![]() ![]() The Romans elevated sieges through their engineers’ construction of field fortifications and artillery which persisted into the Middle Ages and the high point of sieges. Even as late as the eighteenth century, European armies were waging war much the same way, although now using black powder ordnance and trying to break into star forts. At Minas Tirith, under the deep night of Sauron’s Dawnless day, orcish catapults and Gondorian trebuchets exchange fire while siege towers are pushed against the walls and the massive battering ram Grond attempts to force the city’s gates. Psychological warfare is employed as severed Gondorian heads are flung over the walls in the style of Chinggis Khan. But for the magic and fantastical creatures, a Roman legionary, medieval knight, or British grenadier would be right at home in assault or defence of Minas Tirith.Īrise, Riders of Theoden! The Charge of the Rohirrim : The siege of Minas Tirith ends and the Battle of the Pelennor Fields begins with the arrival of Theoden King and the forces of Rohan from the north. A massive cavalry charge cuts deep into the forces of Mordor, relieving the just-breached gate and bringing with it the first rays of dawn to end the Dawnless Day. ![]() While Tolkien may have based the culture of Rohan on his beloved Anglo-Saxons ( see last year’s post on that very subject), here the Riders of Rohan enter a different era: the High Middle Ages, where cavalry (particularly heavy cavalry) dominated the battlefield.
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