Talk:Garron

Tranter/Macbeth the King
Nigel Tranter is normally spot-on with historical details and the description of garrons as "larger war horses used by knights wearing heavy armour" seems unlikely, unless this is just in comparison to an even smaller horse and heavy armour was not very heavy in that period. I wonder if this is a misinterpretation of the book. His usage of the term in other books seems more conventional (e.g. "the shaggy short-legged garron" in Black Douglas). I've only ever heard birlinn (or birlin/birling) used for a type of galley or large rowing boat. Mutt Lunker (talk) 11:24, 28 April 2013 (UTC)

Having checked mentions of the term in the book there is no basis for this interpretation. The only comparison contrasts "a tall, white horse, no Highland garron". All mentions of the term "birlinn" are correctly to the vessel. Mutt Lunker (talk) 23:00, 12 February 2014 (UTC)