John Hawkwood

Sir John Hawkwood (c. 1323–1394) was an English soldier and condottiere in the 14th century. As his name was claimed to be hard to pronounce by non-English contemporaries, there are many variations of it in the historical record. As a result, he often referred to himself as "Haukevvod", and others called him "Giovanni Acuto" meaning "John the Astute" or "John Sharp" referring to his "cleverness or cunning." His legacy has made him a man shrouded in myth and reality in both England and Italy.

Hawkwood is understood to have been born in Sible Hedingham, which is an old Roman outpost in Essex. He was the second son of Gilbert Hawkwood. Modern accounts like to present Hawkwood's upbringing as a poor peasant, but the facts tell a different story. Some sources claim that his father was a tanner, but the historical record has uncovered that Gilbert Hawkwood was a landowner of "considerable wealth." His father had property in both Sible Hedingham and Finchingfield. Lack of information has created many myths about his childhood. For example, the Florentine chronicler, Filippo Vilani, claimed that the reason his last name was "Hawkwood" was because when his mother was in labour she demanded that she give birth in a forest, so he was literally the "hawk of the wood". However, he did not reside at home for long, and there are records that show he moved to London to be apprenticed to a tailor. Many scholars have rejected this notion, but tailors in the Middle Ages often turned into military men.

Hawkwood began his career in the Hundred Years' War in France under Edward III as a longbowman. It has been argued that he participated in both of Battle of Crécy in 1346 and the Battle of Poitiers in 1356. After Poitiers, he joined the Great Company /White Company, an infamous band of mercenaries, with whom he crossed into Italy in 1361. He became its captain in 1363. Although Hawkwood was knighted, there is no has clear evidence by whom or where. Some sources claim he was knighted by the Black Prince after the Battle of Poitiers, but there is no historical record of this. In Italy, all major condottiere were classified as knights, which means the distinction in itself is ambiguous. After arriving in Italy, he fought for numerous factions such as the Pope, Milan and Florence for the rest of his life, ending his career in Florence.

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