Miller - Swords for Hire Flashcards
Massacre at Gudbrandsdalen (The Battle of Kringen -ambush by Norwegian peasant militia of Scots mercenaries en route to fight in Sweden in Kalmar War.)
Aside from coupld acounts published in 2nd half C19th, event forgotten in Scotland
But remembered in Norway
Mercenaries
From modern perspective, mercenaries like Alexander Ramsay (col in Swedish army, 1631) were common in C17th Europe
Rulers avoided cost of large standing armies & political cost of conscription.
Instead relied on recruiting fighters only when needed
Mercenaries in European armies
In 1632, at Battle of Lutzen (turning point in 30YW) 80% of Swedish army were non-Swedes.
Similar in HRE army
Practice persisted into C18th. c. 1750:
» French army had >50k foreign soldiers
» Spanish had 28 foreign battalions
» Netherlands had Scots Brigade
» c. 2/3rds Prussian army were not Prussian
Many Irish served as mercenaries (dubbed ‘wild gees’’ coz so many left to join French army in 1690s)
Swiss were common mercenaries. Estimated that one in 8 Swiss men were serving somewhere in Europe in wartime.
Even more Scots might have been under arms as mercenaries, often on opposing sides in same fight.
Scots mercenaries
Loyalty was important. Temporary loyalty to a cause could not be in conflict to loyalty to Scotland
‘Nation’ in the writing of the time of 30YW meant cultural or ethnic identity, rather than a political state.
Some argue soverign nation states were an outcome of 30YW
Before this, most Europeans identified with more local entity: domain, village or city
Scots as fighters
Earned reputation for courage & maintaining loyalty to flag under which they fought. At times showed huge endurance under adversity.
Occasionally, they mutinied in protest at lack of pay/poor conditions
Reputation used to frighten opponents eg
Swedish commander ordered German mercenaries to beat ‘Scots March’ to frighten his Spanish enemy
Shah of Persia asked James VI for troops in 1601.
Exact no. of Scots mercenaries unknown but estimates suggest of up 50k over course of 30YW, 1618 - 1648.
Numbers before & after lower but still significant.
Scotland’s pop est = 1.2 - 1.2M in 1st half C17th meaning approx 1/5th adult male pop experienced military service in Europe, esp in Swedish armies (cf 25% in WWI)
Ordinary people in Europe feared mercenaries but little objection to people hiring themselves as soldiers.
Most tolerated by rulers - and sometimes encouraged as instruments of foreign policy.
Modern view is mercenaries fight for who pays regardless of cause, but C17th mercenaries would have claimed honourable motives
Scots gov only found Scots mercenaries (called ‘wageit men of weare’) a problem if their presence was in conflict with Scotland’s security or international relations.
Gov permitted recruitment for service abroard provided to advance Scotland’s interests.
Recruitment happened under licence, recruiting without official permission was a capital offence.
Sig no. licences issued in 1570s for recruitment to serve in Low Countries - these prohibited poaching of men already in king’s service, assembling recruits on south side of Forth or anywhere within 16 miles of Stirling Castle (fear was of plots to against Stuarts or to seize boy king James VI)
Laws also minimised export of arms, prevented recruits causing trouble before they left & forbade fighting other Scots or serving Catholic rulers against Protestants. But rules often ignored.
Mercenaries causing trouble by sheer numbers clogging up roads or by robbing/bullying ordinary people in England led to rule they had to sail from Scotland.
So worried was Privy Council about mercenary trouble they paid 1000 merks in 1609 to supply and ship Irish soldiers driven ashore at Peterhead en route of Sweden & warned ships on west coast not to give deserters passage to Ireland.
Culture of armed service already existed. Quarterly wappenschaws (periodic muster/review of men under arms) decreed by 1491 Act of Parliament which called on men to keep armour & weapons fit for their status.
Few Scots mercenaries have left details of their reasons for fighting abroad but from evidence, some indication:
» For sons of lairds & noblemen - in keeping with their social station. Usually served as officers.
» Many were younger of illigitimate sons with no hope of inheriting wealth or station (as true of poor as nobility)
» Some fled shame, justice or family problems (eg getting out of an unwanted marriage)
» Peer pressure
» Poverty
» Thirst for adventure
» Example of forebear or sibling. In some extended families a tradition of European service emerged eg Gordons & Leslies. Common in North Sea facing NE Scotland
Many examples of brothers & cousins serving together eg Alexander, Lord Spynie recruited his cousin George Innes of Cotts in Morayshire in 1620s.
Among rank & file soldiers, many had no choice. Recruits raised from estate tenants, or prisoners (go or be hanged)
Honour-seeking was common reason, at every rank. Good reputation earned on battlefield helped raise standing in European society.
Some Scots were esp successful in this.
Men were careful to establish social position from outset. Some carried ‘birth-brieve’ = document setting out parentage & ancestry
Allegiances
Scots mercenaries would have considered they were fighting for honourable reasons related to religious or policital allegiances. Sometimes they were the same thing.
Scots - seen as allies by Protestant regimes. After Refomration, many Scots were zealous in defence of Europeans of same religion
British troops - seen by Danes as ‘helping’ rather than hired troops
But Scotland also had Catholics eg Archibald Campbell, 7th Earl of Argyll, recruited men in 1622 to fight on Spanish side in Low Countries (going agains popular sentiment in Scotland)
Dynastic politics = crucial motivation
In 30YW many Scots officers fighting for House of Stuart, a familiar cause, but test of loyalty for others.
A few mercenaries might have gone just for ££ or to escape famine poverty. Plunder = part & parcel of soldiering but even in its absence, soldiers got fed & clothed. But rank & file soldiers = more likely to die from starvation or plague than wounds
Robert Munro thought it honourable to fight for his king’s daughter (Elizabeth of Bohemia) in Denmark army
Sir Henry Bruce, serving HRE in 1620 resigned as governor of town of Nikolsburg (in modern Czech Republic) to raise regiment in support of Elizabeth against former employer (may have had material reasons too)
Recruitment
Usually done by Privy Council at behest of monarch ie levies were instruments of Stuart foreign policy.
p18 - examples of Privy Council helping by permitting the ‘arrest’ of gypsies & search for men in England,
Council also prevented competition for recruits by stipulating geographical areas for recruiting
Some groups targetted by recruiters (believed to incl deserters & fugitives) formed groups/companies & armed themselves to resist. Sheriffs & bailies duty = jail suspects until status was checked. Skippers warned not to give passage to Ireland.
Some recruits pretended to be servants or apprentices to escape. Anyone who took the recruiter’s shilling was duty bound to military service.
Privy Council issues proclamation against forced recruitment in 1627 but not effective. Some recruiters desperate to fill quotas. At times, protest against forced recruitment was successful (p19 for eg of appeal to Privy Council)
Press gang similarities
Recruitment for European wars shared many characteristics with later activities of press gangs for naval service.
Not always easy to find enough men for mercenary regiments & recruitment was disproportionately of the poor.
Concern about recruiters activites at Edinburgh College (University?) led uppper to start sending their sons to St Andrews, Glasgow or Aberdeen instead.
Recruiters would have been common sight in market places. They used social connections. Also tapped into family links in Highlands (p20) as clan society made raising manpower easier.
But social networks didn’t always produce men - tenants might refuse recruitment of sons or servants
Conditions:
> > journey to continent dangerous (p21). Bad weather wrecked ships/prevented sailing. Could be a few days with fair wind, or week or two in bad weather
some complained of hunger
Benefits:
» personal liberty already constrained: most burgh men were ‘unfree’, rural poor were cottars, servants or virtual serfs (ie ‘property’ of master)
» famine & plague were common (4 major outbreaks of plague & 4 major food shortages, 1568 - 1609)
» In that climate, soldiering could be worth the gamble
» generally fed & clothed (p22 for food rations)
» Rising to titles, land & honours was possible (for a few)
Gustavus Adolphus = generall reliable at paying his troops but even so occasional threats of mutiny
Wages:
Privy Council set payscale (per month) for men policing the Borders (full list of pay rates, p 22- 23):
Captain of horse - 100 merks (almost £70)
Captain of foot - £50
Sergeant - £30
Drummer or piper - £10
Foot soldier - £6
Farm servant could expect < £2 per year, ploughman £6.
Difficult to compare different currencies & countries but assumption pay was thought reasonable.
1573/74 Captain henry Balfour received >£8000 for the year but included £ to pay for shipping men to continent.
Advantage of Dutch service = widows & children got state pensions if men KIA
Some armies better than others at paying on time but when in field, even good ones could have trouble supplying and paying & arrears could become substantial.
Senior officers better placed
> > earned more & may receive land in lieu of pay or reimbursment of expenses (p24 for examples)
Highest rewards were promotion to nobility & aquisition of hereditary titles. Several Scots succeeded in this
What soldiers wore (p24)
Highlanders - trews or tartan plaid
Lowlanders - plain coats & breeches of grey or simple checks
Borderers - maybe had steel helmets & leather jackets of the reivers
Scots ridiculed in Denmark for poor clothes; recruiters often issued clothing to keep up morale.
Officers dressed to status eg with rich buttons or gold neck chains (as insurance for good treatment if taken prisoner)
Weapons
Privy Council sent men to fight in France in 1552. Record details clothing & weapons (p25)
Soldiers with firearms to get hose & canvas doublet
Soldiers with pikes to wear swords, helmet, plate or mail sleeves
Bows still seen but rapidly giving way to firearms at this time
Most soldiers sent abroad to fight had to be furnished with weapons, usually when they arrived at destination.
Earliest firearms were cannons of one sort or another.
Matchlock guns 1st appears in 1460s or 70s. Called Hakenbuchse (hook-gun) in German, knows as hackbut or hagbut. Range of c. 100 yds
2nd 1/2 C16 Spanish forces in Low Countries started using moschetto (sparrowhawk) guns. Led to name musket. Musket became standard. Slow to reload & cumberson but could kill at 200 yds & puncture armour at 100yds
Pike was a simpler weapon but had limitations.
Most also carried knives or swords.
Swords expensive so more common for officers. Oft made from imported blades (details p27)
Officers might also carry pistols
