The Osprey on the Knights of Christ has a plate showing a spearman in the employ of the Hospitallers equipped in a basic fashion with the addition of a black shield with a white cross in the upper right corner.
This raises the question as to whether the foot hired by the Templars would have done the same? If so, then would the shield be white with the red cross in the corner or in keeping with the manner in which Templar Sergeants were equpped a brown of black shield with a red cross.
As the religious orders provided a significant proportion of the troops in Later Crusader armies I am painting up some SP for their contingent and it would be nice to be reasonably accurate with the shields.
On a further note, the Minifig Hospitaller Knight figures are equipped with sugar loaf great helms. Based on the chronologies on helmet development this appears to put them in the period after the color change from black to red for Hospitaller surcoats and cloaks. This also appears to make them more suitable for the later Knights of Rhodes.
Has anyone looked in this?
P.S. In the Osprey on the Hospitallers the author questions whether the Templars fielded any infantry at all. Anyone have information on that as well?
