Infantry in the Middle Ages - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Despite the rise of knightly cavalry in the 11th Century, infantry played an important role throughout the Middle Ages on both the battlefield and in sieges. From the 14th Century onwards, there was a rise in the prominence of infantry forces, sometimes referred to as an "infantry revolution".

Cost and recruitment: the growth of infantry

The rising costs of war

In the medieval period, the mounted warrior held sway for an extended time. Typically heavily armour

Armour

Armour or armor is protective covering used to prevent damage from being inflicted to an object, individual or a vehicle through use of direct contact weapons or projectiles, usually during combat, or from damage caused by a potentially dangerous environment or action...

ed, well motivated and mounted on powerful, specially bred horses

Horses in the Middle Ages

Horses in the Middle Ages differed in size, build and breed from the modern horse, and were, on average, smaller. They were also more central to society than their modern counterparts, being essential for war, agriculture, and transport....

, the mounted knight represented a formidable force, which was used to effect against more lightly armoured troops. Since only the noble classes could afford the expense of knightly warfare, the supremacy of the mounted cavalryman was associated with the hierarchical structure of Medieval times, particularly feudalism

Feudalism

Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...

. As the period progressed however, the dominance of the cavalry elite began to slowly break down as the years passed. The Black Death

Black Death

The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...

in the 14th century swept through Europe creating devastating losses but also causing manpower shortages. This encouraged more economical use of available manpower, and the infantry man was much cheaper to outfit and maintain than the aristocratic knight. The Crusade era also saw a rise in the importance of infantry, and required large numbers of men and material to be organized for distant battlefields. Such expeditions were part of the growing number of sieges, disputes and campaigns throughout the 13th and 14th centuries that greatly increased the cost of warfare for medieval regimes. The relative inexpensiveness of the infantryman, and shortages of manpower provided incentives for expanding their use.

Recruitment

The most common infantry throughout the early medieval period were nobles and emporers who were obliged to fight for the local lord, due to their place in the feudal system. They were usually unarmoured and fought either with simple agricultural tools such as axes

Axes

Axes may refer to:* Axes, woodworking hand tools* The plural of axis* Axes , a 2005 rock album by the British band Electrelane* X and Y axes, or X, Y, and Z axes, perpendicular lines used in the Cartesian coordinate system...

, forks and flails, or with a spear

Spear

A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...

and shield

Shield

A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....

. In some circumstances they were expected to bring and maintain their own equipment. At other times they were outfitted by the lord or king they fought for. These men were essentially conscripts and as such their discipline, morale and fighting ability varied greatly. Generally those fighting to protect their homeland were far more motivated than those that were fighting abroad. As the Medieval period progressed however with its constant warfare, this pattern began to change, The growth of urban centres opened up new sources of infantry recruits, particularly men with skills in fighting. The era saw the expansion of free mercenary forces, unbound to any medieval lord. The Swiss pikeman, the German Landsknecht

Landsknecht

Landsknechte were European, predominantly German mercenary pikemen and supporting foot soldiers from the late 15th to the late 16th century, and achieved the reputation for being the universal mercenary of Early modern Europe.-Etymology:The term is from German, Land "land, country" + Knecht...

, and the Italian Condottiere are three of the best known examples of this new class of fighting man. The expanded campaigns, castle-building and sieges of the era also saw greater use of household troops, often bodyguards of the elite, with a variety of useful skills. These were cheaper to recruit and maintain than the heavy expense of knights and all their trappings. Siege warfare in particular required large bodies of troops in the field, for extended periods of time, including numerous specialists. The early days of peasant levies became unsustainable. As more elites turned to infantry, their opponents had to keep pace, leading to additional increases in foot troops. To obtain the best fighting men, elites had to make provision for their regular payment and supply. As one history of medieval warfare notes:

Organisation

The importance of good order was well understood in medieval warfare
Militia forces were often organised by guilds or districts, with their own officers and banners. Swiss muster rolls show officers and standard bearers being appointed, and men being assigned to particular positions in the formation Various accounts show that it was the role of commanders to make sure their men knew their position in the formation, knew which banners they fought under and who stood around them.

Infantry formations

Philippe Contamine

Philippe Contamine, born 7 May 1932 in Metz, is a French historian of the Middle Ages who specialises in military history and the history of the nobility....

identifies three basic infantry formations in the Middle Ages; the wall, the circle or crescent and the deep solid formation, either rectangular or triangular.

The wall

Linear formations existed throughout the medieval period. In the early Middle Ages, infantry used the Shieldwall, a formation where shields were held edge-to-edge or overlapped, but lines persisted beyond the widespread abandonment of shields in the later Middle Ages. Lines could vary in depth from four to sixteen deep and were drawn up tightly packed.

The circle

This formation, called by J.F. Verbruggen the crown, was used by infantry to form an all round defence against cavalry. It is recorded as having been used by Flemings, Swiss, Scots and Scandinavians.

Deep formations

Deep columns were favoured by the Swiss. A reconstruction of the deployment of Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

forces in 1443 gives a formation 56 men wide by 20 deep, the formation having a width of 168 ft. and a depth of 140 ft. The Swiss main formation at the Battle of Morat

Battle of Morat

The Battle of Morat was a battle in the Burgundian Wars fought June 22, 1476 between Charles I, Duke of Burgundy and a Swiss army at Morat, about 30 kilometres from Bern.-Background:...

consisted of 10,000 men, the outer four ranks being made up of pikemen, the inner ranks of halberdiers, the force having an estimated area of 60m. X 60m.

Triangular formations were also used, this sometimes being described as "in the manner of a shield" (L. in modum scuti). Wedge shaped formations were used by the Vikings under the name of a "swine wedge" (ON svinfylka). The Swiss also sometimes used a keil or wedge of pikes to lead their columns.

Infantry versus cavalry

Tactically there were only two ways for infantry to beat cavalry in an open field battle: firepower and mass. Firepower could be provided by swarms of missile

Missile

Though a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...

s. Mass could be provided by a tightly packed phalanx

Phalanx formation

The phalanx is a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar weapons...

of men. Such tactics were long-established; the Romans

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

used missile troops such as slingers, and the core infantry learned to deal with swarming enemy cavalrymen by forming a hollow square

Infantry square

An infantry square is a combat formation an infantry unit forms in close order when threatened with cavalry attack.-Very early history:The formation was described by Plutarch and used by the Romans, and was developed from an earlier circular formation...

fenced with a solid hedge of iron pila

Pilum

The pilum was a javelin commonly used by the Roman army in ancient times. It was generally about two metres long overall, consisting of an iron shank about 7 mm in diameter and 60 cm long with pyramidal head...

(large javelins). Alexander the Great combined both methods in his clashes with the Asiatic horseman of Persia and India, screening his central infantry phalanx with slingers, archers and javelin-men, before unleashing his cavalry against the enemy. Both mass and firepower could be aided by a good tactical position, such as on a hill or on rough terrain, where enemy cavalry would have trouble manoeuvring.These ancient lessons were relearned in the Medieval period;in the Crusades,in the continued operations of forces like the Flemish footman and particularly the Swiss Pikeman and the English Longbowman.

The Crusades offer an illustration of the growing recognition of the need for infantry. Against the mounted foes of Islam, infantry forces were of vital importance. Archers for example were essential in holding the fast-moving Muslim cavalry at bay—suppressing their firepower, and allowing the armoured knights to mount successful counter-attacks. Pikemen were important in screening the flanks of the Christian forces, always vulnerable to assault by the Turkish horsemen. Against Saladin's light cavalry at Jaffa

Battle of Jaffa

The Battle of Jaffa took place during the Crusades, as one of a series of campaigns between Saladin's army and the forces of King Richard the Lionheart. It was the final battle of the Third Crusade, after which Saladin and King Richard were able to negotiate a truce...

(c. 1192) during the Crusades, Richard of England drew up a line of spearmen, kneeling on the ground with spear planted in front, forming a hedge of steel against the charging enemy horsemen. Behind the spear wall, crossbowmen stood ready, with assistants helping to reload. The Muslim armies attacked but the combined firepower of the archers and the steadiness of the wall of spears held. Once the Muslims pulled back, Richard ordered his armoured knights forward, and Saladin withdrew. At the battle of Courtrai in 1302, the determined Flemish infantry staked out a good position on advantageous ground (cut up with streams and ditches) and stood firm against the cavalry charge of the French nobles using their pikes and wooden Goedendag
Goedendag
The goedendag was a weapon originally used by the militias of Medieval Flanders in the 14th century. It was essentially a combination of a club with a spear. Its body was a wooden staff roughly five feet long with a diameter of roughly four inches...

, a combination spear and club. The French charge was stopped and the Flemish infantry then moved forward to liquidate the opposition. At Bannockburn

Battle of Bannockburn

The Battle of Bannockburn was a significant Scottish victory in the Wars of Scottish Independence...

, the Scots fighters dug numerous pits to foil the English cavalry, blunted the English advance, then counter-attacked with their pike army to soundly defeat their opponents. These and other examples illustrate the importance of trained infantry, but the dominance of the footman did not come overnight. Both cavalryman and infantryman continued to operate for long periods side by side throughout the Medieval period.

Infantry versus infantry

The essential elements of success in infantry combat were seen as good order and a tight formation, not impetus. During the Hundred Years War, it was considered disadvantageous for infantry to be forced to attack. If infantry were forced to advance to the attack, it should be at a slow, steady pace and without turning. The actual mechanics of impact are not, however, fully understood. In his reconstruction of the infantry fight at Agincourt

Battle of Agincourt

The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...

, John Keegan

John Keegan

Sir John Keegan OBE FRSL is a British military historian, lecturer, writer and journalist. He has published many works on the nature of combat between the 14th and 21st centuries concerning land, air, maritime, and intelligence warfare, as well as the psychology of battle.-Life and career:John...

describes the French as running to contact over the final yards but the English stepping back to "wrong foot" them. The English gave back a "spear's length", leaving the two bodies spear fencing at a distance of 10–15 ft.
. This idea of a space between the battlelines in which combat takes place also features in some reconstructions of shieldwall combat Others see the clash of shieldwalls as involving physical impact of one line with the other.

While it was known for a poorly arrayed line to disintegrate on contact with the enemy, it was more usual for a static battle to ensue and last for some time. Combat was not constant, the two sides parting to rest and reorganise. This could happen several times during a combat. When it wasn't possible, an infantry force could become compressed and disordered with disastrous consequences, as happened at Agincourt

Battle of Agincourt

and Westrozebeke

Battle of Roosebeke

The Battle of Roosebeke took place on November 27, 1382 on the Goudberg between a Flemish army under Philip van Artevelde and a French army under Louis II of Flanders who had called upon the help of the French king Charles VI after he had suffered a defeat during the Battle of Beverhoutsveld...

The role of archery

The traditional role of archery on the medieval battlefield was to begin the action, advancing in front of the main body of the army, as occurred at the Hastings

Battle of Hastings

The Battle of Hastings occurred on 14 October 1066 during the Norman conquest of England, between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and the English army under King Harold II...

This continued to be a standard tactic, particularly in the absence of enemy cavalry. The Swiss crossbowmen and handgunners of the 15th. century were notable for their aggressive skirmishing in advance of the main army, e.g. at Morat

Battle of Morat

The Battle of Morat was a battle in the Burgundian Wars fought June 22, 1476 between Charles I, Duke of Burgundy and a Swiss army at Morat, about 30 kilometres from Bern.-Background:...

.
To protect archers, particularly crossbowmen, against enemy archers, they were often deployed behind men with large shields, called pavises. This technique is first noted during the Crusades in 12th. Century, for example at Jaffa

Battle of Jaffa

but was particularly common in Italy in the later Middle Ages.
Later in the Middle Ages, massed archery techniques were developed. English and Welsh longbowmen in particular were famed for the volume and accuracy of their shooting, to which cavalry and poorly armoured infantry were particularly vulnerable.

The role of infantry in sieges

The large number of sieges during the medieval era called for huge numbers of infantry in the field, both in defence and in attack. Aside from labour units to construct defensive or offensive works, several specialists were deployed such as artillerymen, engineers and miners. Strongly fortified castles were hard to overcome. The simplest, most effective method was blockade and starvation. Artillery in the form of catapult, siege engines and later gunpowder weapons played an important role in reducing fortified positions. Mining beneath walls, shoring up the tunnel then collapsing it was also used. Defenders employed counter-tactics- using their own artillery, missile weapons, and counter mines against attacking forces. Against sieges cavalry men were not as valuable as footmen, and a large number of such troops was also used in the construction of fortifications. Free mercenary forces such as the Condottiere generally attempted to defeat their foes in open field battle or manoeuvre, but also participated in sieges, adding to the specialist ranks that bolstered the growing dominance of infantry.

Swiss pikemen

The use of long pikes

Pike (weapon)

A pike is a pole weapon, a very long thrusting spear used extensively by infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as a counter-measure against cavalry assaults. Unlike many similar weapons, the pike is not intended to be thrown. Pikes were used regularly in European warfare from the...

and densely packed foot troops was not uncommon during the Middle Ages. The Flemish

County of Flanders

The County of Flanders was one of the territories constituting the Low Countries. The county existed from 862 to 1795. It was one of the original secular fiefs of France and for centuries was one of the most affluent regions in Europe....

footmen at the Battle of Courtrai, for example, as shown above, met and overcame the French knights circa 1302, and the Scots occasionally used the technique against the English during the Wars of Scottish Independence

Wars of Scottish Independence

The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of military campaigns fought between the independent Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late 13th and early 14th centuries....

. However, it was the Swiss

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

that brought infantry and pike tactics to an extremely high standard.

Morale, mobility and motivation

Rather than reluctant peasant levies dragooned into service by the local lords, the Swiss often fought as volunteer mercenaries for pay throughout Europe. Historical records indicate that the hard-marching Swiss pikemen managed to keep pace with cavalry units at times, if only in the confined terrain of the Alpine regions. Such mobility is outstanding but not unknown among foot soldiers. Roman records mention Germanic infantrymen trotting with cavalry, sometimes resting their hands on the horses for support. Centuries later, the fast moving Zulu impis in Southern Africa made their mark, reputedly achieving an outstanding march rate of 50 miles per day. Using their mobility, the Swiss were frequently able to overcome contemporary mounted or infantry forces. Swiss pikemen were also generally known as highly motivated, tough-minded soldiers, with little respect for knightly trappings. In several historical accounts, the Swiss refused to retreat and stood and fought to the last man, even when greatly outnumbered, or facing a hopeless outcome.

Weapons and equipment

The Swiss utilized more effective versions of pike weapons, including the use of cutting blades and hooks (the halberd

Halberd

A halberd is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm , and Barte - in modern-day German, the weapon is called Hellebarde. The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on...

). These were excellent for dealing with mounted assaults. Rather than simply meet a lance

Lance

A Lance is a pole weapon or spear designed to be used by a mounted warrior. The lance is longer, stout and heavier than an infantry spear, and unsuited for throwing, or for rapid thrusting. Lances did not have tips designed to intentionally break off or bend, unlike many throwing weapons of the...

, a cavalryman facing the Swiss could expect to deal with sharp points and slashing blows that could cleave his armour. Some pikes had hooks that could drag an enemy horseman from his mount. Pike weapons were considered "unchivalrous" by some of the knightly class, but the practical Swiss had little concern for such sentiments. Pike weapons were sometimes mixed in combat, with thrusting spearmen in the front franks, and slashing halberd men deployed further back, after the thrusters had delivered the initial shock treatment. The Swiss wore little armour, unlike the ancient phalanx warriors of old, dispensing with greave

Greave

A greave is a piece of armour that protects the leg.-Description:...

s or shield, and donning only a helmet and a relatively light reinforced corselet

Corselet

A corselet or corselette is a type of foundation garment, sharing elements of both brassieres and girdles. It may incorporate lace in front or in back...

Manoeuvre and formations

In numerous battles prior to the rise of the Swiss, it was not uncommon for pikemen to group together and await a mounted attack. Such an approach is sensible in certain circumstances, particularly if the phalanx occupies a strong position secured by terrain features. The downside is that it allows the attacking force more initiative. At the Battle of Falkirk

Battle of Falkirk (1298)

The Battle of Falkirk, which took place on 22 July 1298, was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence...

, the Scots pikemen managed to hold off their cavalry opponents, but were caught in a static position, providing targets for the English longbow

Longbow

A longbow is a type of bow that is tall ; this will allow its user a fairly long draw, at least to the jaw....

. The Swiss, though by no means the creators of pike tactics, improved on them by adding flexible formations and aggressive manoeuvre.

A typical pike force was divided into three sections or columns. The Swiss were flexible in their dispositions – each section could operate independently or combine with others for mutual support. They could form a hollow square for all round defence. They could advance in echelon or in a triangular "wedge" assault. They could manoeuvre to mount wing attacks – with one column pinning the foe centrally, while a second echelon struck the flanks They could group in depth on a strong natural position like a hill. Even more disconcerting to their opponents, the Swiss attacked and manoeuvred aggressively. They did not await the mounted men, but themselves took the initiative, forcing their opponents to respond to their moves. It was a formula that brought them much battlefield success.

The famous Swiss hollow square provided for a vanguard group of blademen using slashing halberds or two-handed swords to break the front of cavalry formations. Bowmen and crossbowmen sometimes preceded the main body also as to provide missile cover, and similar contingents protected the flanks. The main force of pikemen advanced behind this screen. Battle was bloody and direct, and the Swiss killed any opponent regardless of knightly status. At the battle of Murten in the 1477, the Swiss demonstrated that the square was not a static formation but could be used aggressively. Deployment of the vanguard, main body and rearguard was staggered in echelon, massing 10,000 men in a very small area (60 by 60 meters). The opposition was liquidated.

Effectiveness of the Swiss

The Swiss won a series of spectacular victories throughout Europe, helping to bring down the feudal order over the time, including victories at Morgarten, Laupen

Laupen

There are places that have the name Laupen:In Switzerland:* Laupen, Bern, a municipality in the Canton of Bern* Laupen , the administrative district including that municipality...

, Sempach

Sempach

Sempach is a municipality in the district of Sursee in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland.-History:It has retained some traces of its medieval appearance, especially the main gateway, beneath a watch tower, and reached by a bridge over the old moat.About half an hour distant to the north-east, on...

, and Granson. In some engagements the Swiss phalanx included crossbowmen, giving the formation a missile stand-off capability. Such was their effectiveness, that between 1450 and 1550 every leading prince in Europe either hired Swiss pikemen, or emulated their tactics and weapons (such as the German Landsknecht

Landsknecht

). Even the Swiss however were not invincible. They could be beaten when confronted with a flexible force of swordsmen (as almost happened at Arbedo in 1422) and the advent of firearms made the hitherto unbreakable Swiss square extremely vulnerable.

English longbowmen

The English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

longbowman brought a new effectiveness to European battlefields, not hitherto known widely for native archery. Also unusual was the type of bow used. Whereas Asian forces typically relied on the powerful multi-piece, multi-layered composite bow, the English relied on the single-piece longbow which delivered a stinging warhead of respectable range and punch.

Longbows and archers

In the British Isles

British Isles

The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...

, bows have been known from ancient times, but it was among the tribal Welsh

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

that proficiency in use and construction became highly developed. Using their bows, the Welsh forces took a heavy toll on the English invaders of their lands. Adapted by the English, the longbow was nevertheless a difficult weapon to master, requiring long years of use and practice. Even bow construction was extended, sometimes taking as much as 4 years for seasoned staves to be prepared and shaped for final deployment. A skilled longbowman could shoot 12 arrow

Arrow

An arrow is a shafted projectile that is shot with a bow. It predates recorded history and is common to most cultures.An arrow usually consists of a shaft with an arrowhead attached to the front end, with fletchings and a nock at the other.- History:...

s a minute, a rate of fire superior to competing weapons like the crossbow

Crossbow

A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots projectiles, often called bolts or quarrels. The medieval crossbow was called by many names, most of which derived from the word ballista, a torsion engine resembling a crossbow in appearance.Historically, crossbows played a...

or early gunpowder weapons. The nearest competitor to the longbow was the much more expensive crossbow or Arbalest

Arbalest

The arbalest was a late variation of the medieval European crossbow. A large weapon, the arbalest had a steel prod . Since an arbalest was much larger than earlier crossbows, and because of the greater compressive strength of steel, it had a greater force...

, used often by urban militias and mercenary forces. It required less training but lacked the range of the longbow. A cheap "low class" weapon, considered "unchivalrous" by those unlucky enough to face it, the longbow outperformed the crossbow in the hands of skilled archers, and was to transform several battlefields in Europe.

The longbow on the battlefield

Longbowmen were used to great effect on the continent of Europe, as assorted kings and leaders clashed with their enemies on the battlefields of France. The most famous of these battles were Crecy, Poitiers

Battle of Poitiers (1356)

The Battle of Poitiers was fought between the Kingdoms of England and France on 19 September 1356 near Poitiers, resulting in the second of the three great English victories of the Hundred Years' War: Crécy, Poitiers, and Agincourt....

and Agincourt

Battle of Agincourt

. The English tactical system relied on a combination of longbowmen and heavy infantry, such as dismounted men-at-arms. Difficult to deploy in a thrusting mobile offensive, the longbow was best used in a defensive configuration. Against mounted enemies the bowmen took up a defensive position, and unleashed clouds of arrows into the ranks of knights and men-at-arms. The ranks of the bowmen were extended in thin lines and protected and screened by pits (e.g.Crecy), stakes

Archer's stake

An archer's stake was an anti-cavalry defence used by longbowmen in the 15th and 16th centuries.-Origins:At the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396 Turkish archers were stationed behind a barrier of stakes...

(e.g.Agincourt) or trenches (e.g. Morlaix

Battle of Morlaix

The Battle of Morlaix was a battle fought in Morlaix on 30 September 1342 between England and France. The English besieged the town, but a French relief force arrived, forcing the English to flee into the woods. The French force then withdrew...

). There is some academic controversy about how the longbowmen and heavy infantry related on the battlefield. According to the traditional view articulated by A.H. Burne, the bowmen were deployed in a "V" between divisions of infantry, enabling them to trap and enfilade their foes. Other, more recent, historians such as Matthew Bennett

Matthew Bennett (historian)

Matthew Bennett is a historian specialising in Medieval warfare. He holds the post of Senior Lecturer in the Department of Communication and Applied Behavioural Science at The Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, UK, where he has taught since 1984. He holds a degree in History and an MA in Medieval...

dispute this, holding that the archers were normally deployed on the flanks of the army as a whole, rather than between divisions.

The crossbowman

While the famous English longbowman is better known in popular imagination, the missile troops that caused the most damage in the medieval era were the crossbowmen. The Catholic church tried to outlaw this effective weapon at the Second Lateran Council

Second Council of the Lateran

The Second Council of the Lateran is believed to have been the Tenth Ecumenical Council by Roman Catholics. It was held by Pope Innocent II in April 1139, and was attended by close to a thousand clerics...

in 1139, without much success. The crossbow was constructed initially of wood with steel gradually taking over in the fifteenth century, producing a weapon which had range of 370–500 metres. It shot bolts or quarrel

Quarrel

A quarrel or bolt is the term for the ammunition used in a crossbow. The name "quarrel" is derived from the French carré, "square", referring to the fact that they typically have square heads. Although their length varies, they are typically shorter than traditional arrows.Bolts and arrows have...

s that could pierce most medieval armour. Other advantages of the crossbow were that it did not need extended or expensive training, and crossbows could be maintained and deployed with less trouble. A disadvantage, however, was that it had a complex winding mechanism which meant a much slower rate of fire than the longbow bow. A longbowman could release six shafts in the time it took the crossbowman to release one bolt.This long reload time left the crossbowman vulnerable and exposed. Bowmen often worked with an assistant to help reloading, who was also armed with a spear and a very large shield known as a pavise

Pavise

A pavise is a large convex shield of European origin used to protect the entire body. The pavise was also made in a smaller version for hand to hand combat and for wearing on the back of men-at-arms. It is characterized by its prominent central ridge...

to provide cover for the archer as he reloaded.

The widespread use of the crossbow

The best crossbowmen were considered to come from Genoa

Genoese crossbowmen

The Genoese crossbowmen were a famous military corps of the Middle Ages, which acted both in defence of the Italian city of Genoa, and as mercenaries for other Italian or European powers....

in Italy, parts of Spain and Portugal. In Spain crossbowmen were considered in rank equivalent to a cavalryman. The 14th. century chronicler Ramon Muntaner

Ramon Muntaner

Ramon Muntaner was a Catalan soldier and writer who wrote the Crònica, a chronicle of his life, including his adventures as a commander in the Catalan Company...

believed the Catalans to be the best crossbowmen, because they were capable of maintaining their own weapons.

Crossbow guilds were common in many cities across Europe and crossbow competitions were held. These not only provided a pool of skilled crossbowmen but also reflect social standing of the crossbowmen. Records of the Guild of St. George in Ghent show an organisation of some sophistication, fielding unifomed crossbowmen organised in companies under officers and standard bearers, with support services such as pavise carriers (targedragers) and surgeons. Similarly organised co-fraternities of crossbowmen were present in French towns and cities in the 15th. century. Crossbowmen made up a significant proportion of Italian militias in the 13th. and 14th. century, again organised into units with officers, standards and pavise bearers. In some cities, such as Lucca

Lucca

Lucca is a city and comune in Tuscany, central Italy, situated on the river Serchio in a fertile plainnear the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Lucca...

, they were organised into elite and ordinary classes.

The crossbow on the battlefield

Crossbowmen generally opened a battle by skirmishing ahead of the army, as at the Battle of Courtrai, or were placed to cover the flanks, as at the Battle of Campaldino

Battle of Campaldino

The Battle of Campaldino was a battle between the Guelphs and Ghibellines on 11 June 1289. Mixed bands of pro-papal Guelf forces of Florence and allies, Pistoia, Lucca, Siena and Prato, all loosely commanded by the paid condottiero Amerigo di Narbona with his own professional following, met a...

Infantry and the Medieval military revolution

Ayton and Price identify three components to the so called "military revolution" occurring at the end of the Middle Ages;a rise in the importance of infantry to the detriment of heavy cavalry,increasing use of gunpowder weapons on the battlefield and sieges and social, political and fiscal changes allowing the growth of larger armies. The first of these components to manifest itself was the "infantry revolution", which developed during the 14th. century. Initial victories like Courtrai or Morgarten were strongly dependent on use of terrain but over the course of the century two effective infantry systems developed; the infantry block, armed with spears and polearms, epitomised by the Swiss and the practice of combining dismounted men-at-arms with infantry with ranged weapons, typified by the English longbowman.

It would be wrong to assume that the infantry revolution swept heavy cavalry from the field. Improvements in armour for man and horse allowed cavalry to retain an important role into the sixteenth century. Instead, the three components of revolution identified by Ayton and Price led to a rebalancing of the elements of the medieval tactical system, opening the way for an integrated arms approach in the 16th. century

Other sources

Technology and War: From 2000 BC to Present, 1989, Martin Van Creveld
Martin van Creveld
Martin Levi van Creveld is an Israeli military historian and theorist.Van Creveld was born in the Netherlands in the city of Rotterdam, and has lived in Israel since shortly after his birth. He holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he has...
The Military Revolution: Military innovation and the Rise of The West, 1988, Geoffrey Parker

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