Squire John Astley in a Foot Combat a Plaisance
Middle 15th century
Archeologia
Glossary of Arms and Armour Terms
Most foot combats shown in the lists are not tournaments but are rather Judicial duels. This
illumination is thus unique in that it is accompanied by a text description of a friendly challenge between a Castilian
knight, Sir Philip Boyle, and squire John Astley.
John Astley, a noted squire of the English court, accepted the challenge at the direction of his king, who attended the
emprise personally. According to the text, it was at the end of this combat that John Astley was knighted as a
knight of the bath. Later Sir John was admitted as a member of the Garter, serving also as counsellor at several
judicial duels.
For a description of Sir John and the book that contains some
of his knightly deeds, see the Archeologia
article on this web site!