Landing craft

[idun]

Bit of an obscure title isn't it. Last night as there was little on TV I ended up zapping through the channels and an odd scene was on one channel. Soldiers clad in iron mail, wearing medieval helmets were rowing in these odd shaped boats, which reminded me of the landing craft in Normandie....... In this film, they seemed to be heading towards England, (I think) and when they hit the beach the front fell down and the soldiers and horses came off.

Only the film, it said, was Ridley Scott's Robin Hood and the idea of these men in these boats did make me howl with laughter. I didn't watch the rest of the film at all, but my, what I saw amused me no end.

And in the light of day, was it really historically correct? And if it were that easy, why didn't Napoleon or Hitler do it?

[DerekJ]

I saw some of the sets for that film which were built in Windsor Great Park and used the Virginia Water lake.

[Jonzjob]

No idea about your Hobbin Rood Idun, but a few weeks ago we had a few days in Amboise and visited Leos shed. Very interesting, and he had invented a tank comme ça

So not sure about the tank landing craft, but there's the tanque [:-))] Looked quite formidable too..

[idun]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/6.194634-Escape-to-the-Movies-Robin-Hood?page=4

Well

I found a trailer on the web and at 1minute 47 and 2minutes16 you can see these

strange higgins wooden replicas. All very odd on a full size screen. And

looking for a trailer, realised that lots of people wonder what on

earth they were. Amused me that is for sure.

[Lehaut]

Though there are primary sources dating back to within a few years of when the film takes place which describe landing craft that "had doors, which were easily opened, and a bridge was thrust out whereby the knights could come forth to land all mounted", these doors were in the stern of the ship, not the bow, and were not intended for amphibious landings. [William of Tyre, Chronicon, ed. Robert B. C. Huygens (Turnhout: Brepols, 1986), p. 927]

[idun]

Thanks Lehaut, so in the film they have it backside about face![Www]