New Weapons And Formations Flashcards
The longbow
Introduced in the 1290s
Gave archers a faster rate of fire and a much higher range
In 1363 men had to practice archery every day
What lead to the decline of the mounted knight ?
The longbow was more effective at taking down horses at long range
Pikes and the schiltron formation was designed to kill the horse and demount the rider
Cavalry began to take on other tasks such as scouting and patrolling due to their reduced effectiveness on the battle field
Pikes and schiltrons
Used effectively by William Wallace against the english. The schiltron were tight formations of infantry in a square with pikes facing outwards
Limitations of the Cannon
Heavy to move Expensive Very inaccurate . Used on large targets Slow to reload and would need training to use Could blow up
Advantages and improvements of cannons
Effective in sieges
Over time ammunition became more deadly
Gradually the accuracy and reliability got better
What impact did the decline of the mounted knight have?
Cavalry were primarily noblemen . Their decline meant that mercenaries had to be hired rather than relying on their nobility for military power. This reduced the link between social class and command
How did the recruitment of knights change ?
Knights used to be recruited by feudal levy where each knight owed 40 days of service and tenants owed the landowners an amount of knights depending on how much land they owned however as these dues became harder to reinforce extra forms of recruitment emerged .
Assize of arms - a tax on wealth requiring all men with land to provide a number of fully equipped knights
Mercenaries and scutage replaced the feudal service and the assize . Wealthy people paid Scutage to prevent them from serving the military but giving the king enough money to higher mercenaries.
The royal household were permanent troops paid by the king as his personal guard .
Change in the recruitment of infantry
No feudal duty to serve as infantry . Usually adventure , escape or plunder were incentives to join.
Statute of Winchester (1285) An extension of the assize of arms each year all fit men between 16-60 had to complete 40 days service . They also had to provide their own weapons
Commissioners array was an assessment of recruits and the supplies they had brought across the country
After 1337 the assize and feudal system began to fall away in favour or infantry being paid for their service
Provisioning and equipment
Demand for food and weapons had increased because …
England was involved in lots of wars
Horses needed to be fed and so did the soldiers
Artillery and ammunitions had to be carefully transported
Changes in provisioning
Requisitioning- crown forced merchants to sell goods and provide ships
Weapon stores were built
Pillaging of enemy lands
Continuity in training
While the assize of arms called for recruits to be skilled this was mostly not the case
Mounted knights trained in tournaments but were not trained to work in groups
Still no permanent armies
Why was limited warfare used
To reduce the spending of precious resources . Battles were avoided as much as possible . King had little authority over the nobles so raising a large army would be difficult
