Dr. Robert W. Jones.

A historian specialising in the socio-cultural history of medieval warfare and warriors.

I publish books and articles on the subject of medieval military culture, and regularly present my research at major international conferences.

I teach medieval and military history to British and American undergraduate and postgraduate students.

I am a costumed interpreter, giving talks and demonstrations to the general public.

I am a practitioner and instructor of HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts), recreating medieval swordplay for research, sport, and fun.

I am a wargamer, developing my own rules for wargaming the Hundred Years War and Wars of the Roses.

Robert W. Jones
The use of experimental archaeology and experiential learning is an important aspect of my academic work. Here I give a public presentation on arming the knight at the Chiltern Open Air Museum.

The use of experimental archaeology and experiential learning is an important aspect of my academic work. Here I give a public presentation on arming the knight at the Chiltern Open Air Museum.

 

I came to military history from a background in reenactment and costumed interpretation, and so experiential learning is a large part of my research.

I have my own fourteenth-century harness, and am a practitioner and instructor of Historical European Martial Arts, focusing on medieval longsword combat.

 

Military history is very often considered the preserve of retired generals, and focused on tedious narratives of battle and campaign.

For me, warfare is a cultural phenomenon and its study should be as much about understanding the participants and their experience of battle  as it is about the battles themselves.

In my view, the behaviour of the warriors on the battlefield was shaped as much by the culture and society from which they came as by the practicalities of combat.