A Ranger of Medieval times (also known as Hunter, Archer, Scout, or Tracker) is an archetype found in works of fantasy fiction and role-playing games.
Rangers are usually associated with the wisdom of nature. Rangers tend to be wise, hardy, cunning, and perceptive in addition to being skilled woodsmen. Many are skilled in woodcraft, stealth, wilderness survival, beast-mastery, herbalism, tracking, and sometimes "nature magic" or have a resistance to magic. Rangers spend a great deal of time hunting, fishing, and camping—whether on a short- or long-term basis—and their preferred martial arts weapons leans towards practical-utility: archery, knife fighting, stick-fighting, axeplay, spearplay and swordplay.
Ranger Archetype
Rangers skills in books and games can include and are not limited to:
Combat expertise with bows and other ranged weapons, often the result of years hunting wild animals
Use in martial combat weapons, often swords, axes, and daggers; oftentimes they may dual-wield such weapons and rely on finesse over brute strength
Throwing knives
Non-magical stealth
Climbing
Detecting or laying traps
Taming, calming or charming animals; often they may be accompanied by a favored animal companion
Tracking and leaving no trail to be tracked
Knowledge of herbs for medical and poisonous uses
The art of healing (magical or medical) due to their self-reliance
Land and nature related magic and enchantments or the ability to recognize them or resistance to them
Ability to move quickly through any terrain they are familiar with. (adapted from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranger_(character_class)
Were there any rangers like Robin Hood in medieval Europe?
It depends on what you mean by rangers like Robin Hood, as the term "ranger" did not exist in the Medieval period but is a later invention by fantasy authors, such as J.R.R Tolkien. The inspiration for these rangers did come from real historical figures, however, as it was common for lords and nobles to hire skilled archers and hunters to protect their forests from poachers and criminals on the run. There are countless sources which describe highly skilled archers who spent the majority of their time in the woods, as can most clearly be seen in Chaucer's character of the yeoman in the "Canterbury Tales". In regards to the Robin Hood figure of an individual who steals from the rich and gives to the poor, it is almost certain that a number of these individuals did exist. The folk tale of Robin Hood arose from a collection of stories about skilled archers who lived in the forests of England who were "noble" bandits, who only stole from nobles and the gentry.
In all, it is almost certain that there were figures like Robin Hood in the Medieval Period and banditry was extremely common in this time, but it is unsure whether an actual Robin Hood did exist or whether it is an amalgam of a number of individuals combined into one. (Slander.com)
Where there ever any rangers in history like Faramir and Aragorn from Lord of the Rings or Will and Halt from the Rangers Apprentice series?
If you haven't heard of them basically they are exceptional archers that are superb at remaining unseen using their skills and a mottled green cloak, to be general.
If there weren't any "Rangers'' were there any people that were similar to them?
The archetypal form of those sorts of characters certainly existed. Tolkein, as a professor of English, was very aware of his influences and what he was drawing on. The later horde of fantasy authors ripping him off? Probably less so.
One of the earliest expressions of this sort of archetype was the Yeoman introduced in the prologue of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. He is the only attendant accompanying the Knight and Squire on pilgrimage, presumably as their bodyguard since he is well-armed and they are not mentioned to be bearing weapons. Just as the Knight and Squire are idealized representations of their "types" ( the Knight is a bold crusader and paragon of chivalry, the Squire is a fresh-faced youth jousting for the hand of a lady), the Yeoman is an idealized image of what yeomen could be. He's very well-armed, carrying his longbow, a sword, a dagger, and a buckler. He has "a cropped head and a sun-browned face," from working outdoors and in the forests. The Yeoman's job, in peacetime, was to administer the forests on his lord's lands. This included apprehending poachers, stopping illegal logging or grazing, and watching over the deer population. Chaucer himself was once appointed as a forester, although his position was more administrative than the Yeoman's. It's never mentioned explicitly, but it's very possible that the Yeoman accompanied the Knight on crusade or in some other war. Standard English armies of the day were made up of large archer formations protected by men-at-arms. If the Yeoman did go to war with the Knight, it's possible that he would be a captain or other officer of the archers in the Knight's retinue. From his weapons and other equipment he's carrying (peacock-fletched arrows, a "gay bracer," and a silver medal of St. Christopher), it's clear that the Yeoman is economically well-off and thus the sort of person who might raise a company of archers for service in war. The Yeoman is not mentioned to be mounted, but he could certainly afford a horse if he wanted one. Mounted archers were employed by the English for rapid movement on campaign, raiding, and scouting, although for pitched battles, they would dismount and fight on foot.
So how does that connect to the ranger archetype of modern fantasy fiction? Well, the "ranger" concept is essentially a blending of the roles of a yeoman archer. The peacetime duties of a forester and the wartime duties of an archer are blended into one role. Faramir's rangers (*1) are actually a semi-accurate depiction of how yeoman archers fought. In the fight where they are introduced, they seem to have a force of archers deployed behind a screen of infantry. Their strategic purpose, disrupting enemy movement through Ithilien, is somewhat similar to the chevauchées of the Hundred Years War. A real chevauchée would often be focused on looting undefended villages rather than getting into larger fights, but sometimes the English launched large-scale raids for the purpose of forcing the French to come out and face them in pitched battles, which is a little closer to what Faramir seems to be doing. Lacking access to Gondorian accounts of their campaigns in Ithilien, it's hard to say how exactly Faramir was going about it. The only observers are Frodo and Sam, neither of whom had a keen eye for military details. The rangers of the Ranger's Apprentice series are a little more fantastical, since they seem to most closely resemble a 14th century CIA than any medieval archers. Fun for telling a YA fantasy story, but not really anything historical.
To sum up, the ranger archetype in fantasy fiction is an amalgamation of several different roles a yeoman might perform. Men with experience in foresting were considered to be the best source of archer recruits for a campaign, but they wouldn't be sneaking around on the battlefield wearing some kind of medieval camouflage. In a pitched battle, they'd be fighting in formation with the rest of their company. On campaign, they might be called on for raiding and scouting duties, but that wasn't a role exclusive to men with forestry experience. So the ranger archetype has roots in literary traditions and memories of medieval English archers, but isn't really reflective of their historical reality.
*(footnote 1): That is, Faramir's rangers as they are depicted in the book The Two Towers. They're pretty much all Robin Hood in the movie. - adapted from: Rangers in History. Reddit.com
No comments:
Post a Comment