Medieval Warfare

Question 1

Role of the infantry(1250-1500)

Answer 1

The infantry were common men who fought as foot-soldiers

Question 2

Role of cavalry(1250-1500)

Answer 2

The cavalry were mounted soldiers. They were the elite of the army.

Question 3

How was the structure of society linked to command of armies(1250-1500)

Answer 3

Kings rewarded supporters by granting them land. They became powerful nobles - In turn, they granted land to their supporters - lower landowners, known as the gentry.

In return, the nobles and the gentry were expected to command troops in support of the king.

Question 4

What was the role of the archer(1250-1500)

Answer 4

Archers were used to weaken enemy troops. They usually played a minor role in tactics at this time.

Question 5

What was the shield wall(1250-1500)

Answer 5

Men stood, with overlapping shields, and spears or pikes, facing enemy attacks.

Question 6

What was the feudal system?

Answer 6

A system in which people were given land and protection by people of higher rank, and worked and fought for them in return

Question 7

What was assize of arms?

Answer 7

They assized people’s wealth to see if they should support the king with arms. A bit like taxation: the wealthier people were, the more military support they should give.

Question 8

What was scutage?

Answer 8

Payment made by a knight to commute the military service that he owed his lord. This money was used by kings to pay for cavalry to fight alongside feudal troops, called mercenaries.

Question 9

What was the Royal Household?

Answer 9

They were permanent, paid troops who were employed to serve the king.

Question 10

What was limited war?

Answer 10

A war in which the weapons used, the nations or territory involved, or the objectives pursued are restricted in some way

Question 11

Impact of schiltrons

Answer 11

The Scots used schiltrons to defeat the English again at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. This time, the Scottish schiltrons advanced and defeated a force of English cavalry. It was a tactic that increased the power of the infantry and reduced the strength of the mounted knights.

Question 12

Why were longbows more effective than bows

Answer 12

Rate of fire - a trained longbow archer could shoot ten to 15 arrows per minute
Distance- rnage was 200m, twice the range of the crossbow
Power- arrows were a metre long and could pierce armour

Question 13

Impact of the longbow

Answer 13

In 1298, at the Battle of Falkirk, they helped King Edward I defeat the Scots.

In battles such as Poitiers (1356) and Agincourt (1415), longbows were key to English victories over the French during the Hundred Years’ War. Longbows had become the dominant force on the battlefield.

Question 14

How did tactics change in 1290?

Answer 14

On the march, archers rode on horseback

In attack, before mounted cavalry charged, archers were still used to soften up the enemy

In defence, English knights and men-at-arms dismounted to strengthen the centre of the defensive line, fighting on foot alongside the infantry, meaning that archers could be placed on the flanks.

Question 15

What is gunpowder

Answer 15

Gunpowder is another example of new science and improved technology causing change in warfare. Led to the development of the cannon

Question 16

What did the early cannon look like (1320-1430)

Answer 16

The earliest cannon had wooden barrels, bound with metal bands, and shot round balls of stone.

Question 17

Were the early cannons effective? (Case study)

Answer 17

No. In 1415, Henry V used 12 cannon to besiege the castle at Harfleur. But, after five weeks, the walls remained intact. The town eventually gave up because its food supplies had been cut off.

Question 18

1430-1500 how did the cannon improve? (Only need to know 2 of these)

Answer 18

Metal was used- Foundries, which made metal goods, used skills honed in making church bells to experiment with iron, copper, bronze and brass barrels

Design improved- At first, barrels were not much longer than their diameter. By 1430, as technology improved, they were sometimes three times as long as their diameter, giving greater accuracy, power and range.

Trunnions were invented- These were rods at each side of the barrel that allowed the barrel to be lifted into higher or lower slots on the frame of the cannon. This made it easier to adjust the height and distance of fire.

Specialist cannon were made. These included light, mobile cannon; heavy cannon, or bombards, to fire stone balls weighing half a ton; and mortars or howitzers to lob missiles high over castle walls.

Question 19

What were firearms?

Answer 19

These were gunpowder weapons that could be carried and fired by individuals. Firearms like the arquebus became common on the battlefield in Europe.

Question 20

Disadvantages of the cannon(1250-1500)

Answer 20

unreliable - in 1460, King James II of Scotland was killed when one of his own cannon blew apart

slow to reload and inaccurate over long distances

only really useful in sieges - they were very heavy to manoeuvre for battles.

Question 21

Disadvantages of firearms(1250-1500)

Answer 21

slow to load (powder and shot had to be rammed down the barrel and a smouldering piece of rope had to be kept alight to ignite the powder)

unreliable (firing could fail in damp weather)

used very little by English armies before 1500. (The longbow was so successful that firearms were adopted more slowly in England than in other parts of Europe.)

Question 22

What was the reason for the decline of the mounted knight?

Answer 22

Tactics changed which ruled the mounted knight essentially uselsss:

Pikes were used, not just to defend against cavalry, but even to attack and defeat it.

Longbows weakened the enemy infantry better than cavalry and could also destroy cavalry.

Cannon and firearms later began to do the same jobs as longbows.

Question 23

How did cavalry tactics change?(1250-1500)

Answer 23

took specialist tasks, like patrolling, foraging for food, scouting and raiding

dismounted in battle, joining the infantry in defence, while archers weakened the enemy charge

mounted and chased down fleeing troops, once the enemy’s attack was repelled.

Question 24

How much did the number of cavalry change from 1250-1400

Answer 24

By about 1400, the ratio of cavalry to infantry had changed to about 1:3, from 1:2 in 1250.

Question 25

How did the social class and command of cavalry change?(1250-1500)

Answer 25

As the feudal system declined, many knights paid scutage instead of fighting. Only 5% of cavalry were nobles for the English campaign in France in 1375.

More mercenaries were employed as mounted men-at-arms. They had their own leaders (or captains). This weakened the link between social class and command.

Question 26

Recruitment 1250-1500

Answer 26

feudal troops continued to be used until about 1350

the Assize of Arms was used more after 1285, and then continually to 1500

payment for troops was used more after 1337, and became the main way of recruiting.

Question 27

Disadvantages of feudal troops

Answer 27

Until about 1330, kings could call upon 5,000 mounted feudal troops. But this was quite a small number and it limited the size of armies.

Feudal troops were only required to fight in England, and only for 40 days. For more, they expected pay

Feudal infantry were part-time soldiers and the quality of their weapons was poor.

Question 28

Reasons for armies to have more food and equipment in 1250-1500

Answer 28

England was almost constantly at war from 1250-1500.

By the 1300s, they took four horses each, and archers also rode horses. This added up to thousands of horses, all needing fodder.

More weapons. At the Battle of Crècy, in 1346, English archers shot half a million arrows in a day. Once gunpowder weapons came in, troops could no longer supply their own ammunition.

Question 29

What was purveyance

Answer 29

The right of the English Crown to purchase provisions and other necessaries for the royal household, at an estimated price, and to requisition horses and vehicles for royal use

Question 30

How did warfare affect civilians 1250-1500

Answer 30

Increased taxation - doubled between 1337 and 1422

Purveyance - giving away their goods and not getting paid for ages must have caused civilians great hardship

Recruitment- many didn’t want to go to war so payed scutage instead

Question 31

Why did the army do raids?(1250-1500)

Answer 31

Caused suffering and panic amongst the civilian population. It also made the enemy’s leaders and their army look weak. In 1296, a Scottish army raided the north of England. Contemporary sources say they killed ‘infirm people, old people and women in child-bed’. Sometimes this tactic caused enough suffering amongst civilians that the invading army were paid or given land to go away.

Question 32

Why did the army do plunders?(1250-1500)

Answer 32

It gave them an extra source of food and it deprived their enemy of food. But it also deprived civilians of food, which could lead to starvation.

Question 33

What happens with ransoms and why did the army do them?(1250-1500)

Answer 33

They would camp nearby and demand money from the town in exchange for a promise not to attack. Soldiers occasionally kidnapped civilians and held them to ransom (money demanded for the return of prisoners).

For example, in 1380, 168 civilians were seized in a French town, Bergerac, and forced to pay for their freedom. Fear of being taken captive during warfare must have caused terror amongst civilians.

Question 34

What are sieges and example

Answer 34

Cutting off food and water supplies, and attacking with siege weapons or cannon. This caused great suffering to civilians inside.

For example, when Henry V besieged the French town of Rouen in 1418-19, he chose to starve the town into surrender. By the time the town surrendered, their estimates of the dead range from 10,000 to 50,000.

Question 35

Benefits of warfare(1250-1500)

Answer 35

Civilians who joined the army could benefit from good wages. In 1350, during the Hundred Years’ War, a labourer in England earned about 2d per day. A master craftsman earned 4d per day. But a mounted archer earned 6d. Soldiers might also be able to share ransom money and booty

Other civilians made goods needed in wars, such as weapons, armour, carts and soldiers’ clothes. The Hundred Years’ War was a time of prosperity in England’s construction, weapons and textiles industries. Citizens benefitted from good, secure wages in these industries.

Question 36

How manh infantry and cavlary were in the Scottish army in the battle of Falkirk and why their army disliked the Scottish leader

Answer 36

500 cavalry
9,500 infantry, including 1,500 archers

Scottish nobles resented taking orders from Wallace (Scottish Leader). They supported him when things were going well; but any sign of problems and some were quick to desert him.

Question 37

What did the English army look like at the battle of falkirk

Answer 37

2,000 cavalry
12,000 infantry, including 5,000 longbow archers and 500 crossbowmen.

Half the cavalry were feudal troops. The other half were raised by Assize of Arms, with a minority of paid troops.

Question 38

How did the English win at the battle of falkirk

Answer 38

Clouds of arrows fell upon the Scottish infantry. Unprotected by armour, hundreds died.

Gaps appeared in the walls of Scottish pikes and the English cavalry were at last able to charge into the weak spots. Soon, Wallace’s troops scattered.

Finally, the English infantry attacked. Any Scottish infantry who did not reach the safety of the woods were hacked to death by English infantry or chased and killed by the mounted cavalry.

Question 39

Role of William Wallace (Battle of Falkirk)

Answer 39

Wallace’s use of pike schiltrons nearly worked. Even after their cavalry protection had been driven off and their archers destroyed, they still beat off the first cavalry attack against them.

Aspects of Wallace’s choice of position - the slope, the marsh, the woods - were good.

He failed to protect his flanks: a basic command error.

Wallace’s cavalry and his archers played no useful part in the battle. Some would say this was his fault for choosing to face the enemy with inadequate troops. However, this was the first battle where English archers showed their strength.

Question 40

Role of Edward I (Battle of Falkirk)

Answer 40

Despite detailed plans to supply his troops by sea, they were nearly defeated by hunger. His advanced planning only just worked.

Despite having superior forces, undisciplined cavalry could have ruined his attack. Against a stronger enemy, it could have been disastrous. Edward was lucky.

However, by his bold decision to attack, Edward had forced Wallace to fight in a position where his flanks were undefended. In battles at this time, outmanoeuvring your enemy (moving your forces around so that you get a better position than your enemy) was a key skill for commanders.

Edward’s use of his longbows was the turning point of the battle. It became a key part of English strategy in warfare for the next 150 years.

Question 41

Henry V plan battle of Agincourt

Answer 41

He planned to seize French castles and raid French settlements with his fast-moving army, destroying property and seizing booty. He then planned to negotiate with the French king for territory.

Question 42

At the battle of agincourt, how many troops were there for the french and the english

Answer 42

Henry V’s army:
Henry had 8,000 troops at Agincourt: 2,000 men-at-arms and 6,000 archers.

The French army:
Consisted of 15,000 troops: 10,000 heavily armoured cavalry and only 5,000 infantry. French archers were available, but were hardly used.

Question 43

How long did the battle of agincourt last?

Answer 43

About 3 hours

Question 44

Why was the battle of agincourt a significant victory for the English?

Answer 44

Only 450 English men died and Henry’s victory saved the English army from destruction and avoided the capture or death of the English king.

4000 Frenchmen died, including important noblemen, dukes and their commander.

prime example of the dominance of the longbow; but Henry’s sieges were important too. It was the control of fortified bases that gave Henry military and political control of the surrounding countryside.

Question 45

When was the battle of agincourt?

Answer 45

25th October 1415

Question 46

Reasons for the outcome of the Battle of Agincourt

Answer 46

Positioning the armies - Henry chose an ideal defensive position.

French tactics - the French relied too much on cavalry.Their infantry and archers were weak and underused by the French commanders.

French indiscipline - their cavalry attack was badly co-ordinated with the infantry

The longbow - the English could fire up to 100,000 arrows per minute at the French attack.

Question 47

How did Henry show bravery as a medieval commander?

Answer 47

The ability to fight on the battlefield, as an example to his men. Several sources describe Henry fighting side-by-side with his men-at-arms, even when his crown - worn in the battle over his helmet - was split by a blow from a French axe.