When, in 1954, J.-F. Verbruggen, who studied under Professor F. L. Ganshof at the University of Ghent, published De Krijgskunst in West-Europa in de Middeleeuwen, IXe tot Begin XIVe Eeuw, it was widely regarded as a pathbreaking work. Ultimately, it received two English editions. In his 1956 review of De Krijgskunst, Bryce D. Lyon, America's leading specialist in medieval Flemish history for a half-century, was not uncritical of Verbruggen's treatment of some topics. Nevertheless, he concluded very fairly, “Verbruggen has written military history as it should be written, and the reviewer, for one, looks forward to his next study.”

Lyon has been, and remains, an important scholar in regard to Flemish and especially Anglo-Flemish medieval history. He has maintained very close relations with the Pirenne historical school at Ghent and collaborated with Adriaan Verhulst. Lyon's teacher, Carl Stephenson, studied with Pirenne. Lyon, himself, not only has worked closely and collaborated in various scholarly endeavors with Pirenne's students, e.g. Ganshof, but also with Pirenne's son, an important intellectual figure in his own right. At least two of Lyon's students, including the present author, like Verbruggen, studied with Professor Ganshof. In 1988, a year after the publication of his seminal article, “The Role of Cavalry in Medieval Warfare,” in one of Belgium's most prestigious journals, the University of Ghent awarded Bryce Lyon the degree “Doctor Honoris Causa in de Letteren en Wijsbegeerte” for the ensemble of his contributions to the study of medieval history, in general, and medieval Flemish history in particular.