I always see in movies where the generals/kings/leaders are along side their army, in the thick of the action fighting along side their soldiers. Now I know to take movies with a grain of salt in terms of historical value, but did this actually happen? I just can't seem to picture kings getting in the action of the battles. Are there any accounts of very highly ranked individuals, even royalty fighting with their army?
Yes, accounts of leaders/royalty fighting are very common (at least in the medieval period). I went over a few examples in this comment. There are also plenty of examples from antiquity, but I'll leave those for someone else if they would like to comment.
For larger conflicts, it was very common for kings and royalty to fight. They were usually trained knights, after all. It was important to have a reputation as being personally skilled in arms as well as a great commander. After all, how could a monarch expect his men to die for him if he never risked himself? To continue with the example of Crecy I used above, Philip VI of France narrowly avoided being captured after being wounded several times, which indicates that he was a very active participant in the hand-to-hand fighting. King John the Blind of Bohemia was famously slain at Crecy, after lashing his horse to two of his knights' horses. I wouldn't say that kings dying in battle was exactly common, but it was definitely a possibility and something they were all well aware of when they went to war. Off the top of my head, Richard I of England was killed by an infected wound from a crossbow bolt during a siege in 1199 CE. James II of Scotland was killed by an exploding cannon during a siege in 1460. James III was killed in battle against his rebellious son in 1488. James IV was killed by an English arrow or a bill in the Battle of Flodden Field in 1513.
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Did leaders participate in battles?
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