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- Introduction
- General considerations
- Prehistory
- Antiquity and the classical age, c. 1000 bc–ad 400
- The age of cavalry, c. ad 400–1350
- The infantry revolution, c. 1200–1500
- The gunpowder revolution, c. 1300–1650
The English longbow
The longbow evolved during the 12th century in response to the demands of siege and guerrilla operations in the Welsh Marches, a topographically close and economically marginal area that was in many ways similar to the regions in which the crossbow had evolved three centuries earlier. It became the most effective individual missile weapon of western Europe until well into the age of gunpowder and was the only foot bow since classical times to equal the composite recurved bow in tactical effectiveness and power.
While it was heavily dependent on the strength and competence of its user, the longbow in capable hands was far superior to the ordinary military crossbow in range, rate of fire, and accuracy. Made from a carefully cut and shaped stave of yew or elm, it varied in length, according to the height of the user, from about five to seven feet. The longbow had a shorter maximum range than the short, stiff composite Turkish or Mongol saddle bows of equivalent draw force, but it could drive a heavy arrow through armour with equal efficiency at medium ranges of 150–300 yards. Each archer would have carried a few selected light arrows for shooting at extreme ranges and could probably have reached 500 yards with these.
The longbow's weakness was that of every serious military bow: the immense amounts of time and energy needed to master it. Confirmation of the extreme demands placed on the archer was found in the skeletal remains of a bowman who went down with the English ship Mary Rose, sunk in Portsmouth Harbour in 1545. The archer (identified as such by a quiver, its leather strap still circling his spine) exhibited skeletal deformations caused by the stresses of archery: the bones of his left forearm showed compression thickening, his upper backbone was twisted radially, and the tips of the first three fingers of his right hand were markedly thickened, plainly the results of a lifetime of drawing a bow of great strength. The longbow was dependent upon the life-style of the English yeomanry, and, as that life-style changed to make archery less remunerative and time for its practice less available, the quality of English archery declined. By the last quarter of the 16th century there were few longbowmen available, and the skill and strength of those who responded to muster was on the whole well below the standards of two centuries earlier. An extended debate in the 1580s between advocates of the longbow and proponents of gunpowder weapons hinged mainly on the small numbers and limited skills of available archers, not around any inherent technical deficiency in the weapon itself.
Halberd and pike
The halberd
The halberd was the only significant medieval shock weapon without classical antecedents. In its basic form, it consisted of a six-foot shaft of ash or another hardwood, mounted by an ax blade that had a forward point for thrusting and a thin projection on the back for piercing armour or pulling a horseman off balance. The halberd was a specialized weapon for fighting armoured men-at-arms and penetrating knightly armour. With the point of this weapon, a halberdier could fend off a mounted lancer's thrusts and, swinging the cutting edge with the full power of his arms and body, could cleave armour, flesh, and bone. The halberd's power was counterbalanced by the vulnerability of taking a full swing with both arms; once committed, the halberdier was totally dependent upon his comrades for protection. This gave halberd fighting a ferocious all-or-nothing quality and placed a premium on cohesion.
The pike
While the halberd could penetrate the best plate armour, allowing infantrymen to inflict heavy casualties on their mounted opponents, the lance's advantage in length meant that men-at-arms could inflict heavy casualties in return. The solution was the pike, a staff, usually of ash, that was twice the length of the halberd and had a small piercing head about 10 inches (25 centimetres) long. Sound infantry armed with the pike could fend off cavalry with ease, even when outnumbered. As with the halberd, effectiveness of shock action with the pike was heavily dependent upon the cohesion and solidity of the troops wielding it. The pike remained a major factor in European warfare until, late in the 17th century, the bayonet gave missile-armed infantry the ability to repel charging cavalry.


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Former Heart of Midlothian manager Csaba Laszlo feels owner Vladimir Romanov will not walk away from the club.
The Lithuanian businessman has been quoted as saying he is ŌĆśtired of footballŌĆÖ and is keen to sell the Edinburgh club who has fallen into more than ┬Ż30million in debt.
But Laszlo, who oversaw the Jambos for about a year-and-a-half from July 2008, is confident his old employer wonŌĆÖt give up on the Tynecastle outfit.
"I don't think Mr Romanov will let Hearts die,ŌĆØ he told SunSport.
"I'm sorry the club is in trouble, but I think everything will be okay because in my experience Mr Romanov is a man of his word, so when he says he is going to continue to support the club I believe him.
"He has spent seven years at Hearts and he will continue to give them his backing.
"But it may have to be on a lesser scale than it has been.
"His plan now is to focus on youth development and bring players through from the academy.
"This is not a bad idea, but when you do this you also must accept that performances on the pitch will suffer.
ŌĆ£I think if Hearts win a few games Mr Romanov will be happy again,ŌĆØ he added.
"Maybe then the focus will switch back to what's happening on the pitch rather than off it ŌĆö although, I doubt it!"
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