A few medieval battles (or mass executions) mass graves have been found, some with weapons and armors. This is extremely interesting and bring us informations of major importance, especially regarding paleopathology. The extreme majority of these sites is still to discover, which is very exciting. I am currently thinking to specialize myself into Battlefield archeology.
At the moment, I know five major sites:
Ridgeway Hill Viking burial pit (between AD 910 and 1030).
Archeologists found this site in 2008-2009, in Dorset, southwest England. It contains 54 skeletons and 51 heads of Scandinavian men executed some time between AD 910 and 1030. It is perhaps linked to St. Brice's Day massacre (13 November 1002).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Brice%27s_Day_massacre
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iBGV3IJbLk
Battle of Alarcos, 1195
The last Almohad great victory in Iberia took place in 1195 at Alarcos, in today's province of Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Archeologists recently found many skeletons of humans and horses in the ditches of the castle that the Castilians rebuilt there short before the battle, along with arrows and javelins heads. According to most of the sources, they are the corpses (of both Christian and Muslim) that the Muslims buried here after the battle. However, some other sources claim that they are the remains of the 1212 siege, when the Christians attacked the castle after the decisive battle of Las Navas de Tolosa.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Alarcos
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alarcos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGycyodXINA#t=6m40s
Battle of Visby, 1361
The Danes crushed the Gotlanders near Visby in 1361. At the beginning of the 20th century, several mass graves were excavated near the battlefield. They contained a lot of skeletons (about 1200 according to Renaud Figueres, about 2000 according to Wikipedia and The Economist), many of whom still had their armors. A huge number of arrows and bolts heads were found too. The sudies of the skeletons' injuries showed that the combat was brutal (cut off limbs, broken skulls or which received several headshots, etc.). This is the most famous medieval mass grave site, given the number of bodies and artefacts found.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Visby
http://books.google.fr/books/about/Armour_from_the_battle_of_Wisby.html?id=LZzqQgAACAAJ&redir_esc=y
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Battle of Towton, 1461
The battle of Towton, fought in Yorkshire during the English Wars of the Roses on 29 March 1461, is one of the bloodiest medieval battle. This decisive Yorkist victory caused the death of about 28,000 men. In 1996, builders working at Towton Hall, about a mile away from the main battlefield, discovered a mass grave. Archeologists eventually excavated 39 skeletons, 28 of whom being complete. The corpses were stripped before being buried, as the only artefact found is a little ring, still around the finger of his owner. Many have severe injuries, like for example the skeleton named "Towton 25" (as it was the 25th to be excavated), whose head was cut by several blows.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Towton
http://www.economist.com/node/17722650
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAQoIeYAHPg
Battle of Otranto, 1480 - Martyrs of Otranto
When the Ottomans took Otranto in 1480, a lot of its soldiers and inhabitants, who, according to the legend, refused to convert to Islam, were decapited. After the Turks left the city, in 1481, the corpses were translated to the cathedral, where they can still be seen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyrs_of_Otranto
I also remember a TV documentary about templar mass grave found in a Holy Land castle, and some books of David Nicolle where he told us about an armoured horseman found near the battlefield of the battle of Poitiers, in AD 732. Unfortunately I haven't found anything about it on the internet.
Do you know other sites like this ?
At the moment, I know five major sites:
Ridgeway Hill Viking burial pit (between AD 910 and 1030).
Archeologists found this site in 2008-2009, in Dorset, southwest England. It contains 54 skeletons and 51 heads of Scandinavian men executed some time between AD 910 and 1030. It is perhaps linked to St. Brice's Day massacre (13 November 1002).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Brice%27s_Day_massacre
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iBGV3IJbLk
Battle of Alarcos, 1195
The last Almohad great victory in Iberia took place in 1195 at Alarcos, in today's province of Ciudad Real, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Archeologists recently found many skeletons of humans and horses in the ditches of the castle that the Castilians rebuilt there short before the battle, along with arrows and javelins heads. According to most of the sources, they are the corpses (of both Christian and Muslim) that the Muslims buried here after the battle. However, some other sources claim that they are the remains of the 1212 siege, when the Christians attacked the castle after the decisive battle of Las Navas de Tolosa.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Alarcos
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alarcos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGycyodXINA#t=6m40s
Battle of Visby, 1361
The Danes crushed the Gotlanders near Visby in 1361. At the beginning of the 20th century, several mass graves were excavated near the battlefield. They contained a lot of skeletons (about 1200 according to Renaud Figueres, about 2000 according to Wikipedia and The Economist), many of whom still had their armors. A huge number of arrows and bolts heads were found too. The sudies of the skeletons' injuries showed that the combat was brutal (cut off limbs, broken skulls or which received several headshots, etc.). This is the most famous medieval mass grave site, given the number of bodies and artefacts found.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Visby
http://books.google.fr/books/about/Armour_from_the_battle_of_Wisby.html?id=LZzqQgAACAAJ&redir_esc=y
Battle of Towton, 1461
The battle of Towton, fought in Yorkshire during the English Wars of the Roses on 29 March 1461, is one of the bloodiest medieval battle. This decisive Yorkist victory caused the death of about 28,000 men. In 1996, builders working at Towton Hall, about a mile away from the main battlefield, discovered a mass grave. Archeologists eventually excavated 39 skeletons, 28 of whom being complete. The corpses were stripped before being buried, as the only artefact found is a little ring, still around the finger of his owner. Many have severe injuries, like for example the skeleton named "Towton 25" (as it was the 25th to be excavated), whose head was cut by several blows.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Towton
http://www.economist.com/node/17722650
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAQoIeYAHPg
Battle of Otranto, 1480 - Martyrs of Otranto
When the Ottomans took Otranto in 1480, a lot of its soldiers and inhabitants, who, according to the legend, refused to convert to Islam, were decapited. After the Turks left the city, in 1481, the corpses were translated to the cathedral, where they can still be seen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martyrs_of_Otranto
I also remember a TV documentary about templar mass grave found in a Holy Land castle, and some books of David Nicolle where he told us about an armoured horseman found near the battlefield of the battle of Poitiers, in AD 732. Unfortunately I haven't found anything about it on the internet.
Do you know other sites like this ?
