Destrier (from which the Modern English spelling derives). The word is also found in medieval Provençal (as "destrier") and Italian (as "destriere", "destriero"). These forms themselves derived from the Vulgar Latin "equus dextarius", meaning "right-sided horse" (from "dextra", "right hand", the same root as "dexterous" and "dexterity"). This may refer to it being led by the squire at the knight's right side (or led by the right hand) or to the horse's gait, (possibly leading with the right). The word "destrier" does not refer to a breed, but to a "type" of horse: the finest and strongest warhorse. These horses were
Warfare in Medieval Poland not probably have happened so widely and so quickly without the Polish–Lithuanian union. In the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, especially in Rus', the eastern style was adopted much earlier. The most visible armour transformation in medieval times was that of the helmet, which changed its shape from a conical shape into a great helm (11th-12th century) and later to the bascinet with different shapes in following centuries. The knight was usually accompanied by one, two or more squires, the most experienced of whom (mainly from the impoverished szlachta) had to protect their master during the battle, and to hand him