56
TheIslamicateContext
onthe
stirrup
in
Europe
6
andthen
explore
its
possible
effects
on
Islamdom.
Placingstirrups
ona
horse
vastly
enhancesthe
power
ofitsrider.Whenhesitsinthesaddle
without
anygrip
forhis
feet,
a
soldierwieldsalancewiththe
strengthonlyofhisarms
and
legs.The
stirrup
weldshorseandriderintoa
singleunit;
nowthesoldiercanattackwithhis
lance
carrying
theentireforce
ofhisand
thehorse’scombined
weight.Heavycavalryoutfitted
with
stirrupsenjoysa
greatpreponderance
over
infantry(itdoes
notaffect
lightcavalryinmost
cases).
Butitwas
exceedinglyex-
pensive;equipment
forone
horsemaninmedieval
Europe
cost
about
the same as
plough-teams
for ten
families--not even
counting
the
priceofremountsandretainers.
White
approaches
the
stirrup’s
roleinmedieval
Europeby
ac-
cepting
HeinrichBrunner’sclassic
statementof 1887 ontheori-
gins
offeudalism.Brunnerconnectstwoeventswhich
occurred
closelyintime:theincreasedroleof
cavalry
intheFranks’
ar-
miesbetween
732
and
775 c.E.andtheconfiscationofchurch
lands
by
CharlesMartel
(r.714-41).
He
suggests
thattheFranks
hadto
augment
their
cavalry
andthatthechurchlands
helped
to
pay for thevastnew
expenses
ofhorses,
equipment,
and
training;
butnowhere does
Brunner
explain
whatitwasthat
compelled
theFranksto
increasetheircavalryatthattime.Here,
where
prior
theorieswere
lacking,
White
introducedthe
stirrup
asan
explanation.
Themetal
stirruporiginated
in
fifth-century
China,whenceit
passed
toCentralAsiaandthe
MiddleEast.TheMuslimshadit
by
74/694
and
surely
useditafter92/711intheir
conquest
of
Spain
andinvasions
ofGaul.
Although
theMuslimslosttothe
FranksatPoitiersin
115/733,thelatter
presumably
notedthe
stirrup’s
effectiveness and took
steps
to
adopt it, enlarging
the
cavalryand
designating
churchlandsto
pay
forit.Accord-
ing
to
White’sthesis,the
stirrupbrought
abouta
military
trans-
formationwhichcontributedtoa
far-reaching
social
upheaval,
the
feudalorder.Thesoldiersonhorseswhobenefitedfrom
6.
Masterfullypresentedinchapter ofhisMedieval
Technology
andSocial
Change(London,1962).Foroneof
manycritiques,seeR.H.HiltonandP.H.
Sawyer,"TechnicalDeterminism:The
Stirrup
and
thePlough,"PastandPresent
24
(April1963):
90-100.