Experience the spectacular Winged Hussars in action this summer at the Royal Armouries

This August Bank Holiday the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds will be presenting a spectacular weekend of horse shows, featuring The Winged Hussars, a crack team of fast-riding, sabre-rattling, pistol-shooting cavalrymen from Poland.

The shows will offer excellent entertainment for audiences of all ages and will showcase the traditional uniforms and military expertise of The Winged Hussars, including displays of mounted drill exercises, showcasing the horsemen’s skills with sabres, lances and pistols.

The Hussars were considered to be the elite of the 17th-century Polish cavalry and are renowned for their distinctive winged armour. The wings were traditionally made up of eagle feathers and fixed to wooden frames on the back of the Husarias’ saddles. They were thought to provide an element of psychological warfare, giving the Husaria the look of being superhuman, and in their own words, like ‘winged angels of death’ to their often superstitious enemies.

The Royal Armouries is also pleased to welcome back to Leeds Jarek StruczyÅ„ski, who will be taking part in the shows. Jarek will be known to fans of the museum’s annual Easter Tournament, having taken home the coveted team trophy with his teammate Jan Gradon in 2016.

Commenting on the event, Mark Jackson, Events and Informal Learning Manager, said: “We are very excited about these new events at the Royal Armouries this August Bank Holiday. OurJousting team recently competed in a tournament at Gniew Castle in Poland, and I can tell you from first-hand experience that these guys in Poland know how to put on a show!
“This is the first time The Winged Hussars have performed in the UK and the shows promise to be like nothing you’ve seen before. Complete with magnificent costumes and spectacular military skills, it will certainly be a memorable day out for all of the family.”

The Royal Armouries is especially grateful to the Polish Cultural Institute in its support for the event. Paulina Latham, Head of Events and Visual Arts at the Institute, added: “The Polish Cultural Institute is delighted to support this event, it’s great to see our traditions and history brought to a city like Leeds where there’s such a thriving Polish community. The Winged Hussars are an important part of our cultural heritage and we hope to see more events like this in the future.”

The shows will round-off the museum’s ‘Dangerous Arts’ summer programme, where the public will be given a unique insight into how the museum’s collections are brought to life through combat demonstrations, have-a-go sessions, dramatic performances and museum tours.

Tickets for The Winged Hussar Horse Shows can be purchased at: https://royalarmouries.org/events/calendar/2017-08-26/the-w

To find out more about the programme of events at the Royal Armouries museum this summer, visit:

www.royalarmouries.org
www.twitter.com/royal_armouries

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Notes to editors

Further enquiries to: Katie Canning, Communications Officer, Royal Armouries at katie.canning@armouries.org.uk Telephone: 0113 220 1978, Mobile: 07810 364571

Entry to the museum is free but some activities carry a small charge.

– Royal Armouries has sites in Leeds, HM Tower of London and Fort Nelson in Hampshire.
– The Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds houses a major part of the national collection of arms and armour, and displays over 8,500 objects throughout its five themed galleries.
– Open all year daily, 10am-5pm. Closed 24-26 December
– Website: www.royalarmouries.org
– The Royal Armouries Museum should not be confused with Royal Armouries International plc, the private sector corporate hospitality business based on the same site in Leeds.