1500-1700

Question 1

How the composition of the army had changed?

Answer 1

• 3:1 infantry to cavalry
• changes arose as training was needed for new weapons , such as muskets and cannons, and armies became more professional
• artillery trains slowed down , increased in size and importance and field artillery improved

Question 2

What did armies still include?

Answer 2

-cavalry , infantry and artillery. Assisted by labourers , engineers and baggage trains for supplies

Question 3

What is cavalry’s role in the battle now?

Answer 3

Continued specialist roles, but were no longer the decisive force in the battle:

• it harassed the enemy with pistols and skirmished with enemy cavalry
• mounted charge was little used until it reemerged during the english civil wars
• dragoons (mounted infantry) took on the role of the mounted archer until 1700

Question 4

What was the role of the infantry now?

Answer 4

Became dominants as result of new weapons and tactics , and was divided into two key roles:

• musketeers gradually replaced archers
• armoured pikemen increasingly fought in large , disciplined squares or columns

Question 5

How the government role changed during this period?

Answer 5

Rulers increasingly used taxes to pay for hiring soldiers. The use of mercenaries also increased. Soldiers owed loyalty to the mercenary leader who recruited them , as they had to their feudal lord previously.

Question 6

What were standing armies ?

Answer 6

A permanent force of full time, professional soldiers. They gave rulers a lot of power and ensured that troops were well trained.

Question 7

What led to a standing army?

Answer 7

Before civil war , england did not have a standing army. Parliament controlled taxes, and a standing army was very expensive . Parliament also feared a standing army would make the king too powerful. However during the civil war , parliament set up a standing army

Question 8

Who was Oliver Cromwell?

Answer 8

Key in setting up the new model army and became the head of its cavalry. Its command structure was not traditional. Cromwell emphasised the importance of ability and previous battlefield success over social status . The cavalry he recruited and trained formed the new models army’s cavalry.

Question 9

What were the strategy and tactics during this period?

Answer 9

Pikemen could stop a cavalry charge , but were easy targets. Pikemen and musketeers had to act together to be effective. It took a lot of training to change formations at need. Under cavalry attack ,pikemen formed a square around the musketeers. By 1600 , squares were replaced by lines of musketeers that provided a volley of fire

Question 10

Why was the new model army created?

Answer 10

1639-40, limitations in english militia exposed during scottish occupation of the north of england

Question 11

When was the new model army created?

Answer 11

1645, parliament forms it , a professional national army to win the civil war

Question 12

When did Cromwell become protector of england?

Answer 12

1648 , the standing army was retained

Question 13

How did the king returning in 1660-1688 effect the model army?

Answer 13

Army continues to be retained due to the constant threat of war.

Question 14

What happened to the new model army from 1688 onwards?

Answer 14

Army renewed each year to maintain principle of no standing army

Question 15

How the new model army effected politics ?

Answer 15

Between 1645 and 1660, the new model army interfered in politics and government . After 1660, the memory of this meant it took about a century to agree to formalise a standing army in 1775.

Question 16

What weapon rose in use during this period?

Answer 16

The musket

Question 17

When were fire arms developed?

Answer 17

1400s

Question 18

When did the musket begin to replace the long bow?

Answer 18

By 1550

Question 19

How did developments in technology help the musket replace the long bow?

Answer 19

New high carbon steel armour was mostly arrow proof but armour could be pierced by muskets. Mass production of bullets meant they were available to issue to any soldier. You could store thousands in a barrel , unlike arrows, which were expensive and highly crafted

Question 20

How did changes in society help the rise of the musket?

Answer 20

Growth of towns and changes in farming methods reduced the number of archers able to train . It took years of practice to make a successful bow man not so with the musket, which took days.

Question 21

How changes in thinking led to the rise of the musket?

Answer 21

Reports of musketeers defeating pikemen in battle led to changes in tactics

Question 22

How did henry VIII effect then increase in muskets?

Answer 22

Received battle reporte outlining the success pf german muskets against Swiss pikemen , previously unbeatable in european warfare. This led to an increase in use of fire arms

Question 23

What was the wheel lock pistol?

Answer 23

Developed by the 1540s, a smaller firearms , suitable for use by cavalry.

Question 24

What happened to armour and lances during this period?

Answer 24

Lances were replaced with pistols and swords and armour was gradually abandoned as improved firepower made it redundant.

Question 25

Cavalry tactics during this period?

Answer 25

Road close to the enemy firing in complex manoeuvres before withdrawing to reload. Use of the charges declined. Dragoons armed with arquebuses or smaller muskets were used to skirmish and threaten an enemies flank.

Question 26

What was the first muskets?

Answer 26

Matchlock

Question 27

What was the matchlock musket?

Answer 27

• dangerous near gunpowder due to its exposed match flame
• unreliable in rain as the match could go out
• visible at night due to the exposed glow.

Question 28

What replaced the matchlock musket?

Answer 28

The flintlock muskets by the 1690s

Question 29

What firearm emerged by the 1660s?

Answer 29

The plug bayinet

Question 30

What replaced the pike by 1705?

Answer 30

The pike had replaced the socket bayonet , converting musketeers into melee combatants so troops no longer needed to be split into two separate roles and wasted..

Question 31

How the rising power of the cannon was weakened?

Answer 31

• new engineering methods led to stronger defensive walls as protections.
• from the 1530s england spent vast sums constructing new style defences
• low,thick,earth filled walls met blows from cannon balls without shattering.
• walls were angled, so cannon balls would bounce off without damaging them
• bastions provided defensive positions for the return of cannon fire.

Question 32

What had been the system of recruitment up until 1645?

Answer 32

Statute of winchester

Question 33

What did the statute of Winchester state?

Answer 33

-all men aged 16-60 serve in their local area . They were forced into serving
-men provided their own weapons and general musters were held every couple of years for inspection and training
-king appointed lords lieutenant to command each county militia
in 1573, trained bands were set up from the local militia and met monthly for training by muster masters

Question 34

What happened to the muster masters?

Answer 34

In the 1580s, muster masters were professional soldiers. Through the 1590s, they were replaced by local gentlemen, who resented taking orders from ‘lowly’ professionals

Question 35

What was created in 1645?

Answer 35

Parliament raised a national volunteer army, with regular pay , that allowed successful soldiers to be promoted to command positions. After the civil war , the volunteer army continued.

Question 36

Cavalry in the new model army?

Answer 36

• 6600 cavalry were raised from existing forces : a well trained and disciplined force that remained under control in battle.
• they received 24 pence a day but had to provide for themselves
• they were instrumental in victory, as they held together to charge and finish an attack.
• 1000 dragoons were also raised from existing forces

Question 37

Infantry in the new model army?

Answer 37

• 14400 infantry men were raised , half from existing forces and half pressed.
• they received 8 pence a day, the same as a labourer
• during 1645, desertion rates were high and 14500 men were pressed , yet the army remained under strength

Question 38

What was the NMA uniform?

Answer 38

Introduced the red coat which later became the colour used by the british army; previously each regiment wore the colour of their colonel . This caused confusion on the battlefield. The lack of clear uniform also made it easier for soldiers to desert.

Question 39

How training changed during this period?

Answer 39

New weapons and tactics required discipline and training : hundreds of men needed to act as one , while under fire. Early muskets were complicated to load and fire, and musketeers were trained to fight in rows or ranks. They also had to learn to work together with pikemen

Question 40

Impact of war on civilians before the civil war ?

Answer 40

• merchants ships were requisitioned for the navy to transport soldiers and supplies
• requisition of horses and supplies disrupted businesses and led to shortages
• taxes increased and trade reduced , so civilians faced higher taxes and lower earnings, together with rising prices .
• damage to civilian property was generally limited to the scottish borders and coastal regions, where there was fighting

Question 41

Impact of warfare on civilians during the civil war?

Answer 41

• requisitioning of ships and supplies continued.
• plunder(stealing from civilians) was very common , due to lack of pay and supplies
• free quarter-armies forced communities to feed and house troops , leaving an IOU behind
• both sides spent a lot and collected high taxes from the areas they controlled
• armies could ruin crops, but sieges caused even more damage. At least 55000 people were made homeless during the civil wars and many castles were partially destroyed.

Question 42

When was the battle fo naseby?

Answer 42

1645

Question 43

How was the battle of naseby set up?

Answer 43

• infantry engage at the centre , royalists have the edge
• parliamentary cavalry , under Cromwell , beat back the royalists but keep the discipline to engage infantry flank and tip the balance.
• royalists cavalry on west flank drive off the parliamentarians and attack artillery train.

Question 44

How many parliamentarians and royalists at the battle of naseby?

Answer 44

12500 royalists

17000 parliamentarians

Question 45

What did naseby show about the NMA?

Answer 45

Showed its strength compared to the royalist army

Question 46

How the choice and use of the battleground affected the battle of naseby?

Answer 46

Parliamentarians positioned themselves on one side of a valley. Fairfax made good use of the terrain.
-centre, broad moor, was a large , open expanse of common land, ideal for cavalry
-his western flank was protected by a hedgerow, his eastern flank by ground that was hard to cross
-he kept his men behind a ridge, out of sight of the enemy , to help morale
-their high position gave a tactical advantage as prince Rupert was unwilling to engage musket and artillery fire head on.
Cromwell persuaded fairfax to advance into a weaker position to tempt the royalists into attacking up the slope.

Question 47

The role of training and tactics in the battle of naseby ?

Answer 47

1) NMA advance over the ridge to engage the royalists as they climb the slop
2) prince Rupert royalist cavalry drive off their fore, but lose discipline and raid the baggage train for plunder
3) NMA infantry hold the centre losing ground, as their frontline breaks
4) NMA , cavalry drive their foes, but Cromwell keeps them under control
5) cromwells cavalry attack the flanks and rear of the royalist infantry, While fairfax counterattacks at the centre. The royalists break
6. Cromwells cavarly pursues the remaining royalist cavalry.

Question 48

Who were the leaders of the parliamentarians and why were they good?

Answer 48

Fairfax: was inspirational general who fought alongside his men. He led the infantry in the counterattack at the centre, gaining a vital advantage
Cromwell: believed NMA officers should be the best soldiers. He had recruited an trained the best cavalry in the war

Question 49

Who were the leaders for the royalists and what did they do wrong?

Answer 49

King charles and prince Rupert:

• they underestimated the enemy , believing they could win though outnumbered
• they wanted a speedy victory before the NMA could join the scots , so they did not wait for reinforcements before fighting
• prince Rupert wasted his advantage on the west; he lacked control of his cavalry