I know about that channel I was watching since last year"!!... Well there you go then!🌞 Thank you for generational enjoyment of your videos! That's awesome in my books!🌼

I really love this series of videos, it has inspired me to print out on parchment paper and frame the "Knight's Code" which I will give to my two grandsons and teach them to abide by its wisdom.

The entire series is enthralling (to use a Middle English word) . . . thanks to all involved with the productions. - Bleikr Morrison

Thank you for your wonderful series on this aspect of history and horsemanship.

I am loving this channel, thank you so much for the time and effort involved. Beautiful horses that re clearly well loved and cared for. Im sure I was born into the wrong era lol Ty Mr Kingsley :)

You guys rely should set up a Patreon or similar to help with the costs of making these amazing videos.

:) What a wonderful horse Warlord is! I can almost feel how seriously he takes his duties!

Medieval knight: I'm the world's most deadly weapon. History: .... and then I pulled out the gat.

I bet you feel like such a bad ass with all that armour on, so glad I found this channel.

As Obi Wan Kenobi said using a laser gun instead of a Lightsaber...” So uncivilized ! “

Maybe you'd find interesting how quickly this change of fighting style happened in 15th century Czechia, during Hussite rebellion, when the Czechs wanted reformation, the new unpopular king brought armies to subdue them, and the brilliant Jan Zizka wiped the floor with them inventing new tactics and improvising weapons, including war wagons made out of ordinary wagons. The legend says one time the knights of the crusade army fled even before the fighting began, just hearing the war hymn of the Hussites. At the beginning it was all done out of desperation and necessity, but they perfected their tactics and the king got the throne only after many years when he promised partial reformation and some of the Hussites allied with him, because, like all revolutions, the movement became ever more fractured.

Another great episode!!!

Interesting trivia about the etymology of freelancers. I'm learning so much from this series. Any plans to cover castles and strongholds?

what a gem of a channel!

I think fire arms where one part. But Landsknecht and Reisläufer taktiks where more to blame. A well trained unit of pikemen and helebardiers just crushed armoured horsemen.

A few points re: gunpowder and knights. Firstly, while the knight as we think of him might have become obsolete, the combat role performed by the knight - that of heavy shock cavalry - did not, at least not for a long while. The Polish winged hussars, iconic in their own right, were very much a thing until the end of 18th century, and other forms of shock cavalry remained in use for a long while later. Secondly, effective as gunpowder was, for it's time, it wasn't exactly an absolute armour breaker, not by a long shot. The concept of bullet-proof came form roughly that period. In order to test the cuirass, it was shot with either a musket or a pistol, and the dent made by the bullet was called, aptly, the "proof". That's how the wearer could be certain of the quality of his armour. Now, of course, it takes a fair bit of steel to actually stop a musket shot, and one can only wear so much of it. As most of those watching this video will be aware, the thickness of steel would vary between different pieces of armour, with breastplate and parts of the helmet being much thicker than, say, the greave or the vambrace. So, realistically, only the breastplate and helmet would retain their utility with increasing spread of musket use. Thirdly, and I don't think this has ever been mentioned by anyone, there's at least a possibility that gunpowder made knights obsolete not by killing them but by taking their role. As mentioned, knights were shock cavalry, with the bulk of their effectiveness coming from the initial charge breaking the enemy formation, a fact Jason has mentioned himself in one of his previous videos. Now, in the age of gunpowder, there came into use another and arguably more effective way of achieving that: the cannon. It would not have been a 100% replacement, of course. Artillery positions would need to be set up, and it'd only work on relatively open ground. Heavy cavalry did stick around, as I've said. But cannons could certainly play such a role, particularly as pike blocks rendered head-on charges a lot more difficult to pull off. In fact, my understanding is that the Landsknechte used artillery in just such fashion, as must have many others no doubt. The last thing I'd like to point out is the monetary side of the issue. Renaissance is a period when the monarchies attained quite a lot of power relative to their vassals, and armies started to fall largely under their control. And, from a king's perspective, a bunch of musketeers is a better investment than a knight and his retinue, if only because a fair bit of a knight's retinue was there for the ease of the knight rather than immediate military utility. Musketeers offered more band for the king's shilling, and they wouldn't have nearly as much of an attitude as a knight might do.

I've always thought that the explanation that the advent of firearms did away with knights was inadequate. It explains why armor went away but not knights - both as a martial and social cast and as heavy cavalry(units of "heavy" cavalry consisting primarily of nobles or the sons of the rich continued as a tradition all the way through to WW1). I think that, from a martial standpoint, the reorganization of forces into the New Model Army was far more relevant to the waning relevance of chivalliers than the existence of firearms by themselves. Furthermore, the general centralization of power, the slow rise of the middle class, the slow dissolution of feudalism and the entire host of other social and political changes that happened during the Renaissance were all considerably more relevant to the disappearance of knights than guns. For clear evidence that guns, by themselves, would not have been enough we need only look at Japan where their similar warrior caste system survived well into the 19th century all despite the introduction of (practicable)firearms into Japan in the 16th century. Addendum: you could say that the 1600s are more than a bit late for knights but I would not argue so. In one way or another knighthood and martial nobility retained some relevance through most of the rest of the Reanaissance. What changed, primarily, is the reduced relative potency of heavy shock cavalry and the fact that you didn't necessarily need to be a knight or a noble to organize such a force anymore.

Love the music and production quality. Great series! I can't believe it took me so long to find this. Thank you.

Great video!

Freelance it makes sense when we think of old English terms thanks for explaining ,love your cartoon work of knights on battlefields an unusual approach and it works really well .maybe you should do them for tv a bit like horrible history's it may help with the horse feed lol take care thanks for showing ,oh by the way have you been in any films as an extra since your an accomplished rider and have such an interest in these thigs ?

I've just discovered the series and I'm spending great time watching it episode by episode. Thank you Mr. Kingsley. :)

This was a very good video Jason.

Thank you for this amazing series. For some reason it feels a bit sad that this period is over. Of course it had to happen, but still. This whole series made that era almost glamorous. The Italian/English army part was rather funny though, for the English side that is.

Excellent episode. Someone should give you a TV deal.

I understand that being British you have British point of view but in some parts of Europe noble class continued to be highly important military power, highly trained and equipped with most expensive weapons and horses, for example famous Polish hussars. They served to XVIII century and who knows what this nobleman would transform in if The Commonwealth wouldn't collapse.

I just found this channel and now it's my favorite one. Fantastic content and production quality!! Thank you!

All of your videos are great (I work as a historical tour guide, so some things I know, but lots of stuff in here I had either never thought about properly or never understood fully - love the series!). Just commenting to say the 'freelance' name thing is one that has slightly blown my mind. Not a thing I had ever thought about before, and a delightful callback from current commonly used language to the past.

The sound of Warlord at the start is pure wraith from Lord of the Rings except more real and more frightening - such a great start

I'm a Brit living in Japan for nigh on 30 years. The Shogun / Daimyo / Samurai hierarchy is very similar to English medieval times, just died out much later than in Europe. Your description of free companies is mirrored in Japan in the shape of Ronin - basically Samurai fighting as mercenaries.

Your t shirt pictures are hilarious. Lol

The intro is EPIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sad, very sad indeed. Guys, this channel is such a hidden gem, such quality, much better than what you might find in TV for sure! Perhaps start a Patreon? Thanks for this content Sir Knight!

I don't know how this channel is more popular.

Very informative, Thank You!

Thank you, was a joy to follow the journey of the knight. Amazing series

Great series!

This has everything. Really interesting subject, beautifully produced. Lovely horses and scenery, and Jason is an absolute dish! 😊

beautiful intro to show the changing of the ages! great video as always!

You should upload the ultrawide footage without the black bars. It makes it look way better on ultrawide monitors and modern 18:9 phones. The black bars will be automatically added if the video doesnt fit on someones screen.

That was the most casual loading I've ever seen! LOL!!!

Awesome Intro dude

Damn that bit at the beginning got a lump in me throat I love this channel full of amazing history information and it helps the guy is a total badass 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Your videos are one of the few that I like before I see it completely, the neat way in which you produce them is admirable. The truth is many of the things that you already explained in the video I knew but it is a pleasure to always know it from another point of view. I have a concern, however, is that someday you could talk about the types of warriors that existed in England in the medieval times, I say this since much of this enthusiasm that I have for knowing comes from having played video games of this theme, And I don't think these are totally worth believing, so it would be very interesting if you could clarify about it. Obviously this is just a humble suggestion, but how I would like to see something like that.

Fantastic work, hope to see more soon!

Awesome video!!!

I am absolutely convinced that this man is a medieval knight thrown forward in time who's adjusted well to modern society and no one can tell me otherwise

Intro was super solid

Lovely video!

The heirs of the knights are not those well connected men and women who get a knighthood as a present for some times doing as little as possible, but being in the corridors of power, but the modern officers in army, navy and airforce. They are also the ones who still wield a sword, albeit ceremonoly.

By the time the weapons are loaded, the knight dies of old age.

I think the Portuguese president, and official head of the militant order of Christ (successor order to Order of Knights Templar.) Still gives knighthood to Portuguese soldiers for heroic military service to their country. The only thing missing is the horse

It's interresting to have the point of view of an English man about the end of the chivalry. In France,it's very common for us to say:" the english longbowmen killed the chivalry at agincourt".(sorry for my bad english)

Militarily the man-at-arms (knight in a military sense) heavily increased in usage during the early renaissance rather then declining, only declining after 1525 with the specific introduction of pike and shot, so very specifically it was firearms that ended the knight.

I learn many new facts with every one of your videos. The amount of knowledge one brain can hold astounds me, cos I’m relatively dumb 😂

This channel is a hidden gem

Did he say "He's destrier", while talking about a knight's steed? Interesting because it's the French word for "steed" which really show how many things English and French picked up from each other in their languages. Kinda cool and makes learning English easier for French and vice versa.

Quantity has a quality all it's own.

Couldn’t it be argued that the modern equivalent of knights on the battlefield are tanks?

Cuirassier existed up until the early 20th century. I don't know if you'd consider them knights, but they were an armored horse cavalry.

That was real estate over there!.

I can't stop watching these videos!

I have enjoyed this series immensely, and hope there will be more coming. I have learned a great deal about a time that has always interested me. But what I really hope is that this series may be developed into a video game. I have been a avid player of Kingdom Come: Deliverance since its release and hope Rebellion Developments might have something in the works. This period offers so many possibilities for meaningful play. Look forward to whatever is next. Thanks.

There should be some mention about Gendarmes. They were using the same style of armor/weapons as knights did a century earlier but they didnt have the social concept of "knight", they were soldiers.

Where can I buy a shirt like that? Love these videos, understanding those times really inspires me when worldbuilding and character creating

"We're devils, 👿 black 🖤 sheep, 🐑 and really bad 🤮 eggs!" 🥚 "Drink 🍻 up 👆 me hearties, yo ho!" 🏴‍☠️ ☠️ 🦜

I advise people to read Contact, the second book in the Crossover Series Five people go back in time to 1054

I really like your videos and find them very interesting. I think, though, that knights and knighthood have been heavily romanticized. Knights were granted land so they could produce income for themselves and taxes for the king. They lorded over the serfs. Their castles were to protect them from their own serfs as mush they were from outside enemies. Speaking as an American, can you imagine coming here and being able to settle and own your own land? Completely unheard of in Europe at the time.

Thank you! Very interesting!

Fantastic!

Just for historical accuracy medieval knights rarely had a tall and handsome horse like that, they could have one if they can afford to maintain it, taxes included The taller the horse measured in hands, the higher the tax

The free companies also perpetuated wars. I often wonder if they bought about the Mafia. I think Italy had this culture of fighting and double dealing ingrained into it's culture because of the wars between the city states.