The Experience of Medival Warfare Flashcards
How did the recruitment of knights change?
In 1250, mounted knights were recruited through the feudal levy: knights owed 40 days’ knight service and tenants owed their lords a set number of knights based on the amount of land they owned. As these dues became harder to enforce, extra forms of recruitment emerged.
What forms of recruitment of knights emerged?
- The Assize of Arms : tax on wealth, requiring all men with land to provide a number of fully equipped knights.
- Mercenaries and scutage : increasingly replaced feudal service and the Assize. Subjects paid scutage (shield money) instead of performing military service, allowing the king to hire mercenaries.
- The Royal Household : permanent troops paid by the king as his personal guard. They increased rapidly in size and importance.
Describe the change in the recruitment of infantry.
No feudal duty to serve as infantry. Instead, duty, escape, adventure or plunder were incentives.
- The Statute of Winchester (1285) - extended the Assize of Arms. All fit men between 16 and 60 instructed to muster once a year, ready and equipped for 40 days’ service.
- Commissioners of Array assessed recruits and their weapons across the country.
- After 1337, the feudal levy and Assize of Arms began to fall away in favour of infantry being paid for their service.
Why was the demand for food and weapons for the army increased?
- England involved in more wars.
- There were more infantrymen to feed.
- More horses needed to be fed (archers also began to ride horses).
- More ammunition (arrows, bullets, cannon balls) was needed.
- Gunpowder weapons needed specific ammunition and were hard to transport.
Describe the changes in provisioning.
Combatants generally provided their own provisions and equipment for 40 days, but new solutions were needed to meet the increased demand.
- Requisitioning : the Crown forced merchants to sell goods (purveyance) and provide ships in order to supply their baggage trains.
- Weapon stores : such as the Royal Armoury, were built up.
- Supply depots : set up ahead of the army and supplied by road or sea.
- Pillaging : especially in enemy territory, was a common last resort.
Describe the continuity of training.
- There were no permanent armies and no barracks, so no organised training for warfare.
- Assize of Arms : called for infantry recruits to be skilled with their weapons. But this was often not the case.
- Mounted knights learned military skills and competed in tournaments, but there was no training to fight as a group.
- Nobility was still the military class and kings relied on leading nobles and close relatives to lead their armies.
Describe the impact of the longbow.
Longbows required great strength and long training to master.
- 1285 : Statute of Winchester set up archery targets in every town.
- 1363 : Edward III ordered archery practice on every feast day or holiday.
How did warfare affect the lives of civilians through taxation?
Taxtation increased which was a burden for civilians however was not such a great burden compared to being recruited or having belongings plundered. The tax represented about 1 percent of most civilians’ annual income.
How did warfare affect the lives of civilians - recruitment (c1250 - c1500)?
- Civilians forced to fight by the king. Desertion and refusal were common.
- Civilians increasingly chose to pay money instead to avoid going to war (scutage).
- Fighting meant time away from family and home, as well as great risk of death or injury.
- Recruits expected to provide their own equipment and provisions for 40 days.
How did civilians suffer due to requisitioning (c1250-c1500)?
- Kings needed food and supplies for their armies.
- Food and fodder was requisitioned (bought by force) from civilians. This was called purveyance.
- Civilians were meant to be paid a fair price but often weren’t or given IOUs - promises to pay at a later date.
- Civilians suffered on two accounts : they had less food and supplies for their own use; out of their own expense they were providing for the crown.
What were the few benefits of warfare for civilians?
- Pay was better in the army than pay for work on the land.
- The demand for supplies, weapons, fortifications etc. boosted industry and gave employment.
What was the effect of fighting and plunder on enemy civilians?
- Seiges involved cutting towns or cities off from supplies of food and water, and bombarding them, forcing their surrender. This caused severe suffering for the community.
- Plunder gave the army food and starved the enemy.
- Raids on communities caused severe suffering. Sometimes enemy was paid to go away.
- Ransom could be demanded from enemy communities for protection and from captives in order to secure their release.
