Historical Resources

The Master of Game
by: Edward of Norwich

This book was based primarily on Gaston III, Count of Foix, (also known as Gaston Phoebus) Livre de chasse, which was originally composed in 1387. The Master of Game was written by Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York, between 1406 and 1413 mostly while being held prisoner for having treasonous designs against his cousin, Henry IV. The majority of the book is almost an exact translation of Livre de chasse, he added five chapters of his own detailing hunting and coursing in England. This is widely regarded to be the oldest English language book on hunting.

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Medieval Hunting
by Richard Almond

If you have an interest in women's studies this is a good book for you. Women are the most overlooked hunters of the Middle Ages.

"Myths and misunderstandings about medieval hunting are dispelled, including the persistent view that it was exclusively an aristocratic and male pursuit.
Hunting was a major economic and leisure activity throughout the European Middle Ages, and while aristocratic practices have featured in studies of romantic and narrative literature, hunting in its wider sense, across the social spectrum with attendant male and female roles, has largely been ignored by modern medieval historians. This study brings vividly to life the universality and centrality of hunting to medieval societies, both as an economic necessity and as an expression of medieval humanity’s almost atavistic sense of oneness with nature. Using a wide variety of contemporary textual and art historical evidence, this study demonstrates convincingly that hunting, including fishing and all manner of poaching, was enjoyed by all classes, and by women as well as men. It provides a detailed and captivating picture of a pre-urban world from which the modern age has much to learn in terms of land use and conservation." (Amazon book description)

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Swifter than the Arrow: The Golden Hunting Hounds of Ancient Egypt
by: Michael Rice

"Swifter than the Arrow explores a little-known aspect of life in Ancient Egypt, celebrating the Egyptians as the first known civilization to have formed the special bond with the dog that persists today as the most remarkable and enduring of human-animal relationships. Five thousand years ago the Egyptians selected and bred hounds for the chase and as the loved companions of both the ruling classes and of less exalted folk. For more than twenty-five centuries they kept the breed true, a remarkable achievement to be counted alongside the development of stone architecture and the building of the pyramids, the invention of hieroglyphs, the creation of kingship and of the first nation-state in the world. Swifter than the Arrow also examines the evidence that hounds living today -- most notably modern breeds such as the so-called "Pharaoh Hound" -- are directly descended from the Egyptian hound. This unique book throws fresh light on our understanding of ancient Egypt while providing a completely fresh insight into the development of mankind's remarkable bond with the domesticated dog." (Amazon book description)

If you have an interest in Ibizan Hounds, this is an excellent book.

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The Reign of the Greyhound
by: Cynthia Branigan

"Beautifully illustrated with more than 100 black-and-white reproductions and photos, The Reign of the Greyhound is a rich, historical testimony to the breed, celebrating its extraordinary place in canine history and human civilization. Passionately written by Greyhound expert Cynthia Branigan, this updated edition features new information on the history and current state of ex-racer adoptions, which save the lives of thousands of Greyhounds each year. From ancient Egypt to modern times, from the temple to the show ring to the track, you'll see how this noble breed has evolved from a royal pet to a racing dog to a loving companion-and you'll no doubt deepen your understanding and appreciation of this fine animal, whose regal history has been too long ignored." (Amazon book description)

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Illuminated Manuscripts: Medieval Hunting Scenes
by: Gabriel Bise

This is a book full of illuminated manuscripts illustrating hunting and coursing in the Middle Ages.

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The Art of Medieval Hunting: The Hound and the Hawk
by: John Cummins

"The gentlemen of medieval and Renaissance Europe had three all-consuming passions: warfare, courtly love, and hunting with a hawk or hound--and the philosophy behind the last of the trio really encompasses them all. Hunting, the sport of kings, served as training for battle, a rite of manhood, and a powerful ritualistic pastime. In vivid and engrossing detail, here are all the appropriate methods for hunting deer, boar, wolves, foxes, bears, otters, birds, hares...even unicorns! A dazzling diversity of sources (poems, ballads, letters, court directives, royal accounts, gamekeepers' handbooks, psalters) illustrate how hunting and hawking appear throughout medieval art and literature as metaphors and motifs for everything from romance to combat." (Amazon book description)

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"The Book of Saint Albans" (aka "The Book of Hawking, Hunting, and Blasing to Arms")

This poem about Greyhounds was written in 1486 by Juliana Berners

The Properties of a Good Greyhound

A greyhound should be headed like a Snake,
And necked like a Drake,
Footed like a Cat,
Tailed like a Rat,
Backed like a Beam,
Sided like a Bream.

The first year he must learn to feed,
The second year to field him lead,
The third year he is fellow-like,
The fourth year there is none sike, * (means no sorrow)
The fifth year he is good enough,
The sixth year he shall hold the plough,
The seventh year he will avail
Great bitches for to assail,
The eighth year lick ladle,
The ninth year cart saddle,
And when he is comen to that year
Have him to the tanner,
For the best hound that ever bitch had
At nine year he is full bad.

Sighthounds: Their Form, Their Function, Their Future

"Sighthounds: Their Form, Their Function and Their Future is not another manual covering nutrition, training, breeding, care, and maintenance; rather, it is a celebration of the cursorial hunting dogs, those using speed and sight to hunt for man's cooking pot for over three millennia. Meticulously researched, it covers both British and foreign breeds, including some that are hardly known, covering their sporting past and arguing strongly for a sporting future for them. David Hancock challenges those who claim these dogs hunt solely by sight, describing their subtle use of scent and stressing their quite remarkable hearing as a hunting tool." (Amazon book description)

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Websites

The Rules of Renaissance Coursing
Greyhound History in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance
Greyhound art