'Y^H-WMHYIEI&SKirY-

Bought with the income of the
Azariah Eldridge Memorial Fund
19

THE BRITISH AMY.
VOL. I.

THE

BRITISH ARMY

xiQin, ^w$xmf aitEr fi^mpment. ¦

SIR SIBBALD DAYID SCOTT, Bakt.,
LATE CAPTAIN EOTAL SUSSEX MILITIA ARTILLERY ;
FELLOW OP THE SOCIETY OP ANTIQUARIES OP LONDON ;
MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ARCH.EOLOGICAL INSTITUTE,
ETC. ETC.

Vol. I.

LONDON AND NEW TOBK:
CASSELL, PETTER, AND GALPIK.

1868.
All Rights Reserved.

LOSDON :
CASSELL, PETTEE, AKD GALPIH, BELLE SAUVAGE WP.TIS,
LULGATE HILL, E.C.

THE QUEEN,
THE FOUNTAIN OF HONOUR,
THESE VOLUMES ARE DEDICATED,

HER MAJESTY'S

DUTIFUL AND OBEDIENT SUBJECT AND SERVANT,

SIBBALD DAVID SCOTT.

London, 1867.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTEE I.
Caesar's Invasion of Britain — As to the Place of Embarkation and
of Landing — The Natives attack him, but are defeated — He
returns to Gaul .........

CHAPTEE II.
iState of the Britons, at the Period of Caesar's Invasion — Additional
Proofs against the Landing on the Eastern Coast— Csesar
defeats the Britons — Marches to the Thames — Peace arranged
— Primitive Weapons — Mode of Fighting .... 49

CHAPTEE III.
a.d. 43. — The Eomans again attack Britain — Vespasian and
Titus arrive — Suetonius — Massacre of the Druids, followed
by Slaughter of the Eomans, and subsequently of the
Britons — Boadicea — Caractacus — Picts and Scots — Abject Con
dition of the Britons — Saxons — Danes — Anglo-Saxons — Battle
of Hastings . . 

CHAPTEE IV.
a.d. 1066.— The Normans — Feudal System— Knights'- Fees— 111- .
treatment of the English — Clergy and Women alone exempted
from Personal Military Service — Warlike Tastes of the Clergy 115

CHAPTEE V.
Chivalry — Knightly Education — Pages and Esquires — Knights —
Their Accolade — High Social Position — Gallantry — Jousts and
Tournaments — Faveurs — Le Bel Cavalier — Eeligion — Courtesy
—Sworn-Brotherhood— Edward III.— Prince of Wales' Feathers 140

VI CONTENTS. PAGE
CHAPTEE VI.
Arms of the Knight— Lance— Sword, Ancient and Modern— Dagger
—Mace— Axe— Shield  . . 165
CHAPTEE VII.
Body Armour — Helmets — Hauberks — Gambesons — Surcoats — Spurs
—Plate-Armour — Knightly Toilette —Weight of Armour-
Comparison of Ancient and Modern Cavalry — Duration of Life
in the Middle Ages . . . . . . ¦ ¦ ¦ 192
CHAPTEE VIII.
Horse Armour — When first Introduced here — British and Foreign »
Breeds — White Horses in high Estimation — Food of Horses —
Importation and Exportation — Improvement of Breed — Great
Number employed  223
CHAPTEE IX.
Escuage — Its Abuse — Mortmain — Posse Comitatus — Government
of Counties — Constitution of Militia — Assize of Arms — Statute
of Winchester — Eepealed by Act of Philip and Mary —
Statutory Enactments  244
CHAPTEE X.
Foreign Mercenaries employed by our Early Kings — Magna
Charta— Mode of Levying Troops by Edward II. — By Edward
III. — Indentures — Effects of Wars upon Population — Military
Profession Profitable — Facility of Eaising Armies — Bishop of
Norwich and the TJrbanists and Clementines . . ... 262
CHAPTEE XI.
Henry V.'s Army raised by Indentures— Prest Money— Jewels in
( Pawn for Pay— Henry VI.— Army Eeoruited with Pardoned
Criminals — Welshmen and Cornishmen — Irishmen  The
Scotch, their Mode of Warfare .... 277
CHAPTEE XII.
Foreign Mercenaries employed in England— Free Companies
Abroad— Sir John Hawkwood— Don Pedro and Henry of
Transtamare— The Black Prince at Najera— A Parallel in
Modern Times — Italian and Spanish Harquebussiers in

CONTENTS. Vll
PAGE
Edward VI.'s Eeign — Brabancons, Eouters, CotereUs, Eibalds,
Brigands — First Standing Army organised in France — No
Similar Movement in England — Lord-Lieutenants appointed —
Queen Mary — Loss of Calais — Elizabeth's Eeign . . . 302
CHAPTEE XIII.
Parsimony of the Queen— IU-requited Soldiers — Levies for Ireland
— Philip sends an Expedition there — Sir John Norris — Essex
sent over as Lord President — His Inefficiency — Eaw Levies-
Lord Mountjoy succeeds to the Command — Improved Aspect
of Affairs— 6,000 Spaniards Land — They Capitulate— Warfare
in those Days  333
CHAPTEE XIV.
Dangers of the State — Preparations for Defence — Invasion of
England contemplated by Philip — Plan of Farnese for the
Landing — Armada arrives — English Preparations — Directions
to Lord-Lieutenants — Sir John Norris to Command Forces in
Maritime Counties — State of Defences at Portsmouth — De
fences on the Thames — Corps d' Armies Instituted — Inex
perience , of English Troops— Courageous Conduct of the
Queen — Visits Tilbury Fort — Attack threatened by Spain
Eight Tears after — Council summoned — Their Opinions— '-
Ealeigh's Policy ......... 343
CHAPTEE XV.
James I. a Man of Peace — Assistance to the Palatinate — Council of
War — Its Eeport — Auxiliary Force sails — Sir Horatio Vere —
Small Eesults — In 1624 an Army sent over to the Low
Countries, under Count Mansfield — Eepeal of Armour Statutes
— Social Condition of Officers and Men  387

CHAPTEE XVI.
Charles I.— Supplies refused by Parliament— Army of 10,000 Men
sent to Spain — Unsuccessful Expedition — Isle of Be" Expe
dition — Petition of Eight — Martial Law — Train-bands —
Approved Pattern of Arms — Eebellion of the Scotch — Bad
Spirit of English Levies — The King's Necessities — Misbe-
. haviour of Commanders — The Covenanters' Army advance to
Newcastle— Energy of Strafford— Discomfiture of the King's
Forces— Treaty with' the Scotch— Irish Eebellion— The King's
Offer to proceed thither with an Army declined by Parlia-

viii CONTENTS. • PAGE
ment— Governors of Fortified Places removed by Parliament
—The King's Power over the Militia denied— Defiance— King
retires to York— Foiled in his Attempt to enter Hull— Forms
a Body-Guard. .  396

CHAPTEE XVII.
Open Eebellion— Civil War commences— Essex appointed to
command Parliament's Forces — Setting up of the Boyal
Standard at Nottingham— Princes Eupert and Maurice
arrive — Loss of Portsmouth — Cruelties and Amenities of
the War — The King's Supporters — Coat and Conduct Money
—Bad Prospects of Eoyal Cause at first— Want of Money and
Arms — Comparison of Eoyal and Parliamentary Armies —
Generals — Cromwell and his Ironsides — Armour worn at the
Period  437

CHAPTEE XVIII.
i
Body Guards the only Ancient Standing Forces — Sergeants-at-
Arms — Derivation— French Sergeants — Privileges — Ceremonial
• at Investiture — Archer-Guards of Edward III., Eichard II;,
Edward IV. — Yeomen of the Guard — Gentlemen-at-Arms , 487

LIST OF PLATES,

' PLATE , . PAGE
1. Fig. 1. Map of Eomney Marsh, from Mr. Eoach Smith's Exca
vations at Lymne, p. 40. — Fig. 2. Channel Tide Chart, from
Potter's Tide Tables, p. 122  40
2. Helmet, temp. Alfred the Great. Date, 900 a.d. Dug up at
Oxford  112
3. Tilting Helmet. Fifteenth Century . . . . 152
4. Three Swords, from specimens in the Tower, f . A Cross Sword,
with flat wheel pommel, of the Thirteenth or Fourteenth
Century. ¦§. Another, of same type and period, f. Short
Back-Sword, or coutel, with guard, early Sixteenth Century . 173
5. Sword, with double-edged blade, spirally-twisted cross-piece,
and fore-finger and thumb-guard. Date 1455. Length of
blade, 4ft. 3 in  174
6. Sword, narrow in the blade, and almost square in the section,
with thong and knotting ....... 175
7. English Sword, with flat pommel of great rarity, with me
dallions of silver inlaid ........ 178
8. Claymores, from Warwick Castle . . . . . .180
9. Musqueteers' Sword, temp. Charles 1  182
10. Carriage or frog for a Eapier, temp. Elizabeth . . . 183
11. Daggers of the Fourteenth and Sixteenth Centuries . .185
12. Nasal Helmet, of graceful form. Date evrca a.d. 1000 . . 192
13. Early English Helmet, with nasal. Circa a.d. 1100 . . 193
14. Cylindrical flat-topped Helmet, with nasal. Probably Thirteenth
Century  . . ... 193
15. Helmet, identical with the one represented on the effigy of Sir
Geoffrey de Mandeville, in the Temple Church. Date 1100 . 193
16. Visored Bassinet, almost globose, with camaille attached. Eing
of mail full size. Date about 1360  194
17. Shield and Sword of Edward III. — Saddle, Helmet, and Shield
of Henry V  195
18. Specimens of War-helms and Bassinets, from originals in the
Parham Collection  195
19. Bassinet, with screw fastenings for the ventail. About 1460 . 196

. 207
.208
. 209
A.D. 1450 . 211
. 212

X LIST OF PLATES.
PLATE PAGE
20. Helmet, ornamented with fleurs-de-lis and studs. Date, 1350 196
21. Helmet (1) of Eobert Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick. (2) Helmet
temp. Eichard I. (3) Cylindrical Helmet, with fleurs-de-lis,
of the Thirteenth Century  197
22. Helmet (1) of Sir Thomas de Braunstone, a.d. 1401. (2) Helmet,
supposed, of Little John, temp. King John .... 197
23. Salade of crimson velvet, with gilt mountings, a.d. 1450 . 198
24. Chain-mail Hood, the rings drawn full size. About 1120 . 199
25. Pryck Spurs, and long-necked, Eowel Spurs .... 205
26. Spurs of various fprms. Date about 1600
27. Suit of Chain and Plate Armour, a.d. 1250
28. Solleret, 24 inches long. a.d. 1400
29. Suit of Gothic Armour, known as & la Poulaine.
30. Splinted Back and Breast, of about a.d. 1570
31. Back and Breastplate, opening in front. Date about 1580 . 214
32. Globose Breastplate, with back-piece and demi-brassards and
chain ........... 215
33. Horse-muzzle, from Ham, Derbyshire. About a.d. 1570 . . 239
34. Stirrups and Sollerets. A Stirrup and Solleret combined . 241
35. Brigandine. (From Warwick Castle.) ..... 258
36. Lochaber Axes, of various forms ...... 300
37. Ornamentation on the blade of Sir Francis Drake's Sword . 356
38. 1. Falling-beaver Helmet. The visor opens on a hinge on the
forehead. The beaver is wanting. — 2. Pot Helmet of Pike-
man. Cir. a.d. 1620. — 3. Helmet with two-part visor and
semi-circular apertures for vision. About 1600 . . . 459
39. Helmet of Lord Brooke, when he was shot at the siege of Lich
field. (Warwick Castle.) The piece at the side is the visor-
prop, full size, to keep up the visor at different angles . . 463
40. The Breast and Back of Lord Brooke, who was shot at Lich
field  463
41. Iron Hat, with Nasal, said to be worn by Charles I. (From
Warwick Castle.) •¦-..... 479
42. Helmet, supposed to have belonged to Oliver Cromwell, and
now in Warwick Castle ....... 486
43. Casque of King James II., with cheek -pieces, and visor of per
forated steel. (Horse Armoury, Tower.) . 486
44. Yeoman of the Guard, 1687 ..... 527
45. Gentleman Pensioner, 1687  553

PKEEACE.

The military institutions of a country are so in
timately connected with its social condition, that
they are often the most faithful exponents of its
early history. It has been observed that Great
Britain is nearly the only large state in Europe
which has, properly speaking, no military litera
ture. Many valuable contributions there have
been, but the pursuits of literature are but little
in accordance with those of warfare, f) There are
abundant treatises on practical details of regi
mental manipulation, and many portions of our
(') The literary work of the year 1866 is thus summed up by
The Boohseller .— " Religious books cand pamphlets, 849 ; biogra
phical and historical, 194 ; medical and surgical, 160 ; poetry and
the drama, 232; novels, 390; minor fiction and children's books,
544; travels, topography, and geography, 195; annuals and serials
(volumes only), 225; agriculture, horticulture, &c, 64; English
philology and education, 196; European and classical philology
and translation, 161 ; law, 84 ; naval, ndUtary, and, engineering, 39 ;
science, natural history, &c, 147 ; trade and commerce, 79 ; politics
and. questions of the day, 167; illustrated works; 85; art, archi
tecture, &g., 34; miscellaneous, not classified, 359; total, 4,204."

Xll PEEFACE.

modern army-history have been carefully com
piled and skilfully edited; but the early composi
tion of armies — how those great battles were fought
and won, the very names of which, after the lapse.
of centuries, still excite our pride, and which
gave promise of future triumphs — how the crowd
of fighting men was collected and ranged , under'
the banners of separate chieftains, the .groundwork'
of our standing army— in these paths, somewhat
intricate, frequently obscure, the English, writersi
on military subjects have trodden but lightly.
It is to supply a deficiency of this nature that
the author has undertaken a work, which, affcef
some years of study, is now given to the public.
Captain Grose has the merit of having been the
pioneer in this branch of history ; the same may
be said of Sir Samuel Meyrick's great work on
arms and armour : and, recently, those who are
curious on that subject, have had the advantail
of Mr. Hewitt's volumes. The researches of His
Imperial Majesty the Emperor of the French have
thrown much light on the history of artillery.
The design has been to give a continuous na4,
ration, and not simply a work of. reference, and -it
has been the endeavour to render it as accurate as
possible. The labour in preparing a work of this

PEEFACE. XU1
character is great, the result appears small ; those
only who have themselves toiled in a new field
of literature will be able to appreciate the difficul
ties which attend the search for authorities.
The subject is a wide one, and expands upon
inquiry ; at first materials presented themselves but
scantily, afterwards their superabundance imposed
the task of selection. It is full of interest to all :
during the eight centuries that have rolled away
since the Norman Conquest, this country has under
gone such changes, that its history appears like the
fiction of the romancer ; neither can we attain to
any consummation or resting-place, for events as
fitful and remarkable as any that have passed are
still in progress, our armaments are even now in
a state of transition, Brown Bess is converted into
a Snider, our wooden walls into iron plates.
Nations have their peculiarity of character, like
individuals. Ours appears in a want of organisation
from first tp last : English armies have generally
been inadequate in force, outnumbered by their
foes, and usually deficient in supplies. A strange
anomaly for a people so thoughtful and business
like. Yet have we great cause for gratitude
and for pride, . as a nation, when we look .back at
what, we have achieved for our own liberty and for

XIV PREFACE.
that of Europe, by a generous and manly use of
the weapon of the sword. (2)
That war is an evil, who can gainsay? But it
appears one of those scourges permitted by Provi
dence at once for the purification .and punishment
of our race. " I abominate war as unchristian,"
said Lord Brougham ; "I -hold it the greatest of
human crimes. I deem it to involve all others —
violence, blood, rapine, fraud; everything that cari
deform the character, alter the nature, and debas|
the name of man."
In conclusion, the noble words of one who took
another view of the subject may aptly be quoted :-^s
" 0 God ! how full of wonder are thy ways !
The tempest goes forth in destruction, but tbe
skies are cleared by its appalling energy, and
nature soon reviving repairs its ravages with in-
creased fertility. War, which is but too often the
tempest of human passions, is also an agent of
destruction ; but its course awakens our highest;
energies, and in its final consequences the hand of
a wise and benevolent Providence may not unfre-
quently be traced."^)
The Author's warmest acknowledgments are
(*) Speech of the Duke of Argyle, at Dundee, on Peace and War.
(2) Speech of Lord Stratford de Redcliffe before laying the
foundation-stone of the Memorial Church, Constantinople.

PREFACE. XV
due to the officers of the British Museum and
Public Eecord Office, from whom he has invariably
received every courtesy and facility, as also to
many personal friends, who have afforded him
valuable advice and assistance.
The graphic delineation of arms, armour, and
costume, it is hoped, will be considered ably carried
out by the pencil of Mr. Bobert Taylor Pritchett,
F.S.A., who seconded the intentions with all the
zeal of a lover of the pursuit.
The subject of Caesar's landing in Britain
has been discussed somewhat lengthily, because it
has lately attracted a large amount of public
attention.

THE BRITISH AMY.

CHAPTEE I.
CjESAE'S INVASION OF BKITAIN — AS TO THE PLACE OP EMBARKATION
AND OP LANDING  THE NATIVES ATTACK HIM, BUT ABE DEFEATED
— HE B.ETUENS TO GAUL.

" There is a sound of armies on the sea,
Northward the eagle's mighty wings are spread ;
O'er conquered Gaul he wildly rushes free,
Gloats o'er the dying, and devours the dead.
Victorious legions, by the Caesar led,
Cleave the rough wave to Britain's hostile shore ;
With bloody strife the furrowed sands are red,
The white cliffs echo back the battle's roar."

On an August morning, fifty-five years before the Roman
Christian era, a fleet bearing the infantry of two
Eoman legions, under the command of Caius Julius
Caesar, appeared off the coast of Britain, and anchored
under the cliffs of Kent.
The object of the expedition was to explore the
island, (1) with a view to future conquest, for Caesar was
not prepared to remain long in Britain, the season of
(') " Magna sibi usui fore arbitrabatur, si modo insulam adisset
et genus hominum perspexisset, loca, portus, aditus cognovisset."
(Bel. Gal., iv. 20, edit. Long.)
VOL. I. B

THE BRITISH ARMY.

the year was advanced^1) and the*troops were ordered
to leave their baggage behind. (a)
His immediate intention was, of course, to effect a
landing on the coast. The locality where he dis
embarked, and also where he embarked, has always
been a question, and a fertile subject of contro
versy. The fact of the arrival of the Eomans is an
important epoch, being the introduction of Britain
to the page of history ; the spot where they landed is
now a matter of no historical importance, but the
question has lately been resuscitated, and has acquired
a great amount of public interest. Learned professors
and profound antiquaries have thrown themselves
vigorously into the contest, and now an Emperor is
in the field, and has brought to the subject the aid
of all the resources at his command, which he has
applied to the purpose with all his characteristic
sagacity. (3) Uncertainty and mystery ever awaken
tbe desire to lift the veil of obscurity, as well as
that natural and proper curiosity to realise events on
the spot where they actually occurred.
As a preliminary, it will be well to refresh our
memories with a brief consideration of the position
of affairs on the other side of the water, which
enabled Ceesar to turn his attention to Britain.
In the year of Eome 695, Julius Caesar had taken
(') " Exigua parte eestatis reliqua." (Bel. Gal, iv. 20.)
(2) " Sine impediments legiones transportaverat." (Ibid., 30.)
(3) It wm be no diminution of the interest attached to this
question, for Englishmen to be informed that the last literary corre
spondence of the late lamented and accomplished Prince Consort
was in connection with the subject 6f Csesar's landing in Britain,
carried on with His Majesty the Emperor of the French.

ROMAN CONQUESTS AND POLICY. 6
possession, as praetor or governor, of the province of
Gaul, then comprising the north of Italy (Gallia
Cisalpina), with part of Illyricum, and the south of
France {Gallia Transalpina). In the course of four
successive years, he had extended the limits of his
province as far as the Ehine eastward and northward,
and the ocean on the west. But the ambition of the
mighty conqueror was insatiable. The Eoman eagles
had already been displayed in almost every country
of continental Europe, and the Eoman name was
terrible in almost every part of the world. He now
formed the daring project of crossing the sea and
invading Britain, the largest known island, and con
sidered so remote as to be deemed, in popular belief,
beyond the limits of the world ; a land of which
strange and marvellous tales were current, and which
was said to produce gold and silver and pearls. (:) A
few Greek authors had given some imperfect details
of it, and the trading Gauls were acquainted with
the south and south-west coasts, but beyond that
Britain was essentiaUy a land unknown to Europe.
The ostensible pretext for the invasion, was to take
vengeance on the Britons for assistance rendered by
them to the Gauls in their struggles to cast off the
Eoman yoke. (2) Caesar's leal reason, no doubt, was to
extend his conquests further, and to secure to himself
the splendour of another triumph, with noble captives
(') " Pert Britannia aurum et argentum et alia metalla. Gignit
et oceanus margaritas." (Tacitus, Vit. Agric, 12.)
(2) " In Britanniam proficisci eontendit;, quod omnibus fere Gal-
licis bellis hostibus nostris inde subministrata auxilia intelligebat."
(Bel. Gal, iv. 20.)
E 2

THE BRITISH ARMY.

of the unknown island led in chains by his car. He
had views of poHcy too in finding a pretext for
adding to the number of his legions, and promoting
their efficiency by constant service.
The invasion having been resolved upon, the first
thing to be done was to gain information respecting
the coasts of the island, and the amount of resistance
likely to be offered. Caesar found that the Gauls
generally knew nothing of Britain; a remark, sin
gularly enough, as true of the present time as of
the past. The traders (mer cator es), the only persons
who visited the island, must have possessed a con
siderable amount of information. He summoned
them to his presence, but he could gain nothing
from them. NaturaUy enough, they wished to con
fine the trade to themselves; they were, as was indeed
their interest, on friendly terms with the natives, and
felt little affection towards the Eoman conquerors.
Caesar was not to be foiled, he determined on
dispatching one of his own officers to survey the
coast. Caius Volusenus was selected for the pur
pose. He started on his errand in a fast war-gaUey.(x)
Meanwhile, Cassar moved with all his forces into
the country of the Morini, " because the passage
from thence to Britain was the shortest." (3) The
geographical position then of the Morini is so far
(') " Navi longa." — Volusenus is mentioned before as a tribune, and
a man of great judgment and bravery, (ii. 5.)
(s) " Ipse cum omnibus copiis in Morinos proficiscitur, quod inde
erat brevissimus in Britanniam trajectus. Hue naves undique ex
finitimis regionibus et, quam superiore sestate ad Veneticum bellum
effecerat, classem jubet convenire." (iv. 21.)

CESAR S STARTING POINT. 5
indicated. They occupied the range of coast from The Morini.
Calais to Boulogne, because the opposite lands ap
proach one another nearest in that limit ; how much
farther they extended north and south has not been
accurately defined. Virgil calls them
" Extremique hominum Morini." — Mneiol, viii. 727.
Anothefr ancient writer, in speaking of Eichborough,
describes it as looking not towards the Morini, but
towards the Menapii and Batavi, (x) which would lead
us to believe that the Morini were not in possession
north of Calais. The Ambiani, the people adjoining
them on the south, were on the Somme ; and as their
territory seems to have extended to the sea, it is a
fair conclusion that they peopled all the lower basin
of that river. (a)
" Hither," in the words of the Commentaries,
Caesar coUected ships from all parts, and ordered the
war-fleet, which had been employed against the
Yeneti in the preceding summer, to assemble. That
is evidently in the land of the Morini, whence the
shortest passage lay. In the meanwhile, the design
of the invasion becoming known, the mercatores
lost no time in informing their friends across the
Channel of it ; deputations arrived from many of the
states of Britain, who undertook to send over hostages,
and to submit to Eoman dominion. Caesar received

(') " Eutubi Portus, unde, haud procul a Morinis in austro positos,
Menapos Batavosque prospectant." (^Ethims, cited in Monum. Hist.
Brit., p. 19.)
(2) Vide Note to Long's Ccesar, p. 250.

THE BRITISH ARMY.

them graciously, encouraged them to adhere to that
resolution, and sent them home, accompanied with a
GaUic partisan of his, Commius, whom he had made
king of the Atrebates, on whose fidelity he thought
he could rely ; and who, being a man of great author
rity, was considered a fit person to undertake the
commission of persuading the Britons into a reliance
on the Eoman people, and of announcing the early
arrival of their general.
Volusenus returned on the fifth day. He had
not dared to land for fear of the natives, but he made
the best survey he could under the circumstances.
We are not told what he reported ; but as he returned
so speedily, and his information was subsequently
acted upon, he had evidently discovered what he
considered a suitable landing-place.
While Caesar was staying in these parts — i.e., on
the sea-coast of the country of the Morini — making
his naval preparations, envoys came to him from a
great portion of the Morini, to make excuses for their
former behaviour, and to promise obedience for the
future. Caesar had ravaged part of their country the
year before, and now he was among them with all his
force. These Morini gave him hostages, and were
acknowledged as friends. Caesar considered this a
fortunate occurrence, as he did not wish to leave an
enemy in his rear. (iv. 22.) Before setting sail, he
ordered that the portion of the army which was not
designed for the British expedition should be led
against the Menapii and those districts of the Morini
who had not tendered aUegiance, and a sufficient force

THE ROMAN FLEET GETS UNDER WEIGH. 7
was to remain to protect the port from which he was
about to sail.
Caesar had pressed and coUected about eighty Oesar's Prepa-
oneraries, ships of burden, merchantmen, heavy, rati°ns'
deep, and wide-sailing vessels, which he estimated
would supply stowage sufficient for two legions ; he
had also a few war-galleys (naves long a), long,
sharp vessels, adapted for speed, propeUed by oars,
and consequently unable to supply much accommo
dation. On board these he embarked the staff of the
army. He had, in addition, eighteen other oneraria
assembled in another port, eight miles distant, which
were to join him as soon as the wind admitted.
These he designed for the cavalry. Caesar gives no
name to either of the ports ; the latter he speaks of
as " ulterior portus " or " superior portus," by which
he means that it was farther to the north than the
former. Everything having been finaUy arranged, and a
fine night and a favourable wind presenting them
selves, he got under weigh, at the beginning of
the third watch — that would be soon after mid
night — and, in order to avoid any further delay, he
ordered the cavalry, to ride over to the other port, to
embark there, and to foUow him without loss of
time.t1) The wind, which was fair for the opposite
coast, but unfavourable for vessels coming south,
must have blown from the south or south-west.
(') "His constitutis rebus, nactus idoneam ad navigandum tem-
pestatem, tertia fere vigilia solvit, equitesque in ulteriorem portum
progredi, et naves conscendere, et se sequi jussit." (iv. 23.

8 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The number of men in a legion varied at different
times, but an approximate calculation may be formed
of the force" Caesar carried over with him. Of the
eighty transports, twelve were subsequently destroyed
by a storm, which would reduce the number to sixty-
eight. (x) In these the whole army was re-embarked
on the return of the expedition to Gaul. The casual
ties had been trifling ; Caesar admits that a few had
been killed. (2) Two of these vessels were drifted
beyond the port for which they were bound, and it
is incidentally mentioned that they had collectively
a freight of about 300 men. The transports were
probably of different sizes, but supposing each carried
150 men, the total amount would be 10,200. These
two unlucky transports might possibly have been
thrown out of their course from being the most heavily
laden, and if so, the entire division would not have ex
ceeded 8,400 men. (3) In addition there were the crews
on board the war galleys, slingers, and machinists. (4)
Their number however, difficult to estimate, was pro
bably inconsiderable. With respect to the strength
of cavalry embarked in the eighteen transports (300
horses were usuaUy attached to each legion), there is
no computing what number might have been selected
for the special service ; and there is the less need to
(') "xii navibus amissis." (iv. 31.)
(2) "Paucis interfectis." (iv. 32.)
(3) Mr. Lewin, Invasion of Britain by Julius Caesar, p. 28.— Mr.
Airy (the late Astronomer Eoyal) and Mr. Long estimate the force
of the two legions at about 8,000 men. — The Emperor Napoleon says,
" 12,000 legionaries and 450 horses," without any data on which the
assertion is made.
(4) iv. 25.

ARRIVES OFF THE COAST OF BRITAIN. 9
speculate on this point, as they never reached their
destination. To resume the narrative : Caesar got under weigh
about the beginning of the third watch, he arrived off
the coast of Britain with the fastest of his ships at
the beginning of the fourth hour, and there he beheld
all the eminences thronged with armed men. " The
nature of the ground was such," says he, " that the
sea was closely bounded by mountains so steep, that
a missile could be hurled from the upper parts upon
the shore." He clearly means that the cliffs rose so
precipitously from the sea-side, that anything dropped
from the top would fall upon the beach at their foot. (*)
This description would apply to the whole line of cliffs
ranging from Sandgate and round the South Foreland
to Sandown. Caesar saw no place fit for landing here,
but he cast anchor, and waited till the ninth hour for
the remainder of the expeditionary force. During the
interval he assembled the commanding officers, and
told them what he had learnt from Yolusenus (having
no doubt kept it secret until then), and warned them,
as the basis of military operations generally, and of
naval affairs particularly, that as they had to move
with rapidity, and on an unstable surface, everything
must be done with strict regard to the signal and the
time. Having dismissed them, and finding the wind

(*) " Cujus loci haec erat natura: atque ita montibus angustis mare
continebatur, uti ex locis superioribus in litus telum adigi posset."
(iv. 23.) — Cicero, writing to Atticus the next year, gives the same
description, which he probably had from the letters of his brother
Quintus, one of Caesar's lieutenants. " Constat enim aditus insulas
esse munitos mirificis mollibus." (Ad, Att., iv. 16.)

10 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and tide favourable, (x) the signal was displayed, the
anchors were weighed, and he was carried about seven
miles -along the coast, and there he found a landing-
place on an open, flat shore.
Did he drift to the east or to the west ? It is
clearly a question to be decided by the direction of the
tide ; and as the phenomena of nature are unchange
able, it is as easy to calculate the state of the tide at
any particular date two thousand years ago as it is at
the present time. The difficulty, therefore, does not
lie here, but in the, precision required to fix the day
and hour at which this memorable weighing of anchors
took place.
Almost every place on the French coast, facing the
southern extremity of Albion, with any pretension to
the title of a port, has been suggested as the starting
point of Caesar's expedition. In the selection of the
exact locality, there are certain indispensable condi
tions which must be fulfilled.
1. It must be about thirty Eoman miles (27-|
miles English) from the opposite coast. We may,
however, safely aHow a latitude in interpreting the
distance. It is not apparent what means the ancients
possessed of arriving at accuracy in marine men
suration; the roundness of the number, " millium
passuum xxx," is somewhat suspicious, seeming to
indicate that Caesar did not profess to give a very
accurate statement.
2. The port must have been large enough to have
sheltered more than 800 vessels (the number in the
(l) " Ventum et sestum uho tempore naotus secundum." (iv. 23.)

THE PLACE OF CESAR'S EMBARKATION. 11
second invasion), and to have embarked the infantry
of two legions at one tide.
3. There must be another port eight miles to the
north of it.
The Emperor and Mr. Lewin, amongst others,
attempt to prove — and they certainly make out a
strong case — that none of the ports north of Boulogne
Supplies these requirements, and none other than
Boulogne could form the basis of the expedition, and
that Ambleteuse is the ulterior portus ; a theory of
which it is easy to imagine His Majesty's wishes would
gladly find a confirmation from the coincidences of
events — presenting a strange analogy — in the history
of Napoleon I. The Imperial investigation does
not throw any additional Hght on this part of the
subject ; it is Httle more than a reiteration of the old
arguments in favour of Boulogne; but the results
of the Emperor's researches as to the topography
of Caesar^s battle-fields, sieges, and expeditions are
invaluable additions to literature. Q-)
In the foUowing year Caesar came again to this
island with a large fleet. All the ships were ordered
to assemble at Portus Itius, " from which port he had
ascertained that the passage to Britain was most
convenient (commodissimum) — a distance of about thirty
(l) In one instance the site of a military movement is accurately
reported by the Emperor, where an inaccurate account appears in
Mr. Merivale's History, where we should least have expected it. It is
clear that the battle with the Usipetes and the Tencteri was fought in
the neighbourhood of Cleves, in the angle formed by the Rhine and
the Meuse, and also that Caesar constructed his celebrated bridge at
Bonn, and not at Cologne or Coblentz. — Compare Hist, de Jules Oesar,
II., liv. iii., ch. vii., and Merivale's History of the Eomans, I., ch. x.

12 THE BRITISH ARMY.
miles from the continent." (v.. 2.) This is the first
time in this expedition that Caesar gives a local name.
These words have been interpreted in two ways : to
prove that he did not sail from the Itius on his first
voyage ; and to prove that he did. " The words just
quoted may mean," says Mr. Long, " that Caesar, after
his first voyage, had ascertained in some way, which
he does not mention, that the Itius was the best place
to sail from, and better than the other place from which
he had sailed ; or they may mean, and this meaning
is the more conformable to the plain sense of the
(Latin) original, that he had, by his first voyage,
found out that this was the best place to sail from,
being about thirty Eoman miles from Britain. Thus
we learn how he knew that it was the best port for his
purpose, without being left to conjecture, according to
the other interpretation, by what means, unknown to
us, he had found out a better line of transit than that
which he had tried. Fortune had befriended his
former voyage ; and there was no reason to change his
place of embarkations particularly as he intended to
land, and did, land, at the place where he had landed
before. Besides this, when he speaks (v. 8) of his
landing-place on the second voyage, he says, ' qua
optimum esse egressum superior e testate cognoverat / the
same form of expression that he uses in speaking of
the place of embarkation (v. 2), except that he does
not there use the words ' superiore (estate.' On the
whole, the fairer conclusion is that he sailed from
Portus Itius on the first voyage." (x)
(*) Long's Ocesar, p. 252, Note.

THE POSITION OF PORTUS ITIUS. 13
If Portus Itius and Gesoriacum be synonymous, (l)
cadit argumentum, for Gesoriacum was certainly the
ancient name of Boulogne. We do not, however,
learn their identity from any of the ancient authors.
From Strabo we may gather the reverse. His words
are : — " To those sailing from the neighbourhood of
the Ehine, the passage is not from the mouths of
that river, but from -the Morini, who border on
the Menapii, among whom also is [situated] Itium,
which the deified Caesar used as his naval station,
when he passed over to the island," (2) as though he
would say, the usual place in his time was Portus
Morinus, which was undoubtedly Boulogne ; but there
was also in the country of the Morini another Itium
(sal rovIrioz>) from which Caesar sailed, and not from
that which afterwards became the ordinary port of
passage. Ptolemy, too, distinguishes between Geso
riacum and Itium. (3) There can scarcely be a doubt,
but that the present Cape Grisnez was the Itian pro
montory, and if so, the port which lay beneath it must
have been the Itian port. When he mentions the Itian
promontory, and immediately afterwards Gesoriacum,
we might have expected him to call the latter the
(•) The MSS. of Cassar read Itius, those of Ptolemy, "Xkiov. The
form Iccius is a corruption of later writers. Gesoriacum is also spelt
Gessoriacum by some authors.
(2) ToTe S' avb ruv iripi rbv 'Prjvov tottuiv dvayo/ifvoie oris air' avriuv
tojv ezfioXuiv '6 irXovg iariv, aXKa anrb rStv afiopovvrwv roTg Meva-nioiq
Mopiv&v, Trap' o'ie hart xai to Itwv, <£ expvoaro vavoTa9p.cf Kaiaep o Qeoc,
Siaipoiv etc ttjv vriaov. (iv. 5.)
(3) Merd rag rov Sijieodva irora/iov [the Seine] e/c/JoXde $pov8w£
irora/iov eiefioXai "Ixiav aicpov. (ii. 9.) — There is a question about the
river Phrudis. See Dr. Guest's remarks thereon in Arclimol Journ.,
No. 83, p. 227 ; also Walckenaer, Geographie des Gaules, ii. 268.

14 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Itian port, if it ever really bore that name; and
it certainly is strange, if we assume the identity
of the two places, that Boulogne is never called
by that name, notwithstanding the frequent refer
ences made to Gesoriacum in classical history.^)
On the other hand, Mr. Lewin notices the fact that
the name (or one very like it) of Itius, Icius, or
Iccius, may still be traced in the village of Isques,
at Pont de Briques, in the immediate vicinity of
Boulogne, and that the Liane, now a scanty stream,
was stated to have been once much wider, and the
bridge to have stood at the head of the estuary. (a)
The nearest ports to Cape Grisnez are Amble
teuse on one side, and Wissant on the other. Both
are equi-distant from the British coast, and each has
a more northerly harbour within the assigned limit.
Wissant is about eight miles north of Ambleteuse,
and Sangatte about the same distance from Wissant.
The localities of the expedition must be argued on
hypothesis rather than evidence, for Caesar, writing
as he did with all the terseness of a soldier who
jotted down in the nightly camp the events of the
day as they had just occurred, is, to all appearances,
wilfully obscure ; and the conviction forces itself that
in the compilation of the Commentaries everything
unfavourable to the reputation of the Eoman arms
was suppressed. We cannot read them without being
sensible that there is something wanting, and that
(J) Dr. Guest on Julius Ccesar's Invasion of Britain (ArchcBol
Journ., No. 83, p. 226).
(2) Invasion of Britain, p. 23. — This name, however, is derived
probably from the Celtic Isc, signifying water.

THE LANDING OF CESAR. 15
that which was omitted was not to the credit of the
commander. Moreover, the absence of landmarks, the
removal of those that existed, and the changes which
nineteen centuries have produced in the configuration
of coasts, the state of harbours, the courses of rivers,
the extent of estuaries, and the condition of valleys
descending to the sea, make it a ' difficult, if not a
hopeless task, to decide with certainty on the exact
place ; and it is only through the broken links of a
chain of circumstantial evidence that we can arrive
at any conclusion. " It appears," says Napoleon III.,
"that it is not more than a century and a half ago
that the natural basin of Boulogne has been partly
silted up, and, according to tradition and geological
researches, the coast projected more than two kilo
metres beyond its present range, forming two moles
between which the high tides flowed up in the valley
of the Liane for four kilometres over the land/'O
Ambleteuse is a small port, and does not impress
the beHef that it ever was extensive; but many
distinguished writers have maintained that Wissant
was the place of embarkation. That, however, is no
argument, as authorities are abundant for all the
localities, and the preponderance in point of numbers
is strongly in favour of Boulogne. Du Cange cites
the testimonies of William of Poitiers and William
of Jumieges as making strongly in favour of Wissant.
The latter of these writers tells us that the young
prince, the brother of the Confessor, who was mur
dered soon after his landing in England, sailed from
'(') Hist, de Jules Gesar, ii. 170.

16 THE BKITISH AKMI. '
Witsand ; while the other tells us that he sailed from
Portus Icius.O) Whence did this Norman monk
get this Eoman name ?
From the heights above Wissant, or Witsand
(as it is generally called in mediaeval writings, on
account of the white sand with which it is sur
rounded, and not from any far-fetched similarity to
the word Itius), the whole of the English coast from
Sandgate to the South Foreland can be seen.
The objections raised against Wissant are —
1st. That it is no port at all.(2)
2nd. That there are no Eoman remains there.
3rd. That Sangatte, the next port northwards, is
only six miles distant; and Calais, the next, is
thirteen. 4th. That it is only about twenty miles across
to Britain. Now, 1st, Wissant was a popular place of- em
barkation in the Middle Ages, and was, doubtless,
resorted to because it was convenient, in times when
the practice of hauling up the vessels on the beach,
as the Eomans commonly did, was no longer in vogue.
As early as the eleventh century, a French chro
nicler informs us that the Abbot of St. Eiquier, in

(') XXVIIIme Dissertation de Du Cange Sur VHistovre de S.
Louis. — A curious instance of petty-sergeantry ' is mentioned by
Madox : " In the twentieth year of King Henry VI. John Baker held
certain lands in Kent of the Mng in eajpite, by the service of holding
the Icing's head in the ship between Dover and Whitsand, when the
king went over the sea there." (Baron., b. iii., c. v., p. 245.)
(2) "Wissant is no port at all, but only a sandy beach, four miles
long, and the radius of curvature five and a-half miles." (Lewin,
p. 14.)

THE PORT OF WISSANT. 17
Ponthieu, proceeding, in the year 1068, to the port
of Wissant, to embark for England, found there more
than one hundred monks, of every order, with a
crowd of soldiers and merchants, all, like himself,
about to cross the Channel. (l)
If Wissant were a port of those capabilities in the
eleventh century, we may reasonably infer that its
dimensions were much larger one thousand years
before, since the same causes were in existence, and
the same operations in effect, which in a less time
than that have completely choked up the entrance.
Within the last few years, walls of houses have been
excavated at the depth of twelve feet.
It is worth noting, that a curious document, con
taining the private disbursements of Queen Eleanor,
wife of Edward I., in the ninth year of his reign
(1281), shows an item occasioned by her seneschal
being detained seven days at Wissant before he could
cross. There must have been ample hostelry accom
modation there. "Pour le despens le Seneschal alant
en Ungleterre, demorant par xxviij jours dont il demor,
vij jours a Wissant auant quil poust passer." (3)
Dr. Guest gives it as his opinion,' after a
careful personal investigation, that between Cape
Grisnez and Wissant a port formerly existed, amply
large enough to contain 800 ships, such as Caesar
collected. In the offing was a roadstead, fairly shel
tered, and containing good anchoring ground; and
immediately in front was Dover. Caesar might well
(:) Chron. S. Eicharii, in Becueil des Historiens de France, xi. 133.
(2) Liberate Boll., Membr. 8. (Vide Notes and Queries, 3rd S.x. 349.)
VOL. I. C

18 THE BRITISH ARMY.
consider the transit from thence to Britain " extremely
convenient.'^1) The learned Doctor gives the process
by which he arrived at this conclusion. He remarks,
that on the eastern coast of the sea, which divides
England from the Continent, there seems to be a
tendency, owing to the action of the tides, to deposit
a line of sand-hills across the mouth of any bay
which deeply indents the land. The whole space
between the sand-hills, or downs, as they are called,
and the upland, was originally, at high water, a lake ;
and at low water a collection of mud-banks, through
which the rivers from the interior worked their way,
escaping into the sea through gaps in the line of
sand-hills. A belt of sand-hills stretched across the
bay, which, no doubt, once existed between the Capes.
Grisnez and Blancnez. The sand-downs still rise from
fifty to sixty and seventy feet in height, and stretch
from a point east of Grisnez to Wissant, a little to
the west of Blancnez. Between these downs and the
upland is now a flat sandy plain, some two or three
miles long, and varying from a quarter to half a mile
in breadth, and which was, at one time, what is, called
"a backwater." When, in the tenth and eleventh
centuries, the port of Wissant first began to play a
part in history, it seems probable that a large portion
of the ancient backwater was already -silted up, and
that the mediaeval port was where the Eieu d'Herlan,
one of the three outlets for the waters which cross
the plain, now enters the sea.
2. There are no Eoman remains there, with the
(') Arehaiol Journ., No. 83, p. 224.

OBJECTIONS TO WISSANT REMOVED. 19
exception of a limited earthwork, which bears the
name of Caesar's Camp, but about which it is very
doubtful whether there be anything Eoman except its
name. Dr. Guest states that he carefully explored
the country round about during three days, but found
nothing in the neighbourhood which he could venture
to call Eoman. This absence of Eoman remains
will, however, be used by-and-by to complete the
argument. 3. An admeasurement from the south side of
the bay, where the ancient embouchure may have
been, would bring the port to about eight miles of
Sangatte. 4. It was when preparing for his second expedi
tion to Britain that Caesar informs us that his passage
across on the former occasion was thirty miles. It is
fair, therefore, to conclude, as D'Anville pointed out,
that he reckoned from the point of departure to the
place of landing. If he disembarked at Eomney
Marsh, the distance would be about thirty Eoman
miles from " the continent" from land to land ; if,
however, he landed at Walmer, he could scarcely
assert that, as for five or six miles he would be
running alongside the British coast.
That Gesoriacum, or Boulogne, was the favoured
port during the Eoman occupation of Britain is an
undeniable fact.(x) The pharos erected there (2) —
though now lost sight of — corresponding with two
(') Jules Cesar, II., 1. iii., ch. vii.y p. 167. — Mr. Lewin, p. 19.
(2) It was undermined and overthrown by the sea in July, 1644,
so that not a vestige of it now remains; a lighthouse was subsequently
c 2

20 THE BRITISH ARMY.
similar ones on the heights of Dover (one of which
still survives), and the line of road, as given in the
Itinerary of Antoninus, leading from Tarvenna
(TIterouenne) and terminating at Boulogne, testify its
importance. (T) If, then, Wissant was Caesar's point
of departure and return, what was the cause of its
being speedily abandoned as such by his successors?
Dr. Guest assigns a very sufficient reason for it : —
"During the Anglo-Saxon period — that is, from

erected on its site. Montfaucon gives a description of it (Mems. de
I'Aoad. deslnscr., vi. 576), and observes that it was probably the tower
described by Suetonius, as having been built by Caligula, when he
brought his army to the sea-side, in order to show them Britain, and
made them gather up shells from the shore to carry with them, as the
spoils of the British sea. "As a mark of his victory," says the
historian, " he erected a very high tower, whence, as from a pharos,
fires were nightly displayed to direct the courses of ships." (Suet.,
CaUg., c. xlvi.) The original appellation of this tower was Turris
Ardens, afterwards corrupted to Turris Ordans, or Ordensis, and at
length corrupted by the Boulonnais to La Tour d'Ordrb. The
English called it The Olde Man, the reason for which does not
appear. It is represented in the Cowdray picture of the Siege of
Boulogne, engraved for the Society of Antiquaries. It surrendered,
after three days, to Henry VIII. (Vide Archceologia, iii. 259.) Its
position will be seen in the ancient map in the Cottonian collection,'
a copy of which is given in Mr. Lewin's Invasion, p. 20.
(') " Or, en admettant qu'il y ait eu deja sous Auguste nne route
qui reunissait Boulogne a Bonn, on comprend l'expression de Moras
qui explique que Drusus ameliora cette route en faisant construire
des ponts sur les nombreux cours d'eau qu'elle traversait, Bownam, et
Gesoriacum, pontibus junxit." (Floras, iv. 7.) Notes to Jules Chat,
t. II., 1. hi., ch. vii., p. 167.— All the best editions give Gesoniam
(Geldubam), not Gesoriacum. The historian is speaking of the
Ehine. "Nam per Eheni quidem ripam quinquaginta amplius
castella direxit Bonnam et Gesoniam," &c. It is not easy to com
prehend that two points so remote as Bonn and Boulogne should
be bracketed together, in consequence of Csesar having bridged over
all the watercourses between the two. The Codex Bamburgensis
(Floras, edit. Jahn, Leipzig, 1852) .gives the reading, "Barman et
Ccesoriacum pontibus," &o.

RESULTS OF SAND-STORMS ON THE COAST. 21
the sixth to the ninth century — Cevanta-wic(1), now
Etaples, was the chief port of communication ; from
the tenth to the fifteenth century, Wissant enjoyed
this honour, and Calais, in its turn, succeeded Wissant.
Wissant seems to have yielded to Calais, because, early
in the fifteenth century, its port was destroyed by one
of those sand-storms which are so frequent on the
opposite coast, and with which all who have been
resident there for any length of time must be fami
liar. Cevanta-wic fell a prey to the Northmen in the
latter part of the ninth century; and Wissant may
have taken its place, owing, as the Abbe Haignere-
suggests (Etude sur le Portus Itius, p. 28), to tbe
growing importance of the Flemish towns in the
neighbourhood, and their increasing commerce with
England. The motives which induced our ancestors
to abandon Gesoriacum (Boulogne) for Cevanta-wic
are not easy to discover ; but the reasons which led
the Eomans to prefer Gesoriacum to the Portus Icius
are; I think, sufficiently obvious.
" No one can explore the neighbourhood of Wissant
without being struck with its extreme sterility. Du
Cange(?) has collected all the learning relative to Wis
sant, and, in spite of himself, has shown the poverty
of the place and the slenderness of its resources. The
Boulognese antiquaries dwell with much triumph on
these testimonies to the poverty of the rival port ; but

(*) " Quantavic, or Quantawich, was the ancient name of S. Josse-
sur-Mer, or Estaples. It was sacked in 842. — An. Bertwdan. Bouquet,
vii. 61." (Mon. Hist. Brit, p. 345.)
(2) Dissertation xxviii., appended to the Hist, de St. Louis.

22 THE BRITISH ARMY.
it is forgotten that these testimonies afford a suffi
cient answer to the question put forward with so
much confidence — viz., how came the Eomans to make
Boulogne their port of transit during their occupa
tion of Britain, if Wissant were the Portus Icius?
Wissant, or rather the port adjacent to Wissant, may
have answered Caesar's purpose, when he had hun
dreds of ships to supply the wants of his commis
sariat ; but when a port was to be provided to meet
the ordinary purposes of traffic, it was necessary to
select one that possessed local resources. The neigh
bourhood of Boulogne was, comparatively speaking,
fertile, and, as its harbour was not inferior to, that of
Wissant, the. Eomans selected it for their port, not
withstanding the greater length of the voyage." This
supplies a reason why no Eoman remains have been
discovered there.
The writers who are quoted as describing Gesoria
cum as, the port of the, Morini, were not born in
Caesar's time. Pomponius Mela(1) flourished, about
a.d. 50; Pliny died a.d. 79;(z) Floras (3) flourished
about a.d. 115 ; and Ptolemy about a.d. 140-60. (4)
The theory of Mr. Airy, the Astronomer Eoyal,
that the voyage lay between the estuary, of the
Somme and Pevensey, (B) has been so completely
(*) " Ultimos Gallicarum gentium Morinos, nee portu quern Geso-
riaoum vocant quicquam notius habet." (iii. 2.)
(2) "Hsec [Britain] abest a Gessoriaco Morinorum gentis litore
proximo trajectu quinquaginta M." (iv. 30.)
(3) " Quum tertia vigilia Morino solvisset e portu minus quam
medio die insulam ingressus est." (iii. 10.)
(4) " MopivSiv Tnoopianbv kmvewv" (ii. 9, 3.)
(5) Archcsologia, xxxiv. 231.

IMPROBABILITY OF THE LONG PASSAGE. 23
answered by Mr. Lewin, (') that it requires but a
passing notice. Eoman knowledge of navigation was
extremely limited, and, therefore, that Caesar should
have attempted a passage of sixty statute miles with
clumsy, slow-sailing, heavily-laden' transports, with
several hundreds of horses on board, the safe arrival
of which he considered of great importance — when all
the information he possessed of the opposite coast
was derived from the rapid and imperfect survey of
Volusenus, and in the teeth of the fact which he had
gleaned that the shortest transit lay in the country of
the Morini — is a striking improbability.
Caesar, with his squadron of war galleys, consumed
ten hours in the passage across, being twenty miles,
from Gaul to the place where he brought to (assum
ing that he crossed at the nearest point), that is, at
the rate of two miles an hour; on the same calcula
tion, according to Mr. Airy's theory, Volusenus must
have been thirty hours before he arrived at his ground,
and the same time in returning. How much, or rather
how little, time would that officer have had at his
disposal for rowing along the coast and sounding, . a
work which he could not well perform at night, so as
to return on the fifth day ?
The learned Professor, relying on the meaning
he attaches to the verb proficiscitur, maintains that
Caesar did. not enter the territory of the Morini, that
he " set out" for it, but that there is no proof that he
ever arrived there. Caesar tells us, that " he marched
out to the Morini with all his forces, because from
(l) Beplies to the- Remarks of the Astronomer Royal.

24 THE BRITISH ARMY.
thence was the shortest passage into Britain.'^1)
Can there be any doubt as to his intention ? As he
does not tell us to the contrary, we may assume that
he reached his destination and sailed thence. His
was not the character to give up any undertaking
actually commenced. He does not descend into
details, but he supplies all the leading events, and
if he had seen cause to alter his course, a writer so
accurate as he would have indicated it. Mr. Airy
seems ingeniously making out a case which can never
be substantiated. Again, the Astronomer Eoyal takes exception at
the construction of the sentence — " Quo ex portu
commodissimum in Britanniam transjectum esse cog-
no verat circiter millium passuum xxx a continenti."
(Bel. Gal, v. 2.)
He is of opinion that the sentence originally ended
, at cognoverat, and that the subsequent words are
an interlineation. There is no MS. authority for that
assertion ; but if they are, it Would appear needless to
discuss the interpretation which the Astronomer Eoyal
attributes to them-^-viz., that they refer to a general
observation made by Caesar as to the distance from
coast to coast, and not to the passage which he under
took. The sentence in question has reference to the
time when Caesar was about to cross the British
Channel for the third time ; and surely he must then

(*) " Ipse cum omnibus cophs in Morinos proficiscitur, quod inde
erat brevissimus in Britanniam trajectus. (iv. 21.) " In Morinos,"
i.e., the country, not the people.— So Cicero, in his Orations against
Verres, always calls the Sicilian town- " Leontini," not " Leontium."

THE TIME OF CiESAR's EXPEDITION. 25
have learnt that the nearest point from coast to coast
was not thirty miles, but barely twenty. (x)
Assuming, then, that Cape Grisnez was the Itium,
and that the port nearest to it was the place of
embarkation, there are two important questions which
must be decided before a conclusion can be arrived at
as to the place of debarkation. As Caesar's progress
to the east or west depended on the state of the tide,
the hour of the day and the day of the month on
which he arrived must be ascertained in order to
form a calculation.
There is no doubt as to the year ; it is universally
admitted to have been b.c. 55, and from internal
evidence there is almost as little doubt as to the
month. The expedition was organised when "little
of summer remained," and allusions are made, on
Caesar's arrival, to the harvest as still continuing, but

0) Since these pages were written, a brochure has appeared, con
taining an entirely new and original view of the transaction — JuUus
Caesar; did he cross the Channel? By the Bev. Scott F. Surtees.
The author's theory is, that Caesar sailed, not as commonly supposed,
across the British Channel from some point between Boulogne and
Calais, to some point between Hythe and Deal, but over the high
seas, from the mouth of the Rhine ; and that, in his first expedition,
he landed at Cromer in Norfolk ; and in the second, at Brancaster,
in Norfolk. This would certainly not be the "shortest" and "most
convenient passage!" In the Appendix, the author states that he
reads "bixx" instead of xxx miles, and attributes the difference to
the error of the MSS. But he gives no authority for the assertion.
In the same way it would be possible to prove that Caesar landed at
several places, for there are many parts of the English coast which
fulfil the description of the landing-place given in the Comment
taries. Then, how about the eighty Roman miles from the sea to
the Thames? The Roman naval camp was evidently in Cantium.
There are many other objections, equally obvious, if the ordinary
text is to be adhered to.

26 THE BRITISH ARMY.
drawing to its conclusion, " the grain had been reaped
everywhere except in one place ;" (-1) and August is
unquestionably the harvest month in Kent. More
over, Caesar was anxious to leave Britain before the
equinox, which was approaching, (3) and which the
ancients reckoned to be the 24th of September ; and it
will be seen that he stayed in the island rather more
than three weeks, so that there can be no doubt that
he sailed from Britain in the month of August. Now
as to the day. Caesar writes, after the fourth day of
his arrival in Britain, that the transports with the
cavalry hove in sight, but were beaten off by stress of
weather; and it happened on that same night to be
full moon, which day makes the highest tides in the
ocean ; but the Eomans, owing/perhaps, to the absence'
of tides in the Mediterranean, were not previously
aware of that fact. (3) This full moon, according to
Dr. Halley, and others who have calculated it since
his time, (4) was on the night of the 30th of August,
or, to speak strictly, at 3.0 a.m. in the morning of
Thursday, the 31st of August. In common parlance,
it was the night of Wednesday, certainly not that
of Thursday. Does the expression post diem quartum mean
the fourth day exclusive, or the fourth day inclusive,,
(') " Omni ex reliquis partibus demesso frumento pars una erat -
reliqua." (iv. 32.)
(2) " Propinqua die aequinoctii." (iv. 36.)
(3) " Post diem quartum, quam est in Britanniam ventum, naves
xviii, &c. Eadem nocte accidit, ut esset luna plena, qui dies mari-
timos aastus maximos in Oceano efiicere consuevit ; nostrisque id erat
incognitum.'' (iv. 28, 29.)
(4) De Morgan's Booh of Almanacs.

BOMAN METHOD OF COMPUTING TIME. 27
of the- day of the full moon — viz., 30th of August?
If the former, the arrival of Caesar was on the 26th ;
if the latter, it was on the 27th of August.
The almost invariable practice of the Eomans was
to reckon mclusively. If there are, or appear to be,
exceptions, they are so rare as to prove the rule.
They had a very peculiar mode of reckoning. In
marking the days of the month they reckoned back
wards. The Calends are the first day of the month ;
Calendae Januariae is the first day of January ; Pridie
Calendarum, or Calendas, is the 31st of December, or
second of the Kalends of January ; the day before
that, or 30th of December, was III. Kal. Jan., that
is, ante diem tertium Kalendas — i.e., die tertio ante
Kalendas. IV. Kal., the 29th of December, and so
on. "Ante diem quartum, Kalendas Septemb.," was
29th of August, so that August 29 and September 1,
were both reckoned into the four days. A passage in
one of Cicero's orations is conclusive on this point :
" Neque te illo die, neque postero vidi .... post
diem tertium veni." (Philip., ii. 35.) So that we may
reckon that Caesar was off the coast of Britain on the
27th of August. 0
(') Unwittingly we follow the Roman mode of computation in
saying " a tertian ague," which indicates that the paroxysms return
every other day, and " quartan " every two days. In French a week
is expressed by huit jours, and a fortnight by une qumzaine. His
Majesty the Emperor Napoleon III. is of opinion that four whole
days should be counted after the day of landing, and that as the
storm took place on the evening of the 30th, the landing occurred
on the 25th. In dealing, however, with this case our decision must
be formed, not according to the modern mode of reckoning, but to
the custom in classic times.
The Imperial biographer appends the following note : — " Mot a

28 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Now, as to the hour of his arrival. Caesar tells
us that he got under weigh at the beginning of the
third watch (tertia fere vigilia solvit, iv. 23) ; that
he himself, with the first vessels, made the coast of
Britain about the fourth hour (ipse hora circiter diei
quarto) ; and he waited at anchor till the ninth hour

mot, cela veut dire que les navires portant la cavallerie mirent a la
voile quatre jours aprSs l'arrivee des Romains en Angleterre. La
langue latine employait souvent le nombre ordinal au lieu du nomtbre
cardinal. Ainsi l'historien Eutrope a dit : ' Carthage fut detraite 700 '
ans apr£s avoir ete fondee, Carthago septingentesvmo anno quam condita ,
erat deleta est.' Faut-il dans la phrase post diem quartum compter le
jour mime du debarquement ? — Virgile dit, enparlant du dix-septieme
jour : 'Septima post dedmam.' — Ciceron se sert de 1' expression post
sexennmm, pour dire dams six ans. H est evident que Virgile compte
sept jours apres le dixieme. Si le dixieme etait compris dans ce
chiffre, l'expression septima post decimam signifierait simplement le
sixieme jour. De son cote, Ciceron entend, visiblement, les six ans
comme un laps de temps qui doit s'econler a partir du moment ou
il parle. Done le post diem quart um de Cesar doit se comprendre
dans le sens de quatre jours revolus, sans compter lejour du debarque
ment." (IL, 1. iii., ch. vii.) — The cardinal and ordinal numbers mean
the same thing. For what is the difference between " on the fourth
day after his arrival " and " four days after ?" What light does
this remark of the Emperor's throw on the question of the mode of
computing ?
The passage His Majesty quotes from the Georgics, lib. i., does
certainly mean the seventeenth day, and not the sixteenth, for it is
taken directly from Hesiod, who specifies the seventeenth. But
septima post decimam is only a poetic form of decima septima.
As to the phrase ante or post diem quartumi qu'am, the simplest
explanation is, to regard it as a confusion between two different
expressions ; and an idiomatic transposition — i.e., post diem quartum
quam — is only die quarto, post quam. At the same time, post (or ante)
does, as is not uncommon, double duty. It may be regarded either
as an adverb or a preposition. It is, in fact, put once instead of twice.
Quam the adverb, no doubt, originally was the fem. accus. of qui or
quis ; the full expression would be post illam quam, quam for qua,
by a sort of Greek attraction of relative to antecedent. This is the
more easy and natural, because quam here includes its antecedent,
post quam being a condensed expression for post illam qua — after four
days after that on which he had arrived.

VARIATION OF ROMAN HOURS. 29
for the remainder to come up (ad horam nonam in
anchoris ewpectavit); then he weighed, and, with wind
and tide in his favour, he proceeded about seven
miles. The Eoman night (as well as the day) was always
divided into twelve hours, each watch lasting three.
But the length of the hours varied with the season ;
they would coincide, of course, at the equinoxes,
when each vigilia would be actually three hours in
length. On the 26th of August, b.c. 55, the night,
in the latitude of London, was ten hours long;
each computed hour would therefore be +£ = ! = fifty
minutes, instead of sixty. So, the first watch being
set at seven, and each watch consisting of two
and a half hours of our time, the third watch would
begin in five hours — i.e., after midnight, which we
may take to be the meaning of tertia fere vigilia. Q-)
On the 27th of August, b.c. 55, the sun rose at 5.6
a.m., and set at 6.54 p.m. The Eoman day, therefore,
from sunrise to sunset, consisted of thirteen hours
and forty-eight minutes of our time; so that each
Eoman hour, or twelfth part of the day, consisted of
sixty-nine minutes of our time. Four Eoman hours
on that day were represented by four hours and
thirty-six minutes of our time, so that Caesar was
under the high cliffs of Britain at 9.18 a.m., having
consumed that time in the passage ; four hours more
will bring us to the completion of the eighth hour
of the day, and the ninth hour of the Eoman day
(x) So " de medio potare die " (Hor., Sat. i. 8.) is to have begun
tippling at noon. — See also Mr. Long's Note, p. 181.

30 THE BRITISH ABMI.
would commence at 2.18 p.m., till which time Caesar
lay at anchor.
Having disposed of these important premises, now
comes the culminating question — Which way was
the tide running at 2.18 p.m. on the 27th of August,
b.c. 55? In these days, we are so accustomed to
rely on the precision of steam, that possibly we may
not be able to realise to its full extent the importance
of wind and tide to the ancient mariner. What
report is Volusenus likely to have made to his
general, as the result of his reconnaissance? In
those days of uncertain navigation, we may assume
that his instructions were to report on the nearest
available landing-place. No military man, nor any
one else, would contemplate for a moment landing a
hostile army in the cul-de-sac of a port, which the
vessels could enter only in a long line, with the risk
of being surrounded, if they succeeded ; Q-) nor on the
narrow ledge of beach, under beetling cliffs, under a
deadly shower of missiles from above. No; he had
to seek for the nearest " open and level shore ;" and
where would he find it? His report may have been
to this effect : — " Proceeding across to the nearest
point of land, of the two ports generally used by
the merchants — i.e., Dover and Folkestone — one will

(') Dover could not have been thought of as a landing-place. It
is somewhat amusing for us English to be informed that "nn ancien,
chromqueur, appelS Darell, raconte que Wilbred, roi de Kent, batit en
700 l'eglise de Saint Martin," &c. (Jules Cesar, II. 157.) Is this
taken from Camden?—" Darellus tells us out of Eadmer," &c. (Kent,
i. 249.) The English translator improves the name of the Kentish
lawgiver Wihtraad into Wilbred.

THE PROBABLE REPORT OF VOLUSENUS. 31
be on your right hand, the other on the left. If
you bring up between the two, you can act as cir
cumstances may decide, for, advancing in either direc
tion, you will arrive at a good landing-place at a
distance of about eight miles." We have no reason
to suppose that Volusenus could calculate the set of
the tide, nor could he possibly conjecture from which
quarter the wind might blow; and it was next to
impossible that the expedition could proceed with
either against it, especially as the object would be
by rapidity of movement to outstrip the enemy, who
was certain to be on the look-out, and to disembark
a sufficient force before he could come up. It might,
therefore, have been considered desirable to have
discovered two landing-places, one on the east, the
other on the west. Volusenus is not named as
accompanying the expedition, which is somewhat re
markable. We might almost infer that he did not,
as Caesar, at the council of war, tells his officers what
he had learnt from Volusenus. Caesar evidently knew
for what point to steer; and with two such land
marks as Dover and Folkestone, it would have been
difficult to commit an error.
The tides, it is well known, occur twice in the
twenty-four hours, and each time about twentyrfive
minutes later, so that the corresponding tide on
each successive day is fifty minutes later : thus, if
it be high water at Dover to-day at twelve o'clock
at noon, it will be high water there to-morrow at
12.50. (x) After a cycle of fourteen days, these
(') Tide Tables- for English Ports, 1859, p. 99.

32 THE BRITISH ARMY.
tides recur in the same order of succession. •, The
tables of the tides are usually calculated for the
new and full moons only. However, there are
slight disturbing influences which, in some degree,
vary the general rule ; there are therefore published
annually, under the direction of the Admiralty, tables
of the time of high water at the principal places on the
coast of England and Ireland for any day in the year.
On reference to these tables, it will be seen that the
" Establishment " of Dover — i.e., time of high water
there, immediately after a new or full moon, is at
11.12 a.m., which, therefore, in the present instance,
would be the morning tide on August 31, as it is
agreed that the full moon occurred at 3.0 a.m. on
that day of b.c. 55. The time of high water, how
ever, is calculated in the Admiralty Tables on the basis •
that the moon's transit was at twelve o'clock at mid
night, whereas the full moon with which we have to
deal was at 3.0 a.m. on that day; and this introduces
a disturbing element. We shall, therefore, attain
greater accuracy if we take the actual time of high
water at Dover on the fourth day before some full
moon which concurred as nearly as possible with that
one on August 31, b.c. 55 — viz., at 3.0 a.m. By the
Tide Tables for the year 1859, the moon was full
on December 10, at 3.13 a.m., which, therefore,
differs by thirteen minutes only from the time of full
moon on August 31, b.c. 55. Thus, August 27, b.c.
55, the day of Caesar's arrival, will- correspond with
December 6, 1859; and August 31, b.c. 55, with
December 10, 1859. Now, high water at Dover on

TIDAL CALCULATIONS. 33
December 6, 1859, was at 7.31 a.m. According to
the Admiralty directions, the stream off Dover sets
westward four hours after high water, and runs west
for the next seven hours, and then turns eastward
and runs so for the next five hours. (x) The tide,
then, on August 27, B.C. 55, began to flow east
ward, or up Channel, at 6.1 a.m. (viz., an hour and
a half before high water), and so continued until
11.31 a.m. (being four hours after high water), and
then turned westward, or down Channel, until 6.31
p.m. In other words, rejecting minute fractions,
the tide ran to the east from 6.0 a.m. to 11.30
a.m., and then to the west from 11.30 a.m. to
6.30 p.m.
The late Dr. Cardwell, a distinguished scholar, and
Camden Professor of Ancient History at Oxford,
maintained an opinion expressed in the Archceologia
Cantiana, vol. iii., that the embarkation took place
at Wissant, but the debarkation at Deal, and sug
gested that the Admiralty Tables, though correct
enough for mid-channel, were inapplicable to the
in-shore tides. The question was taken up by the
Society of Antiquaries, and the President, Earl
Stanhope, brought the matter under the notice of
the First Lord of the Admiralty, the Duke of
Somerset, who, with great liberality, admitting that
(') "About one mile S.S.E. of the South Foreland Lighthouse, the
stream begins to set to the eastward about lh. 30m. before high water
on the shore at Dover, and runs from N.E. by E. to E.N.E. about b\
hours, or till four hours after high water. It then turns and sets
W.S. W. quarter W. for about seven hours." (Potter's Tide Tables, 1859,
p. 110.) — See also the tidal information in Mr. Lewin's valuable work
before quoted.
VOL. I. D

34 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the former tidal observations "dealt chiefly with
main-tide streams, and not with the eddy or in
shore streams," (x) at once directed Surveyor Calver,
E.N., to ascertain the state of the tides at Dover,
in-shore (i.e., within the limits of 1-J or 2 miles from
the shore) between the South Foreland and Shake
speare's Cliff. The report of this officer, dated 1st
of December, 1862, is printed in Archaeologia, xxxix.
12, and was as follows : — "From the average of these
observations, it appears that when high water at Dover
occurs about 7.30 a.m., the in-shore flood, or easterly-
going stream, turns 4h.48m. after it is high water upon
the shore. Taking then, for example, a 7.31 a.m.
high water, and assuming that the ebb, or westerly-
going stream, runs on the average for 6J hours, it
follows that the flood, or easterly-going stream, on
that day would turn off Dover at 12.19, and the
succeeding ebb, or westerly-going stream, would run
to the westward until 6.34 p.m."
Thus, the only differences between the off-shore
and in-shore tides are : that off-shore, the tide, when.
it is high water at Dover at 8.31 a.m., turns west
ward at 11.31 a.m., and in-shore at 12.19. Off-shore,
the tide continues to run westward until 6.31 p.m.,
and in-shore until 6.34 p.m. If Caesar, then, at' the
ninth hour, Eoman time — i.e., at 2.18 p.m. of our-
time, sailed with the tide, he must necessarily, with
out the least shadow of a doubt, have gone westward.
A question might be raised, whether Caesar, who
>(') See Letter of Lord Clarence Paget, Secretary to the Admiralty,
Archaeologia, xxxiv. 281.

OSSAR MUST HAVE GONE TO WESTWARD. 35
tells us that he waited at anchor until the ninth hour
for the heavy transports to arrive, weighed anchor at
that precise time. In the first place, the very state
ment that he lay at anchor until the ninth hour
implies that he did not lie at anchor beyond that time.
Secondly, it will be recollected that the principal
officers had arrived simultaneously with Caesar in the
triremes, so that he was not waiting for them. He
employed the interval in giving them their instruc
tions, in order that no time should be lost. By 2.18
p.m. all the vessels, save the cavalry transports, had
come up, and then dismissing his officers, having
wind and tide in his favour, he hoisted the signal and
weighed. But the stream continued running to the
westward till 6.30 p.m., so that if Caesar had an east
ward tide, he must have waited for it upwards of four
hours after the whole fleet had assembled; and it is
difficult to understand his wasting all this time with
out the least allusion to it. There is, moreover, this
difficulty: when he did weigh, he had to carry the
fleet eight miles to its destination; and considering
the time occupied in the passage from Gaul even by
the swiftest vessels, we may form some calculation as
to the time likely to be consumed in that. So that,
if he waited for the easterly tide at 6.30, he could
scarcely have gained the landing-place until 8.30, or
more than an hour and a half after sunset. Then
there was all the fighting to be done, and the camp
to be entrenched — a proceeding which the Eomans
never neglected, and certainly could not upon this
occasion. And the performance of this duty in the
d 2

OO THE juaA.xTi.oxL AxxIvxT.
dusk or darkness would certainly have been men
tioned by so careful an historian as Caesar,
If, then, the tide was flowing from the east, the
wind was blowing from the same quarter. Caesar
weighed anchor, "having got" (nactus) "both wind
and tide in his favour." (iv. 23.) The word nactus
would give us an idea that there had been a change
either of the wind or tide, But the tide had been
running in the same direction for the last two hours ;
a fact, from the swinging of the vessels, unmistakable
by the veriest landsman, so that the change must
have been in the wind. It was doubtless owing to
the change of wind that the cavalry did not sooner
make its appearance. On the 26th of August, b.c 55,
it was high water about 8.0 p.m. at the port of embar
kation. (2) Caesar got under weigh about midnight, and
he appears to have ordered the cavalry to ride over to
the upper port at the same time. (2) We can imagine
the difficulty of embarking some 500 or 600 horses in
ill-appointed transports, an operation which the im
patient general characterised as somewhat tardily
performed, (3) so that probably they lost that tide, and
when they did get out, the wind had evidently shifted,
and they were unable to hold their course, and so had
to put back again. If the same favourable wind with
which Caesar started (S.W.) had continued, it would
have been equally favourable for the transports in the

(J) See Mr. Lewin's Invasion, p. 27.
(2) " Tertia vigilia solvit, equitesque in ulteriorem portum pro-
gredi, et naves conscendere, et se sequi jussit." (iv. 23.)
(3) " A quibus quum paulo tardius esset administratum." (Ibid.)

ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE EASTERN LANDING. 37
other port ; the wind therefore, without doubt, must
have shifted, and then continued to blow from the
east for several days consecutively, as the eighteen
transports could not renew the attempt to cross the
Channel until four days afterwards, when again a
storm arose, and they were driven back post diem
quartum. \
It is admitted on all hands that Caesar embarked
and debarked on both occasions at the same place.
On the second expedition to Britain, the light breeze
from the south-west, which had wafted the fleet from
Gaul, died away, and by midnight there was a dead
calm. The ships were carried a long way out of
their course by the tide, so that at daylight Caesar
found Britain on his left hand. Q) Now, if he were
bound for the eastern shore of Kent, between Walmer
and Deal, the coast would always lie on his left
hand. Again, when the cavalry transports at length got
out, and approached the coast of Britain and were
seen from the camp, they were overtaken and dispersed
by a violent storm which drove some of them back to
the place whence they came, and others to the west
ward of the island. Now, from Deal the coast trends
southwards to the foreland; a wind driving to the
west would have sent them ashore ; at all events, if
they succeeded in rounding the South Foreland, they
would no longer have been visible from the camp,

Q) " Leni Africo provectus, media, circiter nocte vento intermisso,
cursum non tenuit, et, longius delatus aastu, orta luce, sub sinistra
Britanniam relictam conspexit." (v. 8.)

38 THE BRITISH ARMY.
whereas if they were in sight of Lymne, Caesar could
have seen them drive farther, westward.
As it is conclusively proved that Caesar proceeded
to the westward, where is the first place, on "a flat
and open shore," which Volusenus had reported as fit
for landing the army ? The line of cliffs terminates
at Sandgate, and is there succeeded by a broad and
level plain. As we have to seek a landing-place to
the west, there is none other within the range than
this. Believing Caesar to have anchored off Folkestone,
six and a half (English) miles would bring him to the
present creek of Lymne. (x) " Whoever will examine
the features of this locality (Folkestone)," says Mr.
Post, " will perceive that the ancient harbour here,
winding inland for some little distance between the
hills, would very perfectly make good Caesar's words,
that . darts could be cast down on shore from the
higher places above. In addition, in the situation
of Folkestone there is another peculiarity; it was
near this place that the tide flowed up the ancient
estuary of the Eother, which has long since been
entirely choked up." (2)
"I need not produce arguments," says Mr.
Lewin, who, with unequivocal love of the subject,
(') Portus Lemanis. — Caesar's landing at Lymne is not a new idea.
D'Anville and Philipott, the Kentish topographical writers, both
held the same opinion, although neither of them supported it by
argument, nor inquired how it would bear on his other transactions
in Britain. Limne, signifies, in old British, a haven (Lambarde, 184)
and corresponds with the Greek Xt/uj*', a port ; and Ptolemy's' naivbc
Xt/iqv is commonly thought to mean Limne. Hythe in Saxon is the
same as Limne in British and Greek.
(2) On the Place of Cesar's Landing im, Britain. By the Eev. Beale
Post, B.O.L.

R0MNEY MARSH SUITABLE FOR LANDING. 39
has with great industry and talent gone deeply into
this part of it, "to show how peculiarly favourable
to a hostile descent is the great marsh lying between
Sandgate and Eye. The bones that are piled in the
crypt of Hythe Church bear witness of the fierce
encounters which have there taken place between the
Britons and their invaders on the British Arma
geddon." (p. 34.)
Here the shore was planum, or fiat; it was also
apertum, or open, for the heights to the north were at
least a mile distant. Here are adjacent woods and
corn lands. Now, the country from Deal to Canter
bury is one great grazing plain, undiversified by a
single coppice. Where, again, are the marshes at
Deal? Caesar speaks of the vada, or shoals (iv. 26) ;
Plutarch of the t6vov e\dhri Kal fxeorbv Vbaros (Plut., Cces.
16); and Dion says distinctly that Caesar "landed
on the marshes " (h ra revayr) a-nofialvovri, xxxix. 51) ;
and Lucan taunts Caesar with his ill success on the
marshes : — " Oceanumque vocans incerti stagna profundi,
Territa qusesitis ostendit terga Britannis." (Pharsal, ii. 572.)
Dion Cassius, whose authority, however, is some
what doubtful in this matter, as he wrote more than
two hundred years after this event, says, that " Caesar
not being able to land where he ought to have done,
sailed round a promontory, and went to the other
side." (xxxix. 51.) Now if we examine the map
designed by Mr. James Elliott, we shall perceive
that, according to his plan, what is now Eomney

40 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Marsh was once a great bay, with an island or bank
above high water in the centre. If it were so, there
is a promontory to be rounded, miles of open and flat
shore, and a possibility of sailing on to the oppo
site side of the bay. The map is appended to Mr.
Eoach Smith's "Excavations at Lymne," p. 40; and
by kind permission of the author is copied on Plate
I. (Fig. 1.) Mr. Elliott was the engineer of the
Dymchurch sea-wall, and for several years past has
directed his attention to this question, and has made
several careful surveys of the whole district. "The
streams," says he, '"from the eastern parts of the
wealds of Kent and Sussex discharged themselves
into the bay, and in time of floods from heavy rain
would come down loaded with the debris of the
country through which they passed, but which would
be deposited, as soon as the waters had expanded,
in the open bay; and we now find the whole
country, about the mouth of the river Limene, at
Appledore, in a circuit of about a mile (and at no
other part), at a few feet under the present surface,
covered with trees of the oak, alder, and birch, some
of great size, and evidently having been drifted
from a distance, and deposited where now found."
Eoman remains of pottery and other debris have
been disinterred in great abundance at Dymchurch.
(See Jour. Brit. Archceol. Assoc, p. 40, Canterbury
Congress, 1844.)
The disembarkation was effected under dangerous
conditions. The Britons pushed forward their horse
men and their war-chariots, and the crowd of footmen

No. i.
Fig. i.

THE 5EA

12 3^6
i i l l — ¦  1
MILES

Fig. 2.

cesar's landing. 41
followed, with all possible speed along the heights, the
course of the Eoman fleet. The transports, from their
size, could come up only where the water was deep,
and the legionaries, encumbered with a great weight
of arms and armour, would be obliged to fling them
selves into the sea on an unknown coast, gain a
footing, buffet the waves, and fight at the same time.
The enemy, on the contrary, well acquainted with the
ground and unembarrassed, could freely hurl their jave
lins while forcing their trained horses into the water.
The Eomans, strangers to this mode of warfare, were
disconcerted, and hung back. The great commander
had his resources at hand. He detached from the rest
of the fleet the war-galleys, which were of lighter
draught, and of a kind new to the natives, rowed
them to the undefended flank of the enemy, and these
vessels sent forth showers of arrows and other missiles
from the engines on board, which, doubtless, did great
execution on the naked bodies of the enemy. The
Britons, dismayed and astonished, halted and recoiled.
Still the Eomans hesitated to leap from their ships, on
account of the depth of the water ; when the standard-
bearer of the celebrated 10th legion — the gallant
ensign's name is lost to fame — loudly invoking and
exhorting his comrades to defend the eagle, flung him
self into the sea, and the rest followed his example.
The battle began. To the honour of our ancestors, it
was long and obstinate. (x) The Eomans, unable to
keep their ranks, to gain a solid footing, or to rally
be"neath their standards, fell into extreme confusion.
(i) " Pugnatum est ab utrisque acriter." (iv. 26.)

42 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The enemy, who knew all the shallows, were enabled
to cut off small parties in detail, or. to hurl their
javelins on the undefended flanks. Seeing this, Caesar
manned the small boats, and dispatched them wherever
the men were in most danger ; and then the Eomans,
having established themselves on terra firma, formed
their ranks, opposed science to undisciplined valour,
and soon put the enemy to flight. Pursuit was
impossible, owing to the non-arrival of the cavalry,
wherein alone fortune failed the Eomans ;(x) but the
first rood of British soil was gained, and held for the
time. The painted naked enemy had fled, and left the
Eomans at liberty to entrench a camp, a duty never
omitted, and certainly not to be neglected under the
present circumstances. They had little time for selec
tion of a site, for evening was drawing on, and there
fore it was, doubtless, as near the fleet as possible ; and
it was also of smaller dimensions than usual, in con
sequence of the absence of baggage. The precise spot
where it was laid out- must be a matter of conjecture,
the configuration of this part of the coast having
undergone material and visible changes. There is
a quadrangular Eoman fortress, called Stuttfall, half
way up the hill of Lymne, and overlooking the old
port ; some have assigned this as the site of the camp.
The fortress, however, must have been of subsequent
erection, being far too massive to have been raised in
an emergency, and probably, like Eichborough, was
one of those strong fortresses which, under the com-
(*) " Hoc unum ad pristinam fortunam Cassari defuit." (Ibid.)

OPINIONS AS TO WHERE CAESAR LANDED. 43
mand of the Count of the Saxon shore, protected the
southern and eastern coasts during the later Eoman
period, and formed the germ of the corporation of the
Cinque Ports. Mr. Lewin places it on the sea-side oppo
site Lymne, possibly where the modern fort now stands.
Mr. Appach, who has taken up the subject with a hearty
zeal, is of opinion that Caesar brought up at Hythe,
and on the supposition that Eomney Marsh was not
then in existence, coasted thence to Borrington, landed
along the coast there, and set up his camp immediately
to the west of the present Borrington church^1) At
all events, the veil is lifted to this extent, that it can
be seen clearly and undoubtedly that Caesar started
from either Wissant or Boulogne, that he was off the
coast of Britain on the 27th of August, and that he
landed somewhere to the west of Folkestone.
The natives sued for peace and sent in hostages,
which it was Caesar's policy to accept, for no doubt he
was already convinced that, in order to carry out his
intentions, he must pay another visit to the island,
and be accompanied by a far more imposing force than
he had under his present command.
Then came the disastrous storm, "post diem
quartum" and the appearance, and still more rapid
disappearance, of the cavalry transports ; and then
that tempestuous night with the high tide, which
did such damage to the war-galleys hauled on the
beach, and to. the heavy transports, which broke from
(') Julius Caesar's British Expedition. By Francis H. Appach,
Esq., MA. Paper read at Congress of the British Archasological
Association at Hastings, August 22, 1866.

44 THE BRITISH ARMY.
their moorings, and were dashed together. Twelve
vessels were destroyed; so that Caesar must heartily
have wished himself back again on the Continent.
To enable him to do so, the soldiers began vigorously
to repair the damage, making use of the materials
supplied by the wrecks to render the rest seaworthy.
The discipline of the Eomans, which had enabled a
smaller number to overcome a greater, had deceived
the Britons; but when, from the smallness of the
camp, they could form an estimate of the numerical
strength of the enemy, and when they perceived that
he had neither cavalry, ships, nor provisions, they
thought they saw an opportunity of freeing for ever
their native land from this daring foe. Caesar had a
suspicion of their designs, -and kept a watchful eye.
The legions took it by turns to go out daily into the
country near the camp to gather in the harvest left
on the ground. No doubt the Britons took it ill that
an enemy should reap what they had sowed. One
day, when the 7th legion was out on this duty, those
who were on guard at the entrance to the camp
reported to Caesar that a greater dust than usual was
observed in the direction whither the legion had
marched. Caesar, at once guessing the state of affairs,
ordered the cohorts upon guard to march with him to
that quarter, and two others to take their place at the
gate, and the rest to arm themselves and follow him
immediately. After having advanced a little distance
from the camp, he discovered his men overpowered by
the enemy ; for the natives, being able to conjecture
which way the men would pass, had concealed them-

BRITISH HORSE AND CHARIOTS. 45
selves over-night in the woods, had fallen suddenly
upon the Eoman soldiers in the act of reaping — con
sequently divested of their arms — had killed a few,
and terrified the rest, besides enclosing them with
their horses and chariots. Caesar appeared at the
critical moment. He did not judge it prudent to
attack the enemy, but contented himself with stand
ing on the defensive, and so quietly withdrew his
men. Caesar here takes occasion to mention the manner
of fighting with the war-chariots, and he highly com
mends the dexterity of the "barbarians" in handling
them. " These chariots," he says, " combine the
mobility of cavalry with the stability of infantry."
One might infer that this was the first time on which
they came into collision with the Eoman troops, and
that horsemen opposed the landing and forced their
horses into the water. Chariots could scarcely have
been available on the beach ; and if they had descended
to the edge of the water, the probability is that Caesar
would then have notified the fact. Mr. Long is of
opinion that the Britons had no cavalry, and that the
" equites hostium essedariique" (Bel. Gal., v. 15), are
no more than the essedarii. He, however, candidly
admits that in one place Caesar says "peditatus
equitatusque " (of the British), and that Strabo (p. 200),
in his account of Britain, says that they (the Britons)
use chariots for the most part (to -nXiov). (}) The Bri
tish horses appear to have been small ; but still, with
such an abundance of them as it appears there were,
(') Note to Caesar, v. 16, p. 211.

46 THE BRITISH ARMY.
it is difficult to suppose that they were not used for
riding, an act, one would imagine, more primitive
than driving.
After this the Britons assembled in great force,
and made a final attack on the camp, which ended in
their flight. The Eomans pursued them as well as
they could, and killed many; but as they had no
cavalry, save about thirty horses — which Commius had
brought over with him — the rest escaped. On the
same day they sent a deputation to sue for peace.
Caesar exacted double the number of hostages which
he had before required, and the equinox being at
hand, and a favourable wind occurring, he set sail a
little after midnight, and thus concluded a bootless
visit of less than three weeks to these shores, having
failed in acquiring information — the avowed object of
the expedition — on any subject, save one — the genus
hominum, and he had truly discovered the mettle of
the inhabitants.
It has already been stated that two of the trans
ports could not make the port for which they were
bound, and drifted farther south. Q) Mr. Lewin
regards this circumstance as a strong confirmation of
his theory respecting Boulogne, because the Admiralty
(') "Paulo infra delafcae sunt." (iy. 36.) — Mr. Airy understands
this to mean that the .ships were " carried down the wind." (Vide
Athenaeum, 10th Sept., 1859.) — But Csesar uses the word i/nfe-
riorem and swperiorem (c. 28), undoubtedly, with reference to the
points of the compass. The Eomans thought the North Pole
elevated above their heads, and the South one the antipodes,
beneath them.^- Virgil is express on this point: "Hie vertex (the
North Pole) nobis semper sublimis : at ilium (the other, the South
Pole) sub pedibus Styx atra videt manesque profundi." (Georg., i.)

THE CHANNEL STREAMS. 47
Directory gives the following caution : " On approach
ing Boulogne at the beginning of a rising tide, great
attention should be paid to the direction in the tables,
as the streams (from the Channel to the North Sea)
hereabout meet, and are turned down upon the French
coast; so that a ship, which, at the English side,
would at this time have a stream setting straight up
the Channel, here encounters one upon her beam,
sweeping her down towards the Somme, and hence,
probably, the cause of the many disastrous losses
which have occurred in this part of the Channel." (1)
The streams hereabout meet. A glance at the diagram
(vide Plate I., fig. 2) which Mr. Potter courteously
gave permission to be copied here, gives us reason to
believe that the same casualty would occur to a vessel
off Cape G-risnez, making for Wissant, which would
be driven into Ambleteuse, or elsewhere, ashore.
The incident above-mentioned introduces us to
an instance of the superiority of discipline over
numbers. The 300 soldiers, having disembarked
from the two vessels, were marching for their camp,
when they were surrounded by their old enemies,
the Morini, who summoned them to surrender their
arms or die. But the Eomans, forming themselves
into a ring, (3) set the barbarians at defiance. The
(') Potter's Tide Tables, p. 122.
(2) " Orbe facto," 37. — " This was a movement practised as a last
resource against an overwhelming force. The men formed a circle,
and presented a front all round, (v. 33.) Gellius (x. 9) gives a list
of the various names applied to the form in which soldiers were
arranged — Irons, subsidia, cuneus, orbis, globus, forfices (probably
resembhng the double-necked column peculiar to the Prussian
army), serra, alae, turres ;" and he adds that these military terms

48 THE BRITISH ARMY.
number of the enemy speedily increased to about
6,000. For upwards of four hours did this gallant
little band defend itself, until Caesar, receiving in
telligence of their position, immediately dispatched
the whole of the cavalry from the camp to their
rescue, upon sight of which the enemy threw down
his arms and fled,

are derived from the things themselves, which are literally so called."
(Note to Long's Caesar.) — In the Middle Ages this formation was
repeatedly resorted to. Sir Walter Scott gives an account of it at
the combat of Modden Pield. (See Marmion, canto vi. 34.)

CHAPTEE II.
*
STATE OF THE BRITONS AT THE PEEIOD OF CESAR'S INVASION — AD
DITIONAL PROOFS AGAINST THE LANDING ON THE EASTERN COAST —
OJSSAR DEFEATS THE BRITONS — MARCHES TO THE THAMES — PEACE
ARRANGED  PRIMITIVE WEAPONS — MODE OF FIGHTING. \
Before accompanying the great commander on his stateof
second visit to Britain, let us endeavour to form an
estimate of the condition of the people who had so
successfully confronted him; who had terrified his
legionaries ; and who, but for the compliment subse
quently reported to have been bestowed upon them —
non Angli sed angeli forent — may be characterised as
about the ugliest customers of the Eoman Common
wealth. Lord Macaulay describes the primitive state of
Britain by saying that "her inhabitants, when first
they became known to the Tyrian mariners, were
little superior to the. natives of the Sandwich Isles." (*)
But more than a thousand years before the birth of
our Saviour, those fearless traders are said, in the dim
records of those remote times, to have fetched tin
from the islands which Herodotus denominates the
Cassiterides, or islands producing tin (Kao-o-Crepos), and
which now bear the name of the Scilly Islands. (2)
So that what might have been true with respect to
Britain at the first rise of the curtain (the authority
(>) History of England, i. 4. (') Thalia, § 115.
VOL. I. E

50 THE BRITISH ARMY.
for which, however, is not apparent), was certainly
not the case after so many acts of her human exist
ence had been played out, when destiny led Caesar to
these shores. Both Strabo and Diodorus speak of
the comparative gentleness of manners which the
inhabitants of the British tin district had acquired
from their intercourse with foreign traders. The
comparison of the ancient Britons with the Sandwich
Islanders is, perhaps, founded on their practice of
tattooing their bodies with blue; but, although the
state both of the Caledonians and Hibernians was
savage, Q-) yet the condition of the Southern Britons,
and particularly of the inhabitants of the coast nearest
to Gaul, as described by Caesar, the earliest witness on
the subject, can hardly be considered to have been as
low as that of the South Sea Islanders.
Britain appears to have been peopled by successive
migrations from the neighbouring coast of Graul.
Without entering into an ethnological disquisition, it
will be sufficient for the purpose to state that in
Caesar's time Gallia was divided among three great
nations — the Belgae, Celtae, and Aquitani. Of these.
the Celtae were the most extensive, and their name is
that under which the whole nation was known to the
Greeks, (a) the word Galli being the Latinised form of

O Dio Cass., lxxvi. 12.— Strabo, v. 5, § 6.
' (2) The Eev. Isaac Taylor, in his Words and Places, remarks on
the curious distributionof Anglo-Saxon names over the district which
lie's between Calais, Boulogne, and St. Omer. AH Englishmen who have
been in that part of the country must have thought that "Wimille"
sounded very like " windmill," and that it was singular a place called ,
" Sangatte " should exist exactly opposite to our Kentish " Sandgate."

HOW BRITAIN WAS PEOPLED. 51
the native term Gael. (x) They extended from the
Seine to the Garonne ; the Aquitani from the Garonne
to the Pyrenees; and the Belgae possessed all the
country between the Seine and Marne to the Ehine. (z)
Caesar tells us that of these three nations the Belgae
were the most redoubtable. Lying nearest to Britain,
they crossed over the narrow sea, drove out the Celtic
inhabitants, and established themselves in Hampshire,
Wiltshire, and Somersetshire. Their principal station
was called by the Eomans Venta Belgarum, or Win
chester. He distinguishes the Cantii, or people of
Kent, as more advanced than the rest in the habits
of civilised life, and as not differing much from the
people of Gaul. The Belgae, the Eegni, or people of
Sussex, and the Cantii, pursued agriculture ; but most
of the interior tribes lived on milk and flesh, or in
that state which has been called the pastoral, and
clothed themselves with skins. (3) But there is no
doubt that the inhabitants of the south coast of
Britain enjoyed a much higher order of civilisation;
in fact, superior to that possessed by their neighbours
on the opposite coast.
What do we collect from Caesar's narrative ? He,
the first great foreigner that invaded Britain, found a
Twenty-two of these names have the suffix " ton," which is hardly
found elsewhere on the Continent, and more than 100 end in "ham,"
"ham," or "han,"asfor instance, Bazingham, Eringham, Berling-
ham, in France, corresponding to Brassiagham, Erringham, and
BirUngham, in England. It would seem as if this particular portion
of the French coast had received a Saxon colony from England, or
these names may preserve the traces of the old Littus Saxonicum.
0 Bel. Gal, i. 1.
(2) Ibid.
(3) v. 14.
E 2

52 THE BRITISH ARMY.
civil and military system, different from anything
he had witnessed before ; but, judging from the patent
facts on the face of his own account of his two cam
paigns, quite able to cope with that of Eome. He
denominates the natives Barbari ; but the Eomans
called all nations by that term except themselves and
the Greeks. His description conveys the impression
of a country long settled under an organised con
stitution and government; with corn abundant and
easily procured; a population so dense as to strike
him with amazement; Q) houses numerous (creberrima),
and stock abundant;' a metallic currency,, copper and
bars of iron. (3)
The British chariot system excited his admiration
and the terror of the legionaries. From his minute
description of it, he had never witnessed it elsewhere.
He says it was new to him, and took his men
by surprise. The Scriptures tell us that Solomon
gathered together 1,400 chariots ; but the mere
reserve of CassiveUaunus, after dismissing the rest
of his forces, amounted to 4,000. An organisation
which could scarcely have existed without a consider
able degree of civilisation.
It is not necessary to dilate upon the wondrous
earthworks — relics still of nigh 2,000 years — because
their date is uncertain, and Caesar does not mention
them. But this may be remarked, that in comparing
the Eoman and British systems of castrametation,
(') " Tnfinita hominum est multitudo." (§ 12.) — Also Diod. Sic,
elvai Se Kal TroXvavBpiorrov rfiv vrjaov. (v. 21.)
(s) Bel. Gal, v. 12.

RELIGION OF THE BRITONS. 53
Sir Christopher Wren did not hesitate to assign the
palm of science to the British. As to their non-
military works, every known artificial mound is
dwarfed to very humble dimensions by. the side of
Silbury Hill and Old Sarum.
Long before the Eoman invasion, Druidism was a The Druids.
flourishing institution here. Popular belief attaches
little more to the aspect of its professors than that of
dignified old savages, with long beards and flowing
robes, with a* knife in one hand and a branch of
mistletoe in the other ; the sanguinary immolators
of human victims. Caesar, a rival pagan, with all
a Eoman citizen's feeling of superiority, fairly tells
us that the Druids were great astronomers; that
they taught the youth the motions of the heavenly
bodies, the magnitude of the world and the earth, the
nature of things, and the might and power of the
immortal gods. C) They held, too, the immortality
of the soul in transmigration ; and this doctrine they
esteemed a great incentive to courage, the fear of
death being removed. They were also learned in
Greek. Caesar says that the Druidic colleges in
Britain were frequented by natives and foreigners,
who wished to study the system (disciplina) which, he
believed to have emanated hence into Gaul. (2) This,
however, is scarcely credible. The lithic ruins of the
old Druidical temples extend over the face of the
country from Cornwall to the Hebrides ; and some of
(') Bel. Gal, vi. 14.
(2) " Disciplina in Britannia reperta atque inde in Galliamtranslata
esse existimatur ; et nunc, qui diligentius earn rem cognoscere volunt,
plerumque illo discendi causa proficiscuntur.'' (Ibid. 13.)

54 THE BRITISH ARMY.
them, at all events, must have been in existence in
Caesar's time, although he may not have seen them.
These huge circles were the scenes of national solem
nities and festivities; mighty orreries, representing
the great temple of the universe ; Amesbury has dis-.
appeared ; fragments only of Stonehenge remain ; but
it would tax our utmost mechanical ingenuity to
convey and adjust the immense solitary obelisks that
composed them. «
It is plain that there existed in Britain a pre-
Eoman civilisation which loses little by comparison
with the contemporary state of things elsewhere.
Diodorus Siculus (v. 21) attests the simplicity of the
manners of the Britons, as widely different from the
unsteadiness and dishonesty of the inhabitants of the
more highly-favoured south. There were, of course,
dark spots; but these "barbarians" successfully baffled
the attempts of the first and the most warlike of the
Caesars in two campaigns ; so that he left not a
Eoman soldier behind, he obtained no booty of any
value, and he even lost for a time, as the result of his
discomfiture, all his Gallic acquisitions. The idio
syncrasy of nations is curious : the Briton had no
claim for distinction in the fine arts ; Italy is still
our mistress in that respect. Cicero wrote to Atticus,
"It is now ascertained that there is not a scruple of
silver in that- island (Britain), nor any hope of booty
except slaves, and from these I think you do not
expect to find men learned in letters or music." (J)
(:) " Etiam illud cognotum est, neque argenti scripulum esse in
ilia insula, neque nUam spem pradae nisi en mancipiis : ex quibus
nullis puto te Uteris aut musicis eruditos exspectare." (iv. 16.)

cjesar's personal activity. 55
And again, the great orator playfully wrote to
Trebatius, " I hear that there is neither gold nor
silver in Britain ; if this be so, you had better capture
a war-chariot, and hasten back to us as soon as
possible." Q)
The next year beheld Caesar's second invasion of Second
Britain, for which great preparations had been made
during his absence in Italy. According to his in
structions, the fleet had been remodelled, the trans
ports being made lower and wider, so as to render
them handier for hauling up on the beach, and for
taking on board their cargoes of horses. They were
to be propelled either by sails or oars. Every pains
had been taken to render the expedition complete.
What was required for the fitting out the vessels had
been procured from Spain.
The activity of the great general may be collected
from his own brief notices. He left the army for Italy
at the beginning of the new year (b.c. 54) ; travelled
all through Transalpine and Cisalpine Gaul; crossed
over into Illyricum and back ; came to an understand
ing with the Pirustae, who had been troublesome ; and
returned to the army in Belgium. Altogether, he
must, at least, have travelled 2,000 miles, without
reckoning his journeys to the different towns where
he held courts. (2) Upon his arrival, he made a tour
of inspection of the winter quarters of the army, and

(*) " In Britanniam nihil esse audio neque auri neque argenti. Id
si ita est, essedum aUquod suadeo capias, et ad nos quamprimum
recurras." (Ad Bio., vh. 7.)
(a) Note to Long's Caesar, p. 196.

56 THE BRITISH ARMY.
he was pleased to find about 600 transports and 28
ships of war, prepared by the artisans of the army,
and ready to be launched in a few days. They
were all ordered to assemble at Portus Itius. In
the meanwhile, he marched against the Treviri (or
people of Treves) with four Hght legions (legionibm
ewpeditis) and 800 cavalry; nor was he long in re
ducing them to obedience. He then proceeded to the
rendezvous, where the whole disposable force had
assembled, with the exception of 60 ships, which had
been built in the country of the Meldi (an uncertain
locality), and which had been driven back by a storm.
For five-and-twenty days the embarkation of the
troops was delayed by the prevalence of north-westerly
gales. At the first change of wind he got under
weigh about sunset. A little episode occurred just as
the embarkation was being effected in the defection of
the iEduan Dumnorix, who, taking advantage of the
busy moment, quietly withdrew from the camp with
all the cavalry of his country. For Caesar had n>'
sisted on his accompanying the expedition, as he
intended to carry along with him all those who could
not be trusted in his absence. The cavalry force
assembled there consisted entirely of Gauls, amount
ing to 4,000 horses, half of which Caesar left with
three legions under Labienus to watch over his
interests in Gaul ; the other half he took with him,
the necessity for such a force having been fully
demonstrated in the late expedition. The remainder
of the army consisted of five legions, or about 20,000
men.

OffiSAR S SECOND VOYAGE. 57
We may determine with tolerable accuracy the
period of the year when he set sail. Caesar was at
Placentia and Lodi, in Hither Gaul, at the end of
May ; (*) he was probably then on his road to Trans
alpine Gaul. He tells us he made quick work with
the Treviri, because he did not wish to pass the
summer there ; (2) and if we take midsummer as the
date of embarkation, we shall not be far wrong.
At length, everything being ready, and a light
south-west wind blowing, (3) he got under weigh at
sunset. Towards midnight the wind fell, so that he
could not hold his course ; and being drifted by the
tide, at daylight he found that the coast of Britain
lay (relictam, left behind) on his left hand. By this
we may understand that the fleet was carried away,
broadside on, to the eastward, beyond the South
Foreland, the bows of the vessels pointing northwards
towards Deal, and the coast discovered in an unex
pected position : whether he would have infalHbly
struck on the Goodwin Sands, had he held on for
Deal, and the tide had not turned, is a question. (4)
Caesar could not hold his course, because in the

(') Cicero, Epis. ad Q. Eratrem, ii. 15.
(s) " Ne eestatem in Treviris consumere cogeretur." (Bel. Gal, v. 4.)
— See also Mr. Lewin, p. 84, who is very definite on this point.
(3) " Leni Africo provectus." (Ibid., 8.) — " The Africus is a wind
which blows ' ab oacasu brumali,' and between this point and south
(Notus) was the Libonotus. Africus, therefore, was either some
what farther south than W.S.W., or not quite so far S. as S.W.
by "W." (Note to Long's Coesar, p. 201.)
(4) These sands, as it is weU known, according to tradition, were.
at one time a part of Kent, and the lands belonging to Godwin,
Earl of Kent. Florence of Worcester describes a disastrous irrup
tion of the sea, by which whole villages were submerged, and

58 THE BRITISH ARMY.
absence of wind he could not stem the tide, which
was flowing to the eastward, and he wished to steer
to the west. Had his course been east or north-east,
the tide would have been in his favour. But if he
were bound for the east coast of Britain, where he
had been the year before, could he possibly have
expressed surprise that the coast lay on the port side ?
Caesar took advantage of the turn of the tide, got
out his oars, and about mid-day arrived at the landing-
place of the preceding year. Now if he were making
for Deal, the turn of the tide would not have been
in his favour, as it was then flowing to the westward ;
unless, indeed, he had been borne by the current
beyond that place — i.e., farther north than Deal, and
an innumerable multitude of people were drowned. "Mare litfrus
egreditur tertio Cal. Octobris, et in Anglia villas quamplurimas
innumerabilemque popuUmultitudinem submersit." (p. 616.) , He
died, according to Higden, in 1118, just ninety-six years after the
event. Henry of Huntingdon, who records it also, was born in the
same century with him, and both agree in fixing the date as that
of the year 1014. Florence names the very day, in which Matthew
of Westminster foUows him. Another inundation occurred, according
to the Anglo-Saxon Chron., a.d. 1099. " In this year also, on St.
Martin's Mass-day (Nov. 11), the sea-flood sprung up to that degree,
and did so much harm as no man remembered it ever did before ;
and it was on the same day a new moon." The opinion of modern
geologists is confirmatory of the tradition. " Goodwin Sands," says
Sir C. LyeU, " may be presumed to be a remnant of land, and not a
mere accumulation of sea-sand, from the fact that when the erection
of a Ughthouse on the shoal was in contemplation by the Trinity
Board, in 1817, it was found by borings that the bank consisted pf
fifteen feet of sand, resting on blue clay." (Principles of Geology-
edit. 1847, ch. xx., p. 300.) Since the supposed estate of Earl Godwin,
aB marked out by the sands bearing his name, extends at the present
moment all the way from Deal along. the coast to the North Fore
land — if the tradition be true — it follows that the theory of Caesar's
eastern. landing requires revision, being calculated on the present
configuration of the coast. (See also Brit. Archoeol. Assoc, Canterbury
Congress, 1844; pp. 130, 376.)

THE EFFECT OF THE TURN OF THE TIDE. 59
so could run down upon it with the change of tide.
Caesar does not say so. But if so, the time would not
allow of his being carried very far northwards beyond
Deal ; and he might have congratulated himself upon
having made a quick passage, and there would be no
cause for the expression of his admiration at the inde
fatigable exertions of the rowers of the heavy tran
sports, who kept up with, the pace of the light war-
galleys, and so brought up the whole fleet simul
taneously at the landing-place by twelve o'clock in the
day. As Caesar had been drifted by the tide from
west to east, he must, if he went back with the tide
when it turned, have gone from east to west. This
he would naturally do if Hythe were his object, but
not if he were making for Deal ; for either he must
have gone against the tide as it turned down Channel,
or, at least, athwart it, and could not, by any pos
sibility, have taken advantage of the tide, and gone
along with it. If the Goodwins had then been in
existence, we should have heard something of them,
or nothing of the expedition.
Another remarkable fact is, that the turn of the
tide in the Channel is four hours after high water.
When Caesar therefore went with the tide at its
turning, it was four hours after high water, and
approaching to low water. What chance would a fleet
of 800 sail about mid-Channel, to the east of the
South Foreland, making for Deal, have of avoiding
the sands ? They must inevitably have been carried
over them ; and allowing for the rate at which they
advanced, they must have come upon them at low

60 THE BRITISH ARMY.
water. The Emperor, to avoid this difficulty, makes
the fleet to deviate in a zigzag (vide Atlas to Jules
Cesar), affording an existence of miraculous luck and
pilotage.
The second The enemv fled at his approach, so that the em-
Landing. J ¦«. «
barkation was effected without difficulty. And no
wonder ; for the fleet, by private additions, had swollen
to the number of more than 800 vessels of various
descriptions. Caesar had, therefore, ample opportunity
to select an eligible site for a camp (idoneo loco) ; not
this time placed, at the exigency of the moment, as
close as possible to the fleet, but on high ground at
some distance inland. Mr. Lewin imagines that it
might have been on the high platform overlooking
the marsh at Lymne, perhaps on the site of Lymne
Castle. The apparent objection to this view is that,
if it were there, it would not have been necessary to
send mounted messengers from the fleet to inform Caesar
that during the violent storm of the over-night serious
damage had occurred to the shipping. The military
camp was evidently at a considerable distance from
the naval one ; he afterwards saw fit to unite the two
by a line of defence.
Mr. Appach, again, is of opinion that the military
camp was situated at Ham Place, midway between
Appledore and Kennardington. All, at best, is but
conjecture, and those who maintain the eastern landing
find a site exactly suited to their theory^1)
(') Mr. Long agrees, as " it has been conjectured by others, that
it (the camp) may have been on the Stour, about where the enclosure
of Eichborough now is. Here he would fund water, which he could

NIGHT MARCH AGAINST THE NATIVES. 61
Cassar lost no time in pursuing the enemy.
Having ascertained their position from his prisoners,
and having left ten cohorts and 300 horse as a guard
for the ships, under the command of Quintus Atrius,
the very evening of his landing, he made a midnight
march of twelve miles, and came upon the native army.
The Kentish men immediately arose, and descended
to a river with their cavalry and chariots, and attacked ;
but the Eoman horse repulsed them, and they retired
to a position strongly fortified by nature and art. For
the Britons had been fighting amongst themselves,
and the approaches to this stronghold had been de
fended by felled trees against a domestic foe. The
7th legion, however, formed the testudo, carried the
works, and drove the enemy out. Caesar, however,
forbade a pursuit, being unacquainted with the country,
and withdrew his men to camp, and fortified it.Q)
Mr. Lewin says, "If we measure twelve miles from
Limne along the road to Canterbury, it will bring us
to Wye, on the southern bank of the river Stour.
The Britons were posted in Challock Wood, an emi
nence about a mile off on the other or north side of
the river."(2) Mr. Long appends a note to the passage,
and writes, " Twelve Eoman miles from Deal, or there-
not get anywhere else on this coast " (p. 204). — If so, how was the
army watered on the first expedition P — The Emperor assigns the site
to the sea-coast near Deal. (II., ch. iii.)-
O Bel. Gal, v. 9.
(3) P. 87. — The author of the History and Topography of Wye
writes, " The ancient British camp, strictly so caUed, occupies that
part of the summit of Wye Downs directly over the chalk pit, above
Cold Harbour, and consists of more than 200 caves : the circuit of
the entire area being not less than 630 paces." (p. 8.)

62 THE BRITISH ARMY.
abouts, we find Grove Ferry on the Stour, where the
land is low on the east side, or the side by which
Caesar would approach ; but it rises on the opposite
side, that on which the Britanni posted themselves
(locus superior). The locality fits the description."
(p. 205.) The next day, early, the Eoman army had scarcely
begun its advance in three divisions when horsemen
came from Atrius to inform Caesar that, in the very
violent storm of the over-night, the whole fleet had
been driven ashore and shattered. Thus, in fact,
the disaster of the preceding year was reproduced:
The troops were at once countermanded, and Caesar
hurried back to the shore. He found forty vessels
complete wrecks, the rest were capable of repair. So
he set the artificers of the army at work^1) and wrote
to Labienus to provide him with as many ships as
possible. The fleet was then hauled up high and dry, -
and the entrenchments of the military were extended
to the naval camp, so as to form one entire fortifica
tion, a very laborious work, which occupied the army
about ten days, though they worked day and night
incessantly. In the meantime the Britons had not been
inactive. The detriment of disunion was manifest.
(') There was a number of fabri in the legions. The manage
ment of the engines of war required mechanics. The directors of
the fabri were proefecti. The fabri at this time seem to have
been reckoned as legionary soldiers, though we may suppose that
such a class of men would be mainly employed where they would be
most useful, and not be exposed to useless risk. The fabri were
the skilled workmen ; but all the soldiers worked at such things as
they could do. Livy (i. 43) mentions the origin of the fabri.

BRITISH MODE OF WARFARE. 63
Common danger compelled them to drop private
animosities ; and CassiveUaunus, who, previously to
the arrival of the Eomans, had been incessantly
engaged in warfare with his countrymen of other
districts, was, by general consent, invested with the
supreme command of the allied army; so that when
Caesar again took the field, and returned to the point
which he had quitted, he found a great accession of
force prepared to contest his farther progress.
The Eoman army resumed its advance, and the British
, J Tactics.
enemy s horse and chariots boldly attacked the
cavalry on the march. The British tactics were to
make a dash, and then retreat ; and when the chance
of an engagement seemed at an end, and the Eomans
had commenced the labour of fortifying their camp
for the night, suddenly the yells of the drivers were
heard, and chariots and horsemen started forth amidst
the interstices of the woods, before the startled
legionaries had time to rush to their arms. The
great commander is constrained to admit that his
men were scared by this, to them, new mode of war
fare. (*) Then when the discipline of serried ranks
was brought to bear against them, they launched
their weapons (javelins, we may presume, for it is
remarkable that Caesar gives no specification of their
arms, details more suitable to him, one would sup
pose, than those of geographical survey), and were
soon beyond danger. The cavalry could not pursue
them unsupported by the infantry, for the Britons
sometimes pretended flight, and having drawn the
(l) " Novo genere pugnse perterritis nostris." (v. 15.)

64 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Eoman horse after them, they would jump from their
chariots, and fight on foot with great advantage.
There was a system, too, in their mode of fighting ;
they never fought in close order, but in detached
parties, at a considerable distance from one another,
each of them having their particular post assigned,
from whence they received support, and the weary
were relieved by the fresh. Q-) The Eomans re
mained masters of every field, but it was by dint
of hard fighting ; and Caesar owns to the severe
losses which he sustained. His infantry soldiers,
he says, were unfit to cope with such an enemy,
because the weight of their armour would not ad
mit of their pursuing, nor did they dare leave their
standards. The cavalry, whether they pursued or
retreated,, were in equal danger.
It was in such a combat as this, on the first
occasion that active operations were resumed, that
Q. Laberius Durus, a military tribune (or colonel),
was killed. The cavalry had been drawn away
in pursuit, and it was only by Caesar's sending for
ward cohort after cohort to their assistance that the
fortune of the day was retrieved. (2)
The Britons were repulsed, but not defeated.
They watched every movement of the invaders, and
on the next day a severe action was fought. At
mid-day three legions and all the cavalry were sent
out to forage. The largeness of the force employed
for this duty shows that the danger was considered
imminent. The enemy suddenly fell upon them,
0 Bel. Gal, v. 16. (») Ibid., 15.

CiESAR's MARCH TO THE THAMES. 65
and fought with wonderful courage up to the very
standards of the Eomans; but they were at length
driven off with great loss. Upon this defeat, the
auxiliaries forsook CassiveUaunus, who was never
afterwards able to bring the whole united force into
the field.
Caesar then determined to march into the country
of CassiveUaunus, to the Thames, a river which, he
teUs us, divides the territory of that chieftain from the
maritime states for about eighty mfles from the sea (l)
— a sentence of somewhat doubtful interpretation.
To his route thither he gives us no clue ; the
enemy, however, was beforehand with him, and was
posted in great force on the opposite bank, which
he had studded with sharp stakes, in order to pre
vent the Eomans from landing; some, also, were
set up in the stream itself, beneath the surface of
the water.
From the undoubted fact of the former existence
of some stakes or piles in the bed of the river,
known as the Coway Stakes, between Walton and
Weybridge, near the junction of the Wey and the
Thames, it has been assumed that this was the
crossing-place of the armies. This point has pre
sented ample grounds for debate. The tradition is
as old as the Venerable Bede. " The remains of the
stakes," says he, " are to be seen there to this very
day;" and it appears, upon inspection, that each of
0) " Cassivellauno, cujus fines a maritimis civitatibus flumen
dividit, quod appellator Tamesis, a mari circiter millia passuum
lxxx." (Ibid., 11.)
VOL. I. F

66 THE BRITISH ARMY.
them was as thick as a man's thigh, and that they
were wrapped round (circumfusee) with lead, and fixed
immovably in the depths of the river. Q) Bede does
not mention where in the river these stakes were to
be found ; in fact, he himself never saw the Thames.
Camden was the first to direct attention to the
locus in quo, and expresses himself very positively on
the subject. " It is impossible," he writes, " I should
be mistaken in the place, because here the river is
scarce six foot deep ; and the place at this day, from
these stakes, is called Coway-stahes ; to which we may
add, that Caesar makes the bounds of Cassivelan,
where he fixes this his passage, to be about eighty
miles distant from that sea which washes the east
part of Kent where he landed." (Vol. i., p. 183.)
" Not far from hence," says the continuator of
Camden, "upon the Thames, is Walton, in which
parish is a great camp of about twelve acres, single
work, and oblong. There is a road lies through it,
and it is probable that Walton takes its name from
this remarkable vallum" Adam's Index Villaris gives
a Ust of forty-seven distinct Waltons in England ; it
is not likely, therefore, that this surmise as to the
derivation of the name is correct. The camp aUuded
to is doubtless the one on St. George's HiU, at the
distance of a mile and a half to the south of Coway
Stakes, the remains of which are stiU perceptible, (2)
(>) Hist. Ecales., i. 2.
(2) In the Emperor's Jules Cesar, the fact of there ever having '
been a camp there is denied : " Sur la colline de Saint-Georges pres
de Walton sur la Tamise, il n'a jamais exists de camp." (II., lib. iii.,
ch. vhi.)

THE COWAY STAKES. 67
double-trenched, containing more than thirteen acres, (J)
and caUed traditionally Caesar's camp, but what Dr.
Guest caUs a British stronghold. (a)
Mr. Gale visited the place in 1734 ;(3) and Mr.
Daines Barrington, in 1769, writes that the stakes lie
in a single line across the river, and suggests that they
are the remains of a fishing weir, so many of which,
in the Thames particularly, the twenty-third chapter
of Magna Charta (4) directs should be destroyed.
In Manning's Surrey the theory of the Coway
stakes having been Caesar's crossing-place is warmly
maintained. In confirmation of this being the ford
in question, it is added that spurs and fragments of
spears, &c, had been dug up at different times in a
field caUed Warclose, in the parish of Shepperton ; (5)
"but, before we admit the argument of the spurs,"
adds Mr. Lewin (p. 107), " it must be proved, which
may be a matter of difficulty, that the Bomans wore
spurs ! "
There would be no difficulty in that, if we recall,
amid numberless other proofs, Virgil's beautiful
apostrophe to MarceUus : —
" Non iUi quisquam se impune tuUsset
Obvius armato ; seu quum pedes viet in hostem ;
Seu spumantis equi foderet calcaribus armos." Mneid, vi. 882.
Caesar disposes of what must have been a very
(!) Manning's Surrey, ii.
(2) Lecture deUvered at Eoyal Institution, 12th July, 1866. (Vide
Atheneeum, No. 2,022, p. 114.)
(s) Archaeologia, i. 184.
(4) Ibid., n. 141.
(5) Manning, ii. 759.

68 THE BRITISH ARMY.
gallant affair, in four Unes. He had ascertained what
was in store for him from the prisoners and deserters.
He sent the cavalry on beforehand, and ordered the
infantry to foUow them as quickly as possible. But
such was the activity and impetuosity of the men,
whose heads alone were above water, that the enemy
could not sustain the attack of the legionaries and
cavalry, and they abandoned the bank and fled.
How cavalry or infantry could cross the river, the
only fordable place being protected with stakes, and
a hostile army arranged on the bank, is certainly
wonderful. (*)
The Emperor of the French endeavours to meet
the difficulty by supposing that Caesar sent the
cavalry across the river at some place, either above
or below the ford, to take the Britons in flank, and
to occupy the enemy's attention, while the infantry
soldiers removed the stakes.
As the river was fordable "only at one place,"
the cavalry on this hypothesis must have swam the
river in the deeps ; and to swim cavalry over such a
river as the Thames, is a miUtary operation not of
every day's occurrence; although with the Scythian
cavalry of Timur and Genghis Khan it was a feat
constantly performed. No river, however deep or

(*) Polyaenus, a Greek author of the second century, who wrote
a book on the Stratagems of Illustrious Generals, teUs a story of
Caesar having with him a very large elephant cased in mail, with a
tower on his back containing bowmen and sUngers. The elephant,
with his load, entered the river and frightened the Britanni away.
(Strateg., vni. 23, § 5.) — Caesar makes no mention of what would have
been a very important fact.

THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON 's THEORY. 69
swift, arrested them. When the latter surprised
Bagdad, he had just swam the Tigris with 300,000
horsemen. But a presumptive proof that this ma
noeuvre was not adopted is, that the infantry appear
to have got across first ; at all events, it is not stated
that the cavalry was the first to land: "Hostes
impetum legionum atque equitum sustinere non
possent." (v. 18.) The stream was doubtless swifter
in those days, flowing uninterruptedly to the sea
without a single lock to impede its progress ; on the
other hand, it must be remembered that the absence
of locks would have made the river shaUower.
After aU, it may not have been at Coway that
the crossing was effected. The Emperor of the
French sent over two officers to examine the present
state of the river near Coway. They reported that
there was no ford at Coway, but that there were
eight or nine between Shepperton and London. His
Majesty reasons thus : the tide ends at Teddington
— the name of. which he teUs us means Tide-end-
town; (l) and as Caesar would hardly select a spot
for crossing the river where he might be interrupted
by the tide, he must have passed it west of Ted
dington. Of the various fords between Teddington
and Coway, the Emperor selects the one at Sunbury
as being the most favourable for Caesar's purpose.
The faUacy which runs through this reasoning is
patent. The Emperor argues from the present to

(J) His Majesty's etymology is entirely at fault. There are no
grounds for this derivation. (Vide Kemble's Codex Diplomatics,
v. Tudmgtun.)

70 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the past without taking any note of the changes that
have occurred during 2,000 years ; and the physical
changes of so many centuries invest the whole
question of Caesar's landing-place, as weU as that
of the locaUty where he crossed the Thames, in pro
found and impenetrable obscurity. The capricious
freaks of nature, the sflent transformations of the
material world, the incessant war of the elements,
afford but an insecure basis for historical and topo
graphical investigation. All that we can hope is to
frame a plausible and consistent theory. It is easier
to discover what is not than what is the truth. Dr.
Guest maintains that these shaUows are attributable
to the present artificial state of the river. Silt and
gravel beneath each weir being torn up and carried
down and deposited by the current in the stiU water,
so that before each weir there is a tendency to form
a shallow, over which in one or more places a man
may, in certain states of the. river, wade across;
and that the shallow at Sunbury is a mere con
sequence of Sunbury weir. Eemove the weir, and
Caesar's ford at Sunbury would be swept away in a
twelvemonth by the natural scour of the river.
When we find a village or hamlet on the banks
of a stream bearing a name which ends in the word
ford, we may infer with certainty that at the time
the name was given there was a ford in the
neighbourhood. Such names are frequent on the
upper Thames, e.g., Oxford, Shillingford, Walling-
ford, Moulsford, and others ; and even in the forest
district round Marlow we have Harleyford ; but from

WHAT THE COWAY STAKES WERE. 71
thence to the sea there is but one place on the banks
of the Thames which bears a name ending in ford.
This single place is HaUiford, at the Coway stakes.
Early and constant tradition — which must have had
some source more worthy of credit than mere idle
invention or the love of the marveUous — selects this
place as the site; it, moreover, accords sufficiently well
with the distance from Portus Lemanis, namely,
eighty Eoman miles.
Now, as to the stakes ; it appears that those which
were known in the seventh or eighth century, and
described by Bede as being of the thickness of a
man's thigh, and shod with lead, and which are
traditionally beUeved to be the Coway ones, were
found to have been placed athwart the stream. Q-)
Now it is quite clear that these could not have been
the stakes which Caesar mentions, as being planted
on the occasion, to prevent his landing on the opposite
bank, for nothing, excepting boats or a bridge, would
have more greatly facilitated the passage of the river
than placing stakes across it ; neither could an army
in hasty retreat have time to drive piles shod with
lead into the bed of a rapid river. A so-called
Coway stake is deposited in the British Museum,
and may be seen there amongst the British Eoman
antiquities ; but as it is only about the size of
a man's arm, and bears no traces of lead, and is
flattened on the top, this cannot be one of the acuta
sudes of which Caesar speaks.
What, then, were the great permanent stakes?
(') Archaeolog., ii. 141.

72 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Mr. Barrington suggests that they are the remains of
a fishing-weir, the removal of which, in the Thames
and Medway particularly, the twenty-third chapter
of Magna Charta directs. (}) But they appear to
have been unnecessarily strong for that purpose,
and why were these alone suffered to remain? Dr.
Guest thinks "the stakes formed part of what may
be called a fortified ford, and were distributed so
as to stop aU transit over the river, save along a
narrow passage." We have heard of such arrange
ments elsewhere ; on the Ehine, for instance, a great
thoroughfare, where the high ground on both sides
completely commanded the river; but we have never
read of such a contrivance to extort toll in England.
Mr. Bray (editor of Manning's Burrey) relates
that a fisherman who Uved at the place caUed Coway
stakes, told, him, in 1807, he had weighed up several
stakes there of the size of his thigh, about six feet
long, shod with iron, and that one then remained,
which they were not able to weigh, and that there
were none in any other part of the river that he had
ever heard of. His tradition was that they formed
part of a bridge built by JuUus Caesar, and he
described them as having stood in two rows, some
nine feet asunder.
Now this does appear, as Mr. Lewin conjectures,
the most probable solution of the difficulty respecting
these stakes, viz., that they were the piles of an
ancient bridge. How did the British army cross,
(') "TJt omnes kidelU de cetero penitus deponantur de Tamisia
et Medawaye et per totam Angliam."

THE FORD OF THE THAMES FORCED. 73
with their thousands of chariots ? Across the bridge,
which was then broken up ; and the piles, which were
irremovable, were cut down. Clearly Caesar did not
construct a bridge there, capable as he was of doing
it, (x) and proud as he was of his mechanical skiU ; for
in that case why should he have forced his army
through the stream ? There can be Uttle doubt that
Caesar saw the necessity for immediate action, and
for striking dismay by a coup de main; that his attack
was in front, and that the enemy's position was
carried by what, in English military phraseology, is
caUed "a rush." The swimming and fording of
rivers were among the regular exercises of the Eoman
legionary. It happened to be an unusually dry
season in Gaul (2), and it may have been equaUy
so in Britain. To admit of the men's heads being
above the surface, there must have been about four
feet and a half of water. It was a most daring
attempt; and how it was done, in the teeth of the
chevaux de frise on the opposite bank, we shall pro
bably never learn. The general knew well the men
he commanded, and he was successful.
Caesar was now on the northern bank of the The Thames
Crossed.
Thames, and CassiveUaunus had again abandoned all
hope of successfuUy contending against the Eoman
arms in combined action. He therefore dismissed
the greater part of his forces, reserving only about
4,000 charioteers (essedariorum). We may presume
(l) Bel Gal, iv. 17.
(2) Bel. Gal, v. 24. — It was so that year in Italy. " Ego ex mag-
nis caloribus, non enim meminimus majores." (Cicero, Ad Q. Fratrem,
in. 1, c. 4.)

74 THE BRITISH ARMY.
that this expression includes 4,000 chariots. Cha
rioteers would be of no avail without their chariots,
and but one man was required to drive a chariot.
Diodorus recaUs to our mind that the heroes of
the Trojan war used them likewise. Their chariots
carried two persons — the charioteer and the com
batant; there was, however, according to Tacitus,
this difference; that among the Britons the driver
was the superior person. (1) With this force he
harassed the Eoman line of march, his chariots dart
ing out upon stragglers at the most inconvenient
moments. He also adopted the wise precaution of
sending the population and the cattle away to the
woods. The 1,700 Gaulish cavalry ravaged and
foraged, but they were not a match for the essedarii.
Caesar therefore ordered them not to stray far from
the infantry; consequently the damage that they
could do was limited by the capacity of the
legionary soldiers to march. (2) It is plain that
the cavalry was beaten; and we learn from Cicero's
correspondence that the name of a British war-car
became, literally as weU as metaphoricaUy, a nom de
guerre for anything very formidable. (3)
The object of Caesar's long march was to arrive at
the country of the people of Essex (Trinob antes), and
to place Mandubratius on his father's throne. By
repeated victories over his neighbours, CassiveUaun
had acquired high renown as a warrior; hence his
(') " Honestior auriga ; cUentes propugnant." (Diod., V; 301.)
(2) Bel. Gal, v. 19.
(«) Epist. ad Dim., vii. ; Ad Trebatvum, Ep. 6—" Tu, qui caateris
cavere didicisti, in Britannia ne ad essedariis decipiare, caveto."

CESAR PROCEEDS ALONG THE NORTHERN BANK. 75
appointment as generaUssimo. He had formerly sub
dued the Trinobantes, a nation or district contiguous
to his own, and, according to Caesar's account, " a
most powerful people" (firmissima civitas). In the
contest, their king Immanuentius had been slain.
His son, Mandubratius, fled for his life, came to
Gaul, and appealed to Caesar for protection. It was
sound poUcy to secure a native alliance, and the
suppliant was at once taken under Eoman protection.
The Trinobantes sent and offered to submit to the
Eomans, and begged that Caesar would send Mandu
bratius to rule over them, and that Caesar would pro
tect him from CassiveUaunus. Caesar agreed to their
terms, and ordered them to deUver forty hostages
and a supply of corn for the army. By this last
item it may be inferred that the wise policy of the
British chieftain had produced its effect, and that the
state of the Eoman commissariat was low. Mandu
bratius, we learn from this, was with the Eoman
army, and doubtless he had been Caesar's guide across
the country to his former home.
The Trinobantes, now taken into amity, were pro
tected from all injury from the Eoman soldiery. This
immunity induced several other states to tender their
submission. These people were base enough to make
known to the invader that the oppidum of Cassivel-
launus was not far off. Upon this information Caesar
proceeded thither, and found the forest-fastness ad
mirably fortified by nature and art. He stormed it
in two points simultaneously ; the Britons could not
long withstand the attack of the veterans ; the place

76 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was carried; many were kUled, the rest fled, and a
large store of cattle was the welcome prize of the
captors. It has been conjectured that Verulam, near St.
Albans, in the hundred of Cashio, may have been the
town of CassiveUaun ; a supposition plausible enough,
but merely a supposition. It is a good site for a
town, and the Eomans subsequently built Verulamium
there. (*)
Whether CasiveUaun was there in person, is not
mentioned ; probably he was. But while these things
were being done, he tried to stay the progress of the
enemy by creating a diversion in the south. He sent
into Cantium, and to the four kings who ruled there,
and ordered them to assemble aU their forces, and
make a sudden attack upon the naval camp. The
attempt was unsuccessful. The garrison anticipated
the attack by making a sally ; the men of Kent were
defeated, and Lugotorix, an officer of high rank, was
taken prisoner. When CassiveUaun heard the result,
he abandoned farther hostile operations, and employed
Commius to negotiate for him the terms of peace,
which Caesar was but too glad to accept. The summer
was well advanced, and the apprehension of troubles
in Gaul made him anxious to leave Britain. The
conditions were very mild; hostages were to be
delivered, and an annual tribute to be paid to the
Eoman people ; and CassiveUaun was interdicted from
interfering with Mandubratius or the Trinobantes.
Caesar then led his army back to the naval camp,
(') Vide Camden, i. 351.

CESAR RETURNS TO THE COAST AND EMBARKS. 77
returning, it may be assumed, by the same route, and
meeting with no farther interruption. His numbers
being greatly increased by the amount of prisoners,
he determined to transport the army in two voyages.
He awaited for some time (aliquamdiu) the return of
the ships, as also the arrival of those which he had
ordered Labienus to provide, in order to carry over
the last division of the army; but very few vessels
could get back, owing to the prevalence of strong
head winds. - Caesar, fearful lest he should be caught
by the equinoctial gales, crowded aU hands on board
such vessels as he had, and at the second watch
(nine o'clock p.m.) in calm weather, he weighed
anchor, left the shores of Britain for ever, and landed
in safety as the next morning dawned.
Such were the petty results of this mighty expe
dition ! WeU may it be said that never was so con
siderable a force, under so consummate a general,
employed for two successive campaigns to so Uttle
purpose. The Britons were no doubt far behind the
Eomans in discipline, and CassiveUaun may not have
been a match for Caesar in strategy; yet a more
effectual resistance was made by the indomitable
spirit of our ancestors than those renowned conquerors
had ever experienced in any part of the globe. The
vast armament — prepared at what cost — eight hundred
vessels ! — intended certainly for conquest and the
reduction of Britain to another province of Eome —
had failed entirely in its purpose. Caesar is content
with restoring Mandubratius, as if the war had been
undertaken solely on his account, without leaving a

78 THE BRITISH ARMY.
single garrison or guard to protect his interests;
and how long the parting prohibition to CassiveUaun
of non-interference was likely to remain in force, is
not difficult to divine. (l) The British commander,
instead of being led a captive, treated for peace on a
footing of equaUty. A light tribute is imposed on the
country, the payment of which is at least doubtful, (2)
and in fact the island, on the departure of the invaders,
was as free as ever. Almost a century elapsed before
Britain received on her shores any other Eomans than
peaceful merchants. The chained captives dazzled the
Eoman populace, and the great conqueror offered his
corselet of British pearls to Venus, but the better
informed of his countrymen were severe in their
criticisms. Lucan, as we have seen, accused him of
" turning his back on the Britons." (3) Tacitus writes
that " he did not conquer Britain, but only showed
it to the Eomans." (4) Horace, calling upon Augustus
to achieve the conquest, speaks of the Briton as " in-
tactus" (5) and Tibullus, in the same spirit, describes
him as " invictus." (6)

(x) " A century afterwards we find the kings of the Catyeuchlani,
the descendants of CassiveUaun, ruUng over the Trinobantes." (Vide
Mr. Lewin, p. 120, and Dr. Guest, Athenaeum, No. 2,022, p. 115.)
(2) " Vacui a securibus et tributis." (Tac, Ann., xii. 34.) — Strabo,
however, (Ub. iv.) says that Caasar carried off hostages, slaves, and
a quantity of booty. — Cicero (Letter to Atticus,iv. 16) contradicts this
statement as to booty, and states that the Britons paid tribute
(reXea), though of no great amount.
(3) Pharsalia, ix. 572.
(*) Agrie., 13.
(6) " Intactus aut Britannus ut descenderet sacra catenatus via."
(Epod. vii.)
(6) Lib. iv., carm. 1., v. 147.

WHETHER CjESAR CROSSED THE THAMES. 79
Amidst the many doubts and difficulties which the
terseness of the text of the Commentaries has created
in the minds of commentators, it has been suggested
that Caesar never crossed the Thames, and that he
mistook the Medway for the Thames. Q) This view
has lately been reiterated by a writer in the Gentle-
mans Magazine for November, 1866. The argument
employed to substantiate this position is founded on
the shortness of Caesar's sojourn in Britain, which
would not admit of his undertaking so extended a
march as that to the Thames, and even beyond it.
Certainly, if Caesar remained only thirty-two days in
Britain, (2) he could not have done it. The faUacy of
the argument Ues in a confusion of dates, owing to
the perplexity in calculating between the reformed
and the unreformed calendar. The Julian style, or
the reformation of the Eoman Calendar by Julius
Caesar, did not take effect till a.u.c, 708, that is,
45 b.c. Caesar was in North Italy at the end of May,
according to the unreformed calendar. Cicero received
a letter from him, and also letters from his brother
Quintus, who had gone to join Caesar (having been
appointed to the command of one of his legions), dated
from Placentia and Laus (3) (Lodi). Caesar was pro
bably then on his road to the army in Gaul. The
rapidity of his movements was proverbial. M. Cicero,
in another letter to Atticus, dated 28th of July, writes :
(') Hon. Daines Barrington in Archaeol, u.
(2) Remarks on the Time employed in, Caesar's Second Expedition.
(Archaeol, n. 159.)
(3) Ad Qwmbum Fratrem, n. 15.

80 THE BRITISH ARMY.
" From the letters of my brother Quintus, I expect
that he is now in Britain;"^) and no doubt Caesar
intended to have been there by that time, or as early
as possible. The great preparations were designed to
take something more than a glance at Britain, as in
the preceding year ; and he had no intention of
wintering there, but casualties occurred. The Treviri
had revolted, and their reduction demanded his im
mediate presence. It is difficult to calculate how
much time was consumed in that expedition ; but
he hurried it over as quickly as possible, that he
might not be obliged to pass the summer there. (2)
Then ensued the vexatious detention of about twenty-
five days on the coast by the weather; so that it* is
difficult to fix the day of embarkation ; but we know
from a letter from Q. Cicero to his brother, written
on that date, that the Eoman army was actuaUy in
Britain on the 10th of August. (3)
Again, a letter from Cicero to Atticus reports this
important information : "I received a letter from my
brother Quintus and from Caesar on the 24th October.
Britain was disposed of, hostages received, no booty,"
but a tribute imposed ; the letters were dated from the
coast of Britain on the 26th September. They were
transporting back the army from Britain."(4) These
(x) " Ex Quinti fratris Uteris suspicor jam eum esse in Britannia."
(Ad AM., iv., ch. 15.)
(2) " Ne aestatem in Treviris consurnere cogeretur." (Bel. Gal, v. 4.)
(3) Ad Qumtum Fratrem, iii.
(4) " Ab Quinto fratre et a Caasare accepi a. d. ix. Kalend. Novemb.
litteras ; confecta Britannia, obsidibus acceptis, nulla praeda, imperata
tamen pecunia; datas a Uttoribus Britanniae, proximo a. d. vi. Kalend.
Octob. Exercitum Britannia reportabant." (Ad Attic, iv. 17.)

HOW LONG CiESAR REMAINED IN BRITAIN. 81
are, of course, the dates of the unreformed calendar.
Caesar left the island before the equinox, but it was
very near. On the 26th he had not yet brought his
troops back. It appears, therefore, from these letters,
that the date of the equinox was after the 26th of Sep
tember in the unreformed calendar ; but it is not easy
to say how much the unreformed calendar was in ad
vance of the time. It may have been near a month,
and therefore the letter of the 10th of August may
belong to the middle of July, which would give Caesar
fuU two months in Britain ; ample time for his
march north of the Thames.
We do not know how long the army had been in
Britain when Quintus wrote on the 10th- of August ;
but supposing he wrote on the very day of the land
ing, which is not Ukely, his diary would run thus : — >
Landing' and midnight march August 10
Return to fleet  „ 11
Eepairs and fortifications (10 days) „ 21
Besumes march (Durus killed) . „ 22
Foragers in camp attacked ... „ 23.
Then commenced the march to the river. Now
Walton happens to be as nearly as possibly eighty
Eoman mules from Lymne ; Caesar was somewhat
nearer, as he had been marching inland in that
direction ; perhaps seventy miles was the distance.
Now, considering the care that was taken in train
ing the legionaries to march, (x) and that these
Q) Vegetius (i. 9) states that the Eoman soldiers sometimes
marched twenty-four miles in five hours, at "double quick" pace
(gradu vel agmi/ne citato).
VOL. I. G

82 THE BRITISH ARMY.
veterans had been accustomed for three years to
rapid movements in Gaul (and Caesar teUs us he
marched twelve miles on the night of the landing), it
is not assuming too much to say that he would reach
the Thames at Walton in seven days. AUowing the
same number of days for returning, these, with the
days previously enumerated, would amount to twenty-
eight ; deducting these from forty-seven (from the lQth
of August to the 26th of September inclusive), that
would leave a surplus of nineteen days for his opera
tions beyond the Thames, and for his awaiting the
ships on the coast.
But what reason is there for supposing that Caesar
mistook the Medway for the Thames ?(x) Mandubra-
tius accompanied the army, and probably was his
guide to his own home ; Commius must have known
something of Britain by this time, and Caesar received
information from his prisoners. How are the eighty
mUes to be reckoned from the Medway ? Caesar must
be beUeved to be a faithful expositor of the events as
they occurred, or no argument at aU can be based on
his records. Dr. Eobson writes, "It is quite clear
that to land an army of 40,000 or 50,000 men in the
afternoon, and advance at midnight into a hostile
(*) The Anglo-Saxon Chron. says: "The Welsh took large and
sharp stakes, and drove them into the fording place of a certain
river under water: this waB the Thames." (Mon. Hist. Brit., p. 292.)—
The German people had always called the tribes of a different blood
on their borders by the name of " Walsche," or " Welsh." The
canton of the VaUais, or WaUis, is to; the German Swiss the land
of those who speak French. Walschland is Italy ; Churwalseh is the
Bomance language of the Grisons. "Wales " is the foreign land of
the Saxons : and " Cornwall " is the " Wales of the Horn."

DID CESAR MISTAKE THE MEDWAY? 88
and utterly unknown country, would be a sheer im
possibility.'^1) Caesar teUs us it was so. If he is an
unfaithful historian, why quote any of the events,
which are made known to us only in the Commen
taries ? But with so overwhelming a force of disci-
pHned Eoman soldiers, is it Hkely that Caesar would
content himself' with skirmishing within a radius of
thirty rrriles? Were the Trinobantes in Kent? and
the Cenimagni, Segontiaci, AncaUtes, Bibroci, and the
Cassi, who tendered their submission, were they also
there? If Caesar is to be beUeved, he states that
when CassiveUaun suggested the weU-conceived plan
of attacking the Eoman fleet, he sent messages to
Cantium, to the four kings who ruled there, to carry
it in execution, showing thereby that he (CassiveUaun)
was not in Cantium.
Once more : why should Caesar have adopted the
hazardous experiment of fording the Medway in the
teeth of the staked bank, when a few miles lower he
could have crossed it as a most insignificant stream ;
or if he had proceeded as far as Tunbridge, he might
have avoided it altogether ? This presents an ad
ditional argument against the Warmer landing. In
proceeding thence to the Thames, the Medway would
lie across his line of march. Mr. Durrant Cooper, in
his " Notes on the Eoads and Military Parts in the
South-eastern District of Sussex," appended to the
Astronomer Eoyal's Essay (Archaol., xxxiv. 248), re
marks : " The only route to the Thames in the eastern
division of Sussex was by the way of Eobertsbridge,
(') Gentleman's Magazine, November, 1866, p. 588.
G 2

84 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Hurst Green, and Tunbridge. So it continued to
be in the days of John, Henry III., and Edward I.
(See Boy at Journeys, Sus. Archceol. Colls., iii. 132.)
Near Eobertsbridge there exists one of the Saxon,
and most probably British, fortifications, which ran
in a line from Tunbridge to the coast — Burgh-
hUl, now corrupted into BugshiU (on the south
west side of the N.N.W. confluent of the Bother)."
We may conjecture that Caesar thence made for
Tunbridge (his best Une would be to Eeigate and
Dorking), probably avoiding the chalk hills ; thence
he might go down the valley of the Mole, and thus
he would come on the Thames about Hampton or
Walton, It would be interesting to have received from
Caesar's pen a description of the weapons with
which our British ancestors encountered him ; and it
is remarkable that on such a topic he should say so
little. Of their mode of warfare, he tells us some
thing ; of their arms and equipments, next to hothing;.
so that we must rely on the learning and researches
of antiquaries to fiU up the gaps of those pre- 1
historic times.
The earUest arms of aU peoples in aU lands were
undoubtedly of flint and bone, like those used even
at the present day by the fast-decreasing aborigines
of the South Sea Islands. But experience soon
taught how unequal the conflict was, when these
were brought into contact with weapons of bronze,
or steel, or iron. The foreign settlers in Britain had
learnt this from experience, and swords and daggers,

THE FIRST WEAPONS. 85
shields and lances, have been exhumed from the
graves of British warriors.
" Arma antiqua manus, ungues dentesque fuere
Et lapides, et item silvarum fragmina, rami
Et flammaa atque ignes postquam sunt cognita primum,
Posterius ferri, vis est eerisque reperta.
Et prior aaris erat quam ferri cognitus usus." — Lucretius.
"In the infancy of nations," says Mr. Akerman
(Archaeol., xxxiv. 171), "the weapon which served the
purpose of the hunter in the chase, or which was
appUed to the ordinary uses and requirements of
every-day life, was doubtless the only arm of a
barbarous people at the time of strife. The stone
hatchets, hammers, and lance-heads of pecuUar races
of Britain, resemble very closely the weapons found
in various other parts of the world ; and thus we
perceive that man in his primitive state has availed
himself of the same resources throughout the whole
habitable globe. In aU countries the stone axe and
the hammer have been found."
Their shields were small; (}) those that have
been discovered are mostly about two feet in dia
meter. Tacitus gives a description of the swords
of the islanders, when defeated by Agricola, 130
years after the first invasion. Agricola had ad
vanced to the Grampians, where he found the Britons,
to the number of 30,000, drawn up in battle array,
their foot being posted in lines on the decUvity,
whUst the chariots and horse occupied the level
plain. In the centre of his battle Agricola placed
8,000 auxiliary foot ; his legions were posted in front
(') " Parva scuta et enormes gladios sine mucrone." (Agricola, 36.)

86 THE BRITISH ARMY.
of the camp ; 3,000 horse were on the wings. As
long as the Eomans fought only with missiles, the
advantage appears to have been on the side of the
natives, who were able to ward them off; but on the
attack of three Batavian and two Tungrian cohorts,
with their pointed swords — with which the Eoman
legionary was trained especiaUy to thrust, to " give
point," as Napoleon urged the cavalry of the Guard
at Asperne — the Britons, whose long, ponderous
swords without points, and smaU targets, (*) were
but Hi-fitted for close action, were compeUed to give
ground. On the advance of other cohorts, their
horse were put to flight, and the chariots driven in
disorder among the infantry. In Caesar's invasions,
from the desultory mode of warfare pursued by the
Britons, javelins no doubt were the weapons with
which his legionaries were chiefly assailed ; the
natives, unprotected by armour, would naturally
avoid, if possible, close contact with the iron wall of
the Eoman Une of battle. On the first landing,
Caesar tells us, the natives hurled their javelins
boldly (audacter tela conjicerent). We do not hear of
bows and arrows ; they may have been used only
in the chase. The men wore their hair long, and
probably fought with uncovered heads ; for helmets
have not been disinterred; and as they painted and
tattooed their bodies, for the purpose of terrifying
their enemies, they doubtless foUowed the Celtic prac
tice of discarding all clothing in the time of per
sonal conflict. Strabo (b. iv., c. 5) saw some British .
(l) Agricola.

BRITISH CHARIOTS. 87
young men at Eome. He describes them as being
higher by half a foot than the taUest man there.
They were loosely made, and had awkward feet.
Their hair was not so yellow as that of the Gauls.
With respect to the essedae, or chariots, from their
great number, we may infer that they were the ordi
nary vehicles of the country employed in domestic
purposes, as weU as in carrying the warrior into
action. They are also caUed covini, which may be a
British or Celtic term. VirgU calls them " Belgica
esseda" (Georg., iii. 204.) Caesar does not mention
the scythes with which they are generally repre
sented as armed. These, of course, would render
them more formidable, but, one would suppose, must
have impeded their progress in the intricacies of the
forests. SiUus, however, who lived in the first cen
tury of our era, and who uses Thule as a synonym
for Britain, aUudes to the native custom of colouring
the body with blue, and to the scythe-bearing
chariots. " Caarulus haud aUter, quum dimicat, incola Thules
Agmina falcifero circumvenit arcta covino." — xvii. 416.

CHAPTEE III.
A.D. 43. THE EOMANS AGAIN ATTACK BRITAIN — VESPASIAN AND TITUS
ARRIVE — SUETONIUS — MASSACRE OE THE DRUIDS, FOLLOWED BY
SLAUGHTER OE THE ROMANS, AND SUBSEQUENTLY OE THE BRITONS —
BOADICEA — CARACTACUS  PIOTS AND SCOTS — ABJECT CONDITION OE THE
BRITONS — SAXONS — DANES — ANGLO-SAXONS — BATTLE OE HASTINGS.
It is not to be supposed that barbaric Britain.—
however undaunted the courage of her inhabitants —
could for ever withstand the systematic attacks of
Eoman generals or the discipUned valour of Eoman
legionaries. But the civil wars which ensued,- and
which prepared the way for the establishment of
monarchy in Eome, saved for a time the Britons
from the yoke which was afterwards, to be imposed
upon them. Some intercourse with Eome was, how
ever, kept up by the islanders, though on a completely
independent footing. Hence, as well as through their
commerce with Gaul, where the Eoman power had
been firmly estabUshed, they appear to have derived
some tincture of Eoman civiUsation. The coins of
Cynobelin (the Cymbehne of Shakespeare), and a
successor of CassiveUaun, as well as those of
Tasciomanus, probably his father, display the in
fluence of Eoman art. The mad salUes of CaUgula,
in which he menaced Britain with an invasion, but
contented himself with the bloodless trophies of the

ROMANS AGAIN IN BRITAIN. 89
sea-shore, served only to expose himself and the
empire to ridicule.
In a.d. 43 the Emperor Claudius sent a fleet and
an army into Britain, under Aulus Plautius, to reduce
the island into subjection. But Julius Caesar was
not at the head of the army, and Plautius had
difficulty in persuading the troops to leave Gaul;
they were highly enraged at the idea of being led
to a campaign beyond the limits of the habitable
world. However, the General ultimately triumphed
over their prejudices, and landed with four legions,
some German auxiliaries, and elephants, as- it is
stated. (1) He was successful, and took Camelodunum
(Colchester or Maldon), the capital of Cynobelin's
dominions, and established a military colony there.
The Emperor came himself to participate in these
victories. Vespasian distinguished himself in this
campaign. He fought thirty battles with the natives,
took twenty towns, and reduced the Isle of Wight. (3)
Titus also fought here, as miUtary tribune under his
father, and is said to have preserved his father's life,
when surrounded by Britons. (3) A fit training for the
great work he was afterwards destined to accomplish.
But the island, although thus penetrated to a
certain extent, and though the southern parts were
occupied by the Eomans, was as yet neither conquered
nor reduced to peace. In a.d. 47, Ostorius Scapula
(') Dio Cassius, Ub. lx., pp. 781-2. — The bones of an elephant were
found by workmen digging for gravel, in a field near Battle Bridge.
(Leland's Collect., i. 64.)
(2) Suetonius, Tit., c. iv.
(3) Dio Cassius, Ub. br., p. 788.

90 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was sent over to command the Eoman army; and
it was not tiU after several years of warfare with
Caradoch, or Caractacus, a son of CynobeUn, that Caer-
Caradoch, the royal British stronghold,, situated on a
hill in Shropshire, near the confluence of the Clun and
Teme, was stormed and taken. The defeat and
eapture of Caractacus, whose appearance at Eome
created peculiar exultation, and for whom an
expressive speech had been composed by Tacitus, (x)
secured the conquest.
Little seems to have been done towards the
farther subjugation of Britain tiU the appointment
of Suetonius PauUnus to the command, in the reign
of Nero (a.d. 59). He resolved on the reduction
of the isle of Mona (Anglesea), the chief seat of
Druidism, and the receptacle for the disaffected
Britons. The strait was crossed by the infantry in
shaUow vessels, while the cavalry either waded or
swam. The Britons' endeavoured to obstruct their
landing on the sacred island, both by force of arms
and the terrors of their reUgion. The women and
priests, intermingled with the warriors on the shore,
and, running about with disheveUed hair, appalled
the legionaries, who stood aghast, exposed to the
missiles of the enemy. But Suetonius exhorting
them to disregard a band of fanatics and females,
they rushed to the onset, drove the Britons off
the field, burned, the Druids in the fires which
those priests had prepared for their captured enemies,
and destroyed the consecrated groves and altars.
(') Ann., lib. xii., c. 37.— Also in Vita Agricolae, § 30.

BRITONS AND ROMANS RETALIATE. 91
Having thus trampled on the rehgion of the Britons,
Suetonius thought his future progress would be easy.
He was, however, disappointed; for even while he
was thus engaged, the Britons almost succeeded in
extirpating the invaders from the country. Headed
by Bonducea, or Boadicea, the widowed queen of the
Iceni, a multitude said to have been composed of the
almost incredible number of 120,000 men, surprised
the Eomans, destroyed Camelodunum, Londinium,
already a flourishing Eoman colony, and Verulam;
and slaughtered a prodigious number of the Eomans,
and their auxUiaries, with aU the vindictive fury
which the recent violation of their temples and their
hearths could inspire. (:)
This butchery was avenged by Suetonius in a
contest of despair — a great and decisive battle
(a.d. 62), when 80,000 of the Britons are said to have
been killed; a victory which Boadicea could not
survive. (2) One point, however, was gained ; Eome
was impressed with the necessity of a mild admini
stration, and Suetonius was recaUed. Seventeen
years after the revolt of Boadicea, Julius Agricola was
appointed to the province of Britain, and governed
it for seven years (a.d. 78 — 85). This great com
mander matured a scheme for subduing Britain, and
(l) Vide Thorpe's Lappenberg's England, i. 29.
(2) Tac, Arm., xiv. 31—37. — It is worth noting the earUest costume
of a British lady on record. Boadicea is described by Dio (Ap. Xiph.,
p. 169) as of the largest size, most terrible in aspect, and harsh of
voice ; having a profusion of yellow hair which descended to her hips,
and wearing a large golden coUar or torque, and ax<™j/,or party-
coloured tunic, drawn close about her bosom, and over this a thick
mantle or cloak, fastened by a clasp.

92 THE BRITISH ARMY.
rendering the acquisition useful to his country.
After again reducing Mona, he marched into
Caledonia. During these military enterprises, he
neglected not the arts of peace. He introduced
laws, and taught the ' Britons to desire and procure
for themselves aU the conveniences of life. He
reconciled them to the Latin tongue and manners, and
employed every expedient to render the chains which
he had forged as little galUng and Ughi as possible.
The inhabitants having experienced how unequal
their own force was to resist the Eomans, acquiesced
in the dominion of their masters, and were graduaUy
incorporated into the mighty empire. One of
Agricola's last acts was to order his fleet to sail
round Britain, starting from and returning to Portus
Trutulensis (x) (Sandwich). This — as far as we know,
its first circumnavigation — proved it to be an island,
of which some doubts existed.
Britain, now subdued, gave no further trouble to
its conquerors. Caledonia alone, defended by its
barren mountains, infested the more cultivated parts
of the island by the incursions of its inhabitants.
The better to secure the frontiers of the empire,
Hadrian, who visited this island, built an earthen
rampart between the Tyne and the Solway Firth,
which has been called the Picts' Wall, and of which
there are stiU considerable remains. Subsequently
Lollius Urbicus (a.d. 140), under Antoninus Pius,
erected another between the Eirths of Forth and
Clyde, along the same line where formerly Agricola
Q) Tacitus', Agric, c. 38.

DEFENCES AGAINST THE CALEDONIANS. 93
had estabUshed fortresses. This is caUed the WaU
of Antoninus, and is now known by the name of
Graham's Dyke.(a) To the south of this line, Britain
was thoroughly Eomanised, and overspread with cities,
the importance of which is attested by their ruins.
North of the waU dwelt Celtic tribes, who main
tained for centuries a wUd independence behind the
successive ramparts of the Cheviot, the Lammermoor,
the OchU, and the Grampian HiUs. The Eomans
made no attempt to conquer Ireland, although
Agricola stationed forces on the western shores of
Britain, with the idea of proceeding thither.
These fortifications did not prove adequate to
check the incursions of the Meatae and Caledonians,
who at length became so formidable that the aged
Emperor Severus was caUed to the scene of action,
and accompanied by his two sons, CaracaUa and
Geta, proceeded to the extremity of the island, and
came to some terms with the natives, but with a
considerable loss of men. He returned to York,
where he shortly afterwards expired, a.d. 211. As
Severus caused the fortification constructed by
Hadrian to \ be repaired, it commonly bore his
name. (3)
In the third century of our era Britain was dis-

0) The term " dyke," or " dike " (Anglo-Saxon dylc), in the High
lands is stLU used in the signification of a bank, constructed as a
mere fence or line of demarcation. This seems a provincial sense
of the word. Elsewhere it signifies either a channel to receive water,
or a mound to restrain inundations. (Johnston's Eng. Bid.) The
Scotch pronunciation of it is deeh.
(s) Vide Brace's Roman Wall

94 THE BRITISH ARMY.
turbed by new enemies, whose arrival had an incal
culable influence on this country. These were the
Saxon pirates, whose descents upon the eastern coast
at last became so troublesome, that the Emperors
Diocletian and Maximian were obUged to appoint a
special officer for its defence, who, at a later period,
obtained the name of Count of the Saxon Shore
(Comes littoris Saxonici). His jurisdiction appears to
have extended from Branodunum, or Brancaster, on
the coast of Norfolk, to the Portus Adurni, in Sussex.
In the fourth century mention is first made of
the Picts and Scots, as making their appearance in
the present Scotland. It is certain that the Scots,
and probably the Picts, passed over from Ireland, and
reduced the earUer inhabitants to subjection. Q) In
the year 368, under the reign of Valentinian I., they
penetrated as far as London, but were repulsed by
Theodosius, father of the emperor of the same name,
who also recovered the district between the waUs of
Severus and Antoninus, which he named Valentia,
after the emperor. Maximus, a member of a dis
tinguished British family, gained great reputation in
fighting against the Picts and Scots. He was, against
his wiU, proclaimed emperor by the army, and, had
he not quitted his island-realm, possibly, might have
retained his position; but, Seduced by early success,
he entertained the idea of extending his dominion by
founding an empire at Treves. He was taken prisoner
at AquUeia, and put to death, a.d. 388. (a)
(J) Lappenberg, i. 55. — Garnett, Trans, of Philological Soe., i. 119.
(2) Palgrave, i. 381—3.

TROUBLOUS TIMES. 95
An event connected with the history of this
prince ought not to be passed over without notice —
namely, the settlement of a Eoman colony (milites
limitanei, lati), consisting of British warriors in
Armorica, the subsequent Brittany. But this coloni
sation helped to weaken Britain, which now began
to be more and more infested by Scots, Picts, and
Saxons. (x)
But evU days were at hand. The queen of
nations trembled on her throne. The imperial eagle,
hitherto seeking its prey beyond the outskirts of the
habitable world, was forced to hover in guard over its
own eyrie. The British people, so long accustomed
to Eoman protection, had become enervated by the
habit of subjection; aU the male population available
for military service had been withdrawn and draughted
into foreign legions, true to that secret tradition of
empire which consists in making one nationality
watch another.
A new inroad of Picts and Scots occasioned a
mission from Britain to Eome. Once more Eoman
troops appeared in the island; one legion is said
to have been sufficient to repel the invaders. (3)
(') Palgrave, i. 381—3.
(2) At that period a legion consisted of 6,100 infantry, 726 cavalry,
and nearly the same number of auxiliaries. Under the successors of
Constantino, the number of the legions had increased from 25 to 132,
but their ' strength had dwindled from nearly 7,000 to 1,200 men.
(Veget., n. 6. — Tac., Ann., iv. 5.) Into the ranks of the legions none but
Roman citizens could claim the privilege of admittance. The auxili
aries were composed of provincials who had not obtained the freedom
of the city, or of " barbarians," whom the fate of war or the prospect of
wealth had drawn into the service. These auxiliaries nearly equaUed
the legionaries in number. From the inscriptions on monuments, and

96 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Having repaired the forts along the waU and the
watch-towers . on the sea-coasts, and instructed the
natives how to make arid use arms, the cohorts
took their final leave, and hastened away to serve
elsewhere. The departure of the Eoman forces was but the
signal of renewed disasters ; the enemies from the
north of the island soon returned. Tet once again,
in 446, a suppUcating embassy was sent to Eome.
Aetius, the patrician, by his valour and magnanimity,
for the time sustained the tottering ruins of the
ernpire, and revived for a moment among the degene
rate Eomans the spirit as weU as the disciphne of
their ancestors. The British ambassadors carried a
letter from their countrymen, which was inscribed,
The Groans of the Britons. The tenor of the epistle
was suitable to its superscription. " The barbarians,"
it stated, " drive us to the sea, the sea to the bar
barians ; so we have only the choice left us of perish
ing by the sword or by the waves." Q) But Aetius,
pressed by the arms of Attila, was unable to help
them, and the abject Britons were reduced to despair. ¦

from other sources, the names of thirty -three cohorts of auxiliary foot
and eleven squadrons of auxiliary horse, which were stationed in
Britain, have been discovered. ' AU these were composed of foreigners ;
for although, by the law of conscription the natives were compelled
to serve, they were not permitted to remain in the island. The
Notttia Imperii gives the titles and country of the different garrisons
of the more important posts in the province at that time, and it is
curious to note the various nationalities quartered in all parts of this
country ; the Eoman camps forming generally the nucleus of sub
sequent towns. (See Wright's Ethnology of S. Britain, and Whitaker's
Manchester, hi. 2, xxi. 2.)'
(') Gildas, c. xvii. — Nennius, o. xxvn. — Beda, i. 19. •

THE END OF ROMAN RULE. 97
So passed away the dominion of the Eomans in
Britain, after it had existed for about 400 years.
True it is, as Macaulay observes, " no magnificent
remains of Latian porches and aqueducts are to be
found in Britain," but Eoman works in England stiU
defy the withering effects of time. The wall of
Severus — the last legacy of the legionaries — is stiU to
be traced ; Eoman roads are even now pointed out as
triumphs of engineering skill, and amphitheatres and
villas — some in process of discovery — attest that the
hardy conquerors of the world disdained not to plant
their comforts and their luxuries in this land, at first
supposed to be fuU of rnysterious horrors; and our
hiU-country retains indeUble marks of earthworks
and walls, which stiU remain to tell the tale of the
strong hands of that stubborn soldiery who never
halted for a night without entrenching a camp, which
seemed constructed to last for ever.
The spectacle which Britain now presented is
one of the saddest in the history of the world ; a
nationaUty destroyed by Eoman lust of conquest,
and the consequent annihilation of the power of
resistance ; a nation without men, and a people
without courage. The descendants of those who had
defied Caesar and his legions could not stem the in
cursion of a horde of undisciplined robbers ; an illus
tration of the extent to which national spirit may be
broken and enervated by subjection to strangers.
After the Eoman legions left the Britons to them
selves, there is darkness over the face of the land
from the fifth to the eighth century. Those are
VOL. i. h

98 THE BRITISH ARMY.
reaUy our dark ages. From 420, when it is supposed
that Honorius withdrew his troops, to 730, when
Bede wrote, we see nothing of British history. So
completely, indeed, had our island relapsed into the
cloud of fable, that Procopius told the people of Con
stantinople that there was one province of it in which
the ground was covered with serpents, and the air
was such that no man could inhale it and Uve ; and
to this desolate region the spirits of the departed
were ferried over from the land of the Franks at mid
night. Afar off we hear the shock of arms ; but all
is dim, as it were, when two mighty hosts do battle
in the dead of night. When the dawn comes, and
the black veil is lifted, we find that, Britain has passed
away. The land is now England. (*)
The people to whom the Britons had appUed for
assistance were that roving race whose acquaintance
had been so unpleasantly made while infesting the
British coasts as pirates. Of course the invitation
was accepted with alacrity ; the proffered opportunity
of admittance within the British fold was tempting.
The Saxons are described as men of lofty stature,
and the most cruel and dangerous enemy, despising
danger, deUghting in tempests. (s) Their name bore
terror with it,(3) With such auxiliaries, the Picts
and Scots were soon driven back to their own barren
regions. The natural impulse of such a race, pro
bably of any other, would be to rule instead of
(*) Vide North British Review, No. lxxxii., 285.
(2) Sidonius, viii. 6.
(3) " Saxones prse casteris hostibus timentur." (Amm. Mar.,
xxviii. p. 526.)

CELTS, SAXONS, AND DANES. 99
to defend; and so, like faithless shepherds, they
turned upon the sheep, which they were brought
over to protect. Little by little, by stubbornness and
energy rather than by bloodshed, they spread them
selves over the land. In aU likelihood, the din of
the battles between Celt and Saxon, of which those
gloomy centuries are fuU, rose rather towards their
close, when the Saxons had multipUed and grown
to be a mighty power in Britain. For a while the
Celtic- and Saxon kings in various parts of the island
Uved together on terms of perfect equality ; but in
due course,, the weakest must go to the wall. The
Saxons were the stronger. They began by winning
their way to an equality with the Celts ; they ended
by overpowering them altogether. This struggle
for supremacy was, prolonged for some time, during
that twilight period in our i history denominated the
Saxon Heptarchy ; but towards the close of it the
Saxons had mastered their foes. In Egbert's time
they are reaUy lords in England. One thing is cerr
tain: the incessant conflicts with these foemen at
home had revived the courage of the Britons. For
near a century and a half, with resolute bravery, they
had withstood the whole power of the Saxons, Jutes,
and Angles.
By a wise compensation, another scourge of the incursion of
sea- coasts appears, and avenges the wrongs of the
Celts. These are the Northern nations, Norsemen
and Danes, a race the most forward and daring that
the world has ever seen ; invaders from every bay and
firth in the Baltic and the Scandinavian Peninsula, in
h 2

100 THE BRITISH ARMY.
race and language closely connected with the Anglo-
Saxon. Their proper designation is "Viking," be
cause vik in their common speech meant bay, which
Ungers in our Sandwich, Berwick, and Greenwich. (x)
Towards the close of the eighth century they inspired
the same terror which the Anglo-Saxons had done in
the fifth. They are said to have first landed in
England about the time of Egbert. Their course was
marked by blood and fire. The account of their ap
pearance in the Saxon chronicle is one of naive sim-
pUcity: — "An. 787. This year King Beorhtric took
to wife Eadburg, King Offa's daughter ; and in his
days first came three ships of Northmen out of
Hasratha-land. And then the reeve rode to the place,
and would have driven them to the King's town, be
cause he knew not who they were, and there they slew
him. These were the first ships of the Danish men

(') The Anglo-Saxon wic, the Latin views, was a town or dwel
ling, and it may probably be the same word as the Icelandic vik,
a small creek or bay. Mr. Taylor (Words and Places) remarks
that the inland "wicks" in English names are generally of Saxon
origin, whUst those on the coast denote the stations of the Scandi
navian sea-rovers. The difference between the " vik " and a " fiordr"
is well shown by an Icelandic proverb, which says that there ought
to be a creek (vik) between friends, but a frith (fiordr) between
kinsmen. "London," says he, "was repeatedly besieged by the
Danes. Their stations were at Beptford, 'the deep fiord;' at
Greenwich, 'the green reach;' and at Woohoich, 'the lull reach;'
apparently from its being overhung by the conspicuous landmark
of Shooter's HiU. The spits and headlands, which mark the navi
gation of the Thames and the adjacent coasts, almost aU bear
characteristic Morse names — such as the Foreness, the Whiteness,
Shelliness, Sheerness, Shoeburyness, and the Naze near Harwich. On
the Essex coast we find Banesey &a,ta,Langenhoe, and Arlesford;
Dengey hundred, in the S.E. of Essex, is spelt Danemg, in a charter
of Edward the Confessor." (Pp. 171, 172.)

MISERY OE THE ENGLISH. 101
which sought the land of the EngUsh race." (Mon.
Hist. Brit., p. 336.)
The odious danegelt was levied to purchase immu- Danegeit.
nity from these ruthless marauders, but they wassailed
away the money, and returned for more. The memory
of the wrong was perpetuated by the tax, which con
tinued to be levied long after the occasion for its
imposition had passed away. Neustria, one of the
fairest provinces of France, was wrested in 911 from
the King by Eollo and his Normans (Northmen) ;
hence( the name of Normandy, from which a century
and a half later was to issue that mighty host of a
conquering race which terminated Anglo-Saxon rule
in England. So that the early annals of England
are fast bound to those of the Northern kingdoms
— bound often with chains, in misery and iron. But
great nations are always the result of mixtures, and
these Teutonic races mingling in time with the Celtic
blood, produced the manly, taU, broad-shouldered,
deep-chested EngUsh people, stiU rough and distinct
as their aboriginal fathers.
" Et penitus toto divisos orbe Britannos."
The Anglo-Saxons introduced into this island the First Military
first approach to a regular miUtary estabUshment. By
their laws, every able-bodied adult male was compelled
to serve his country, and present himself in military
array in case of invasion, civil commotion, or any
emergency endangering the peace or safety of the
realm. A threefold obligation — trinoda necessitas, as
it is termed in ancient books — that is to say, the repair
of bridges and the making of high roads, the building

I
102 THE BRITISH ARMY.
of castles and fortifications, and miUtary service, be
came essentially a part of the ancient and customary
law of the land, and from this obUgation no one was
exempt; a happy theory enough, the advantages of
the community superseding aU privileges.
The clergy were generaUy exempted from personal
miUtary service ; their estates were, however, charge
able to the trinoda necessitas. But even this obliga
tion was annulled by the easy piety of Ethelwulf (855)
not only in his own dominions, but in those of the
kings, his vassals. The clergy, however, during the
invasion of the Danes, had the patriotism to waive
this valuable privilege ; aad there is extant a charter
in which Bahred, King of Mercia (868), pubUcly
thanks them for having spontaneously furnished that
military aid, to which they were no longer Uable by
law. (*) These exemptions sufficiently show the exist
ence of military service towards the commencement,
while Domesday fuUy confirms it at the close of the
Saxon government.
The feudal system and chivalry were originated by
the northern nations, and their introduction here is
traceable at an early period. The denominations of
knights and vassals (milites, vassalli) are met with in
the time of King Alfred. For William of Malmes-
bury teUs how that renowned Saxon made his grand
son Athelstan " a belted knight," and recounts the
ceremonies of investiture. He describes the aged
king, as his feudal lord, dedicating the neophyte to
the noble profession of arms, by giving him a scarlet
(') Ingulph, xvii. 21. — Lingard, vol. i., ch. vii.

MILITARY ESTABLISHMENT. 103
mantle, a jewelled belt, and a sword with a golden
sheath ; (}) a departure from the ancient German usage
of qualifying a youth for military service by a decree
of the people.
In the formation of Anglo-Saxon armies, all who Anglo-Saxon
were capable of bearing arms in one family were led
to the field by the head of that family. In the
patriarchal constitution, the " eldest" was synonymous
with the chief, and hence may be recognised the
official title of ealdorman (senior, senator). " The
ealdorman in the shire, like the Frankish graff, was
the miUtary leader of the hereban, posse comitatus or
levy en masse of the freemen ; and, as such, could com
mand their services to repel invasion, or to exercise
the functions of the higher police ; as a noble of the
first rank, he had armed retainers, thanes, or comites of
his own ; but his most important functions were those
of leader of the armed force of the shire. Throughout
the Saxon times we read of ealdormen at the head of
particular counties, doing service in the field."(2) The
ealdorman was solemnly girded with a sword. As an
aetheUng stands on the same level as an archbishop, so
the ealdorman and bishop are considered of equal
rank. (3)
" According to a most ancient custom of the Ger
manic nations, the arms (heregeatus armatura bellica,
which have continued even to our day under the name
of heriot) delivered by the king to the ealdorman as
(') Lib. U., p. 210, edit. Hardy.
(2) Kemble's Saxons in England, n. 137.
(3) Lappenberg's England under the Anglo-Saxons, by Thorpe, ii. 313.

104 THE BRITISH ARMY.
weU as to his other mUitary chieftains, reverted on
the death of the receiver to the king ; and for them,
by the laws of Canute, a fixed reUef or gift out of
the heritage, or from the heirs, was substituted, which
for an ealdorman consisted in four saddled and as
many unsaddled horses, four helmets, four coats of
mail, eight spears, eight shields, four swords, and 200
mancuses of gold. Among other Germanic tribes,
the heriot, at an earlier period, feU to him who
inherited the land or fief of the ancestor; and in
England also, at a later period, the payment or re
demption, on the death of the last possessor, was, with
a total disregard of the original object, converted into
a pecuniary burthen on the successor on taking pos
session of the estate." (*) By the law of Canute, the
payment of the heriot was altogether remitted to the
family of him who feU fighting in the field in the
presence of his lord.
The title of eorl occurs in early times in the laws
of the Kentish kings, but it became general only in
the Danish times, and is probably of Jutish origin*
The new constitution introduced by Canute reduced
the ealdorman to a subordinate position. Over several
counties he placed one eorl, or earl. The king ruled
by his earls and hus-carlas, (a) and the ealdorman
(!) Ibid., p. 314.
(2) These were a kind of household troops, mercenaries, originally
Danish soldiers, and the only regular and professional soldiers of the
period. Their weapons were the axe, the halbard, and the sword. In
imitation of the King, the great nobles surrounded themselves with
a body-guard of hus-carlas ; and they continued to exist as a regal
establishment after the Conquest. In Canute's time the number of
these mercenaries is reckoned by some at 3,000, by others at 6,000.

THANES AND SHERIFFS. 105
vanished from the counties. Under Canute and the
foUowing Danish kings, this old title ceases altogether,
except in the cities, where it denotes an inferior
judicature, much as it does among ourselves at the
present day.
The other foUowers or retainers (comites) of the Thanes.
Anglo-Saxon military leaders were the thanes, a class
in which the ealdormen were also comprised. The
thanes are not to be reckoned among those originally
noble by birth, notwithstanding their higher wergild
(or pecuniary valuation which was set on every in-
dividual), by which they were distinguished from
the mere freemen, but are to be regarded as only
graduaUy becoming noble. Among this nobiUty by
service, the immediate thanes of the king were the
highest in degree. The thane was constantly bound
to military service, and obliged, as is evident from his
heriot, to appear on horseback.
The grefa, or reeve, was the most general name sheriff.
for the fiscal and executive officer among the Anglo-
Saxons. The scirgreefa, or sheriff, was, as his name.
denotes, the person who stands at the head of the
shire. He is, properly speaking, the holder of thje •
county court, scirgemot or folcmot, and probably at
first was its elected chief. Usually the court was held
under the presidency of the ealdorman and bishop,
and of the scirgreefa, whose later title was vicecomes,
and who was originaUy the ealdorman's deputy ; but
it appears that in course of time the presence of
the ealdorman could be dispensed with, but that of
the scirgreefa was necessary, so that it became the

106 THE BRITISH ARMY.
sheriff's court. He was also the principal fiscal officer
in the county, from whose jurisdiction even the arch
bishop himself was not exempt. 0 The sheriff was
naturally the leader of the militia, posse comitatus, or
levy of free men, who served under his banner, as the
different lords with their dependents served under the
royal officers, the church vassals under the bishop's
or abbot's officer, and all together under the chief
command of the ealdorman or duke. It was his busi
ness to summon them, and to command them in the
field, during the period of their service ; and he thus
formed the Connecting link between the military
power of the king and the miUtary power of the*
people, for purposes both of offence and defence.
The division of the country into tens and hundreds .,
(tythings and hundreds) probably originated in the
old mUitary constitution, which was essentiaUy an
aUiance formed for mutual protection, each probably
comprising respectively a corresponding number of
members, together with the necessary officers, viz., a
tithing man for each tithing, and a hundred-man for
the hundred. The fluctuating state of the population,
'however, necessarily occasioned great changes with
respect to aU offices based on numerical relations ; and
therefore, in process of time, these divisions became
simply territorial, and at the present day we hear of
tithings and hundreds where there are more, and
where there are fewer people. In Kent there are
several hundreds united, under the appellation of
lathes, which had the jurisdiction of hundreds, and in
(') Kemble's Saxons, ii. 164.

ANGLO-SAXON WEAPONS. 107
which may be recognised the northern lathing, or
military levy. In Sussex is found the division into
six rapes. (l) It does not appear that to this division
any jurisdiction was annexed which belonged to the
hundred. In the shires of York and Lincoln a divi
sion into three parts took place, caUed trehing or
treding, whence apparently the modern ridings of the
first-mentioned county. (2)
Saxon freemen — Uke their ancestors, of whom Saxon
Tacitus writes, "They never transacted any business 't'i""
in pubUc nor in private without being armed" (3) —
seem uniyersally to have borne arms. In death they
were not parted from them, as being the possession
most highly valued by the deceased. In the interior
of Anglo-Saxon barrows, numerous remains of spears
and javelins, of a variety of shapes and sizes, have
been discovered. " So constantly do we find them in
the Saxon graves," says Mr. Eoach Smith, "that it
would appear no man above the condition of a serf
was buried without one. Some are of a large size,
but the majority come under the designation of
javehn, or dart." The spear-head lies beside the
skull; there are, however, instances of the spear-
point being found reversed, at the feet of the warrior,
and the iron boss of the shield on his breast. At

(') ElUs, i. 180. — " The rapes of Sussex yet preserve the memory
of the old Icelandic division of the land by ' Hreppar.' The verb
' rebe ' in Danish still means ' to measure out ' or ' survey,' and is
derived from the use of the ' reb,' or rope for that purpose." (See
Words and Places, by Rev. Isaac Taylor, M.A., London, 1864.)
(2) Thorpe, ii. 330.
(3) "Nihil neque publicae neque privates rei nisi armati agunt."

108 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Little Wilbraham, the Hon. E. C. NeviUe disinterred
some in this position. (*) The sword is comparatively
seldom found beside the skeleton, or between his
legs; sometimes, but rarely, the iron frame of a
skuU-cap or helmet is found about the head. A
plate, in Douglas's Nenia Britannica, represents the
discovery of one of the most ancient of the Kentish
barrows. The grave contained the body of a male
adult, holding in his right hand a spear, the wooden
shaft of which had of course perished, leaving only
the iron blade, fifteen inches in length. An iron
knife lay by the right side,(2) with remains of the
original handle of wood. Adhering to its under-side
were very discernible impressions of decayed coarse
Unen cloth, showing that the warrior had been buried
in full costume. An iron sword is on the left side,
thirty-five and a quarter inches in its entire length,
from the point to the bottom of the hilt, which is aU
in one piece, the woodwork which covered the grip
having perished; the blade is thirty inches in length,
and two in breadth, flat, double-edged, and sharp?
pointed. It was evidently buried in a scabbard, the
external covering being of leather, the internal of
wood. A leathern strap passed round the waist, from
which hung the knife and sword; and which was

(') Saxon Obsequies. — See also Hewitt's Ancient Armour, i. 30.
(2) Some etymologists derive the name " Saxon," appUed to these
people, from the seax, or short sword, or knife, with which they
were armed. ("Seax ensis quidem curvatus."— Kemble's Gloss, to
Beowulf.) No warriors are found without these knives, which may
have been the prototypes of the daggers worn in the same way by
those of the Middle Ages.

SHIELDS AND SPEARS. 109
secured by the brass buckle, which was found near the
last bone of the vertebrae. Between the thigh-bones
lay the iron umbo of a shield, which had been
fastened by studs of iron. A thin plate of iron, four
and a half inches in length, lay exactly under the
centre of the umbo, having two rivets at the end,
between which and the umbo were the remnants
of the original wooden, and perhaps hide-bound,
shield. The poem of Beowulf, which the concurrent
opinion of the best Northern scholars has assigned
to the eighth century, speaks of "the broad shield,
yeUow rimmed." It is sometimes caUed a "war-
board ; " and in another place we read that it was
made of linden- wood : —
" He could not then refrain, but grasped his shield,
The yeUow linden, drew his ancient sword."
Leather, made of bulls' hides, was sometimes used
in the construction of shields. By the laws of Athel-
stan, any shield-maker covering a shield with sheep
skins, forfeited thirty shillings. From an illumina
tion in the Cottonian MS., Cleopatra, c. viii, it
appears that the Anglo-Saxon horseman carried his
shield, when not in use, slung at his back. Of
Harold's nobles, Wace teUs us : —
" Chescun ont son haubert vestu,
Espee ceinte el col Veseu." — Rom. de Bou., ii. 213.
The spear shaft is almost always spoken of as
being of ash ; indeed, the word esse (ash) is used by
metonymy for a spear, in a passage of Beowulf, line

110 THE BRITISH ARMY.
3,535, as it is ordinarily in the Iliad of Homer,
ILjAiaSa , iieUr\v. The spears were of two kinds; a
longer one in use among the cavalry, and a shorter
one, which might serve as a javehn, or for the thrust
at close quarters. The blades are always of iron, and
have a longitudinal opening in the socket. Their
length is various, but they usuaUy range from ten to
fifteen inches. In Anglo-Saxon graves, the spears
occur in much greater numbers than any of the other
weapons. The cemetery at Little WUbraham, before
mentioned, produced thirty-five spears, but only four
swords. The axe, although not often represented in iUumi-
nations, and very rarely found in graves, was certainly
extensively in use in the latter part of the Anglo-
Saxon period, and was perhaps introduced by the
Danes. The house- carles of Canute, as has been
already mentioned, were armed with them.
A description of these arms, and of others in use
during the Anglo-Saxon period, is suppUed in Mr.
Hewitt's careful and comprehensive work, Ancient
Armour, part i.
Saxon Troops. The greater part of the Anglo-Saxon forces
consisted of infantry; the cavalry was chiefly, com
posed of thanes, and such men of property as kept
horses. The horsemen are frequently deUneated
in ancient MSS., the chief-men appearing only to
have used stirrups, and with no other defensive
armour than a helmet; their weapon a spear. (J)
(') MS. of Prudentius, Cotton. Library, Cleopatra, c. vni., fols. 1
and 2.

BODY-ARMOUR. Ill
We gather, however, from the Anglo-Saxon poets,
that in the earlier days of Northern rule, none but
leaders wore a body-defence; but as years rolled on,
and prosperity increased, the habit became more
general; and at the expiration of the Saxon era, most
of the warriors in the battle of Hastings are repre
sented in the Bayeux tapestry with a coat of fence.
In Beowulf we read of " the war byrnie shone, hard
hand-locked, the bright ring-iron sang in their trap
pings, in their terrible armour," (}) " the war-byrnie,
twisted with hands,"(2) "the war-dress, the locked
battle-shirt," (3) evidently referring to the hauberk of
interUnked chain-maU. (*)
Other kinds of body-armour were worn. In-
gulphus teUs us that Harold, finding the heavy
armour of his troops an incumbrance in the mountain
warfare with the Welsh, clothed them in a defence of
leather only. This leathern armour appears to have
consisted in overlapping flaps, generaUy stained of
different colours, and cut into the shape of scales or
leaves ; it is caUed corium by some of the writers in
the succeeding century, and corietum in the Norman
laws. " It was most probably," says Mr. Planche, (5)
" copied from the Normans ; for in the Bayeux
tapestry we perceive it 'worn by Guy, Count of
Ponthieu, and Odo, Bishop of Bayeux; and it
continued in use in England as late as the thirteenth
century." (J) Canto i., line 640. (3) Ibid., xxii.
(2) Ibid., xxi., line 2,882. (4) Vide Ancient Armour, i. 62.
(5) History of British Costume.

Battle of
Hastings.

112 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The leg-bands, so frequently represented on Saxon
figures, were in common use among the soldiery. (J)
In the Apennines, the Confadini stiU wear a kind of
stocking bandaged up their legs, and the custom
survives in the chequered hose of the Scottish
Highlanders. The kings commonly wore their crowns in battle,
which also in some measure answered the pur
pose of a helmet. Some interesting relics of this
period are preserved in the collection of the Hon.
Eobert Curzon at Parham, Sussex; viz., a helmet
dug up at Oxford, together with a beU bearing
date a.d. 650, a double-headed axe, and a spear
head. The helmet is of the time of Alfred. Date
900. (Plate II.)
The Anglo-Saxon mode of drawing up their
armies was in one large dense body, surrounding
their standard, and their infantry with heavy battle-
axes in front. This was the plan of the English at
the battle of Hastings. Harold had taken up a
strong position; and notwithstanding the short
interval between his arrival from the north and the
morning of the battle, he had not neglected to fortify
it. According to Wace, "he had the place sur
rounded by a good fosse, leaving an entrance on each
of their sides, which were ordered to be kept weU
guarded." (2) Within • stood the EngUsh, "like a
castle, impenetrable to the Normans," says Henry of
(') See MS. of Prudentius, in the Tenison Library. Date, at the
beginning of the eleventh century.
(4) Roman, de Rou.

No. 2.

-32 ST 2T AS INSIST " S^-SS
(Parham Collection.)

END OF SAXON DOMINATION. 113
Huntingdon. (x) " All were on foot," writes another
chronicler, " armed with battle-axes ; and, covering
themselves in front by the junction of their shields,
they formed an impenetrable body (impenetrabile
cuneum) , which would have secured their safety that
day, had not the Normans, by a feigned flight, induced
them to open their ranks, which till that time, accord
ing to their custom, were massed together." (2)
It is evident that the loss of the battle was owing
to the wound which Harold received in the afternoon,
and which must have incapacitated him for effective
command. He had himself just won the battle of
Stamford Bridge over Harald Hardrada by the
manoeuvre of a feigned flight ; it is difficult to suppose
that he could be deceived by the same stratagem on
the part of the Normans. His troops, when deprived
of his control, would very naturally be led, by their
inconsiderate ardour, into the pursuit that proved so
fatal to them. (3)
There are few early battles the localities of which
can be more completely traced than those of this
one.(4) The crumbling fragments of the grey altar
stones of the old abbey, with the wild flowers that
cling around them, are fitting memorials of the brave
Saxon who there bowed his head in death.

(') " Haroldus totam gentem suam in una acie striotissime locas-
set, et quasi castellum inde oonstruxisset, impenetrabUes erant
Normannis." (Lib. vii.) .
(3) Malmesbury, Ub. iii., § 241. (Vol, ii„ p. 414 ; edit. Eng. Hist.
Soc.) (3) Creasy's Fifteen Decisive Battles, p. 307.
(4) Sussex Archaeological Collections, vi. 15.
VOL. I. T

114 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Passing by weU-described details, we arrive at
the epoch of the Norman conquest, an event which
our contemporary forefathers could regard only as
deplorable. "England, what shall I say of thee?"
exclaims the historian of the Church of Ely;^)
" what shall I relate to our descendants ? Woe to
thee ! thou hast lost thy national king, and thou hast
faUen into the hands of the foreigner ; thy sons have
perished miserably, thy counsellers and thy chiefs are . . .
conquered, dead, or disinherited." We, hdwever, must
look back upon the event with thankfulness, as the
remote origin of our own peculiar character and power.
A sluggish, sensual, and degenerate race was
refined and elevated by the advent of the chivalrous
Norman. The Anglo-Saxon people, vanquished and,iv
crushed down to the lowest depth of serfdom, found
in the conquest itself — that penalty of national crime
— the germ of a nobler vitality. " War," says Thucy-
dides, "is a stern teacher," (2) sternest of aU when a
nation, trampled under foot by an insolent and
victorious foe, lives only to feel the degradation of
servitude and the bitterness of life. Yet, after ages
of oppression and misery, that nation, purified as by
the refiner's fire, emerged to a new and brighter
career. To. the infusion of Norman blood at that
disastrous epoch, we owe many a marvellous achieve
ment of England's prowess ; the untarnished laurels
of St. Vincent and Plassey ; of Minden and Albuera.
(') Hist. Eccles. Eliensis, Ub. U., p. 44, apud Ber. Anglic. Script.
(Gale), Ui. 516.
(2) "0 iroXe/ios jSiaiof diduaxaXoc . (Hist., lib. Ui.)

CHAPTEE IT.
A.D. 1066.  THE NORMANS — FEUDAL SYSTEM — KJTIGHTS' FEES — ILL-
TREATMENT OF THE ENGLISH — CLERGY AND WOMEN ALONE EXEMPTED
FROM PERSONAL MILITARY SERVICE — WARLIKE TASTES OF THE CLERGY.
A revolution so extensive as that produced by the Norman Rule.
arrival of the Normans in England, one which extin
guished the dynasty of the native kings, and imposed
foreign masters on the people, must necessarily have
effected most important alterations in the whole poUcy
of the kingdom. Under the government of the Con
queror, the Uberty of the subject was very different
from what it had been under his Anglo-Saxon pre
decessors ; and therefore we find that in all complaints
made to the Crown on the score of feudal severities,
previous to the grant of Magna Charta, a constant
desire is expressed for a return of the mild laws of
Edward the Confessor. (*) These laws, the mere pro
mise of which sufficed to queU insurrections, each suc
cessive sovereign from WiUiam down to John swore
to observe and maintain; but the English found them
selves invariably deceived, and the good times of King
Edward never returned.
The feudal system, though not altogether a Nor
man importation, was very different from the polity
(4) " Hs requirent estre tenus et gouvernez comme le roy Edouart
les avoit gouvernez." (Chron. de Normandie, xiii. 239.) i 2

116 THE BRITISH ARMY.
which had existed in this country before the conquest,
and the severity of its administration elicited the
groans of the subjected people. It is not the intention
here to attempt an elaborate description of it, but to
deal with it only in exposition of its immediate in
fluence on the miUtary policy of this country.
It had its origin among the Northern nations, (a)
as has already been noticed; it is, therefore, easy to
account for its early introduction here. The primary
object with aU nations is self-defence; and to attain
this there must necessarily be a close confederation
and a reUnquishment of some private rights for the
sake of public safety. (a) This was what brought the
feudal system into existence, a natural consequence of
the state of society. The king or general who led toj,
conquest, would have at his disposal the enemy's terri
tory; and as the best means of securing the new acqui
sition, and at the same time of rewarding his officers, he
would proceed to allot districts, or parcels of land, to
the deserving men of his army on easy terms. They,
if they chose it, might foUow the chief's example, and
divide their aUotments into smaUer portions, but with
the understanding that those who took them were
bound by the same obUgations as themselves. These
aUotments were called feoda in Latin, ox feuds, fiefs, or
fees, a term which in the Northern language signified
a conditional stipend or reward. (3) The condition an-

(*) Sjr W. Temple's Intro, to Hist, of England, p. 516.
(2) Robertson's Charles V., i. p. 14.
(3) Feodum, according to Wachter (Gloss. German), is compounded
of od, possession or estate ; and feo, wages, pay. — Thierry also derives

ORIGIN OF FEUDALISM. 117
nexed, — and it was a rent the easiest to be defrayed —
was, that the holder should do faithful service in arms
to him by whom the grant was made ; for which pur
pose he took the juramentum jidelitatis, or oath of
fealty, on breach of which the land was to revert to
the grantor. A feudal kingdom, consequently, was a
mUitary estabUshment, and not a civil institution; and
every freeman became bound to take arms in defence
of the community, or to suffer heavy penalties in de
fault. In the early Norman period, the term "free
service " is used as equivalent to mUitary service, no
other tenure being recognised by which a liber homo
could hold his land. Q)
Now this was what WiUiam of Normandy pro
ceeded to do on the conquest of England. The
numerous claims of those who had accompanied him
(to most of whom the acquisition of land was the great
inducement for coming over) were, doubtless, such as
he could not with safety or honour overlook; and
moreover, it certainly would appear the best poUcy,
that amidst a thoroughly hostUe population, he should
spread abroad and place in territorial jurisdiction those
who had foUowed his fortunes. This measure was
facilitated by the great slaughter of the Anglo-Saxon
nobUity at the battle of Hastings ; and the frequent
and fruitless insurrections of those who survived
it from/a^, and odh. (Lettres sur I'Hist. de France, lett. x.) — Guizot,
also, and Du Cange. — See Notes in Hallam's Mid. Ages, ii. 314.
(*) " Volumus . . . . ut omnes Uberi homines totius monarchiaa regni
nostri habeant et teneant terras suas et possessiones suas bene et in
pace, . . . . ita quod nihil ab eis exigatur vel capiatur nisi servitium
suum Uberum, quod de jure nobis facere debent," &c. (Carta Regis
Wilhehni Conquisitoris.)

118 THE BRITISH ARMY.
caused such numerous forfeitures to accrue, that he
was enabled to substitute his Norman adventurers in
place of the dispossessed proprietors, many of whom
left the country in despair, (l) whUst others declared
that God would no longer permit them to be a
nation. (2) AU were obliged to seek the king and
buy their lands, and it might happen that an un
fortunate Angle would find himself outbid by a Nor-,
man competitor, or that he had to subserve on the
lands where he had been proprietor. In the Bucking
hamshire Domesday, e.g., " AUric holds four hydes of
WiUiam Fitzansculf . . ' . . . The same held it in
the time of King Edward, and now holds it in farm of
WiUiam, graviter et miser abiliter." The result was that
in less than twenty years the greatest portion of the
country was in the hands of the conquering race. (3)
The first " beneficia" or rewards, then, in the
shape of grants of land which WilUam would have
been enabled to confer after the conquest upon his
adherents, would be taken out of the demesne lands
of the crown, or from the estates of those Anglo-
Saxons who had faUen in battle, or who had fled their
homes. The rest of the native occupants were left
in undisturbed possession of the legal state to which
they were before entitled. (4) So far he was only
(!) " Cum dominis suis odiosi passim peUerentur, nee esset qui
ablata restitueret, .... exosi et rebus spoliati, ad aUegenas transire
cogerentur." (Dial de Saacaario, in notis ad Matth. Paris.)
(2) Salutem et honorem genti Anglorum  abstulerit, et jam
populum non esse jusserit." (Matth. Westm. — Mores, Hist, p. 229.)
(3) Madox, Bar. Angl, b. i., ch. n.
(4) Rot. Scaccar. Norman obs., p. xvti.— Mr. HaUam says that
an examination of Domesday Book witt prove that it is a mistaken

INSTITUTION OF KNIGHTs' FEES. 119
acting according to precedent, and carrying out the
acknowledged right of conquest.
It is possible, and indeed probable, that WiUiam,
who did not wish to be considered an usurper, but as
one who claimed his inheritance, would have con
tinued the mild code of his predecessors ; in fact, he
formally restored and confirmed the laws of the
Confessor, (x) but that the unceasing hostUity of the
Anglo-Saxons drove him to enforce and preserve with
the sword what he had won by the sword. As the
best means to effect his purpose, he introduced the
system of "Knights' Fees," a superstructure on the
old simple feodal law, of which he may have been
the inventor, or which possibly he may have wit
nessed in operation on the other side of the water. (2)
Mere military colonists (the effect of grants of
land upon mUitary conditions) would doubtless
supply a considerable amount of national defence ;
these, however, must become incapacitated for service
in course of time, or pretexts might be made " in order
to keep themselves at home ; now the knights' fees
provided for any such contingency.
On the assumption " that the king is the universal
lord and original proprietor of aU the lands in the
supposition that few of English birth continued to hold entire
manors. They formed a large proportion of nearly 8,000 mesne
tenants, who are summed" up by the diligence of Sir Henry Spelman.
(See Mid. Ages, ii., ch. vn. ; p. 305.)
(J) LL. Edward Reg., ap. WilMns, p. 197. — Chart. Guil de Leg.
Edw. Regis, ap. Spelm. — Cod. Leg. Vet., p. 290. — See also Stuart's
View of Society, p. 98.
(s) Montesquieu, Spirit of the Laws,b. 31, c. 8; quoted in Chitty's
Blackstone, n., b. ii., ch. iv. — Also, HaUam's Mid. Ages, i. 162.

120 THE BRITISH ARMY.
kingdom" (2) — a fiction in reaUty, as Blackstohe ob
serves — William I. divided the country into upwards
of 60,000 military allotments, or fees. (2) The hold
ing of these was termed tenure by knight service ; in
Latin, servitium militare, and in law French, chivalry,
or service de chevaler, answering to the fief d'haubert
of the Normans. (3) Money having a general ten
dency to decrease in value, so therefore the money
value of land would increase, especiaUy as it was
brought into cultivation ; at aU events, it was cal
culated as sufficient for the maintenance of the
feoffee. (4) In 1235 (19th Henry III.), "all who
(') " Tout fuit in luy, et vient de luy al commencement." (M.
24 Edw- HI- 65 ; quoted in Blachstone, vol. U., b. ii., ch. iv.)
(2) "He distributed land to his soldiers, and so arranged thefiN
different classes, that the kingdom of England had constantly 60,000
knights at the command of the King, and whom he could at once
muster, if occasion required." (Order. Vital., p. 523.) — ¦" Four hydes
made one knight's fee. The relief of a barony was twelve . times.
greater than that of a knight's fee, whence we may conjecture its
usual value." (Spelman, v. Feodum.) — "There are 243,600 hydes in
England, and 60,215 knights' fees, which would give a little more
than four hydes to each fee." (Hume, Hist, of England, ii., App.
ii., p. 116.) — A hyde was composed of l00 acres: "Hyda a primi-
tiva institutione in centum acris constat." (Dialogus de Scaccario,
p. 81.) — Mr. Kemble has, however, shown that a hyde cannot be
taken as an invariable measure. It is not, however, to be supposed
that a barony was necessarily twelve times the size of a knight's fee.
An instance from Madox wiU show this : " Henry Lescrop, Ohivaler,
held the manor of Whalton, in Northumberland, with the barony of
the King in chief, by the service of three knights' fees.'' (p. 39.)
(3) Spelman, p. 219.
(4) In the reign of Stephen, the manor of Berkely was granted by
Henry, Duke of Normandy, afterwards Henry II., to Eobert Fitz
Harding, to be held by the service of one knight for 100 shillings
at the election of the tenant ; and the same manor was re-granted, a
few years later, to the same tenant, to be held by the service of five
knights." (See evidence upon the Berkeley Peerage Case, 1859;
Smyth's Account of the Berkeleys, by Fosbroke, pp. 69, 71.)

VALUATION OF FEES. 121
held of the king in chief one knight's fee, or more,
were ordered to take upon themselves the honour of
knighthood;'^1) and by the 28th Henry III., "all
who had twenty pounds of land were required to enter
themselves as knights." (a) By the 40th, same
reign, " all who held fifteen librates of land" (a
Ubrate was probably land of the value of £1 per
annum), doubtless the measure of a knight's fee,
"are to be knighted." In Edward I.'s reign, the
value had risen to £30, or thirty Ubrates of land ; (3)
and in Edward II.'s, to £40 a year. (4') Selden con
tends, and with great probability, that a knight's fee
did not consist of land of a fixed extent or value, but
was as much as the king was pleased to grant upon
the condition of having the service of one knight
(Titles of Honour, p. ii., c. v., s. 17 and 26). The
express condition on which this proportion of land
was granted (by mutual agreement), was that the
possessor should attend his lord in the wars with
horse and arms, for forty days in each year, if called
upon. The tenant of half a fee to do like service for
twenty days, and so in proportion. The barons, or
large landholders, would spUt their knights' fees
into many smaU tenements, (5) ad libitum, and this
(x) Baron. Ang., p. 130.
(2) Claus. 28 Hen. HI. 3 m. 12, dorso ap. Ashmole, p. 33. — See
also Coke, II. Inst, p. 596.
(3) 25 Edw. I., a.d. 1296-7. (Palgrave's Pari Writs.)
(4) "Feodum unius militis integrum, valens qnadraginta Ubros
per annum." (Bymer, sub. ann. 1324.)
(5) " Tenement, in its vulgar acceptation, is only applied to houses
and other buildings ; yet, in its original, proper, and legal sense, it
signifies everything that may be holden, provided it be of a per
manent nature." ('Blackstone, Com., vol. ii., b. ii., ch. ii.)

122 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was termed sub-infeudation ; the tenant-in-chief —
always responsible to the king for the amount of
miUtary service in proportion to his proprietary-
exacted the same conditions from his sub-tenants, who
consequently took upon themselves a proportionate
amount of service, according to their holdings. Thus
it was contemplated that every portion of the land
thus feoffed should represent a certain amount of the
miUtary service, for which the grantee made himself
liable to the grantor. The great holdings of some of
the Conqueror's relatives and favourites, give us some
notion of the extensive grants by the Crown, and
of the jurisdiction and influence of the barons.
Bobert, Count of Mortaigne, the Conqueror's
brother, obtained 973 manors ; another brother, Odo,
distinguished by the title of Earl Bishop, held nearly
450; the Earl of Brittany had 442; William de
Warrenne, 298, besides twenty-eight townships and
hamlets in Yorkshire ; and Boger de Mowbray, Earl of
Northumberland, 280 ; (1) the vassals of these landed
proprietors would have composed an army of them
selves. Where an accumulation of fees was vested in the
same person, he would be obliged, as he could only do
personal duty for one, to furnish competent substitutes
for aU the others ; and as these fees were made here
ditary, minors and females would also be represented
by substitutes, (2) as also the estates of those who
(*) 'Lingard, i. ch. 8.— Brady's Hist, p. 198.
(2) By the custom of England, an heir could not hold a barony, or
knight's fee, until he was of the age of twenty-one. (Baron. Ang.,-p.6l.)

MILES AND EQUES. 123
might be physicaUy incapacitated, so that nothing
should be lost to the king. The power thus acquired
to the crown was immense, so long as the landowners
continued in their aUegiance. Moreover, in the early
periods, the king was enabled to compel the military
attendance of his vassals by the most cogent of all
enforcements — the right of confiscating or resuming
the fiefs in case of default. (J)
The term "knight," as denoting the owner of a
knight's fee, is not to be taken too strictly in its usual
acceptation. Miles is the Latin word employed, and
correctly, as these feoffees formed part of the royal
army by virtue of their tenures ; but miles is often
used to designate him who had achieved the honour
of knighthood, which perhaps the term eques would
more fitly represent. Knighthood was an honour;
knight-service a tenure. The knight of honour
might serve in any station whatever; the knight
of tenure was a subordinate. Feudal customs were
not "alike in different countries, but in this respect
there appears to have been a general agreement.
" II ne faut pas done confondre le titre d'ancienne
noblesse," says Menestrier, (2) " ou de noblesse mUi-
taire, avec la dignite de chevaUer, par l'equivoque
du terme Latin miles, qui convient a l'un et a
l'autre." He quotes an Ordonnance of the Emperor
(*) FaUure in miUtary service was punishable by the laws of the
Conqueror with "full forfeiture." (Leges, 217, 228.) — Malger le
Vavasur was disseised of his land, because he neither went with the
king into Ireland, nor made fine for his voyage. (Madox, Hist.
Excheq., p. 461.)
(2) Prouves, ch. i.

124 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Frederick II. of Germany (a.d. 1232), where it is laid
down : " Ad militarem honorem nuUus accedat qui
non sit de genere militum." Writs of summons were
frequently issued, commanding that those who held
one knight's fee or more of the king in chief (in
capite), and were not yet knighted, should take arms
and get knighted before a given time.OO Summary
process was instituted to enforce compliance. An
instance is recorded by Madox where " the honour of
Dudley and other lands of Boger de Sumery were
taken into the king's possession with aU the chattels
found on them, because Boger did not come to be
girt with the belt of knighthood." (2)
The sheriffs were threatened with the king's
(Henry III.) severe displeasure for any neglect in
carrying out the regal mandate. " We command you,
that as you love yourself and aU yours, you compel
aU those within your jurisdiction who have twenty
pounds of land, that they take care to enter them
selves as knights by the next nativity of St. John the
Baptist. And know you for certain that if for a

(') 20 Hen. in., Baron. Ang., p. 130.— 25 Edw. I. (a.d. 1296-7.)—
" Rex dilecto et fideli sui, &c. Quia volnmus quod omnes et singuU de
com'1, qui habent triginta Ubratos terras vel feodum miUtis integrum
valens triginta libras per ann. et miUtes esse debent et non sunt, armis
inilitaribus decorentur : vobis mandamus . . . injungentes quod
proclamationem faciatis publise proclamari quod omnes et singuli de
codem Comuv triginta Ubratos terrse vel feodum milites integrum
valens triginta Ubros per ann. . . . qui milites esse debent et non
sunt, arma militaria recipiant citra festum Pentecostes proximo
futurum ad ultimum, sub gravi forisfactura terras et tenementes
suos qusa in regno nostro tenent." (Palgrave's Pari Writs. — See
also the Statute De MiUtibus, 1 Edw. II., a.d. 1307.)
(2) Bar. Ang., p. 131.

THE STATUTE OF KNIGHTS. 125
present or any other account you grant them any
indulgence, or give them any respect, we shall take
it so much amiss, with respect to you, that you shall
feel the effects of it during every day of your life/'O
In 1256, Henry issued another proclamation on the
same subject, that every knights' fee-holder should be
knighted for the increase of the miUtary strength of
England ; and that they who would, not or could not
support the honour of knighthood should compound
for a dispensation. (2)
The Statute of Knights (de Militibus) — attributed
to the first year of Edward II., but which from internal
evidence would appear more probably to belong to
the sixth year of Edward I.(3) — directed that every
one who was of the age of twenty-one, and who had
£40 a-year in land, should be compeUed to take upon
himself the order of knighthood. The only exemp
tions were clerks in holy orders, minors, holders of
burgage land, and those who had held their land but
a short time. AU who pleaded great age, or defect
of Umbs, or any incurable malady, or the heavy
charge of their chUdren, or of suits, were to appear
before Bobert Tibetot and Antony de Beke, who had
discretionary powers to admit them to proportionate
fines in lieu of knighthood. (4)
One can easily detect the real motive of this
regulation, namely, to get money; everything being
subservient to the great purpose of increasing the
(') Claus. 28, Hen. III.— See also Coke, II. Inst, p. 596.
(J) Hist. Minor., Matth. Paris.
(3) Archaeologia, xxxix. 216.
(4) Statutes pub. by Eecord Commiss., i. 229.

126 THE BRITISH ARMY.
revenues of the crown, even at the cost of degrading
chivalry into an imposition and a tax ; a fine being,
in the language of those days, not only an amerce
ment for an offence, but also the purchase of exemp
tion and the price of a favour. (l)
Nor was it confined to our early kings to regard
the creation of knights as an emolument; for
Charles I., in 1629, during his pecuniary distresses,
insisted upon a composition of £40 from those who
decUned being knighted. (2) " This levying of knight
hood-money," says Clarendon, (3) "had a foundation
in right, yet in the circumstances of proceeding it
was very grievous." It answered well, however, the
king's purpose, for many paid rather than submit to
the inquisitorial search as to their private estates,
and it brought £100,000 into the royal exchequer.
To counteract this, an act was passed (16 Car. I.
c. xx.) a.d. 1641, that no person should be com
pelled to take upon himself the order of knighthood,
nor undergo any fine for not receiving the same,
such proceedings being pronounced to be " altogether
useless and unreasonable." (4)
It is quite possible that the bulk of the land
owners were in ignorance of the consequences of
feudal servitude, and that in giving their assent to
knight-service they believed they were doing nothing
(a) See Barrington's Observations, on the more Ancient Statutes,
a.d. 1796, p. 19.
(2) See Anthony Wood's Life, p. 19.
(3) Hist. Rebell, i. 53.
C) " An Act for the Prevention of Vexatious Proceedings touch
ing the Order of Knighthood." (Statutes of the Realm, vol. v., p. 131.)

NECESSITY FOR NATIONAL DEFENCE. 127
more than putting the kingdom in a state of defence
by estabUshing a miUtary system, and by obUging
themselves (in respect of their lands) to maintain the
king's title and territories ; and that the hardships
and exactions were speciously and fraudulently intro
duced by the cunning of the Norman lawyers, as the
regular appendages of the system. Q)
To carry out this system, a territorial survey be- 3°™^
came a necessity, and the result was that extraordinary
work of inquiry by commissioners which has come
down to our times ; it occupied six years in compila
tion, and was at first simply designated "The Book
of Winchester," that having been its place of deposit,
but afterwards it acquired the ominous name of
Domesday. (2)
Circumstances (so to speak) favoured the designs
of our Norman king, and perhaps produced that
unanimity which otherwise might not have existed.
The Danes had made several recent attempts to re-
Ueve the EngUsh, actuated, doubtless, by motives
no less disinterested than of old. In the autumn
of 1069 the arrival of 240 Danish ships in the
Humber, under the command of Jarl Osborn, brother
of King Sweyn, had Ughted up the expiring hopes
of the EngUsh, who rushed to join their forces,
and welcomed with acclamation these sons of the
Baltic, whose very name had once been so terrible
to their fathers. The patriot army marched upon
York, and took the two ' Norman castles, putting
(J) Spelman, v. Feudodum. — Blackstone, II., b. ii., chap, iv., p. 51.
(2) Spelman, v. Domesday.

128 THE BRITISH ARMY.
more than 3,000 soldiers to the sword, and the
iEthehng Edgar was proclaimed king. As winter
approached, the Danes retired to their ships, and the
free SaxoUs awaited the return of spring to make" a
grand united effort to drive the hated Norman from
the south. Inthe meanwhile diplomacy was set to
work, and gold from WiUiam's redundant coffers was
lavished among the pirates. An arrangement was
completed, and the bribed Danes returned to their
country.^) Then came the Conqueror's retribution.
He marched upon York with his best troops. The
defenders learned the departure of the Danish fleet
simultaneously with the approach of the Norman .
army. Abandoned and desperate, they resisted; to
the utmost, and were -kUled by thousands. Young
Edgar, and, all who could escape, fled back, to
Scotland. William continued his rapid march north
wards. He re-precipitated himself on the land' of •¦
Northumbria in a frenzy of vengeance. Hous,ef|
and crops were burnt; every Uving thing was put
to the sword. Not a village was left standing
between York and Durham, nor for years was any
attempt made at cultivation. In the great survey,
sixteen years afterwards, the district comprising the
five modern counties of Durham, Northumberland,
Cumberland, Westmoreland, and Lancashire is not
included; their description was summed up in" the
simple but expressive words, " waste land."(z) In 1085
(') Sim. Dun., De Gestis, 1069. — Chron. Sax. — Matth. Westmom.,'
p. 226.— Matth. Paris, i. 6.— Florence Wigorn., p. 636.
(2) " Omnia nunc wasta." (Domesday Book, i. fol. 309.)

THE DANES AGAIN. 129
the restless Danes again turned their attention towards
these shores, and inteUigence of their formidable pre
parations caused the greatest apprehension to the
Normans. (}) WiUiam published through France the
ban (3) which he had proclaimed twenty years before,
offering high pay and great reward to every soldier
who would enrol in his service. An immense number.
flocked to England from aU parts, so much so that it
was remarked as wonderful that the country could find
food for them aU. (3) They were quartered in towns
and vUlages, and earls, sheriffs, bishops, and abbots
were ordered to lodge and support them in proportion
to their respective jurisdictions or domains. (*)
This attempt, the last ever made by the Danes
at hostUe invasion on this island, (5) proved abortive,
WiUiam having employed the same means which
had been so successful on the preceding occasion,
and King Knut is said to have fallen a victim to
the disappointed rage of his warriors. (6) But the
fear of invasion must have convinced the barons
and others, who had recently been much disposed
to be turbulent, of the necessity for miUtary organi
sation, and they perhaps hoped thereby to avoid the
imposition of foreign troops-;? at all events, towards
t -.<*
(x) Hist S. Qanwti, i., b. vi.
(2) See Spelman, v. bannum.
(3) Sax. Chron., p. 288.' Edit., Ingram, 1823.
(4) Ibid. — Florent. Wigorn., p. 641.
:(5) Except^ one. In the eleventh year of the reign of William II.,
Magnus, King of Norway, made a descent upon the Isle of Anglesea,
but was repulsed by Hugh, Earl of Shrewsbury. This was the final
attack made by the Northern nations upon England.
(6) Hist S. Cawuti.
VOL. I. J

Feudal
Hardships.

130 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the close of the year 1086, there was a great meet
ing at Sarum, and then and there they voluntarily
took the oath of fealty, and acknowledged themselves
the king's men. (*)
For upwards of a century and a quarter the
country had cause to deplore that auto da fe! To
arm in defence of king and country induced a natural
subordination in those who were interested in the
stabiUty of the realm, but the so-caUed reliefs and
other exactions, the utter dependence, and all the
vexatious incidents of feudaUsm, had not entered into
their calculations. The tyranny of the forest-laws
was one of the earliest grievances. Hitherto every
freeholder had fuU liberty of sporting upon his own
territories, provided he abstained from the king's
forests, as is fuUy expressed in the laws of Canute
and of Edward the Confessor. (2) But now a new
doctrine came in force, that uU animals accounted
game belonged to the king by his prerogative, on
that feudal principle that he is the primary and
ultimate proprietor of aU the lands in the kingdom.
This right was exerted with the utmost rigour, and
vast tracts of country were depopulated for the pur
pose of being reserved solely for the king's diversion.
The New Forest alone is stated to have been a
space of thirty miles, containing more than sixty
parishes, which the Conqueror broke up, and from
(') Matth. Westmon. p. 229.— Sows. Chron. (edit. 1823), p. 290.
" And all the landsmen, that were of any account over all England,
became this man's vassals as they were, and they all bowed them
selves before him, and became his men."
(2) Quoted in Blackstone, II., b. ii., ch. xxvii.

RISE OF THE CONSTITUTION. 131
which he expeUedthe inhabitants. (x) The most horrid
tyrannies and oppressions were exercised under cover
of forest law. The death of a poor Saxon was of Uttle
moment, but the beasts of the field were protected by
the severest penalties ; so that it was said, " This
king loved wUd beasts as though he had been their
father." (2) It is easy to imagine the effect of these
restrictions on men passionately devoted to the chase,
as all primitive peoples are.
WiUiam Bufus foUowed in his father's footsteps,
and maintained with a high hand aU the rigours of
the new laws. Henry I. found it expedient to
promise a restoration of the laws of the Confessor;
and accordingly, in the first year of his reign, he
granted a charter. This was, however, graduaUy
violated, and the former grievances were revived and
aggravated by himself and succeeding sovereigns.
But it was the excessive power of the King which
made England free, for it gave rise to the spirit of
union, and of concerted resistance, and the barons
were compeUed to associate the people with them,
and make them partners of pubUc Uberty. The
result was that great charter at Bunnymead, in 1215,
which is the foundation of our free constitution. But
Magna Charta, however important to the general

(') See Spelman, v. foresta. — " Et sUvestres feras pro hominibns
ibidem constituit." (Order. Vital., lib. x., p. 781.) — Malmesbury, p. 11.
—The author of a weh-written history of the New Forest does not
agree in the depopulation caused by this afforestation. (See The
New Forest By J. B. Wise. 1863. Page 23, et seq.)
(2) " Sua swithe he lufode tha headeor swylce he waere heora
fader.^ (Sax. Chron., p. 191.)
j 2

132 THE BRITISH ARMY. .
liberties of the nation, did not aboUsh that great
feudal obligation by which the subjects were bound
to military service at the command of the Crown; and
although, subsequently, pecuniary commutations were
agreed to be taken in Ueu of personal service, stiU the
military part of the feudal system was understood to
be strictly constitutional and binding, tiU it was
formally abolished at the Bestoration, by the 12th of
Charles II.
Non-Exemp- The duty of providing for the protection of the
and women, state was not confined to the lay tenants, for the
lands of the Church were not exempt, and dignitaries
with most of the clerical and monastic bodies were
compelled to submit their lands and tenements to the
same burthens. Exemptions were admitted when the
lands were proved to be held 'va. frank almoigne, or free
alms, a tenure which exempted the tenant from any
species of obligation, except that of saying masses
at his own discretion. (J) These instances were, how
ever, few, and the generality of the clergy were forced
to supply their contingents. Nor were the lands of
"widows and other women" (who had succeeded to
the possession of knights' fees) free, but were held on
like conditions. Ecclesiastics generaUy, and of course
the ladies always, were permitted the indulgence of

(*) Order. VitaUs, lib. viii. 703. — Du Cange, v. eleemosyna libera. —
Madox, Bar. Ang., p. 115. — To correct this evasion, the Statute of
Mortmain was enacted. Blackstone gives, as the most probable
explanation of the term, that the members of ecclesiastical bodies
(being professed) were reckoned dead persons in law ; land, therefore,
held by them might be said to be m mortua manu. (Commen., I.,
b. i., ch. xviii., p. 480.)

ATTENDANCE OF CLERGY WITH ARMIKS. 133
performing their service by deputy, or exempted on
payment of a fine. Sometimes, however, the personal
attendance of the clergy with the army was insisted
upon. A curious instance of this occurs in a writ in
the 41st of Henry III. (a.d. 1257) when the King
summoned the Bishop of Lincoln and aU other
prelates and persons, to attend with their contingents
which they were bound to furnish, and accompany
him with the army about to proceed against the
Welsh. And the King prohibited them from attend
ing convocation, or any other clerical assembly, during
the period of the expedition. For he appears to
have had his suspicions that a convocation had been
ordered by the Archbishop of Canterbury, as a pre
text for detaining his clergy from attendance on the
army. Henry evidently regarded the presence of
the clergy with the army as a matter of great im
portance; "their absence," says he, "might entail
imminent danger on the state." (x) We are not, how
ever, to infer that these "prelates and others" were
called on to deUver a pastoral charge at the head of
their contingents; but having brought them to the
field, they were then at liberty to discharge those
duties which were more in consonance with their
vocation — attending the wounded, and consoling the
dying. The mere presence of the clergy was probably
the important fact regarded by the king, as likely to
inspire confidence on his side, by giving a sanction to
the cause.
At the battle of Hastings the Norman priests
Q) Bymer, sub anno.

134 THE BRITISH ARMY.
gathered themselves together on a hillock, and offered
up prayer for the combatants : —
" Li proveire e U ordene
En som un tertre sunt monte,
Por Dex preier <l por orer." (Wace, 1. 13,081.)
The clergy often addressed the troops before going
into action, and granted them fuU absolution in
order to inspirit them, as did the Bishop of Durham,
who accompanied the army of Stephen, at the Battle
of the Standard, in 1138, when all the English troops
responded "Amen."(l) Sometimes, again, we hear of
them in their appropriate capacity as mediators, like
"Monsignor Taleran Cardinal de Bierregort," previous
to the battle of Boitiers. *
Martiaispirft ~$0t that in mediaeval times the clergy evinced
any deficiency of warUke qualities, or that their,*
peaceful calling prevented the frequent assumption of
the coat of mail ; and although, as the old chronicler
of the chivalric times says, " Men of the Church that
cometh and goeth for treaty of peace ought not by
reason to bear harness, nor to fight for neither of the
parties, they ought to be indifferent," (2) stiU we shall
often find them actively militant in the battle-field,
thus openly acting in direct contravention of the
canons of the Church, which forbade them to shed
man's blood. The mace or baton was the usual arm
of Churchmen when they went to battle, who per
haps by this means sought to avoid the denunciation
against those " who smite with the sword."
(*) "Ad hfflc autem respondet omnis populus gentis Anglorum,
et resonuerunt montes et coUes : Amen." (Hoveden.)
(2) Froissart (edit. Berners), i., cap. clxu., p. 199.

of the Clergy.

CHURCH MILITANT. 135
At Hastings, Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, the chro
nicler informs us —
" Un boston teneit en son poing." (Rom. de Bou.)
Notwithstanding the decree of the synod of
Westminster in 1175, that "Whoever would appear
to belong to the clergy, let them hot take up arms,
nor yet go about in armour ; if they despise this in
junction, let them be mulcted with the loss of their
proper rank," (x) yet the clerical magnates defied all
restraints, and openly and extensively armed them
selves, not always even in necessary defence, but
evidently out of pure love ' of mUitary adventure.
The monk of St. Edmunds, Jbceline of Brakalond,
teUs us under the year 1193, "Our abbot, who was
styled ' the Magnanimous Abbot,' went to the siege
of Windsor, where he appeared in armour, with other
abbots of England, having his own banner, and re
taining many knights at heavy charges; being more
remarkable there for his counsel than for his piety.
But we cloister-folks thought this act rather dan
gerous, fearing the consequence, that some future
abbot might be compelled to attend in person on
any warlike expedition."
The answer attributed to Bichard I. when he took
prisoner in France BhiUp de Dreux, Bishop of Beau-
vais, is pretty weU known. (2) The King hated him,
(l) Hoveden, sub. ann. 1175,
(2) The same bold bishop beat down with a mace Long-Sword,
Earl of SaUsbury, at the battle of Bouvines, in 1214, and the French
army on that' occasion was commanded by Guerin, Bishop-elect of
Senlis. — In the revolt of the Scots' under Bruce, in 1306, amongst
' the prisoners captured by the EngUsh, were the Bishops of St.

136 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and threw him into prison. When the Fope required
the release of his spiritual son, Cceur de Lion sent
back the hauberk besmeared with blood, which the
prelate had worn in battle, with the scriptural quota
tion : " This have we found : know now whether it
be thy son's coat or no/'C)
Froissart has recorded an amusing incident at the
attack of the town of Hainecourt in 1339, where a
stout abbot offered a most strenuous resistance to its
capture. " He was a very bold and vaUant man in
arms, and was seen in the front rank dealing and
receiving blows. A great stand was made at the
barriers in front of the town, and many fierce personal
encounters occurred there. In one of these, my lord
the abbot (' damp abbe') seized the spear of Messire
Henri de Flandre, and drew it through the clefts of
the paUsade. Messire Henri would not let it go, and
so the abbot managed to get hold of the knight's arm
and draw it through as far as the shoulder, and would
infaUibly have drawn him in altogether, if the opening
had been wide enough." "I assure you," continues
the chronicler, " that the said Messire Henri was not
at his ease while the abbot thus held him, for the
abbot was strong and fierce, and puUed at him with
out sparing him. On the other hand, the knights
pulled against him, to rescue Messire Henri ; and this
wrestling and pulUng continued a very long time, so
that Messire Henri was much hurt. At length he
Andrew's and Glasgow, and the Abbot of Scone, all taken in complete
armour. (Vide Lingard, ui. 280.)
(l) Matthew Paris.

CLERICAL HEROES. 137
was rescued; but his spear remained in the hands
of the abbot, who kept it many years." (i. 78.) (J)
Jean Montaigu, Archbishop of Sens, was killed at
Azincourt. Monstrelet says of him, that he was
" non pas en estat pontifical, car au lieu de mitre il
portoit une bacinet, pour dalmatique portoit un hau-
bergeon, pour chasuble la piece d'acier ; et au lieu de
crosse, portoit une hache." (fol. 132.)
The pugnastic element of Churchmen was not
confined to the Middle Ages ; we find it repeated
much later ; for instance, in the Civil Wars we hear
of Nathaniel Ward, of Ipswich, who was a devoted
BoyaUst ; he left clerical orders, and received a death-
wound as a soldier at the siege of Millam Castle,
Cumberland; (2) and the name of the Bev. George
Walker is handed down to posterity as the gaUant
defender of Londonderry against the forces of King
James in 1689, for which service he was rewarded
with the honorary degree of D.D. by the University
of Oxford, received the thanks of Parliament, and
was nominated by WUliam to the see of Derry. (3)
In the 22nd Edward I. (a.d. 1294) the King issued
a commission to the Bishop of Bath and WeUs, ap
pointing him, with the barons of the exchequer, to
_jeceive fines to his use, according to their direction,
(:) The edition of Froissart invariably referred to throughout this
work, unless otherwise specified, is that of Buchon, Paris, 1835.
(2) See a biographical notice of him in Notes pvfid Queries, 2nd S.
xn., p. 379.
(3) Lbid., 2nd S. x., p. 106.— The latest clerical hero is the Bev.
James Parker Harris, B.A., Qxon, known as the chaplain of Lucknow.
He was made an honorary M.A. for the bravery with which he minis
tered to the wants of the sick and suffering during that siege.

138 THE BRITISH ARMY.
from archbishops, bishops, abbots, priors, and other
religious and ecclesiastical persons, widows and other
women, in lieu of mUitary service in the expedition
to Gascony. In the 31st of the same reign, King
Edward having summoned his feudal tenants to as
semble at Berwick, in order to march against, the
Scots, commanded the, sheriffs to proclaim publicly
that such ecclesiastics or women as were willing to
pay fines, in lieu [of personal service, should appear
before the barons of the exchequer on the morrow of
the Ascension of our Lord next ensuing, or sooner, if
possible, at York, in order to pay fines for the said
services, each knights' fee being charged at the rate of
£20. (x) The option here given is whether they would
(') Eex vie' Eborum, salutem. Licet nuper tibi praaceperimus, quod
summoneri faceres archiepiscopos, episcopos.abbates, priores, et alias
personas ecclesiasticas, et etiam viduas et alias mulieres de balhvi
tua, qui! de nobis tenent per' servitium miUtare, vel per serjantiam,
seu de custodiis archiepiscopatuum et episeppatuum, aut.aUis custo-
diis sive wardis, in manu nostra existentibus ; Quod habeant ad nos,
in festo Pentecostes proximo futuro, apiid Berewyk super Twedam,
;totum servicium suum, nobis debitum, cum equis et armis bene
munitum et paratum, ad proficiscendum nobiscum, et cum ahis
fideUbus nostris contra Scotos inimicos nostrOs ; Volentes tamen
ipsorum prselatorum, religiosorum, mulierum, ac aliorum, qui ad
arma minus potentes, aut etiam minus idonei existunt, parcere
gratios^ laboribus ista vice ; Tibi prsecipimus, firmiter injungentes,
quod statimi, yisis , prsesentibus, in pleno com' tuo, et nihilominus in
vilUs mercatoriis, et alibi, per totam ballivam tuam, ubi meUiis
videris expedire, publice proclamari facias; Quodipsi prselati, religiosi,
mulieres, et alii, ad arma minus sufficientes aut idonei, qui servitium
suum nobis debent, et finem pro eodem servitio nobiscum facere
voluefint, veniant coram thes' et barbnibus nostris de scaccario, in
crastino Ascensionis Domini proximo futuro, aut citius, si possiht,
apud Eborum, vel aliquem pro ipsis, tunc ibidem mittant ; Ad facien
dum finem nobiscum pro servitio suo prsedicto, et ad eundem finem,
videlicet viginti librarum pro feodo unius militis (et aUas pro quntai-
tate servitii sui militaris vel serjantiee, nobis debiti in hac parte)
nobis ibidem in eodem crastino solvendo : AUoqui quod sint ad

WRITS OF MILITARY SERVICE. 139
supply the men or their money's worth, and was not a
question of serving in person. For instance, " Elene
la Zouche held by a knights', and one-sixth part of a
knights', fee. She was charged with scutage for the
same by the exchequer, but in regard that she did her
service with the King (habuit servitium suum cum Bege),
by deputy of course, in the army of Wales, the King
commanded the barons to discharge her of the said
scutage." (25 Edw. I., Madox, p. 457.)
Again, in 1369, the realm being menaced with in
vasion, Edward III. summoned his clerical subjects to
be armed and arrayed, having previously, as it appears,
obtained the assent of the prelates for that purpose.
Other writs of a simUar nature were issued in 1372
and in 1373. (See Bymer, sub annis.)
nos in prsedicto festo Pentecostes cum equis et armis, et toto tuo
servitio, ut tenentur. (Bymer, edit. 1816, vol. i., p. 952.)

CHAPTEB V.
CHIVALRY  KNIGHTLY EDUCATION  PAGES AND ESQUIRES — KNIGHTS —
THEIR ACCOLADE — HIGH SOCIAL POSITION  GALLANTEY — JOUSTS
AND TOURNAMENTS — PAVEURS  LE BEL CAVALIER  RELIGION 
COURTESY — SWORN-BROTHERHOOD — EDWARD HI.— PRINCE OP WALES'
FEATHERS.
Chivalry — a name almost inseparable from feu
dalism — has descended to us as something combining
the essence of honour, generosity, and manly daring;
and regarding it as we do, through the vista of ages,
it is invested with more of romance than probably it
actuaUy possessed or really deserved. The profession
of arms being the great path to distinction, the
descendant of a gentleman, or the free-born person
(for high birth was not always a necessary quali
fication), aspired to become a knight, and patiently
underwent a long training of arduous services to
quaUfy him for its reception, notwithstanding the
unwillingness of many, who, deterred, by the atten
dant expense, required statutory enactments to compel
its adoption. The probation of the aspirant for the honour of
knighthood necessarily commenced at an early period
of youth. He was generaUy sent to the castle of
some great man, in order that he might be removed
from the indulgences of home, and that nothing

KNIGHTLY TRAINING. 141
might interfere with the rigid training which was
deemed requisite for that career. Fitzstephen (in
Vita S. T. Cantuar) informs us that the nobiUty not
only of England, but of the neighbouring countries,
sent their children to be trained to chivalry in the
household of Thomas a, Becket; for he, although a
Churchman, was distinguished for his warUke
quaUties. The great feudatories of the Crown main
tained in their households a dignity and pageantry
imitative of the royal court, and so every castle
became a school of chivalry. (l) There, as a page,
his education commenced ; and though his functions
in personal attendance on his lord partook some
what of a menial character, it was thought no
degradation for the highest-born candidate to under
take them. The principles of reUgion and Courtesy
were among the first lessons he received, and stately
dames — for his early tuition seems to have been
confided very much to the women of the famUy —
strove to instruct him in a knowledge of his duty to
God and his lady, instiUing into his youthful mind
that refined and mystic idea of love, which was so
peculiar a feature of chivalry.
At the age of fourteen he might reasonably ex
pect promotion to the dignity of esquire, (2) when
(:) Ordericus (p. 511) notices the want of castles in England in
his time, as one reason why rebellions were easily queUed, but
Matthew Paris assures us that there were, in the time of Henry II.,
1,115 castles in England.
(2) The appeUation of squire was bestowed on the sons of knights
and gentlemen not yet knighted, in the twelfth century in France
(Vaissette, Hist de Lang., t. ii., p. 513), but in England it was not
used as a title of distinction till the reign of Edward III., and then

142 THE BRITISH ARMY.
he exchanged his short dagger for the sword. This
transition seems to have been marked by a religious
ceremony. (2) He was now admitted to more famUiar
communication with courtly society, and he saw and
learnt that decorous deportment which was the
characteristic of the true knight. His exercises then
became more violent; and if they were generaUy
such as were described of some, they would have been
feats of strength which few men of the present day
could execute ; but when we recoUect the crushing

but sparingly. In Henry "VT.'s time it had become more common, yet
none assumed it but the sons and heirs of knights, and some miUtary
men ; except officers in courts of justice, who, by patent or prescrip
tion, had obtained that addition. (Spelman's Posthumous Works, p.
234.) In England the terms " gentleman " and " esquire " have
ceased to be used as denoting a distinction and a privilege, thus
showing the wind of popular opinion. Subordination, however, in
every society is the bond of its existence ; the highest and the lowest
individuals derive their strength and security from their mutual
assistance and dependence. The subordination of aU men to, their
appointed rulers was one of the doctrines of Christianity itself, as
taught by the great Apostle' of the Gentiles, and recommended by the
example of the Saviour. Milton makes Satan even, when warring
against the King of Heaven, address his legions thus : —
" If not equal aU, yet free,
EquaUy free : for orders and degrees
Jar not with Uberty, but weU consist." < ; i
This sentiment is also beautifully described by Shakespeare.:—
" Take but degree away, untune that string,
And, hark, what discord follows ! Each thing meets
In mere oppugnancy : . . . .
Strength should be lord of imbeciUty,
Force should be right ; or, rather, right and wrong ¦ ; i
, (Between whose endless jar justice resides)
Should lose their names, and so should justice too."
(Troikts and Cressida, i. .3.)
(') Favin, Theatre d'Honneur.

ATHLETIC EXERCISES. 143
weight of armour which these knights of old had to
support — the hardships which they endured, and the
labours they were enabled to undergo — the training
might not have been too severe for the results which
it produced. In the Ufe of Boucicaut, (x) we read that the
young hero practised, amongst other things, during
the period of his knightly candidature, to vault in
fuU armour upon and off a horse, without using the
stirrup, (2) and to throw somersaults (3) when simi
larly accoutred, in order to strengthen his arms. He
would jump up astride upon the shoulders of a taU
man mounted on a taU horse, with no other assist
ance than laying hold of the man's sleeve with one
hand. He would cUmb up a ladder on the reverse
side (armed) using one hand, and so forth. These,
however, must have been rare feats of strength and
agUity, and are not to be taken as examples of what
an esquire's training usually was. Froissart teUs us
of a vaUant young French knight, who lost his life
by attempting to perform the feat of cUmbing a cable
in full armour. (*) The squires had stiU some
(l) Le Lwre des Faits du bon Messire Jean le Maimgre, dit
Boucicaut, Mareschal de France, &c.
(2) VirgU teUs us of the Scolothians performing this exercise : —
" Ercena Pelethromi Lapithaa gyrosque dedere
Impositi dorso, atque equitem docuere sub arm/is
Insultare solo, et gressus glomerare superbos.'' (Georgics, lib. iii.)
(3) "H faisoit le soubresaut arme de toutes pieces."
(4) " Le chevaUer etoit jeune et de grand ' volonte ; ' et pour
monsfoer appertise de corps, tout arme U se mit a monter amont et
a ramper contre la cable de la nef oil il etoit ; en ce faisant, le pied
lui faillit, il fut renverse en la mer ; et Ik perit, ni oncques on ne lui

144 THE BRITISH ARMY.
drudgery to submit to, and we are told that they
made the beds of their knights : —
" Les Us firent li escuier,
Si coucha chacuns son seignor." (*)
But their most important duties consisted in foUow-
ing their chiefs to the battle-field, and rendering
every possible assistance in the melee. i2"): They were,
as their name literally implies (escuyer), the shield-
bearers, and bore their chieftain's arms ; hence also
the term armiger. For except when danger was
apparent, the knights reUeved themselves of their
weighty encumbrances. It was considered a defiance*
if a knight appeared with helmet on his head, shield
round his neck, and lance in his hand.
Knighthood. At the age of twenty-one the squire was eligible to
knighthood ; he became, if he had property enough to
support the dignity, a bas-chevalier, a term which we
have confused by the 'tautology of a knight-bachelor.
The banneret was a still more expensive degree ; the
difference between the two, the common knight (bas-
chevalier) and the banneret, was that the latter was a
person of greater influence or wealth, who could fur
nish a greater number of armed men. The knight's
contingent was led under a pennon, (3) which was
put aider ; car tant6t il fut effondr6 pour les, armeures dont U etoit
veto." (Chron., ii. 314.) His name was Aubert de Hahgest.
(') Fabliaux MSS. du Roi— 7Sainte-Palaye.
(2) At Poitiers, Lord James Audley had bestowed upon his four
esquires, who had rendered him essential service by carrying him
away when severely wounded, the 500 marks which the Prince had
conferred upon him for his own gallant services in the same battle.
(Froissart, i. 359.)
(3) In the Muster Roll of the Army, anno 1417, taken at the end of
July, just before Henry V.'s second expedition to Normandy, printed -

AT WHAT AGE KNIGHTHOOD CONFERRED. 145
an ensign or standard ending in a tail or point —
the bannerets marched under a banner, which was
rectangular, nearly twice as long as it was wide.
When a knight was created a banneret, the point of
his pennon was cut off, which constituted for the
occasion a banner.
Sometimes the squire was admitted into the order
of knighthood before he had attained his majority.
This, however, was rare, except in the case of sove
reign princes. Henry I. was made a knight at
sixteen. (x) Edward the Black Frince was only fifteen
years and two months old when he fought with his
knightly spurs at Crecy. " I command them to let
the boy weU win his spurs "(a) (that is, deserve
them, for Edward III. had knighted him on land
ing in France, at La Hogue), was the chivalrous
reply of his royal father, when succours were asked
for his son! Henry of Monmouth (afterwards
Henry V.) was knighted in his twelfth year by
Bichard II., when in Ireland. (3) The dignity of
knighthood was often conferred on the field, upon
men even of low degree, for deeds of extraordinary
valour. To invest him pubUcly with his arms, was
originaUy the simple ceremonial which promoted the
warrior to knighthood. Lanfranc conferred the
in brief at the end of Gesta Henrici- Quinti (pubUshed by English
Histor. Soc), amongst Lord Bergavenny's men-at-arms one is desig
nated the Pennoner, doubtless the one who carried the pennon.
(J) Matth. Paris.
(2) Froissart, i. 240.
(3) Gesta Henrici Quinti, ut supra.
VOL. I. K

146 THE BRITISH ARMY.
honour of knighthood on WiUiam Bufus, The cere
mony is thus briefly described : " He clothed him with
the coat of mail, and placed the helmet on his head,
and girt him with the military belt in the name of the
Lord.'X1) The investiture afterwards assumed a more
imposing aspect. The candidate presented himself in
a church, confessed himself, and passed the night in
watching and meditation. In the morning he heard
mass, and, approaching the altar, placed his sword
upon it, which was returned to him with benedictions
by the priest. After other reUgious exercises, he
bathed, thereby expressing the purity which was
necessary for the state into which he was about to
enter. After that, knights who were in attendance,
and sometimes ladies, approached the novice and
arrayed him in his newly-acquired garb, putting on
the greaves and spurs; next the hauberk, then the
breastplate, and lastly girding on the sword. Then
he was dubbed (from the old French adoube, which,
according to Du Cange, signified adopted), which pro
bably was nothing more than a formal recognition of
admission to the equestrian order ; and lastly, the sove
reign, or chief man present, rose from his seat, and
gave the accolade, which was generally three strokes
with the flat of the sword upon the shoulder, or upon
the nape of the neck ; and sometimes a blow with the
palm of the hand upon the cheek, saying, "In the
name of God I make thee a knight!" This cere
mony varied at different times, The " accollee" (ad
(') "Eum lorica induit, et galeam ejus imposuit, eique militiae
cingulum in nomine Domini cinxit." (Order, Vit., p. 665.)

KNIGHTLY ACCOLADE. 147
collum) does not appear in the earlier instances, and
the term seems employed to express either a blow or
an embrace, two things certainly of a very opposite
character. In Froissart we read that when the
brave Countess of Montfort received succours in her
state of siege, "les feta liement et baisa et accola
chacun de grand cceur" (i. 159). Knighthood was
often conferred on gaUant esquires immediately before
the commencement of an engagement, when the grand
ceremonial must have been entirely omitted, or very
greatly curtailed. Thus, before the battle of Nogent,
Sir Eustace d'Aubrecicourt " caUed to him certain
young esquires, as the courageous Manny, his cousin,
Martin of Spain, and others, and there he made them
knights." (Froissart, i. 405.)
Our King Henry I. wishing to do great honour
to the young Earl Geoffrey of Anjou, became his
knightly godfather,^) and defrayed the cost of the
ceremony of his investiture at Bouen. After the
bath, the king presented him with a Spanish charger,
a suit of mail proof against lance and sword, gold
spurs, a shield emblazoned in gold with three lions, a
helmet set with jewels, an ash lance with a head of
Foictou iron, and a sword of temper so fine that it
passed for the work of Waland, the fabulous smith of
Northern traditions. (3)
When once admitted to knighthood, a high social
(*) " Les chevaliers se regardoient comme les enfans de ceux qui
les avoient armes, d'ou le mot adouber venant d'adoptare." (Note to
Ste. Palaye, part iv.)
(2) Johannes Monachus, Major Monast. — Hist. Gaufredi Ducis
Norman., xii. 520.
K 2

148 THE BRITISH ARMY.
A
position was assigned to him; and in those days, when
valour, in popular estimation, may be said to have been
the "chiefest virtue," and was the great source of
renown and merit, no distinction was more honourable
or more important. It even gave additional dignity
to kings and princes, for it conferred privileges to
which rank or birth alone were not entitled, and
they were proud to receive such distinction, even at
the hands of their subjects. Francis I. of France was
made chevaUer by the hand and sword of Bayard ;
and in England Edward III., Henry VI., Edward IV.,
Edward VI., were knighted, after their accession to
the crown, by their own subjects. Q) No one, how
ever exalted his rank, could confer knighthood, unless
he had himself previously received it, nor would he
presume to sit at the same table with knights unless
he himseU had won his spurs. (2) His word or pro
mise might be reUed upon with the firmest assurance,
and he went forth seeking to earn a reputation " sans
peur et sang reproche." In the character drawn by
Chaucer, of a "veray parfit gentil knight," it is a
principal feature that he loved —
 "chivalrie,
Trouthe and honour, freedom and curtesie.''
(*) Ashmole, p. 44. — Hist of the Reformation, i., p. 15. (a.d. 1547.)
(2) When "le sage roy Charles" entertained the. Emperor
Charles IV. at Paris, in 1378, the following precedency was
observed at the tables: — The Bishop of Paris had the first seat;
then came the King, and the King of Bohemia ; then the Dukes of
Berry, Brabant, Burgundy, Bourbon, and Bar; while other two
dukes, because they were not yet knights, supped at the second
table, where the son of the King of Navarre, the Count d'Bu, and
several other lords, bore them company. (See Christine de Pisan.
Faitz du Sage Roy Charles, pt. iii., ch. 37, in Petitot's Collec.)

CHIVALRIC DEVOTION. 149
But although the glory and defence of the sove
reign and state — the promotion of his religion, and
the protection of the oppressed — formed the legiti
mate object of knightly enterprise, yet the praise of
his lady-love was often the mainspring of his adven
tures and the source of his valour. It was for her
that he , fought and conquered, (x) — to her aU his
trophies were consecrated, and the remembrance that
" None but the brave deserve the fair," was a constant
incentive to his exertions. " Oh, that my lady saw
me!" said a knight, as he was mounting a breach at
the head of his troops, and driving the enemy before
him. (2) The treatment of women is always a test
of civUisation, and this devotion to them had a
wonderful effect in refining the manners of the
age. Women, in return, failed not to feel their
influences, and to appreciate their dominion. " Des
la douzieme siecle," says Michelet, "la femme prit
sur la terre une place proportionnee a l'importance
nouveUe qu'eUe avait acquise dans la hierarchie
celeste." (3)
In seasons of festivity, jousts and tournaments Jousts and
Tournaments.
(J) Abundant instances of gaUantry are recorded in the pages of
the sprightly Froissart. The love of Eustache d'Aubrecicourt for
Tsabel de JuUers, widow of the Earl of Kent, for instance ; " Si etoit
cette dame jeune et avoit enamouree monseigneur Eustache pour les
grands bacheleries et appertises d'armes qu'il faisoit, et dont eUe on
oyoit tous les jours recorder. Et en ce temps que messire Eustache
se tenoit en Champagne, la dite dame lui envoya haquenees et
coursiers plusieurs, et lettres amoureuses, et grands signifiances
d' amours, parquoi le dit chevalier en e'toit plus hardi et plus courageux,
et faisoit de grands appertises que chacun parloit de lui." (i. 401.)
(2) St. Foix, Essais Hist, sur Paris, Ui. 263.
(3) Hist, de France, i., ch. 7.

150 THE BRITISH ARMY,
exercised the military prowess of the knight. (a)
These images of war were announced with much
pomp and ceremony. Judges were appointed to
determine the issues, and to maintain the laws of
chivalry. The successful competitors in the Usts
f1) Most nations of antiquity, Uke the savages of modern times,
had warlike games and ceremonies. In all countries which have only
reached a certain condition of society, the amusements of peace par
take at least of the forms of war. But when and where instituted,
that costly pageant, the tourney, is involved in some uncertainty.
The Chronicle of Tours, under the year 1066, and that of St Martin of
Tours, expressly attribute its origin to Geoffroy de Preuilli, who died
in 1066, but Du Cange (Dissertation de I'Origine et de I'Usage des
Tournois at the end of JoinviUe) quotes curious instances of tourna
ments before the death of that personage. The French probably
instituted them. Matthew Paris calls them "conflictus GaUicus,"
and De PreuiUi may possibly have introduced them into Western
France. They are said to have been first practised in England in the reign
of Stephen (see William of Newbury, lib. v., cap. 4) ; but they were
forbidden by Henry II., as they had already been by the Church. At
a councU held at the Lateran in 1179, it was decreed, "ut nuUus
torneamenta exercere preesumat, et mortui in torneamentis Chris-
tiani careant sepultura." (Matthew Paris, and William of Newbury).
It was not till the return of Bichard I. from Palestine that they
were properly estabUshed in this country. They were again, for
bidden by bull of Gregory IX. under pain of excommunication, in
1228, and by Henry IH. in 1255, apparently not in deference to the
authority of the Church, but on account of the danger of his son
Edward in Gascony. The flourishing era of the tournament was in the
, thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but they continued down to the
sixteenth, when Henry II. of France had his eye struck out in a
passage of arms with the Count de Montgomery* which caused his
death in 1559, and the tourney was consequently abolished in France;
They were not, however, even then discontinued in this country and
elsewhere, but they then degenerated into " Justs of Peace " or
" Joustes a Plaisance," tournaments of the pointless lances and armg
of courtesy, with aU the gorgeousness of the old knightly encoun
ters, but regarded as mere courtly pastimes. Maitland, in his History
* Gabriel de Lorge, Comte de Montgomery, a Frenchman of Scottish descent
(claimed from the Earls of England, Eglintonn), captain of the Scottish archers.
(L'Etat Ae la France, tom.ii., p. 5, Paris, 1727 ; quoted in Powers relative to the Boyal Guard
of Scottish Archers m Prance, p. xii., Maitland Club) .

THE TOURNAMENT. 151
received their prizes at the hands of a woman, the
selected queen of beauty.

¦ " Throngs of knights and barons bold,

In weeds of peace high triumphs hold ;
With store of ladies, whose bright eyes
Bain influence, and judge the prize
Of wit, or arms, whUe both contend
To win her grace, whom all commend." — L' Allegro.
The combatants entering the lists slowly, pronounced
aloud the names of the fair ones to whom they had
vowed their hearts and their homage, a privilege,
perhaps, obtained at the expense of many a gaUant
achievement. They were presented with some
" guerdon " by their ladies, — a ribbon or scarf, or " a
kerchief of plesaunce," or some detached ornament
of their dress ; these were vauntingly affixed by the
knights to their helmets, or shields, or lances, and
were displayed as pledges of victory. These pledges
of London, gives an amusing account of some held in Smithfield and
Cheapside (see Index); and HoUnshed describes' the proceedings
of a magnificent tournament that was held in the Tilt-yard, West
minster, in 1581, in honour of the Dauphin.
The distinction between the tournament and joust is not very
clear. The latter is generaUy described to be a single combat or duel,
whereas in the former a considerable number of combatants were
engaged. This distinction is not, however, invariably observed.
Spelman defines " torniare, gladus concutere, justos facere." Frois
sart has " Joustes a tous venans, grandes et plenieres" (n. cap. 154).
In a proclamation of Edward III., " habere disposuerimus hastUudia
et justos generates." (Rot. Par., 17 Edw. IH., p. 2, m. 2.) The term
"joust " has been derived by some from jocare, bqcause it was a sort
of sportive combat. Our EngUsh verb " to justle " or "jostle," and
the French jouster, are probably connected with it. Tournament
meant merely turning and wheeling about, from the common French
word tourner. (See Scott's Essays on ChimaVry ; Chevalerie de Ste.
Palaye; Anc. Arm., i. 182 ; Du Cange, Justa ; and ChampelU on King
Rene's Tourney-book.)

152 THE BRITISH ARMY.
were called faveurs, Q) and hence the ribbons distri
buted at weddings were termed "bride's favours."
Even the ladies themselves evinced a taste for war,
and sometimes waged it — the Countess de Montfort,
for instance, who had "the courage of a man and
the heart of a lion" (Froissart, i. 138). (z) We
read of one who so practised herself in' knightly
exercises, that she was caUed " Le Bel CavaUer." (3)
Plate III. — TUting helmet, of the fifteenth
century. From the Hon. Eobert Curzon's Collec
tion, at Parham Park, Sussex,
The Church saw the poUcy, and lent its aid in
solemnising the profession of chivalry ; and in return,
to defend Christianity with his sword and his life,
became a sacred vow, to which every knight was
(') " Lorsque le combattant §toit arrive a, l'entre des lices (Usts),
la dame lui donnoit un baiser, en l'exhortant a meritef les favewrs
qu'eUe lui destinoit. Ces recompenses n'etoient autre chose que
quelques rubans ou noeuds." (Villaret, Hist, de France, torn, xn.,
p. 26.) (2) " Ordericus VitaUs mentions a curious anecdote of two Uvely
Norman ladies, who had quarreUed, Elo'isa and IsabeUa. Each roused
their friendly knights to assert their cause, and plundered and burnt
each other's possessions. They were both spirited, loquacious, and
beautiful, and governed their husbands ; but they differed in temper.
Eloisawas cunning and persuasive, fierce and penurious. Isabella
was Uberal and courageous, good-humoured, merry, and convivial.
She rode among the knights, armed as they were, and was as
dexterous in the use of 'their weapons." (Collec. Duchesne, pp.
687-8.) (3) "The Troubadour Eambaud de Vaqueiras mentions that
through the crevice of the door he saw the lady Beatrix one day
puU off her long robe, gird on her brother's sword, like a knight,
draw it from the scabbard, and toss it in the air, catching it again
with address, and wheeling about from right to left, till, having
finished the exercise, she returned the sword into its sheath. Hence
he named her Bel Cavalier." (Ste. Palaye, Hist Litt. des Trouba-
dowrs, i. 271.)

No.

Tilting Helmet of the Fifteenth Century. ¦ (From the Hon. Robert Curzon's
Collection, at Parham Park, Sussex. )

SPIRIT OF CHIVALRY. 153
ambitious to submit. Poetry laid hold, too, of
chivalry, as religion had done, and the voice of the
troubador (x) arrested attention as it chaunted forth,
in sirvente and fabliaux, the prowess of knights and
the loves of women.
But productive as those days were in romantic
incidents, they were by no means days of strait-laced
sentimentaUty or of virtuous abnegation. On the
contrary, the period when chivalry flourished was a
very dark one in the history of Europe, one in which
we find perhaps the greatest amount of crime and
violence ; and it is that very darkness that was the
life and soul of chivaby. In a civilised state of
society knight-errantry would have been but a
ridiculous and useless adventure. " The characteristic
of the ages," to use the words of a modern writer,
" was that perpetual contrast between gentleness and
ruthless violence, confidence and distrust, black
treachery and knightly honour, which give it a
strange picturesqueness, and have rendered it the
favourite field for historical romance." (z)
That the spirit of chivalry often rose to an
extravagant height, and led to pernicious results,
is unquestionable ; but its institution undoubtedly
produced a refinement of manners, and instances of
magnanimity and. valour, which otherwise, amid the
(*) Trobavre, in the obUque cases trobador, troveur, inventor. Every
poetical composition among the Provencals which treated of any
other subject than love was caUed Sirvent£s, in old French Servan-
tois, as being of a class inferior to amorous or chevaleresque poetry.
(3) Oxford Essays, 1856, p. 95, On the Growth of the Laws and
Usages of War, by Montague Bernard.

154 THE BRITISH ARMY.
anarchy and ignorance of the times, would not have
existed. In the interesting chronicles of Froissart we gain
an insight into the character of knighthood, and learn
the good and evil of chivalry. Almost every page
teUs the same tale of towns and viUages laid waste
by fire and sword. " lis roboient et pilloient et eav
illoient et ardoient"Q) — it was the EngUsh or the
French, as the case might be,, who thus "burnt,
exyled, robbed, and pyUed."(2) "Wild forays were
made on unoffending districts, often without ap^
parently the shadow of excuse. But amidst the
carnage and the smouldering ruins, some bright
spirits, mindful of their vows, start forth to protect
the helpless, and to stay the hand of the spoiler. (3)
When armies were drawn up in battle array, a knight
would often dash forward from the ranks, mounted
on a "fleur de coursier," and with courteous deport:
ment chaUenge any other knight to mortal combats
Individual instances of personal valour were innumer
able. The chaUenge of course accepted, there was
the clashing of bright armour, and probably one of
the antagonists hurled to the ground. The other
leaps off his horse, and the sword or dagger would do
the rest, unless the vanquished surrender ; and then
a handsome ransom is the result which, on the faith

(') Froissart, Chroniques, passim, edit. Buchon, 1835.
(2) Froissart, translated by Lord Berners, edit. 1812, passim.
(3) E.g., " Avec le dit Messire Thomas de Hollahde avoit plusieurs
gentils chevaUers d'Angleterre qui rescouirent (empecherent) mahvt
meschef a faire, mainte belle bourgeoise et mainte dame de cloitre k
violer." (Froissart, i. 225.)

FRATERNITY OF ARMS. 155
of knightly word, is agreed to be paid, whether the
captor be afterwards in his turn captured or not.
Then the conqueror tends him most carefully, binds up
his wounds, and they become really brothers-in-arms.
The fraternity and companionship of arms was
an interesting feature of the chivalric times. Knights
were generaUy errant after their investiture, and to
visit \ foreign courts and countries in quest of ad
venture and for the sake of extending their fame, was
considered one of the duties of the order. We may
thus form some conception of the expenses entaUed
by its assumption, and can appreciate the disinclina
tion so often manifested of qualifying for the dignity.
Christine de Pisan has assigned a prominent place to
the necessity of travelling as forming one of the
accomplishments of the chivalrous character.
" GentU homme, qui veulx proece acq'rre ;
Bscoutes ci ; entens qu'Ute faut faire.
Armes suimi/r t' esteut en maimte terre ,-.
A voyager souvent te doit moult plaire ;
Princes et cours estranges tu dois querre,
Tout enquerir leur estat et affaire." (')
So also Piers Plowman says that knights should
" Biden and rappen doun
In reaumes aboute,
And taken transgressores,
And tyen hem faste,
Till trenthe hadde y-termyned
Hire trespas to the ende.
And that is profession apertli
That apendeth to knyghtes." (2)
And in Chaucer's admirable description of the knight
(*) Harl. MSS. 4,431, fol. 47, a, b, in Cent balades.
(2) Tol. i., p. 20, edit. 1842...

156 THE BRITISH ARMY.
we read of his traveUing to Lithuania, and even
Bussia : "In Lettowe hadde he reysed and in Ruce,
No cristen man so ofte of his degre."
Acquaintances formed casuaUy on their travels
often cemented a perpetual bond of amity. They
voluntarily shared each other's fortunes, good or bad ;
they divided their plunder, and even their honours.
They became, in fact, fratres jurati ; and perhaps in
aUusion to this, Shakespeare puts into the mouth of
Bichard II. — " I am sworn brother sweet
To grim necessity.'' (})
Froissart, in his piquant manner, describes a scene
at the siege of Caen (a.d. 1346), where some of these
traveUed knights met under peculiar circumstances.
The , Count d'Eu and the Count of Tankarville,
when they saw that there were no hopes of saving the
town from the EngUsh, desired to surrender them
selves. They fortunately espied a gentle English
knight (Sir Thomas de HoUand), who had but one
eye (and therefore possibly they thought it easier to
get the blind side of him), whose acquaintance they
had made abroad in Granada, Prussia, and elsewhere.
They were re-assured at seeing him, and caUed out,
"Messire Thomas, wiU you speak with us?" "Who
(J) So Falstaff: " He talks as famUiarly of John of Gaunt as if he
had been sworn brother to him." (2 Hen. IV., Ui. 2.) — See also Du
Cange's 21s* Dissertation, subjoined to JoinviUe. Bobert de Oily
and Roger de Ivery are recorded there as sworn brothers (fr<M$§;
jurati) in William of Normandy's expedition to England, and thefc*
shared the honours bestowed on either of them.

CHIVALRIC TRAITS. 157
are you, Seigneurs, that know me ? " asked the EngUsh
knight. They mentioned their names, and begged
that he would make them his prisoners, which *of
course he was glad to do, as weU on his own account
as theirs, for he was thus enabled to preserve their
Uves, and had a certainty of a large ransom (Chron., i
224). For this service Edward III. granted to Sir
Thomas HoUand 80,000 florins (florinorum de scuto),
to be received out of the subsidy of wool. Q) Holin-
shed differs as to the identity, and says, "Whatsoever
Froissard doth report of the yielding of these two
noble men (the Constable of France and the Earl of
TankervUle), the said earl was taken by one Legh,
ancestor to Sir Peter Legh, now living."
Some traits in Edward III.'s character are
forcible Ulustrations of the manners of the age. At
the siege of Calais, when the defenders of the town
found provisions becoming scanty, they cast out all
who were not avaUable for its defence — men, women,
and chUdren to the number of 1,700 ; these had to
pass through the lines of the EngUsh army. When
the king was made aware of their destitute condition,
he gave them aU a good dinner, and presented each
with two shillings (esterlins.) (2) When the siege was
(') Rymer, sub. an. 1346.
(2) Froissart, i. 245. — It is fair to state that Knighton differs in
this statement. According to his account, 500 persons only were
excluded from the town, and they perished from hunger and cold,
between the town and the camp, because Edward would not allow
them to pass. The story of the six burgesses, like aU other extra
ordinary stories, is open to suspicion; and so much the more, as
Avesbury (p. 167), who is particular in his narration of the surrender
of Calais, says nothing about it. (See note to Hume's Hist, ii. 509,

158 THE BRITISH ARMY.
over, and the town in his possession, he invited the
prisoners of distinction to supper. Geffroy de Chargny,
one of the guests, had endeavoured to bribe the
governor of the castle to betray his trust for the price
of twenty thousand crowns. The king discovered the
plot, and took means to defeat it. After supper, the
king walked among his guests and conversed. His
bearing was dignified; he was in festive habit, and
wore a chaplet of pearls on his head. He addressed
De Chargny. " Messire Greffroy," said he, " I have
no cause to be very fond of you, seeing that you tried
to dispossess me of that which cost me so much to
obtain. But God helped me on that occasion, as I
trust he will continue to do." t He passed on to
Eustache de Bibeument. Now this gaUant knigh^
had met the king in terrific combat, and had twice
beaten him down on his knees ; but Edward was at
last victor, and received his sword. Eustache did not
know who his adversary was, for that day the king
fought under the banner of Sir Walter Manny. There
was generosity and magnanimity in the monarch's
address. " Sir Eustache, you excel all other knights
that I ever saw in fighting. I never had so much.
trouble with any one as with you. You deserve
the prize, and all the knights of my court accord it to
you." So saying, the king removed the rich chaplet
from his own brow, and placed it on Sir Eustache's,
" I present this to you, as the best combatant in the

and Lingard.)— The subject has also been noticed in the Biogr^.
Unwerselle, v. Saint-Pierre (Eustache de).— Also Mem. de VAcad. de
Belles-Lettres, torn, xxxvii.

CHARACTER OF THE BLACK PRINCE. 159
field to-day on either side, and I beg of you to wear it
for a year, for my sake. And as I know you to be
gay and gaUant, and often in the society of the fair,
teU them that I have bestowed this upon you. You
are my prisoner, but I free you from arrest. Go to*
morrow, if it please you/'t1)
Edward the Black Prince was the flower of Eng- The Black
° Prince.
Ush knighthood, as he has been rightly designated. (3)
He combined aU that is most characteristic of the
age in which he lived, and "By his hght
Did all the chivalry of England move
To do brave acts." — 2 Hen. IV., U. 3.
BeUgious devotion, undaunted courage, modesty,
courtesy, fUial submission, reverence to age and
authority, generosity to his faUen enemy — aU these
were conspicuous in him;(3) but there were dark
spots even in his bright career. Witness the
barbarous sacking of Limoges, the last miUtary
transaction in which he was engaged.
Though labouring under his fatal illness, he
besieged and took the place, and then gave orders
that every one should be put to the sword. Men,
women, and chUdren threw themselves on their knees,
(>) Ibid., p. 281.
(2) " Edouard, prince de GaUes et d'Aquitaine, fleur de toute
chevalerie du monde en ce temps." (Froissart, i. 707.)
(*) One can imagine the natural elation of a young spirit conse
quent on achieving such a triumph as that of Poitiers, a victory
won — and the first — on his sole responsibility; and yet how modestly
he writes of it to the Bishop of Worcester : — " Nous approcheasm.es
tant q'la battaille se prist entre nous en tiele maniere q'les ennemis
estoient disconfitez ; grace en soit Dieu." (See Archaeol, i. 212.)

160 THE BRITISH ARMY.
as he passed on through the devoted city, crying
"Mercy, mercy!" and there was no mercy !(*) But
he who was untouched by these cries was accessible
elsewhere. He was struck by the gaUantry of three
French knights, whom he saw fighting against fearful,
odds, and his anger was appeased.
When he died, EngUshmen thought that all their
hopes had died with him; and matters certainly went
crossly with the kingdom for some time. But the
life of a great nation is not bound up with the life
of a single man; and, fortunately, the valour, courtesy,
and chivalry of England are not buried in the grave
of the Plantagenet prince. He was the first of a
long line of heroes, and the brave who have fought :
the battles of their country in these latter days at
Sobraon and Ferozeshah — at the Alma and Bala
clava — at Delhi and Lucknow, are true descend
ants of those who fought at Crecy, Poitiers, and
Agincourt. The romantic story of the Black Prince assuming,
after Crecy, the plume of ostrich feathers which had
been worn by the King of Bohemia, who feU there,
must, unfortunately, be dismissed as fabulous. Anti
quaries and genealogists have exercised their ingenuity
on it for the last three centuries, and it would be an
undeniable gratification that the popular tradition i
should be confirmed. The first notice which exists
(') More than 3,000 men, women, and children were slain and
beheaded that day : " Dieu en ait les ames ; ' car ils furemt bien
martyrs," says the chronicler. (Froissart, i. 620.) — See Dean
Stanley's interesting memoir of the Black Prince in Memorials of
Canterbury.

PRINCE OF WALES'S FEATHERS. 161
of the circumstance is contained in a MS. of John de
Ardern^1) a physician in the time of the Black Prince,
and his assertion is very positive ; he distinctly affirms
that the Prince derived the feathers from the King of
Bohemia, whom he slew at Cressy. His words
are : — " Et nota quod taUm pennam albam portebat
Edwardus, primogenitus fiUus Edwardi, &c, et con-
quisivit de Bege Boeniise quern interficit apud Cresse
in Francia." One would suppose this to be conclusive. The
mediaeval leech was evidently a gossip ; and if he did
not know the truth regarding what must have been
a story in aU the "upper circle" of his times — the
sphere of his practice — who should know ? But none
of the other contemporary writers make any allusion
to what would have been a very interesting incident.
Camden is the next writer who aUudes to the sub
ject, in. his Remains; and it is somewhat remarkable
that in his first edition he writes, " The tradition is
that the Prince won the feathers at Poictiers ; " but
in the second he gives another version, and states,
"The truth is that he won them at the battle of
Cressy, from John, King of Bohemia, whom he
there slew." One would be inclined to infer from
the correction that he had subsequently discovered
some additional evidence which bore on the sub
ject; but he cites no authority for the assertion.
Had he seen Ardern's MS. ? the words are nearly
identical. (') There is more than one copy of Ardern's curious treatise in
the British Museum.
VOL. I. L

162 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Now plumes of feathers were not generaUy. worn
in helmets until the reign of Henry V., and then as
portions of costume, not as personal crests. Moreover,
the crest of the King of Bohemia was" not three ostrich
feathers, but the entire wing of a vulture, as may be
seen engraved in Olivarius Veredius (Geneal. Fland.,
pis. 63, 64). (*) None of the contemporaneous chroni
clers (and there are many) have recorded that the
King of Bohemia fell by the hand of the Black Prince.
His body was found amidst a heap of slain in the
melee, and it would be in entire opposition to the
character of the gallant young Edward to attack and
kiU a bUnd and defenceless monarch, whose ransom—
even taking that view of it — would have been more '
valuable than his death. Witness his generosity .'and,
courtesy to King John, after Poitiers. It is pretty
clear that the Black Prince did not kiU the King of
Bohemia, and more certain that he could not have
plucked ostrich feathers from him, had he done so.
Sir Harris Nicolas, who has coUected aU the
information on this subject, states that the first time
that the feathers are mentioned in any document is
in an indenture of " The Queen's plate, date after
1369, which is an alms-dish, marked with a sable
escutcheon, charged with ostrich feathers, believed to
have belonged to Queen PhUippa, either as a badge of
her family or as arms borne in right of some territories
appertaining to her house." (Archaeol., xxxi. 350.)
(l) A Flemish poem, quoted by Baron Beiffenberg, in his edition
of Barante's History of the Dukes of Burgundy, describes the crest of
bhe King of Bohemia as " two wings of a vulture, besprinkled with
linden leaves of gold." (Vide Archcuol., xxix. 50.)

THE BADGE AND MOTTO. 163
The ostrich feather was a favourite badge with
many junior branches of the royal famUy. It occurs
on the seal of one of the Black Prince's brothers,
Thomas, Duke of Gloucester, who never was Prince
of Wales. (*) Queen Anne, the first consort of
Bichard II., is represented on her tomb in West
minster Abbey wearing a dress richly embroidered
with ostriches. The bUnd Bohemian king was her
paternal grandfather. The Black Prince was evi
dently very proud of the , distinction, and several
times in his will makes special mention of it. He
directs that his chapel shall be ornamented "with
our badge of ostrich feathers."
With respect to the mottoes, " Houmout " (~)
(sometimes erroneously spelt " Houmont," compounded
of two old German words, meaning magnanimous), and
" Ich Dien," Mr. Planche (History of British Costume,
p. 139) is of opinion that they had no connection
with the badge. They were often used by the Prince
in Ueu of his own nominal signature. An instance of
this is appended to one of the few personal reUcs of
this iUustrious individual which time has spared to
us. It is preserved in the Eecord Office, and relates
to a grant in favour of John de Esquet, and to this
the Prince, by letter, directs John de Heuxtworth to
affix his seal, and subscribes the order, not with the
(') Vide WUlement's Heraldic Notices of Canterbury Cathedral,
pp. 45-49. — Also Collect. Top. et Geneal, Ui. 58.
(2) Or more literally, High Spirit, " Hoch Mout." Mr. Plancbe
considers the mottoes should be read together, " I serve (or am in
fluenced by) a high spirit," similarly as the motto of the Percy
family, "Esperance en Dieu" was abbreviated to "Esperance."
(Archaeol, xxxii. 69,.)
L 2

164 THE BRITISH ARMY.
signature of his name or title, but with his two weU-
known mottoes : " De par, Homout, Ich Bene." This
is the only known specimen of his writing extant.
The seal of the Black Prince is also to be seen in
the same place appended to a grant by him to his
brother, John of Gaunt, dated 1370, twenty-four years
after the battle of Cressy, with a single feather on each,
side of the shield; and the same badge occurs again
upon the seal to another grant in 1374. Sir H.
Nicolas describes eight of the Prince's seals, from
which it appears that the feathers were omitted on
some of the Prince of Wales's seals, which were en
graved after 1346, the year of the battle of Cressy.
Prince Edward (afterwards Edward YL, but who was
never Prince of Wsdes) used the badge in an unprece^
dented form, as a plume of three ostrich feathers pass
ing through a label, inscribed Ich Bien, the feathers
surmounted by the Prince's coronet. In a seal of
Queen Elizabeth, affixed fc> a document addressed to
the Emperor of Cathay, 1602, the Queen's arms have
lions for supporters, each upholding a single feather. (l)
The graceful form of plume which is now in use
was first adopted by Prince Henry, the accomplished
son of James I., who, like the Black Princp, died before
his father.
In conclusion, Sir H. Nicolas is strongly impressed
with the beUef that the feathers and mottoes' were
derived from the House of Hainault, possibly from
the Courte" d'Ostrevant, which formed the appanage of
the eldest sons of the counts of that province.
(x) Archaeol., xxix. 392.

CHAPTEE VI.
ARMS OF THE KNIGHT — LANCE — SWORD, ANCIENT AND MODERN —
DAGGER — MACE— AXE — SHIELD.
The lance was the proper and peculiar arm of the The Lance.
knight ; the other weapons in use by that order were
the sword, dagger, mace, and the axe.
The Lance was sometimes designated by the
various appeUations of spear, glaive, and staff. The
head was always made of the best-tempered steel,
and was commonly of the leaf form, or lozenge. In
Froissart we read of " un glaive rude et fori a un
long fer bien acere"(f) We read also of "glaives
enfumes" inthe same chronicle (i. 101); whether, or
how hardened by the action of fire, does not appear.
Weapons manufactured at Bordeaux were held in
high estimation. " Et quand ces Flamands," writes
the same chronicler, " sentirent ces fers de Bordeaux
dont ils se veoient empales, Us reculoient." (3) The
shafts were generaUy made of ash, so that the writers
who indulged in Latin verse frequently used fraxinus
to denote a lance or spear. Thus GuUlaume le
Breton : " Utraque per clypeos ad corpora fraxinus
(*) i. 118. (2) Ibid., ii. 238.

166 THE BRITISH ARMY.
ibat." (p. 263.) (l) Chaucer furnishes his knight with
a lance of cypress : —
" His spere was of fine cipres,
That bodeth werre and nothing pres,
That heed ful scharp i-grounde."
Its usual length was eighteen feet, until knights
dismounted and fought on foot, when it was reduced to
five feet. Lances were ornamented with a banderoUe
near the point, which gave them a handsome appear
ance. Various names were bestowed upon them,
according to circumstances. (2) The streamers ter
minating in two or more pointed ends are found at
the close of the eleventh and during the twelfth
centuries. (3) When the charge had been made with
the lance, and that weapon was mo longer available in
close fighting, it was cast aside, and the contest
carried on with the sword : —
" Apres le froisseis des lances,
Qui ja sont par terre semees,
Giettent mains a blanches espees,
Desquels ils s'entrenvaissent." — -Guiart.
The sword. Tim Sword worn at the side was an important
item in the knight's equipment. Sometimes he was
provided with another, a smaUer one, caUed estoc, a
stabbing sword, carried at his saddle-bow, as Wafie
teUs of the Norman knights : —
" Chescun out a l'arcon devant
Une espee bone pendant." — Roman de Bou.
(i) YirgU has " myrtus vaUdis hastilibus." (Geor., ii. 447.)
(2) "On ornait les lances d'une banderole," &c. (La Norn,
Discours 18.)— " Pencils for your .speres," (MS. in CoU. of Arms, 1. 8.)
(3) See Harl. MSS., 603.— Also Bayeux tapestry.

THE FIRST SWORDS. 167
The sword-belt worn round the waist, or rather
(inconveniently, one would imagine) round the hips^1)
became a principal appendage of the armour of the
fourteenth century.
There are instances of swords being worn on the
dexter side. See the Bayeux tapestry, and three
effigies in the Temple Church ; also the monumental
brass of Sir John Drayton, who died in 1411, and is
buried in the church at Dorchester, Oxfordshire
(Vide Gough's Sepulchral Monuments, i. 201); also on
the monument of Pierre de Dreux, figured in Daniel's
Milice Irancaise, torn, i, lib. vi.
Swords, if they were not the first, were certainly
among the earUest artificial weapons made use of,
perhaps even before the discovery of metals, fashioned
of some heavy wood, hardened by fire, a modification
of clubs, and such primitive weapons. Bronze swords
seem to have been next introduced, until the art of
indurating iron was discovered. (2) There is very early
mention of the sword in the Scriptures : the " flam
ing sword of the cherubim," in Gen. ni. 24. The
first notice of it as a weapon of strife is when "Simeon
and Levi took each man his sword, and came upon the
city boldly, and slew aU the males." (Gen. xxxiv. 25).
It is also made use of as a symbol : " The sword shaU
never depart from thy house" (2 Sam. xii. 10) ; and
" The word of God is sharper than a two-edged sword"
(Heb. iv. 12). It seems to have been a short weapon
then. David carried with ease the sword of Goliath, a
(:) " Gird thy sword upon thy thigh ;" so we read in The Psalms.
(2) Vide Archaeol, Ui. 555.

168 THE BRITISH ARMY.
man so much larger than he was. In former times,
when so much depended on the quality of the sword,
the selection of it was naturally a subject of great
importance. Hence the art of tempering steel became
in great request, and the names of celebrated sword-
smiths, or armourers, appear throughout the traditions
of the North, and indeed in the epic poems of all
nations, i1) The swords of distinguished individuals
and of celebrated combatants, from the earlier period
until now, have always been highly prized ; they were
considered precious enough to be preserved in temples
and sanctuaries ; even if we refer back to the time of
David of Israel, who received at the hands of the
priest " the sword of Goliath, the PhiUstine," which
was kept "wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod."(3)
Joan of Arc is said to have taken. Charles Martel's,
which was preserved in the Chapel of St. Catherine,
at Fierbois.(3) They were often made subjects of
bequests and wUls.(*) The intrinsic worth of the
(*) This is curiously shown in the laws of Ethelbert, which enacts
that " if a man slay another, he is to pay his wergyld (a life price) ;
but not so, if the slayer happen to be the king's armourer, or mes
senger. In that case he is to pay only a moderated wergyld of one
hundred shillings." (Kemble's Saxons, i. 280.)
(2) 1 Samuel xxi. 9.
(3) Hall's Chronicle, fol. xxi. — Holinshed, p. 600.
(*) In the will of Prince iEthelstan (son of Ethelred IL), dated a.d.
1015, ten swords are there devised to different persons, one of whom
is the prince's sword cutler, Elfnoth. Among the swords bequeathed
are the sword of Eng Offa, the sword with the fluted hflt, the sword
with the cross, the sword which Ulfeytel owned, and that with the
silver hilt, which Woolfricke made. — "A sword, ornamented with
gold," formed part of the distinguishing quaUfication of the eorl an4
ceorl. (Thorpe's Anglo-Saxon Laws, i. 186.) — Eginhard teUs us that
the belt of Charlemagne was " of gold or sUver ; that the hflt of his
sword was made of gold and precious stones."

EARLY ESTIMATION OF SWORDS. 169
weapon in early times often made the gift valuable,
per se, apart from its reputation. The Saracens petted
and named their swords like chUdren. Mahomet called
his Kaled ben Walid the " sword of God." There is
something very striking in the application of proper
names to famous weapons. The custom shows the
rarity and the value of good arms, and the personal
affection, as it were, which the wearers had for
them; they were not mere chattels, but beings half
instinct with Ufe and consciousness of their own.
Tegner, in his beautiful Swedish poem of Frithiof
describes the hero's sword, " Angurwadel," with its
engraved runes, that grew bright and burning on
the eve of battle. Charlemagne's sword was caUed
Joyeuse .• — " Et qui nommee estoit Joieuse, ¦
Et gent courtoise et outrageuse,
Quant par ire la descendoit
Un ChevaUer arme fendoit
A un seul cop tout contreval,
Et trenchoit parmi le cheval,
Oele espee aige toute nue
El tresor S. Denis tenue.'Y)
The TJmfreviUes held the lordship of Biddesdale,
in Northumberland, through the sword which
WiUiam the Conqueror wore when he entered that
(') GuU. Guiart, Hist. Franc. MS. — "This sword," says Mr.
Howard, " is of the finest temper, and the ornaments of its handle
and sheath were in the purest Arabian gold. The tradition is, that
it was sent to Charlemagne by Haroun al Bashid. It was claimed
by the Emperor of Austria, and has been removed from Aix-la-
ChapeUe to Vienna." (Archaeol, xxix. 370.) — It is figured in the
splendid work, Clinodea S. R. Imperii (Taf. xxiv., Fig. 33), edited by
Canon F. D. Boch ; a copy is deposited in the Art Library, Ken
sington Museum.

170 THE BRITISH ARMY.
county : (x) and Bichard I. gave to Tancred, King
of Sicily, " The gode swerd Caliburne, that Arthur luffed so weUe." (2)
The sword, probably because it is more constantly
carried about the person than' any other weapon, has
acquired a peculiar connection with the circumstances
of the wearer. To this day the surrender of a sword
denotes- submission, and the breaking of it degrada
tion. In many countries it is regarded as the emblem
of power. In Anglo-Saxon times, a gilt sword was
one of the distinguishing emblems of a thane, (3) and
the sword of state is stiU borne before our sovereign
on important occasions. (*) The kings who preceded
(') Blount's Ancient Tenures. m
(2) Morte d' Arthur. — Eicardus Eex: Peter Langtoft's Chron., edit.
Hearne, p. 154. — Also Hoveden, sub. an. 1191.
(3) Ancient Laws of England (Eecord .Commission), pp. 80, 81.
(4) There are three swords which form part of the Eegalia, and
are borne before our kings, and are preserved in the Jewel House of
the Tower. The principal one is the Sword of Mercy, caUed Cwrtama,
and is carried between the two Swords of Justice. The origin of its
name is involved in obscurity ; its antiquity is undoubted. Matthew
Paris (an. 1236) teUs us that the sword of St. Edward, qui Crnieim
dicitur, was borne by the Earl of Chester at the marriage ceremony
of Henry III. ; but whence it was derived, whether from the formid
able Uggiero the Dane or the famed Orlando, wiU probably never be
decided. " Joyeuse, Corto, Flamberge, Dardonnais,
Bompie, Durandal et Courtin le Danois." —
(Morel, Triomphe de Hen. TV., quoted in Du Cange, v. Cwiana,^
The name, however, has for many centuries been given to the first
royal sword of England. It is mentioned in the Liber RegaUs, inthe
reign of Bichard II. It occurs again in the time of Henry IT.
(Chron. Rishanger, MS. Cott., Faust, b. ix.) and in subsequent reigns!;
In the wardrobe account for the year 1483 are " iij swordes, wherof
oon with a flat poynte, called Curtana, and ij other swordes, all'
iij swords covered in a yerde di' of crymysyn tisshue cloth."

SWORDS USED FOR ATTESTATION. 171
Henry III. are represented on their great seals with
a sword in their right hands instead of the sceptre.
Oaths were taken upon the sword ; the Teuton swore
by his good sword, the symbol of the Deity worshipped
by his Scythian kinsmen ; (*) and after the introduction
of Christianity, the arms were consecrated by the
priests, and the sword being cruciform, became appro
priate for a solemn appeal.
" Swear by thy sword." (Winter's Tale, ii. 3.)
And in Spenser's Faery Queen : —
" So suffering him to rise, he made him sweare
By his own sword, and by the cross thereon." (vi., 1. 43.)
The Earl of Warwick, previous to the battle of Towton
(Co. York) in 1461, where Queen Margaret was de
feated, having invoked the assistance of the Almighty,
swore that he was determined to share the fate of the
humblest soldier, and solemnised his vow by kissing
the hUt of his sword. (3) The sword, being carried by
freemen only, became the symbol of manumission, as
the accolee — the blow on the neck, at the investiture of

It is of plain steel, gflded. The blade is thirty-two inches in length,
and nearly two in width. The hilt is covered with fine gold wire,
and the point is flat ; the cross is of steel gut. The other two swords
are the sword of Justice to the Spirituality, and the sword of Justice
to the TemporaUty. They are about the same length, but sharp at
the points. There is also a sword of State, with which the king
is girded before he is crowned. This is more richly ornamented
than the others, but forms no part of the Eegalia, and must be
donsidered as belonging personaUy to the sovereign. (See Taylor's
Regality, p. 71.)
(') See Palgrave's 'Hist of the EngUsh Cornmonnaealth, i., pt. ii.,
p. 115. (2) Habington, p. 432. — Monstrelet, an. 1461.

172 THE BRITISH ARMY.
knights — perhaps betokened emancipation from their
subservience as esquires. At the election of knights
for the shire, the successful candidates are still girt
with a sword, the emblem of poUtical authority. De
capitation with the sword is considered more honour
able than hanging or strangling in those countries
where such modes of execution are enforced. The
efficiency of no other weapon depends so much on the
courage and skill of the individual as the sword.
Those who have seen the dexterity of Eastern swords- '
men can bear witness to their extraordinary perform
ances. The feats of strength recorded of ancient
swordsmen almost surpass one's beUef, and would
appear to have required such a weapon as
 "The sword .

Of Michael from the armoury of God,
Given to him tempered so that neither keen
Nor soUd might resist that edge."
Guiart relates of Charlemagne that with his sword
he could cleave a knight in armour right down to the
pommel of the saddle, and cut into the very back
bone of the charger : —
" Un Chevalier arme" fendoit
A un seul cop tout contreval,
Et trenchoit parmi le cheval." —
Hist. France, MS. de Car. Mag.
Godefroi de BouiUon is reported to have cut a Turk
in half from the shoulder down to the hips, at. the
siege of Antioch. A simUar feat is attributed by
WLUiam of Tyre to the Emperor Conrad, at the
siege of Damascus. Du Cange avows, after having
seen an ancient sword in the church of S. Pharon, at

SWORDS FROM THE TOWER.
A Cross Sword, with flat Wheel-pommel. Probably of the Thirteenth or
Fourteenth Century. Upon the Blade, 2 feet 3 inches in length, are traces
of an Inscription.
Similar Sword, of about the same period. Blade 3 feet 3 inches.
Short Back Sword, or Coutel, with Finger Guard. Early Sixteenth Century.

SPECIMENS OF SWORDS. 173
Meaux, which was said to have belonged to Ogier the
Dane, that he did not altogether discredit these
reports, however improbable they might appear. (*)
Froissart says that the sword of Archibald Douglas
(a.d. 1378) was two eUs long; this is mentioned as a
remarkable length, and scarcely any one else could
raise it. (n., p. 18.) The same author speaks of great
feats of arms performed by a Churchman, who wielded
a two-handed sword, (i., p. 394.)
The three swords on Plate IY. are copied from
specimens in the Tower : y A cross sword, with flat
wheel pommel, probably of the thirteenth or four
teenth century. On the blade, which is two feet
three inches in length, are traces of an inscription.
Pound in a peat- bed at Newbury, Berks.
- Another of the same type and period. The
blade, three feet three inches, is fluted. Pound in
constructing the coffer-dam for the erection of the
Houses of'ParUament in 1838, in a natural bed of
concrete, eight or ten feet below the surface.
y (3) Short back-sword (coutel) with finger-guard.
Date, early sixteenth century.
Presentation swords were decorated in a very
costly manner. The account of one of the. thirteenth
century has descended to us, having been preserved
in the Close Bolls. It appears that at York, on
Christmas-day, 1262, Henry III. conferred knighthood
on Alexander III., the young King of Scotland, who
(x) Du Cange, v. Spatha.
(2) These are the class numbers in the Official Catalogue, arranged
by Mr. John Hewitt, Memb. B. Archaeol. Inst.

174 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the day foUowing espoused the Princess Margaret,
Henry's daughter. A handsome sword was ordered
for the occasion :—
"Claus. 36 Hen. III., m. 81. Precept to Ed
ward of Westminster, that he will procure without
delay a certain handsome sword, and have made a
scabbard of silk, with the pomel of silver, weU and
fairly ornamented, and a rich belt to hang therefrom ;
so that the said sword may be delivered to him at
York, with which Alexander, the illustrious King
of Scotland, may be decorated, together with a
mUitary girdle, at the feast of the Nativity of Our
Lord next ensuing. Witness at Lichfield, 21st
November." (*)
Amongst the royal properties at the Tower, ther^
was formerly a magnificent weapon of gold, called
"the swerd of Spaigne, garnished with v greet
baleys, vi greet saphirs, injxx xix greet perles upon
the scaberge ; and the hUt is garnished with iij
baleys, ij saphirs, xvj greet perles ; and the pomell
of the same is garnished with a baleys, a saphir,
x perles, weying in all x marc and a half and half an
unce of troye, ye prys ccc xxxiij li. vj s. viij d."—
This sword was "pledged by Henry VI. (See Archaol,
xxi. 36.)
Plate V. — A graceful sword, with- double-edged
blade, spiraUy twisted cross-piece, and forefinger and
thumb-guard. The pommel ornamented with roses,
which, combined with its date, a.d. 1455, identifies
(') The original is in Latin. — It is also copied in Walpole's
Paintmg, i. 13.

No. S.

Knight's Sword, with double-edged Blade, spirally-twisted Cross-piece, and
Forefinger and Thumb Guard ; the Pommel ornamented with Roses.
a.d. 1455. Length of Blade, 4 feet 3 inches. (From the Collection of
Arthur James Lewis, Esq. )

No. 6.

Sword of Fifteenth Century, with the knotting of the Belt.

SWORD AND DAGGER OF JAMES IV. 175
it with the Wars of the Eoses. Length of blade,
4 feet 3 inches. Prom the coUection of Arthur James
Lewis, Esq.
The sword and dagger taken by Thomas, Duke of
Norfolk, from James IV., King of Scotland, at the
battle of Plodden Pield, were presented by a successor
of his, in 1681, to the College of Arms, and have
remained in its custody ever since. The length of
the sword-blade from hUt to point is 3 feet and
¦| inch ; the hUt is 6|- inch. One side of the blade
is inscribed " Maista Domingo;" on the other, ap
parently the words " Espoir conforta Le Grvenal."
(See Archaeol., xxxiii. 340.)
The blade of the dagger is 131 inches, and the
hUt 5^ inches in length.
In 1562 a proclamation was made, "that no
swerd to be butt a yerd, and \ of length the blad, and
dagars butt xij ynche the blad." (Quoted in Biary of
Henry Machyn, p. 281, Cam. Soc.)
Damascus formerly possessed, as is well known, a
world-wide fame for its manufacture of sword-blades.
The extraordinary prices that these have fetched
sufficiently attest the estimation in which they were
held, although in the present day swords of equal or
superior quality might be produced at one-twentieth
the expense.
Plate VI. — The sword here represented is very
narrow in the blade, and almost square in the section ;
the remarkable feature is the thong and its knotting.
We also learn the arrangement of the sword-belt of
that time, about 1480. (Parham Coll.)

176 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Bordeaux had an ancient celebrity for its cutlery.
Mention is frequently made of it in Froissart, e.g.:
" Le seigneur de Bercler (Lord Berkeley) prit
son epee qui ef oit de Bordeaux, bonne et legere et
roide assez." This was on an occasion of an en
counter between Berkeley and a squire of Pieardy,
during the battle of Poitiers; and we learn from-
it how the sword was sometimes used, viz., held
under the arm like a lance, so as to give greater
weight to its thrust. Q) The scene is highly iUus-
trative of the manners of the time. It appears
that when the squire perceived that matters were
going untowardly for the French, he thought of
discretion, and resolved to fly. He luckUy met
his page with a fresh horse for him, and mounting
it, rode away alone. Lord Berkeley, " a young
lusty knight, who had reared his banner that day
for the first time " (i. e., had been created ban
neret), caught sight of the fugitive, and gave chase ;
for a full league he pursued him, and being mounted
on a fleet courser, gained upon him. The squire
thought it was time to manoeuvre; so suddenly
halted, wheeled about, and came charging full tilt
against the EngUshman, with his sword at the rest.
Berkeley raised his arm to strike him with his sword
as he passed ; but the squire bobbed down, and thus
avoided it, and was enabled to strike the knight on
the sword-arm; the sword was knocked out of his
(J) " L'epee au poing et la mit dessous son bras en maniere de
glaive" (i., p. 352),- " and laid his sword in the rest instead of a spear."
(Berners, i., cap. cbiiii.)

MANNERS OF THE AGE OF CHIVALRY. 177
hand, and feU to the ground. (J) Berkeley leaped
from his horse to recover his sword, but the squire
was too quick for him, and, just as he was stoop
ing to pick it up, thrust his sword right through
the cuissarts (z) into both the thighs of the knight.
Berkeley feU to the ground helpless ; then the squire
jumped off his horse, ran and picked up the English
man's sword, and asked if he would yield. The
knight demanded his name. " Sir," quoth the squire,
"my name is Jean d'EUenes; but what is yours?"
" My name is Thomas, and I am Lord of Berkeley, a
fair castle on the river of Severn, in the marches of
Wales." " WeU, sir," said the squire, " then you
shaU be my prisoner, and I will bring you to a place
of safety, and I will see that you be healed of your
hurt." Lord Berkeley admitted that he was his
prisoner by the laws of arms, and swore to be his
prisoner, rescue or no rescue : then the squire drew
out the sword from the knight's thighs, and the
wound was open. Then he wrapped and bound it,
and set him on his horse, and led him as easily as he
(') To prevent this accident, the sword was often attached to some
portion of the body armour, as may be seen in illustrations of the
fourteenth century. ( Vide the seal of Edward III. engraved in Rymer).
These precautionary chains appear less commonly in England than
in Flanders and Germany. Occasionally, three guard-chains appear
attached to the helm. A single chain for this purpose is seen on the
figure of Sir Jo. de Northwode, circa 1330, at Minster (engraved by
Stothard). Sir Boger de Trumpington (Waller's Brasses) has this
helm-guard attached to his girdle. In the statue of Conrad von
Seinsheim, a.d. 1369, given in Dr. Hefner's fine work on Mediaeval
Costume, to the breastplate are affixed three guard-chains, for helm,
sword, and dagger ; on the grip of the sword runs a ring to which its
chain is attached.
(2) The armour that protected the. thighs.
VOL. I. M

178 THE BRITISH ARMY.
could to ChateUeraut, and there awaited for his sake
more than fifteen days, . to , get ; him better of his
wound; and when he got somewhat better he pro
cured a litter for him, and so brought him at his
ease to his house in Picardy. , There he remained
more than a twelvemonth, till he was perfectly
cured ; and when he departed he paid for his
ransom 6,000 nobles, and so this squire was made
a knight by reason of the profit he had of the Lord
of Berkeley. Plate VII. — EngUsh sword, with flat pommel
of ..great rarity. Swept S-hilt, inlaid with silver,
evidently EngUsh work. On the pommel and ex
tremities of the hilt are medalUons of silver
inlaid, representing St. Greorge and the Dragon*
The sword is similar to. the one represented in
the portrait of Sir Walter Baleigh. Date, cir.
1580. Now in the possession of Mr. Eobert Taylor
Pritchett, F.S.A.
In the thirteenth century, swords manufactured
at Cologne seem to have been held in high estima
tion, Q) The EngUsh do not appear to have excelled
in the working of metals ; we find that in the four
teenth century " David de Hope, smith, was sent by
Edward II. to Paris to learn the method of makii^
swords for battle." 0 Douglas and Percy are said
to have encountered one another " with swordes, that
wear of fyn Millan," in the ancient ballad of Chevy
Chase. We find " a Millaine knife" in King Arthur
and the King of Cornwall ; and " My habergion, that
(') Anc. Arm., i. 316. (2) Archmol., xxvi. 343.

Xo. 7.

English Sword, with flat Pommel of great rarity; swept S-Hilt, inlaid with
sdver. On the Pommel and extremities of the Hilt are medallions of
sdver, inlaid, and representing St. George and the Dragon. Date circa
a.d'. ii;8o. (Now in the possession of Robert Taylor Pritchett, F.S.A.)

IBERIAN SWORDS. 179
was of MiUaine fine," in Eger and Grine.Q) In Sir
Begrevant — " Bot twey swerdus thei bene
Off Florence ful kene."— 1. 1,608.
Spain, however, has held the longest repute of all
countries in this respect. Polybius (Hist., Ub. ii, c. 33)
describes the Iberian swords as of peculiar excellence,
and that they were adapted for cutting and thrust
ing, whereas the Celtic swords were for cutting only.
Diodorus Siculus (Ub. v., c. 30) enlarges on their merits
and mode of manufacture; and the greatest proof of
their exceUence is the fact of their having been
adopted in the Eoman armies during the second Punic
war. (Livy, Ub. xxii, c. 46.— See also Horae Ferales,
p. 186.) The Moors introduced their Damascene
system of additional ornament and tempering, and
so early as a.d. 852, according to Conde (i. 285), the
fabrica at Toledo was in operation. Of that famed
swordsmith, Andrea Ferrara, Uttle more can be said
than that his name Uves on his blades, although many
a time his name has been assumed without right.
Ford, in his Hand-book (U. 853), makes scanty men
tion of him. He says that he was an Italian, settled
at Zaragoza, but suppUes no authority in support of
the assertion. Mr. DiUon, another traveUer in Spain,
in 1780, says that a tradition was preserved to his
day that the ore from the famous iron mine of Mon-
dragon, which is about a league distant from the town
(*) Bishop Percy's Fol. MS., edit. Triibner, 1867.—" The dealers
in miscellaneous articles were also called milliners, from their im
porting Milan goods for sale, such as brooches, aiglets, spurs,
glasses, &c." (Saunders's Chaucer, p. 241.)
M 2

180 THE BRITISH ARMY.
of that name, in Guipuscoa, was used for those famous
swords which Katharine of Arragon presented to her
consort, Henry VIII., and that the famous Toledo
blades, those also of Zaragoza, were supposed to have
been made of the same ore. The latter blades had
three distinct marks, viz. : M Perillo, a Uttle dog ; M
Morillo, a Moor's head ; and La Lobe, a wolf. Q) It
is difficult to account for the prevalence of what are
termed Andrea Ferraras in Scotland, that country and
Spain having had no especial intercourse. No pay
ments to any great swordsmith have been noticed in
the records of Scotland. The exceUent blades of the
Scots soldiers are mentioned by W. Patten in his
journal, printed in 1548 : "They come to the field
with swords aU broad and thin, of exceeding good
temper, and universaUy so made to sUce, that as I
neyer saw none so good, so I think it hard to devise
them better. (z)" The Claymore, or Big Sword of
Scotland, is considered to be more properly represented
by the specimen on Plate VIII., than by the basket-
hilt and shorter blades generally known by that name.
Several of the above are in Warwick Castle.
Since the above was written, a paper has appeared
in the Cornhill Magazine, ~No. 68, p. 193 (August,
1865), the writer of which shows that Andrea Ferrara
was an ItaUan, on the authority of a passage which
occurs at fol. 62 of Gfiovan Mattheo Cicogha's Trattato
(*) Travels im, Spam, Lett. xvii.
(2) " The expedicion into Scotlande of the Most Worthily Fortu
nate Prince Edward, Duke of Somerset, &c, set out by way of Diarie
by W. Patten, London." (Reprinted in Fragments of Scottish
History, 1798.)

No. 8.

Claymores. (Warwick Castle.)

ANDREA FERRARA. 181
Militare (4to, Venice, 1583), where the author (in
treating of the most renowned sword-makers of Italy
in the sixteenth century) says : "In Ciudal di Bellun
sono gU ingegnosi Maestro GJiouan Donato et Maestro
Andrea de i Ferari, ambidue frateUi, i quai stanno alle
fusine di Messer Giouan Battista detto il Barcelone."
That is to say, " In the town of Belluno are the in
genious Masters Giovan Donato and Andrea of the
Feraris, both brothers, of the foundry of Master
Griovan Battista, caUed ' The Barcelonian.' "
The result at which the writer of the article in
question arrives is, that Andrea Ferrara was born
about the year 1555; that he was of a family of
armourers which had existed in Italy at least two
generations before that" time ; and of whom the first,
like Giovanni de Bologna, Leonardo da Vinci, Paolo
Veronese, and a crowd of mediasval artists, derived his
nomination from the place of his nativity, the ducal
city of Ferrara.
The custom of inscriptions on sword-blades is
ancient. Nearly aU those known by the name of
" Toledanos " bear the weU-known sentiment, "No me
sacas sin razon, no me invainas sin onor." The proud
inscription on the sword of Boger Guiscard, of Sicily,
who conquered Malta and TripoU, is highly significant
of the exploits and the power of the Northmen in the
Mediterranean : —
" Appulus et Calaber, Siculus mini servit et Afer." (*)
The making the sword speak in the first person ap
proximates to conferring on it a sort of personal exist-
(') See Raumer's Hohenstamfen, b. i., s. 473.

182 THE BRITISH ARMY.
ence. The same effect is produced by the motto on
the sword of Fernan Gonzalez and Garei Perez de
Vargas, stiU preserved at SeviUe, which begins, " De
Fernan Gonzalez fue, de quien recibi el valor" &c.
Many other examples of inscribed swords might be
cited. Some good specimens are to be seen in the
Tower Armoury; several German blades in the Good
rich Court Armoury, represented in Skelton's Illus
trations ; the sword of Francois I. at Paris, on
which is written, " Fecit potentiam in brachio suo ;"
and the precious relic of Bayard, of which Sir John
Boileau is the possessor, engraved with devices and
mottoes. A curiously inscribed sword of the four
teenth century was found in 1826 in the bed of the
river Witham, about seven' miles below Lincoln.
The characters, and the ornaments on the blade,,
are of yeUow metal, supposed to be gold, inlaid and
hammered into the steel. The interpretation of the
inscription must be left to the ingenious in Middle-
Aged enigmas. Commencing from the hUt, the letters
appear to run thus: — the m, the g following it, and
the a are inverted. + ndxoxghmdnghdxorai +. The
entire length of this remarkable weapon is 3 feet 2
inches, the length of the blade is 2 feet 8 inches ; the
blade is of more than ordinary width, the broadest
part measuring nearly 2-J inches. Q) '
Plate IX. — Sword worn by Musqueteers. Temp:-
Charles I. ; early part of his reign. Dutch musquets
and swords were largely imported into England. In
0 See Mr. Albert Way's remarks in the Arehceol. Journal, xiv. 97.
—Also Gent. Mag., vol. xcvi., part ii., p. 300.

No. 9

Sword worn by Musqueteers. Temp. Charles I., in the farly part of his reign.
(In the possession of Mr. R. T. Pritchett, F.S.A.)

The Carriage, or Frog, for a Rapier. Temp. Elizabeth. This most valuable
relic is in the collection of the Hon. Robert Curzon, at Parham, Sussex.

SWORDS DISCONTINUED IN BRITISH INFANTRY. 183
the Ordnance papers accounts are constantly occurring
for cleaning Dutch swords and Dutch musquets.
This is a good specimen of the class. In the
possession of Mr. Eobert Taylor Pritchett, F.S.A.
In the seventeenth century, Leigeber, of Nurem
berg, seems to have been noted for his speciality in
sword-handles. a.d. 1618. Thomas Murraye obtained letters
patent,' for twenty-one years, for " A newe invention
for the sole making of sword-blades, faulchions,
skeynes, and rapier blades, rendering to His Matie vht
rent yearUe." Authority was given to the patentee
and his agents, with a constable, to enter and search
places when they had cause to suspect that the
invention was counterfeited. (Abridgments of Specifi
cations relating to Fire-Arms, &c.)
Grose states that swords (continued to be worn by
the infantry of aU other armies) were discontinued in
the British service by the battalion companies in 1745,
and by the grenadiers in about 1762. (Mil. Ant.,
ii 93.) Plate X. — The carriage or frog for a rapier, temp.
EUzabeth. A valuable relic preserved at Parham,
Sussex, in the coUection of the Hon. Bobert Curzon.
The groundwork is yeUow satin, ornamented with
needlework of great beauty. This form of sword-
belt is constantly seen in portraits at the end of the
sixteenth or beginning of the seventeenth century.
This specimen, if not unique, is the finest known.
A Dagger, under the name of coustille (cultellus) or The Dagger.
misericorde, has been the constant companion of the

184 THE BRITISH ARMY.
sword — at least from the middle of the fourteenth
century ; as Hudibras has it —
" This sword, a dagger had, his page,
That was but little for his age." — Pt. i., o. i.
On knightly monuments it is found worn on the
opposite side to the sword :- —
"  by his side a sword and a bokeler,
And on that other side a gaie daggere,
Harneised wel, and sharpe as point of spere."
An early mention of the dagger occurs in a statute
of WiUiam I. of Scotland (1165-1214): "Habeat
equum, habergeon, capitium e ferro, et cultellum
qui dicitur dagger" (cap. 23). A curious mention of
daggers worn in pouches across the stomach occurs in
the chronicle of William Thorn, as early as the year
1248 : "Ex transverso ventris sub umbUico habentes
culteUos, quos daggerios vulgariter vocant, in powchiis
desuper impositis."^)
This weapon is called misericorde in a charter of
PhUip Augustus in 1194. "Quicunque culteUum
cum cuspide, vel curiam spatulam, vel misericordiam,
vel cujusmodi arma multritoria," (2) also in the statute
of Winchester (1285). The designation of misericorde
was bestowed, according to Fauchet, the French anti
quary, either from its being used to put persons out
of their misery who were irrecoverably wounded, or
from the sight of it causing the fallen to cry out for
quarter or mercy. (Orig. Mil. Franc., 1. ii.)
(') Minsheu derives the word from the Hebrew dakar, to pierce or
stab. (3) i.e., " Short sword, or misericorde, or any other murderous
weapons."

No. 11.

Daggers of the Fourteenth and Sixteenth Centuries. (From the Tower.)

THE DAGGER THAT SLEW WAT TYLER. 185
Plate XI. — A coUection of daggers from the
Tower. " Dagger with its mounts of iron and part
of the wooden grip. Probably of the fourteenth
century. Found in Bow Marsh, eight feet below the
surface. ^ Dagger with iron cross-piece and pommel.
Sixteenth century. % Dagger with side ring, chased
and damaskined, and inscribed with the letters B.E.,
and date 1608. §¦ Dagger with bowed cross-piece,
and side-ring, and perforated blade. Of the first half
of the seventeenth century. Said to have been found
in the Thames. The remaining dagger is of early
sixteenth period.
The dagger with which Sir WilUam Walworth,
Lord Mayor of London, slew Wat Tyler, is preserved
at Fishmongers' HaU.
The Mace was carried at the right side of the The Mace.
saddle-bow of the knight, to be used when the lance
had been broken, or the fighting was at close quarters.
It has already been mentioned as the usual arm of
Churchmen when they went to battle. Matthew
Paris records that "many knights and men-at-arms
were wounded and seriously injured with maces
(clavibus) at a tournament held near Hertford in 1241 ;
and subsequently, in 1290, a statute prohibited the
use of dangerous weapons at tournaments ; " Qe nul
Chivaler ne Esquier qe sort al Turney, porte espee a
point, ne cotel a point, ne bastoun, ne mace, fors
espee large pur turneer."
In an ordinance for conducting the jousts or tourna
ments (temp. Eichard IL), Harl. MS. 69, quoted by
Meyrick (Critical Inquiry, ii. 61), it is decreed that

186 THE BRITISH ARMY.
" the combatants shaU each of them be armed with a
pointless sword, having the edges rebolted (bent or
turned on one side), and with a baston hanging from
their saddles, and they may use either the one or the
other," each being comparatively rendered harmless.
Chaucer arms each of his knights in the tour
nament with a mace of steel : —
" Sorn wol been armed on here legges weel,
And have an ax and ech a mace of steel"
In the romance of Bichard Cceur de Lion they are
described of brass : —
" Hastely, without words mo,
Hys mase he toke in hys hande tho,
That was made of joten bras."
The mace is a weapon of remote antiquity, dis
coverable among the monuments of the ancient
Assyrians and Egyptians, and being a formidable arm
in the hands of a powerful man, continued in favour
for a protracted period. It is seen in the Bayeux
tapestry wielded both by Anglo-Saxons and Normans;*
and a mUitary writer of the sixteenth century says-j
" It was not out of use long after the invention of
hand-guns, for we read of it used by most nations
an hundred years ago, and certainly in a medley they
may be more serviceable than swords, for when they
are .guided by a strong arm, we find the party struck
with them was either feUed from his horse, or having
his head-piece beat close to his head, was made reel
in his saddle, with blood running plentifully out of
his nose/'O (') Pallas Armaia, p. 171.

THE MACE AND THE AXE. 187
The mace, five hundred years ago, was — like its
modern miniature, the mis-caUed life-preserver — the
terror of the good people of London; so that pro
clamations were issued to endeavour to put down
the evU. A curious instance of this occurs in an
instrument (printed by Bymer), of the first year of
Edward III., 1327, against the assembling of persons
with swords, maces, and other arms (cum gladiis,
masuellis, et aliis armis). The mace was also the
characteristic emblem of office of serjeants-at-arms.
LUustrations of the mace wUl be found in Boy.
MSS. 20., D. i., ff. 12 and 69. Daniel (Mil. Fran.)
gives representations of two maces of Boland and
OUvert1) which were preserved in the Abbey of
Eoncevaux. These weapons consisted of a stout
staff 2^ feet long, with a heavy baU of iron attached
to it by a chain. They were reported to have been
wielded at that great fight —
" When Roland brave and Olivier,
And every paladin and peer,
At Roncesvalles died ! "(3) — Marmion.
The Axe does not appear as a knightly weapon The Axe.
until the twelfth century. The double-axe was also
in vogue in this century. The Anglo-Saxons, as we
0) Charles I. (a.d. 800), Emperor of the West, " had in his time a
mighty falawchip (company), of which Rowland and Oliver were
captaynes." (Capgrave, Chron. of England, p. 105. New edit.)
(2) " Taillefer ki mult bien cantoit
Sur un ceval ki tost aloit
Devant eus s'en aloit cantant
De Karlemaine et de Rollant
Et d' Oliver et des vassals
Ki moururent en Renchevals." Roman de Rou, 1. 13,150.

188 THE BRITISH ARMY.
have already seen, made vigorous use of this at the
battle of Hastings, but in the Bayeux tapestry they
are not seen in the hands of the Normans. The axe
appears to have been the pecuUar weapon of the
Northern nations. "A Danish axe" occurs in the
ancient baUad of King Arthur and the King of Corn
wall (1. 169, p. 68, Bishop Percy's Folio Manuscript).
In Wace we find : —
"Hache noresche out mult bele" (v. 13,391) ;
and Ordericus VitaUs speaks of " Norica securis"
(lib. xiii.). A good representation of the bipennis,
or double-axe, wiU be found in the Harl. MSS,,
No. 603..
The shield. The knight, carried a shield on his arm when*i
prepared for attack, but on a march, unless borne by
his esquire (scutifer), it was usually slung round his
neck by a strap caUed by the Italians guiggia, and by
the French guiche or guige. Thus the Roman de
Garis .- — " Escu ot d'or, a un lioncel bis,
Parmi la guige a son col le pendi."
(His shield has on a field of gold a brown lioncel, '
By the guige he suspended it from his neck.)
The shields of the French knights of the eleventh
century are minutely described by the Princess Anna
Comnena: "For defence they bear an impenetrable
shield, not of a round, but of an oblong shape, broad
at the upper part, and terminating in a point. The
surface is not flat, but convex, so as to embrace the
person of the wearer ; and the exterior face is of metal,
so highly polished by frequent rubbing, with an

SHIELDS AND THEIR VARIETIES. 189
umbo of shining brass in the middle, as to dazzle the
eyes of aU beholders." 0 The Normans introduced
the kite-shaped shield into this country; they are
clearly depicted in the Bayeux tapestry. The great
seal of King Stephen has the umbo or boss in the
centre. About the middle of the twelfth century a
modification appears in the form of the shield — the
top becomes straight instead of bowed. The shield
of Eichard I. is a specimen of the triangular form.
Armorial bearings on the faces of shields were
generaUy adopted about the fourteenth century.
Figures of some sort, as distinctive badges, had been
painted on shields at an earUer period, but these were
of a fanciful and promiscuous character. The shield
of Eichard I. had three Uons emblazoned upon it.
GuiUaume le Breton, writing of the Cceur de Lion,
says — " Ecce comes pictavus agro nos provocat, ecce
Nos ad bella vocat rictus agnosco leonum
In clypeo."
The lions have retained their place on the royal
escutcheon to the present day. The material of
which shields were made was wood covered over with
leather. Of such is the shield of the Black Prince,
which hangs over his monument at Canterbury, with
fleurs-de-Us and Uons displayed upon it. The straps,
or holders, through which the hand and arm passed
through, were termed enarmes. Instances of guiges
and enarmes are plainly seen in the Roman du Roy
Meliadus, a valuable iUuminated MS. of the four-
(l) Alexiad, lib. xiii., p. 314.

190 THE BRITISH ARMY.
teenth century (Add. MS. 12,228, fol. 186). The
shield of Henry V., suspended in Westminster Abbey,
is remarkable from the position of the enarmes, which,
instead of being placed one above the other, are in
the same horizontal Une. A smaUer shield succeeded
the triangular, and a heart-shaped one was much in
vogue in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, as
may be seen in the MS. just cited, at folio 260 and
elsewhere. On board ship, the knights' shields were utilised
by being arranged along the sides of the vessel so as
to form a kind of bulwark," examples of which may be
seen in the Bayeux tapestry; also in the magnificently
illuminated Froissart of Philip de Comines. (Harl.
MS. 4,379-80).
The loss of the shield was considered a degra*
dation. At the close of the fourteenth century, a
knight in this position could not sit, at table with
other knights until he had by some honourable
exploit or feat of arms obUterated that disgrace; if
he should venture to place himself among them
before this was achieved, it was the duty of the
herald to tear his mantle; at least so Du Cange gives
an instance of what happened to a foreign knight
in the year 1395. 0
When knights feU in action, the long shields were
made use of to convey their bodies from the field ; and
if the shields were as long as that of Geoffrey Plan-
(l) "Heraldam vocant, lacerasse mantile, objicientem indignum
fore, quod aliquis interesset mensae Regise, carens insignis armorum."
(Du Cange, v. Arma amittere.)

SHIELDS CONTINUED. 191
tagenet (Henry II. 's father), which extended from his
shoulder to his ankle, they would have been admirably
adapted for the purpose^1) The Black Prince ordered
that the body of Eobert de Duras, nephew of the
Cardinal de Perigord, who fell at Poitiers, should
be borne away on a shield ; (a) or sometimes shorter
shields were placed together. Thus the gaUant Chan-
dos was laid on targe and pavass(s), and carried
gently away for interment.
(') lfc>w in the Museum of Le Mans. Originally' it ornamented
the tomb of Geoffrey, in the Cathedral of Le Mans.
(2) Froissart, i. 348.
(s) " Couche sur targe et sur pavais.'' (Lbid., i. 602, anno 1370.)

CHAPTEE VII.
BODY ARMOUR — HELMETS — HAUBERKS — GAMBESONS — SURCOATS — SPUES —
PLATE-ARMOUR — KNIGHTLY TOILETTE — WEIGHT OP ARMOUR — COM
PARISON OP ANCIENT AND MODERN CAVALRY — DURATION OP LIPE IN
THE .MIDDLE AGES.
Body-armour. The chief items, of knightly body-armour consisted
of (in the chain-armour period) a helmet or heaume,
hauberk, gambeson, and plastron. The head-pieces
worn at the time of the Conquest were generaUy of
the simplest form: a conical iron cap, with a nasal
or face-guard, which was a narrow peak, descending
from the forehead along the nose, to protect the upper
part of the face from a transverse cut or blow. This
form is universal in the Bayeux tapestry. A remark
ably graceful form of a nasal helmet is copied on
Plate XII., from the original in the Parham Col
lection. The date assigned to it is about a.d. 1000.
As an additional protection, knights subsequently
wore under the helm a closely-fitting cap of steel
rings. This hood of mail (capelline de maille, or cor
ruptly, camail) feU over the ears, and descended to
the shoulders. An ivory carving, engraved in Archaeo
logia, xvi. 346, exhibits the knight in the act of
raising his helm from his head, covered with the
camaU. This was afterwards superseded by the

No. 12.

Nasal Helmet. Date circa A. D. iioo. (Parham Collect.

No. 13.

Early English Helmet, with Nasal. Date cir. a.d. 1000. (Parham Collect.)

No. 14.

Cylindrical Flat-topped Helmet, with Nasal. Probably Thirteenth Century.
Dug up at Montgomery Castle, 1841.

No. 15.

Helmet (from Castle Pomeroy), identical with the one represented in the effigy
of Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville in the Temple Church. Date 1100.
(Parham Collection.)

VARIOUS HELMETS. 193
gorget, or hausse-col of steel, when plate-armour came
in vogue in the fourteenth century.
A specimen of another helmet in the same collec
tion is given in Plate XIII., showing an improvement
on the plain cone. The holes round the edge were
used to. affix the lining. There is a socket at the
back ; unless it was for a chain to attach it to the
body-armour, it is difficult to surmise its use, feathers
not being worn at that period. The Uttle crook dis
cernible on the point of the nasal, was to fasten the
throat part of the chain hood, so as to bring it up as a
protection for the lower part of the face. Date about
a.d. 1100.
In this century a movement took place in the
shape of head-pieces, and the cumbrous cylindrical
flat-topped helmet appears. The specimen represented
on Plate XIV. is, however, of later date, probably the
thirteenth century. It was dug up at Montgomery
Castle, and is in the Tower coUection, |-. Next to this
in point of date, is the helm with a grating or ventail
opening on a hinge, by which a better supply of air
was admitted. There is a good specimen of one of
these in the Tower collection, of the, early part of the
thirteenth century, the visor moving upon hinges at
the side. It is engraved in the Archaeol. Journ., viii.
420. On Plate XV. is figured one of these flat-topped
helms ; it is identical with the one represented on the
effigy of Sir Geoffrey de MandeviUe, Constable of the
Tower in 1150, in the Temple Church. The chin-
piece is very remarkable, and was used with padding
inside, as shown on the monument ; the hinge for the
vol. i. N

194 THE BRITISH ARMY.
visor is worth noting. This helmet was dug up in the
castle of Pomeroy, Devon. (Parham Coll.) The word
helm, among the Northern nations, meant a covering
of any kind: the war-helm of the Anglo-Saxons was
the little cap worn by the soldiers ; but from the end
of the twelfth century, the " helm" or " heaume " was
restricted to denote the great close casque of the knight,
and "helmet" was accepted as its diminutive.^)
At the end of the thirteenth century, round tops
superseded the flat, not however to their exclusion;
the chapelle defer (capelet ferri), with its round crown
and flat rim, was ' worn ; but the bassinet (perhaps
from its resemblance to a basin) was the war head
piece of the period, worn with or without a visor ; and
attached to it, or worn underneath, was the curtain of
chain to protect the neck. (See the visored bassinet
from Warwick Castle, on Plate XVI. It is almost
globose, with camaille attached. The ring of the
chain-maU is drawn the full size. Date circa 1360.)
Heads of animals, horns, and other objects, giving
a grotesque appearance, surmounted the helms in the
fourteenth century, or at the close of the thirteenth.
Examples of these are, however, rare, on account of
the perishable nature of the materials of which they
were composed, generally wood and leather. They
were subsequently superseded by plumes of feathers.
These latter, however, were not common before the
fifteenth century.
Plate XVII. — The helmet is from Cobham
Church, Kent. The shield and sword are those of
0) Ancient Armour, i. 279.

No. 16.

Visored Bassinet, almost globose, with Camaille attached ; the Ring is drawn
the full size. Date cir. 1360. (Warwick Castle. )

No. 17.

I. Shield and Sword of Edward III. (Westminster Abbey.)
2. Saddle, Helmet, and Shield of Henry V. (Westminster Abbey )

No. 1 8.

i. Helmet found at Lochmaben Castle.
2 War Helm. A.D. 1 150
3. War Helm of the Thirteenth Century.
4. War Helm of Sir William de Staunton.
5. Bassinet of Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke.
6. Plain Bassinet. A.D. 1330.
7. Visored Bassinet, with Camaille attached. 1370.

1310.

VARIOUS HELMETS. 195
Edward III. The sword is seven feet long, and
weighs eighteen pounds. The other group is the
saddle, helmet, and shield of Henry V., both in
Westminster Abbey.
Plate XVIII. — A collection of remarkable helms.
If not of English make, aU worn and still preserved
here. No. 1 was disinterred at Lochmaben Castle, in
Dumfriesshire, The form is most peculiar. The
ocularium is a remarkable feature.
No. 2. A war-helm, date a.d. 1150.
No. 3. A war-helm of the thirteenth century.
No. 4. The war-helm of Sir WiUiam de Staun
ton; height, eighteen inches. See his tomb in
Staunton Church, Notts.
No. 5. The bassinet of Aymer de Valence, Earl
of Pembroke, 1310.
No. 6. A plain bassinet. Date 1330.
No. 7. A good and rare specimen of the visored
bassinet, with camaille attached. Date 1370.
The seven illustrations on this plate are copied
from originals in the Parham collection.
Helmets with beavers and visors (from the Italian,
bevere and vedere) do not appear untU about the
plate-armour period — the middle of the fourteenth
century. Movable ventails, or which were adapted
to the bassinets, were of much earUer date. At the
siege of Carlaverock, in 1300, we read of knights
" prestes a lascier les ventaiUes," Q) which means
that they were ready to let down or lower their ven-
(*) Nicolas' edit!, p. 20.
N 2

196 THE BRITISH ARMY.
tailles, which, to admit a greater freedom of breathing,
had been pushed up. So, Sir Walter Scott, in Mel
rose Abbey, " And lifted his barred aventayle."
Plate XIX. — Bassinet, with screw fastening for
the ventail, shown at Warwick Castle, as the head
piece of G-uy, Earl of Warwick, and is identical with
the one on his tomb. Date circa 1460.
At the end of the reign of Edward I., the helmet
was seldom used except; in tournaments, when it was
put over the bassinet,, and reached •almost to the
shoulders. For war, as being lighter, the ventaiUe,
which covered the face, was fitted to the bassinet, and
made to move on a pivot at each side.
Plate XX.— A helmet simUar to that of the
Black Prince at Canterbury Cathedral, but differing
as having the' "piece de renfort" on the left side. The
fieur-de-Us and the studs give, great character to the
whole work. Date 1350. (Parham Coll.)
The war-helms of our early kings were en
circled with a coronet, as may be seen on their
seals. Henry V. had a portion of his struck off
by the Duke of Alencon, by a stroke of his sword,
at Agincourt. " An idea may be formed," says Sir
Harris Nicolas (note, p. 113), "of the crown worn
by Henry at Agincourt, the peculiar magnificence
of which is noticed by almost every writer of
the time, from the following description and valua
tion of one which belonged to him in the list of his
effects on the Rolls of Parliament, vol. iv., p. 215,
and it is probable that it was the identical diadem in
question v—" La Corone d'or pur le Basinet, garniz de

No. 19.

JSP*

Helmet, said to be of Guy, Earl of Warwick. Date circa A.D. 1460.

No. 20.

Helmet similar to that of the Black Prince in Canterbury Cathedral ; but
differing, as having the Piece de Renfort on the left side. Date A.D. 1350.
(Parham Collection. )

iNO. 21.

I. Helmet of Robert Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick.
2. Helmet dug up in Eynsford Castle, Kent, temp. Richard I.
3. Cylindrical Helmet, with the Fleur-de-Lis of the Thirteenth Century.

NO. 22.

r. Helmet of Sir Thomas de Braunstone, of Wisbeach, Cambridgeshire.
A.D. 1401. (Parham Collection.)
2. Helmet, from over Little John's Tomb, in Church of Hathersage. (Parham
Collection. )

CROWNED BASSINET OP HENRY V. 197
iiij Baleis, pris cxxxiij li vj s viij d — iiij Saph', pris le
Saph' x li, xl li — iiijxx gros Perles, pris le pee' lx s,
ccxl li — cxxviij Perles, pris le pec' x s, lxiiij li — iiij
' Baleis, pris le pec' xiuj li vj s viij d, lxiij li vj s viij d —
xvj Saph', pris le pec' iiij li, lxiiij li — et l'or pois' vj lb
di une', pris le lb' xiiij li, iiij** iiij li xj s viij d — en tout
vj clxxix li. v s."
It appears, however, very improbable that the
king would have put in jeopardy a crown of such
immense value in the battle-field, especiaUy as his
necessities had compelled him to pledge his jewels.
The Duke of Kent held one of the crowns in
pawn, and his brother, the Earl of Cambridge, held
another.
Plate XXI. — No. 1. Helmet of Bobert Beau
champ, Earl of Warwick. Warwick Castle.
No. 2. Helmet of the time of Bichard I. Dug up
in Eynsford Castle, Kent.
No. 3. Cylindrical Helmet, with the fleur-de-lis of
the thirteenth century, formerly preserved in the
Church of Chalgrave, Bedfordshire. Both at Parham.
Plate XXII. — Helmet of Sir Thomas de Braun
stone, of Wisbeach, Cambridgeshire, a.d. 1401.
Height, 19 in. ; weight, 12 lb. 12 oz.
Helmet from over Little John's tomb ; temp.
King John. It was suspended untU 1784 in the
parish church of Hathersage, near Derby, together
with his yew bow, 6 ft. 7 in. long. Bobin Hood died
in 1247. Both of these are now in the Parham
Collection. Towards the close of the fourteenth century, a new

198 THE BRITISH ARMY.
kind of head-defence appears, the Salade. Chaucer
mentions it: —
" Ne horse, ne male, trusse, ne baggage,
Salade, ne spere, gard-brace, ne page." — Dreme, 1. 1,555.
It was usually worn with a chin-piece (mentonniere),
as described in the old interlude Thersytes (circa
1550) :— "I wolde nave a sallet towear on my head,
Which under my chin, with a thong red,
Buckled shall be."
There were several varieties of the Salade or
Sallet. It was a light helm, offering more protection
than the bassinet, and capable of considerable orna
mentation. The simplest form was little more than a
skull-cap, with an extension. over the neck. This. was
the common head-piece of archers, billmen, and others.
On Plate XXIII. is represented a Salade of great
beauty. It is ornamented with copper gilt mounting
over crimson velvet. Date 1450. (Parham CoUection.)
The Hauberk. The Hauberk was the principal body defence. It
was a close-fitting garment of chain-mail, covering
the body, arms and thighs, and often the head in one
piece, and reached to the knees, with openings or slits
sometimes in front, sometimes at the side. Many
illustrations of it will be found in the Bayeux tapestry.
The continuous coif, or hood, often occurs there.
Alexander I., King of Scotland a.d. 1107-24, is re
presented on his seal on horseback with a continuous
coif, apparently of chain-maU, worn over a tunic or
gambeson, seen at the wrist and elbows, also on the
great seals of Stephen and Henry II. of England. In

No. 23.

Salade. Date A.D. 1450. (Parham Collection.

No. 24.

Chain-mail Hood, the Rings full size. Date circa A.D. 1120. (Parham
Collection. )

THE HAUBERK. 199
a Harl. MS., No. 2,895, fol. 82, there is a figure of a
warrior, represented, according to mediaeval custom, in
contemporary costume, but who is no less a person
than Goliath of Gath, appareUed in a hooded hauberk,
with sleeves down to the elbow, over a green tunic.
The legs are tinted blue, and appear to be unprotected,
except for the green boots, which reach half-way up
to the knee. He wears an iron helmet with a nasal,
to which the hood is fastened, as described before in
Plate XIII. The large-bowed, kite-shaped shield is
red, and is hung from the neck by a chain.
The mail hood was sometimes worn separately. A
specimen of one of great rarity is preserved in the
Parham CoUection. It retains the original leather
lining. Date cir. 1120. (See Plate XXIV.) The
drawing gives the actual size of the rings.
In a MS. Life of Christ, prefixed to a Latin and
Franco-Norman version of the Psalms in the Cotton.
Lib., Nero, c. iv., fol. 13, date about the first quarter
of the twelfth century, a soldier (Murder of the Inno
cents) is represented, habited in a hauberk with lateral
openings at the skirt. A remarkable feature in this
drawing is the manner in which the sword is worn.
It appears on the right side, underneath the hauberk,
which partially conceals it, the mouth of the scabbard
being drawn through a sUt on the hip. (l)
Meyrick states that " there does not appear any
thing Uke a sword-belt during the time of the first
Williams, and if such were used, itis entirely concealed
by the hauberk." (i' 22), This statement, however,
(') Meyrick, i. 22.— Hewitt, i. 130.

200 THE BRITISH ARMY.
is inaccurate. Amongst other instances, sword-belts
are clearly discernible in the Bayeux tapestry. See
also Cott., Calig., a. 7, fol. 3. — Planche, p. 42, temp.
Bufus. — Strutt's Horda, v. i., pi. 26. — Hefner, pi. 33,
pt. 1 (eleventh century). — Ibid., pi. 65.
The difference between the hauberk and haber
geon is not strictly defined; possibly the distinction
referred only to size. Wace describes Duke WilUam
preparing for the battle of Hastings : —
" Sun boen haubert fist demander ; "
whilst his brother Odo, the bishop : —
" Un haubergeon aveit vestu
De sor une chemise blanche ;
Le fut li cors, juste la manche.'' Roman de Rou, v. 13,254.
In an inventory of articles delivered out of the
Tower, dated 33 Henry VI. (1454), are enumerated
" habergeons of Meleyn," probably Milanese. (Archaeol.,
xvi. 125.)
To the hauberks were added, in the twelfth cen
tury, chausses (pantaloons) of the same material. To
these, protections of plate were subsequently super
added. Poleyns for the elbows, and genouiUers for
the knees, appear during the latter half of the
thirteenth century.
The' Under the hauberk was worn a loose quilted frock,
Gambeson . ±
caUed a gambeson, or vambaison, from the German
tuammg, venter. (Adelung, v. Gambeso.) It was made of
leather or cloth, or of some other tough material, and
stuffed with any sort of soft substance, as wool, or
tow, or cotton. Something padded was requisite to

THE GAMBESON AND AKETON. 201
be worn underneath, to make the mail bearable, and
to deaden the effect of blows, which, though they
might not divide the mail, might, without the inter
position of the gambeson, severely bruise the body.
As an additional precaution, they wore over the
breast, under or between the hauberk and gambeson,
a breastplate of wrought-iron or steel, caUed a plas
tron. (x) We may gather that the gambeson was worn
alone sometimes, or as an outer garment, and de
corated, as appears from a passage in the poem of the
siege of Carlaverock : —
" Meinte heaume et meint chapeau burni,
Meint riche gamboison guarni
De soie et cadas et eoton
En leur venue veist on." — p. 72.
The aketon appears to have been another name TheAketon.
for the gambeson. (2) Chaucer mentions it in his
rhyme of Sir Thopas : —
" And next his shert an haketon,
And over that an habergeon
For percing of his hert,
And over that a fine hauberk."
Skene gives a description of it, accurate enough,
and curious for the dialect in which it is expressed.
" Acton is ane forme of armour, quhilck coveris ane
man's bodie (except his head) downe to his knee,
maid of Taffitie, Ledder, or Linning claith, stuffed
with caddes, and sticked very thick with thread, or
(') This term is retained in the French army. The white breast-
facings of the Imperial Guard are so called.
(2) "Aketon, Acton, Sagum militare, quod alias Gambezonam
vocabant ; ex Gallico Hoqueton aut Hauqueton ; seu potius ex Cam-
brico-Britannico Actvvm, lorica dupla, duplodes." (Du Cange.)

202 THE BRITISH ARMY.
silke of diverse couUors, and partial gilt, with spranges
or streamers of gold fuilzie, and is . commonlie used in
times of batteU under the habirgeon, to save ane man's
bodie fra the schot of an arrowe, or fra the bruising of
the straik of ane sword." (l)
One of the interesting relics which time has
spared to us of the Black Prince, is his gamboised
jupon, which remains suspended over his tomb in
Canterbury Cathedral. It is of one pile crimson
velvet, with short sleeves, somewhat like the tabard
of a herald, but laced up the back ; the foundation of
it is buckram stuffed with cotton, and quilted in
longitudinal ribs. (a)
The Surcoat. The surcoat became, in the thirteenth century, a
characteristic part of the knightly equipments. The
great seal of John affords the first example of an
EngUsh king wearing one. It was supposed to have
originated with the Crusaders, in order to ward off the
rays of the sun shining on the metal armour ; (3) but
Mr. Hewitt shows from a contemporary historian
that its object was to preserve the armour from the
wet : — " To hold thayre armur clene
A.nd were (i.e., protect) hitte fro the wete."
The Avowyne of King Arthur, stanza 39.
Surcoats were at first worn without sleeves, and
were of one uniform colour. When the fashion of
heraldic bearings was introduced, and arms were
emblazoned on the surcoats, they were useful in dis-
0) De Verborum Expositions. Edinbro., 1641.
(2) See Stothard's Effigies.
(3) Ancient Armour, i. 271.

DEATH OF SIR JOHN CHANDOS. 203
tmguishing persons, for, without the shield and with
visor closed, one knight could not have been known
from another. They varied in form and length at
different periods ; at one time worn loose, at another
laced tight to the figure. When knights contended
more constantly on foot, it was indispensable that the
surcoat should be shortened. The neglect of this
precaution was fatal in the case of Sir John Chandos,
one of the brightest ornaments of that chivalrous circle
which sparkled in the reign of Edward III. He
fought in the foremost Une at Cressy with the Black
Prince, and at Poitiers he never left his side. He
was appointed afterwards Seneschal of Poitou, and
having come up with the Prench, who had been
making inroads upon his government, he and the
other men-at-arms with him, dismounted in order to
attack them. He wore "his coat of armes of white
sarcenet with two pUes gules, one before and another
behind." (x) That morning there had been a Uttle
dew,(2) which made the ground sUppery; the knight's
foot sUpped, and in trying to recover himself, it be
came entangled in the surcoat, during which moment
a Prench esquire thrust at him with his lance, which
struck him below the eye, and penetrated to the
brain and kiUed him; for Chandos wore no visor on
his bassinet. Surcoats of arms became the usual and proper
(') Froissart (Berners), cap. cclxx., p. 403. — Buchon, i. 601. " Un
grand vetement qui lui battoient jusques a terre."
(z) " Or faisoit ce matin un petit reslet (rosee) si etoit la voie
mouillee." (Lbid., i. 601.) — One would have supposed frost more
likely, as it was early on a January morning.

204 THE BRITISH ARMY.
costume in the field of persons entitled to bear coat
armour, and it appears to have been a point of honour
to display them. Henry V. and his knights, when
an attack from the Prench seemed imminent on the
march to Agincourt, constantly wore their "cotes
d'armes" in readiness for action. (x) Duke Anthony
of Brabant, at Agincourt, finding that the engagement
had commenced, would not wait to equip himself, but
seizing a banner which was .attached to a trumpet,
converted it for the occasion into a surcoat of arms.(a)
spurs. Spurs (the name has passed into aU the Boman-
esque languages — in old Prench, esperon ; in Spanish,
espolon, or espueld; and in mediaeval Latin, spourones,)
although they can neither be considered as armour
offensive nor defensive, formed an important item in
the equipment of a knight. They were the insignia
of his dignity at his investiture. By the 8th Henry
V., cap. 3 (a.d. 1420), it is ordered that "none shall
silver no metal but knights' spurs."
The earliest form of the knightly spur was one
which had only a single point or goad, and which was
called the pryck spur. (3) Examples of this may
(-1) Nicolas, Agincourt, p. 98.
(2) Monstrelet, Elmham, and Saint-Remy, quoted by Nicolas, p. 123.
(3) " Pryck signifies a goad or spur, as is elsewhere in Latin called
compunctum.'' (Blount's Anct. Tenures, p. 17.) Hence to prick came
to signify to ride. The Yeomen Prickers, the attendants on the
royal hunt, are yeomen riders. So in Chaucer, Sir Thopas
"  worth upon his steede gray,
*****He prikett through a fair forest
And as he priked north and east,"
And again: " Into his sadel he clomb unoon,
And priked over stile and stoon."

No. 25.

SPURS FROM THE TOWER COLLECTION.
ifg and s69. Norman Pryck Spurs, of the short, straight-armed type.
•jgg. Long-necked Rowel Spurs. Date circa 1460.

spurs. 205
be seen in the Bayeux tapestry ; on the seal of
Bichard, constable of Chester, in the reign of Stephen
(Vetusta Mon., Soc. Ant.) ; and on an effigy in the
Temple Church. This was succeeded by the roueUe
or wheel spur, in the thirteenth century, being
invented, according to Meyrick, in the reign of
Henry III. The necks were often very long, and
there are extant specimens of rowels nearly six inches
in diameter. In the fourteenth century the necks
were short and straight.
Plate XXV. — Spurs from the Tower CoUection.
^ and ^ Norman pryck spurs, of the short, straight-
armed type. ^ Long-necked rowel spurs. Date about
1460. Froissart tells us of knights taking off their spurs,
and having them buried in the ground, rowels
upward, to serve as calthrops, so as to make the
approach to them very unpleasant.^) The same
chronicler relates how that it was shewn to King
Charles VI. of France, a chapel in the Church of
Our Lady in Courtray, in which were suspended five
hundred gilt spurs of knights, trophies of the great
battle that was fought there in 1302. (Tom. ii,
p. 254.) When a knight was degraded, the spurs were Degradation.
struck off from his heels. The earliest account in
our annals of the degradation of a knight is that of
(') " Au pendant de la montagne ou ils etoient, ils firent porter
par leurs varlets la plus grand' partie de leurs eperons et enfouir en
terre, les molettes par dessus, par quoi on ne les put approcher, fors
en peril et a mal aise." (i. 397.)

206 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Sir Andrew Herklay, Earl of Carlisle, in the reign of
Edward II. , who had been convicted of high treason,
and on whom the foUowing sentence was passed:
" Que vous soietz degrade ; que vous perditz noun de
Count, pur vous et pur vous heirs, a touts jours ; que
vous soietz deceynt del espee; que vous esporeuns
d'orrus soient coupez de talouns." Q-) Selden also gives
the judgment pronounced by the Earl of Worcester,
High Constable of England under Edward IV., on
Sir Balph Grey, whose spurs were to be hacked off by
the cook, who was in attendance with a chopper for
the purpose. This additional humiUation seems to
have been enforced because the culprit was a Knight
of the Bath. " Sir Balfe Grey, for thy treason the
king hath ordained that thou shouldest have thy spurs
stricken off by the hard heels, by the hand of the
master-cook." (3)
It was sometimes usual to decorate spurs with
jewels, real or fictitious. These were generaUy used
at tournaments. Spurs of gold are mentioned in
the romance of Richard Cceur de Lion; and spurs
garnished with diamonds are described as belonging
to Henry Prince of Wales in 1615.(3) One of the
most remarkable forms of spurs is the one with very
long spiked rowels, in fashion during the reigns of
Henry V. and VI. The effigy of Sir John de Brewys,
in Wiston Church, Sussex, affords an instance of
this, and the brass of Sir John Cherowin, at Brading,
(') Placit. Hil. Term, 18 Edw. II.— Selden's Titles of Honour, p.
653.— Stow, 418.
(z) Selden, 2nd p., ch. v., p. 789.
(3) See also Du Cange, v. Calcaria aurea.

No. 26.

Various Spurs from the Warwick Collection. Circa a.d. 1600.

TRANSITION PERIOD OF ARMOUR. 207
Isle of Wight, and the figure of Sir Bobert Wingfield,
represented on a painted window in East Herling
Church, Norfolk, circa a.d. 1461 and 1480. These
long-necked spurs were discontinued in the reign of
Henry VII., and the thin-spiked rowel gave place to
a close one like a star. (See on Plate XXVI. various
spurs from the Warwick coUection, circa 1600.)
Bipon, in Yorkshire, appears to have been celebrated
for its manufacture of spurs. (*)
" Why, there's an angel, if my spurs
Be not right Rippon."
Ben Jonson's Staple ofNewes, act i., sc. 2.
" Whip me with wire, headed with rowels of
Sharp Rippon spurs." Davenant's Wits, 1666.
The fourteenth century may be regarded as a Piate Armour.
transition period in point of armour, for plate, which
had been graduaUy creeping in piece by piece, towards
the end of this century became in general use, super
seding the chain-maU. Froissart, who was eminently
the historian of the period, and other contemporary
French writers, always speak of armures defer as the
distinctive term for the body-armour. The word plate
was also used by the French to denote the species of
armour, from its being composed of flat pieces of iron :
" Ces escus a leurs cos, ces hauberts endossez
Bonnes plates d'acier et de glaives assez." (3)
MaU was not altogether discarded ; skirts and gussets
of chain at the arm-pits and hams were often continued
as defences. (;) Fairholt's Hist, of Costume, p. 587.
(2) Chronique en Vers de Birtrand du GuescUn, v. 5,925.

208 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Specimens of plate and chain armour combined are
most rare. Plate XXVII. represents a suit from the
Parham CoUection. The fastening of the plate over
the chain on the legs is curious. Date 1250. A speci
men is also to be seen at Stoke d'Aubernon Church,
shown as the oldest known miUtary brass in England.
The great cost of a suit of plate armour may have
retarded its general introduction, which, coupled with
its superiority as a means of defence, must have added
for a time to the importance of the aristocracy in war.
This was, however, of brief duration, for the excessive
thickness of which it was afterwards constructed)
entailed great disadvantages upon the wearer, and
rendered him a very unwieldy machine in the battle
field. The value of infantry was, in the fourteenth
century, rapidly rising in estimation, and knights, to >
keep pace with the increasing demands of the time,
had more frequently to dismount and serve on foot ;
the heavy armour was then found to be a great im
pediment on the march. An instance is recorded in
the chronicle of Saint-Denis, where a party of EngUsh
knights, from sheer exhaustion, were obUged to throw
away their armour, which they dropped into a river,
in order that it might not be made available for
the enemy. "Les Anglois perdirent moult de leur
gens, et estoient en tel estat qu'U y avoit plus de
trois cens chevaliers a pie qui avoient laissiees leur
armeures, les uns jetees en riviere, les autres les avoient
despeciees, pour ce que U ne les povoient porter, et
ann que les Frangois ne s'en peussent aidier.'^1) In
(>) Ann. 1373, t. vi., ch. xl. (Edit. Paulin, Paris.)

No. 27.

Specimens of Plate and Chain Armour, from Parham. Date A.D. 1250.

Solleret, in Parham Collection. Date, A.D. 1400.

ARMING THE KNIGHT. 209
fording rivers ,and passing over marshy ground armed
cap-a-pie, there were difficulties which any one can
imagine. When fire-arms and artiUery — grand level
lers — became improved, it was found that no weight
of armour that could be worn was proof against the
force of powder ; the importance of knighthood, con
sequently, faded away before the effect of fire-arms
and of the weighty, bombard.
Some remarks on the ancient mode of putting on
armour, communicated to the Society of Antiquaries
by Sir Samuel Meyrick,^) give us, by the aid of an
ancient document, an insight into the curiosities of
the knightly toUette. It appears thereby that the
knight began with his feet, and clothed upwards : he
put on — 1, his sabatynes, or steel clogs ; 2, the greaves,
or shin-pieces ; 3, the cuisses, or thigh-pieces ; 4, the
breech of maU ; 5, the tuUlettes, or overlapping pieces
below the waist; 6, the breastplate, or cuirass; 7, the
vambraces, or covers for the arms; 8, the rere-braces,
or arriere-bras, the covering for the remaining part of
the arm to the shoulder; 9, the gauntlets; 10, then
the dagger was hung; 11, the short sword: 12, the
cloak or coat, which was worn over the armour; 13,
the bassinet ; 14, the long sword ; 15, the pennoncel,
held in the left hand; 16, the shield.
Plate XXVIII. — Solleret, well articulated, and in
good preservation, from Warwick Castle. The spur
was generally screwed on. The extravagant fashion
of the long toes is here weU depicted. Length, 24
inches. Date 1400. (') Archaeologia, vol. xx.
VOL. I. O

210 THE BRITISH ARMY.
In The Romance of Blonde of Oxford, Jean of
Dammartin has his arms put on him by his lady in
a different order : —
" —Ma douce amie" dist Jehans — v. 3,954.
" Mais aidies moi a armer tost," — v. 3,968.
Blonde, qui ne l'ose desdire, — v. 3,976.
Ses armeures li atire.
Primes vest unes espaulieres
De boure de soie mult chieres.
En son chief mist un bacinet
Port et tenant, et bel et net,
Apres a vestu j. hauberc,
II n'ot .j. milieux dusk' a Merc.
Bien le chaint Blonde d'un tissu
Qu'ele meismes ot tissu.
En son chief une galandesche,
Qui estoit de l'uevre galesce,
Li lacha sa trSs douce amie.
Ses beles mains n'espargne mie
A lui servir.

Ne doit estre de cuer faillis
Qui de tel servant est servis.
Seur son haubert vest .j. pourpoint
De mil milleur, ne demanc point.
Par deseure a chainte s'espee,
Qui fu trencans et amour§e.
A tant se fu armes Robins (his attendant)
D'un pourpoint, qui fu. doublentins ;
De fer eut ou cief capelier,
Et a son chaint coutel d'achier." — v. 4,013.
Romance of Blonde of Oxford and Jehan of Dammartin, by Philippe
de Reimes, a Trouvere of the 13th century. Edited from MS. in Imp.
Library, Paris. Camden Society, 1858.
Chaucer, in The Tale of Sir Thopas, gives an
account of the dressing of a military dandy of the
fourteenth century : —
" He dede next his white leere
Of cloth of lake whyt and cleere

No. 29.

l| iH

Suit of Gothic Armour, known as A la Poulaiiic, from Parham. A.D. 1450.

PLATE ARMOUR. 211
A brech and eek a sohert ;
And next his sohert an aketoun,
And over that an haberjoun,
Fer persying of his hert ;
And over that a fyn hauberk,
Was al i- wrought of Jewes werk,
Ful strong it was of plate ;
And over that his cote-armour,
As whyt as is a lily flour,
In which he wold debate.
His scheld was al of gold so red,
And thermne was a bores heed,
A charbocle by his syde."
Plate XXIX. — Suit of Gothic armour, known as
a la Poulaine, from the long soUeret. Date 1450.
This is the beautiful period of armour, before it
became so ponderous and cumbersome, which it did
in a century later.
In a paper on Mediaeval Manners and Customs,
from original documents in the reign of Henry VI.,
annotated on by Mr. Albert Way, he proceeds to say:
" At the period when these instructions were compiled,
in the earUer part of the fifteenth century, armour of
maU had become almost entirely superseded by plate,
a change which had commenced as early as the reign
of Edward III. At that period the legs and arms
were protected by rerebraces and vambraces, cuisses,
and greaves; to which the globular breastplate, or
plastron, was soon added; and this, with the 'rere-doss'
or back-plate, formed the pair of 'plotis large,' as
designated by Chaucer. The pair of plates, by which
the use "of the habergeon was rendered unnecessary, is
mentioned as early as 1330, amongst the armour of
Boger, Earl of March, taken in Newcastle." (Archaeol.
Jour., xv. 229.) o 2

of Armour.

212 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Encumbrance " One may judge," remarks Father Daniel,^)
" how our knights were loaded, when they were
completely armed." In fact, enveloped as they
were with such an amount of .encumbrances, it is
only wonderful that in the midst of summer — in
the heats of Palestine too — amidst the dust and
press of an engagement, they were not frequently
suffocated in their armour, an event which did
sometimes happen ; (3) besides, a man thus ' har
nessed ' (which became the appropriate designation)
could have, one would suppose, but small powers
of action. The exchange from mail to plate must
have proved a relief, and may have been one reason
why knights and others sought some body-defence
less oppressive ; for although plate armour was,
undoubtedly, more ponderous than the hauberk, yet,
in consequence of its not fitting so closely to the
body, it could not have been so sweltering as the
gambeson, and other quilted and stuffed garments
necessarily worn beneath the pliable mail. Indeed, in
a charge of cavalry very little exertion is required on
the part of the rider, the success chiefly depending on
the strength of the horse. All that the ancient
knights had to do, then, was to keep their seats and
direct their lances ; but how they were able to use the
sword, or battle-axe, or mace with any effect, seems
incomprehensible. Plate XXX. represents a curious splinted back
(') Mil. Fran., i., liv. iv.
(!) e.g., " The gallant Duke of York, being a fat man, was thrown
down and smouldered to death," on the field of Agincourt. (Leland's
Itinerary, vol. i., fo. 5.)

No. 30.

Splinted Racks and Breast. Circa A.D. 1570. (From Tower Collection.

HELPLESSNESS OF UNHORSED KNIGHTS. 213
and breast; the object being to obtain flexibility.
Date about 1570. (Tower Collection.)
James I. is said to have observed shrewdly, in Few Killed in
praise of armour, that it not only protected the wearer,
but also prevented him from injuring any other person.
This, in some measure, accounts for the small number
of knights slain in many engagements between cavalry
only, in some of which not one knight was kiUed. (')
Probably, as ransom was the great object in those
days, and a knight alive was of more value than a
dead one, they rather wished to capture than kill their
adversaries, and therefore endeavoured to unhorse
them, as a knight in heavy armour when overthrown
was in great need of help,(3) and might be Ukened
somewhat to a turtle on its back, until he was turned
over and remounted by his fiernds, or seized by his
enemies. (3) The wounds received in action appear to
have been chiefly contusions ; blood was not always
drawn. A man who could best endure the weight of
the armour had greatly the advantage ; thus physical
strength entered more largely into the composition of
a hero then, than in modern times. When once their

(') Hallam's Middle Ages, i., ch. iii., pt. ii., 474. — Sismondi, Hist.
des Rep. Itals., ix., ch. Ixix. (edit. 1440). — Also Guicoiardini' s Hist of
Italy at the Battle of Rapalle (1494), where 100 men were killed, " a
great slaughter in those days.'' It must, however, be taken into
consideration that these were mercenaries, who had no great interest
in killing one another.
(2) Tacitus mentions a similar occurrence : " Oataphracti inhabiles
ad resurgendum humi dilabentes caduntur." (Annates, 17.)
(3) e.g. " Maints chevaliers et maints ecuyers d'un cfrte et
d'autre abattus, et puis par force releves et rescous." (Froissart.)
And again, " Sachez que qui dtoit chu a terre, c'etoit fort du relever,
s'il n'etoit trop bien secouru." (i. 494.)

214 THE BRITISH ARMY.
long lances were fixed in the rest, the warriors spurred
furiously against the foe, and the light cavalry of the
Turks and Arabs could seldom stand against the direct
and impetuous weight of their charge. Philippe de
Comines relates that at the battle of Fornuova, fought
under Charles VIII. in 1495, where a great number
of Italian men-at-arms were overthrown, these could
not be dispatched until they were regularly broken up
(like huge lobsters) by the valets and servants of the
army, who were provided with hatchets for cutting
wood, each unfortunate man-at-arms having three or
four men employed in his destruction.
Plate XXXI. — Back and breastplate, opening in
front, generally known as the waistcoat breastplate.
This is a fine specimen, and the engraving on it is
good. About the close of the sixteenth century.
(Tower CoUection.)
The artists of Milan were famous in the Middle
Ages for their skill in armoury. Froissart gives an
account of the preparation made by Henry, Duke of
Hereford, afterwards Henry IV., and Thomas, Duke
of Norfolk, Earl Marischal, for their proposed combat
in the Usts at Coventry, by order of Pochard II., in
September, 1398. These two lords made ample pro
vision for aU things necessary for the encounter, and
the Earl of Derby (on the part of Hereford) sent
messengers to buy armour from the Duke of Milan,
who directly acquiesced in the request, and gave the
knight who had brought the. message the choice of
aU his armour, plated and mailed, which, when he had
selected, the Duke of Milan, out of his regard for the

No. 31.

Back and Breastplate, opening in front ; generally known as the Waistcoat
Breastplate. Date circa 1580. (From the Tower.)

No. 32.

\%. Globose Breastplate, with back-piece and demi-brassards, and chain.
First half of Sixteenth Century. (From the Tower.)

WEIGHTS OF ANCIENT AND MODERN CAVALRY. 215
Earl of Derby, ordered four of his best armourers in
Milan to accompany the knight to England, in order
that the Earl of Derby might be armed as completely
as possible. The Duke of Norfolk, on the other hand,
sent to Germany to procure his armour, (iii. 317.)
Plate XXXII. — Giobose breastplate worn over
chain. First half of sixteenth century. (Tower Coll. ^.)
The pieces do not, however, appear to belong to one
another. As the weights borne by cavalry horses of the weights of
present time is a subject of constant inquiry and
complaint, it wiU be a curious and interesting, and
not uninstructive, investigation to approximate the
weights carried by ancient and modern chargers. A
request made to the Deputy Adjutant-Oeneral, Colonel
Sir Thomas Troubridge, Bart., C.B., to obtain through
the medium of the mUitary attaches the weights of
the cavalry in the several principal European countries,
met with great kindness and courtesy, and was imme
diately complied with, and the annexed tabular state
ment was shortly afterwards furnished.
It must be stated, in explanation, that the weights
are in aU cases exclusive of Body Guards, Household
Troops, and Imperial Guards and Cuirassiers. These
average 1^ stone more. In the British cavalry there
is Uttle or no difference between heavy and Ught as
regards weight, none as regards equipment. The
cavalry of the Line is classed as heavy, medium, and
light. On enlistment in the British army there is a
difference in the height of the recruits^ which slightly
affects the weight, but in foreign armies the returns

216

THE BRITISH ARMY.

show but little difference, except in Austria, where
the Hussars and Lancers are about one stone lighter
than the Dragoons.
It is remarkable that during the late war between
Austria and Prussia, the Austrian cavalry has always
been ridden down by the Prussian, although the
average of weight is the same, except in the Austrian
Hussars, who have a very light equipment, lighter
than any other cavalry. From this an inference might
be drawn that in the shock of the charge the weight
of the man as well as that of the horse teUs, although
for outpost duty the equipment must be in favour of
the horse.

WEIGHT OF THE CAVALRY IN THE SEVERAL PRIN
CIPAL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES.
Hoese Guards, 26th July, 1866.

NATION.

AVERAGE

WEIGHT.

TOTAL.

Man,
including his
' Clothing.

Equipment,
including Arms,
Saddlery,
and Kit, out
without Forage.

Stone. Vb.

Stone, lb.

Stone, lb.

English . .

10 12

7 8

18 6

French • •

10 10

7 7

18 3 '

Austrian . .

10 7

7 0

17 7

Russian . .

12 0

7 7

19 7

Prussian . .

10 7

7 0

17 7

The next obvious step was to endeavour to ascer
tain the weights of the ancient cavalry. On repairing
to the Tower, facilities were in Uke manner at once
readily granted. The weights of the man-armour and

WEIGHTS OF MEDLEVAL CAVALRY.

217

the horse-armour of several of the figures in the horse-
armoury were obtained ; and, by kind permission, one
of the figures, the Earl of Leicester's, was dismounted,
and, on examination of the pieces, the weight of every
article was found marked on the inside.

WEIGHT OF ARMOUR IN THE TOWER COLLECTION.
MAN AND HORSE.

A.D.
1463 1483
1520152015201535
1553 1553
1560
157015811605
16061660

Edward IV . . .
Richard in. . .
Henry VIII. . . .
Charles Brandon, Duke
of Norfolk . . .
Henry VIII., Maximl
lian's present . .
Edward Clinton, Earl of
Lincoln ....

Francis Hastings, Earl
of Huntingdon . .
Edward VI. . . .

Robert Dudley, Earl of
Leicester .
Sir Henry Lee
Robert Devereux, Earl
of Essex . .
James I. . . .
Sir Horace Vere
Monk, Duke of

Albe

marie

MAN.
Armour.

lb. oz.

38 0
77 0
100 0
71 2
60 0

54 12
87 1

HORSE.
Armour.

lb. oz.

18 0
52 0
80 15
92 8
53 0

59 8
41 2

lb. oz.
84 6
56 0
129 0
180 15
163 10
113 0
103 0
114 4
128 3
66 8
55 8
55 8
63 10
64 10

ARMOUR OF ROBERT DUDLEY, EARL OF LEICESTER,
IN THE TOWER COLLECTION, a.d. 1560.

BODY ARMOUS.

Helmet Gorget

lb. oz.
8 14
3 8

¦218

THE BRITISH ARMY.

body armour (continued.)

lb.

oz.

Breast and Tassets

17
12
Back ....
9
7
Pauldrons
7
11
„ with Arm-pieces
8
5
Gauntlets, one
1
6
Manifer, left hand
3
0
Leg-pieces, right
3
10
„ „ left
3
10
Demi-cuisse and 1 right .
1
12
Genouilli&re ) left
1
12
Weight of Body Armour
70
11
EXTRA PIECES POR THE
JOUST.
lb.
oz.
Grand Garde .
12
5
Volante piece
4
0
16
5
HORSE ARMOUR.
lb.
oz.
Neck-piece, or Crinet
5
6
Chanfrein
6
0
Horses' Breast-piece — Peytrel
. 7
12
Saddle ....
22
0
41
2
ARMS, ETC.
lb.
oz.
4
0
7
0
Vamplate for ditto
1
14
Mace ....
12
0
Bit and Bridle
4
0
28
14
EPITOME.
Suit of Armour
lb.
70
oz. 11
Horse Armour
41
2
Arms . . . .
28
14
Extra for the Joust .
1
U
6
5
7
0
»> Weight of present Cavalry lance and flag, 51b. 7oz.
CONCLUSION AS TO RELATIVE WEIGHTS. 219
WEIGHTS OF BRITISH CAVALRY, a.d. 1867.
st. lb. lb.
Man, including Clothing . . 10 12 . . 152
Equipment : Arms, Saddlery, Kit, ) » o ¦, qq
but without Forage . . > 2581b.
WEIGHT OF MAN AT ARMS, a.d. 1560.
St. lb. lb.
Man, including Clothing . . . 10 12 . 152
Armour of Man  70
„ Horse (vide weights of Earl } .-¦
of Leicester in the Tower Coll.) )
Arms  28
Saddlery, Bits, Bridles, Stirrups, and Kit (say 5 st.) 70
3611b.

Before arriving at a conclusion, it must be observed
that the ancient man-at-arms was much less bulky
than the modern trooper. The narrowness of the.
armour for the legs is very striking in most suits.
The severe training necessary to be undergone to
enable a man to support the weight of armour, and
the constant hard exercise requisite to keep him in
muscular vigour for the melee, and in addition, the
heat produced by the armour and its under-clothing,
must have prevented the acquisition of obesity. Q) So
that the men of the armour-period were more sinewy,
with greater power of endurance, and more spare of
person. The war-horses which they bestrode were
great, powerful animals, more like well-bred dray-
horses, or the Norman cart-horses, or that useful
(') It was mentioned at the Tower, that the gunners of the Royal
Artillery were generally selected to appear as " men in armour " in
the procession on Lord Mayor's day, and that much difficulty was
experienced in finding pieces of armour large enough to encase them.

220 THE BRITISH ARMY.
breed, the French post-horses, possessing great power,
but without much pace.
Now, by the official return, it will be seen that the
English dragoon horse carries 18 st. 6 lb. = 258 lb. ;
that is, allowing 10 st. 12 lb. for the man and his
clothing. There was, probably, not much difference in
the weight of the dragoon's clothing and that worn
under the armour of the man-at-arms ; so if we allow
10 st. 121b. (perhaps too much) as the weight of the
man-at-arms and his clothing, as against 10 st. 12 lb.
of the dragoon, it will appear that the horse of the
Earl of Leicester carried 361 lb., or 103 lb. more than
the English troop-horse.
The man and horse-armour alone of Charles
Brandon, Duke of Norfolk's tilting suit, weighed
1801b. 16 oz. It must be recoUected that the war-
horses only bore these weights when engaged in con
flict, or in the tilting-field ; on the road they were
relieved of their burden, and were led by the hand.
The horse-armour alone of Henry VIII. weighed
921b. 8oz.
The troop-horses of the Life Guards carry 22 st.
91b. 14oz. = 3171b. 14oz., viz. :—

St.

lb.

oz.

Horse Appointments, including Cloak .

.. 6

11

8

Accoutrements. lb. oz.

Helmet  3 7 1
Cuirasse  10 12 >
3
2
15
Clothing  — — J
Average weight of Trooper 
.. 12
9
7
22
9
14
Duration of It is a remark made by a late antiquarian, in anno
tating on a chronicle of the time of Edward III., that,
COMPARATIVE LENGTH OF LIFE. 221
on reference to Dugdale's Baronage, it will appear that
in the Middle Ages the deaths of the great proportion
of the English nobility, even when occasioned by
natural causes (for war and pestilence had their full
share), occurred under the age of forty. (Archaeol., xxii.
p. 241, note). In the above-mentioned chronicle, allu
sion is repeatedly made to the old age of the king :
" The kynge now who had been longe oppressed with
the discomodityes of ould age," although at the time.
he had scarcely completed his sixty-fourth year — a
period of life which would not now be so characterised.
Shakespeare speaks of " Old John of Gaunt, time-
honoured Lancaster," who was born in 1340, and
died in 1399. Spenser caUs the Earl of Leicester an
old man, though he was then not fifty; and Lord
Huntingdon represents Coligny as very old, though
he died at fifty-two.
The average duration of life has no doubt in
creased, but it must be borne in mind that in the
Early and Middle Ages the toga virilis was assumed
at a period which we should designate as that of the
stripling. Witness the Black Prince in charge of the
van of the English army at the age of fifteen and
two months. King John of France's youngest son
PhiUp fought valiantly by his father's side at Poitiers,
although not fourteen years old. Age is considered in
modern times no disqualification to the employment of
. general officers ; the experience and sang-froid of years
may operate advantageously in directing the movements
of armies ; but the case was different when the com
mander had to stimulate the courage of his subordi-

222 THE BRITISH ARMY.
nates by acts of self-devotion, and sustain the honour
of the day by being foremost at the point of danger.
A glance, however, at the Scrope and Grosvenor
Roll, where the ages of the witnesses are generally
given, wiU leave a different impression to that ex
pressed by Mr. Amyot, e.g. : — " Sir John SuUy, aged
105 years." "Sir William de Aton, aged 87."
"John Thirlewale deposes that his father was, when
he died, eldest esquire of all the north, and was
armed 69 years."

CHAPTER VIII.
HORSE ARMOUR — WHEN PIRST INTRODUCED HERE — BRITISH AND FOREIGN
BREEDS — WHITE HORSES IN HIGH ESTIMATION— POOD OP HORSES —
IMPORTATION AND EXPORTATION — IMPROVEMENT OP BREED — GREAT
NUMBER EMPLOYED.
As it was of vital importance to the knights that war-horses.
their war-horses should be preserved from injury as
much as possible, they were protected by armour, and
were scarcely less encumbered than their riders. The
faces, heads, and ears of the animals were covered over
with a sort of mask caUed a chanfrain or chamfrainff)
made generaUy of metal, sometimes of jacked leather
(cuir bouilli). From the centre of these an iron spike
often projected, intended to pierce any object with
which the horse might come in collision ; their necks
were defended by a number of smaU plates connected
together, caUed a criniere ; they had poitrinals for
their breasts, and croupier es for their flanks.
. At tournaments they had bags of straw, Uke
bolsters, in front of their chests, or Unen stuffed like
(') These were sometimes mounted in a very costly manner. It
is related of the Count of St. Pol, at the siege of Harfleur (a.d. 1449),
that he had one for his war-horse which was valued at 30,000 crowns.
The Count of Foix, at the' taking of Bayonne, in the same reign
(Charles Vii.), had a chamfrain of steel garnished with gold and
precious stones, valued at 15,000 gold crowns. (Hist, de Charles VII,
sous l'an 1449.)

224 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the gambeson, and covered over with rich embroidery
or devices. (*) The reins were generally iron chains
enveloped in leather. (z) Horses thus accoutred were
styled barded, and corruptly, barbed ; they were also
frequently caUed covered horses, (3) barde in old
French signifying covered. The armed horse came
into use in England towards the end of the thirteenth
century (its armament was very different at different
times), and was continued in our armies at least to the
time of Queen Elizabeth. (4) W. Patten, in his descrip
tion of the battle of Musselburgh (1 Edward VI.),
says, " The Scotch horses were aU naked without'
barbes, whereof though there were right many among
us (the English), yet not one put on, forasmuch as

(') Vide Champollion, iri King Rene's Tourney-booh. 15th cen
tury. (2) " Item ij paires de resnes de fer." (Inventory of Louis Hutin,
quoted in Anc. Arm., iii. 321.) The object, of course, being to pre
vent their being cut. — So we also find in The Souldiers' Accidence,
written by Markham in 1643, " Reins being lined with a small chain
of iron to prevent cutting." (p. 34.)
(3) " Cataphracta (armatura) in equiB Italice dicitur barda."
(Facciolati, Lexicon.) — " Barda, Gall., Barde. Barda, est armadura di
cuoio cotto, o di ferro, con laquel s'armava la groppa, il collo, el petto*
dei cavalli, che percib si dicean bardati." (Accadem. delta Crusca.)
(4) " At Greenwich Park, the Queen's (Mary) Pensioners mustered''
in bright harness, and many barded horses. Anno 1556." (Pegge's
Curialia, pt. ii., p. 46.) — Mention is made of Bards in the Ordonnance
of Henri II. of France (Ordonance de Pan 1549) : " Ledit homme
d'armes entretiendra quatre chevaux, le deux de service pour la
guerre, dont Tun aura le devant de bardes avec le chamfrain et les
flancois, &c." (Quoted in Daniel, torn, i., liv. vi., ch. ii.) — As a
matter of curiosity, it may be mentioned that probably the only
barded animals are now to be found among the Arab tribes of
Central Africa. (Vide a paper by Mr. Petherick in Journal of the,,t
Royal United Serv. Inst, vol. iv., No. xiii., p. 171.) "The horsemen,"
when going to battle, cover their cattle to the knees with a defen
sive armour of thick felt."

knights' chargers. 225
at our coming forth in the morning we looked for
nothing less than for battle that day."
In order to bring their chargers fresh to the field,
the knights on their marches bestrode Ught, easy
going nags, palfreys, or hackneys, Q-) and only mounted
their war-horses when conflict seemed close at hand.
So in Froissart we read, " Sir Eustace d' Ambrecicourt
was completely armed except his helmet, and was
mounted on a hackney which had been given to him,
but he had a very fine war-horse led by one of his
people" (Johnes, i., ch. cxcviii). The chargers were
led by the squires, who held them by the right hand,
whence they came to be caUed Dextrarii or Destriers.
To secure a powerful animal, able to carry the
weight imposed upon him, and of high courage to
bear down aU obstacles, was of course one of the most .
important provisions of the knight. Mares were
never employed as chargers; it was considered a
degradation to ride them. (2) It was thought requisite
that the war-horse should be a tall horse; whence,
perhaps, the expression '" to ride the high horse."
The English horse did not attain its admitted English Horse.
superiority tiU towards the eighteenth century. The
breed is about as much mixed as that of the human

(*) Vr.Haquene; Ital. AcchinSa; Span. Haccanea, Hdca; whence
our English word "Hack," a common useful horse. "Equos
vocatos Hakenys." (Rymer, an. 1481.) — " II y a chevaux de plusieurs
manieres, a ce que li uns sont Destrier grant pour le combat, li autre
sont Palefroi pour chevaucher a l'aide de son cors, li autres Roucis
pour sommes porter, &o." (Brunetus MS. apud Du Cange, voce
Palafredus et Dextrarius.)
(2) So it continues in India, Arabia, and in the East generally, to
"the present day.
VOL. I. P

226 THE BRITISH ARMY.
inhabitants of this island, and to this cause may be
attributed the constitutional yigour of the one, and
the perfection of the other. The genuine British
horse appears to have been short in stature. (x) Some
naturaUsts have supposed that its descendants have
continued in the ponies of England and Wales, in the
shelties and gaUoways of Scotland, and the garrons of
Ireland. Caesar praises the activity of the British
horses, as weU as the dexterity of the drivers of the war-
chariots, " They can stop their horses at fuU gaUop
down a steep hiU," says he ; " and can check and turn
them in a smaU compass — run along the pole — vault
upon the harness, and throw themselves back into
their chariots with the utmost celerity." (2) These
horses must have been active and powerful in an
extraordinary degree, when we take into consideration
the fury with which they were driven, and the nature
of the ground over which they, had to travel. They
were decorated with heavy trappings of bright metal,
specimens of which, recovered in exhumations, are
among the most interesting reUcs of that remote
period. (3) In the opening of a barrow in the wolds
of Yorkshire the skeleton of a man was discovered,
probably a British charioteer, on either side of him
the remains of wheels, and under each of these the
skeleton of a horse. Judging from the size of their
leg-bones, neither of them reached 13 hands. (4) The
(]) "Equos habent parvos et celeres." (Xiphilihus, Epitome
Dionis Nicoei, p. 373.)
(2) Bell. Gall., iv. 33.
(3) Vide Horoe Ferales, p. 194.
(4) Vide Proceedings Archaeol. Inst., anno 1846.

ANGLO-SAXON HORSES. 227
1
chariots were also very low. The diameter of a
wheel disinterred on Hamden HiU measured only 30
inches. (:) The importation of horses as reinforce
ments for the Roman cavalry stationed here must
necessarily have effected an improvement in the native
breed. Among the Anglo-Saxons horses were highly
esteemed, and considered as presents worthy of the
acceptance of kings and great men. In 926, Hugh
Capet sent over to iEthelstan, among other valuable
gifts, several horses, when treating for the hand of
Ethelswitha, that prince's sister. (3) iEthelstan
bequeathed in his wiU " the horses given him by
Thurbrand, and the white horses presented to him by
Lisbrand. Eight horses, of which four were to be
saddled, were among the heriots which customarily
appertained to the rank of the highest nobiUty.
Four horses to a king's thane, and so on. (3) Every
man was obUged to have two at his plough ; hence
it is not surprising that the pirates of the North were
so soon able to transform themselves into cavaby,
after their landing on the coast. (*) Horses appear,
also, to have been an article of exportation, from the
law of iEthelstan, by which it is forbidden to send
them beyond sea. (5)
According to a table of rates given in Whitaker's
(J) Archaeol., xxi. 39.
(2) " Equos cursores plurimos." (Mafonesbury,ii. §135, edit. Hardy,
1840.)  The term " courser " was used to denote a war-horse, not a
racer : " Corserius, equus bellator." (Du Cange.)
(3) Kemble's Saxons, ii. 99.
(*) Thorpe's Lappenberg, ii. 358.
(6) Laws of jEthelstan, i. xviii.
p 2

228 THE BRITISH ARMY.
History of Manchester (ii. 349), horses were very dear
in England in the tenth century, three-fourths dearer
than oxen. " A ,middling horse " is quoted at a price
equivalent to £30 of modern money ; " a wUd horse,"
£15 ; and a first-rate horse, £600 !
Irish Horses. The Irish had a breed of Uttle active horses,
much in request for mounting our Ught cavalry, the
hobilers. When Richard II. went to Ireland in
1399, Mac-Morough, who called himself King of
Ireland, descended from a mountain riding upon a
horse without a saddle, which was said to have cost
him 400 cows. (x) In Queen EUzabeth's time, the
Irish had attained to saddles, but not to stirrups. (z)
The Irish appear even at that time to have been re
markable for their exceUence in horsemanship (Top.
Hib., Ui, c. 10 ; Holinshed, Description of Ireland,
f. 28, a). " SelUs equitando non utuntur." (GrUdas.)
Of aU countries in the world, Arabia has produced
the finest breed of horses. From the appreciation of
the noble qualities of the horse there, the East ap
pears, as it were, its natural home. (3) The Arabian,
breed was diffused along the African shore of the
Mediterranean, and Spain, from its contiguity, and
from being under the domination of the Moors for
nearly seven centuries, acquired a celebrity for its
horses, and was from an early period the favourite
(') Harris' Hibernia, p. 53.
(2) Hibernia Pacata, p. 345.
(3) While the wild Arab was fondling his horse with affectionate
regard, horses in England, in the fourteenth century, were baited as
a diversion. (MS., K's. Lib., No. 2, b. viii.) — In Strutt's Sports are
accounts of curious feats performed by trained horses.

FOREIGN HORSES. 229
mart of the knightly charger. " The good horse "
which WiUiam of Normandy bestrode on the field of
Hastings, had been brought from CaUicia, Q) and the
Duke of Newcastle, writing in 1667, says the Spanish
horse is the noblest in the world. (3) The duke was
a competent judge. Markham, however, a military
writer of the same period, has a different classification;
he estimates " the Neapolitan " as " best, the Creek
next, then the Spaniard, the EngUsh, the Almaine, or
the French." (Souldiers Accidence, p. 34.)
One of the Norman nobles, Robert de BeUesme,
Earl of Shrewsbury, is celebrated for having intro
duced Spanish horses into his Welsh possessions,
which, in contradistinction to the native breeds, are
stated to have been remarkable for their majestic
proportions. (3) In addition to
" Dextriers de Castille,"

we hear of

"Palefrois Danois,
Roussins de Bretagne." (4)

As early as the reign of our Henry II., the traffic
in horses began to assume much of its future cha
racter. Smithfield was estabUshed as a horse-market ;
(') " Sun boen cheval fist demander
Ne poeit l'en meillor trover.
D'Espaingne li ont enveie
Un Reis par mult grant amistie ;
Galtier Giffart l'ont amene,
Ki a Saint Jame avait este." — Rom. de Rou.
(3) New Method to Dress Horses, p. 50.
(s) Giraldus Cambrensis, Itin., Ub. ii., c. 12.
(4) The " roussin," a word probably derived from the Teutonic
ross, was an inferior quality of animal. So Chaucer : " He rode upon
a Rowncey as he could."

230 THE BRITISH ARMY.
its name seems originaUyto have been Smoothfield,^)
and there horses were matched against each other,
with the object of testing their quaUties — perhaps
the first indication of horse-racing in London.
Shakespeare alludes to the practice : —
Falstaff. " Where's Bardolph ? "
Page. " He's gone to Smithfield to try your
Worship a horse." (2)
Easter and Whitsuntide were favourite seasons with
the aristocracy of the Middle Ages for running their
horses. In the old metrical romance of Syr Beves
of Hamptown, we find
"In somer at Whitsontyde,
When knights most on horses ride,
The king a course he did grede (i.e., proclaim),
For to assayen the best steed
Which were both stiff and strong."

And again :

' Sir Guy bestrode a Rabyte (an Arab),
That was mickle and nought light,
That Sir Beves in Paynim londe
Hadde wounnen with his honde.''

The intercourse with the East during the Crusades
had, doubtless, impressed the Northern knights with
a high opinion of the qualities of the Arab horses.

(') Fitzstephen, Hist, of London.
(*) 2 Hen. TV., act i., sc. 2.— Smithfield, with its traditions of
tournaments and historical events, games of the citizens, and those
terrible executions, and, in more modern times, celebrated for its
cattle market and Bartholomew fair, has now lost all semblance of its
former vocation. Here, on the 15th of June, 1381, Sir William
Walworth slew Wat Tyler. The king and his party, according to
Stowe, " stood towards the east end, near St. Bartholomew's Priory;

COLOURS OF HORSES. 231
We find in the wardrobe account of Edward I. the
various Latin terms employed in describing horses ;
the valuation of those supplied for military purposes
rendered a specification requisite.^) Thus " sorus
piole " (p. 78) is a sorrel or speckled horse ; "pale-
fridus et runcinus ferrandus " (p. 59), white, spotted, or
dappled; " badius" (p. 78), a bay; " brunnus badius "
(p. 79), brown bay ; " clarus badius " (p. 173), Ught do. ;
"favus" (p. 137), yeUow, red, coloured; "ferrandus
liardus " (p. 176), white, dappled ; "grisseus " (p. 137),
grey ; " grisseus ferrandus " (do.), iron grey. In the
romance of Richard Cceur de Lion mention is made of
two of the king's horses, " Favel off Cypra, ne Lyard
off Pris " (Favel of Cyprus, and Lyard of Paris.)
Among the various colours by which horses were
distinguished, white appears from the earliest times to
have been held in the highest estimation, and to have
been considered the mark of purity and pre-eminence.
In the Apocalypse we read of "Death on the pale
horse ; " and again, " a white horse, and he that sat
on him was caUed Faithful and True, and the armies
which were in heaven followed him upon white
horses." (a) In after times the same feeUng of venera
tion for the colour induced princes and leaders to

the commons towards the west, in form of battle." (p. 288, edit.
1631.) The stake at which so many Christian martyrs perished
is supposed to have been opposite the Church of St. Bartholomew
the Great. " To the south-west," says Maitland, "stood the gallows,
or public place of execution, denominated the Elms, from the great
quantity of such trees growing there." (Hist, of London, p. 503.)
— See also Howel's Londimopolis, p. 328.
(l) See further in this work, under Appreciation of Horses.
(2) Rev. vi.

232 THE BRITISH ARMY.
adopt the white horse as an emblem, and they bore it
on their standards. Tacitus tells us that white horses
were kept by the Germans in haUowed woods and
groves, and they were never desecrated by being put
to any kind of labour, for they were considered the
confidants of the gods. (x) From these sacred horses
it is probable that many of the ancient heroes derived
their names. Hengist and Horsa furnish striking
examples of this, their names being nearly synony
mous. (2) A white horse was their ensign, which
afterwards was adopted as the arms of Kent. It is
borne on the shields of Brunswick and Hanover.
When John of France was conducted prisoner to
England, the Black Prince, in order to treat the cap
tive monarch with the utmost deference and respects
mounted him on a white horse, and rode by his side
on a black palfrey. From a quotation in Du Cange
(v. Equus), it would appear that the Pope gave his
sanction to high ecclesiastics and others to ride on
white horses on grand occasions. Elmham (p. 61)
states that Henry V., at Agincourt, was mounted on
" a noble horse as white as snow." St. Remy, how
ever, describes it to have been " a smaU grey horse."
Henry VIII. rode to the Field of the Cloth of Gold
on a white courser, as represented in the picture at
Windsor Castle. James I. rode a white jennet when
in procession to the Tower.
Edward II. imported horses from Champagne
(*) Se enim ministros Deorum, illos (equos) conscios putant."
(Germ., x.)
(2) Archaeol., xxxi. 291.

PRICE OF HORSES. 233
and Lombardy, (x) Edward III. from Castile (2) and
SicUy.(8) In 1348 there was a great pestUence among
cattle, and the chance of their surviving was so smaU
that a horse which previously would have cost 40s.,
could be purchased for half-a-mark. (*) In 1370 horses
had become so scarce that ParUament interfered to
check the exorbitant demands of dealers. Richard II.
drew the choicest of his stud from abroad. Some of
the nobUity were great breeders of horses, and kept
up a large stock. (5) The wealthy regular clergy also
encouraged the breed. " ReUgion," says Piers Plough
man, " is a rider, a pricker of a palfrey from manor to
manor." Chaucer says of his monk, " FuU many a
daintie horse had he in stable," and the one on which
he rode was in high condition, "his hors in great
estate." The guests' stables at St. Albans would ac
commodate 300 horses, and a lamp was kept burning
there aU night. (6) A valuation was made of the Earl
of Leicester's horses after his death in 1588. His
stud at Wansted was valued at £316 Os. 8d. ; one
horse, caUed Bay Ley, was valued at £26 13s. 4d. ;
Bald Dakers, an old horse, at £15. (See Lyson's
Environs of London, vol. iv.)
It was usual to feed horses on bread made on

(l) Rymer, i., pt. iv., p. 135.
(2) " Ad Regem CastellsB super emptium Dextrariorum in His-
pania." (Ibid., sub anno 1331.)
C3) Ibid., sub anno 1335.
(4) Knighton, lib. iv., p. 2,699.
(5) " Rex concessit Thomse Duci Surr' totum staurum stallionum
jumentorum et pullanorum quae fuerunt Comitis Warr' in com' Warr
et Wygorn." (Calend. Rot Pat, r. ii., p. 232, § 6.)
(e) See Fosbroke, British Monachism, ii. 206-7.

234 THE BRITISH ARMY.
purpose for them (payn pour chivaulx, as it was termed
in some of the statutes), and it was enacted that " no
hosteUer should make horse-bread in his hostry nor
without, but bakers should make it.'^1) This act
was repealed by a permissive one, 32 Henry VIII.
By the 2nd Henry VII., prohibiting the exporta
tion of horses, we may infer that the English breed had
risen in estimation, and the war of York and Lancaster
had probably rendered them scarce. Henry VIII.
paid particular attention to the promotion of the breed
of horses, which might have been expected from one
who was a proficient in aU manly exercises. His
Majesty, "calling to his most gracious memory the
great decay of the breed of good and swift, and strong
horses," caused many acts to be passed in reference.
" Horses, mares, and geldings' were not to be exported,
and they were not to be sold to be conveyed to Scot
land."^) "Every brood mare was to be at least
fourteen hands high. Every owner of a deer-park was
to keep two brood mares of thirteen handfuls at the
least, to be measured from the lowest part of the hove
of the foot unto the highest part of the shoulder, and
every handful to contain four inches of the standard.
Archbishops and dukes were to keep seven trotting
horses for the saddle ; marquesses, earls, and barons,
five ; viscounts and barons, three ; other spiritual and
lay persons of certain estate, one." (33 Hen. VIII.
c. 5.) The steaUng any horse was made felony without
(') 13 Rich. IL, stat. i., c. 8.
(2) Repealed by Charles II., by which horses were allowed to be
exported on a duty of five shillings each.

ROYAL PATRONAGE OF HORSES. 235
benefit of clergy. (37 Hen. VIII., c. 4.) In fact, the
improvement of the horse appears from the earUest
times to haye been an object of royal solicitude ; and
thus a breed was produced which flourished from the
time of the Crusades untU the days of the Tudors, a
period which may be designated as the era of the Great
Horse. The charger of the Middle Ages was, doubt
less, a splendid animal, although more signaUsed for
strength and lofty bearing than for speed. The
animated description of the war-horse in the Book of
Job is, doubtless, familiar to most persons. His terrible
snorting ; his hoofs digging in the vaUey with excite
ment ; his high courage ; " mocking at fear, though
the quiver rattleth against him, the glittering spear
and the shield, and he smeUeth the battle afar off."
(Job xxxix. 20.)
When defensive armour became less cumbersome,
a Ughter sort of horse was required for miUtary
purposes. The Stuarts, by their strong predilection
and patronage of the course, laid the foundation of
that superiority which the horses of this country
have long since maintained over every breed upon
the earth. James I. gave £500 for an Arab; but
he turned out a faUure, and the English horses beat
him everywhere. (*) The same price was, asked for
one in 1684. (a)
At the termination of the Civil War, attention
(') Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle, ut supra, p. 73.
(2) " I went to see three Turkish or Asian horses, newly brought
over, and now first shown to his Majesty : 500 guineas was demanded
for the first, 300 for the second, and 200 for the third." (Evelyn's
Diary, .ii. 201.)

236 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was again directed to the breed of horses. The Lord
Protector, we may presume, patronised the movement,
for one Richard Place is said to have been his stud-
master, and the owner of a celebrated Arabian,
White Turk. (l) King Charles II. sent abroad the
Master of the Horse to procure a number of foreign
horses and mares for breeding, and the mares brought
over by him (as also many of their produce) have
since been called Royal Mares.
The Stradling, or Lister Turk, was brought into
England by the Duke of Berwick, from the siege
of Buda, in the reign of James II. (General Stud
Book, i. 443.)
The Byerley Turk is said to have been Captain
Byerley's charger in Ireland, in King WUUam's
wars. (3)
Curwen's Bay Barb was a present to Louis XIV.,
from Muly Ishmael, King of Morocco, and was
brought into England by Mr. Curwen. (General Stud
Book.) Darley's Arabian was brought over by Mr.
Darley, of Yorkshire, and was sire of Flying
ChUders. So successful was the cross with these and others,
that an animal was produced infinitely superior in
form, speed, and strength to anything which had
appeared before in England ; and there are none of
(') Sire of Wormwood and Commoner.
(2) Henry, son of " Colonel Byerley, an ' old Cavalier, who had
commanded a regiment under the Marquis of Newcastle, and gar
risoned his house at Midridge for the Bang." (Surtees, Hist, of
Durham, ii. 390.)

NUMBERS OF HORSES. 237
the thorough-breds of the present day which may not
boast a remote descent from the "coursers" of
Arabia. The number of horses brought into the field in
early days is somewhat surprising. The Saracens,
when they overran the West in the eighth century,
are said to have brought with them 200,000 horses.
In Britain the supply must have been ample, for
CassiveUaunus, when he dismissed the main body of
the army, retained 4,000 of his war-chariots for the
purpose of harassing the Romans. In the poor
country of Scotland, Froissart informs us that aU the
men of the army were mounted, except the riff-raff,
who foUowed on foot. (*) On hostile occasions, there
fore, some 15,000 or 20,000 horses at least must have
been coUected. The same chronicler relates, that
Charles VI. of France assembled a magnificent (but
the almost incredible) force of 350,000 horses, to put
down the Bishop of Norwich and the Urbanites, in
the "war of the anti-Popes," in 1383, mentioned on
page 275.
In the days when riding supplied almost the only Great
means of locomotion, the demand for horses was of
course very great. The removal of a family of
opulence involved the necessity of a train of horses
equal to a modern cavalry regiment. In the list of
the lords and gentlemen of England who were present
at the marriage of the Princess Mary, sister to
Henry VIII., who accompanied her out of England,
(') " Tous montes sur haquenees, car nul ne va & pied en Ecosse,
mais tous a cheval, excepts la ribaudaille qui les suit a pied. (i. 25.)

238 THE BRITISH ARMY.
were — " The Duke of Norfolk, my Lady his Wyff,
the Countess of Oxenford, and the Lord Edmond
Howard, with 100 horses. The Marquis of Dorset,
my Lady his Wyff, and the Lord Edward hys Broder,
with 80 horses. The Lord Thomas RowthaU, Bishop
of Duresme, with 68 horses. The Efll of Surrey, the
sonne and heire to the Duke of Norfolk, with 58
horses. The Lord Lawarre, with 30 horses. The
Lord Berners, Chamberlain to the Frenche Queen.
The Lord Montaigle, and my Lady his Wyff, 30 horses.
The Lord Richard Grey ; The Lord John Grey ; and
a very long retinue." In this cavalcade there must
have been at least 700 horses. (See Leland's Col
lectanea, vol. ii, p. 701.)
When Edward VI. went in progress into Sussex,
the number of his train was so great that the in
cursion was feared Uke an army of locusts. " It was
thought good," writes the king in his journal, "that
they should be sent home, save only 150, wich were
pickt out of al the bandis. This was because the
traine was thought to be nier 4,000 horse, wich ware
inough to eat up the country; for ther was Utle
medow nor hay al the way as I went."
In the time of Charles I., before the breaking out
of the civU war, horses were so deficient in England,
that an officer of rank, addressing the king, states
that it is a question whether or not the whole
kingdom could make 2,000 good horse that might
equal 2,000 French. (x)
After aU, King Solomon appears to have been the
(') Sir Edward Harwood's Advice to King Charles. Lond., 1642.

No. 33.

Horse-muzzles are principally portrayed in Jost Ammon's woodcuts, "few
specimens now existing in England : they date about a.d. 1570. The
one here represented is hanging up in the Hall at Ham, Derbyshire.

HORSE-SHOES FROM SUSSEX. 239
greatest horse-master of ancient or modern times, for
he had stabling for 40,000 horses (1 Kings iv. 26).
He drew his supplies from Egypt, and not from
Arabia (ibid., x. 28).
According to McCuUoch, it may be fairly esti
mated that there are actuaUy in Great Britain from
1,300,000 to 1,400,000 horses. Taking these at the
low average of £10 to £12, their actual commercial
value would be from £13,000,000 to £16,000,000
sterling, exclusive of the young horses.
The county of Sussex was celebrated for its iron- Sussex
T 1
works from an early period. In 1254 the Sheriff of
Surrey and Sussex was ordered to furnish 30,000
horse-shoes and 60,000 nails (Lib. Roll., 38 Henry III.);
and in the 13th year of Edward IL, 1319, Peter de
Walsham, sheriff, by virtue of a precept from the
king's exchequer, made a provision of horse-shoes and
naUs of different sorts (providencias de ferris equorum
et clavis pro eisdem diversimode fabrice) for the ex
pedition against the Scots. The number supplied on
the occasion was 3,000 horse-shoes and 29,000 naUs,
and the cost, together with the carriage, amounted to
£14 13s. lOd. (Wardrobe Account, Edward II.)
Plate XXXIII. — A specimen of a perforated
steel horse-muzzle; they are rarely to be met with
now in England. They date from about a.d. 1570,
and are principaUy portrayed in Jost Ammon's wood
cuts. The one here represented is hanging up in the
HaU at Ham, Derbyshire.
The Saddle may be included amongst the de- Military
fences of the knight, for its high pommel and cantle

240 THE BRITISH ARMY.
covered the lower part of the horseman's person.
The Bayeux tapestry furnishes many examples of
these, as also the seals of the Conqueror, WiUiam
Rufus, and others.
Mr. Hewitt brings under notice a curious fact;
from a passage in the Roman de Rou, we learn that
the knight sometimes went to battle tied to his
saddle : — " Li reis aveit un soldeier,
Brun out nom, novel ohevalier.
Sor son cheval sist noblement,
Apareillie mult richement.
A sa selefu atachiez,
E per li coisses fu liez," &c.— (Line 16,064.)
" However strange such a device may appear,"
says Mr. Hewitt, " the mention of it by other ancient
writers forbids us to regard it as a mere vagary of the
poet. In the fifteenth century, the writer of the Ufe
of Earl Richard of Warwick teUs us that, at a joust
ing match, his hero was obUged to dismount from his
horse, because some of his adversaries had accused
him of being tied to his saddle." (x)
In the account of the expenses of John of Bra
bant and Thomas and Henry of Lancaster, mention
is made of the prices of saddles, varying from 10s.
to 13s. 4d. (Camden, Miscellany, vol. ii), and a good
representation of the saddle of this period will be
found in the Harl. MSS. 3,244, fol. 27. In the four
teenth century a remarkable feature appears in some
of the military saddles. They are made so high in
the seat that the knee of the rider is on a level with
(') Ancient Armour, i. 172.

No. 34.

This curious combination of Stirrup and Solleret is preserved in Warwick,,
Castle. They are very heavy, and are made right and left.
The lower Stirrup is an English specimen of the English-Gothic period,
temp. Henry VI. It is in the possession of Mr. R. T. Pritchett.

saddles and stirrups. 241
the horse's back. (See the figure of Sir Geoffry
LoutereU, engraved in Carter's Sculpture, pi. xiv.,
and in the Vetusta Monumenta, vol. vi.) Mr. Hewitt
quotes an instance given by Hefner (Trachten, pt. ii,
pi: 8), from a chronicle written about 1350, where
the pommel and cantle so touch each other, that they
form, as it were, one continuous rail. The seal of
Edward III. suppUes an instance of the high-backed
war-saddle. Examples of those of the fifteenth
century are given in Harl. MSS. 326, fol. 13 ;
do., 4,431, fol. 114; and in vol. ii. of Strutt's
Horda. Their pecuUarity consists in their over
lapping the thigh of the rider in front, rising
moderately high behind, and always permitting
the horseman to sit weU down on his horse.
Captain Cruso, in his Militarie Instructions for the
Cavallerie, pubUshed in 1632, iUustrates the saddle
of the seventeenth century.
It is remarked by Meyrick that knights and Mode o£
men-at-arms from the Conquest to , the close of
Richard III.'s reign, are always represented with the
feet pointing down when in the stirrups, and after
this period the heel was dropped, and the toes were
turned upwards. This is, however, by no means an
invariable rule.
A curious combination of stirrup and solleret is
preserved in Warwick Castle, The pair is very
heavy, and made right and left. (See Plate XXXIV.)
. The lower stirrup, on the same plate, is an English
specimen of the Gothic period, temp. Henry VI.
This is in the possession of Mr. Pritchett.
vol. i. Q

242 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Heroic Ages It has been observed that a strong resemblance
1Ta «y- mign^ De traced between the manners of the age of
chivalry and those of the old heroic ages which the
immortal Homer has iUustrated ; that, in fact, Jeru
salem was to the knights of the Crusades what Troy
had been to the Grecian heroes. Certainly, the
greatest fierceness and brutaUty, the utmost gene
rosity and hospitaUty, were imputed to the heroic
ages ; and we have the same characteristics in the
ages of chivalry.
Without feudaUsm (that is, so far as mUitary.
service is concerned) chivaby could not survive, and
towards the end, of the fourteenth century it had ex-.
hibited unmistakable symptoms of decay. (1) It had
orders of given birth to the reUgious orders, such as the
Templars, Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, the
Teutonic Knights, besides many others. From it
also sprung the courtly orders which were instituted
by sovereign princes, such as the Garter, by Edward
III. ; the Golden Fleece, by PhiUp the Good, Duke of
Burgundy; St. Michael, by Louis XI. of France,
and others — a knighthood of mere rank and parade.
Deeiiueof " The principal causes that operated in subverting
the feudal system," says Mr. Hallam (Middle Ages,

Knighthood.

Chivalry.

(') M. G-uizot assigns the date of the decline of chivalry to the
fourteenth century. (Hist, de la Civilization en France, lecon 36.)—
Mr. Hallam defers it to the fifteenth century. (Middle Ages, vol. hi.,
p. 413.) — " Les Chevaliers qui se piquaient tant de fidelite, 6taient-
ils restes fideles aux voeux de la chevalerie ? Nous lisons que lorsque
Charles VI. arma Chevaliers ses jeunes cousins d'Anjou, et qu'il
voulut suivre de point en point l'ancien ceremonial, beaucoup degens
trouverent la chose strange et extraordinaire." (Michelet's Hist, de
France, torn, iv., p. 7.)

DECLINE OF CHIVALRY. 243
i., ch. u., pt. ii.), " may be comprehended under three
distinct heads : — the increasing power of the Crown,
the elevation of the lower ranks, and the decay of the
feudal system."
The feudal system was destined to tincture for a
long time the manners, language, and literature of
Europe ; indeed, our EngUsh law-books are not yet
disentangled of its trammels, and true chivaby
flourished and feU with actual feudalism.
" The knight's bones are dust,
And his good sword rust ;
His soul is with the saints, I trust."

Q 2

CHAPTER IX.1
ESCUAGE — ITS ABUSE —MORTMAIN — POSSE COMITATUS — GOVERNMENT OJ
COUNTIES — CONSTITUTION OP MILITIA— ASSIZE OP ARMS — STATUTE
OP WINCHESTER' — REPEALED BY ACT OP PHILIP AND MARY —
STATUTORY ENACTMENTS.
inconvenience It is clear that if the whole of the feudal tenants,
Armies. knights and men-at-arms (which those who held of
the Crown were bound to furnish), had been embodied
as soldiers at any given moment, the sum of knights'
fees being fairly taken, the king would have had at
his absolute command, and free of aU expenses for
forty days, an army of more than 60,000 men. The
object of the Umitation to so few days' service, was
probably to bring martial duties within the scope of
the smaller gentry, so as not to press too heavily on
their means. But the result must have been that the
period of gratuitous service was totally inadequate for
the operations of a campaign. If the king's quarrel
were at home, and a single battle could decide it, he
had cheap materials at hand; but he could scarcely
undertake the siege of a fortress — and walls were
formidable obstacles in those days — certainly not en
gage in a war out of his kingdom with an army whose
period of service might expire in forty days. The
only remedy in such cases was to induce the tenants

ESCUAGE, AND ITS ABUSE. 245
to prolong their services by a stipulated rate of daily
pay ; but this was not always optional to the king,
nor convenient to either party. For the king often
found it difficult to provide the necessary funds, and
the tenants, anxious to return to their households,' had
the right to demand theb discharge ; and instances
are on record where armies broke up at the expiration
of theb quota of service in consequence of disagree
ment with the sovereign. (l)
By the feudal law, forfeiture was the penalty
for the neglect of miUtary attendance; it became,
however, an agreement, a sort of mutual accommo
dation, that a fine should be accepted in Ueu of
personal service. (2) Although this commutation had
probably been practised from an early period, the
first record of it appears in the 11th Henry II.
(1165), when £1 per knight's fee was levied on
the bishops and abbots who held in capite of the
Crown. It was at first levied arbitrarily, but it
became a system, under the term scutage or escuage,
as it was caUed in the old Norman -French —
shield-money, in fact ; and it came at last to be
levied by assessments at so much for every knight's
fee. This royal prerogative became greatly abused,
so that it formed one of the points in Magna Charta

(') At the siege of Avignon, in 1226, Theobald, Count of Champagne,
retired with his troops that he might not promote the king's designs
upon Languedoc. At that of Angers in 1230, nearly the same thing
occurred. (See Matth. Paris, p. 308.)
(2) "Et finem pro eodem servitio nobiscum facere voluerint."
(Proclam. of Edw. III.) — See Lyttelton's Hist of Hen. IL, vol. iii., p.
13 ; and Madox, p. 435.

246 THE BRITISH ARMY.
that no scutage should be imposed without consent of
Parliament: (x)
Whenever, therefore, our early kings were pre
paring for war, they levied scutages, and those royal
tenants who were bound to accompany them, but
preferred staying at home, were regularly charged as
matters of course, the rate varying according to cir
cumstances, under the term of " Fines for not proceed
ing with the army ;" ditto, " for avoiding crossing the
sea with the king ; " and so forth. (a)
Evasions of Another obvious inconvenience was the process of
Service. sub-infeudation, which was carried on to almost an
unUmited degree. Fractions of a fee, even to the
thbtieth and the fortieth part, were not uncommon. (3)
Very many of those sub-divisions, however, arose not
from sub-infeudation, but by descents among co
parceners. It has been stated that, according to rjor-
man custom, a fee could only properly be divided into
eight portions. (4) The eighth part of a fee would, of
course, give a title to the eighth part of the service of
a knight. Its tenant, consequently, came into active
service for five days, which was his proportion of the
stipulated service of the fee for forty days. It is easy
to imagine the confusion that must have arisen when
(') " Nullum scutagium ponitur in regno nostro, nisi per com
mune consilium regni nostri." (Cap. xii.)
(2) "De Scutagio Militum qui nee abierunt," &c. — "Fines pro
passagio," &c. (Madox, Hist, of the Excheq., pp. 438, 458.)
(3) A record of Hen. III. says of Eichard Crokel, " Faciat servitium
trecessimse partis feodi j. Militis." — Also of John Hereberd, " Faciat
servitium sexagesimse partis unius feodi." (Hist, of the Excheq., pp.
650,651.) (4) Stuart's View of Society, p. 103.

EVASIONS OF SERVICE. 247
a feudal army took the field, from the continual
change of the military tenants.
Again, another evU of the system was the facUity
with which tenants could evade the strict performance
of theb service ; for instance, they could bring to
the musters a force inferior to the numbers to what
was due from the extent of their holdings. The roUs
of knights' fees were inaccurately kept, and Uttle care
seems to have been taken before armies were sum
moned to the field ;(x) it was then too late to think
of examining records and charters ; and the con
sequence was that the service had to be accepted, and
was, of course, taken as a precedent for the future. (2)
Thus the king found that he could assemble but a
smaU part only of the ancient force of the kingdom.
Another expedient of the laity was to transfer their
lands to the Church; thus, on the chance of ever
receiving them back again, they got quit of their
miUtary service. To obviate this inconvenience, in
the 7th Edward I., the Statute of Mortmain was
passed. By this act it was made unlawful to give
any estates to the Church without the king's leave;
and this act, by a supplemental provision, was made
to reach aU lay-fraternities, or corporations, in the
16th of Richard I. Mortmain is such a state of
(') A roll of Henry II. ' is, at all events, the only one that has
come down to us — the Liber-Niger Scaccarii (so called from its black
binding). (2) Madox, Bar. Ang., p. 115. — In the 4th Edw. I., the Earl of
Cornwall proffered his service for his whole barony to be done by
three knights, which was accepted. " As if," says Madox, " the
Earl of Cornwall's barony consisted of no more than three knights'
fees!"

248 THE BRITISH ARMY.
possession as makes it unaUenable, when it is said to
be in manu mortua.
It appears, by a comparison of ancient muster-
roUs stiU extant with the Black Book of the Ex
chequer, that the knight's service owing from the
greater barons to the Crown had diminished since the
reign of Henry II. in the proportion of at least
ten to one. if) The clergy were the great evaders.
" Several of the religious," says Madox, " found
another piece of art." They declared that they held
aU their lands and tenements in libera eleemosyna,
and not by knights'-service ; and in many cases they
successfuUy maintained theb plea. The Bishop of
Lincoln, temp. Henry II. , owed the service of sixty
knights, the Bishop of Bath and WeUs that of twenty
(Lib. Nig., 263-87) ; but in the reign of Edward I.
the former . owed only the service of five, and the
latter of two. f) " The Abbot of St. Austin," says
Madox, " had a great success in defrauding the king
of his services. He had been feoffed to hold by the
service of fifteen knights. Of these fifteen he found
means to conceal twelve, and answered the king with
three only,(3) which were accepted in the 4th of
Edward I. But crowned heads were not behind
hand in defrauding their subjects, and instances are
noted where they made use of a pretended expedition
that they might be entitled to levy scutage-money. (*)
(') See note to Lingard's Hist, of Eng., Edw. III., ch. ii. .
(2) Pari. Writs., i. 197, 228 ; quoted in Lingard.
(s) Bar. Ang., pp. 109, 114.
(4) William Bufus, in 1093, levied 20,000 English footmen, and
commanded them to march to the sea-side to be shipped to Normandy.

POSSE COMITATUS. 249
The degenerating of knight-service into escuage,
however convenient to both parties, was a heavy blow
to the efficacy of the feudal institution. It destroyed
one of its main features — that those who held the
land should defend it; and it broke up that con
federacy, composed of barons, knights, gentlemen, and
retainers — men bound by theb oaths, as weU as their
interest, to defend theb king and country — which com
posed the national miUtia. The Crown became better
served, but the liberty of the subject was curtailed
thereby; for, as long as the revenue was paid, the
king could possess an army entirely at his disposal ;
and, in fact, the whole system of tenure was converted
into Uttle else than a means of raising money to pay
an army of occasional mercenaries.
Besides the feudal troops, there was another con
stitutional and national force, which the sovereign
had the right to call up, on the principle that
whoever had taken an oath of fealty to the king,
was bound to risk his life in defence of the country.
This was the Possse Comitatus, or, as its name impUes,
" the power of the county." It included every male
from. fifteen years of age to sixty, peers and spiritual
men alone excepted. The liabiUty of aU persons to
be caUed upon for mUitary service, and the power
given to the sheriff to caU them out for exercise, in
order that they might be in a condition to perform
theb duty, seems to have been a relic of Saxon polity ;
When they came there, he caused Ralph, his treasurer, to offer to
them, that in order to save the nation so many men, and themselves
the perils they were to run, as many of them as would, should pay ten
shillings, and go home again. (Matt. Paris.)

Posse
Comitatus.

250 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and We may trace in this the beginning of that
drafting of men to form the County MiUtia, which is
part of the mUitary system of this country at the
present time.
Although the principal object of this institution
was to preserve the peace, and to pursue felons under
the command of the sheriff, the posse comitatus was
also bound to attend upon summons for the mUitary
defence of the county, under pain of fine and im
prisonment^1) In 1205 King John called upon every tenth knight
in the realm to accompany him into Poitou, at the
expense of the other nine ; and if during his absence
the country should be invaded, every man capable of
bearing arms was to join in its defence, under pain of
forfeiting any lands he might own ; and if not a land
owner, of becoming, with aU his posterity, a slave
for ever, and paying a yearly poU-tax of fourpence. (2)
Again, when Philip of France was preparing to attack
John, in 1213, the EngUsh monarch summoned aU his
" Uberos homines et servientes, vel quicunque sint,"
to aid him, under pain of culvertage. (3)
The posse comitatus differed from the feudal
troops in this, that it was only liable to be called
out in case of internal commotions or actual invasion,
on which occasions only could it legally be marched
out of the respective counties, and in no case out of
(J) Stat. 2 Hen. V., c. 8.— Blackstone, Com., i., ch. ix., p. 343.
(2) Pat Bol, 55.
(3) i.e., Turn-tail (culvert), the penalty for which was forfeiture of
all property and perpetual servitude. (Matt. Paris, 196. — Kymer, iv.,
687. — Du Cange, v. Cuhert'agium,)

GOVERNMENT OF COUNTIES. 251
the kingdom ;(:) whereas the feudal troops were
subject to foreign service at the king's pleasure.
But when an army was wanted, pretexts were easily
invented to induce the county-force to relinquish its
privilege; and although it was afterwards provided
(by the 1 Edw. III., s. 2, cc. 5 and 7 ; 25 Edw. III.,
s. 5, c. 8) that no man should be compeUed to go out
of the kingdom at any rate, nor out of his shire but
in cases of urgent necessity, it was always possible to
assert that the emergency had arrived.
The government of our EngUsh counties presents Government of
a curious mixture of the administrative systems of the
Saxons and the Normans. Thus, in Saxon England,
the shire (a Saxon word, signifying a district or divi
sion) was presided over — in the early period, at least,
of the Umited monarchy — by the shire-reeve (sheriff),
and the county by its earldorman. In Norman
England the count (from the Latin comes) was at the
head of the county (comitatus). Ealdorman (z) — quasi
" elder man," signifying the same as senior or senator
among the Romans — was the highest rank after the
Royal Family, to which that functionary sometimes
belonged. Subsequently, when the whole country was
subjected to the domination of one sovereign — which
(') " Item le Roy voet deformes nul soit charge de soi armer,
autrement quil ne soleit en temps de ces auncestres Roys d'Engleterre.
Et que nul soient distreintz daler hors de leur countez, si non par
cause de necessite de sodeyne venue des estraunges enemys en
roialme et adonques soit fait come ad este fait avant ces heures par
defehs du roialme." (Stat. 1 Edw. III., cap. 5.)
(2) This name is not applied in written documents to magistrates
of boroughs before the Conquest ; after that, the title seems to have
become appropriated to municipal magistrates. (See Palgrave, ii.
350.)

252 THE BRITISH ARMY.
it was, under Edward the Elder, in the first quarter
of the tenth century — it became the custom to entrust
the great provinces of the kingdom to the adminis
tration of a single earl, or great man, who- then, of
course, overrode the supremacy of the alderman. In
the time of Edward the Confessor the whole kingdom
seems to have been divided among five earls, three
of whom were Godwin and his sons Harold and
Tostig. (!)
The word " earl " (eorl) means originally a man
of noble birth, as opposed to the " churl " (ceorl).
This distinction of these two orders, according to
Mr. HaUam, corresponds to the phrase "gentle and
simple " of later times. (3) Mr. Kemble, in his Glos
sary to Beowulf, explains " earl " by vir fortis, pugil
vir, and says that it was not a title of rank, but a
distinctive appeUation, the same as that of comites,
who, according to Tacitus (De Moribus Germ., s. 13),
especially attached themselves to any distinguished
chief. The ealdorman was a prince, a governor of a
county ; he was a constitutional officer : the earl was
not an officer at all, though afterwards the government
of counties came to be entrusted to him. It was not
a title of office till the eleventh century, when it was
used as synonymous to alderman, as a governor of a
county or province. After the Conquest, it superseded
altogether the more ancient title. (3) These officers were
then for some time styled counts or countees, from
(') Hallam's Middle Ages, ii., ch. viii., pt. i., p. 271.
(2) Pbid., No. iii., p. 356. — The ceorl was a free man, and not of the
lowest degree.
(3) Selden's Titles of Honour, v. iii., p. 638, edit. Wilkins.

SHERIFF AND UNDER-SHERIFF. 253
the French, but they did not long retain that name,
although theb shbes were from thence caUed counties
to this day. As these counts or earls were frequently
military commanders, or held other high offices in the
councils of the sovereign, they were necessarily much
absent from theb counties ; they had, therefore, their
vice-comes (viscount), Q) which office has always been
EngUshed by the old Saxon name of sheriff . As this
officer in turn required a deputy, he was distinguished
as the high sheriff, and his deputy was termed the
under-sheriff. It is plain, however, that the Latin
vice-comes, though constantly used as an equivalent,
does not properly express the meaning of our English
word sheriff. When the counts or earls disappeared,
the sheriff became, although styled vice-comes, the
head man of the county. This power was continued
to the sheriff until the appointment of lord-lieutenants,
in the reign of Philip and Mary, to whom it was
transferred — so far as regarded purely miUtary duty.
Since then it has been in the province of the Ueu-
tenants to organise and be responsible for the efficiency
of the county mUitia, although it is still in the power
of the sheriff to summon aU the freeholders he may
need to assist him in the execution of his more
restricted duty — that of enforcing the orders and
sentences of the civil courts.

(*) The name of vice-comes, or viscount, was afterwards made use
of as an arbitrary title of honour, without any shadow of office per
taining to it, by Henry VI., when in the eighteenth year of his reign
(1440) he created John Beaumont a peer by the name of Viscount
Beaumont, which was the first instance of the kind. (Blackstone,
Com., v. i., b. ii., p. 398.)

254 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The multitude of men Uable to be caUed upon by
the sheriff, who otherwise would have been but an
undiscipUned rabble, was constituted an armed force
by an act of the 27th Henry II. (a.d. 1181), caUed
"An Assize of Arms," subsequently confirmed and
enlarged by the 13th Edward I. (a.d. 1285).
Assize of Arms. By this act, every man, according to his estate
and degree, was obUged to provide a determinate
quantity of such arms and armour as were then in
use ; constables were appointed in all hundreds to see
that such arms were provided ; (*) and proper persons
were empowered at stated periods to muster, arm, and
exercise the inhabitants of the district.
Every tenant of a knight's fee was to have in his
possession a coat of mail (loricam), a helmet (cassiden^f^}
a shield, and a lance ; and as many of these as he had
fees. Every free layman that had in chattels (in catallo)
or rents to the value of sixteen marks, was to have
the same arms as above ; and such as had ten marks,
a haubergeon (halbergellum), an iron cap (capelet ferri),
and a lance. These two last articles, with a wambais,
were assigned for the arms of aU burgesses, and the
whole community of freemen.
None obliged to have these arms could either seU,
pawn, or part with them out of his custody; nor
could a lord take them from his vassal by forfeiture,
gift, as security, or in any other manner. When the
possessor died, they descended to his heb ; and if this
heir was a minor, his guardian was to have the custody
(') Blackstone's Com., b. i., ch. xiii.

STATUTES OF ARMS. 255
of them — and tiU the heb came of age, he was to
find a man to use them in the king's service. No
Jew was to have in his possession a coat-of-mail or
haubergeon, but must seU or give it away, or in some
other manner dispose of it, so that it shaU remain in
the king's service. Nor should any man carry arms
out of the kingdom, nor seU them abroad, unless by
permission of our lord the king. Juries were to be
empanneUed in the hundreds and boroughs of every
county to assess the properties of those who were to
serve; and the king's justices, in their cbcuits,(x)
were requbed to enrol the names of the jurors, and
of those who should be found to have chattels or
rents to the value above mentioned ; and the justices
were enjoined to cause it to be notified that those
who had not these arms as aforesaid the king would
punish corporeaUy in theb limbs, and not in their
goods or lands; and none but freemen were to be
aUowed to take the oath of arms. (2)
In the 36th of Henry III. (1252) there was
another Assize of Arms ; and in 1285 was passed the
"Statute of Winchester" (so caUed because it was
enacted in that city, in the 13th Edward I.), making
some alteration in the property qualification, and in
the number and description of the weapons with
which each person was bound to provide himself, but
not materially differing from the other acts.

(') "Item justitise faciant dici per omnes comitatus per quos
iturae sunt."
(2) This statute is given in Rymer, sub. anno. The statute of
Winchester is in the Statutes of the Realm, vol. i., p. 96.

256 THE BRITISH ARMY.
statute of This last act provided "that every man should
Winchester. ^^q ^ ^g j^^g ^gj^egg for to keep the peace
after the ancient assize. That is to say, every man
between fifteen years of age and sixty, shall be
assessed and sworn to armour according to the quan
tity of his lands and goods : to wit, from £15 in
land, and goods 40 marks (£26 13s. 4d.), shall keep
a hauberk of bon, a sword, a knife, and a horse ;
from £10 of land, and 20 marks . (£13 6s. 8d.) in
goods, the same as the preceding class, the horse
excepted;^) from 40s. to 100s. of land, a sword,
bow and arrows, and a knife. He that hath less
than 40s. yearly, gisarmes, (a) knives, and other less
weapons; and aU others that may, shaU have bows
and arrows out of the forest, and in forest, bows
and bolts. (3) An inspection of these arms was to be
made twice a year, by two constables chosen from
each hundred, who were to report defaulters to the
justices, and these were to present such defaulters to
(*) It is remarkable that the lance and the bow should be omitted
in both these cases.
(2) " A bill or battle-axe, with a spike rising at the back of it."
(HaUiwell's Diet, of Archaic Words.) — It was evidently considered
one of the inferior arms, as described in the original from which
the above is taken : " E qe meins ad de quaraunte souze de t're seit
jure a faus, gisarmes, cotaus, e autres menues armes." — The Statute
of Arms of King William of Scotland, a.d. 1165, enacts, "Et qui
minus habet quam XL solidos, habeat gysarm, quod dicitur hand-
axe.'' (3) " Arcs e setes hors de forestes, e dedenz forestes arcs e piles."
This difference, within and without the forests, is curious. It had
for its object, we may presume, the prevention of poaching the king's
deer. The word pile, probably from the Latin pila, a ball, implied a
round-headed arrow, in contradistinction to the sharp-pointed one.
" His foresters shall not carry in the wood of the aforesaid Roger de
Somery any barbed, but piled arrows." (Blount's Tenures, p. 237.)

STATUTES OF ARMS. 257
the king in Parliament, " and the king shall provide
remedy therein." (*)
Another Statute of Arms was passed (27th
Edward I., 1298), making some further alterations,
and an important one in the fact of requbing, for
the first time in England, that armed or barded
horses should be provided in the levies : —
"De assidendo homines ad arma, et deUgendo
homines pedites."
"Le Rey ad ordene qe sire Thomas de FurnivaU
voit en les contees de Notingham et de Derb', de eslire,
trier, ordener et asseer gentz d'armes en meismes les
contez, ausi bien a chival come a pie, de toutz ceus
qui sont de age d'entre vint anns e seissaunte : ensi qe
chescun qe eyt xxx. liverees de terre, seit mis a un
chival covert, e de seissaunte Uverees, a deus chivaux
covertz, e se vers mount de chescune xxx. Uverees de
terre, a un chival covert. E s'U eit plus avant qe xxx.
Uveree de terre e ne mie seisaunte, qe en ceo qe il
avera entre les xxx. Uvereez, seit joint e mis a un
autre qe serra de meisme la condition," &c.
" Don' a Noef Chastel sur Tyne, le xxv. jour de
Novembre." (2)
These statutes were repealed, or part of them, statute of
by the 4th and 5th of PhUip and Mary, and the Mary.
weapons were changed for others of more modern
service. By this later act it was provided that aU temporal
Q) This statute was only repealed by the 21st Jas. I., c. 128,
in 1623. (2) Pat, 27 Edw. I., m. 40 — Rymer, vol. i„ pt. ii., p. 901.
VOL. I. R

258 THE BRITISH ARMY.
persons having estate of a thousand pounds or up
wards, should, from the 1st of May, 1558, keep six
horses or geldings able for demi-lances, three of them
at least to have sufficient harness, steel saddles, (J) .
and weapons requisite for the said demi-lances; and
ten light horses or geldings able for light horsemen-;
also forty corpselets (sic) furnished, (3) forty almaine
rivetts,(3) or forty coats of plate (4) corselets or brigan-
dines (5) furnished ; forty pikes, thirty long-bows,
thirty sheaves of arrows, (6) thbty steel caps or skulls,
twenty black-biUs(7) or halberts, twenty haquebuts, (8)
(') The bows covered with steel.
(2) i.e., Complete. The corselet was a species of armour chiefly
worn by pikemen, who were thence often denominated corselets;
strictly speaking, the corselet meant only that part which covered the
body, but was generally used to express the whole suit, under the
term of a corselet furnished or complete.
(3) Probably armour made flexible by means of rivets, invented in
or imported from Germany.
(4) Made of thin plates of iron.
(6) The name is derived from the troops by whom they were first
worn ; who were a kind of light-armed, irregular foot, frequently
mentioned by Froissart, and by their extreme poverty much addicted
to plunder, which eventually made their name synonymous with
marauder. The brigandine was composed of a number of small
plates of iron, sewed upon quilted linen or leather through a small
hole in the centre of each plate, their edges laid over each other
like tiles. These scales were often covered over with leather or
cloth, so as to have the appearance of common coats. (See Plate
XXXV. Brigandine preserved at Warwick Castle. A very perfect
specimen, even to the lacings and the padding necessary to keep
out the part overhanging the waist. Brigahdines were generally
worn by archers, but Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was
painted by Zucchero in this fashion, a.d. 1560. This portrait is at
Parham.) (6) A sheaf contained twenty-four arrows.
(7) A species of halbert, not commonly kept bright, whence they
were called black or sometimes brown bills.
(8) A hand-gun, called haque or hook-but, from its stock being
hooked or bent.

No. 35.

BiTgandine Jacket, preserved in Warwick Castle, and now set up in the Hall.
This specimen is most perfect, even to the lacings, and the padding
necessary to keep out the part overhanging the waist. It was generally
worn by archers ; but Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was painted by
Zucchero in this fashion (see Leicester figure, pi. 43, vol. ii.). a.d. 1560.

THE BILL FOR GREAT HORSES. 259
and twenty morians 0 or saUets. Then follows a
classification of persons whose incomes ranging from
" 1,000 marks and upwards, and under the clear yearly
value of £1,000," were charged rateably for the main
tenance of ten horses and a proportionate amount of
armour, down to the humble possessor of " goods to
the amount of £10, and above or under £20," who
was bound only to furnish " one long bo we, one sheaf
of arrows, a steel cap or skuU, and one black-biU or
halbert." This act, while it repealed the former statutes,
confirmed the provisions of the 33rd Henry VIII. c. 5,
entitled, " The BiU for Great Horses," which is suffi
ciently curious to deserve extracting. It set forth,
that nobles and other subjects of this realm, having
parks, should keep mares and find stallions for breed
and increase of horses for defence of the realm
 and aU and any other person temporal not
afore-mentioned (certain dignitaries are excepted)
whose wife — not being divorced nor wiUingly ab
senting herself — shaU wear any gown of sUk, or whose
wife shaU wear any French hood or bonnet of velvet,
with any habiUment past or egge (2) of gold, pearl or
stone, or any chain of gold about her neck or in theb
partletts, or in any apparel of their body, shaU keep

(') An open helmet without visor or beaver, worn by the arque-
busiers and musketeers. Guillim says it took its name from being
commonly worn by the Moors.
(2) The meaning of these terms has been frequently discussed,
but no satisfactory explanation of them has been given. The object
of this sumptuary law was, of course, to restrain extravagance in
apparel, as well as to tax those who could afford -luxuries.
R 2

260 THE BRITISH ARMY.
or sustain one stoned trotting-horse for the saddle;
and if the wife of any person (except as before) wear
any velvet in the Uning or other part of her gown
other than in the cuffs or purfels of such gown, then
her husband shaU find one stoned trotting-horse of
the stature aforesaid, to wit, in height xnij handfuls,
reckoning to every handful four inches, to be measured
from the nether part of the hair of the hough unto
the upper part of the wydersomes,^) that is to say,
the upper part of the shoulder.
Commissioners of Musters were to view arms and
armour, and the inhabitants of cities, boroughs, &c,
other than such as are speciaUy charged before in
this act, were directed to keep and maintain at theb
common charges such harness and weapons as shall
be appointed by the commissioners of the king and
queen, to be kept in such places as the said com
missioners shall appoint,
"Any souldier seUing horse, harness, and weapons,
or any of them, contrary to the statute 2 and 3
Edward VI., shall incur the penalties of the said
statute, and such sale shall be void, the person
knowing him to be a souldier."
The servants of such persons as are bound to find
haquebuts', might exercise themselves in shooting at
such marks as are limited and appointed by the 33rd
Henry VIII. (which see in cross-bows), so tbat they
do not use such haquebuts in any highway, unless
it be coming or going to or from any musters, or
marching towards or from the service or defence of
0 WiiheTs.^Compare 27th Hen. VIII., cap. 6.

PROS AND CONS OF THE SYSTEM. 261
the realm. The Lord ChanceUor, or the Lord Keeper
of the Great Seal, may from time to time, by virtue
of the King's commission, appoint commissioners in
any city, borough, &c, as weU in England as in
"Wales, consisting of justices, with other persons
joined with them, as he shaU think meet, to take
a view of armour, and to assign what harness, &c,
shaU be kept.
These statutory enactments for the security and
defence of the kingdom superseded the necessity of
a standing army, and were free, perhaps, from some
of its inconveniences. The theory of this system
was admbable. The male population, armed for
the defence of the native soil, seems the natural
strength and protection of a country ; and the power
of the sovereign depending on the loyalty of his
subjects, would appear to be, on sUght observation,
the true basis on which an army of free citizens
should be formed. But it was this very feeling of
dependence on the part of the sovereigns that induced
them to engage mercenaries in theb service, for they
found that they could possess no real power without
them. Moreover, the perpetual defence of the marches
or borders of the kingdom, next to the then hostUe
populations of Scotland and Wales, and the supply
of foreign garrisons and castle-guards at home,
made an absolute requirement for a more continuous
service than the temporary one provided by the feudal
levies.

CHAPTER X.
FOKEIGN MERCENARIES EMPLOYED BY OUR EARLY KINGS — MAGNA CHARTA
— MODE OP LEVYING TROOPS BY EDWARD II. — BY EDWARD III. —
INDENTURES  EFPECTS OF WARS UPON POPULATION — MILITARY PRO
FESSION PROFITABLE —FACILITY OF RAISING ARMIES — BISHOP OF
NORWICH AND THE URBANISTS AND CLEMENTINES.
Mercenary All our kings, from WiUiam I. to Edward II., con-
tinuaUy employed mercenaries. The Conqueror not
only imported foreigners —
"De par tut manda soldeiers"^) — Rom. de Rou.
but, as a counterpoise to the factious Normans, he
armed one nationality against the other, and main
tained bodies of English soldiers in his pay. (3) The
(') The words soldier, stipendiary, and mercenary, all conveying a
different signification, are etymologically identical. Soldier is derived
from solde, pay; or souldier, as it was anciently written, from
soudoyer, to keep in pay . Stipendiary from stipendium, and mercenary
from merces, wages or hire. Custom, perhaps, made the difference
the first signifying the native constitutional military ; stipendiary,
troops raised by pay at home ; mercenaries, soldiers hired abroad,
The preface to the 11th vol. of Recueil des Historians, p. 232, notices
the word soUdarii, for hired soldiers, as early as 1030. (Vide note to
Hallam's Middle Ages, i., ch. ii.) — " Souldiers," says a Dutch author,
" take their name from the Dutch word soldye, which signifies pay
or stipend; profit being one of the ends why men undertake the
military profession, and honour not the only (though the chiefest) of
their aims." (MiUtarie Instruction for the Cavalerie, according to the
Moderne Warrs. Transl. a.d. 1632.)
(2) "Bex stipendarios milites suos Anglos congregat." (Matt.
Paris, p. 12.)

MODE OF RAISING TROOPS. 263
practice of hiring foreigners became a growing evil,
naturaUy much disliked by the country generally ; so
that when at length the subjects obtained the power
of dictating to the sovereign, it formed one of the
exactions of Magna Charta that " as soon as peace
was restored, the king should send out of the kingdom
aU foreign soldiers, cross-bowmen, and stipendiaries,
who are come with horses and arms to the prejudice
of the people." (Clause 51.)
The reign of Edward II. is an important one
in the mUitary annals of this country. It was a
transition period, when the feudal tenures began
to lose their efficacy; for a new mode of raising
the forces was started, which rapidly deprived the
baronage of its feudal character, and caused a, radical
change in the constitution. In the 4th Edward II.
one foot-soldier was requested from each township, as
a voluntary aid ; but in the 9th a grant was made in
the Parliament held at Lincoln, by which one foot-
soldier was charged upon every township throughout
the kingdom, without any distinction of tenure,^)
cities, boroughs, and royal demesnes only excepted : a
township where a market was held might be charged
with even a greater number of men. This was
granted by the " magnates " and " communitas " of
the kingdom, under pressure of the war against the
Scots. One able-bodied soldier was to be arrayed in
aketon and bacinet, and armed with sword, bow and

(') " Que chescune ville du dit Boyaumeluitrouve un home de pe
forceble et defensable." (Pat. Rot, 9 Edw. II.) — See Palgrave's Pari.
Writs, ii. 170.

264 THE BRITISH ARMY.
arrows, sUngs, lances, and other arms fit for foot-
soldiers. The inhabitants of the townships were to
provide such arms, and also to pay the wages of the
soldier, untU he should be marched to the place of
muster, and from thence for sixty days more — to wit,
at the rate of fourpence per diem; and the king
agreed to grant his letters patent, for himself and
his hebs, that such grant should not be drawn into
a precedent for the future.
Troops sup- Edward III.'s armies were emphaticaUy national ;
indenture, for he initiated a custom of contracting — or indenting,
as it was legally termed — with individuals to furnish
soldiers for the Crown at certain wages, and upon
certain conditions ; and he appears to have contracted
only with his subjects.^) The contracting parties
were usuaUy persons of influence, such as bishops and
barons ; and this mode of raising troops approached
so far our modern means of recruiting our armies
that men were native-born, hired to fight, and not
obUged to serve. Instances of such indentures" with
the king's subjects, which were not common before
this period, are preserved in our national records.
In Dugdale's Baronage there are many in
stances of pecuniary considerations for supplying
armed men entered into between king and subject.
As a proof of the power exercised by the king and ¦
(^ There are instances of indentures of foreign military service
much earlier than this. Among the Cottonian charters (Cart. Antiq.,
Cotton., xxix. 65) there is a short deed of agreement, in old Prench, of
Adam de Gesomue with Prince Edward, afterwards King Edward I.,
in 1270, to go with him to the Holy Land, and remain with him one
year, the prince giving him for the service of himself and suite 600
marks. (Vide note to Ellis's Grig. Letters, 2 S., vol. i., p. 98.)

ARMY OF EDWARD III. 265
council over the liberties and property of a subject,
Sir Hugh Ansley had engaged to serve in Henry V.'s
army in France; but having remained in England,
he was brought before the council, committed to the
Fleet Prison, and his lands were seized into the king's
hands. The case is printed in Nicolas' Proceedings
of the Privy Council, ii. 102.
The army which Edward III. led over to France,
previous to the battle of Crecy, was composed of
EngUsh, Welsh, and Irish. (x) This is what Froissart
calls purs Anglais, when the forces were raised within
(J) A manuscript muster-roll of this famous army, when afterwards
laying siege to Calais, is preserved, and is further valuable as giving
not only the numbers, but also the pay of the different ranks : —
The prince received .... per diem £100
Bishop of Durham . . . . „ 0 6 8
13 earls, each  „ 0 6 8
44 barons and bannerets . . . „ 0 4 0
1,046 knights  „ 0 2 0
4,022 esquires, constables, captains, and
leaders (constdbularid, centenarii et
ductores)  , 0 10
5,104 vintenars and archers on horse
back  0 0 6
335 paunceners (Brady says, " they were
most strangers, but what otherwise I
know not "), 15,480 foot archers . „ 0 0 3
314 masons, carpenters, smiths, engi
neers, tent-makers, armourers, gunners,
and artillerymen, at 12d., 10d., 6d.,
and  „ 0 0 3
4,474 Welsh foot, of whom 200 vintenars
at  - 0 0 4
The rest at  , 0 0 2
The whole number of the army was, besides the lords, 31,294.
Masters, captains, mariners, and boys, for 700 ships, barges, balingers,
and victuallers, 16,000. (Brady, vol. ii., p. 87, App. ; edit. 1700.— Ex
Rotulo quodam penes Arth. Agard, Thes. in Novo Palatio, Westm.)
(The original, stated to be in Latin, is not found in the Record Office.)

266 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the realm ;(*) "Anglais" and "Francais" being then
often used as generic terms to denote aU those, of
whatever country, who fought under the English or
French banners. (a) " There were very few strangers,"
he says ; " only Sir Oulphant de GruesteUes, from the
country of Hainault, and five or six knights from
Germany, whose names I have forgotten." There
might be about 4,000 men-at-arms, and 10,000
archers, not including the Irish and Welsh, who
foUowed the army on foot. (3) As this army con
sisted of upwards of 30,000 men, it foUows that there
was a large proportion of Irish and Welsh. (4)
But King Edward on this occasion did not only
make use of hired troops ; he thought it requisite, on
account of the importance of the occasion, to put
forth all the powers of the Crown. He summoned
every man-at-arms in the kingdom, if in good health,
to attend personaUy, otherwise to send a substitute;
and aU men who held lands of the yearly value of £5,
or upwards, were ordered to furnish men-at-arms,
hobilers, and archers, in proportion1 to their income.
Non-compUance was punishable with forfeiture and
imprisonment.^) This was a Uttle less than what
was termed in France a levee en masse. These levies

(') Froissart pays the English a compliment in saying that Philip
von Arteveldt, the Fleming, was "pivr Anglois de courage." (ii. 216.)
(2) " Quand ils percurent la banniere du connetable issir hors, et
les Bretons aussi, ils connurent tant6t qu'il y avoit trahison de leurs
pillarts, et qu'ils s'etoient tournes Francois." (Froissart, i. 664.)
(3) Johnes, vol. i., ch. cxx., p. 151.— Buchon, i., p. 217.
(4) The " Welsh foot " we have seen given at 4,474 in the muster-
roll. (5) Rot. Pari, ii. 160, 170.— Eymer, sub an. 1346.

ROYAL PREROGATIVE. 267
were so bksome, that great complaints arose, and the
Parliament frequently remonstrated. The king urged
the necessity of extraordinary action to meet the
emergency; and the measures by which he endea
voured to supply his wants ultimately proved a
benefit to the subject, by provoking that resistance
which confined the prerogative of the Crown in
more moderate Umits : and at length he gave his
consent to a statute that " none shaU be constrained
to find men-at-arms, hobUers, or archers, other than
those who held by such services, if it be not by
common assent and grant made in ParUament " (1)
— a statutory recognition of the illegality of forced
levies not warranted by the constitution. But
Edward generally found means to evade it, on the
plea of necessity ; and the Commons were compeUed
to be content with a promise that the past should
not be drawn into a precedent for the future; and
several of our sovereigns, in the - face of this pro
hibitory act, obUged districts, towns, corporations,
and even individuals, under the authority of the
royal prerogative, to find men, horses, and arms,
or to pay contributions for that purpose — not
always according to any regular proportions or
assessment, but allotted solely at his wiU and plea
sure. This arbitrary proceeding continued up to
the reigns of Henry VIII. and EUzabeth, when

(') 25 Edw. III., a.d. 1351-2, stat. v., cap. 8. " Que nul home soit
arte de trover gentz d'armes, hobelours, ne archers, autres qi ceux qi
teignent per tiels servicez, s'il ne soit per comun assent et grante en
Parlement."

268 THE BRITISH ARMY.
it was frequently practised. A curious abstract of
the different sovereigns who have exercised this
prerogative was drawn up by Sb Robert Cotton,
apparently by command of James I., and is preserved
in the library which bears his name. (Julius, fol. 6.
— See also Grose, Mil. Antiq., i., p. 71.)
In 1359 Edward III. landed at Calais with a
great army, which Froissart says was the most
numerous and the best organised that ever left Eng
land. He found a host of foreigners, of high and
low degree, awaiting his arrival ; German mercenaries,
who had equipped themselves at great private ex
pense, in hopes of joining the army of the popular
commander, and anticipating great gains by the pU-
lage of fertile France, (f) Edward, however, decUned
taking them into his service, alleging that he brought
over a sufficiency of his own subjects for his require
ments ; but if they chose to serve with his army,
without pay, they were at Uberty to do so, and they
would participate largely in aU gains of war.
Cost of It does not reqube much imagination to reaUse
Wars. .
at what a cost of human Ufe, and at what a sacrifice
of domestic industry, these continual drains upon the
scanty population of England must have been effected.
The reigns of our Edwards have been justly cele
brated as the most glorious in our' annals; but during
a period wherein there were scarcely ten years of
peace, the splendid victories abroad must have been
(') " Ainsi attendoient tous ces seigneurs allemands miessenakes, ;
Hesbegnons, Brabancons, Flamands et Hainuyers, povres et riches,
la venue du roi d'Angleterre." (Froissart, i. 414.)

PAUCITY OF LABOURERS. 269
attended with a vast amount of suffering at home,
and the acquisition of foreign territory could not
have compensated for the loss of inhabitants in Eng
land. There was another great cause which mUitated
against the progression of population in Edward III.'s
time, if not in that of the others — pestilence went
hand in hand with war. (:)
In 1349 the Legislature took cognisance of the statute of
¦ j?). n Ol 1 Y ^ V fi
paucity of inhabitants, and the Statute of Labourers
was passed. It recited in the preamble, " that whereas
a great part of the people, and especiaUy of workmen
and servants, late died of the pestUence, many, seeing
the necessity of masters and great scarcity of servants,
wiU not serve unless they receive excessive wages,
some being rather willing to beg in idleness than by
labour to get their Uving," &c. " The grievous in-
commodities which of the lack, especiaUy of plough
men and such labourers," were endeavoured to be
obviated by a variety of enactments, which sufficiently
prove to what a deplorable state of slavery the col
lective mass of the people was reduced. " Every able-
bodied person under sixty years of age, not having
sufficient to Uve on, being required, shall be bound
to serve him that doth reqube him, or else shall be
committed to gaol tUl he finds security to serve.
If a servant or workman depart from service before
the time agreed upon, he shaU be imprisoned. If

(') "There were no fewer than one-and-twenty dearths and
famines from 1069 to 1355. See a collection of the most remarkable
dearths and famines, published by Edward Hoare in 1631." (Notes
to Chalmers' Estimate of Great Britain, 1810, p. 8.)

270 THE BRITISH ARMY.
any artificer take more wages than were wont to be-
paid, he shaU be committed to gaol." And by the
34th Edward III., " If any labourer or servant flee to
any town, the chief officer shaU deliver him up ; and
if they depart to another county, they shall be burnt
in the forehead with the letter F."
Population. The population recorded in Domesday-book is
about 283,000 ; which, in round numbers, aUowing
for women and children, may be caUed about a
miUion^1) Towards the end of Edward III.'s reign,
about 300 years afterwards, the inhabitants of England'
and Wales are estimated at under two millions and a
half.(3) This calculation is founded on a subsidy-roll
stUl in existence. In 1377 (51 Edward III.) a poll-
tax of fourpence was imposed on every lay person*
as weU male as female, of fourteen years and upwards,
real mendicants only excepted. Having as data the
number of those who paid the tax, and by ascer
taining the proportion that persons under fourteen''
years bear to a population (and it appears that they
are a good deal fewer than one-third of the co-existing
lives), and adding the number of the clergy, we arrive
at the approximate amount of inhabitants. The
counties of Cheshbe and Durham, being privileged to
have their own receivers, are not included in this roU ;
but aUowing half as many again for omissions to the
number of those recorded to have paid the tax, the
product is 2,353,203 souls; that is (supposing this
(*) Ellis's Introduction to Domesday, ii. 511.
(2) Chambers's Estimate of the Comparative Strength of Great
Britain.— See also Notes to Hallam's Cons. Hist, i. 8.

COMPARATIVE REMUNERATION. 271
calculation to be correct), England and Wales together,
at the demise of Edward III., contained a smaller
population than is at present comprised by London
alone. (*)
The reflection is at least a curious one, as to what
state we should now have arrived, had it not been
for the diminishing processes of wars, tumults, and
famines. The profession of a soldier was by no means an Rates of
unprofitable one at this period. The Parliament ay'
attempted the impracticable scheme of interfering
with the price of labour after the pestUence. A
reaper in the first week of August was not aUowed
above twopence a day; in the second week, a third
more. A master carpenter was Umited throughout
the whole year to threepence a day, a common
'journeyman to twopence — money of that age; whereas '
the daily pay of a common foot-soldier was ordinarily
sixpence. (2) Money was then at least ten times its
present value. This, with the contingent allowance
of " regards," plunder, and the ransom of prisoners,
made campaigning lucrative, and was no doubt a
great attraction to that innumerable corps of
"rascaUes" that foUowed in the wake of every army.
(*) A copy of the subsidy-roll is given, with some observations,
by Mr. Topham, in Archaeol., vol. vii., p. 337. The calculations
founded on it, will be found in Chambers' Estimate of Great Britain
(1810), pp. 12— 14.
(2) Dugdale's Bar., i. 784, 4 Edw. III.— The Earl of Lancaster
" took for himself eight shillings per diem, for every banneret four
shillings, for every knight two shillings, every esquire twelve pence,
and every archer six pence." In Edward III.'s Calais army list, the
foot-archers received 3d. per diem, and the meanest of the Welsh
foot, 2d. only ; still the instances of the higher pay are frequent.

War.

272 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The rapidity with which armies could be raised
in the time of scanty population is a proof of the
popularity of campaigning. Moreover, archers and
other foot-soldiers who had served in the wars, were,
on their return home, unwilling to sit down in the
humble station of bondmen to their former lords.
Bishop of Nor- ^ curious instance of an army being raised and
wich and ... . .
"Anti-popes" commanded by an individual — who, in this case,
was a dignitary of the Church — occurred in the
sixth year of Richard II. (a.d. 1382), when Henry
Spenser, the warlike Bishop of Norwich — whom
Archbishop Parker described to have been "mUitise
quam theologise peritior" — raised an army, (*) with
the sanction of the king, to fight against the Cle
mentines — that is, all those who supported the pre-.
tensions of Clement to be Pope : for, on the death
of Gregory XL, in 1378, there were two Popes
elected — one by the French party (who. wished to
have the Papal See retained at Avignon), who took
the name of Clement VII. ; the other, styled
Urban VI., by the Italians and others, who desbed
to restore the seat of the Papacy to Rome. AU the
nations of Christendom, according to theb interests
or incUnations, were divided between these two

(:) However discreditable to the precision of historians, it is often
amusing to compare the conflicting accounts of authors. For instance,
in giving the number of men employed in this expedition, Froissart
says they were, "on the whole, about 500 lances and 1,500 other
men" (Johnes, i., ch. cxxxii., p. 757).— Buchon, " Environ six cenB
lances et quinze cens d'autres gens" (tome ii., p. 267). — Kennett,
"15,000 foot and 2,000 horse."— Hume, "Near 60,000 bigots."—
Grose, "2,500 men-at-arms and 2,500 archers." — Baker (Chron., p.
153), " 3,000 horse and 15,000 foot."

WAR OF THE " ANTI-POPES." 273
pontiffs. The Court of France declared, of course,
for Clement, and was followed by its aUies, the Kings
of Castile and Scotland. England, naturally, was
thrown into the other party, and pronounced for
Urban. Thus the appellations of Clementines and
Urbanists distracted Europe for several years. This
was caUed " the war of the anti-popes." Urban sent
over to England a hecatomb of buUs, offering in
dulgences to those who would take an active part in
his cause ; so that the Bishop of Norwich was justi
fied in the wariike view he took of it, and which,
moreover, seems to have suited his natural incUna-
tion. His proceedings at the head of his army are
so characteristic of the man and of the times, that
they wiU weU repay perusal in the pages of Froissart :
a very short epitome wUl give an bsight into the
facts as related by that chronicler. It appears that
the bishop had no difficulty in coUecting his army,
on account of his personal popularity and the holiness
of the cause. Having taken leave of the king, they
departed, via Sandwich, for Calais, where they were
to wait (by the king's orders) one month, for the
arrival of Sir William Beauchamp, an officer of ex
perience appointed by the king: to take the command
of the army as marshal, he being then occupied in a
diplomatic capacity in Scotland. They arrived at
Calais on the 23rd of April, 1383; and by the 4th
of May, the bishop could bear the state of inactivity
no longer. He was young and wilful, and had already
broken a lance on the plains of Lombardy ; and he
declared that the king had forgotten them, and that
vol. i. s

274 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the army must be prepared to take the field in three
days. He was determined to fight some one ; and as
it was not convenient to attack the dominions of
France with, his smaU force, he announced his inten
tion of leading them against Flanders, although it
was pointed out to him, in remonstrance, that the
Count of Flanders and aU his people were as staunch
Urbanists as they were, and that they (the English)
were under an engagement to attack Clementines
only. But the bishop was not to be disappointed,
and so, when the morning came, the trumpet sounded,
and off they marched to Gravelines, in number about
3,000 " tetes armees." The tide was out, and so they
rode to the entrance of the port, and thus effected an
entrance. They afterwards attacked and pillaged a
church, and kiUed a great many men, women, and
children, who had taken refuge there ; and they suc
ceeded in making themselves masters of the town,
where they found themselves in very pleasant quarters.
By this time the whole country began to be aroused —
no one more so than the Earl of Flanders himself,
who forthwith dispatched a deputation to wait upon
the bishop to ask an explanation of the cause of this
extraordinary irruption into his territory, without
notice or any previous defiance ; and should the
reply not be satisfactory, the ambassadors were
instructed to apply for passports for England, that
they might lay the matter before the king. The
bishop dismissed them summarily, teUing them that
they might return to their master if they pleased,
but as for passports for England, they should not

THE FIGHTING BISHOP OF NORWICH. 275
have them ; and, on the same day, he led the army
to Dunkbk, where he heard there were " upwards of
12,000 men armed." Some of his principal officers
ventured again a remonstrance. " We do not make
war Uke gaUant men," said they, "but like robbers.
The whole country where we are is Urbanist, like
ourselves. What just cause have we for attackmg
them?" "How do we know that they are Urban-
ists?" answered the bishop. "In God's name,"
said Sb Hugh Calverley, " let us send a herald and
ascertain." So a herald was sent forward, in his
proper coat-of-arms, but, by misadventure, he was
kiUed by the country people in ignorance, before
the gentlemen could save him. The bishop, of
course, was deUghted. Now was a good and suffi
cient casus belli. The English went at the town tooth
and nail, and it was carried with great slaughter
of the Dunkirkers ; (J) the English lost at least 400.
Success continued to attend the EngUsh arms, and
under the command of the bishop they made them
selves masters of aU the coast from Gravelines to
Sluys, and laid siege to Tpres. The King of France
(Charles VI.) thought that it was now time for him
to interfere, and issued his summons throughout the
kingdom for the army to assemble and meet him at
Arras on the 15th of August ; and a magnificent force
attended him there. Froissart says that there were
in this army about 350,000 horses. (3) When the
bishop and the rest heard of this imposing force that
(l) Froissart says full 9,000 Flemings were killed, (ii. 273.)
(2) Ibid., p. 280.
s- 2

276 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was marching against them, they dbectly broke up
the siege and " decamped." (*) The French pursued,
and took Cassel by storm, putting all the EngUsh to
death ; and Sir Hugh Calverley and 3,000 men with
him were besieged at Bergues ; the Bishop of Norwich,
however, was not there, he having retired to Grave-
Unes, to be nearer to Calais, should there be occasion
to embark in a hurry. Calverley and his men made
an escapade from Bergues ; Bourbourg was surren
dered; peace was made very shortly afterwards, and
the English retired to Calais, where the bishop was
sorely found fault with for having so badly em
ployed the Pope's money ; and awaiting a favourable
wind they sailed to England, where it may be sup
posed that their reception was none of the warmest.
Some of the commanders in the expedition were fined
and imprisoned ; the bishop was fined and disgraced,
but was subsequently pardoned. (See his Life, by
Capgrave, in Wharton's Anglia Sacra, U. 359.)
(') i.e., broke up their camp.

CHAPTER XL
HENRY V.'s ARMY RAISED BY INDENTURES — PREST MONEY — JEWELS IN
PAWN FOR PAY — HENRY VI. — ARMY RECRUITED WITH PARDONED
CRIMINAXS — WELSHMEN AND CORNISHMEN — IRISHMEN — THE SCOTCH,
THEIR MODE OP WARFARE.
When, in 1415, Henry V. had decided on making Henry'sArmy
good his pretensions to the crown of France, or as it ow Raised-
is expressed in one of his proclamations, " Seigneur le
Roi pris avec ferme propos de faire un viage a la
grace de Dieu, en sa propre personne, pour le recouvrir
de son heritage,'^1) he made every possible exertion
to raise the requisite number of men for so great an
enterprise. He had not only to prepare an army of
invasion, but he had also to provide for the internal
safety of the realm, as it was next to certain that so
soon as the king should be out of the country, the old
national enemies, the Scots, would be in. So he
organised a force of lancers and archers, which was
deemed sufficient for the defence of the borders, and
of the East and West Marches, towards Scotland;
and a force of 100 lancers and 200 archers, to overawe
North and South Wales, a force which, to our notions,
(:) Bymer, sub anno.

278 THE BRITISH ARMY.
would appear ridiculously small for the purpose ; and
he also provided for the defences of the Marches of
Calais 100 lances, and 300 archers for the sea. But
these forces, which we may calf regular and perma
nent for the time being, were backed up by a sub
sidiary local force of great amount. The king issued
orders, on the 28th of May, to the Archbishop of Can
terbury and other bishops, immediately to array the
clergy of their respective dioceses, as well religious as
secular, exempt or not exempt, according to theb con
ditions and means, for the defence of the realm, and to
certify, under their seals in Chancery, the state and
number of the army, by the 16th of the ensuing
month. (x) Commands for the same purpose were given
to some of the principal knights and esqubes of each
county, to take a review of aU the men-at-arms, and
others capable of bearing arms, as well hobilers as
archers, to divide them into companies of thousands,
hundreds, and twenties, and to keep them in readi
ness for resisting an enemy. (a)
Copies of a great many indentures executed on
this occasion by the king and individuals are printed
in Rymer's Foedera, and translations of two, from the
old Norman-French, are given in the appendix to
Sir Harris Nicolas' Agincourt. Since these publica
tions a mass of further* information has been brought
to bear on these points, compiled from the gradual
development of the national records; and original
documents, which for centuries have lain buried, have
(J) Bymer, sub anno 1415.
(2) Ibid.

INDENTURES OF MILITARY SERVICE. 279
recently been brought to Ught. Specimens of some
of these interesting instruments have been printed by
Mr. Hunter, (*) and they give us a wonderful insight
into the mUitary arrangements of the age.
It appears that, antecedently to the actual com
mencement of the campaign, there were three distinct
Undertakings entered into by the contracting parties,
viz. — 1. Indentures of military serviee. 2. Receipt
of prest money. 3. Jewels in pawn.
The indentures of miUtary service were agree- indentures
ments to serve the king abroad for one entire year,
with a determinate number of able men, properly
equipped, either men-at-arms and archers, or archers
only, as the case might be, at a stipulated amount of
pay and bounty (gages et regards), to be calculated
according to the nature of the service and the distance
of the field of action. The items of pay are specifi-
caUy set down; and it wiU be remarked that they
were apportioned according to social, and not military,
position. Thus, a duke had 13s. 4d. a day; an earl,
6s. 8d. ; a baron or banneret (for theb pay was the
same), 4s. ; a knight, 2s. ; a man-at-arms, Is., and an
archer, 6d. There was also the further advantage of
what is mentioned as the "regard accustumez,"
which may be termed "the ordinary fee or perquisite,"
which was 100 marks per quarter for every thirty
men-at-arms. Besides reciting the amount of pay,
with the time and manner of payment, these inden
tures contain divers covenants respecting the sharing
of prisoners of war, or booty that might happen to be
Q) Critical and Historical Tracts, No. 1.

280 THE BRITISH ARMY.
taken by the contractor or his men, (l) ransom being
then, as it has abeady been observed, one of the
principal emoluments arising from mUitary service.
If the prisoner were a man of eminent distinction,
he was to be the property of the king absolutely ; but
the ransom of prisoners of inferior note, or anything
taken above the value of ten marks, was to be divided
in thbds between the king and the captor.
1. Indentures of miUtary service. The king
covenants to pay haU of the first quarter's wages in
advance. This was the prest-money. (2) And here
upon we are presented with a curious picture of the
king's necessities, and with the low estimation of
regal good faith. For not only was Henry obliged
to pay beforehand, but, what appears humiUating for
a monarch, he had to give security for the regular
discharge of the remainder; for which purpose he
pledged a great amount of Crown jewels, with a
quantity of plate, to his soldiers as security for theb ,
wages, which were not redeemed tiU after his death.
"Avery unfavourable impression of the royal dignity,"
observes Sir Harris Nicolas, "is produced by these
(x) These are called " gaignes de guerre." " Our sa Lord the King
shall have as well the third part of the gaignes de guerre of the s"
Count (Earl of Oxenford) as the third of the third part of the gaignes
of the people of his retinue in the voyage taken, as the gaignes of
the prisoners, money and all gold and silver and jewels exceeding the
value of ten marks," &q. (Translated from copy of original docu
ment in Mr. Hunter's Tract, No. 1.)
(2) From the old French prest (pret), ready. A sort of earnest
money, or part of their wages paid in advance on engaging them.
" On pent de plus ici observer le terme de prest, qui est encore
aujourdhui en usage parmi les troupes, pour signifier une avance de
quelque argent qu'on fait aux soldats." — Mil. Fran., i., liv. iv., ch. ii.

REFLECTIONS ON ROYAL HONOUR. 281
contracts ; for whilst they prove the king's extreme
poverty, they estabUsh the degrading fact that the
humblest esquire in his retinue would not embark
under his banner without receiving half a year's wages
in advance, or a piece of plate, a fragment of the
royal diadem, or some other valuable article, as secu
rity for payment. This caution must have arisen
from experience of its necessity; and it may be
inferred that the laurels that adorned the brows of
some of our early monarchs were gained by services
which they repaid with treachery and falsehood."
(Battle of Agincourt, p. 23.)
2. Indentures of receipt of prest money reqube Prest Money.
no further explanation; they are, in fact, a dis
charge for the payment of a quarter's service, before
the service had been performed. The Earl of
Arundel and Surrey, the Lord Treasurer of Eng
land, is in these the contracting party for the king.
(See a specimen of one of these indentures in Mr.
Hunter's Tract Agincourt, p. 16.)
3. Jewels in pawn : acknowledgments for the Jewels in
receipt of Crown jewels and plate in pledge, the
person receiving them entering into indenture with
Richard Courtney, Bishop of Norwich, treasurer of
the king's household, for their safe custody, and the
return of them to the Royal treasury, when the king
had fulfilled his part of the contract'. These pledges
were not redeemed till after the king's death, by
Henry VI. (Rymer, ix. 286.— Sloane MS., 4,600, f.
503.) Many of these indentures contained a cove
nant, that if not redeemed within a certain period they

282 THE BRITISH ARMY-
might become the property of, or be disposed of by,
the holder. CoUectively, these indentures impress
one with the great wealth of the old sovereigns of
England in silver and gold plate, jewels, and gold
smiths' work in general.
In Henry VI.'s reign, it would appear that
the captains indented with the king for their own
services and those of men hired by them. (l) Troops
thus levied, together with foreign mercenaries, make
the nearest approach that can be discovered in the
early affabs of the English monarchy to a perma
nent, or, as it is technically caUed, a standing army.
But the king's power was necessarily Umited by his
revenue; and the maintenance of a permanent force
seems to have been little regarded by our ancient i
sovereigns, as, until the times of the CivU War, the
few troops composing theb immediate body-guard
were the only permanent soldiers in England.
It appears that an expedient sometimes resorted
to, in order to procure volunteers for the king's mili
tary service, was to pardon criminals, on condition of
their serving in the army, and finding security to
answer any prosecution, if caUed upon, at theb
return. (3) Edward I., in order to strengthen the
army with which he was about to march to Scotland
in 1296, offered a fuU pardon to aU outlaws and
malefactors who should join it.(3) Edward III.
(i) "For such terms for which their masters have indented."
(18th Hen. YI., cc. 18 and 19.)
(2) " Si quis adversus eos loqui velit." (See Barrington's Observa
tions on the more Ancient Statutes.)
(3) Abbrev. Placit, 236.— Eot., i.

THE ARMY RECRUITED WITH FELONS. 283
granted a pardon to all felons that shall be ready to
serve the king in his wars(1). The king's justices
were occasionally empowered to issue these pardons. (z)
They were then assembled by writs issued to the
sheriffs of the different counties of England, dbect-
ing them to cause it to be cried throughout theb
districts .that aU such as had charters of pardon
should repab towards the sea, to enter into the pay
and service of the king. Those in the west, at Dart
mouth; those in the counties of Kent, Surrey, and
Sussex, at Winchelsea; those in Cambridge, Hunt
ingdon, Norfolk, Suffolk, Lincoln, Northampton, or
Rutland, and the neighbouring counties, at Yarmouth
and St. BotoU's ; so that they were there by a
stated time, under penalty of losing theb charters of
pardon. (3) This practice was continued, for we find
that, in 1563, prisoners in Newgate and the Fleet
were drafted into the army which Elizabeth was
coUecting, in order to fight the French. (Dom. MSS.,
Eliz., vol. xxvui.) The Act 2 Anne (1703-4), "for
discharging out of prison insolvent debtors as should
serve, or procure a person to serve, H.M.'s Fleets or
Armies," had very close affinity to this.
The ranks of the EngUsh armies were largely re
cruited from Wales and CornwaU, from whence active
and hardy troops were procured. The former are
found acting in great numbers in our wars. Edward I.,
with the usual policy of a conqueror, employed the
Welsh to assist him in his Scottish wars, for which
(') Rot. Franc, 17 Edw. III., quoted in Cottonian MS. Julius, f. 6.
(2) Rot. Vascon, anno Ed., M. 8, N. 11, MS. Telvert. Quoted by
Grose, i. 70. (3) Rot. Pari, anno 13 Edw. HI.

284 THE BRITISH ARMY. '
theb habits as mountaineers particularly fitted them.
But this poUcy was not without its risks. Previous to
the battle of Falkbk (a.d. 1298) the Welsh quarreUed
with the English men-at-arms, and, after bloodshed
on both sides, separated themselves from his army;
and the feud between them, at so critical a juncture,
was reconciled with difficulty. Edward II. foUowed
his father's example in this particular, with not much
better success. Clad only in scanty dresses of linen
cloth, they appeared naked in the eyes even of the
Scottish peasantry ; (l) and after the rout at Bannock-
burn were massacred by them in great numbers, as
they retired in confusion towards theb own country,
under the command of Sb Maurice de Berkeley.
The muster-roU of the besieging army of Calais*'
under Edward III., before quoted, gives "4,474
Welsh foot."
Their Arms. The lance, or glaive, was the weapon which they
are generaUy described as making use of. When the
Earl of Warwick went to attack them in their own
country, "hearing that a great "number of Welsh
men was assembled together, and lodged in a vaUey
betwixt two woods, he chose out a number of horse
men, with certain cross-bowmen and archers, and
coming upon the Welshmen in the night, compassed
them round about, the which pitching the end of
their spears in the ground, and turning the point
against theb enemies, stood at defence, and to keep
off the horsemen." (3) The mode of warfare of these
troops, Welsh and Cornish, does not appear to have
(x) Barbour's Bruce, p. 276.
(2) Holinshed, Edward I., a.d. 1295.

WARFARE OF WELSH AND CORNISH. 285
been always of the most honourable kind; for we
hear of them at Crecy as getting among the disabled
of aU ranks, and butchering them with the long
knives or short swords with which they were armed.
Johnes(1) and Buchon,(2) in their editions of Frois
sart, both denominate the Welsh and Cornish men
as the perpetrators of these cruelties, at which the
king is reported to have been much incensed, not
on account of the cruelty, but because " he had rather
they (the French) had been taken prisoners." But
Berners is more discreet, and does not specify the
nationaUties, merely recording that "amonge the
Englyshmen there were certayne rascalles that went
a fote with great knyves — they went in among the
men of armes, and slew and murdredde many as
they lay on the ground." (3) Whether "rascalles"
became a nom de guerre for Welsh and Cornish, as
brigands came to denote those particular troops who
Uved by piUage, does not appear.
At the above-mentioned siege, when aU the Battle of
chivaby of England were lying before the walls of
Calais, and the mother-country was almost denuded
of soldiers, we find some Welsh among the band of
gaUant men under Queen Philippa who were hastily
gathered together, and who successfully stopped the
irruption of David, King of Scotland, who, of course,
took advantage of the opportunity to march an army
into the EngUsh territory.
(J) B. i., ch. cxxix., p. 166.
(2) Tom. i., ch. ccxciii., p. 241.
(3) Yol. i., cap. cxxx., p. 157.

Nevil's Cross.

286 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Irish Troops. The Irish also, although their nation was in per
petual enmity with this country, contributed to the
successes of the English arms, as they have largely
in modern times. On account of the poverty of theb
country, the Irish were glad to escape and take service
anywhere, and they wiU be found fighting in the
ranks of most European nations.
In the sixteenth century some fifteen hundred of
them formed part of the auxiliary force dispatched by
Queen EUzabeth to the Netherlands. During the
expedition the English soldiers suffered much from the
want of proper clothing, an inconvenience from which
the Irish kernes were free ; for we are told they
habituaUy dispensed with clothing, an apron from
waist to knee being the only protection of these wild
Kelts, who fought with the valour, and nearly in the
costume, of Homeric heroes. ("O They are described
by all contemporaries, EngUsh and Flemish, as the
wUdest and fiercest of barbarians, eating raw flesh and
speaking no inteUigible language, fearing nothing and
sparing nothing, with as little regard for the laws of
Christian warfare as for those of civilised costume. (3)
The deputy, Senleger, in a letter to Henry VIII,
describes them thus : " One sorte be harnessed in mayle
and bassenettes, having every of them his weapon,
caUed a sparre, moche Uke the axe of the Towre, and
they be named galloglasse ; and for the more part ther
boyes beare for them thre dartes a piece, which dartes
0) Vide Motley's United Netherlands, ii. 38.
(2) Sir John Norris to Lord Burghley, 21st of Jan., 1587. (State
Paper Office MS.)

IRISH TROOPS. 287
they throwe or (before) they come to the hand strike :
they doo not lightly abandon the fielde, but byde the
brunt to the deathe. The other sorte, caUid kerne,
ar naked men, but only ther shurtes and small cotes ;
and many tymes whan they come to the bycker, but
bare nakyd saving ther shurtes, and those have dartes
and shorte bowes, which sorte of people be bothe hardy
and clever to serche woddes or maresses, in the whiche
they be harde to be beaten." (See note to Lingard,
sub. an. 1562, vol. vi., ch. iv., p. 315, edit. 1849.)
They may have been employed as hobUers, as the
term was for the Ught cavaby of early days, for the
hobbies, or smaU active horses, which were used in that
service, appear to have been abundant in Ireland.
Edward I. engaged them to assist him in his Scotch
wars.(a) It has already been stated that there was
a strong force of them under Edward III. at Crecy.
At the siege of Rouen, the appearance and conduct of
the Irish troops was highly praised. "During the
siege," says Holinshed, "there arrived at Harfleur,
the Lord of Kilmaine in Ireland, with a band of 1,600
Irishmen, in mail, with darts and skains, after the
manner of theb country, aU of them being tall, quick,
and nimble persons, which came and presented them
selves before the king, lying still at the siege, of
whom they were not only gently received and wel-
(') Roll endorsed " Conditions for engaging the Services of the
Earl of Ulster, and other Irish, to assist the King in the Scotch Wars.''
Temp. Edw. I. (Army and Navy Accts., Eecord Office. — See also
Bymer, i., pt. ii., p. 939.) — Earl of Ulster and others in Ireland to
serve the king in his wars against Scotland, with 2,000 foot soldiers
and 700 horse. (30 Edw. I.)

State of
Ireland.

288 THE BRITISH ARMY.
corned. They did theb devob so weU, that no men
were more praised,, nor did more damage with their
enemies than they did ; for surely their quickness and
swiftness of foot did more prejudice to theb enemies,
than theb barded horses did hurt or damage to the
nimble Irishmen.'^1)
A curious engraving, representing a group of wild
Irish, copied from an ancient MS., is given in Strutt's
Regal and Ecclesiastical Antiquities, p. 41. ,
There are two very curious accounts of Ireland
and the Irish in the fourteenth century, written by
two of the suite of Richard II. in his expedition to
that country in 1399 : one by Henry Cristall, an
English esquire, who was taken prisoner by the Irish,
and subsequently related his adventures to Froissart*
(Chron., xi, c. 24) ; the other by a French gentleman,
who has recorded the incidents of the campaign in a
Metrical History, translated and annotated upon in
Archaeologia, xx. The condition of Ireland at this
period was truly deplorable. The island was the
resort of outlaws, exUes, and adventurers of different
nations; it was peopled by savage tribes,, and by
settlers equaUy ferocious ; and the affairs of its govern
ment seemed to be in desperate and inextricable
confusion. In original documents respecting the state
of the country, the inhabitants are described under
three classes, "Wild Irish, rebeUious Irish, and
obedient EngUsh." (Bibl. Cott. MS., Titus, b. xi, f. 3.)
(') Chronicles, an. 6 Hen. V. (1418), p. 565— Grafton, p. 469 —
Hall, fol. xxviii. — And compare Chroniques d' Enguerrand de Men-
strelet, liv. i., ch. cciii., edit. Panth. litt., p. 441.

STATE OF IRELAND. 289
The " wild Irish " were the unsubdued natives who
had retbed to the interior fastnesses, the mountains,
bogs, and forests ; they were governed by their own
rude chiefs and laws, and looked upon all the rest as
their natural enemies. These were out of the protec
tion of the English laws, and it was often adjudged
no felony to kiU a mere Irishman in time of peace.
(Discovery of the True Cause why Ireland was never
entirely Subdued, by Sir John Davies, edit. 1747, p.
102, et seq.) "The rebeUious Irish" swere those
who were also called English by blood, and were in
part descended from the original conquerors, who had
intermarried with the natives, and adopted their dress
and manners, their language and customs. Theb
territory was caUed the English pale. " The obedient
EngUsh" were a confused medley of soldiers, mer
chants, men of needy or desperate fortunes, and those
whom the English Grovernment had entrusted with
authority. They occupied the principal towns and
cities, and small tracts around them, chiefly in Lein-
ster, and on the eastern and southern coasts.
Such a population, in such an age, rendered
Ireland "a land full of wars." (Camden, Annals of
Ireland, an. 1341.) Sometimes the septs were de
stroying each other ; at other times, they were making
inroads upon the English pale, or joining with the
great settlers in mutual ravages. Richard II. , in the
beginning of his reign, addressed a rebuke to his liege
subjects respecting their dissensions (Rymer, Donat.
MS., Brit. Mus., v. 121), which he followed up by
sending Edmund Mortimer as his lieutenant into the
VOL. I. T

290 THE BRITISH ARMY.
country. (Dugdale, Baron, i., 149.) His government,
however, lasted only two years, and after his death,
they gradually fell into such disorders that the king
found it necessary, in 1394, to interfere by his
presence. His enemies submitted, but at his depar
ture they scorned the weak forces that he had left
behind him, and relapsed into their former anarchy.(1)
In the reign of Elizabeth, amongst the aboriginal
Irish, the man who chiefly excited the jealousy of her
Government was Shane O'NeUe, the eldest among the
legitimate children of the Earl of Tyrone. Through
the suggestion of the Earl of Shssex, who commanded
in Ireland, O'Neile consented to visit Elizabeth, and
to lay his pretensions before her. At the EngUsh
Court he appeared in the dress of his country, attended
by his guards, who were armed with battle-axes, and
arrayed in linen vests dyed with saffron.
The queen was pleased, and although, she did not
confirm his claim, dismissed him with promises of
favour. At last he broke — perhaps was driven — into
acts of open rebeUion. He sought refuge among the
Scots of Ulster, equaUy enemies to the natives and to
England, and he was basely assassinated by his new
friends. By Act of Parliament, the name with the
dignity of O'Neile was extinguished for ever, and the
lands of Shane, and of aU his adherents, comprising
one-half of Ulster, were vested in the Crown. (2)
The Scots and The Scots, until the junction of the two crowns,
Scotland. were the perpetual enemies of England, and the
/
(') See note, Archaeologia, xx., p. 17.
(2) Camden, 153-6.— Bymer, xv. 676.— Irish Stat., 2 Eliz., Sess. iii.

STATE OF SCOTLAND. 291
constant allies of France. On those two accounts,
we can hardly expect to find many Scotch mer
cenaries in the English service. After the conquest
of England by the Norman-French, when the new
dynasty of kings set up a claim of feudal superiority
over Scotland, and attempted to enforce this by
armed invasions, the people of Scotland repelled these
by the sword, and successfully maintained theb
national freedom and independence against appa
rently overwhelming odds. The war to which these
attempts on the part of England gave rise, consti
tutes a very interesting period in history, and is
intimately associated, so far as the Scottish people
are concerned, with that friendly connection with the
continent of Europe which lasted for centuries, and
which is not yet forgotten. The drain upon the
powers of the country was deplorable. Not only was
there retrogression in commerce and manufactures,
but the very cultivation of the soU went back and
suffered for want of capital and labour. The neigh
bourhood of theb ancient enemy was a constant
source of alarm. Besides this, the throne of the
Bruces and the early Stuarts was never a strong
one. The greater barons were at all times formi
dable rivals of the Crown, and the history of the
different famiUes is a chequered picture of insurrec
tion and private feuds, of treason and oppression.
The Highlanders never paid any allegiance to the
Crown, save as far as it accorded with the will of
theb chiefs. The antagonism to England made
Scotland the constant theatre of French intrigues,

292 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and even the Church faUed notoriously in its mission
of civilisation. A poor and demoralised tenantry
were the fit vassals of the improvident, barbarous
gentry. (x) We do hear of Scotchmen, as weU as
Irishmen and others, fighting in France, and described
as "EngUsh ;" but that term was a vague one, as has
been before remarked, and was often bestowed in-
• discriminatory on those who contended against the
French, as though the EngUsh were the natural
enemies of France. These men fought (often during
the existenoe of truces between the two countries) on
theb own private enterprise and responsibiUty, and
had no reference to the wars waged by the Crowns of
France and England.
During the detention of John II. in England,
the whole kingdom of France was kept in a state of
warfare under the name of the King of Navarre,
who, says Froissart, (z) "retained men of war, Al-
maygnes, (3) Brabanses, (*) Heynoners, (5) Behaigne-

(*) "A remarkable proof of the little intercourse between the
English and Scots before the union of the crowns," says Robertson
(Hist. Scotland, iii., b. viii.), " is to be found in two curious State
papers, one published by Haynes, the other by Strype. In 1567,
Queen Elizabeth commanded the Bishop of London to take a survey
of all the strangers within the cities of London and Westminster."
By this report, which is very minute, it appears that the whole
number of Scots at that time was 58, (Haynes, 455.) — A survey of
the same kind was made by Sir Thos. Row, Lord Mayor, in 1568,
when the number of Scots had then increased to 88. (Strype, iv.,
sup., No. 1.) — See also some remarks on this subject in the Edmbwrgh
Review, Oct., 1864.
(2) Chron. (Berners), i., cap. clxxxviii., p. 224.
(3) Germans.
(4) Brabancons.
(5) Hainaulters. .

THE SCOTS. 293
noyes,^) and from every place where he might get
them, for he paid largely." Among them " were two
men of arms, Radygos de Dury(2) and Robin
l'Escot(3)  The knights of the country
had enough to do to keep their fortresses and
houses ; so these Naveroyse and Englishmen went
and did what they list."(4) With a few notorious
exceptions, Uke the Earl of Dunbar and Simon
de Fresel (or, more properly, Simon Fraser), who
occasionaUy wavered between theb fideUty to theb
own sovereign and the King of England, (5) the
Scots, as a nation, remained true to theb tra
ditions, theb poUcy, and, doubtless, theb inclina
tions. The appearance of some half-naked men,
armed with broadswords and lances, with a bag
piper preceding them, in the engraving of the siege
of Boulogne, under Henry VIII., in 1544, is one
of the few instances on record of the presence of
the Scots in connection with an English army.(6)
On this occasion they are apparently pursuing their
old vocation of looking after other people's cattle,
for they are driving oxen and sheep into camp, and
were probably employed as foragers in executing the
(') Bohemians.
(2) Probably an Irishman, " of Derry."
(3) Cuvelier, Chron, de Bertrand du GuescHn, t. i., v. 7,520. — " Dans
la Scala chronica, sous l'annee 1359, figure un Robert Scot, chevalier
anglais, fait prisonnier pres de Paris." (Note to Michel's Ecossais en
France, i. 73.)
(4) Chron. (Berners), i., cap. clxxxix., p. 224.
(5) Vide Nicolas's Memoirs of the Peers and Knights at the Siege of
Carlaverock. (')¦ Froissart states that there were 300 Scots lancers in, the army
of the Duke of Lancaster in 1373. (i., pt. ii., ch. ccchrix.)

Strategy,

294 THE BRITISH ARMY.
commissariat duties of the army. (}) The national
scots' mode of warfare of the Scots was a desultory one, and
generaUy predatory. Theb plan of operations was
to make sudden inroads upon the EngUsh territory —
razzias, as they are caUed in modern phrase — to bum
and plunder, and then retire as suddenly. They
often assembled great armies ; . but theb policy was to
harass the enemy, by leading him on in hopeless
pursuit through theb mountain fastnesses, rather
than to await the shock of battle.'
When bent on these expeditions they must have
coUected a vast number of horses, for Froissart
informs us that they were all mounted, and were
unencumbered with any amount of provisions or
baggage. " Tous montes sur haquenees," says Frois
sart, "car nul ne va a pied en Ecosse, mais tous a
cheval, excepte la ribaudaUle qui les suit a pied."
The chronicler's description of a Scotch army on its
march, in 1327, is too graphic not to be inserted
here (2) : — " These Scottish men are right hardy,
and sore traveling (much accustomed) in harness
and in wars; for when they wiU enter into Eng
land within a day and a night, they wiU drive
their whole host (army) twenty-four miles, for they
are aU a horseback, without it be the traundals
and laggers(3) (camp-foUowers) of the host, who
(') See "a description of some ancient historical paintings at
Cowdray, in Sussex" (engraved by order of the Soc. of Antiq.), in
Archaeologia, iii., p. 238.
(2) Chron. (Berners), i., cap. xvii., p. 18. Lord Berners' transla
tion is here selected (with modernised spelling), as being the most
intelligible. (3) RibaudaUle. (Buchon, i. 25.)

STRATEGY OF THE SCOTS. 295
foUow after a foot. The knights and squires are
weU horsed, and the common people and other on
little hackneys and geldings; and they carry with
them no carts, nor chariots, for the diversities of
the mountains that they must pass through, in the
country of Northumberland. They take with them
no perveyance of bread nor wine, for theb usage and
soberness is such in the time of war that they will
pass in the journey a great long time with flesh half
sodden, without bread, and drink of the river-water
without wine; and they neither care for pots nor
pans, for they seethe (boil) beasts in their own skins.
They are ever sure to find plenty of beasts in the
country that they will pass through. Therefore they
carry with them none other purveyance, but on their
horses ; between the saddle and the panneU, they
truss (carry) a broad plate of metal, and behind the
saddle they wiU have a little sack full of oatmeal, to
the intent that when they have eaten of the sodden
flesh, then they lay this plate on the fire, and temper
a Uttle of the oatmeal; and when the plate is hot,
they cast off the thin paste thereon, and so make a
little cake in manner of a crackneU, or biscuit ; and
that they eat to comfort withal their stomachs.
Wherefore it is no great marvel though they make
greater journeys than other pepple do."
This Parthian mode of warfare had its successes,
and was adapted to the character of the people and
the nature of the country. Witness Edward III.'s
first , expedition against the Scots. The English
army, 40,000 or 50,000 strong, assembled at Durham,

296 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and advanced by forced marches in quest of the
enemy, who were laying everything waste before
them. The first difficulty which the young king met
with arose from a bad feeling existing in his own
camp; for there were some foreign mercenaries in
the army, archers of Hainault, Q) and a serious affray
occurred between them, and many were kiUpd on
either side.
When this was arranged, the army marched on,
day after day; but as fast as they advanced, the
enemy retired. The flame and smoke of burning
viUages directed them in the track of the enemy ; but
it was Uke the luring Will-o'-the-Wisp leading them
on to destruction.. Men and horses were distressed
by the long marchings, besides being harassed by
Continual watchfulness by night and by day ; the rain
descended, and they were but iU prepared for it, as
they had left their heavy baggage behind at Durham,
in order that they might move as rapidly as possible ;
and, in addition, provisions were now difficult to be
procured. Under these cbcumstances, no wonder
that the army grew dispbited and discontented, and
the King offered the honours of knighthood and
one hundred pounds a-year in land for life to him who
should first bring tidings of the enemy; and many
knights and squires, in the adventurous spirit of
chivalry, swam their horses across the swollen, river
(probably the Tyne), in the hopes of gaining the
reward. This had the desired effect, for on the
fourth day certain accounts were brought of them
(>) Froissart, i., p. 22.

ENGLISH AND SCOTCH ARMIES. 297
by an esqube, Thomas Rokesby, who was imme
diately knighted for the service, and shortly after
wards received the promised reward. (J) With him
for guide, the English soon came in view of the
Scots. They were so advantageously posted on a
rising ground, having the river Were in their front,
and their flanks secured by rocks and precipices, that
the English saw it was impracticable to attack them
in theb present position.
The Earl of Murray and Lord Douglas, the two
commanders of the Scottish army, were celebrated
warriors, bred in the long hostiUties between
the Scots and EngUsh. Edward, impatient for
revenge and glory, sent a herald to them in
proper chivalric style : " Either," was the message,
" suffer me to pass, the river, and leave me room
to draw up my forces, or do you pass the river, and
I wUl leave you room to draw up yours." "We
will do neither," was the reply.
The armies continued in sight of each other for
three days. The English " lay very uncomfortably
upon the hard ground, among rocks and stones, with
theb armour on; nor could they get any stakes for
the purpose of tying their horses, or procure either
litter, or forage, or any bushes to make fire." (2) The
Scots were determined that their enemies should get
no rest, for " they made marveUously great fires, and
(') Vide Rymer : An order for Thomas de Bokesby.to receive half-
yearly at Michaelmas and Easter, £100 at the Exchequer, until he was
provided with £100 in land for life. Signed by the king at Lincoln,
Sept. 28th, 1327.
(2) Froissart, i., ch. xiii., p. 30.

298 THE BRITISH ARMY.
about midnight such a blasting and noise with their
horns that it seemed as if all the great devils from
heU had been come there," (a) The English kept their
position, daily expecting that the want of provisions
would compel the Scots to change theb ground, and
thus afford the invading army a chance of over
whelming them with superior forces. On the fourth:
morning the Scots had disappeared, having decamped
in the darkness of the night ; and they were found to
have posted themselves two mUes higher up the river,
on stronger and stUl more inaccessible ground, amidst
a great wood. The English, of course^ pursued, and
took up a station opposite to them.
While the armies lay in this position, Douglas
attempted a desperate surprise, which had nearly
proved fatal to the EngUsh. At midnight, in com
pany of 200 determined men, he made his way amidst
the EngUsh, and killed 300 of them, calling out,
" Douglas ! Douglas ! ye shall all die, thieves of
England." (a) He even made his way to the king's
quarters, and cut some of the cords of his tent, and
then finding numbers too strong for him, he called
off his followers and retreated rapidly, and gained
safely the opposite eminence among his friends, with
the loss of only a few of his men. The English kept
a better watch for the future, and the knights and
men-at-arms slept in their armour, doubtless much
to their additional annoyance. However, nothing of
(l) " Ce fut un droit enfer, et que tous les diables fussent la
assembles, par droit avis." (Ibid., p. 81.)
(2) Ibid., p. 32.

A scots' CAMP. 299
the sort was attempted again; but daily skirmishes
took place, in which both sides lost some men. One
day the English learned, from the forced confession of
a prisoner, that the Scots army was to be under arms
that evening; upon which, apprehending another
night attack, they prepared to resist it, and Ughted
great fires, and kept a strict watch ; but in the morn
ing they were informed by two trumpeters of the
enemy, whom they had taken prisoners, that they
were again out-manoeuvred, and that the Scots had
quitted theb position before midnight, and were by
that time no one knew whither.
The report could scarcely be credited, and the
EngUsh army remained for some hours in order of
battle, until the fact was ascertained beyond doubt.
On some of the English horsemen galloping to the
ground lately occupied by the enemy, they found
some curious reUcs there. There were " more than
500 beasts ready slain, because the Scots could not
drive them before them, and that their English enemy
should have but smaU profit out of them ; also there
were 300 cauldrons made of beasts' skins, with the
hair stiU on them, strained on stakes over the fire,
fuU of water and full of flesh, to be sodden, and more
than 1,000 spits fuU of flesh to be roasted, and more
than 10,000 old shoes made of raw leather, with the
hab stiU on them ; also, they found five poor English
men, prisoners, bound fast to certain trees, and some
of theb legs broken." Q)
Edward, soon after this, worn out with continued
(') Ibid., p. 33.

300 THE BRITISH ARMY.
disappointments, led his army back to Durham, and
there disbanded it.
Plate XXXVI. — A group of Lochaber axes, of
various forms. The hook was especially used for
catching the bridles of horses, and their whole form
is suggestive of rough and wild warfare. There are
also specimens of Lochaber axes in the Museum of
the Royal United Service Institution, London;
A broad distinction existed between the Low^
landers of the south of Scotland and the Highlanders.
This may partly be accounted for by the influx of
discontented barons and knights from England, who,
abandoning their homage to the Conqueror, crossed the
Tweed, and offered their services to King Malcolm,
by whom they were favourably received, (l) as the
iU-used fugitive Saxons had been before. Thus were
the habits and sentiments of France and England
imparted to the North, and the diversity of race
was lost sight of in the fusion of manners, and
even of language. At the battle of the Standard,
in 1138, we find honourable mention of a body of
English and Norman horsemen, who formed part of
the royal household of Scotland: when tbe Scots
army was broken, and took to flight, these made a
gaUant stand to the last, led by King David's valiant
son Henry. (3) The Highlanders have adhered with
wonderful pertinacity to the ancient mode of warfare.

(') Ellis's Metrical Romances, vol. i., introduction, p. 125.
(2) " Sola namque acies ejus equis residebat, ex Anglis videlicet et
Normannis composita, qui in patris familia conversabantur." (Roger
de Hoveden, p. 483.)

"No. 36.

T ochaber Axes of various forms. The hook was especially used for patching
L t£ Ltdles'of the horses, and their whole form is suggestive of rough and
wild warfare. From studies made by James Drummond, Esq., R.S.A.,
FrUnhurch. .

CLAYMORE AND SHIELD. 301
The claymore and shield were in use up to the rebel
lion of 1745 ; and modern victories, down to the great
Indian mutiny, attest the fact that the Scotchmen
of recent times are no degenerate sons of those who
fought and conquered at Bannockburn and Preston-
pans.

CHAPTER XII:
foreign mercenakies employed in england — free companies abroad
 sir john hawkwood^don pedro and henry of transtamare
 the black prince at najera  a parallel in modern times
— italian and spanish harquebussiers in edward vi.'s reign
— brabancons, routers, coterells, ribalds, brigands — first
standing army organised in france  no similar movement
in england — lord-lieutenants appointed — queen mary — loss
of Calais — Elizabeth's reign.
Mercenary rj;HE foreign mercenaries hired by our kings comprised
men of various countries, and numerous designations.
Of these, the most numerous appear to have been
the Brabancons, Flemings, and Hainaultiers. There
were also Lansquenets and Reiters (German spear
men and horsemen), and a wide class consisting of
Routers, Coterells, Ribalds, Bidaux, Brigands, and
others, whom Lord Berners includes under the
category of "rascalles."
These men were generally wild adventurers, half
soldiers, half banditti, who engaged themselves on
any side for hire^1) and were paid off as soon as
(') We find this " tiring " stipulated for by treaty. The Duke of
Burgundy having purchased a three years' truce of Edward III., it
was stipulated, amongst other articles, " that the said duke, and also
all the nobles and subjects of the aforesaid duchy, notwithstanding
the aforesaid truce, shall have free license and liberty to arm them
selves (se puissent franchement armer) with or for whomsoever it
shall please them." (Eymer, sub anno 1360.)

MERCENARIES. 303
their services could be dispensed with; the con
sequence was, that disbanding these ruffians often
made peace more terrible than war. From our
insular position we were comparatively free from
their excesses, but France was overrun with them; (J)
so much so, that in the fourteenth century the Pope
preached a crusade against them, and they were
hunted down like wolves. " Ainsi etoit le royaume de
France de tous lez pille et derobe, ni on ne savoit de
quel part chevaucher que on ne fut rue jus" (a bas).
(Froissart, i. 401.) Although, as already observed,
the early Norman kings, beginning with William the
Conqueror, employed foreign auxiliaries, hbed troops
did not in general form a considerable portion of
armies tiU the' wars of our Henry II. and PhiUp
Augustus of France. (3) In the twelfth and thirteenth
centuries mercenaries were employed to a great extent
both at home and abroad, and in substitution of the
feudal miUtia. The fact was, that sovereign princes
had discovered the advantage of receiving money and
dispensing with theb subjects' attendance, by which
they were enabled to hbe those who — at all events
as long as. they were paid — were obedient to their

P) " II serait difficile de peindre l'etat de misere dans lequel les
ravages de ces compagnies etrangeres avaient plonge la France a
cette epoque de desordre et de confusion (a.d. 1361). Le mal e'tait
si general qu'on composa alors des prieres publiques qu'on ajoutait
au service divin pour prier Dieu de de'tourner ce fleau, comme dans
le temps de peste on chante des cantiques analogues. On retrouve
quelques-uns de ces cantiques latins dans un manuscrit des oeuvres
de Machau. — (Bibl. du Roi, cod. 7,609)." (Note to Buchon's Frois
sart, i. 455.)
(") Hallam's Middle Ages, vol.(i., ch. ii., pt. ii.

304 THE BRITISH ARMY.
wishes, and, moreover, were men versed in the usages
of war. As numbers do not necessarily contribute
to the intrinsic efficiency of armies, so it was found
that a comparatively small number of practical
soldiers was superior to a crowd of undisciplined
men, as the feudal levies must have been. The
letting out of fighting men became a profitable
speculation; most Continental nations went largely
into it, and the Italian Condottieri became a
synonym for army contractors on a large scale. (J)
Men with these peculiar tastes for enjoying life,
when their services were not retained, joined them
selves into bands — free companies, as they were
called (2) — and, clustering round some prominent
warrior, who should lead them in theb lawless ex
ploits, did business on their own account. Knights
— no great honour to chivalry, but as being the
great military authorities of the age — were often
selected as their leaders, and we find some of our
countrymen, "purs anglais," enjoying this question
able honour. A Welshman, with the appropriate
name of Ruffin, (3) whom his company had knighted,
was one of these guerilla chieftains, who taking
advantage of the weakness of the Regency when

(') G-ian G-aleazzo. Visconti promised constant half-pay to the
condottieri whom he disbanded in 1396. This perhaps is the first
instance of half-pay. (Sismondi. — Note to Hallam's Middle Ages, i.,
ch. iii., pt. ii.)
(2) " En ce temps que les trois Stats gouvernoient, se commen-
cerent a lever tels manieres de gens qui s'appeloient Compagnies,
et avoient guerre a toutes gens qui portoient malettes." (Froissart,
i. 373, anno 1357.)
(3) " Griffith," according to Berners' translation.

FREE COMPANIES. 305
John of France was a prisoner in England, overran
and desolated the country between the Lobe and the
Seine, from the frontiers of Burgundy to those of
Normandy. He acquired such immense riches that
Froissart relates they could not be counted. These
men rode over the country in parties of twenty,
thirty, or forty, meeting with none to check their
piUage ; while on the sea-coast of Normandy there
were a stiU greater number of English and Navarrois,
plunderers and robbers. Messbe Robert CanaUe was
theb leader, who conquered every town and castle
he came to. (*)
The evil of these terrible bands went on increas
ing. After the death of the Ul-fated French monarch,
and when Charles V. succeeded, and peace was pro
claimed between the two countries, the many mUitary
adventurers who were then let loose dispersed them
selves into the several provinces, and possessed them
selves of the strongholds of the kingdom — where they
estabUshed themselves, to the dismay of the country
round — and these they, not unnaturally, declined to
deliver up when summoned so to do. Their successful
operations attracted others, so that theb numbers
were daUy increasing, and before long they amounted
to 16,000 men.(2) They fought pitched battles with
the troops of France, and gained victories ; in one of
which John de Bourbon, a cousin of the king, and
a valiant knight who had fought at Crecy and Poi
tiers, being deceived, by a false account of theb
(') i.e., Sir Eobert Knolles. (Froissart, i. 412, anno 1359.)
(2) Froissart, i. 454, anno 1361.
VOL. I. V

306 THE BRITISH ARMY.
numbers, was defeated and killed near Lyons.
ViUani(1) charges Edward III. with secretly en-
. couraging these ravages, whUst outwardly he affected
a strict observance of the peace. Being now masters
of the field, they resolved upon paying the Pope and
cardinals a visit at Avignon, where they expected to
reap a rich harvest. Innocent VI. and the Roman
College were, as may be supposed, exceedingly
alarmed at this intelligence, and " ordeined a croysy
(crusade) against these yvell Christen people, who did
theb payne to destroy Chrystendome." (2) They
absolved from penalty and blame (a poena et culpa) faU
those who should volunteer to go forth and destroy
these wretches. Peter de Monestier, Cardinal d' Arras,
was elected by the cardinals to the chief command in
this "croysy." He retained all soldiers and others'
who were desirous of saving theb souls and of gaining
the aforesaid pardons; but, as he would only bestow
upon them these prospective advantages, with his
blessing, but unaccompanied by any pay, they all
deserted, whilst the "wicked companions" were daily
increasing. When matters had arrived at this crisis, the Pope
and cardinals bethought them of a means of extrica
tion. They sent for the Marquis de Montferrat, who
for a long time had been engaged in war against the
lords of MUan. He agreed, for a considerable sum
of money, to free the territory of the Pope and the
neighbourhood of those freebooting companies, and
(') 1st, 1. ix., c. xxxvii.
(2) Froissart (Berners), i., cap. ccxv., p. 271.

A GALLANT ENGLISH ADVENTURER. 307
to lead them with him into Lombardy. The marquis
negotiated so weU with the captains of the companies,
that by means of 60,000 florins which he divided
among them, and the high pay he promised them,
they aU consented, and marched off with him into
Italy, having first insisted on receiving pardon and
absolution, to the great relief of the Pontifical See
and all the kingdom of France.
Amongst the wUd spirits that composed these sir John
southern bands, was our own countryman, Sir John
Hawkwood, of whom we may be justly proud,
although he was but a mercenary, and the chief of a
band of robbers ; for his was a master spirit, and he
bore bis EngUsh name with high distinction amidst
the wars with which the petty States of North Italy
were distracted in the latter half of the fourteenth
century. His career, too, is worth noticing, because he
is a type of that better class of mercenary who sought
to command in foreign armies, not to serve. Hawk-
wood was a soldier of fortune, who had learned his
profession in that best school, the wars of Edward III.
in France ; and from a private soldier he rapidly rose
to be a captain, and then a knight. He was an Esstx
yeoman, the born vassal of John de Vere, seventh
Earl of Oxford, and is said to have been at first
apprenticed to a tailor ;(*) "but soon," says Fuller,
"turned his needle into a sword, and his thimble
into a shield." (2) On the conclusion of the peace
(>) "Sartore Inghlese" (Villani, 1st, lib. ix., c. 37.) ThiB historian
also speaks of him as "John della guglie" — i.e., John of the needle.
(2) Worthies of Essex.
u 2

308 THE BRITISH ARMY.
between England and France, he probably found
himself too poor to maintain his dignity, and there
fore associated, with others, in a corps caUed "Les
Tard Venus," Q) (because they arrived late on the field
of plunder), and pUlaged the fair lands of France.
In 1361 he crossed the Alps, and led into Italy a
band of 3,000 adventurers, who had engaged to fight
under his command in the service of any State which
should give them a suitable remuneration for their
services. His first feat of arms in these parts was to
take prisoner the " Green Count" of Savoy at Cirie, a
small town of Piedmont. In 1363, this army of des
peradoes was hbed by the RepubUc of Pisa. They
afterwards entered into the service of Bernabo Vis-
conti, Lord of Milan, and defeated the Tuscan army.
Being defrauded of his wages by Bernabo, Hawk-
wood engaged in the service of Pope Gregory XL,
and heartily entered upon hostilities with his late
employer. Having assisted in the capture of nearly
100 towns belonging to that prince, he had the
satisfaction of seeing him reduced to sue for peace.
In 1375 he entered the service of the Florentines,
and soon after was promoted to the chief command of
the Tuscan forces, in which capacity he merited and
acqubed great honour, by the courage and skUl with
which he conducted the military operations of the
Republic. He retained the office of Generalissimo
of the Florentine army till the time of his death,
which event took place' in 1393. The gratitude
(') Froissart, ii. 64. " II se fit chef d'une route de compagnons
qu'on appeloit les Tard "Venus."

HONOURS TO HAWKWOOD's MEMORY. 309
of the Florentines honoured him with a magnifi
cent funeral, and his fame was perpetuated by an
equestrian picture, painted by Paolo UcceUo, placed
in the Church of St. Reparata to his memory at
the pubUc expense. (x) In 13.76 Pope Gregory XI.
bestowed on him the castles of Catignola and Bag-
nacavaUo, near Faenza, perhaps the earUest instance
on record of the grant of a sovereign fief by
an ItaUan potentate on an aUen ; and, although
he disposed of them in 1381, yet to this day, in
theb neighbourhood, the traveUer finds a record of
him in the Strada Agulo, which tradition affirms
to have been made by his orders for miUtary pur
poses. The cbcumstances of the times must be
taken into consideration as an apology for the
frequent changes of his service, which led him to
engage as suited his interest. But he was a man of
honour, who kept his engagements, and he refused
an enormous bribe from the Signory to ravage the
territory of Padua, because the Lord of Padua was
his friend. His abilities in the field caused him to
be courted by different rival States. Mr. HaUam, in
reviewing his services, says, " Hawkwood appears to'
me the first general of modern times." (2) The
Florentines offered the best terms, and to them he
ever after adhered with an irreproachable fideUty.
So that Lucan's character of a mercenary soldier,
(') Now Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo, or Cathedral. A ceno
taph was also- erected to his memory by his executors in the church
of his native place, Sible Hedingham, Essex, which remains, and in
good preservation.
(2) Middle Ages, vol. i., ch. ii., pt. ii.

310 THE BRITISH ARMY.
generaUy appUcable, by no means belongs, to
himC1) :— "Nulla fides pietasque viris qui castra sequuntur,
Venalesque manus : ibi fas ubi maxima merees."
Pharsalia, x. 408.
" He was a great master in the art of war,"
says Villani, " and was naturaUy fox-Uke, wily, and
cunning, like the rest of his nation" (di natura a
loro modo volpigna e astuta). And again, says the
historian, "il suo sopernome in lingua Inglese era
Kauchouvole, che in Latino dice Falcone di bosco;"
i.e., Hawkwood. It is difficult to recognise our
EngUsh friend under this designation, any more than
under that of Giovanni Arguto (John Sharp), which
he is sometimes styled.
It is interesting to learn what sort of men these
fighting English were, according to a foreigner's
opinion, and what was their mode of warfare. As
much order was maintained in the camps of the Con
dottieri — at least, in the early days — as in those of
the national army, and more than has been enforced
among regular troops in many instances of recent
date. The same Italian historian enlarges on these
matters : — " It was habitual for the English," says
he, " to go to war as weU in winter rs in summer, a
thing quite unusual even among the Romans. They
were aU lusty young men, most of them born and
brought up in the long wars between France and
(') Vide Shepherd's Life of Poggio BraccioUni, ch. i., p. 18.— Also
Bibldotheca Topographica Britawnica, vol. vi. — Calendar of State
Papers, existing in the Archives of Yenice, &c, vol. i., pp. 1,202, 1,509.
By Edward Bawdon Brown. London, 1864.

WARFARE OF ENGLISH ADVENTURERS. 311
England; warm, eager, and practised in slaughter
and rapine, for which they were always ready to
draw theb swords, with very Uttle care for theb per
sonal safety; but in matters of discipline very obe
dient to theb commanders. In theb camps and
cantonments, through a disorderly and .over-daring
boldness, they lay scattered about in great irregu
larity. " The armour of almost aU were cuirasses ; theb
breasts covered with a steel coat of maU ; gauntlets
and armour for thighs and legs ; daggers and broad
swords; aU of them had tUting-lances, which, after
dismounting from theb horses, they were very
dextrous in handling. Every man had one or two
pages, and some of them more, according to theb
ability to maintain them. On taking off theb
armour, it was the business of these pages to. keep
it clean and bright, so that when they came to
action theb arms shone like looking-glass, and thus
gave them a more terrifying appearance. Others
among them were archers, theb bows long and made
of yew. They were very expert and dextrous in
using them, and did great service in action. Their
manner of fighting in the field was almost always
on foot. The horses were given in charge to the
pages. The body they formed was very compact,
and almost round; each lance was held by two
men, in the same manner as the spear is handled in
hunting the wUd boar; and thus close embodied,
with theb lances pointed low, and with slow steps,
they marched up to the enemy with terrible outcry;

312 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and very difficult was it to break or disunite them.
But, after aU, experience has shown they were more
fit for night expeditions, and plundering village^,
than for keeping the field; and theb success was
more owing to the cowardice of our own men than
to their valour and mUitary virtue. They had very
curious ladders, in pieces, the biggest of which was of
three steps, and one piece socketed into the other,
like so many trumpets ; and with these they were
able to mount the top of the highest tower."
Don Pedro A prospect of entire reUef from the presence of
and his
Brother, these dangerous companies in France, and at the
same time of utilising their services, soon after
occurred, which the poUtic Charles Y. was not likely
to neglect. France had decided to assist the cause of
Henry of Transtamare, (x) who had taken up arms
against his natural brother, Don Pedro, King of
CastUe, surnamed the Cruel. For this purpose it
was proposed to enUst the companies, and lead them
into CastUe. Bertrand du Guesclin, at that time a
prisoner in Sir John Chandos's hands, was ransomed
for the occasion, and ordered to negotiate with the
leaders, which he did, and soon came to terms with
them. The Prince of Wales, in his government of
Aquitaine, was of course cognisant of the expedi
tion, and must have been, we may presume, favour
ably disposed towards it. Chandos was invited to a
joint command in it, under Du Guesclin. This,
however, he decUned. Sir Hugh de Calverley was
chosen to command the EngUsh party, and many
(l) Or, as he was called in Spain, Conde de Trastamard.

THE BLACK PRINCE IN THE FIELD. 313
knights who were attached to the prince entered
the service. Don Pedro was forced to fly; he took
refuge with the Prince of Wales, and besought
assistance from the EngUsh arms. The policy of
England was suddenly changed, and, after a delibera
tion, it was resolved to espouse the part of Pedro, and
to reinstate him on his throne.
The first blow which the Prince of Wales gave
to the cause of Henry of Transtamare, was to recaU
aU the free companies. (x)
Every knight of that period beUeved himself at
liberty to lend his lance wherever he chose. The
most scrupulous, on entering a foreign service, only
stipulated that he should not be requbed to fight
against his legitimate suzerain.
Such was the reverence for the Black Prince's
name, that they flocked back to his standard as soon
as it was heard that he was going again to take the
field. (2) Between Najera and Navarette a decisive
action was fought on the 3rd of April, 1366, and
" Dampeter" (3) was once more king. Henry's army
on this occasion is variously stated at from 60,000
to 100,000 ; at aU events, it was far superior in
numbers to that of the Black Prince ; moreover, the
latter had. the disadvantage, usual with the English
(') See Bymer (Dec. 6, 1365). " De impediendo soldarios qui in
comitiva se ponunt, ne ingrediantur in Hispaniam." — "Et ne
soefirerons aucunes de nos gentz ou subgitz entrer ses terres ou
seignuries pur y porter Damage aucun  ."
(2) Froissart (i., p. 535) says there were 1,200 pennons (penonceaux)
of them at the battle of Najara, commanded by Sir John Chandos.
(3) Vide Berners' and Buchon's Froissart. — A corruption, doubtless,
of Don, or Dominus.

314 THE BRITISH ARMY.
armies, of being short of provisions. Nevertheless,
it won a great victory, and Henry of Transtamare
was again a fugitive. The knights and heralds that
went to visit the field, returned, and reported that
"there were slain of theb enemies, of men-at-arms, a
five hundred and three score, and of commons, about
a seven thousand and five hundred, beside them that
were drowned ; and of theb own company they had
found but the bodies of four knights, whereof two
were Gascons, the thbd an Almayne, and the fourth
an EngUshman, and sixty archers and ¦others," O
The past is said to be the prophet of the
future'; and there are some paraUels in these transac*
tions, when compared with modern events on the
same ground, which cannot fail to strike us. Then,
as recently, the Peninsula was made the arena for
war between the two great .rivals, England and
France ; then the Black Prince, in spite of inferior
forces, everywhere defeated the skilful and brave
Du Guesclins, just as the Duke of Wellington did
the Soults ; then, as recently, the single-handed
Spaniards were as easily defeated by the highly*
organised French; then, as lately, Spanish juntas
and rulers were proud, obstinate, and self-confident
when danger was distant, but craven and clamorous
for aid when it drew near : insolent and sanguinary
in the hour of prosperity. When the foreigner had
done their work, they treated him ungratefully,
violated every promise, and robbed him even of
his glory.
(*) Froissart, i. 539.

A PARALLEL. 315
The Black Prince crossed the Pyrenees in
February, 1367 ; he arrived at Logrono " enduring
the greatest anguish of mind," from want of food,
and every promised co-operation of Pedro's worthless
ministers. Such anguish, and from the same causes,
was endured by our duke after Talavera ; but neither
despabed, being sufficient in themselves. The morn
of April 3rd beheld the prince's army of 30,000
(Mariana, xvii. 10, says 20,000) opposed at Najera
to 60,000 or 80,000 French and Spaniards, enough,
as Wellington said at Rueda, " to eat him up." (*)
In vain the brave and skUful Du GuescUn spoke of
prudence, and counseUed, like Soult on the Tonnes,
a Fabian defence. His words, like those of the duke
before Ocana, (2) were lost on the Spanish chiefs.
Then did the Black Prince replace Don Pedro on
his throne, as Wellington did Ferdinand VII., at
the not distant Yittoria.
Don Pedro claimed all the glory for himself;
he butchered his opponents, male and female, and
violated every treaty and every pledge. At length
the Black Prince quitted Spain in disgust; and so
the duke retbed after Talavera, when he had replaced
Ferdinand on the throne, " Le gouvernement ayant
manque a, tous les engagements faits avec moi, j'a
donne ma demission." (Disp., Oct. 30, 1813.)
Although England was not desolated as France
was by bands of mUitary adventurers, yet she was
(') Disp., Oct. 31, 1812.
(2) Lbid., Dec. 6, 1809. — These comparisons occur in Ford's inte
resting and valuable Hand-book for Spain, p. 911.

Mercenaries.

316 THE BRITISH ARMY.
not devoid of " free companies." Thus we find, in
the reign of WiUiam Rufus, Bernard de Neuf-marche
seized upon Brecknockshbe, (x) and in the time of
Henry I., Richard, Count of Eu, conquered Pem
broke with a smaU army of Brabancons, Normans,
and English, (2) on theb own account. The last
of these robber-soldiers in Great Britain were the
moss-troopers, who infested the borders of England
and Scotland.
Foreign In the tweUth century the Brabancons (or natives
of Brabant) were reputed the best infantry in
Europe. (3) At the siege of Carlaverock, the first
division of King Edward's army was composed of
Bretons, and the second of Lorrains.^) In the
15th Edward II. , "the King commands his Sene
schal of Gascony to send over 200 cross-bowmen
and 200 lancemen, both foot, to Newcastle-on-Tyne
(Novum Castrum super Tynam), to fight against the
Scots ; Raymond de MUle Sanctis to be chief leader"
(capitalis ductor).(5) These last, however, do, not
come under the category of foreign mercenaries, as
they were the vassals of the English Crown. At the
commencement of the short reign of Edward YL,
many foreign mercenaries were engaged by the Eng
lish Government, both for the purpose of the war in
Scotland, as weU as for queUing the disturbances at
(') Dugdale, Monasticon, i., p. 320.
(2) Ibid., p. 722.— The Count- of Eu received from his Flemings,
and his English, the Teutonic surname of " Strongboghe," or " Strong-
bow," which sobriquet remained hereditary in his family.
(3) G-iraldus Oambrensis, cap. viii. — AngUa Sacra, ii. 452.
(4) Nicolas' edit., p. 69.
(6) Bymer, sub anno.

FOREIGN MERCENARIES IN ENGLAND. 317
home. At the decisive battle of Pinkey, fought
under the Protector Somerset, in September, 1547, we
read of ItaUan and Spanish harquebussiers on horse
back. (') Again, when hostUities were re-commenced
in Scotland in the ensuing year, and a hostile squadron
anchored at Leith, having on board 3,000 German
and 2,000 French veterans, commanded by D'Esse,(2)
Lord Grey arrived with a powerful army, and we find
ItaUan mercenaries employed in it.(3) In August of
that year, the Earl of Shrewsbury, who was appointed
commander of the forces, crossed the borders with
22,000 men, of whom 3,000 or 4,000 were German
lansquenets. (4)
In England, during this period, there were general
discontents (5) among the people, and dangerous insur-
(:) Life of Edward VI., by Sir J. Hayward. — " Sir Peter Gamboa,
Knight, Spaniard, captain of ii. c. hakebutteers on horseback." (W.
Patten's Journal, pub. 1548. — Vide Scottish Hist. Fragments, Brit.
Mus., 807, c. 18.)
(2) Andr§ de Montalembert d"Esse'. — Some remarks on this name
in Notes and Queries, 3rd S., vi. 141, are worthy of perusal.
(3) William, Lord Grey de Wilton. (See his life, pub. by Camden
Soc; also Keith, 44.— Tytler, vi. 456.)
(4) Edward VI.' s Journal — Holinshed. — "The English army came
into Haddingtoun. They consisted of about 17,000 men ; of which
number 7,000 were horse, and 3,000 of the foot were German lands-
knights, whom the Protector had entertained in his service."
(Burnet's Hist, of the Reformation, ii., pt. i., p. 154. Edit. Ox., 1816.)
(5) The direct occasion of these troubles, which were very near
being general throughout England, arose from the landlords con
verting large portions of their arable lands into pasturage, throwing
together the small farms, raising the rents of such as remained,
and enclosing the public lands. This supposed grievance had been
already attempted to be remedied by Act of Parliament (13th and
25th of Hen. VILL), whereby it was enacted that no person should
occupy more than two farms, and that no person should keep on
lands not their own inheritance more than 2,000 sheep. (See Froude's
Hist, of England, i. 34.)

318 THE BRITISH ARMY.
rections, and it was only with the aid of foreign
troops-^-the bands of adventurers that had been raised
in Italy, Spain, and Germany, to serve in the war
against Scotland-— that the Government was enabled
to hold its own. In Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire
the command was given to the Lord Grey, with a
body of 1,500 men, including Baptist Spinola with
his Italians; and the Marquis of Northampton entered
Norwich at the head of 1,000 EngUsh horse, and a
body of ItaUans under Malatesta^1)
other With respect to Routers, CotereUi, Ribaldi, and
Brigands, (2) terms often met with in the old
chronicles, they denoted men addicted to the same
pursuits— mercenary infantry of the lowest class —
and it is difficult to decide which of them had the
greatest claim to respectability. The Routers derived
their name from the old French word Route? signi
fying a company, often found in Froissart. Father
Daniel attributes the origin of the name CotereUi (oh
the authority of De Marcas' Hist, of Beam) to the
use of great knives, caUed, even in his time at
Toulouse, Coterels, which these cut-throats made use
(x) Sir William Herbert also came to the assistance of the
king's forces with 1,000 Welshmen. (See Sir John Hayward's Life
of Edward VI.)
(2) " Prffidones militares, qui alias Buptarii vocant." (Du Cange.)
— " Buptarius, qui rumpit terrain," a common labourer, a ground-
digger, or modern navvy. Boturier is probably derived from this.
Chenevix, in his Essay upon National Character, anglicises the term.
In vol. i., p. 262, speaking of the nobles, he says, " The entire order,
and the very institution, received a further humiliation by the eleva
tion of a ruptuary (roturier) to the honours of nobility;" and again, at
p. 306, he speaks of " French ruptuaries (rotwriers), for history must
find a word for this class," &c.

C0TERELS AND RIBALDS. 319
of. " De ce mot," he goes on to say, " vient le mot
Coterie, qui signifie une espece de societe" de gens qui
se soutiennent les uns les autres.'V)
Ribaldi, or Ribauds, was the designation of the
lowest grade of foot-troops. Matthew Paris speaks of
them as " Ribaldi et viles personse." (2) They are
mentioned also in the arduous but inglorious capacity
of porters to the army : — " Inermes Ribaldos et alios,
qui soient sequi exercitum propter onera depor-
tanda." (3) They accompanied armies in great num
bers, picking up, doubtless, what existence they
could. Theb poverty made them desperate, and
although they were unprovided with defensive
armour, they did not hesitate to thrust themselves
foremost into danger : —
" Et Bibaldorum nihilominus agmen inerme,
Qui nunquam dubitant in quaevis ire pericla."
Philippidos, lib. iii.
However useful in their vocation, they were the
scum of fighting men, and their name became a by-
(') Mitice Franc., tome i., liv. iii., ch. viii., p. 141. — A passage from
an old French chronicler, speaking of the CotereUi, is worth
noting: — "En cele annee (a.d. 1183) furent occis vii mille Coteriau
et plus en la contree de Boorges, si les occistrent cil dou pais par le
secors que li Bois leur fist pour les tres-horribles desloiautez que il
fesoient par tot le pais : car il entrerent en la terre le Boi a force,
 il ardoient les mostiers et les eglises, et trainoient apres eux
en loiens les prestres et les genz de religion, et les apeloient cantadors
par derision: quant il les batoient et tormentoient, lors disoient-il,
cantador, cantez, cantador." — Extraits des Chronigues de St. Denis, dans
les Gestes de Philippe Auguste, tome xvii., p. 354. (Bouquet, Hist.
de la France.) Surely this would appear the earhest derivation of
the term " cant."
(2) Sub an. 1214. — "Velites. Enfans perdus, milites, qui prima
praelia tentabant." (Du Cange, v. Ribaldi.)
(3) Ibid., 1202.

320 THE BRITISH ARMY.
word for depraved characters, and hence the deriva
tion of our terms "ribald" and "ribaldry," and, per
haps, " rabble." " Tuez toute cette ribaudaUle,"
exclaimed King Philip, at Crecy, in bitter derision ol
the unsuccessful effort of the Genoese cross-bowmen.
In the household of the kings of France there was an
officer styled " Roi des Ribauds," a sort of Provost-
Marshal, who had special jurisdiction over the basse
classe. This unscrupulous functionary was often
found an useful appendage to royalty : — " Le Roi de
France fit venir le roi des ribaus et dit, 'Deiivrez-
nous de tels et de tels.' " (f) Brigans was another
name for those men who fought in the humblest
ranks of the army : — " Si trouverent qu'ils etoient
bien six mUle armures de fer, et huit miUe, que
brigands, que bideaux, que autres poursuivans l'ost."
(Frois., 1. i, p. i, ch. cix.) Troops were paid in ratio
to their equipment ; and as this class, as well as the
other just mentioned, was for the most part unpro
vided with personal defences, and armed only with
such weapons as they could lay hands upon-—
" L'un tient une ep^e sans feurre, (2)
L'autre un maillet, 1' autre une hache" —
(Guiart, v. 6,635.)
it foUows that soldiers of this grade received small
remuneration for theb miUtary services. The conse
quence was, that their poverty drove them to repeated
acts of depredation, whereby they have perpetuated
their name in its worst sense, as a synonym with
Q) Froissart, i., p. 325.
(2) i.e., a scabbard.

A MILITARY REFORMER. 321
robber. Theb name became attached to the bri
gandine, an inexpensive and Ught cuirass, composed
of smaU plates of bon, fastened upon quilted leather
or linen, weU calculated for stealthy habits, as it
escaped observation, and was so pUable as to admit of
the free use of the Umbs. Brigands were not, how
ever, invariably ill-provided, as where 900 French
brigands, aU fresh and armed with lances and pavises,
arrived and turned the tide of victory. They broke
the EngUsh archers, " car leur trait ne pouvoit entrer
en eux, tant etoient forts et bien pavisches." (*) The
long knife seems to have been the distinctive weapon
of these irregulars. From theb light equipment
they were valuable as skbmishers, and for operations
where dashing and celerity of movement were re
quisite. They were, in fact, the Zouaves of the
Middle Ages. They were employed in great num
bers,^) and so useful were they that sometimes the
action was suspended until they arrived : — " Les
Francois attendoient leurs brigands, pour eux fabe
assaillb et escamoucher contre les archers " (Ibid., p.
405) ; for, as they were aU on foot, they could not,
of course, get up as soon as others who were on
horseback. In the middle of the fifteenth century, we find a t^6 Km*
Standing
king of France starting forth as a mUitary reformer. Amy.
In fact, so important was the movement which he
initiated, affecting, as it did, the whole internal poUcy
of his country, that revolution is the fittest word to
(l) At Nogent-sur-Seine- in 1359. (Froissart, i. 406.)
(2) Froissart, i., p. 97.
VOL. I. V

322 THE BRITISH ARMY.
describe it. Charles VII., availing himself of the
reputation which he had acquired by his successes
against the EngUsh, and taking advantage of the
impressions of terror which such a formidable enemy
had left upon the minds of his subjects, was thus
enabled to execute that which his predecessors would
not have dared to attempt. Q) He had, doubtless,
seen the advantage which the professed soldier main
tained over the unskilled feudal servitor; his country
again bore painful evidence of the evils of letting
loose in society those hired men of war, when hos-
tiUties had ceased. His first operation — and it was
a bold stroke — was to disband the entbe army ; but
his precautions were so weU taken that no evU re
sulted from it, and the men were not able to con
gregate and form themselves into routes and com
panies. After this he made selection of " fifteen captains,"
who should organise fifteen companies, or rather
troops, for they were exclusively cavalry, composed
of the best men, selected from the whole of the
army. Each troop consisted of 600 men. The whole
force consisted, therefore, of 9,000 men ; (2) and this
was the nucleus on which the Royal army of France
was formed.
These men the king engaged to keep on per
manent pay. The Crown revenues at that time were
smaU, but he found that householders were willing to
be taxed for the support of this force, which, after the
(') See Eobertson's, Charles V., vol. i., sect. ii.
(2) MiUce Franq., torn, i., liv. iv., ch., iv.

SWISS TROOPS. 323
late troublous times, bore on its face the enforcement
of order and loyalty, and consequently the prosecu
tion of commerce and the guarantee of civil liberty. (*)
Three years after this — viz., in 1448 — he organised a
body of 16,000 infantry.
But an important result, derived from this change
in the mUitary administration of the State, was, that
as the strength of armies came to be estimated only
by the number of disciplined men which they con
tained, so, naturaUy, the feudal nobles lost their
influence, and in less than a century they and their
tenants — though sometimes summoned to the field,
according to ancient form — were considered as an
incumbrance rather than an assistance, and were
viewed with contempt by soldiers who had acquired
experience in the operations of continuous service. (2)
Thus the mUitary regulations of Charles YIL, by
estabUshing the first standing army in Europe, occa
sioned a social revolution.
Another innovation, introduced by Charles's son
and successor, Louis XL, was the employment of
Swiss troops, the best disciplined and most formidable
infantry at that time in Europe. (8) In 1480, he
took 6,000 of them into his pay. The infantry of

(') " Les gens d'armes d'ordonnance estoient paiez par les pais et
y faisoient residence en temps de paix ; vivoient sans aucune pillerie;
les peuples les y vouloient bien et les aymoient ; et faisoient requeste
au roy de les faire loger et tenir pais ou ils prenoient leur solde," &c.
Speaking of their dress, he says, " leurs hoquetons estoient de cuir de
cerf, ou de mouton et de draps de couleurs." (Eloge de Charles VII.,
ch. iii., quoted in Michel's Les Franqais en Ecosse, i., p. 124.)
(2) Bobertson's Charles V., vol. i., sec. ii., p. 94.
(3) Miiller, Histoire des Swisses, torn, iv., ch. viii.
v 2

324 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the great army which Charles YIII. led into Italy, in
1494, was composed of Swiss and Gascons. (x) There
English, were also "Gensdarmes Anglais" and Scotch and Irish
wsh in French brigades in the pay of France. The Scotch were
service, highly favoured by the confidence reposed in them
by the French kings. A company of Scotch body
guards was in existence at Paris in Charles YII.'s
time, and had precedence over all the other Gardes du
Corps, and enjoyed great privileges. (2)
There was also a company of Gensdarmes Anglais,
Roman Catholic soldiers, whom Lord George HamUton
obtained leave to embody and bring over to the
service of the French in 1667. This corps was not
exclusively EngUsh, for Scotch and Irish were mixed
up in it. It probably retained afterwards only its
name, and not its nationaUty, for its commanders,
after the first, were aU French. The Swiss continued
in the service tiU the Revolution of 1830, when the
last body of these admirable troops — faithful ever to
the sovereign whom they served— -fell gaUantly fight
ing to the last.(s)
Other Continental nations gradually foUowed the
example of the Kings of France, in the estabUshment
(l) Guicciardini, Hist, of Italy, vol. i., b. i., p. 137.
(2) See Michel, Les Ecossais en France. — Also Mil. Franc, ii., liv.
x., ch. i. Daniel says that in his time this corps was Scotch only in
name, but that in calling the roll, the privates retained the old Scotch
form of answering to their names — viz., hamir ; which the learned
Jesuit explains as a corruption of hhaz ha/mier, which means me voila!"
(I am here ? )
(3) "De 1477 jusqu'a 1830, c'est a dire pendant 353 ans, 750,000
Suisses ont combattu et verse leur sang sous les drapeaux de la
France ! " (" Les Troupes Suisses aux Service stranger." Revue
Mil Suisse, for June, 1856.)

NO ARMY REFORM IN ENGLAND. 325
of a permanent armed force ; but no counterbalancing
movement appears to have taken place in England,
although the visible result produced by this organi
sation was the ultimate expulsion of the EngUsh
from France, and the two countries may be said to
have gone hitherto side by side in their military
institutions. The insular position of this country
was, probably, in a great degree the cause of this
delay ; but, moreover, with the love of liberty which
characterised the EngUsh people from an early date,
there has ever been an inherent antipathy to the
estabUshment of a standing army. The fearful strife
of the antagonistic houses of York and Lancaster
engrossed the attention of aU EngUshmen at home
until the union of the factions in the person of
Henry YII. In his reign the only foreign expe
dition was a miUtary promenade to Boulogne and
back again, and the only permanent force in Eng
land was the Yeoman Guard, instituted by that king,
most likely in imitation of a corps of a similar
character in France.
Henry YIII. was of a spirit very different to that
of his prudent father. Being fond of show, he insti
tuted the corps of Gentlemen Pensioners, an expen
sive but strong escort of cavalry, which did him
good service in his expedition to France. The king
superintended in person the siege operations before
Terouenne and Boulogne; but, although he evinced
a gaUant spirit, there were no manifestations of great
powers of generalship. The EngUsh arms, however,
sustained theb prestige at Guinegate (the Battle of

326 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the Spurs) (x) and at Flodden Field. (2) Some old laws,
enacted for the encouragement of archery, were revived
and extended, and the English bowmen were ordered
to carry halberts with them, which they stuck into
the ground before them until they had discharged
theb arrows, and were then ready to engage in close
fight with the enemy ; and some additional privUege
was granted to those who served^ abroad ; (3) but,
with these exceptions, Uttle improvement appears to
have been made in military art, or in the defensive
resources of the country.
Frequent musters, or arrays, were made of the
people, and this precaution was thought sufficient for
the defence of the realm ; and as the king had then
an absolute power of commanding the services of aU
his subjects, he could instantly, in case of danger,
coUect an army, undiscipUned, but as numerous as he
pleased. The City of London alone could muster
15,000 men.(4)
Lord- One great change took place in the government of
lieutenants of
Counties. (') Lord Herbert's History of Henry VIII.
(2) An elaborate description of this decisive victory is given in
Archaeologia EUana, new series iii., p. 197 et seq. — The standard
of William, Earl of Marishall, which is preserved in the Advocates'
Library of Edinburgh, is almost the only relic of the battle of
Flodden which has escaped the ravages of time, and come down to
our own day.
(3) 14 and 15 Hen. TILL., c. 15.
(4) " The eighth of May, the citizens of London mustered at the
Miles end, all in bright harness, with coates of white silke or cloth,
and chaines of golde, in three great Battailles; the number was 15,000,
besides whiflBers and other awayters, who in goodly order passed
through London to Westminster, and so through the Sanctuary,
and round about the Park of S. James, and returned home through
Holborne." (Stow, ii. 577, a.d. 1539.)

LORD-LIEUTENANTS. 327
counties in this reign — the appointment of lord-
lieutenants to be the immediate representatives of
the sovereign, superseding the commissions of array
which the Crown, in earUer times, had been accustomed
to issue. Before the creation of this office, the king
appears to have communicated by writ or precept
with the sheriff. "The earhest of these appoint
ments," says Sir Henry EUis, "are to be recognised
in the commissions ' de arraiatione et capitaneo gene-
raU, contra Francos,' issued for a large range of the
counties of the kingdom, to the Dukes of Norfolk
and Suffolk, and to the then Lord RusseU, in 1545."
Blackstone, however, says : " About the reign of King
Henry YIII. and his children, lord-lieutenants began
to be introduced as standing representatives of the
Crown, to keep the counties in military order ; for we
find them mentioned as known officers in the statute
4 and 5 PhUip and Mary, ch. 3, though they had not
been long in use, for Camden speaks of them, in the
time of Queen EUzabeth, as extraordinary magistrates,
constituted only in times of difficulty and danger."
It would seem, however (vide Rymer, vol. xv., p. 75,
a.d. 1549-50), that Ueutenants were not thoroughly
instituted tiU the reign of Edward YI. Strype,
in his Annals (vol. Ui., p. 278), says that this year
(1549) began the making of lord-Ueutenants of the
counties. (x)
The only reaUy permanent forces were the garri- The
sons kept up in Ireland. These at first were chiefly Forces. "*
composed of those who held lands there by grants
(') Archaeol, xxxv., 351.

328 THE BRITISH ARMY.
t
from the Crown; these were subsequently supple
mented by smaU bodies of the king's levies sent over
from this country, and their number was graduaUy
increased. 0
Edward vi. Iu Edward YI.'s time, there were bands or troops
of men-at-arms, which appear to have been kept up
on permanent pay, probably in consequence of the
discontent among the people which then prevailed.
These were occasionally mustered and marched past
before the king ; and the command of the different
troops appears to have been bestowed on most of the
great officers of State, which they held irrespectively
of theb other offices. One of these great musters
took place in 1551, of which Strype gives the foUow-
ing account : " The king was minded to see his
standing forces, horse and foot, muster before him,
and the rather that he might be in a readiness in case
any rising might happen, as was apprehended by the
discontented Duke of Somerset and his party. So
there were letters written and directed to certain of
4
the chief officers of the army to have the gendarmery
and bands of horsemen, which were appointed there,
in a readiness to be seen by his Majesty."
(') "The first force that was established was in the 14th Edw. IV.,
when 120 archers on horseb'ack, 40 horsemen, and 40 pages, were
established by Parliament there, which, six years after, were re
duced to 80 archers and 20 spearmen on horseback. Afterwards, in
Henry YIII.'s time, in the year 1535, the army in Ireland was 300;
and in 1540 they were increased to 380 horse and 160 foot, whiqh was
the establishment then. I speak this of times of peace, for when the
Irish were in rebellion, which was very frequent, the armies were
much more considerable." (A Short History of Standing Armies in
England, written by that Eminent Patriot, Thomas Trenchard, Esq.
London, 1698.)

queen mary's reign. 329
In the succeeding reign of Queen Mary, no glory Calais Lost.
attended the EngUsh arms. On the contrary, Calais,
the last of England's possessions in France, was lost,
after it had been held by this country for more than
200 years, owing to the inertness of the Government
at home, notwithstanding the warnings and urgent
demands for succour from its gaUant defender, Lord
Grey^1) Two acts were passed during this reign for
the better defence of the realm, of which one regu
lated the musters of the militia, the other fixed the
proportion of arms, armour, and horses to be provided
by private individuals (4 and 5 PhiUp and Mary,
stat. 2 and 3). By this latter any able-bodied man,
who neglected to take up arms when caUed upon,
subjected himself to the penalty of death.
The researches of the learned antiquary, Sir
Henry EUis, have presented us with a transcript of
"Instructions given by the King and Queen's Ma
jesties to theb right trustie and right weU-beloved
cosen, the Erie of Bedford, appointed theb Hignes
Lieutenant of the Counties of Dorset, Devon, Corne-
waU, and theb Citie of Exeter, the 17th daie of
March, the fourth and fifth yeares of theb Majesties'
raignes" (a.d. 15 57-8). (2) This appointment corro
borates Camden's assertion that lord-lieutenants
(l) In the State Paper Office is a copy of a letter from Queen Mary,
dated Jan. 7, 1558, addressed to the special gentlemen in every
shire, urging them immediately to raise men for the succour of Calais,
" the chief Jewell of the Bealme," and not to allow any exemption
whatever. The chief jewel of the realm was, however, lost to England
on the very day on which the letter is dated. (Col. State Papers,
Dom.) (2) Archaeol., xxxv., p. 350.

330 THE BRITISH ARMY.
were extraordinary magistrates, constituted only in
times of difficulty and danger.^) For this was the
date of the disasters abroad, and Philip's offer to
attempt to regain Calais was declined by the EngUsh
council, who preferred to fortify the coast of Devon,
where Sir Henry Dudley menaced a descent, and to
prepare an armament to surprise some important
port on the French coast. (2)
origin of It must be urged, however, in vindication of the
Hospital inglorious memory of Queen Mary, that she intended
to do that which was not accompUshed tiU the reign
of Charles II. ; for in her wUl, dated 30th March,
1558, she orders her executors to provide a house
in London, with an income of the clear yearly value
of 400 marks, " for the relefe, succour, and helpe
of pore, impotent, and aged soldiers, and chiefly
those that be faUen into extreme poverte, having
no pensyon or other pretense of lyvyng,^ or are
become hurt or maymed in the warres of this
realm, or in onny service for the defense and suerte
of theb prince, and of theb countrey, or of the
domynions thereunto belonging." (3)
Queen During the long reign of Elizabeth, considerable
attention was directed to the state of the national
defences. The principle of non-intervention was not
in fashion in those days — it certainly was not among
(') It would appear, according to Bushworth, i., p. 168, "that
lord-lieutenants should have the nomination of their deputy-lieu
tenants," at the commencement of the reign of Charles I.
(2) Cotton. MSS., Titus, B. 2.
(s) Mary's will has been published for the first time by Sir
Frederick Madden, in his Privy Purse Expenses of the Princess Mary,
App., No. iv.

Elizabeth.

queen Elizabeth's reign. 331
the merits that can be imputed to our good Queen
Bess ; so she was obUged to yield, parsimonious as
she was, to the necessity not only of making a
large expenditure for protecting the kingdom from
foreign aggression, but also for supporting by arms
her partisans abroad.
England, France, and Spain were at that time The Political
the great performers on the stage of European poU-
tics. Each one had its own reasons for regarding
the part played by the others with eyes of jealousy
and mistrust; neither desiring an open rupture, lest
it should have the effect of producing a combina
tion of the other two. Spain, possessed of immense
territory and wealth, was plotting to extend her
dominion farther. The widowed Philip had made
proposals of marriage to EUzabeth, and exerted him
self to bring about the restitution of Calais to
England — which in honour he was bound to do,
seeing that he was instrumental to its loss ; and also
, by interest, as he desbed to interpose another power
between the French and his possessions in the Low
Countries ; and he even offered to continue hostilities
against Henry II. of France for six years longer,
provided that the Queen would bind herself not to
conclude a separate peace during that period. But
she wisely rejected the proposal.
In France the war of reUgions had broken out,
carried on — as aU such wars ever have been — with
the greatest cruelty and fanaticism ; it desolated that
country for nearly forty years. EUzabeth, in sup
porting the cause of the Huguenots — doubtless the

332 THE BRITISH ARMY.
one in accordance with her own feelings — thought
she saw a chance of recovering some of the lost
possessions of the EngUsh Crown in France. Havre-
de-Grace and Dieppe were delivered into her hands
by the insurgents; but the French RoyaUst army
mustered in great strength, and drove the EngUsh
forces out of them with considerable loss. A treaty
of peace, somewhat humUiating to England, was
signed (a.d. 1564), in which the subject of Calais
was not even mentioned.

CHAPTER XII.
PARSIMONY OF THE QUEEN — ILL-REQUITED SOLDIERS — LEVIES TOE IRELAND
 PHILIP SENDS AN EXPEDITION THERE — SIR JOHN NORRIS — ESSEX
SENT OVER AS LORD PRESIDENT  HIS INEFFICIENCY — RAW LEVIES 
LORD MOUNTJOY SUCCEEDS TO THE COMMAND — IMPROVED ASPECT OP
AFFAIRS — 6,000 SPANIARDS LAND— THEY CAPITULATE — WARFARE
IN THOSE DAYS.
Although the long reign of Elizabeth may be Treatment of
termed a peaceful one, there was a constant demand
for troops, either against the Scots, to put down the
repeated rebeUions in Ireland, to assist the Huguenots,
or the " HoUanders," in their insurrections, or to
defend the kingdom against the threatened invasion
of the Spaniards. The consequence was, that not
withstanding every expedition was conducted with all
possible meanness, a considerable mUitary expenditure
was incurred, every fraction of which was begrudged
by the Queen ; and eminent statesmen, like Burleigh
and "Walsingham, were often at theb wits' ends to
extract wherewithal to keep the soldiers literally from
starving. (})
With the small revenue which the Crown pos-
(l) " They " (the soldiers) " perish for want of victuals and cloth
ing, in great numbers." (Leicester to Burghley and Walsingham,
March 16, 1586 : S. P. Office MSS.— Also, WUkes to the Queen, 16th
Feb., 1587 : S. P. Office MSS.— "Memorial of things to be declared"
(in Burghley's hand), Nov. 1587: S. P. Office MSS.)

334 THE BRITISH ARMY.
sessed at that time, (2) and with the example of the
debts contracted by her father, brother, and sister,
caution and economy were highly essential and praise
worthy. But the honour of the kingdom was impaired
— nay more, the national existence was imperilled — by
the niggardly provision made for the defences of the
country by land and by sea; and many operations
which might have added lustre and dignity to the
Crown, were either rendered nugatory or wholly in
effectual by the false economy of the Queen.
It was, however, a glorious epoch for, England,
just emerging, as she was, from the gloom which
for some while had obscured her; about to take a
prominent place among nations. Elizabeth — an ac
complished woman in an accomplished age — was,
fortunately, surrounded by men who could render
eminent services to theb country, (2) and, however
(') It is difficult to ascertain the precise amount of income pos
sessed by Elizabeth. Mr. Motley computes it at half a million sterling.
(Un. Neth:, i. 303.) Assuming this to be the sum received by her
from all sources of revenue, it must be multiplied by ten to give it its
present monetary value. Anderson, in his Hist . of Commerce (ii. 133),
states that the annual profits of the kingdom arising from the Queen's
manors, lands, escheats, &c, were £188,197. D'Ewes, writing in
1575 (Journals, p. 245), says the Queen found the realm grievously
afflicted with debt, and was enabled to pay off some contracted by
Henry VIII. Naunton asserts, however, that, " with all her avarice,
she left more debts unpaid, taken upon credit of her privy seals, than
her progenitors did take, or could have taken up that were a
hundred years before her." (Fragmenta Reg., p. 88.)
(2) " The ocean is not more boundless than the men of note in her
time, but though all of them cannot be reckoned, yet some of them
must not be omitted; and to begin with the statesmen: Bobert
Earl of Leicester ; Sir William Cecil ; Lord Burleigh ; as also Sir
Francis Walsingham. Famous seamen were the Earl of Cumberland,
the Lord Thomas Howard, afterwards Earl of Suffolk ; and of meaner
rank Sir John Hawkins, Sir Martin Forbisher, Sir Walter Baleigh,

THE IRISH DIFFICULTY. 335
self-wiUed and obstinate, she was sagacious and strong-
minded. No greater proof of this latter, than not
being dismayed by the dangers which for some time
surrounded her.
Ireland, during the greater part of this reign, was Hostile Posi-
in a state of chronic insurrection. In 1542 it had
become nominaUy a kingdom, Henry VIII. having
been proclaimed King of Ireland; previously, the
Kings of England had only been styled Lords of
Ireland. Sister by propinquity, but alien in race and
reUgion, she was as much estranged from EngUsh
rule as ever ; and matters were so bad in EUzabeth's
time, that Walsingham thought it no treason to wish
the island, and aU in it, buried in the sea.
Levies of troops for service in Ireland were
consequently large and frequent in this reign; and
for three or four years, an army of 20,000 men
had to be maintained there, a large permanent
force for those days. Naunton estimates the cost
of that Irish war at not less than £300,000 per
annum. (x)
PhiUp of Spain " cherished the Irish rebeUion,"(2)
and suppUed arms and money, in Uke manner as the
Queen of England had supported the disaffected in
Scotland, the Protestants in France, and the revolted
Cavendish, Preston, Byman, and (to name the worthiest last) Sir
Francis Drake. Great commanders by land were Bobert Earl of
Essex, the Lord WiUoughby, the Lord Gray of Wilton, Sir Francis
Vere, Sir Boger Williams, Baskerville, Savage, and the honour of his
family and our English nation, Sir John Norris," &c. (Baker's
Chron., 399.)
(*) Fragmenta Regalia.
(2) Ibid.

the Queen.

336 THE BRITISH ARMY.
States of HoUand; and in 1580, (*) he dispatched to
Ireland a body of about 600 Spaniards and Italians,
under the command of San Josefa, an ItaUan, who
occupied Smerwick, in Kerry, and fortified it. But
these troops, celebrated as they were for bravery
and endurance, were not prepared for the cUmate and
rough warfare of Ireland. They were at length
abandoned by the arch-rebel Desmond himself, and
surrendered themselves unconditionaUy, and most of
them were summarily executed. (z)
Parsimony of The Queen's ruling passion, parsimony — so often
injurious to her interests — induced her, when the
danger seemed past, to disband the army, leaving a
force insufficient fq overawe the kingdom. The
result of this policy was that outbreaks were con
tinually occurring, and the rebellion was scotched,
but not crushed. The nature of the country, abound
ing in wood, bog, and mountains, rendered the sup
pression of an armed rebeUion a matter of extreme
difficulty under any circumstances ; and the Queen's
officers often found theb best efforts paralysed by the
want of means to, foUow up their successes. Sir
John Norris, who commanded the troops in Ireland
in 1599, a gaUant soldier, and a general of great
experience, died, it is said, of vexation, at not having
been able to perform anything worthy of his former
achievements.^) He, however, had nothing to re
proach himseU with. But Ireland was fatal to the
reputation of Essex, EUzabeth's brave but incapable
(l) Digges, pp. 359, 370.— Camden, p. 475. (2) Ibid.
(3) Camden, edit. 1688, p. 543.

Ireland's opportunity. 337
favourite, who was most improperly appointed, in Essex
1573, by the Queen to the chief command, when the Lord Deputy.
rebellion had attained a very dangerous height, and
when the Council had resolved that the war ought to
be prosecuted with the most vigorous measures. The
Queen granted to him greater powers than she had
ever conferred on any previous lord-deputy ; (-1) and,
to ensure his success, she raised an army of 20,000
foot and 2,000 horse, and placed it at his entire
disposal. These raw levies; summoned hastily from
theb homes, were no match for the wild kernes to
whom they were opposed. The levies destined for
service in Ireland were chiefly raised, for convenience
of dispatch, in Cheshire and Lancashire. They are
spoken of as " poore creatures thatt are more meete
ffor the plow at home than ffor any servysse
heare." (2) In one of his despatches to the Queen,
Essex writes : — " These rebels are far more in number
than your Majesty's army, and have (though I do
unwillingly confess it) better bodies and (more) per
fect use of theb arms than those men your Majesty
sends over." Two years of active service should
have converted these EngUsh into disciplined sol
diers ; but hard usage, the damp climate, sickness,
and general mismanagement, seem to have deterio
rated theb morale and physique, for in 1599 a con
siderable body of them had been put to flight at
the Glins by an inferior number of the enemy,
at which Essex was so enraged that he cashiered
aU the officers, and actually decimated the private
(l) Ibid., p. 569. (2) Lancashire Lieutenancy : Chefcham Society.
VOL. I. W

338 THE BRITISH ARMY.
men.t1) The consequence of this was, of course, a
requisition for reinforcements, which, nevertheless,
the Queen hesitated not at once to dispatch to him.
But the army was thoroughly dispirited, and no
good came of the campaign. Essex held a conference
with Tyrone, in direct contravention of the Queens's
commands ; and he shortly after left Ireland for ever.
LordMountjoy He was succeeded in his command by Charles Blount,
his Successor. Lord Mountjoy — the right man for the place — and
who would have been appointed before, but for
the Queen's partiality for Essex. Ever on the spot
where duty called him, he gave the enemy no rest.
The presence of a capable and vigorous commander
soon infused fresh life in the army; and no set of
men could have behaved better than the English
forces. Although the service was necessarily a hard
one, we hear of no further complaints of the ineffi
ciency of the raw material; and the Lord-President
himself, writing at the conclusion of his labours, took
occasion to say, " It hath been seldom heard that an
army hath been carried on with so continual action,
and enduring without any intermission of winter
breathings." (2)
The difficulty of Mountjoy 's position was greatly
increased by the arrival of a weU-appointed army of
6,000 Spaniards, who landed in October, 1601, at
Kinsale and other ports, under Don Juan de Aquila.
But notwithstanding the acknowledged competency
(x) Cox (Dr.'R.),Tp.4,'2ll.—Hibern. Anglic— The journal of this expe
dition is in Birch's Menus, of Queen EUmbeth, ii. 398, and Nugae
Antiques, 268.
(2) Pacata Hibernia, ii. 699.

THE REBELLION TERMINATED. 339
of Spanish officers, and the bravery and discipline of
theb troops, in a few months' campaign — during which
some sharp encounters took place — the Spaniards
sustained such losses that, finding they could no
longer maintain their position, they asked for terms of
capitulation, and the Lord-Deputy, glad to be rid of
them, aUowed them to re-embark with the honours
of war. In two years from the time that he had
assumed the dbection of affairs, the chief rebels had
either surrendered, been captured, or left the kingdom ;
and the insurrection was at an end. Thus the honour
of terminating a contest which had continued for
upwards of 400 years was reserved for' the arms of
EUzabeth, who received the account of this success just
before the close of her reign. Much curious informa
tion is suppUed in a work " composed while the actions
were fresh in the memories of men, by the dbection
and appointment of the Bight Hon. Earle of Totness,
then Lord President of Mounster ; " (x) and by it we
are enabled to obtain an insight into the working of Warfare in
the military system of that day. The warfare con
sisted chiefly in the reduction of the fortified castles
of the Irish land-owners, and in the pursuit of-the
rebels in theb fastnesses. The EngUsh had an
evident superiority in theb cavaby, for we are told
that the Irish had only "smaU horses, and the
souldiers were unarmed, which doe only fight with
half-pikes and saddles without stirrups." (2) No men
tion yet of dragoons, although that class of soldier
would' have been very useful in such campaigns, and
(') Carew's Pacata Hibernia. (2) Ibid., p. 345.
W 2

340 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the French had employed them in theb armies from
the middle of the century. "We hear of the " Begiment
volant, appointed only to answer the first occasion,
without doing any other duties," (x) apparently a
Ught corps d 'elite, kept in readiness to act on the
emergency of the moment; and there is much curious
account of the clumsy practice of artiUery, of " peeces
that would not go off," and which are always aUuded
to in the feminine gender. (a)
One is sorry to find the conduct of gaUant men
tarnished by acts of dupUcity, and even lying, which
evidently at that time were not thought discreditable
in the poUcy of war. The foUowing curious account
of the steaUng of the Spanish despatches, and the
subsequent open disavowal of the fact, is explanatory
of this reflection : —
" About the 10th of February, Don Juan de
Aquila, residing in Corke, whUe his troops were
preparing to bee embarqued for Spaine. In this
interim, a Spanish pinnace landed in the westermost
part of the province, and > in her there was a mes
senger sent from the King to Don Juan de Aquila,
with a packet of letters. The President having
knowledge thereof, told the Lord Deputie, that if
hee had a desbe to know the King of Spaine's
intentions, there was a good occasion offered; the
Lord Deputie's heart itching to have the letters in
his hands, prayed the President to intercept them,
if hee could handsomely doe it ; the President under-
tooke it, and having notice that the next morning
(') Pacata Hibernia, p. 415. (2)Tbid., p. 116.

ENGLISH DUPLICITY. 341
the messenger would come from Kinsale to Corke,'
and knowing that there was but two ways by which
hee might passe, called Captaine William Nuce unto
him (who commanded his foote company) to make
choise of such men as hee could trust to lie upon
those passages, and when they saw such a Spaniard
(whom he had described unto him) to seaze upon
him, and as thieves to rob him both of his letters,
horses, and money, not to hurt his person, but to
leave him and his guid bound, that he might make
no swift pursuit after them, and when they had
deUvered him of the letters to runne away. Cap
taine Nuce so well foUowed his instructions, as
the Spaniard was taken in a little wood, and the
letters brought at dinner time ; Don Juan (if I
doe not mistake) that very day dyning with him,
who instantly carried them to the Lord Deputie,
where at good leasure the packets were opened and
read, which done, the President went to his house,
leaving the letters with the Lord Deputie. The
same evening, the Spanish messenger having been
unbound by passengers, came to Don Juan de AquUa
relating his misfortune in being robbed not five mUes
from the towne. Don Juan went immediately to the
Lord Deputie, grieviously complayning that the mes
senger was robbed by souldiers (as hee aUedged).
" The Lord Deputie seemed no lesse sorry, but (said
he) it is a common thing in aU armies to have debaucht
souldiers, but he thought it to be rather done by some
of the country thieves ; but if the fact was committed
by souldiers,' it was most Uke to bee done by some

342 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Irish men, who thought it to bee a good purchase (as
weU as the money) to get the letters, to shew them
unto their friends in rebellion, that they might the
better understand in what estate they were in. Don
Juan, not being satisfied with this answer, desbed the
Lord Deputie to enqube of the Lord President (for
his intercepting of them he had a vehement suspicion)
whether hee had any knowledge of the matter, and so
they departed. The next morning the Lord Deputie
related to the President the complaint, and his answers.
Don Juan, eager in the pursuit of his letters, came
to know of the Lord Deputie what the President
answered ; the Lord Deputie answered him upon his
fayth, that he was sure that the President had them
not, which hee might weU doe, for they were in his
own possession. In conclusion, a proclamation was
made, and a reward (in the same promised) for him
that could discover the theeves, and a pardon for their
Uves granted that committed the fact, if they would
come in and confesse it; with this Don Juan rested
satisfied." (Pacata Hibernia, '-a.. 464.)
Another instance of treachery on the part of the
EngUsh wUl be found when Captain Boger Hawie,
" taking for his guard a Serjeant with four-and-twenty
foot," endeavoured to surprise the Castle of Blarney,
by " going to hunt the buck in the parts neere adjoin
ing," and, pretending to be hot and weary, were to caU
at the Castle in the way homeward and to ask for wine
and usquebagh, " whereof Irish gentlemen are seldom
disfurnished." The pseudo-hunting party was, however,
refused admittance, and the plot faUed. (Ibid., 592.)'

CHAPTEB XIV.
DANGERS OF THE STATE — PREPARATIONS POR DEFENCE — INVASION OP ENG
LAND CONTEMPLATED BY PHILIP  PLAN OP PARNESE POR THE LANDING
— ARMADA ARRIVES — ENGLISH PREPARATIONS — DIRECTIONS TO LORD-
LIEUTENANTS — SIR JOHN NORRIS TO COMMAND PORCES IN MARITIME
COUNTIES — STATE OP DEFENCES AT PORTSMOUTH  DEFENCES ON THE
THAMES — CORPS D'ARMEES INSTITUTED — INEXPERIENCE OF ENGLISH
TROOPS — COURAGEOUS CONDUCT OP THE QUEEN — VISITS TILBURY
FORT — ATTACK! THREATENED BY SPAIN EIGHT YEARS AFTER — COUNCIL
SUMMONED — THEIR OPINIONS — RALEIGH'S POLICY.
In 1571 matters were not pleasant in England. Malcontents
A spirit of discontent and disloyalty was general
among the Eoman Catholics and Puritans ; (x) the
friends of the captive Queen of Scots were exerting
themselves for her liberation, and a serious conspiracy
was afoot, no less than that of kUling or capturing
EUzabeth. PhUip of Spain was vehement in its sup
port. (2) The conspbators had asked for the assist
ance of 6,000 arquebusiers for England, 2,000 for
Scotland, and 2,000 for Ireland. Several emissaries
arrived in England, at different times, with the purpose
of ridding the world of the heretical queen. (3) In
1572 occurred the massacre of the Huguenots, on the
night of the festival of St. Bartholomew.
(*) Camden, i. 48.
Q) Correspond, de Philippe IL, 1,038, quoted in Motley's Dutch
Republic, ii., ch. vi.
(3) Ibid.

344 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Defence In anticipation of dangers to the State, " both in
ward and outward," it was high time that the Queen
should look closely to her means of internal defence.
A commission was consequently issued, enacted by
her own authority, with the advice of the Privy
CouncU. This lengthy document is given in extenso
in Grose's Mil. Antiq., vol. i, pp. 76 — 93. The origi
nal is preserved in the Harl. MSS., Cod. 6,844. It
is signed — W. BURGHLEY, E. LYNCOLN,
T. Sussex, Q) B. Leycester,
W. MlLDMAY, F. KNOLLYS,
T. Smith,
and was subscribed by the Council the last day of
February, 15th EUz., 1573. It is headed:— "In
structions for the executyon of the Commission
directed to all the Justices of the Peace in the
Countie of  for general musters, and
trayning, of aU manner of persons, Uable for the
warrs, to serve as weU on horseback as on foote,'*
Their The foUowing is a brief abstract of it : — The com
mission recites that the principal intent of the Queen's
Majesty is to have perfect knowledge of the numbers,
quaUties, and sufficiency of all her subjects in each
county. A general muster of men for the service and
defence of her Majesty, her crown, and realm — against
aU attempts, both inward and outward— from sixteen
years upwards, capable of bearing arms, is enjoined.
From these, a sufficient number was to be selected,
(') See also Introduction to Lancashire Lieutenancy, xxxiv.

Instructions.

MILITARY ORGANISATION. 345
and armed, and trained, at the reasonable expense of
the shbe ; by which the public peace may be con
tinued, which, by Cod's goodness, the realm at this
time enjoyed, more than any other in Christendom.
As the musterings and trainings would take place
in different parts of the shire, special commissioners
are appointed to take charge of the divisions. It was
to be left to theb discretion to appoint another time
of year for the framing, if the present (February)
should be considered unreasonable, having due regard
to " the state of matters in other countries near to
this realm."
No householder of any degree was to be exempt,
except prelates, lords of Parliament, and members of
the Privy Council. Other ecclesiastical persons and
judges to send their servants, with all theb furniture
of armour and weapons, to be added to the muster of
the laity. And for the purpose of increasing the
number of able-bodied men, the commissioners shall
cause the humbler sort of freeholders, franklins,
farmers, or merchants, being not of sufficient means to
provide one whole furniture of armour or weapons, to
be treated withal by good persuasion, and for the love
of theb country, they be induced to join together to
find the requisite equipment for a pikeman, an archer,
or a harquebusier ; and, furthermore, that they shaU
persuade all manner of rich farmers and freeholders
to keep in their houses persons meet for archery, &c.
With great deliberation, the commissioners were
to make choice of the fittest persons to be appointed
captains and petty-captains, &c.

346 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Inasmuch as the training and exercise of a mul
titude of people may seem costly and chargeable, and
that it may not seem necessary in many places to
have the whole numbers of the able people to be
armed and weaponed, therefore the commissioners
shaU use their discretion, after they shaU have made
a muster of the whole shbe, to consider and determine
what may be a convenient number to be coUected out
of the total number, meet to be sorted in bands, and to
be trained and exercised in such sort, as may reason
ably be borne by a common charge of the whole.
country, &c.(})
Begard was to be had how to divide and distri
bute the use of the weapons, in the sorting of the
bands, that there might be in every hundred footmen,
at the least, forty harquebusiers and twenty archers,
if it can be so conveniently arranged. PubUc games
and matches were to be encouraged, so that the
archers may be men of strength, and so the more able
to shoot with the long bow.
The commissioners to appoint special persons in
every hundred, or wapentake, to be named surveyors
of the armour and weapons that shall belong in
common to the parishes and townships. The rest of

f1) Here we have the origin of the "trained bands," which are so
often mentioned, and played so conspicuous a part in after times.
They were the "hablest" men, selected for their soldier-like qualities,
and were drilled and exercised at the public charge, until they were
reported fit to act as disciplined troops. In this reign, we first find
the soldiers raised in counties called " Militia" — (see Harl. MS; 1,026,
Art. 100, fol. 105) — a term which Jacob (Law Die.) applies to the
trained bands raised in counties, and under the direction of the
lieutenancy.

FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS. 347
the men, not being of the selected number, who were
to be put into bands to be trained, were, nevertheless,
to be reduced into certain bands of hundreds, under
meet captains and officers, so that they .might be in
readiness also for general service, with arms and
armour, if necessary.
In apportioning the amount of taxation, due
regard was to be paid to spare as much as possible
the poor husbandman, the cottager, and artisan, and
to charge chiefly such as be rich, and not able to
serve in their own persons ; likewise strangers, not
being natural-born subjects, it is reasonable to charge
them, as they were not caUed upon to serve as others
were. Especial care was to be taken as to the providing
of horses and horsemen, "one of the best strengths
to be requbed for the defence of the realm, and that
which is thought to be most decayed and imperfect,
and most necessarily to be increased."
The commissioners were therefore enjoined to
peruse carefully the number and state of "posses-
sioners " resident within their shire, to see whether
those chargeable to find and have in readiness horses
and geldings, both for lances and Ught horsemen,
with armour and weapons proper for the same, as
expressly prescribed by the laws, CO are provided with
the same.
Her Majesty could not believe that any one in
a position to supply more horses, &c, than he is
(!) 4 and 5 Philip and Mary ; a renewal of the 32nd Hen. YIII.
as to keeping horses and armour.

348 THE BRITISH ARMY.
assessed for, would refuse to do it in a matter which
so closely concerns the surety and defence of the realm.
The names of those who agree to this increase shaU
be certified to her Majesty and her council, to the
intent that theb good dispositions may be acknow
ledged. As to the recusants, the Queen must be
forced to have an inquisition made of their goods and
lands, when most likely their burden wiU be greater
by order of the laws, than under the limit of the
commissioners, besides the forfeiture of the penalties
incurred for the time past; and the evil account and
estimation of their backwardness.
The statute of the 27th Hen. VIII. for the breed
ing and increase of horses, &c, to be strictly enforced.
The names of every one who consents to keep any
horses and geldings are to be given, with the kinds of
weapons, be it lance, or light-horseman's staff, or cases
of dagges, according to the quaUties of the persons.
In 1574 another set of "Instructions" was
issued, addressed to the Earl of Bedford, the Lord-
Lieutenant of the South- Western District; (:) It will
be found printed in the Archceologia (vol. xxxv.),
where a note of the learned transcriber, Sir Henry
Ellis, caUs attention to the circumstance, that in the
second paragraph the cause which induced the Queen
to issue them is said to have been occasioned by
reason of "the doubtful proceedings of the French/
many manner of waies, to the annoyance and danger
of the realm." But there was no fear of invasion
Q) This is the same nobleman who was addressed in a similar
capacity by Philip and Mary in 1557j (See before, p. 329.)

INSTRUCTIONS BY THE QUEEN. 349
from France in 1574. France and England were in
amity. The real cause is given in the commission
itself, in which the instructions were enclosed, and
which wiU be found in the latter part. The reasons
reaUy were, " the great preparations which the King
of Spain was making by sea to send into the Low
Countries," in going to which his fleet had to pass
through the EngUsh Channel.
"Elizabeth B.
"Instructions given by the Queen's Majesty unto
her right trusty and right weU-beloved cosen and
counseUor, the Erie of Bedford, Lieutenant of her
Counties of Devon, CornwaU, and her City of Exeter.
" Item. Because at this present, as the said Earl
knoweth, Her Majesty is speciaUy occasioned, by
reason of the doubtful proceedings of the French,
many manner of waies, to the annoyance and danger
of this realm, to put the same with aU speed in good
order for defence thereof, and specially all parties
thereof lying upon the sea-coasts, against such
attempts or invasions as may be made. Therefore
Her Majesty requbeth most earnestly her said cosen
immediately with aU speed, upon the receipt hereof,
to renew such good orders as by him were the last
year taken upon musters for the putting of the whole
force of both the said counties in such a readiness of
aU men for horsemen and footmen, and for armour,
horse, weapons, and other necessary furniture, as the
same may, by the direction of Her Majesty, or of her
said cosen, best and most readily serve for the defence

350 THE BRITISH ARMY.
of any sudden attempt, ... and at this present
there appeareth more cause to have the same, if it
may be, in a larger force, and in more readiness. . . .
Therefore Her Majesty, being by Almighty Cod
ordained the Sovereign Queen next under Him of the
whole state of the realm, and being desirous to pre
serve the same against the maUce of all enemies, to
the honour and surety of the same kingdom and
defence of all her people, &c.
" Item. Besides the lack of furniture of armour,
Her Majesty also perceiveth that in the whole realm
there is lack of men exercised and trained in feats of
war, either to wear their armour, to use their weapons,
to march in order, to do such things as be requisite :
therefore Her Majesty, by advice of her CouncU, wiU
address certain honest, chosen captains, having know
ledge, into divers shires, to be at the musters, and
there to teach and train the people, as seemeth most
convenient to be upon every hoUday, in the after
noon, for two or three months space.
" Item. Because the counties of Devon and Corn
waU lie upon the sea-coast, and on the part of the
sea, hath adjoining the counties of Dorset and
Somerset, like as Her Majesty giveth order to the
counties of WUtshire, Somerset, and Gloucester, to
have good regard to give succours as need shaU
reqube to the aid of the said counties of Devon and
Cornwall, and that also the south part of Wales shall
do the semblable towards CornwaU upon any dan
gerous attempts upon the coasts, wherefore Her
Majesty thinketh best that the said Ueutenant or the

PRICE OF ARMOUR.

351

justices that be borderers shall confer, &c, as to mea
sures. " The armour is to be seen and worn upon the
backs of the persons that shaU wear them, and made
fit for them; where any lack armour that ought to
have it, they be commanded to provide it by a reason
able day, and that they be informed that they shaU
have the same of the Queen's Majestie's store upon
reasonable prices, as set forth below.
" FinaUy, Her Majesty requbeth her said lieu
tenant the care and government of her said counties
and city, to be preserved both in quiet from danger of
mutinies and rebeUions, and from offence of the
enemies. " The price of armor and artiUerie : —
The armour for a demi-lance
A corslett
A currier,^) complete
Harquebush, complete .
Dagge, complete
A bowe of ewe
Liverie arrowes and shafte
Morris pike
A demi-lance staffe .
A northerne staffe .
A black bill .
A halberd
A murrion
Almaine rivette
Sculler, the peece .
"Item. Where we are given to understande of
great preparation that the King of Spaine maketh by
sea to sende into the Lowe Countries, we think it good
providence, in respect as some unkindness that hath
(•) A fire-arm like an arquebus, but with a longer barrel. See
after, under " Hand Fire-Arms."

liiijs.

iiijd.

xxxs.

xvjs.

viijd.

xrns.

xvjs.

viijd.

IjS.

vjd.

xxijd.

IJS.

njs.
iiijd.
IJS.
vjd.
xvjd.
VJS.
viijd.'
VJS.
viijd.
xs.
vijd.
352 THE BRITISH ARMY.
passed between us, to be careful for the conservation.
of our realme from all sodaine invasion; and there
fore we wUl that with aU speede you take order for
the defence of our said counties and cittie, especially
those parts thereof lying upon the sea-coasts, which
be most subject to the dangerous attempts of forraine
enemies. For your better direction herein, you shall,
by our order, receive from one of our secretaries a
copy of such letters as are written by our Privie
CounseU to the justices of those shires that coast
upon the sea, those onlie; excepted that are presently
commytted to your government, by the which you
shall both perceave in what order of defence they are
directed to put themselves in to withstand aU forraine
invasion, as also howe and in what manner they shall
behave themselves towards the King of Spaine's
navie as shaU resorte unto our partes," &c.
It wUl be remarked that in both of these com
missions there was no departure from the economical
policy of the day, everything being thrown on the ex
pense of the individual, while the Government offered
nothing, excepting a supply of arms and armour from
her Majesty's stores, perhaps at cost-price.
For twenty years the contemplation of invading
England had been a favourite project in the mind of
Philip II. The restoration of the Catholic religion in
England was the ostensible motive. Pope Sixtus Y.
had for some years incessantly urged PhUip to the
enterprise ; and it is remarkable that, within a year
after the defeat of the armada, that pontiff solicited

THE SPANISH INVASION. 353
the heretic Elizabeth to take up arms against Spain,
and the favourite son of the Church. (Gregorio, Fit.
di Sisto V., 1. iii, p. 427.) The Pope, perhaps, was
the only CathoUc who betrayed want of faith in the
benedictions which he solemnly pronounced on the
invincible armada. The wary Sixtus engaged, as soon
as the Spanish forces should be landed in England, to
advance a milUon of crowns towards defraying the ex
penses of the expedition (Muratori, an. 1588). He was,
however, liberal in the distribution of crosses, medals,
reliques, indulgences, and pardons. Muratori pointedly
observes that the failure of the expedition was " nau-
fragd ogni speranza di rintuzzar l'orgoglio deUa Begina
Inglese." Many matters had delayed its accomplish
ment; but at length, in 1586, the time seemed to have
arrived when he was about to reap the harvest of his
hopes. (x). Two or three years before, the Duke of
Parma (3) had forwarded to the Kmg an account of
the coasts, anchorages, and harbours of England, and
he had expressed an opinion that the conquest of
that country was not so difficult as to be considered
altogether impossible . (3) He proposed coUecting in
(') An early indication of this intention is contained in a letter,
dated Chester, Dec. 20, 1567, from Richard Hurleston to the Earl of
Pembroke, giving intelligence by good information of great prepara
tions making by the King of Spain for the invasion of England ; and
adds, that certain gentlemen in Lancashire had taken a solemn oath
not to come to the communion, and that they rejoice greatly at the
report of a Spanish invasion. (Col. State Papers, Dom., quoted in
Lancashire Lieutenancy, i., p. 24.)
(2) Alexander Parnese had succeeded to the dukedom of Parma
at the death of his father, in 1586.
(3) MS. -letter of Parma to Philip, April 20, 1586; quoted in
Motley, United Netherlands, i. 527.
VOL. I. X

354 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the Netherlands an invading force of 30,000 infantry,
besides 500 Ught horsemen, with saddles, bridles, and
lances, but without horses, as, in his opinion, it
would be easier to mount them in England.
Parma's Plan jje considered the most appropriate part of the
of Invasion. ,
coast for the landing would be between Dover and
Margate. The country about Dover he described as
populous, weU wooded, and much divided by hedges ;
advantageous for infantry, and not requiring a larger
amount of cavaby than the small force at his disposal ;
while the people there were domestic in their habits,
rich, and therefore less warlike. It would be neces
sary to make immediately for London, which city,
not being fortified, would be very easily taken. The
Queen would probably fly, and everything would be
left in utter confusion. (a) Such a force as has just
been named, he proposed, should be assembled quietly
in the Netherlands, and a flotilla of flat-bottomed
boats prepared in various ports of his government
for its transport.
These, he thought, might altogether escape the
attention of the English Government; or, if seen,
might be supposed to be preparing for action against
the revolted provinces of HoUand. For the success of
this plan he urged two points to be vitaUy essential,
fine weather and secrecy, for, obviously, such a flotilla
could not breast a heavy sea ; and Parma calculated
that, in favourable weather, the passage might occupy
from eight to twelve hours.
If the matter got wind, the HoUanders and Zea-
(2) MS. letter of Parma to Philip, just quoted.

parma's ADVICE TO PHILIP. 355
landers, and English, with theb armed ships, would
destroy the whole expedition, which had not the least
power of resisting an enemy at sea. Should his
Majesty, however, contrary to his (Parma's) advice,
deem it best to admit confederates in his cause, the
whole thing would then be pubUshed abroad ; in which
case the Queen of England would, doubtless, make
every exertion for defence— probably hire foreign mer
cenaries, in addition to her English miUtia, and prepare
a combined fleet of English and Netherlanders, men
Ultimately acquainted with the coasts, which would
add considerably to the difficulty of the landing ; and
the enemy on shore, moreover, would have the advan
tage of being provided with cavalry. The king must
provide such an armada as would defeat the combined
fleet of EngUsh and Dutch, and which would escort
his (Parma's) 30,000 men across the Channel.
PhUip's heart was bent upon the conquest of
England. He took his nephew's advice so far, that
he coUected in various parts of the Mediterranean an
armada that might defy any combined fleet that could
be brought to oppose it. But he admitted others to
participate in so holy a crusade, and volunteers flocked
to him from aU parts. Such an expedition could not
possibly exist without being talked about, but the king
and his general, by extreme duplicity and downright
falsehood, (r) persuaded Elizabeth, almost up to the
time that the armada was sighted off the Lizard's
Point, that the armament was destined for other,
purposes, and that their intentions towards England
(») Motley, ii. 310.
x 2

350 THE BRITISH ARMY.
were, pacific; and EUzabeth hoped to the last that
terms might be arranged, and that she might be
spared the expenditure of so great a war.
Casualties had prevented the departure of the
fleet, but it required a more than wUful blindness to
mistake the object for which it was preparing. Drake
had been sent to cruise off the coasts of Portugal and
Spain, early in the spring of 1587, and had succeeded
in destroying a great amount of shipping and stores,
which thereby delayed the departure of the expedi
tion. The gallant sailor called this "singeing the
King of Spaine's beard," (^ and returned, bringing
information of the vast preparations making for the
invasion of England. (3)
It was not until July 12, 1588, that the fleet
made its final start from "the Groyne" (Corunna) ;
and never did the ocean bear a more gaUant one than
that which the Spaniards, in aU the confidence of
success, christened " Invincible."
It consisted of about 140 vessels of aU sorts, most

(•) Barrow's Life of Drake, p. 256.
(2) See his letter to Burghley in Strype's Annals, iii. 664. — A relic
of this brave Englishman, which we, as a sea-faring race, must greatly
esteem, is his sword, which has been handed down in a farm-house
in Gloucestershire, a property which once belonged to him. The
inscriptions, which are accurately represented on Plate XXXVTL,
corroborate the tradition. First, we have " Sir Pranciscus Drake
Armiger ; " next, a man-of-war of his time ; below that, the Mercator's
globe, the badge which Queen Elizabeth ordered him to wear when
he appeared at Court. This sword is now in the possession of the
artist, Mr. Pritchett. In Old England, vol. ii. (Charles Knight),
there is a portrait given of Drake (Plate No. 1,629), taken, as there
stated, " from a painting at Nutwell Church." An original miniature
by Hilliard, formerly at Strawberry Hill, is now in the possession of
the Earl of Derby.

No. 37.

The inscription here given is taken from a. Sword, which has been handed
down in a farm-house in Gloucestershire as having belonged to Sir
Francis Drake, and the ornamentation fully corroborates the tradition.
The Sword is now in the possession of R. T. Pritchett, Esq.

THE ARMADA. 357
of them heavy, unwieldy ships, many of them of great
tonnage for those daysf), and it carried about 30,000
souls — seamen, soldiers, volunteers, and galley-slaves
— and 2,630 pieces of artillery. (2)
It is difficult in these days, when the relative
positions of nations are so completely changed — when
England has become so powerful, and Spain bereft
of so much of her grandeur — to realise " the full ex
tent of the peril which England then incurred from
the power and ambition of Spain, and to appreciate
the importance of that crisis in the history of the

(') The writers of that age employed very inflated language in
describing the Spanish fleet : that " the ocean groaned with support
ing so enormous a weight," and so forth ; but the largest of these
vessels would scarcely pass for third-rates in the navies of the
present day. It is also a mistake to suppose that the Spanish ships
were so much larger than those in the English navy, although the
English ships were collectively far inferior in size, and their aggre
gate tonnage, of course, immeasurably less — viz., 57,868 tons, against
31,985. (See Appendix of Original Papers, li., in Strype.) Motley says,
59,120 (Un. Neth., ii. 466). There was one English ship, the Triumph,
of 1,100 tons, one of 1,000, one of 900, two of 800 (Murdin, pp. 615,
619, 621), and the largest Spanish ship was the galleon St. Mark, of
1,000 tons. . (Appendix of Original Papers, li., in Strype.)— In the
Registers of the Stationers' Company (vide Notes and Queries, 2 S.
xii., 101), there is A Ballad of tlwbtayning of the Galeazza wherein
Don Pedro Devaler. was Chief, &c. According to Stowe " this ship
or galleon was of 1,150 tons," with 304 soldiers and 118 mariners.
It was sent by Drake into Dartmouth. (Edit. 1605, p. 1,251.)— The
fleet which Philip de Valois equipped to oppose the invasion of
Edward III., in 1340, was more numerous than the armada, both as
to the number of vessels and men. Proissart says that he had 700
vessels and 40,000 men (liv. i., ch. 1.), and that 30,000 Frenchmen'
wer.e killed. (Ibid., ch. li.) " Vide the roll of the huge fleete of
Edward III. before Calice, extant in the King's great wardrobe in
London, whereby the wonderfull strength of England by sea in those
days may approve. The summe totall of all the English fleete :—
ships, 700 ; mariners, 14,151." (Hakluyt's Voyages, i. 121.)
(2) App. of Original Papers.— Motley says 3,165 guns.

358 THE BRITISH ARMY.
world. "(1) We must recollect that Spain was then
the first military and naval power in the world ; that
Ireland was in rebeUion against England; that the
Queen of Scots had just been executed by EUza-
beth's order; that Belgium was in possession of
Spain, presided over by Alexander Farnese, indisputa
bly the most consummate general of the age ; that
France, although torn with civil war, was actively
employed in extirpating the reformed religion; and
that Pope Sixtus V. had signed a new buU by
which Elizabeth was declared to have forfeited the
crowns of England and Ireland. (2) Amidst such
threatening elements, how far was England prepared
to avert the coming storm? For the first time in
theb annals the Crowns of England and Scotland,
most fortunately, were not antagonistic. James,
rejecting the flattering offers of Philip, and aU
sugestions of revenge, determined to adhere to the
league with England, and to act in concert with
EUzabeth, against the common enemy of the Pro
testant interest. On the 1st of August, 1588, on
the approach of the armada, he wrote a letter to
the Queen, in which he expresses his anxiety to be
employed in the defence of England, that the Queen's
"adversaries may have ado not with England, but
with the whole ile of Bretayne. " (3) The United
Provinces of HoUand was the only foreign power
to which EUzabeth could apply for active assistance.
(:) Creasy's Decisive Battles, p. 347.
(2) Bechetti, xii. 221, quoted by Lingard.
(3) Letters of Elizabeth and James VI., published by Camden Soc,
No. 46, p. 51.

the queen's characteristic. 359
They undertook a most important service — the block
ading of the Scheldt and Spanish-Dutch ports, which
was no less than shutting up Parma and aU his
army. The actual defence of the country was com
mitted to the navy, which, although numbering but
thbty-four Queen's ships, was soon largely augmented
by private sources. Q) Hawkins, Drake, Frobisher,
and others, had commands there — men who, in a
piratical sort of way, had acquired experience, and
displayed that energy and contempt of danger,
and that spirit of enterprise, which have ever since
been the characteristics of the British sailor. It
is a curious fact, evincing either the Queen's con
tempt of danger, or her habitual parsimony, or both,
that when, in June of that year, an unconfirmed
report reached England that the Spanish Armada
had been dispersed by a storm in the Bay of
Biscay, EUzabeth immediately despatched orders to
the Admbal of England, Lord Howard of Effing
ham, to dismantle the four largest ships in the
Boyal navy. Fortunately he ventured to disobey,
offering to bear the expense out of his private
fortune ; and sailed on a cruise to reconnoitre the
actual position of the Spanish fleet. (3) But a
strong breeze from the south-west compelled him
to return. The enemy took advantage of the
same to leave Corunna; and the English admiral
had scarcely moored his ships in Plymouth har-
(*) In all a force of 117 ships, having on board 11,120 men.
(Original List in the State Paper Office.)
(2) Camden, 366.— Stowe, 745.

360 THE BRITISH ARMY.
bour again, before the Spaniards were reported off
the Lizard.^)
On land, the preparations to stop the progress of
the enemy, should he have succeeded in effecting a
landing, were of the most meagre description. A
military council was established, (2) and aU the male
population from eighteen to sixty was ordered to be
enrolled. The lord-Ueutenants received most minute
instructions to organise companies of militia, to
appoint officers, and to provide arms at the expense
of the counties.
There is, fortunately, no lack of materials to
ascertain these points in this episode of our national
history : researches in the State Paper Office alone have
brought to light a mass of information ; but a great
facility is afforded by a digest of the measures then
taken for the defence of the country, prepared two
hundred and ten years afterwards, and compiled by
Government order of the Ministry of that day. (3) For curiously
enough, when this country was, in 1798, placed in
0) Murdin, 615-621. — Also, A Genuine and most Impartial Nar
rative of the Glorious Victory obtained by her Majesty's Navy, &o.
Dedicated to Lord Howard of Effingham. Translated from the
Italian of Petruccio Ubaldini, 1740.
(2) The Council of War held on the 27th of November, 1587, in
cluded Sir Walter Ealeigh, Lord Grey, Sir Francis Knolles, Sir
Thomas Leighton, Sir John Norris, Sir Bichard Grenville, Sir
Richard Bingham, Sir Roger Williams, and Ralph Lane, Esq.
(Tytler's Life of Raleigh.)
(3) " Report on the arrangements which were made for the internal
defence of these kingdoms, when Spain, by its armada, projected the
invasion and conquest of England ; and application of the wise pro
ceedings of our ancestors to the present crisis of public safety." By
John Bruce, Esq., Keeper of the State Papers. (G-renville Library,
Brit. Mus., Nos. 16,245 and 16,246.)

Keport.

OFFICIAL REPORT OP 1798. 301
somewhat similar circumstances, anticipating an in
vasion by the French, the EngUsh Covernment was
led to inquire into the measures of defence taken both
before and after the time of the armada ; and various
extracts from the archives of State were directed to be
made, and they were to be reported to the then Home
Secretary, Henry Dundas. (*) These collections form
two octavo volumes. They were printed for, and dis
tributed to, the members of the Covernment only ; and
theb secrecy was then thought of such importance
that the one referring to the defences made in 1596,
when a second invasion of the Spaniards was appre
hended, has the foUowing notice written on the fly
leaf opposite the title-page : —
The accompanying Report, though printed for facilitating
perusal, is neither published, nor intended for publication; and it
is therefore requested that it may not be left open to common
inspection. Henry Dundas.
As the defence of the country is an ever-present
question, it will be interesting to learn, even at some
length, the exertions made by our ancestors, 272 years
ago, to defend themselves in a crisis of their history,
when the spirit of the nation was roused, as it was
two centuries after, and the whole people " were
thoroughly irritated to stir up their whole forces for
theb defence  so that in a very short
time, all the whole realm, and every corner, were fur
nished with armed men, on horseback and on foot ;
(*) Created Viscount Melville in 1801. He introduced a bill to
regulate the employment of the volunteers in 1798, and also one to
enable the English militia to serve in Ireland.

362 * THE BRITISH ARMY.
and these continually trained, exercised, and put into
bands, in warlike manner, as in no age was ever before
in this realm." (2) Notwithstanding this declaration,
Mr. Bruce, the compiler of the Official Beport, states,
as one of the results of his personal inquiries, that
although in some counties the lower and middling
orders were weU disposed, and had made laudable
exertions to fulfil the Queen's injunctions, yet that
several of the higher orders, under the pretext that the
danger was not so immediate, had either refused to fur
nish the necessary aids or to perform their services. (3)
The report proceeds to state that, in 1586, direc
tions were given to the lord-lieutenants requiring them
to issue orders to the different captains in their Ueu-
tenancies to meet at appointed places on or before the
20th of March, in order to make up their musters of
men and of arms ; to deputy-lieutenants, to mark out
to the captains the posts which they were to occupy,
and to arm these posts with batteries, dig pits, and
plant stakes, to stop the progress of the enemy if he
landed; to assign stations for the horses and field-
pieces ; to fix on places for the powder-magazines ; to
appoint days for the horses to be trained, and to name
the places of rendezvous, taking care to have roads and
fords repaired, and cross-bars ready to stop the enemy
after landing.
(') Contemporary letter in,-the Harl. MSS-, quoted in Southey's
Naval History.
(2) Beport, &c, John Bruce. — See Letter from the Earle of Sussex to
the Lords of Counsell, 30th Nov., 1587 : "It maie please yo Hono, at
my retorne into the countrie, I came by Basinge, and there having
conference with my Lorde Marques of Winchester, we agreed to
reviewe the wholl shire oselves."

FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS. 363
This general instruction was followed up in 1587
by an order for completing the musters of the forces
in the different counties ; and for having them fuUy
accoutred, and in readiness to march on the first notice,
requiring at the same time that returns should be
made of the amount of the musters both of men and
arms to her Majesty in council. A copy of one of
these is given below : —
"After our very hearty commendation, the Queen's instructions of
-»«-• i t • • -in Council.
Majesty by sundry ways, at this part, informed of
the great preparations now partly made ready in Spain
for the furniture of a mighty army, with a navy to
come partly to the seas, and having great cause to
doubt of some attempt thereby to be made against
some part of her dominions, both thought it necessary
that the whole realm should forthwith be well guarded
and in readiness, with such strength as God hath
given to her Majesty both by land and sea ; and there
fore amongst other means which her Majesty mindeth
to use, by having an army upon the seas, her pleasure
is, that you having charge, as her Majesty's deputy-
Ueutenant, (J) over the County of Essex, should be
hereof advertised, and that you should presently,
without any delay, use aU good and speedy means,
first to consider of such former instructions and
directions as you have received for the putting of the
forces under your charge in strength, and therefore to
cause aU persons heretofore mustered to be in readi
ness with theb arms and weapons, so as they may,
(:) Doubtless, in the absence of the lord-lieutenant.

364 THE BRITISH ARMY.-
with their captains and leaders, upon all sudden
warning or occasion, speedily repair to such place, as
by former instructions they ought to be ; and if any
be dead or departed out of the country, to appoint
new sufficient persons in their places," &c.
" Tour very loving friend,
" "W. BURGHLEY.
" From the Court of Bichmond, 10th Oct., 1587.
" To the Deputy-Lieutenant of the
" County of Essex."
In order that the Queen's orders, so far as regarded
the maritime counties, might be more fully explained
and understood, instructions applicable to each county
were sent on the 10th of February, 1587, requiring
that the number of deputy-Ueutenants should be com
pleted; that, under the warrant of her Majesty,
orders should be issued for putting the men in array
and in readiness at their different stations ; that
convenient places should be assigned to five general-
captains (as they were termed), who were made
answerable for the effective numbers of 500 each,
and to two additional captains for 250 — making, in
the whole, a band or regiment of 3,000 foot, to be
reviewed and exercised, and in readiness to go on
service, on the sea-coasts, under the orders of the
general commander of the coast to be afterwards
named by her Majesty; that the five captains should
likewise muster the bands of horsemen, to be divided
into bands of fifty for each cornet, and appoint places
of muster for the same ; that the whole may be

DEFENCE PREPARATIONS. 365
returned in good muster-rolls, as ready for service,
and exercised at least twenty-five at a time, to qualify
them for duty ; (*) that a survey of the places where
the enemy may land should be taken, and means
provided more speedily to convey, under proper
leaders, the forces to resist him, and directions given
to raise ramparts, not only against his landing, but
also against his progress in the country ; that a
proper number of pioneers should be raised to act on
this duty ; that every justice of the peace, being of
quorum, should furnish two horsemen, and any other
justice one ; (2) that the towns, with the counties,
should provide the necessary store of ammunition at a
reasonable price ; that beacons should be erected on
the sea-coast, and men placed near them to watch the
motions of the enemy's ships ; and that posts (3) should
be in readiness to carry information of his approach ;
and that each band of 500 footmen should be
formed into a regiment, attended by 700 horsemen,
besides the horsemen furnished by the justices of the
peace, the whole properly arrayed and in good order,
Q) In another place we find the hours for drill laid down : "And
that the selected bands be continually exercised and trained, as well
as furnished, upon the Sundays and holydays, after evening prayers."
(2) Here is a distinction made between justices of the quorum
and those of the peace only. Justices of the peace are those ap
pointed by the king's commission, to keep the peace of the county
where they dwell, and are rather commissioners of the peace ; of
whom, some of the greater quality are of the quorum, because busi
ness of importance may not be dispatched without the presence of
them, or one of them. (Jacob, Law Diet.) Being " of the greater
quality," those of the quorum enjoyed the questionable privilege of
having to furnish two horsemen, those of the peace only one. ( Vide
Lane. Lieutenancy, p. 185.)
(3) i.e., post-horses, or post-men, as the cage might be.

366 THE BRITISH ARMY.
to withstand any attempt that the enemy may make
to land or to advance.
Topographical in April, 1588, the Queen appointed Sir John
Norris, with full power, to direct the arrangements
for the internal defences of the maritime counties of
Kent, Sussex, Hampshire* Dorsetshire, Essex, Norfolk,,
and Suffolk ; and the lord-lieutenants, or their deputies,
were dbected to afford him every possible assistance
in carrying out his directions. This officer was to
decide on stations to which the guards of the coast;
might, if overpowered, retreat ; and form an army to
harass the enemy's march, or resist his entrance into
the interior of the country. These instructions were
accompanied with topographical directions : these
were drawn up with great care and trouble, for
nothing seems to have been overlooked. Those for
the county of Norfolk may be selected as a specimen.,
Protection of They set out with describing the points on the
Norfolk. east coast, where the attack might be expected, viz. :
Waburne Hoope, Cleyhaven, Wanham, "Winterton,
and Yarmouth, at each of which, for the protection of
the shipping as weU as of the coasts, where the depth
¦ of water would admit the enemy's vessels, ramparts
were ordered to be erected, defended by trenches,
reaching from one salt-marsh to another. The cause
ways were to be taken up, parapets to be built, the ,
old hythe Q) to be entrenched, and defences raised, at
Q) Hythe means landing-place, as before stated, see p. 38. — Thus
Stowe, writing of the gates of London, says: " Ripa Reginae, •
Queene's-bank, or Queene-hithe, may well be accounted the very
chief and principal gate of this city, being a common stand or
landing-place," &c. (Survey of London.)

PROTECTION OF THE COAST. 367
the distance of a mile from Lynn, where the channel
was narrowest, and defended by a proportion of cannon.
On the approach of the enemy, the bridges on the
Ouse were to be taken down, and the banks cut, to
impede his progress. Bodies of horse and foot were
to patrol and obstruct his march, galling him at the
same time with the ordnance from Winterton and
Bromhall. For the purpose of carrying out these measures,
the shire was to be divided into districts, and the
forces placed in such stations as might enable them
most easily to concentrate at Yarmouth. The detach
ments of foot were to consist of 300, one half trained,
and the other bregulars, accompanied by seventy-three
pioneers and twenty carriages, each carriage to be
conducted by two men.
The directions further minutely specify the com
manders, and the proportion of forces under them;
who are to act, at successive times, as reliefs to each
other; point out the mode of giving the alarm by
beacons, on which fires were to be Ughted; describe
the Unes in which the trained men,, under the deputy-
lieutenants, were to advance against the enemy ; and
enjoin the multitudes to avoid assembUng, or creating
confusion or disorder.
In the event, however, of the enemy reaching
Waburne, such strength as the county could assemble
was to be brought up against him; but if unable to
retard his progress, the foot and horse were to retire,
for the protection of the important city of Norwich ;
take up a position on the heights of Mountesurry,

368 THE BRITISH ARMY.
which commands the city, and defend the town till
an army can be marched from the neighbouring
counties to the reUef of the place. Should, however,
the enemy disembark between Yarmouth and Brom-
hall, the forces were to take post at Flegge, and
defend the bridges ; or, if untenable, to break them
down : should he take the road by Thetford, towards
London, the forces of Norfolk were to hang on his
rear, harass his march, and prevent his foraging
parties laying waste the country. The magazine was
to be at Norwich ; and on the approach of the enemy
the corn was to be burnt down, the cattle driven
inland, and bridges and roads broken up, to impede
his march. In case the attack be made on the coast
of Lynn, the governor was to take care that no
horses or carriages be left behind to be seized by the
enemy (p. 29).
Portsmouth was in those days, as in the present,'
a point of great importance. It is to be hoped that
its necessities were attended to before August, 1588,
otherwise its powers of offence and defence must
have been extremely limited. In a letter, dated
Portsmouth, November 1, 1587, Lord Sussex gives
an amusing account of the state of the ordnance
there : —
" I am most heartily and earnestly," writes he,
" not only to require, but also for the defence of the
realm, as duty leadeth me, to charge your honours
(the Lords of the Council) to be a means for the
present sending down of the gunners, without whom
I wish the ordnance at the Tower again, the plat-

DEFENCE OF THE THAMES. 369
forms to be repaired, and that of the round tower to
be new made, for that it is so old and rotten as, on
the day of Her Majesty's coronation, I durst not
shoot off the piece ; which place is the only chiefest
for the defence and safeguard of the haven."
It is a curious fact to learn that in February,
1586, the whole sea-board extending from CornwaU
to Kent was only defended by thirty-six pieces of
ordnance, being six for each southern county. (*)
But, perhaps, the most important position to be Defence of the
guarded was the line of coasts on each side of the
mouth of the Thames. This subject had attracted
the notice of Covernment, as the charges for chains
and forts guarding the Medway were made up in
January, 1588, amounting to £1,470. These defences
had, of course, two objects in view — the protection
of the shipping in the river, and security against the
enemy's approach to the capital. (2). For these pur
poses a great chain was fixed to cross the river, at
the opposite point from Upnor Castle, with wood
work to cover two large wheels for mooring it; and
(l) " Caste Yron Ordinance, 36 peces, viz. : 2 sacres, 2 minions,
and 2 fawcons, for each one of the aforesaid counties," &c. (Report,
App., xvii.)
(2) Extract of a letter from Sir Francis Walsingham to Lord
Burleigh. (Harl. MSS., 6,994, art. 69.)
..." Yesterday the Lord Chamberlain, assisted by Mr. Vice
Chamberlain, calling unto them Sir Jo. Norris and Sir Thos. Layton,
had some conference about the strengthening of the river of Thames,
against any foreign attempt : whereupon it was resolved that they
should go down to Gravesend to view the river, and to consider in
what apt place it may be defensible to stop the enemy. . . .
" At the Court, the xviij. of July, 1588.
"Vr. St. to command, "Pea. Walsingham."
VOL. I. Y

Sight.

370 THE BRITISH ARMY.
lighters were provided, with cables and anchors, for
buoying it up. f) " On both sides of the river,"
says a contemporary writer, " fortifications were
erected according to the prescription of Frederick
CenebeUi, an ItaUan; and there were certain ships
brought to make a bridge, though it were very late
first." 0
Armada in Late, indeed, as wiU be clear from the extract
of the letter, subjoined, the armada having been
sighted off England on the 20th of July ! The
result of the inspection, appears not to have been
satisfactory to the Lord-General, who forthwith
caUed in the assistance of Mr. Peter Pett, of her
Majesty's .dockyard, atDeptford; and under his advice
the proposed barrier was strengthened. But by a
letter from Leicester to Walsingham, dated " at
Leicester House, the 22nd of July, at xi. of the
clock at night, 1588,"(3) it appears that nothing
had been done for the defence of the river. On the
next day he writes again to the Secretary of State,
giving particulars of his visit "to peruse" the fort
at Gravesend and at TUbury. , In the former, he
reports he "did not find one platform to bear any
ordinance, neither on the ground nor aloft ; " of the
latter he says, " I find it further out of order than
the other, save that there be some better peces of
(^ " Eor the greate chaine of iron with the workmanshippe and
other charges incidente for the bringing thereof from London to
Chatham amounteth to the somme of £250." (Report, App., xi.)
(2) Hakluyt, i. 595. — An interesting account of the performances
of the eminent engineer, Gianibelli, at the siege of Antwerp (a.d.
1585), is given in Motley'B Un. Netherl., i., ch. v., p. 189.
(8) Cruden's History of the Town of Gravesend, p. 236.

CULPABLE PROCRASTINATION. 371
artyUery ; but not a platform to carry y" least pece."
He appends a pressing requisition for pioneers, to be
accompanied by fifty or sixty wheelbarrows at the
least, and urges that the forts be provisioned "with
bear and befe," for the sustenance of their gar
risons. Next day he writes that he has "putt
these fortes in as good strength as tyme wyll
permytt." Whatever charges of inefficiency may be sus
tained against the Lord-General, a want of activity
was not one of his faults on this occasion.
The clergy in the different dioceses were caUed
on each to furnish a horseman, if his income
amounted to £100 per annum; dignitaries and chap
ters, in numbers proportioned to their revenues ;
the total required being 331 : or, in lieu of the
horseman, £25 was to be exacted as an equiva
lent. 0
On the north-east coast, Lord Huntingdon had
the chief command ; 3,000 men were stationed along
the coast, another body of 3,000 was kept in reserve,
to move on any point attacked ; and 6,000 foot, with
2,000 horse, constituted the main army. A portion
of this force was directed to defend the fortifications
of Tynemouth and Hartlepool.
The charge of placing the important coasts of
Essex and Kent in the best state of defence was en
trusted to Sb Thomas Scott (2) and Sb James Hales.
(') Official Report: — Also see Lancashire Lieutenancy, p. 182.
(2) Sir Thomas Scott, Knt., of Scott's Hall, in Kent, was sheriff
of that county in the 18th of Queen Elizabeth, and in the 13th and
28th, knight of the shire in Parliament. In 1588 he was appointed
Y 2

372 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The former officer stationed 250 men at Canterbury,
from whence parties might be detached to oppose the
enemy on his landing, and took up his own station
at Shorncliffe; whUe the latter, with the horse, ranged
along the Downs.
Protection for Another point of apprehended attack was, the
coast of Dorsetshire, where, it is stated, every measure
and precaution was taken, both to prevent the landing
and progress of the invaders. Beacons were erected
at Sutton Poyntz, Bydgeway, and Blagdowne, upon
firing of which, posts were to be sent in every direc
tion to assemble the whole force at Weymouth and
Melcombe Begis. A barrier was to be made at
Wareham Bridge to obstruct the enemy, in case the
retreat of the Queen's troops should be necessary.
Should the beacon at Bubdowne be fired, the forces
in Somersetshire were to march immediately to Dor
chester ; if the one at Lewzon be fired, the forces of
Devonshire in like manner were to march. Should
that at Melbury be fired, those of Wiltshire were to
march. Strict orders were given that these beacons
should not be fired incautiously, so as to cause false
alarms. It was determined that at Milford, whose haven
afforded the best opportunity of disembarking, there
should be assembled 2,000 foot and 200 horse.
Plymouth was stUl more anxiously provided with
commander-in-chief of the Kentish forces. The day he received his
appointment from the Council, so much was he beloved in the
county, that he was enabled to collect and send to Dover 4,000
armed men. (Vide Hasted's Kent, iii. 292; and the Calendar of
State Papers, Domestic, 1547-80.)

SOUTH-WESTERN COAST DEFENCES. 373
the means of defence, its proximity to Spain render
ing it Ukely to be selected. There, accordingly, were
stationed the 5,000 men of Devon and Cornwall,
besides the force of the Stannaries, which Baleigh
commanded as lord-warden. It was probably at this
crisis that the Queen conferred upon him the office
of Lieutenant-General of the county of CornwaU, and
it was recommended that the greatest assiduity
should be employed in disciplining these troops ;
one-half of the expense to be defrayed by the Queen,
and the other by the county. Portland, of which
Raleigh had the charge, was armed both by forti
fications and with the troops from Dorsetshfre and
WUtshbe ; and the same order of defence was carried
into effect in the Isle of Wight and Somersetshire,
and upon the wastes of Kent and Sussex, as upon
those of Norfolk and Suffolk. In the event of the
Spanish army effecting a landing, the order of battle
was left to the discretion of the general ; only it was
advised if the enemy's advance into the interior could
not be prevented, that the country should be driven
and Wasted, and the invaders harassed by perpetual
alarms. Such were the military arrangements made for
the defence of the south and east coasts ; it remains
to endeavour to ascertain the whole military force
assembled on this occasion.
The Queen did not proceed to hire foreign mer- Military Force.
cenaries, as Parma had thought probable, but was
content to confide in the unbought services of the
militia of England and Wales, most of whom were

37:4 THE BRITISH ARMY.
inexperienced in war, and certainly Uttle accustomed
to act together in bodies, as were the standing forces
to which they were to be opposed.
According to the returns, printed from the original
documents in the Official Beport, the total of foot and
horse to be provided by England was 87,281 ; and
by Wales, 45,408 ; in aU 132,689, exclusive of those
to be supplied by the City of London. (})
From this grand total', three corps d'armee were
created; the remainder was to be distributed along
the coasts. The first was to consist of 22,000 infantry
and 2,000 cavaby, under the Earl of Leicester, and
was to be encamped at TUbury, to cover the capital ;
the second, of 36,319 men, under Lord Hunsdon,
was assigned for the defence of the Queen's person;
and the thbd, which appears to have been scattered
along the south coast, consisted of 34,350 men, and
was to act as cbcumstances might require. (3)
The number of men calculated upon as remaining
to guard the south coast when these armies were
(:) Sir Walter Raleigh Btates that, in 1583, there was a general
review of all the men in England capable of bearing arms, who
were found to amount to 1,172.000. (The Invention of Shipping, p.
328.) — This number is, however, much superior to that contained
in Murdin. The population of England and Wales during Eliza
beth's reign may be computed at between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000.
(Vide Chalmers' Estimate of Great Britain.) — The completed returns
of the last census (1861) show that the number of inhabited houses
in the United Kingdom is 5,154,985, which allows a house to every
5-6 persons ! (See also note to Hallam's Const. Hist, i., p. 8.)
(2) The quota each county was to furnish is given in Murdin, and
in the Appendix to the Official Report. The following is a tabular
statement of the last one of these armies : —
Numbers appointed to be drawn together to make an army,
to encounter the enemy in June, 1588. (Murdin, p. 611) : —

MILITARY CONTINGENTS.

375

withdrawn, was 21,172. (l) These numbers, how
ever, only produce a grand total of 115,941, exclusive
of the Londoners, who mustered 10,000 men, with a
reserve behind in case of need.
The general plan of operations laid down appears
to have been to attack the enemy on the sea-shore ;
but should the resistance made prove ineffectual, the
troops were to retreat, to dispute every inch of
ground, tiU joined by reinforcements from the neigh
bouring counties, then hang on the enemy's rear, if
he took his dbection either to London or advanced
elsewhere into the interior of the kingdom. (3)
These forces looked strong on paper, but dimi-

Foot.

Eorse.

Cornwall ...

2,000 .

.. 16 ...

Devon

3,000 .

Somersett ...
3,000 .
. 50 ...
Dorsett
2,000 .
. 120 ...
Wilton
2,000 .
.. 19 ...
Southampton
Barks 
4,000 .
2,000 .
. 100 ...
. 10 ...
Sussex
4,000 .
. 20 ...
Kent 
4,000 .
.. 64 ... \
Light Horse
Harquib.
Petronelles
Surry 
1,000 .
8 ...
Summary,
27,000
407
Light Horse.
Pyoneers.
... 140
... 200
... 600
... 300
... 40
... 600
... 150
... 50
... 1,000
... 37
... 155
... 240
... 1,300
) 330
Y 263
... 1,077
j 85
... 127
... 200
1,962
4,932
(*) The number of men remaining in the maritime counties for
the guard of thfi coasts, besides those that are drawn out to make
head unto the enemy. Anno 1538. (Murdin, p. 612.)
Counties.
Cornwall ... 3,000
Devonshire . . . 3,200
Somersetshire
Dorsetshire ... 1,300
Wilts 
(2) Vide Report, p. 44.
Counties.
Southampton
Barkshire... SussexKent Surry
2,600
11,000 72
Summary.
21,172
376 THE BRITISH ARMY.
nished terribly in the field. The orders for the
army under Lord Leicester to assemble, were issued
in June ; yet on the 10th of August it did not
exceed 16,000 men. (l) As for Lord Hunsdon's
army, none — excepting the men from London and
Middlesex, amounting to 10,000 men, who were
directed to muster at London on the 23rd of July
— received orders to assemble before the 6th of
August ! (a) On account of this delay, Leicester
wrote reproachfully to Walsingham, on the 26th of
July : " I beseech you, " says he, " assemble yor
forces, and play not away this kingdom by delays;
and hasten or horsemen hether and footemen yf ye
hear not that the flete ys skatered or beaten ; for
surely yf they come to ye narrow seas, the Prince
(of Parma) wyU play another manner of parte than
ys looked for."
On the 27th of July he addressed a letter to the
Queen, in which he writes, " For yor army, hit ys more
than tyme hit were gathered and about you, or so
nere you as you may have the use of hit upon few
houres warning ; the reason ys y* yor mighty enemies
are at hand, and yf God suffer them to pass by yo1
flete, you are sure they wyU attempt their purpose in
landing w* aU expedition. Therefore is y* most
requysytt for yor Mate to be provided for aU eventes
of as great force every way as you can devyse, . . .
you shaU hazard your owne honor beside yor person
and countrey, and must offend yoT gracious God,
(') Stowe, p. 750.— Ellis's Original Letters, 2 Ser., iii. 142.
(») Murdin, pp. 612, 613.

DANGER AT HAND. 377
y* gave you these forces and power, and wyU not use
them whan you should." (l)
Elizabeth had a purpose in these delays. To caU
out so many men on active service would entail a
great expense on the Crown. She therefore postponed
these measures, to the last cherishing that hope,
which has been before alluded to, of being enabled to
avoid the contest.
The country was now fairly aroused, and a spirit
of unanimity at this crisis generaUy pervaded the
whole nation. AU ranks of persons concurred in
being ready to serve for the defence of the realm ;
Catholics and Protestants united with zeal in the
common cause. A great many of the young nobUity
and gentry entered themselves as volunteers in the
navy, hired ships at theb own expense, and joined
the great fleet under Lord Howard, himself a Eoman
CathoUc.(3) At length, on the 20th of July, the
mighty expedition hove in sight, and great was the
excitement on shore.
**The beacon blazed upon the roof of Edgecumb's lofty hill;
Maaiy a light fishing-bark put out to pry along the coast ;
And with loose rein and bloody spur rode inland many a post."
The elements from the first fought against the
armada, although PhUip, in pious confidence, antici
pated that it would be otherwise ; (3) but when we take
into consideration, that if the Spanish men-of-war
(') Hardwicke Papers, i. 576.
(2) See " The Names of the Nobility, Gentry, and others, who
contributed to the Defence of the Country in 1588." (King's Lib.,
Brit. Mus., 194, a. 22.)
(3) Philip, to Parma, Sept. 4,1587. MS. quoted in Un. Netherl, ii. 314.

378 THE BRITISH ARMY.
had not been dispersed by the fire-ships and the
storm, the attempt to land would have been made on
the 30th or 31st of July, and that the raw and hasty-
levies — even had they been aU assembled — could have
opposed but a feeble resistance to the Spanish infantry,
and to the disciplined veterans under the Duke of
Parma, and that such a leader as he was immeasur
ably superior to the English commander-in-chief, the
Earl of Leicester, we may weU be thankful that
England was saved by the intrepidity of her navy ;
and without disparaging our countrymen's loyalty
and courage — -for those who came to the muster dis-,
played an exceUent spirit^) — we may be grateful that
no trial of them was then made on English land.
An old soldier, who was present at the camp of
Tilbury, has expressed an opinion by no means com
plimentary to the appearance and deportment of the
mUitia there : —
"And because that no man can be conveniently
and fitly armed, unlesse he be first fitly appareUed
for his armor, and also for the use of his weapon,
and that in the Campe and Armie at TUbury, 1588,
whereas there were regiments of divers Shieres, with
divers bands both of demi-launces and light-horsemen,
I did see and observe so great disorder and deformitie
in their apparreU to arme withall, as I saw but very
few of that army that had any convenience of apparel,
(') "Mr. Secretary,— The 4,000 men of Esses ar all com together,
and loged here together, at West Tylbury. . . . They be as forward
men, and all wylling to mete w' the enemye, as ever I saw." (The
Earl of Leicester to Sir P. Walsingham. Gravesend, 26th July,
1588.)

ENGLISH INEXPERIENCE OP WAR. 379
and chieflie of doublets to arme upon, wherof it came
to passe that the most of them did weare their armors
verie uncomeUe, uneasUie," &c.(l)
The gaUant Edward Stanley gives but a sorry
account of the choicest soldiers of Cheshire and Lan
cashire, which he had been sent down to inspect.
" I find them," he reports, " not according to your
expectation, nor myne. own liking. They were ap
pointed two years past to have been trained six days
by the year or more, at the discretion of the muster-
master, but as yet they have not been trained one day,
so that they have benefitted nothing, nor yet know
theb leaders." (Sb E. Stanley to Privy Council,
3E*. 1588- s- p- o- MS-)
Another Englishman, three years before this, re
ported to Mr. Secretary Walsingham the disadvan
tages arising from the utter inexperience of the
EngUsh troops. " God hath stirred up this action
(i.e., the war in the Low-Counties) to be a school to
breed up soldiers to defend the freedom of England,
, which, through these long times of peace and quiet
ness, is brought into a most dangerous estate, if it
should be attempted." (Thomas Wilford to Wal
singham, | Dec, 1585. S. P. 0., MS.)
Some extracts from State Papers in the Library of
the Pontifical and other palaces at Borne, present us
with what was the foreign view of the resources of
England: — "As the armada is composed of two dis
tinct armaments, so wUl be theb operations ; that of
(*) Instructions, Observations, and Orders Mylitarie, fyc. Com
posed by Sir John Smythe, Knight. Lon. 4'°- 1595, p. 183.

380 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Spain is to make the first attack, and that of the Low
Countries to come after. Each of these is more
powerful than all the sea-forces of England; conse
quently, the subjugation of that country is decided.
In respect to the nobUity of England, I esteem them
too unimportant to excite serious apprehension; nor
have I much reliance on the Catholic party, on ac
count of their marked aversion to foreigners. As to
the people in general, a peace of thirty years has ren
dered them so lukewarm and pusiUanimous, that they
are unable to resist a disciplined army." (Extracts of
Military Array, K. Lib., B. Mus., 61, f. 16, p. 17.)
Elizabeth, during this crisis, displayed the charac
teristic courage of the Tudors. She appeared con
fident of success, and even proposed coming out in
person to lead the troops. This course was, however,
disapproved of by Leicester, which brought forth the
following letter, which in itself is curious, as showing
the terms of fulsome adulation in which the Queen
was accustomed to be addressed : —
" My most dear and gracious Lady 
Now for your person, being the most dainty and
sacred thing we have in this world to care for, much
more for advice to be given for your dbection of it,
speciaUy finding yr. Majesty to have ye princely
courage to transport yr. self to ye uttermost confines
of yr. realm, to meet yr. enemies and to defend yr.
subjects ; I can not, most, dear Queen, consent to that.
. . . . And this far if it please you, you may do,
to draw yr. self to yr. house at Havering, and yr.
army being about London, "as Stratford, East Ham,

ELIZABETH VISITS THE CAMP. 381
Hackney, .... and in the mean time yr.
Majesty to comfort this army and people, may, if
it please you, spend two or three (days) to see both
the Camp and the Fortes.'^1)
She foUowed his advice, and postponed her visit
until the 9th of August, on which day she arrived in
her barge at Tilbury Fort, where the Lord General
was waiting to receive her, and a royal salute was fired
from the Blockhouse ; and amidst a great display of
flags, and the sounds of drums and fifes, her Majesty
proceeded in a carriage to the camp, escorted by a
thousand horse and two thousand foot.
At day-break, next morning, the troops were
under arms, and a sham fight took place for the
inspection of the Queen, who appeared on horseback.
It was on this occasion that she is reported to have
deUvered an inspbiting address to the army, which,
if ever issued at all, could not have been delivered
then, as she certainly could not exhort them to fight,
nor, hope " shortly to have a famous victory " after
the enemy was gone, and when, acting upon her
accustomed carefulness, she had : resolved to disband
the army as quickly as possible. (2)
(*) Stowe. — Hardwicke Papers, i. 577.
(2) " My very good Lord. Tour letters of the xvij. of this present
month, I received this evening at vi. of the clock, wherein I am
advertized that her Majesty's pleasure is, the whole campe should
presently be dissolved." (Leicester to Walsingham. Harl. MS.
6,994, art. 77.) On the 4th of September Leicester died. Elizabeth,
doubtless, regretted the loss of her favourite : but she appears to have
carried her affection no farther than the grave; and, characteristi
cally, forthwith ordered the public sale of his goods, to discharge
a debt to her exchequer. The inventories are preserved in the
Brit. Mus. (Roll D, 35, Cart. Antiq.) The whole of his personal pro-

382 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Another Eight years afterwards the preparations in the
°War.° harbours of the Peninsula, which fortunately had no
- further result so far as this country was concerned,
again excited general alarm throughout England.
Again was the Privy CouncU assembled to deliberate
on measures of defence, having the experience of the
last grand attempt to assist them. The opinions
delivered on the occasion form important extracts in
the official volume ; 0 and it is interesting to. listen,
as it were, to the very words uttered by such men as
Burleigh, Baleigh, and. others, when debating, in
1596, on the points most open to attack, and on the
best means for protecting the country.
Howard of Effingham, the Lord- Admiral, urged
the same measures which he had proposed on the
former occasion, namely, to anticipate the designs of
the enemy, by sending out an expedition to destroy
his armaments. The impetuous Essex powerfully
seconded him, despising the cautious poUcy of Bur
leigh. " By beating the Spaniards here," said he,
"we can get but theb cloaths and their skins; and
by being beaten, we should lose aU." And they had
sufficient interest with the Queen to get their views
adopted.
Raleigh's jn Baleigh's great work on the History of the
Opinion. ' . c
World, he takes occasion, when discussing some of
perty at Kenilworth, Leicester House, and Wanstead, were valued at
nearly £30,000. The bill for his funeral amounted to £4,000, an
enormous sum when compared with the present value. of money.
(See Lyson's Environs of London, vol. iv.)
(l) See Report before cited. — Also On the Defence of, Sussex, by W.
H. Blaauw, Esq., E.S.A., in vol. xi. Sussex Archaeol Coll.

RALEIGH ON THE DEFENCE OP THE KINGDOM. 383
the events of the first Punic War, to give his reason
ings on the proper poUcy of England, when menaced
with invasion.
" I hold," says he, " that the best way is to keep
our enemies from treading upon our ground ; wherein,
if we faU, then must we seek to make him wish that
he had stayed at his own home. In such a case,
if it should happen, our judgements are to weigh
many particular circumstances, that belongs not unto
this discourse. But making the question general,
and positive, Whether England, without the help of her
Fleet, be able to debar an enemy from landing. I hold
that it is unable so to do : and, therefore, I think
it most dangerous to make the adventure. For
the incouragement of a first victory to an enemy,
and the discouragement of being beaten to the in
vaded, may draw after it a most perUous consequence.
" Great difference I know there is, and a diverse
consideration to be had, between such a country as
France is, strengthened with many fortified places,
and this of ours, where our ramparts are but the
bodies of men. But I say that an army to be
transplanted over sea, and to be landed in an enemy's
country, and the place left to the choice of the
invader, cannot be resisted on the coast of England,
without a Fleet to ' impeach it ; no, nor on the coast
of France, or any other country, except every creek,
port, or sandy bay, had a powerful army in each of
them, to make opposition. For let the supposition
be granted that Kent is able to furnish 12,000 foot,
and that those 12,000 be laid in the three best land-

384 THE BRITISH ARMY.
ing-places within that Countrey — to wit, 3,000 at
Margat, 3,000 at the Nesse, and 6,000 at Fulkston,
that is, somewhat equaUy distant from them both;
as also that two of these Troops (unless some other
order be thought more fit) be directed to strengthen
the thbd, when they shaU see the enemy's Fleet to
bend towards it; — I say, that notwithstanding this
provision, if the enemy, setting sail from the Isle
of Wight, in the first watch of the night, and towing
theb long boats at their sterns, shaU arrive by dawn
of day at the Nesse, and thrust theb army on shore
there, it wiU be hard for those 3,000 that are at
Margat .(twenty and four long miles from thence) to
come time enough to re-inforce their feUows at the
Nesse. Nay, how shaU they at Fulkston be able to do
it, who are nearer by more than half the way ? Seeing
that the enemy, at his first arrival, wiU either make
his entrance by force, with three or four hundred shot
of great ArtiUery, and quickly put the first 3,000 that
were entrenched at the Nesse, to run; or else give
them so much to do, that they shaU be glad to send
for help to Fulkston, and perhaps to Margat : whereby
those places wUl be left bare. Now, let us suppose
that aU the 12,000 Kentish Souldiers arrive at the
Nesse, ere the enemy can be ready to disembarque
his army, so that he wiU find it unsafe to land in the
face of so many prepared to withstand him ; yet must
we beUeve, that he wiU play the best of his own game
(having Uberty to go which way he list), under covert
of the night, set saU towards the east, where what
shaU hinder him to take ground either at Margat,

raleigh's opinion. 385
the Downes, or elsewhere, before they at the Nesse
can be weU aware of his departure ? Certainly, there
is nothing more easy than to do it. Yea, the like
may be said of Waymouth, Purbeck, Poole, and of aU
landing-places in the south coast. For there is no
man ignorant that ships, without putting themselves
out of breath, wiU easily outrun the Souldiers that
coast them. 'Les armees ne volent point en poste;'
— ' Armies neither flye nor run post ' — saith a
Marshal of France. And I know it to be true, that a
fleet of ships may be seen at sunset, and after it at
the Lizard, yet by the next morning they may
recover Portland, whereas an army of foot shall not
be able to march it in six dayes. Again, when those
troops lodged on the sea-shores, shall be forced to run
from place to place in vain, after a Fleet of ships,
they wiU at length sit down in the midway, and
leave aU at adventure. But say it were otherwise,
that the invading enemy wUl offer to land in some
such place, where there shaU be an army of ours
ready to receive him, yet it cannot be doubted, but
that when the choice of aU our Trained Bands, and
the choice of our Commanders and Captains, shaU be
drawn together (as they were at Tilbury, in the year
1588), 'to attend the person of the Prince, and for the
defence of the City of London : they that remain to
guard the coast can be of no such force, as to
encounter an army Uke unto that wherewith it was
intended that the Prince of Parma should have
landed in England.
" For end of this digression, I hope that this
vol. i. z

386 THE BRITISH ARMY.
question shall never come to trial ; his Majesties
many moveable forts will forbid the experience.
And although the English wiU no less disdain, than
any nation under heaven can do, to be beaten upon
their own ground, or elsewhere, by a foreign enemy;
yet to entortain those that shall assail us with
theb own beef in theb beUies, and before they eat
of our Kentish capons, I take it to be the wisest
way. To do which, his Majesty after God, wUl
employ his good ships on the sea, and not trust
to any .entrenchment upon the shore." (B. v., c. i,
s. 9.)

CHAPTEB XV.
JAMES I. A MAN OP PEACE — ASSISTANCE TO THE PALATINATE — COUNCIL OP
WAR — ITS REPORT — AUXILIARY FORCE SAILS — SLU HORATIO VERE —
SMALL RESULTS — IN 1624 AN ARMY SENT OVER TO THE LOW COUN
TRIES, UNDER COUNT MANSFIELD — REPEAL OP ARMOUR-STATUTES —
SOCIAL CONDITION OF OPPICERS AND MEN.
James I. was emphaticaUy a man of peace; "the very
name of war was odious to him." (2) He began his
reign by making terms with Spain, and thus put an
end to the hostiUties which had existed for so many
years between the two countries. (3) Under these
cbcumstances much progress in mUitary affabs was
not to be expected. Most other nations were main
taining standing armies, or were swarming with
mercenaries ; but the defence of our island was still
entrusted to the miUtia, the nominal strength of
which is stated to have been 160,000 men. (3) It
was only after repeated remonstrances of ParUament
and people, backed by the influence of Prince Henry,
that James was induced to strike a feeble blow, in co
operation with the Protestant princes of Germany, in
defence of his son-in-law's rights in the Palatinate. (4)
(l) Camden.
(2) See Rymer, sub an. 1604.
(3) Journals, 1 March, 1623.
(4) In a speech to Parliament, the King stated that he had expended
£500,000 in the cause of the Palatinate, besides the voluntary con
tributions given him by the people. (See Rushworth, vol. i., pt.i.)
z 2

388 THE BRITISH ARMY.
E»yai A Boyal Commission was thereupon appointed to
Commission. ... , .. - „ ..
inquire and report upon the number of men, supplies,
shipping, and money required for the expedition.
After a month's deUberation, the commissioners
i reported very fully, as may be perceived by the
foUowing long-winded document, which is preserved
in the Harleian MS., No. 5,109, and is also copied in
Grose's Mil. Ant., ii. 146 : —
" The List of a BoyaU armie intended to bee raised
for the recovery and protection of the Palatinate, con
sisting of 25,000 foote and 5,000 horse, 20 pieces of
Ordinance or Artillery, as by his Majestie's command
it was consulted, advised, and concluded on by a
committee of Lordes and others, under their hands
at WhitehaU, London, Jan. 13, 1620, 18th Jan., &c.
" Att the court of Whitehall, Januarie the 13th,
1620:— " Lo. Arc. Bpp. of Canterbury.
Lo. Chancellor Bacon.
Lo. Privie Seale.
Lo. Steward.
Lo. M. Hambleton.
Lo. Chamberlaine.
E. of Arundel.
E. of Kelcye.
Lo. Viscount Doncaster.
Lo. Viscount Faulkland.
Lo. Carew.
So that, it appears, he had been far from neglecting the interests of
his daughter and son-in-law, and had even gone far beyond what
his narrow revenue could afford. (See note to Hume, vol vi p
565.)

ROYAL COMMISSION. 389
Lo. Digby.
Mr. Treasurer.
Mr. Secretary Nanton.
Mr. Secretary Calvert.
Mr. ChanceUor of the Exchequer.
Mr. of the Wardes.
"His Majestie having resolved to make some royall
preparations for the recovery and protection of the
Palatinate (being the auncient inheritance of H. Mties-
sonne-in-lawe and grandchildren), did, in his high
wisdome, thinke meete to appoint some persons of
knowledge and experience in the warres to consider
and give their advice in suqh propositions as shaU
be made unto them from the Counsell board, for
the better expediting of that service.
" To which purpose the Earle of Oxenford and the
Earle of Essex, both lately returned from the Pala
tinate, the Earle of Leicester, (x) the Lord Viscount
WUmott, the Lord Danvers, the Lord Caufeild, Sir
Edward CeciU, and Sir Bichard Morrison, Knights,
and Captayne John Bingham; were caUed to the
table and made acquainted with his Majestie's pleasure,
that they or any five or more of them, with Sir
Horace Vere and Sir Edward Conway, Knights, (if
they returned into England whUe the committee shall
continue), shall undertake that service, and have their
meetings and assemblyes in the ould CounseU Cham
ber at Whitehall, &c.
(:) Young Essex and Leicester, sons of the late Queen's
favourites.

890 THE BRITISH ARMY.
'| Xlth Feb., 1620.
" The List of a Boyal army consisting of 25,000
foote, 5,000 horse, 20 peeces of artillery, and all other
habiUaments and utensils of warre for such an enter
prise soe difficult and remote ; with our opinions and
estimate of every particular sett downe accordinge to
the Umits of your lordshipps directions, and grounded
upon such advertisements of the enemye's strength as
we have received from the Secretaryes of State.
" The allowance of officers, and all entertainments
unto this army, are extracted from the diversitie of
former presidents in the several employments of our
owne nation, and onely supplyed by the best insti
tutions now in practise where they have been
defective. £ ' s. d.
First — The charge of raysing the said 25,000 foote,
for their apparell and arms, viz. : 20,000 pikes
and muskets, at £3 10s. a man, and 5,000 cali
bers at £3 6s. a man; abating all dead payes,^)
will amount to the sume of 77,836 8 0
The charge of raysing of 5,000, viz. : 3,500 curra-
seers at £30 a peice, and 1,500 carbyneres at
£20 a peice, all dead payes being likewise
abated, will amount to the sume of - - - 126,900 0 0
The charge of transportinge of 25,000 footmen to
the most convenient places of landing in the
river of Maize, used by the States in the Low
Countreys for landing theire soldiers in the like
expeditions, at 4s. the man, will amount to the
sume of - - - - . - - - - 5,000 0 0
The charge of transportinge 5,000 horsemen to
the same place at 18s. a peice for horse and man
will amount to the sume of - - . - - 4,500 0 0
"The twentie pieces of greate Ordinance before
0) As to the meaning of this term, see Index, under Pay.

A REGIMENT RAISED. 391
mentioned, two mortar pieces for fire-works must
be aU mounted upon field carriages with foure
wheeles, and lymmers fully compleate, and to be
furnished and attended with spare carriages and
wheeles, blocke carriages, copper ladles furnyshed
with spunges and rammers, and with all other
habUaments and utenseUs of warre, and with many
other smaU provisions which are soe necessary for
the trayne of Artillery, that without them, they
can neither march nor be used. To which alsoe
must be added some proportion of smaU provisions
for supply of the army."
Then foUow particulars of aU the charges, pay, and
aUowances of the officers and soldiers, and of every
miUtary utensil, &c.
It seems, however, that the amount of the expedi- Eegiment for the
tion, as recommended by the committee, was on much Palatinate.
too grand a scale to suit the King, for one regiment
only was dispatched to the seat of war under the com
mand of Sb Horatio Vere. C) This regiment was,
however, of considerable dimensions, consisting of
2,200 men, and was pronounced to be " the gaUantest
for the persons, and outward presence of men, that
in many ages hath appeared either at home or
abroad."(z) It was composed chiefly of noblemen and gentle
men. The young Earls of Oxford and Essex, among
others, accompanied it as captains, and on account of
(') Created Baron Tilbury in 1625. His tomb, with a slab bearing
his armour, is in Westminster Abbey.
(2) Camden, Hist, of James I., p. 722.— Rushworth, Coll., i., pt. i.

392 THE BRITISH ARMY.
their rank and influence, were aUowed the privilege of
commanding two companies each. (x)
The English behaved weU, but the campaign was
not a glorious one — the effect of the King's narrow
poUcy ; nor was the end attained for which it was
undertaken. It was a waste of blood and treasure,
carried on without any hopes of success, for the army
of " the Protestant Union " was no match for the more
numerous forces of the ImperiaUsts, led by the cele
brated Spinola.
Camden, who was " along with the Earl of Essex
in that expedition," records some curious incidents
which are worth perusing. The English appear to
have suffered great privations from the inclemency of
the winter, and on one occasion they were obUged to
burn a great many of theb wagons to warm them,
the frost was so violent, and the soldiers lay in heaps
upon the ground, close together, Uke sheep, covered, as
it were, with a sheet of snow." The regiment after
wards went into winter quarters at Manheim, Heidel
berg, and Frankenthale.
In 1624 the amicable relations which had existed
for some years between England and Spain were
interrupted, and an army of 6,000 men was levied
and sent over to the United Provinces, to co-operate
0) " Our new English army was divided into four divisions (500
in each). The Earl of Oxford and the Earl of Essex (having double
companies) made one division. My Lord General, Sir Charles Rich,
and Sir John Wentworth, made another; Lieut.-Colonel Captain
Pointer, Captain Fairfax, and Captain Greatex, the third; the Ser-
geant-Major, Sir Garret Herbert, Sir Stafford Wilmot (now dead),
and Captain Buck, the fourth." (See Fairfax Cor. (Chas. I.), vol. i.,
p. xii.)

Mansfield's expedition. 393
with Prince Maurice of Nassau and the Dutch, who
were still struggling manfuUy to throw off the Spanish
yoke. Many of those who held commands in that
English force were destined to turn their miUtary
experience to account, and in after years to meet
often in the battle-fields at home.
At the instigation of Count Mansfield, an English
army of 12,000 foot and 200 horse was levied "by
press," (l) and placed under his command. The foot
were " digested" (2) into six regiments, the colonels
of which were the Earl of Lincoln, Lord Doncaster, (3)
Lord Cromwell, Sir Charles Bich, Sir Andrew Grey,
and Sb John Burrough. (4) But this expedition
turned out very unfortunate ; a contagious disease
broke out among the troops, so that their numbers
in a few weeks were almost reduced by one-half, and
Mansfield was obliged to remain on the defensive.
It is somewhat anomalous that Lord Vaux was
allowed to raise 1,500 men for the service of the
Archduchess of Austria ; which, as Camden remarks,
"tended much to the King's prejudice; for his sub
jects in a strange country, by this means, fought one
against another, which was a kind of uncivil war." (5)
Many ancient statutes were repealed in this reign, statutes of
which were conceived to be unsuitable to the spirit of repeaied.
the times. Amongst these, the Statutes of Armour,
namely, 27th Henry IL, 13th Edward I., and 4th
(:) Hardwiake Papers, i. 533. — Rushworth,, i., pt. i.
\ (2) Camden.
(3) Son of the Earl of Carlisle.
(4) Rushworth, i., pt. i., p. 14.
(6) Camden, p. 789.

394 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and 5th PhiUp and Mary, c. ii., by which aU sub
jects, according to their means, were bound to furnish
a certain quantity of arms, horses, and armour. These
were repealed by Parliament, the 2nd James I., c. 25,
and 21st James I., c. 28. Q)
The abrogation of these laws was of itself a proof
of a considerable revolution of opinion with respect
to the Uberty of the subject. The consoUdation of
the two realms into one, so that there were no more
" borders " — where those ancient provisions had been
principaUy useful or oftenest used — may have in
fluenced their repeal ; but commercial opulence, which
had fostered a spirit of independence, had a great
deal to do with it.
The British monarch had wisely determined, if
possible, to have no more war; and the arms and
armour of the trained and untrained bands, which
had been so widely distributed, were ordered to be
returned and stored in " magazines." (2) Some efforts
were made by the City of London to improve its
military condition, and officers were procured who
had served abroad to teach the trained bands theb
exercise in the Artillery Garden, a practice which had
been discontinued since 1588.
The pay of a private of infantry, when called out,
was eightpence a day,(3) a large sum in an age when
the necessaries of Ufe were at least six times as cheap
(*) Vide Tytler's Mil. Law, p. 57.
(2) In a pamphlet written by Trenchard (pub. 1698), an opponent
of standing armies, the author says : " Our happiness was that the
prince was a great coward, and hated the sight of a soldier." (p. 5.)
(8) Rymer, sub. an. 1612, vol. xi., p. 717.

PAY OP OFFICERS AND PRIVATES. 395
as they are now. An ensign received eighteen-pence,
a lieutenant two shillings, a captain four shillings ;
so that the private, in proportion, seems to have been
better paid than the officer. It may be that the
social position of the officer and private in the mass
was more nearly aUied, both belonging pretty nearly
to the same class of society.

CHAPTEE XVI.
CHARLES I. — SUPPLIES REFUSED BY PARLIAMENT — ARMY OP 10,000 MEN
SENT TO SPAIN — UNSUCCESSFUL EXPEDITION — ISLE OE RE EXPEDITION —
PETITION OP RIGHT — MARTIAL LAW — TRAIN-BANDS  APPROVED PAT
TERN OE ARMS — REBELLION OP THE SCOTCH — BAD SPIRIT OP ENGLISH
LEVIES  THE KING'S NECESSITIES — MISBEHAVIOUR OP COMMANDERS—
THE COVENANTERS' ARMY ADVANCE TO NEWCASTLE — ENERGY OF
STRAFFORD — DISCOMFITURE OF THE KING'S FORCES — TREATY WITH THE
SCOTCH — IRISH REBELLION — THE KING'S OFFER TO PROCEED THITHER
WITH AN ARMY DECLINED BY PARLIAMENT — GOVERNORS OP FORTI
FIED PLACES REMOVED BY PARLIAMENT — THE KING'S POWER OVER
THE MILITIA DENIED — DEFIANCE — KING RETIRES TO YORK — FOILED
IN HIS ATTEMPT TO ENTER HULL — FORMS A BODY-GUARD.
The accession of Charles I. is one of those points of
history which arrests our attention, opening out to
view one of the most important and interesting
periods in our English annals. The page which
records the death of the king, closes the chapter on
monarchy for a time ; we there take a final leave
of feudal military incidents, and the array of the
militia ceases to be the country's sole defensive guard.
The refusal by the Parliament of the necessary
supplies was the beginning of the misfortunes in this
unhappy reign. Charles considered himself pledged
to carry on the war for the support of the cause of
his brother-in-law, the Elector Palatine, which, as has
just been stated, was so strongly urged by the voice

DIFFICULTIES AT COMMENCEMENT. 397
of the nation in the preceding reign. But both
Houses of Parliament evinced a settled determination
to restrain the Eoyal authority, and trusted to the
King's necessities to extort concessions. Charles's
inheritance of Crown debts was very considerable, and,
being reduced to a state of destitution, (l) he was
driven to the expedients often adopted by his prede
cessors, of issuing writs for borrowing money from the
subjects. These were not likely to add to the King's
popularity, but, by dint of such forced contributions,
he was enabled to fit out an expedition designed to
act against Spain, by which he expected indirectly to
benefit the cause of his brother-in-law.
In October of his first regnal year, the fleet set
saU, having on board 10,000 men, " raised by press,"
under the command of Sb Edwin Cecil, created for
the occasion Viscount Wimbledon, an officer grown
grey in the wars of the Netherlands, but totaUy
devoid of any knowledge of naval operations. Like
many attempts before and since, this predatory attack,
had no important or creditable result. Though an
opportunity offered of crippling the Spanish shipping,
it was neglected; and almost the only danger the
troops who landed had to encounter lay in the wine-
ceUars of Cadiz. Being undiscipUned, they could not
be restrained : " every man was his own vintner," as
a contemporary expressed it; and had the fugitive
Spaniards returned on such invaders, they would have
found an easy conquest. (2) The consequence was,
(') Sydney Papers, ii. 363.— Rymer, xviii. 181. — Rushworth, i. 122.
(2) Disraeli's Commentaries, i. 292 (edit. 1828).

398 THE BRITISH' ARMY.
the troops became so insubordinate that it was deemed
prudent to re-embark them, and shortly afterwards the
expedition returned ingloriously to Plymouth, greatly
to the King's disappointment and annoyance.
isie of Re- In 1627 there was the unfortunate affair of the
Expedition, j.^ Q£ -g^ q which has been termed the Walcheren
expedition of Charles' reign. (3) The King was in
duced to send a fleet of 100 ships and an army of 7,000
men, under the Duke of Buckingham, who had neither
naval nor miUtary experience, to the west coast of
France, nominaUy for the purpose of assisting the
French Protestants, but in reaUty to gratify the spite
of his favourite courtier. The utter inefficiency of
the commander gave occasion to the most signal dis
comfiture that English arms ever sustained from the
French. " Since England was England," wrote Denzil
HoUes, " it received not so dishonourable a blow." (3)
A badly-arranged retreat was at last executed, and the
EngUsh are stated to have been saved from annihila
tion by the gaUant cover made by a body of Irish
troops. (*)
Petition of The presentation of the " Petition of Eight," as
Right. (') Guizot.
(2) An interesting account of this expedition will be found in
Disraeli's Commentaries, ii. 64.
(3) Letter to Sir Thos. Wentworth, 19th Nov., 1627. (Strafford's
Letters and Despatches, i. 41:) >
(4) " Our men were most unfortunate ; many of them cut to
pieces. Had not Sir Pierce Orossby, with 800 Irish, made good the
retreat, all our men had been lost." (Maseres, Tracts, p. 150.) — The
Duke of Buckingham was assassinated, when preparing for a second
expedition to La Rochelle, by Pelton, " a discontented and hypochon
driacal lieutenant, who missed of being a captain as he thought in
his turn," as described by Sir R. Warwick, p. 33. (Ellis's Orig. Letters,
3rd S., 256— 60.)

PETITION OF RIGHT. 399
it was caUed — a most important measure — was one
of the immediate consequences of this disastrous
expedition. It was founded on the four following
grievances : — Exaction of money under the name of
loans, with the imprisonment of those .refusing to
lend;0 the suspension of the Habeas Corpus ; the
biUeting of soldiers on private persons.; and the
exercise of martial law. (2) ,
With respect to the. biUeting of soldiers, which
HoUis characterised as being "a new and almost un
heard-of way of supporting them," (3) it was not with
out reason that the framers of the' biU .inserted this
among theb grievances ; for it appears that, most
UlegaUy, soldiers had been billeted purposely on such
as had refused to subscribe to the Government loan.
This was an assumption of miUtary power which was
clearly unconstitutional, being repugnant to those
ancient charters which estabUshed the general Uberty
of the subject. (*)
The army, iU-paid and undiscipUned, committed
outrages which the King saw no other means of
repressing than by a most rigorous exercise of martial
law. Commissions were issued to the lord-lieutenants,
or theb deputies, enjoining them to proceed against
(J) " The higher orders who did not subscribe to the loans, were
bound over by recognizance to appear; the lower classes were ordered
to present themselves that they might be enrolled among the com
panies of soldiers, that they who refused to assist with their purses
should serve in their person for the common defence." (Rushworth,
i., p. 422.)
(2) Hallam's Const. Hist., i. 382.
(3) Strafford Letters, i., 40. This was one of the charges brought
against the Earl of Strafford at his trial.
(4) Tytler's Mil Law, 62.

400 THE BRITISH ARMY.
all soldiers, mariners, and other disorderly' persons,
who should be guUty of felonies, murders, and other
misdemeanours, and to execute aU such persons im
mediately as in time of war ; (J) a remedy which the
strict adherents to constitutional principles deemed
worse than the disease which called it forth.
The 6th section of that important petition sets
forth that, "Whereas of late, great companies of
soldiers and mariners have been dispersed into divers
counties of the realm, and the inhabitants, against
their wills, have been compelled to receive them into
theb houses, and there to suffer them to sojourn,
against the laws and customs of the realm, and to the
great grievance and vexation of the people.
(') "a.d. 1626.
An0. 2, Oar. I.
Charles, &c.
" Forasmuch as some dissolute and disordered persons amongst
the Souldiers and Mariners entertained in our service to serve us, in
the Royal fleet or Navy, either were in our service in our former fleet,
which for weighty considerations We intend, with all convenient ex
pedition, now to set to sea, may commit felonies, robberies, or other
outrages or offences, to the horror and prejudice of our loving subjects,
and the disturbance of our peace, &c. :
" We do giVe unto you full power and authority, to proceed ac
cording to the justice of Martial Law against Souldiers or Mariners,
or other dissolute persons joining'with them, as shall at any time after
the publication of this Our Commission commit any robbery, &c, which
by the Martial Law should . or ought to be punished with Death, and
by such summary course and order as is agreeable to Martial Law,
and as is used in armies in time of war, to proceed to the trial and
condemnation of such delinquents and offenders, and them cause to
be executed and put to death, according to the law Martial, for which
purpose Our will and pleasure is that you cause to be erected such
gallows or gibbets, &c. " The fourth day of October.
" Per ipsum Regem."
(Rymer, torn, xviii., p. 765, edit. 1726.)

PETITION OF RIGHT. 401
" 7. And whereas, by authority of ParUament, in
the 25th year of Edward III., it is enacted that no
man should be forejudged of Ufe or limb against the
form of the Great Charter, and laws of the land ; and
by the said Great Charter, and other laws of this
realm, no man ought to be adjudged to death but
by the laws established in this realm ; nevertheless,
divers commissions under the Great Seal have issued
forth, by which certain persons have been appointed
commissioners, with power and authority to proceed
within the land, according to the justice of Martial
Law, against such soldiers and mariners, or other
dissolute persons joining with them, as should commit
any murder, robbery, felony, mutiny, &c, and by such
summary course and order as is agreeable to Martial
Law, and as is used in armies in time of war, to pro
ceed to the trial and condemnation of such offenders,
and them to be caused and put to death according to
the Law-Martial.
" 8. By pretext whereof, some of your Majesty's
subjects have been by some of the said commissioners
put to death, when and where, if by the laws of the
land they had deserved death, by the same laws and
statutes also they might and by no other ought to
have been judged and executed.
"10. They do therefore humbly pray, that your
Majesty would be pleased to remove the said soldiers
and mariners, and that your people may not be
burdened in time to come, and that the aforesaid
commissions proceeding by Martial Law may be
revoked and annulled; and that hereafter no com-
VOL. i. a A

402 THE BRITISH ARMY.
missions of the Uke nature may issue forth to any
person whatsoever to be executed as aforesaid; lest
by colour of them, any of your Majesty's subjects be
destroyed or put to death, contrary to the laws and
franchise of the land."
To this formidable petition, which involved the
abandonment of the high miUtary power of the
Crown, and the consequent restriction of the Boyal
prerogative, the King was ultimately constrained to
give a reluctant consent.
Some useful measures were adopted for putting
the military resources of the kingdom in better shape,
as the militia, a natural result of continued peace, had
become much " decayed," and the trained bands were
seldom mustered. " We had formerly many traynmg
dayes, but now the practice is much decayed," says
an old author in 1639. (}) The people generaUy were
inexpert in the use of arms. Lord-Ueutenants were
General directed "to make a general muster of the trained
Muster .
ordered, horse and foot m their several counties, and to see
to the sufficiency of the men, horses, and arms, and
that all be complete according to the most modern
form." (3) The King likewise commanded that officers
who had seen service in the Low Countries should be
appointed to superintend the exercises in the various
counties. A survey was also ordered, by Eoyal com
mand, of aU the armour, arms, and ammunition in
the Tower of London, the several forts and castles
(x) Observ. to Bp. Dur., by A. L., quoted in Archaeol. Mlnana,
iv. 122. (2) Rushworth, i., pt. iii., p. 168.

SURVEY OF ARMS. 403
throughout the kingdom, and also on board the ships
of war. (x) In 1631, commissioners were appointed,
consisting of a number of experienced armourers,
gun, pike, and bandalier makers, to travel throughout
England and Wales, to survey, prove, repair, and put
the armour and weapons of the militia into a state fit
for service. This commission, which contains many
curious particulars, wiU be found in Bymer, sub an.
1631 (7 Car. I.), and also in Grose's Mil. Ant., ii,
p. 324. It commences by stating that, "We foreseeing in Commission as
. . , - ...„., to Arms and
our princely judgment how necessary it is for the Armour.
preservation of our self and our subjects, that the
armours, guns, pikes, and bandaliers be from time to
time repabed, amended, dressed, and stamped; and
that they be fully furnished and completely main
tained, according to the number charged by the
muster-roUs in every county, which, we are credibly
informed, are in many parts of this kingdom much
decayed and neglected. . . . And that expert work
men may be secured, so as to render the supply of
arms and armour independent of foreigners 
And that it had been ascertained that the English
armourers, at seven days' notice, could deliver into
store, for ready money, fifteen hundred suits of armour,

(*) Rymer, sub. an. 1629. — This order appears to have been carried
out in the following year, according to a MS. penes Mr. Robert
Lemon, P.S.A. " The remayne of his Majesty's armour, and other
munition or habilaments of war, in the armory of the Tower of
London and Greenwich, in the charge of Sir Thomas Jaye, Kut-'
Master of his Majesty's .Armory, taken, numbered, and told in the
months of December, January, and February, 1630-1."

404 THE BRITISH ARMY.
as many pikes, guns, muskets, and bastard-muskets (J)
every month. . . . AU weapons proved and reported
fit for service to be marked with ' A (2) and Crown,'
being the hall-mark for the company of workmen
armourers of London. And because divers cutlers,
' smiths, tinkers, and other botchers of arms, by their
unskUfulness have utterly spoiled many arms, no
person to exercise the trade or mystery of an armourer,
who had not served seven years, or been brought up
as an apprentice."
The concluding paragraph contains, probably, the
first intimation of a " sealed pattern'' being deposited,
whereby an uniformity was enjoined in the "fashion
of arms and armour" — a regulation which had never
been in force before, and the want of which must
have been productive of great inconvenience.
uniform " And because we are credibly given to understand
that the often and continual altering and changing of
the fashion of arms and armour, some counties and
parts of the kingdom having armours of one fashion
and some of another, do put many of our subjects to
a great and unnecessary charge, and more than need
requbeth : for the avoiding whereof our will and
pleasure is, and we do hereby appoint and command,
that hereafter there shaU be but one uniform fashion
of armour of the said common and trained bands
throughout our said kingdom of England and
dominion of Wales, whereas any of the said armours
shaU be supplied and new made, and that that form
and fashion of armour shall be agreeable to the last
,(') Probably calivers. (2) "A " for "allowed."

WAR OF THE COVENANT. 405
and modern fashion lately set down and appointed
to be used by the lords and others of our council
of war (the patterns whereof are now and shall
remain in the office of our ordinance from time
to time ; which is our pleasure likewise concern
ing guns, pikes, and bandaliers, whereof patterns
are and shall remain from time to time in our
said office"), &c.
The King, in consideration of the services of the
gunmakers in supplying arms, granted them a
charter in 1617, empowering them to prove all arms,
" harquesbusse (plantier-busse, alias blanter-busse), and
musquettoon, and every calliver, musquet, carbine,
fowling and bbding piece, and for every dagg and
pistol, whether pubUc or private" — gunmakers' proof-
mark to be " G. P. and a crown." This right remains
to them at the present time. (Original Ordnance
Accounts, penes Mr. Pritchett, F.S.A.)
In 1639, the mUitary forces of the kingdom were The
ordered to be embodied to act against the Scotch, war.
who were in open revolt, in consequence of the King's
insane attempt to force upon them episcopacy and the
ritual according to the Church of England ; the con
sequence of which was the production of that pro
testation caUed the " Covenant," and a very general
arming of the people in furtherance of their religious
freedom. A gaUant old soldier-adventurer, Alexander
Leslie, who had returned to his native country, after
having fought his way up to high miUtary rank
in that grand school for soldiers — the armies of
Gustavus Adolphus, was appointed their general-

406 THE BRITISH ARMY.
in-chief, (T) and they made themselves masters of the
Castle of Edinburgh and other strong places.
To meet this emergency, the Marquis of Hamilton
was sent to blockade the Firth of Forth, with a
strong fleet and 5,000 troops, " for stopping of trade,
and making a great diversion for guarding the
coasts ;"(2) but he appears to have been very
inoperative, which raised some question as to the sin
cerity of his loyalty. (3) He may have had some
misgivings as to the raw material confided to his
charge, for it is stated that " of the 5,000 men put
on board the fleet, there were not 2,000 that knew
how to fire a musquet, and, except the officers, so
raw and undiscipUned, that Uttle could be expected of
them beyond a show." (4)
The train-bands of certain specified counties were
ordered to proceed forthwith to the borders. These,
according to a tabular return given by Bushworth,
(J) Sir Alexander Leslie, of Balgony, returned to Scotland in
1638, was created Earl of Leven in 1641. (Por abundant notices of-
his performances, see Index to Harte's Hist of Gustavus Adolphus).
Strafford affected to despise him, but Leslie had his revenge. " It is
most true," he wrote, " Leislie can neither write nor read, and to
boot a bastard. A captain he is, but no such great Kill-Cow as they
would have him, never General to the King of Sweede, General of
the forces (as they term the command, howbeit in itself not so good
as that of colonel) of a Hanse Town, Lubeck, as I take it, and no
more." — Wentworth to Sir John Hotham. (Strafford Letters,
ii. 307.) (2) Burnet's Memoirs of the Dukes of Hamilton, b. ii., 147 (edit.
Oxon., 1852).— See also Clarendon, Hist., i., b. ii., p. 43 (edit. 1849).
(3) " The Marquis of Hamilton avoided all occasion of beginning
the war. He did not trouble a man on the shore with a shot."
(Baillie's Letters, i., 1. ii., p. 165.)— See also the Marquis's letter in
Nalson, i. 228.
(4) Nalson, i. 216.

LEVIES OF TROOPS. 407
amounted in the aggregate to 19,438 foot and 1,233
horse, besides 1,350 draught horses. (x)
The foUowing letter was addressed to the lord-
Ueutenants :— " 16 Car., 1640. The men to be
raised are to be appointed to meet in companies of
100 a-piece at particular rendezvous in that C°. most
convenient for each 100 men, to be weekly exercised
with false fires or no fire, by each inferior officer, as
the Lord-General shall send down to instruct them
in theb postures, and the use of theb arms : to
which purpose your Lordship is to cause the arms of
the Trained Band to be lent unto them, which shall
be re-deUvered back when they shall march out of
the C°. Tour Lordship is likewise to take orders
that there be, prest, and sent with the said soldiers,
one Drum and Drummer to every 100 men, who
shaU enter into his Majesty's pay as soon as the
said soldiers shaU march out of that C°." The men
were also to be weU clothed at the charge of the
0°., to be repaid out of his Majesty's Exchequer.
(Eushworth, vol. U., p. 1,087.)
This number was somewhat increased when the
King arrived in person with a large retinue, and by
the nobUity, who had been summoned to attend
according to theb rank. (2) Eoyalty on the spot had,
0) " A true list of the number of horse, pikemen, and musque-
tiers, dragoons, and curasiers, set out for the present service for
Scotland at the charge of these counties and shires following, &c.
(Westmoreland, Cumberland, Northumberland, and the town of
Newcastle, were not to march into the field but upon special direc
tions.) (Vol. i., pt. iii., 827.)
(2) " A proclamation commanding all noblemen, knights, gentle
men, and others, to repair to the North." (Rymer, an. 1639.)

408 THE BRITISH ARMY.
doubtless, the effect of infusing some vigour in the
preparations, and the King fancied that to proceed
with dignity would have the effect of overawing the
factions ; and so there was an iUustrious progress, a
great show of nobUity, gentry, and others, but "the
soldiers were the least part of the army, and least
consulted with.'X1)
There was a terrible lukewarmness apparent, and
lord-Ueutenants and others had difficulty in assem
bling the quotas of their counties, for the English
in general regarded the issue of the expedition with
feelings of indifference, or something more ; in fact,
the majority were sympathisers with the Scotch
insurgents, and anticipated in any success of the
Eoyal arms the forging of further trammels for them
selves. " Many old soldiers," we are told, " embraced
the war for theb profession ; many voluntiers of the
gentry tendered their services to the King; which
being represented to the Privy Council, it was
resolved that all subjects who voluntarily desire to
arm themselves, either at home or from abroad,
should have aU liberty and encouragement, as like
wise for assembly, exercising, and discipUning of
voluntiers that shall offer their services in this kind ;
and that license in this behaU be given them under
the hand of the Earl Marshal of England, which
shaU be to them a sufficient warrant." (3)
Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel and Surrey,
(^ Clarendon, Hist, i., b. ii., p. 165.— Rushworth, ii., pt. ii., 937.
(2) Rushworth, i., pt. iii., p. 792.-

FINANCIAL EMBARRASSMENT. 409
a man of high honour and accomplishments, was
appointed to the chief command of the army of
operations, (a) if that term be admissible where
nothing was effected. With the earl was associated,
as his Ueutenant-general, the gallant Essex (after
wards so conspicuous as the leader of the Parlia
mentarian forces) ; and the Earl of HoUand com
manded the cavalry, of whose performances the less
said the better.
The King was in a strait to find wherewithal for King's want
the subsistence of the army, and, having determined
to rule without a ParUament, was obliged to resort to
every possible expedient to raise money. Eepresen-
tations were made by the officers of the tram-bands
that their regiments would disband, if remittances
did not reach them. It is a curious compUcation to
find that EicheUeu, then Prime Minister, for reasons
of poUcy, had sent money to assist the Scottish
insurgents, (2) whUe the principal contributors to
(') According to a letter published in the Fairfax Correspondence
(vol. i., p. 359), the army amounted in May altogether only to 17,000
foot and 3,500 horse. This number the King purposed to increase.
It is curious to notice the familiar tone he adopted towards his
Ministers ; a little piece of duplicity peeps out in the margin
below : — " His Majesty to Mr. Secretary Windebanke.
" Windebanke,— " This is not only to be a cover to my wife's letter,
but also ye might advertise the Treasurer and Cottington, that I have
You must give thought n* to renforce my army with 4m foot and 3h ,
out that it be horse, which will amount to 6m and much increase of
12m foote, and cnarse . but I hope thev shall find in the end that it
2m horse. -,, I •„ , . ,
will not prove ill-husbandry. " Newcastle, 17 May, 1639."
(Clarendon State Papers.)
(2) Sydney Papers, ii. 562. — Lettres d'Estrades, i. 10.

410 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Charles's necessities were the Eoman CathoUcs and
the orthodox clergy of England. (x)
When we take into consideration the imperfect
state of discipline of the English military forces at
this time, we may weU think it fortunate that this
country had not been suddenly involved in any
foreign war of magnitude, for decidedly it would
have evinced its inferiority in the field. EngUsh-
men were, doubtless, as convertible into good soldiers
then as ever ; but since the Spanish invasion nothing
had occurred to rouse the martial spbit of the people.
The bow, which had been the Englishman's pastime
as well as pride, was now almost discarded, muskets
and pikes were now in vogue in armies, necessitating
the acting together in bodies, with a certain amount
of drilling and discipUne. It was the fashion for
English gentlemen to engage in active service abroad,
for foreign countries had not been spared as ours has
ever been, and a state of war was generaUy theb
normal condition ; but the trading classes of England
were acquiring wealth, and military service was, con
sequently, a detriment to them. This expedition to
Scotland, which scarcely deserves the term of war,
demonstrated the inefficiency of the miUtary system,
when the trained bands of England were unable to
cope with the ragged levies of the* King's rebellious
(l) The Pope, however, did not approve of this contribution. See
Instructions to his Nuncio in England, in Clarendon's State Papers,
ii., p. 44 : "Ton are to command the Catholics of England in general,
that they suddenly desist from making such offers of men towards
this Northern expedition, as we hear they hare done, little to the
advantage of their discretion."

DEFECTIVE MILITARY SYSTEM. 411
Northern subjects. What then would have been the
issue, if the contest had been between them and
standing forces or veteran mercenaries ?
It is pretty clear that the King's poverty alone
had prevented his backing up his authority by
means of mercenaries. Negotiations were at this
time actually on foot, carried on through the agency
of Colonel Gage, for the purpose of obtaining the
services of 6,000 infantry and 400 cavaby from the
(Spanish) Government of Elanders ; Charles, in return,
offering to recruit the English and Irish companies
in the Spanish service in Flanders, yearly, with fresh
soldiers. The negotiations feU to the ground, solely
because the infante cardinal in command deemed
it not prudent to spare so many veterans at that
moment without running great hazard. The whole
correspondence is given in Clarendon's State Papers,
vol. ii, p. 29. It is difficult to imagine anything
that could have added more greatly to the King's
unpopularity than this. As it was, the soldiers who
were raised in the several counties for service in
Scotland were impressed with the popular rumours of
the design of introducing Popery, if the Scots should
be reduced to theb obedience. (*)
If aU had behaved Uke Lord HoUand, whom Sir Holland's
Inefficiency.
PhUip Warwick properly appreciated, when he de
scribed him as a man " fitter for a show than a field,"
there would have been but a remote chance of such a
consummation. On two occasions, when he had the
opportunity of inflicting a serious blow on the mal-
Q) Nalson, p. 495.

412 THE BRITISH ARMY.
contents, he disgraced himself and those with him by
ordering a retreat without striking a blow. The first
occasion was when information had been received that
LesUe and the Scotch army were in fuU march south
wards. The King directed HoUand to advance with
the cavalry and some infantry and attack him. The
King was then encamped with the army in an open
field called the Berks, two miles west of Berwick.
HoUand came in sight of the enemy at Dunse, strongly
posted on the side of a hill. He seems to have con
sidered the position too strong for him, and at once
turned about and retreated to the camp. A similar
scene took place shortly afterwards, in the next month.
The Scotch were again reported as advancing. Hol
land, with the cavalry, was immediately despatched to
encounter them, and had with him altogether a force
consisting of 1,000 horse and 3,000 foot. The
weather was very hot (Clarendon says that it was the
beginning of August, but it was evidently the 4th of
June, according to a despatch of Sir Henry Vane), (})
and the foot could not keep up with the horse.
HoUand came suddenly upon the Scotch army, at a
place called Maxwell-heugh, a height above Kelso.
The old campaigner had drawn up his force so as to
look as imposing as possible. As soon as the EngUsh
were discovered, he advanced with a handful of horse,
150, and some 5,000 or 6,000 foot. HoUand reported
them as 8,000 or 10,000. The EngUsh general sent
a trumpet, commanding them to retire. The Scotch
(*) Rushworth, ii., pt. ii., 936.— Nalson, i. 231.— Compare Claren
don's Hist, L, b. ii., p. 168.

DASTARDLY CONDUCT. 413
inquired whose trumpet it was. They were answered
that it was Lord Holland's. "He were best to be
gone," said they. His lordship thought so too, and
retreated upon his infantry, who were about three
miles to the rear, and made the best of his way back
to the camp, and gave his explanation of the circum
stances to the king that night.
Clarendon remarks that "he might very safely
have made a halt at Dunse, tiU his foot and artiUery
came up, or he might securely enough have engaged
his body of horse against their whole pitiful army." (x)
It is a curious affab, for Lord HoUand had hitherto
borne the character of a man of courage, and had seen
service in HoUand, nor was he suspected of playing a
traitor's part, and he had with him some of the ablest
and most experienced officers ; but truly " nothing
could be said in excuse of the counsel of that day,
which might have made the King a glorious king
indeed." (2)
Many of the troops of horse that accompanied the
King were raised by men of fortune, and consisted en
tirely of gentlemen, gaUantly mounted and armed, with
theb servants attending them, also well mounted. (3)
Such was the one of Sb John SuckUng, the poet,
consisting of 100 men, which he had placed at his
(x) Clarendon says that Holland had with him " 3,000 foot, 2,000
horse, and a fit train of artillery." But Yane's letter, written at the
time, gives only the strength just enumerated.
(2) Clarendon, Hist — Baillie says : " The soldiers that day were
a great deal more nimble in their legs than arms, except their
cavaliers, whose right arms were no less weary in whipping than
their heels in jading their horses." (i., p. 210.)
(>) Rushworth ii., p. ii., 929.

414 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Majesty's disposal, at a cost, it is said, of £12,000.
It formed part of Lord HoUand's force on the above-
mentioned occasion, and was splendidly attired in pic
turesque costume, their uniform being a white doublet
with a scarlet coat, and a hat with a scarlet feather^1)
The King's eyes could not long be closed to the
visible indifference of his army, and the general un
popularity of the war, and so he set himself to arrange
plans for a pacification, and the terms were agreed
upon on the 18th of June. But the concessions made
by the King only opened the door for further de
mands ; the treaty was scarcely ratified before it was
broken, and the next year found Charles in full
march again on his " covenanting rebeUes." (3)
Disorganisa- ^n army 0f 30 000 men was ordered to be raised
tion of Army. ^
and to concentrate upon Newcastle. The fidelity of
this force, or of any one simUarly raised, could hot be
reUed upon, composed as it was of men taken from
their homes on an errand of which they disapproved,
and who were devoid of any esprit de corps, in the
military sense of the term. Mutinies arose in several
counties before the regiments had marched to the
North, and proclamations in consequence were issued
in Warwickshire, Berkshire, Devonshbe, and other
counties, (3) where several of the officers had been
murdered by their men. The Earl of Northumber
land, appointed to the chief command, wrote on the 4th
(') See Selections from the Works of Sir John Sucklinq, p. 30.
(1836.) (2) A letter of the King to the Earl of Nithisdale, printed in
Lingard (note h), sub an. 1640.
(») Rymer, sub an. 1640, pp. 414, 415, 425.

MUTINOUS TROOPS. 415
of June, that " so general a defection in this kingdom
hath not been known in the memory of any ; " (x) and
Sir Jacob Astley, one of the staunchest of the BoyaUst
commanders, wrote from Selby, on the 10th of July :
" I have orders from my Lord General to send 4,000
or 5,000 men to your Lordship (Conway), to New
castle; but, considering there is not such a number
yet come, and those that are come have neither
colours nor halberds, and want drums, I forbear, &c.
I am to receive aU the arch-knaves in this kingdom,
and to arm them at Selby. Before I came to Selby,
some 500 of them were brought by Lieutenant-Colonel
BaUard, and these beat up the officers and boors,
and broke open the prisons, &c. Two days since,
Colonel Lunsford's regiment came hither, who had, by
the way, fought with aU their officers. "(a)
In other letters of the 13th and 18th of the same
month, he says : " It would be impossible to keep
those men from mutiny if they should miss their
seven days' pay ; they would disband, and rise against
theb officers, and spoU the country. Part of my
regiment, raised in Daintree, is there totaUy dis
banded, and Lieutenant-Colonel Culpepper, beastly-
slain by the Devonshire men; and 300 of the Lord
Marquis's (Hamilton) regiment refused absolutely to
go to HuU, for fear of being shipped," &c.
The Secretary of State, Sir Henry Vane, wrote
on the 13th of August to Lord Conway, then com-
(*) Sidney Papers, ii. 654.
(2) Letter, quoted in Lord Conway's Belation, in Dalrymple's
Memorials, ii. 84, and in Harl. MSS., vol. 1,579.

416 THE BRITISH ARMY.
mauding at Newcastle, urging him to do his utmost
to " keep the soldiers from mutiny until moneys came
down, which his Majesty and the CouncU were
hastening to him with aU possible diUgence."^) The
" march of inteUect," too, was apparent, and was be
coming dangerous, for the men debated the legality
of their being ordered out of theb counties, seeing
that there was no foreign enemy to encounter. (3)
Martial Law. It is obvious that, to repress these mutinies, a
strong exertion of authority, and the strictest rigour
of disciphne, were absolutely necessary. But how
were these to be reconciled with the Petition of
Eight, which, in its ardour for reform, had swept
away martial law altogether? The Commons had
manifestly deprived the Sovereign of a power abso
lutely essential for the preservation of the State.
The law officers of the Crown declared that martial
law could only legitimately be exercised when the
army was actuaUy in sight of an enemy ; a dangerous
decision, for clearly in the absence of an enemy,
miUtary subordination might be virtuaUy at an end.(3)
General Lord Conway boldly asserted that if the King
would give him a commission to execute miUtary law,
he would stand the consequence ; and if any lawyer
should deny his authority, he would hang him up, as
the shortest way of refuting his argument.^)
(') Ibid.
Q) " The hearts of all might be seen averse to this unjust war.
The train-bands gave out peremptorily that they were not obliged to
follow the King without the country." (Baillie's Letters, i. 198,
edit. 1841.)
(3) Tytler's Mil. Law, p. 69.
(4) Rushworth, ii., pt. ii., p. 1,199.

CAMP OF THE COVENANTERS. 417
The forces which the Covenanters' could bring into
the field were about equal in numbers to those which
the King had prepared against them ; (l) but then they
(the Covenanters) had the advantage of being heart
and soul in their country's cause, they were inspirited
by theb late success, and they placed impUcit confi
dence in the abUity of their general. (3)
As we had a peep at the Scots in the economy of
theb camp Ufe in earUer times, it wiU be interesting
to hear an account given of them by one of them
selves at this juncture — a minister that accompanied
the army: —
" It would have done you good to have cast your scots' Camp.
eyes athort our brave and rich hiUs, as oft as I did,
for I was there among the rest, being chosen preacher
by the gentlemen of our shire. I furnished to half-a-
dozen of good fellows muskets and pikes, and to my
boy a broad sword. I carried myself, as the fashions
are, a sword, and a couple of Dutch pistols at my
saddle; but I promise, for the offence of no man, except
a robber in the body. . . Our hiU was garnished
on the top, towards the south and the east, with our
mounted cannon, weU near the number of forty, great
and smaU. Our regiment lay on the sides of the
hill, almost round about. The place was not far from

(l) "The Scotch army was about 22,000 foot and 3,000 horse,
besides two or three thousand carriage horses, with swords and
hagbuts." (Baillie, i.)
(2) " Such was the wisdom and authority of that old little crooked
soldier (Leslie), that all, with an incredible submission, from the
beginning to the end, gave over themselves to be guided by him."
(Ibid., p. 213.)
VOL. I. B B

418 THE BRITISH ARMY.
a circle, . . capable of tents for 40,000 men. The
crowners (colonels) lay in canvas lodges, high and
wide, theb captains about them in lesser ones, the
soldiers about all in huts of timber, covered with
divot (turf) or straw. Those of the EngUsh that
came to visit our camp, did gaze much with admira
tion upon the supple fellows, with their plaids, targes
(shields), and dorlacks (daggers, or short swords).
Our captains, for the most part, barons or gentlemen
of good note; our lieutenants, most of old soldiers,
who had served over sea in good charges. Every
company had, flying at the captain's tent door, a
brave new colour, stamped with the Scottish arms
and this motto, ' For Christ's Croun and Covenant] in
golden letters. Our general had a brave royal tent,
but it was not set up. His constant guard was some .
hundreds of our lawyers, musquetiers, under Durie
and Hopes't1) command, all the way standing, in good
arms with locked matches, before his high gate, weU
appareUed. "Our soldiers were aU lusty and full of courage,
the most of them stout young plowmen; the only
difficulty was to get them dollars or two the man, for
the voyage from home, and the time they entered on
pay ; for among our yeomen, money at any time, let be
then, uses to be very scarce ; but, having once entered
on the common pay, their sixpence a day, they were
galUard (lively). None of our gentlemen were any
thing the worse of lying some weeks together in their
(l) Sir Alexander Gibson, of Durie, and Sir Thomas Hope, two
distinguished lawyers. (Note to Laing's Baillie's Letters, i., p. 212.)

THE COVENANTERS CROSS THE TWEED. 419
cloaks and boots on the ground, or standing all night
in arms in the greatest storm. Our meanest soldiers
were always served in wheat-bread, a groat would
have gotten them a lamb-leg, which was a dainty
world to the most of them.
" It was not our general's intention to sit long at
Dunse, only tiU our army was above 20,000 men,
then he gave out obscurely to approach the English
camp." (})
The Scots' army was soon coUected. The officers,
most of them, as has just been remarked, old cam
paigners, had been retained in pay, and the men who
had been disbanded after the pacification of Berwick,
cheerfuUy returned to their colours. Three weeks'
attentive training enabled Leslie with confidence to
take the field, and he determined on going into
England with the pretext of " presenting theb griev
ances to the King's Majesty."
On the 20th of August, 1640, they crossed the
Tweed at Coldstream. (3) We are told "they wore
uniform of hodden grey, with blue caps, and each man
had a moderate haversack of oatmeal on his back."(3)
Lord Conway was in command at Newcastle, as LordConway.
general of the horse, and a force of infantry was
ordered to garrison the town. He had made no
attempt to stop the progress of the enemy, as with
inadequate and undisciplined forces he did not think
fit to go out and meet them, since " he was not able to .
(') Baillie, Letters and Journals, i. 211.
(3) Ibid., i. 256.
(3) Old Pamphlets, quoted in Carlyle's Oliver Cromwell, i,, p. 132.
B B 2

420 THE BRITISH ARMY.
hinder theb passage." (*) We may presume that it
was not fear of the enfemy that deterred him, for he
expresses his belief that the unpaid English foot
would "run over the country more than the Scots,
who, he verily beUeved, would do no harm, and pay
for what they have." Clarendon gives him a high
character as a soldier. " He had served," says he,
" under Lord Yere (Tilbury), whose nephew he was,
and there was no action of the English, either at sea
or land, in which he had not considerable command,
and always preserved a more than ordinary reputa
tion ; " (3) but he is constrained to express his own
conviction, that if Essex had had the direction of
mUitary affabs at this time, the result would 'have
been very different. Strafford had been appointed to
the chief command of the army of the North, in the
place of the Earl of Northumberland, who had re
signed on the plea of indisposition. (3) Strafford's
energetic spirit could not brook this state of things :
he received intelligence of the advance of the enemy,
and that nothing was done to hinder him. He wrote
accordingly to Conway in the following terms : " Your
lordship wUl permit me," he writes, " to deal plainly
with you. I find all men in this place (York)
extremely ill-satisfied with the guiding of the horse,
and pubUsh it infinitely to your disadvantage, that,
having with you 2,000 horse and 10,000 foot, you

(') See The Lord Conway's Relation (written in vindication of his
conduct on this occasion), in Dalrymple's Memorials, ii. 81.
(s) Hist,i., b.ii.
(8) Sir Philip Warwick, Memovres of King Charles I., p. 147.

A GENERAL S REBUKE. 421
should suffer an enemy to march so long a way, with
out any skirmish ; nay, without once looking at them.
It imports you most extremely by some noble action,
to put yourself from under the weight 6f ill tongues.
I advise that you, with aU the horse, and at least
8,000 foot, and aU the cannon you have, do march
opposite to them, on this side of the river, and be
sure, whatever foUows, to fight with them upon theb
passage." No wonder that the lord-general wrote strongly,
for Newcastle was the Thermopylae of the war, and
ought to have been defended to the utmost. Had
the Scotch not succeeded in passing the river and
gaining possession of Newcastle, their army, from
want of pay and provisions, would probably have
been broken up. (l)
Although this was offered as advice, Conway felt
that it was a command, and saw that an attack must
be hazarded, despite his own judgment. He went
forward for four days, with 1,000 horse, without being
able to effect any advantage, and retired before the
enemy to Newcastle. The Scotch arrived at New-
burne, about four miles from Newcastle. Conway met
them with aU the horse, and about 2,000 foot; the
rest were kept in reserve at Newcastle, under Sir
Jacob Astley. (3)
It is fab to say that Conway had, from the first,
written to complain of the inadequate means placed

(') " Our armie is already diminished ; the straits of victualls,
and discipline, has made manie to run away." (Baillie, i. 257.)
(2) Warwick, p. 144.

taken.

422 THE BRITISH ARMY.
at his disposal, and had warned the Government that,
as Newcastle was undefended, if attacked by artillery
it must faU an easy victim. He represented that the
men he had were undiscipUned and clamorous for
wages, and he considered them more dangerous to the
cause than the Scots were as an enemy.
Newcastle The EngUsh hastily threw up some earth- works,
but these were overthrown by the fire of the Scotch
artiUery ; and upon Colonel Lunsford's men, who had
been posted there, giving way, the Scots threw a
party of horse, "being gentlemen of the College of
Justice troop," rapidly across the river, but who were
driven back by Conway's horse. These, in their turn,
were routed by a battery. (*) The Scotch army came
across, and the English retired — their horse towards
Durham, (2) the infantry to Newcastle. The Bishops'
War(3) was at an end. The Scots, with their minis-

(•) Bishop Burnet (Own Times, i.) says the Scotch had some
peculiar sort of guns, " an invention of white iron, tinned, and done
about with leather, and corded so that they could serve for two or
three discharges. They were light, and were carried on horses, and
when they came to Newborn, the English army that defended the
ford was so surprised with a discharge of artillery, some thought it
magic, and all were put in such disorder, that the whole army did
run with so much precipitation, that Sir Thomas -Fairfax, who had a
command in it, did not stick to own that till he passed the Tees, his
legs trembled under him." G-ustavus Adolphus had a portable
leathern artillery, on which he set great store, and found very
efficient on account of its easy transport. (See Index to Harte's
Gustavus Adolphus). Leslie, probably, had provided some of these ;
a lesson he had learnt under his old master.
(a) " The truth is, our horse did not behave themselves well, for
many of them ran away, and did not second those that were first
charged." (Hardwicke, State Papers, ii. 162.)
(3) " The warre got the name of belkt/m episcopale." (Memoirs of
Col. Hutchinson, p. 70.)

SCOTS SUCCESS. 423
ters, Bible in hand(x) — vowing brotherly love to the
English, and declaring that their advance was but a
friendly remonstrance — took possession of Newcastle
next day ; (a) and the two northern counties remained
in the undisputed possession of the insurgents.
Then followed the treaty of Bipon (October 1), Treaty of
" consummating in council the disgraces of the field,"
as EUot Warburton wrote. (3) The Scotch reformers
were to occupy (pro tern.) the counties of Northumber
land, Westmoreland, and Durham as securities for the
payment of £850 per diem, which was the daily pay
of their army tiU the peace was concluded ; when they
received, what was a great bonus for so poor a country
as theirs, a large sum of money besides. CO Two
armies had now to be provided for instead of one;
(') The Bishop of Wurtzburg and Bamberg being obliged to
furnish a large contingent to the Imperial army at the beginning
of the Bohemian wars, in 1618, affixed this device to his standards,
" Una manu gladium, altera Breviarium." (See Harte's Gust. Adolph.,
i. 375.) (2) "To-morrow Newcastle was rendered to us. The souldiers
and chief citizens had fled out of it in great haste. In the King's
magazine wer found good store of biskett and cheese, and 5,000 armes,
muskets and pikes, and other provision. Messrs. Hendersoun and
Cant preached to a great confluence of people on the Sonday."
(Baillie, i. 257.) " And till they first began to cant
And sprinkle down the covenant."
Hudibras, pt. iii., can. ii., 1. 765.
(3) Prince Rupert and the Cavaliers, i. 176.
(4) £125,000 for five months' subsistence of their army, and
£300,000 as a friendly relief for their losses and necessities." (Claren
don, ii. 309.) — " Three hundred thousand pound sterling, four and
fifty hundred thousand merks Scotts is a prettie soume in our land,
besyde the eighteen hundred thousand merks for our armie these
last four months, and twentie-fyve thousand pound sterling for the
fifth month coming." (Baillie, i. 297.)

424 THE BRITISH ARMY.
but the Parliament — which, after so long an inter
regnum, had to be summoned to vote the necessary
supplies — did it ungrudgingly, for it felt that the
money-payment to the Scotchmen was but the re
funding a debt of gratitude to those who had done
the Parliament's work, in frustrating the views of the
monarch. The Scots having now obtained all that they had
demanded, and being flattered in the bargain — for the
articles of pacification stated (ignominiously enough
for the King) that they had been good subjects, and
that their military expedition had been calculated for
the King's honour and advantage — Charles vainly
expected that they would now rest satisfied, and that
for the future he might rely on their loyalty. So
pocketing the humUiation, he repaired to Edinburgh,
to open the Scotch Parliament in person, as a further
means of courting popularity, thinking thereby to
attract to himself the- influence of his Northern
subjects, as a set-off to the disaffected people of
England.
Irish It was during the King's residence there that he
received information of that fearful insurrection which
had broken out in Ireland, by which, at the most
moderate computation, the lives of 40,000 persons
were sacrificed. (a)
Charles anticipated that the Protestant ardour of
the Scots — which had lately driven them with such
alacrity to arms — would now impel them with addi*
f) Clarendon, Hist, i., b. iii.— May (Pari Hist, i. 326) says that
200,000 Protestants were massacred.

STANDING FORCES IN IRELAND. 425
tional fervour to rush to the destruction of the Irish
Papists ; but their zeal, when no longer stimulated by
faction or by interest, had become very feeble. The
King was obUged to have recourse for assistance to
the English Parliament, which stiU maintained the
consistent course it had hitherto pursued of exalting
its own authority and diminishing that of the King.
The standing forces of Ireland — which, it has
abeady been stated, had always existed there since
the time of Edward IY. — had been greatly augmented
in this reign. Under the lord-lieutenancy of the
iU-requited and iU-fated Strafford,^) an additional
force of 8,000 men had been raised, and that noble
man had incorporated with them 1,000 men draughted
from the old army, "all of them Protestants, to
instruct and discipline the new : of these all the non
commissioned officers and subalterns were composed ;
the superior officers were likewise Protestants." (3)
The design was to have brought over this force to
put down the insurrection of the Scots ; but the
poverty of the King, and the decisive measures of the
Covenanters, prevented its execution. The Parlia-
(') Bitterly,* in after years, must the King have repented of his
abandonment of Strafford. Even amidst the rush and confusion of the
battle-field, the spirit of the friend whom he had sacrificed seems to
have haunted him. Among the correspondence which fell into the
hands of the enemy, after the battle of Naseby, was a letter, written
by the King to the Queen, containing the following passage : —
" Jan, 14, 1645.
" It is this, nothing can be more evident than that Strafford's
innocent blood hath been one of the great causes of God's just judge
ments upon this nation, by a furious civil war, both sides hitherto
being almost equally punished, as being in a manner equally guilty."
(2) Carte's Life of the Duke of Ormonde, i. 132.

426 THE BRITISH ARMY.
ment regarded this army with a jealous eye, and
insisted that it should be disbanded. The King
assented, but gave orders to the lords-justices of
Ireland, and to the Earl of Ormonde, his lieutenant-
general there, "that any officer of the army should
have free leave to transport what men he could get of
that army, for the service of any prince in amity with
this Crown." Shortly afterwards, at the earnest
request of the Spanish ambassador, his Majesty con
sented that 4,000 of that army should be transported,
for the service of the King of Spain, into Elanders ;
an arrangement which, no doubt, would have been
agreeable to Charles, as, from the disposition evinced
to assist him with troops, lately alluded to, he had
every reason to hope that at a future time the services
of those Irish soldiers might not be withheld from
him. This, however, was no sooner known, than the
House of Commons interfered, and passed a resolution
under the name of " An Ordinance against raising
and transporting of any of these men from Ireland
for the service of any prince whatever.'^1)
The King was therefore obliged to prohibit the
deportation, and a number of disbanded men was
consequently turned loose in the country, ready for
any dangerous work that might be cut out for them.
It is remarkable that, although the Houses of
Parliament would not allow Charles to fulfil his
(l) Clarendon, i., b. iii. — " In a conference with the Commons, the
House of Lords resolves that this House deems it not fit, nor gives
assent, that there should be any levies of men in Ireland, for the
service of the King of Spain." (Lords' Journals, August, 1641;
p. 381.)

PROCEEDINGS OF PARLIAMENT. 427
agreement with the King of Spain, yet, after the dis
banding of the two armies — English and Scotch —
they "resolved that the House of Commons is of
opinion, and holds it fit, that orders should be sent to
the officers of the several ports, requiring them to
permit aU such soldiers of the late disbanded army as
shaU desbe it, to pass beyond the seas, provided they
take such oaths as are usually required according to
the laws.'^1) We may find the reason of this in the
fact that there had been " army plots," and a monar
chical feeUng evinced by many of the soldiers ; they
had even insulted the guard of train-bands that had
been appointed for the protection of the Houses, and
so the Parliament had thought it safer that these
turbulent militaires should have the option of being
dispersed abroad.
The King, from the late restrictions on his pre
rogative, and from his want of pecuniary means, felt
his utter inability to suppress that dreadful insurrec
tion. He was obliged, therefore, to commit to the
Parliament the charge and prosecution of all mea
sures in relation to it. The Commons, who had been
looking out for every opportunity of encroaching on
(l) Lords' Journals, Oct., 1641.— This, no doubt, alluded to the act
passed in the year 1605 (3 Jac. I., c. 4, sec. 12), about the time of
the Gunpowder Plot, and contained a curious recital, which has been
copied into subsequent acts : — " And forasmuch as it is found by late
experience that such as go voluntarily out of this realm to serve
foreign princes, states, and potentates, are, for the most part, perverted
in their religion and loyalty by Jesuits and fugitives, with whom
they do then converse," &o.
And it enacted, that any one who went out of the country without
having taken the oath of allegiance to his Majesty, should be deemed
guilty of felony.

428 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the executive of the Crown, congratulated themselves
on such a crisis, and immediately availed themselves
of the commission, as though it were a transference
into theb hands of the whole miUtary power of the
Crown. (x)
New Act A biU was now prepared " for the better raising
°SoidTerT.e and levying of soldiers for the present defence of the
kingdoms of England and Ireland." The King's
power of impressment, except in the event of foreign
invasion — a power exercised during aU former times
— was in the preamble declared illegal,, and contrary
to the liberty of the subject. (2) Yet this power
being necessary to be exercised at this time for the
suppression of the rebeUion in Ireland, authority was
by this act given to the justices and others, to
impress such a number of men as his Majesty and
the two Houses of Parliament should appoint ; thus,
in fact, enabling themselves, but not the King, to raise
forces by impressment.
In order to avoid this difficulty, Charles offered to
raise 10,000 volunteers for service in Ireland, and to
proceed thither in person to take the command ; but
such an army might have been devoted to the King,
which was in itself a sufficient reason for the Commons
to decline the proposal. (3) The King next, unwisely,
came down in person to the House, and signified his
readiness to pass the bill, provided the preamble were
omitted, or a clause inserted saving his claim and the
(') Tytler's Mil. Law, 71.
(2) Clarendon, ii. 273— May, Hist, of the Long Pari, i. 285.
(3) Rushworth, i., pt. iii., 560.

PARLIAMENT VERSUS KING. 429
liberties of the people. (*) This interference, how
ever, was pronounced to be a high breach of privilege.
The King apologised for his error, and the bill in its
integrity passed the two Houses, and received the
Eoyal assent.
After the fatal indiscretion of " the arrest of the Power over
five members," the King had to eat further of the
bread of humiUation. One great object of the Com
mons, as a means to an end, was to obtain the control
of the militia. Upon no other measure had they
been so urgent, and upon no other was Charles so
immovable. (2) The Parliament debated how far the
power of the miUtia did inherently reside in the
King, being now unsupported by any statute, and
founded only upon immemorial usage. This ques
tion became at length the immediate cause of the
fatal rupture between the King and his Parliament ;
the two Houses not only denying this prerogative of
the Crown (the legality of which, perhaps, might be
somewhat doubtful), but also seizing into their own
hands the entire power of the militia, of the illegality
of which step, says Judge Blackstone (Comm., i. 412),
there never could be any doubt at all. (See Harl.
MS., vii. 47, edit. 1811.) He offered, as a compromise,
that if the Houses would suggest the names of those
whom they wished to recommend for miUtary com-
(') "I will pass it with a salvo jure for king and people."
(His Majesty's Speech to both Houses : Commons' Journ., Dec. 3,
1641 ; Lords', p. 476.)
(2) "And being asked by the Earl of Pembroke whether the
militia might not be granted, as was desired by the Parliament, for
a time, his Majesty swore by God, not for an hour." (Rush., i.,
pt. iii., 522.)

430 THE BRITISH ARMY.
mands, he would appoint them, provided they were
not personally objectionable to him. Proceeding in
their exercise of military power, the Parliament now
took the command of aU the garrisons and fortified
places. Sir John Hotham was appointed governor
of Hull. Colonel George Goring,^) governor of
Portsmouth, was directed to obey no orders but such
as he should receive from ParUament. Sir John
Byron, 0 the Lieutenant of the Tower, a man of
unexceptionable character, was displaced, and Sir John
Conyers appointed in his room ; and an ordinance was
prepared for the ordering of the militia in England
and Wales, appointing, by the authority of the two
Houses, fifty-five lords and commoners lieutenants of
different districts, with power to nominate deputies
and officers, and to suppress insurrections, rebeUions,
and invasions. (3) It was resolved, at the same time,
that the kingdom be put into a posture of defence. (*)
(') Eldest son of Lord Goring, afterwards Earl of Norwich.
(3) "That bloody bragadochio," as the amiable Puritan John
Vicars styles him. (Jehovah Jireh, pt. iii., p. 143.)
(3) Rushworth, i., pt. iii., c. iv., p. 524. Also pp. 516 — 523.
(4) " To the Head Constables of the Wapentake of Claro, and ,
every of them.
"Whereas, we have received an order from both Houses of Par
liament for securing the country, and to that end are appointed to
call to our assistance the Trained Bands, for suppressing all unlawful
assemblies ; these are therefore, by virtue of the said order, to com
mand you to give present notice to all the said Trained Bands,
both horse and foot, within your Wapentake, that they appear before
us, or some of his Majesty's Justices of Peace, at  by
2 of the clock in the forenoon, completely furnished, that we may
view the same, and then give them such directions as shall be for
the futherance of the said service. Pail not.
" Dated 6th Feb., 1641. " Thomas Goweb, Yisct.
"Thomas Stockdau!.''
(Prom Fairfax Cor., Chas. I., vol. ii., 365.)

KING S RIGHT TO SUMMON THE MILITIA. 431
This vote was equivalent to a declaration of war ; Hostile Vote.
the gauntlet was now flung down. It was necessary
to repel force by force. Meanwhile the King had
retbed to York, and held his court there. The
Queen had proceeded to Holland, on the pretext of
the marriage of her daughter, but her real object, of
raising money to procure arms and ammunition by
pawning the Crown -jewels, being weU guessed at.
The King prohibited by proclamation all persons
whatever from obeying the orders of Parliament, and
at the same time issued his commissions of array for
calling out and mustering the militia in several
counties, according to ancient custom, in opposition
to the Parliament's ordinance for levying the
miUtia. (x) The legaUty of this, however, is ques
tionable, notwithstanding the immemorial practice of
the Crown; for the Petition of Eight, which had
received the royal assent, estabUshed the people's
immunity from aU taxes, aids, or other charges, than
such as were imposed, by consent of ParUament : this
command, therefore, from the King alone to draw
forth the miUtia, and arm it at the expense of the
counties, might certainly be construed into a viola
tion of that statute. (3) The mUitia was, however,
ordered to be in readiness, either by the command of

(') "His Majestie's Instructions to his Commissioners of Array
for the several Counties of England, and the Principality of Wales ;
And to be observed by all Sheriffs, Majors, Justices of the Peace,
Bayliffs, Headboroughs, Constables, and all other His Majestie's
loving subjects whatsoever. — Torke, Sept., 1642." (King's Pam
phlets, E. 117, Brit. Mus.)
(2) Tytler's Mil. Law, 75.

432 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the King or of the ParUament, and the order obeyed
either for the one or the other, as suited the tempers
of the counties.
The ostensible authority of the sovereign was still
considered essential to the exercise of the miUtary
power, and the Commons, therefore, made use of the
King's name, and issued theb orders as those of " His
Majesty, signified by both Houses of ParUament;"
thus drawing a, distinction for, the first time between
the office and the person of the King, and employing
against him those very forces which they levied in
his name and by his authority."^),
(') "Instructions agreed upon by the Lords and Commons in
Parliament for the Deputy-Lieutenants for the counties of ... .
" Whereas there hath been of late a most dangerous and desperate^
design upon the House of Commons, which we have just cause to
believe to be in effect of the bloodie counsils of Papists and other ill-
affected persons who have already raised a rebellion in the kingdom
of Ireland, and' by reason of many discoveries, we cannot but fear
they will proceed not only to stir up the like rebellions and insurrec
tions in the kingdom of England, but also to back them with forces
from abroad. It is ordained by the Lords and Commons, now in Par
liament assembled, that  shall have power to assemble
and call together all and singular His Majestie's subjects within the
county of .... as well within liberties as without, that are
meet and fit for the wars, and them to train, exercise, and put in
readiness, and after their abilities well and sufficientlie, from time to
time, to cause to be arrayed and weaponed, and to take the muster of
them in places most fit for that purpose, and shall have power within
the same countie to nominate and appoint such persons of quality as
to him shall seem meet, to be his Deputie-Lieutenant, to be approved
of by both Houses of Parliament ; and that any one or more of the
said deputies so assigned and approved of, shall, in the absence
or by command of the same  have power and authoritie
to do and execute within the countie .... all such power and
authoritie before in this present ordinance ordained, and so shall have
power to make colonels and captains and other officers, and to remove
out of their places, and to make others from time to time, as he shall
think fit for that purpose ; and his deputies, colonels, captains; and

CIVIL WAR. 433
The initiative of the war was taken by the King. First Act of
The Parliament — conscious that a crisis was at hand Cml War'
— made it a matter of principle and policy that the
first open act of aggression should proceed from
Charles. (x) He had resolved to proceed to Hull, and
secure the arms and other munitions of war which it
contained. The possession of the town itself would
have been a grand point for the King, for Hull was
then one of the most important places in the king
dom. (3) It was the great seaport of the North, where
suppUes could be most conveniently received from the
other officers, shall have further power and authoritie to lead, conduct,
and employ, the persons aforesaid arrayed and weaponed, as well
within the countie of  as within any other part of this
realm of England or dominion of Wales, for the suppression of all
rebellions, insurrections, and invasions that may happen, according
as they, from time to time, shall receive directions by his Majestie's
authoritie, signified to them, by the Lords and Commons assembled
in Parliament ; and it is further ordained, that such persons as shall
not obey in any of the premises shall answer their neglect to the
Lords and Commons in a Parliamentary way, and not otherwise,
nor elsewhere, and that every the powers granted as aforesaid
shall continue until it shall be otherwise ordered or declared by both
Houses of Parliament, and no longer. " John Bkown, Clerk, Pari."
(King's Pamphlets, E. 117, 4n°- Lond, 1642.)
(J) Lord Nugent's Hampden, ii. 151.
(2) At the commencement of the Covenanters' war, the following
" Instructions for Capt. W. Legge,* on receiving the ordnance, arms,
and provision, sent to Kingston-upon-Hull," will be found in Bush-
worth, i., pt. iii., 33. They afford us a list of arms in use, and the
* This is, doubtless, " Honest Will Legge" (see Collins' Peerage, Dartmouth), the
faithful friend of Prince Eupert, and the devoted servant and soldier of the King. He
had served as a volunteer under Gustavus Adolphus, in 1630, and afterwards in the
Low Countries under Prince Maurice. On his return to England, he was appointed
"keeper of the King's wardrobe during life," and soon after "groom of the bed
chamber." At the battle of Worcester he was wounded and taken prisoner, and would
• have been executed, but that his wife (a daughter of Sir W. "Washington, and niece of
the Duke of Buckingham) contrived his escape from Coventry gaol in her clothes.
His son, in 1672, was raised to the peerage, inherited lineally by the present Earl of
Dartmouth. VOL. I. C C

434

THE BRITISH ARMY.

Continent, and it contained arms for about 30,000
men, both foot and horse, which had been coUected
there during the Scotch rebeUion. C) The King's
intention was, however, only to possess himself of the
stores, not of the town, for the Uttle force that
attended him would have been insufficient for such a
purpose. The Parliament was quite alive to the

Government prices at which they were to be issued to the train
bands, who were supplied at the country's expense.
" The prices of powder, match, and arms to be sold, viz. : —

PowderMatch 
Musquets Bandaleers
Bests for Musquets
Musquet-shot Long Pikes . . .
Corslet, consisting of Back,
Gorget, and Head-piece
SwordsGirdles and Hangers

Brest.

•!

18d. the pound.
£1 10s, the c. weight.
18s. 6d. the piece.
3s. Od. the piece.
lOd. the piece.
18s. the c. weight.
3s. 2d. .the piece.
22s. the piece.
7s. 6d. the piece.
2s. the piece.'-

(:) Bushworth, i., pt. iii., 564. — Simultaneously with the preparation
of these pages, a trial is recorded in the daily newspapers, wherein
the facts respecting the King's bootless visit to this town are re
cited. Vide Times, Saturday, Nov. 23, 1861 : —
"The Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses of the Borough of
Kingston-upon-Hull, v. The Attorney- General.
" This was a bill by the corporation, claiming, as against the
Crown, the site of the ancient citadel and fortifications of Hull, erected
by Henry VIII. and Charles IL, and the adjoining foreshore, upon
the same being disused for military purposes since 1858. The bill
contained a short summary of the early history of Kingston-upon-
Hull, from 1377, and that in 1640 Charles I. attempted, unsuccessfully,
to appoint Sir Thomas Glenham governor extraordinary of Hull, but
that Sir John Hotham was selected for that office by Parliament, and
that shortly afterwards the King summoned Hotham to surrender
Hull, but, with many protestations, was refused admittance into the
town. The Parliamentary forces continued to hold the town and
castle until the Bestoration, when possession was resumed by the
Crown."

THE KING PROCEEDS TO HULL. 435
importance of the place, and had, in appointing Sir
John Hotham to be governor, selected an officer in
whom they had reason for placing confidence; and
about 800 of the train-bands of Yorkshire had been
ordered to do duty there. But that no uncertainty
might exist as to the stores, the Parliament had
ordered Lord Warwick, theb admiral, to proceed by
sea, and embark them and convey them to the Tower.
Hotham had abeady received orders to that effect.
The King felt equally determined to recover what he
considered his own property, as the most part of the
stores had been purchased, not by ParUamentary
grants, but by the contributions of the clergy and
others for the Scotch war. (T)
On the 23rd of AprU the King set forth on horse- King Charles
back from York, and arrived before the gates of Hall
at eleven a.m., escorted by three hundred gentlemen
and theb attendants. Charles entertained hopes that,
if he presented himself before the commencement of
hostilities, Hotham, overawed by his presence, would
admit him and his retinue. But the governor was
on his guard. He shut the gates, and refused to
open them, unless his Majesty would condescend to
enter with only twelve attendants. Prom eleven
o'clock tUl five did the King hold parley with Sir
John, endeavouring to induce him to admit him ;
but in vain. At that Beverley Gate the monarch of
England received the first lesson of actual rebellion ;
and that conference may be set down as the opening
(') Bushworth, i., pt. iii., 564. " Our magazine and munition
(our own proper goods)." (His Majesty to House of Commons.)
C C 2

436 THE BRITISH ARMY.
scene of the tragic play of the CivU War ; and there
the King incurred the deliberate risk of ungraceful
discomfiture : strange, in a person possessed of so
high a sense of dignity ! Q-)
The opposition encountered at HuU afforded the
King a plea for estabUshing a body-guard, and he
selected for that honour a regiment of train-bands
(Sir Eobert Strickland's), about 600 strong, to be
paid every Saturday at his own charge; and "ap
pointed such gentlemen as were willing to list them
selves into a troop of horse, and made the Prince of
Wales their captain. (a)
The ParUament, of course, resolved "that the King,
being seduced by evU counsel, intended making war
against his Parliament, which, in aU its consultations
and actions, had proposed no other end but the care
of his kingdom and the performance of aU duty and
loyalty to his person ; that this attempt was a breach
of the trust reposed in him by his people, contrary
to his oath, intending to a dissolution of the Covern
ment ; and that whosoever should assist him in such
a war was a traitor by the fundamental laws of the
kmgdom." (3)
(') See Nugent' s Hampden, 233, — Fairfax Correspon, Civil Wars,
ii. 12. (2) Clarendon, Rebell, ii., b. v.
(3) Clarendon, i. 506-18. — Bushworth, iv. 565. — Journals, v. 16.

CHAPTEE XVII.
OPEN EEBELLION — CIVIL WAR COMMENCES — ESSEX APPOINTED TO COM
MAND PARLIAMENT'S FORCES — SETTING UP OP THE ROYAL STANDARD
AT NOTTINGHAM — PRINCES RUPERT AND MAURICE ARRIVE — LOSS OP
PORTSMOUTH — CRUELTIES AND AMENITIES OP THE WAR — THE ElING'S
SUPPORTERS — COAT AND CONDUCT MONET — BAD PROSPECTS OF ROYAL
CAUSE AT FIRST — WANT OF MONEY AND ARMS — COMPARISON OP ROYAL
AND PARLIAMENTARY ARMIES  GENERALS — CROMWELL AND HIS IRON
SIDES — ARMOUR WORN AT THE PERIOD.
The Parliament now threw off aU disguise, and made Rebellion.
every exertion to act in opposition to the King.
Essex was appointed lord-general, and both Lords
and Commons declared that they would Uve and die
with him in the national quarrel. (*) The army
under his command was to consist of twenty regi
ments of foot, amounting in total to about 24,000
men ; seventy-five troops of horse, 5,000 men ; five
troops of dragoons, 500 men; besides a train of
artillery and pioneers.
The tram-bands of London, under Sergeant-Major
General Skippon,(3) mustered daily for exercise, and
(') May, ii. 33.
(2) Bushworth. — Clarendon says that this was an " office never
before heard of " (namely, commandant of the train-bands). Philip
Skippon, by long and meritorious service in Holland, had raised
himself from the ranks to the command of a company. Beturning to
England he obtained-the captaincy of the Artillery Garden, which was
the school of arms for the metropolitan district, and he was now

438 THE BRITISH ARMY.
r
professed the greatest attachment to the cause; the
arms from HuU had been safely removed to the
Tower ; a forced loan, at eight per cent. — to be paid
either in cash, plate, or jewels — replenished the
treasury ; large sums were employed in the purchase
of materiel ; £100,000 was withdrawn from the sum
voted to suppress the Irish rebeUion ; (J) the Earl of
Warwick was named, by ordinance, admiral of the
fleet — the officers and seamen of which, ever since the
vexata quaestio of ship-money, had, as a body, taken
part with the merchants in favour of the popular
interest, placed themselves and their ships under his
command ; and a considerable force instantly sailed
for the Humber.
Setting up the In August of that year (1643), the King had
proceeded to Nottingham and set up his standard
there — a formal declaration of hostilities, and the
official summoning of the subjects to arms. The
reason which induced Charles to take this decisive
step was the fact of Portsmouth being besieged by a
Parliamentary army : Goring, who had been appointed
governor by the ParUament, having had the duplicity
to make them believe that he was a convert to its
views. Clarendon draws an admirable sketch of the
Ufe of this gifted and unprincipled man. "He had
such a dexterity in his addresses," says he, " in recon-
cUing the greatest prejudice and aversion, that he
promoted to be major-general, or as that rank was then termed,
sergeant-major general, of the city militia. Clarendon (iv. 198) admits
that he was " a good officer, a man of order and sobriety, and un
tainted with vice;" yet illiterate, and prejudiced^against the Church.
C) May, ii., p. 33.

Standard.

PORTSMOUTH INVESTED. 439
was enabled to deceive every one that trusted in him.
As a proof of this, he had actually received £4,000
from his new masters for strengthening the fortifica
tions, while at the same time he had the baseness to
take from the Queen £13,000 (which she had raised
by a sale of plate and jewels) to gain over the
garrison." When the Parliament had resolved on
organising an army, Goring was appointed lieutenant-
general of their horse. Essex was very desirous of
securing the co-operation of one who had so high a
mUitary reputation as Goring, and he was ordered to
repair to his command ; but, being never at a loss for
excuses, he neglected the summons, and continued at
Portsmouth. At last, being ordered peremptorily to
join, he wrote what Clarendon calls " a joUy letter,"
but which was evidently a very impudent one, and
plainly stated that as Portsmouth was the King's, he
could not leave it without his Majesty's permission. (*)
" This declaration of the governour of a place which
had the reputation of being the only place of strength
in England, and situated upon the sea, put them into
inany apprehensions." (a)
On receipt of this inteUigence, Sb WiUiam
WaUer, with aU the train-bands of Hampshire, was
immediately ordered to invest Portsmouth by land,
and Lord Warwick to blockade it by sea. To the
King and those with him this news was highly
inspiriting; and after the repulse at HuU, and other
disastrous matters, they stood much in need of en-
(J) See Blaauw's Civil War m Sussex, p. 7.
(2) Appen. E., Clarendon, iii.

440 THE BRITISH ARMY.
couragement.. Charles rejoiced at the effect likely
to be produced by "the early declaration of so
important a place, and that Goring had returned
to his duty and aUegiance, and he doubted not but
that so skilful an officer had made every prepara
tion for defence;" at all events, that he would be
able to hold it out until a force was collected to
reUeve it. Essex and his officers were proclaimed
traitors, a compliment which, of course, the Parlia
ment returned, by declaring the Eoyal proclamation
a libellous and scandalous paper. At the same time,
Charles required " all men who could bear arms, to
repair to him at Nottingham on the 22nd of August
foUowing, on which day he would set up his
standard there, when all good subjects were ordered
to attend.^) Goring, the treacherous, had hastened the crisis so
long anticipated. After aU the commissions of array
had been issued, it was necessary to select some point
of general rendezvous, and Nottingham was the place
(') The Eoyal standard had on it the device of a hand pointing to
a crown, with the motto " Give to Ceesar his due.'' Clarendon (who
must have been present at that memorable ceremony) and May, the
Parliamentary historian, state that it occurred on the 25th of August.
(In appendix B to Clarendon's Hist, the 22nd is mentioned.) Baker's
Clvronicle has the 20th ; Ludlow and Bulstrode say it was on the 24th ;
Guizot the 22nd ; and Bushworth and Lilly, the 22nd. The Mercurins
Belgiaus confirms this last : " 1642. August 22nd. His Majesty set
up his Standard Boyal at Nottingham, for raising of forces to
suppress the rebels, then marching against him." The Journal of
the House of Commons of the 24th proves that intelligence, at that
date, had been received of the standard having been set up, and that
a debate had ensued in consequence. The probability is, that the
Btandard was first raised on the 22nd, and continued to wave over
Nottingham until the 26th.

THE ROYAL STANDARD RAISED. 441
fixed upon by the King, after many debates with his
council. " The setting up of the standard," as it was some
what ostentatiously expressed, was but a sorry inau
guration of hostilities. The whole affair was flat, the
weather was gloomy, and the ceremonial had not the
effect of producing that rush of loyalty which was
expected. " There was Uttle other ceremony," says
Clarendon, "than the sound of a few drums and
trumpets; melancholy men observed many ill pre
sages about that time. There was but one regiment
of foot yet brought together ; so that the train-bands,
which the sheriff had drawn together, were aU the
strength the King had for his person and the guard
of his standard. There appeared no conflux of men
in obedience to the proclamation; the arms and
ammunition were not yet come from York, and a
general sadness covered the town.
" The standard was blown down the same night, by
a very strong and unruly wind, and could not be fixed
again for a day or two, untU the tempest was aUayed.
This was the melancholy state of the "King's affairs
when the standard was set up.'^1)

(') Hist, vol. iii., b. v., p. 191. — " Col. Sherrington Talbot was at
Nottingham when King Charles I. did set up his standard upon the top
of the tower there. He told me that the first night the wind blew it
so, that it hung down almost horizontal, which some did take to be
an ill omen." (John Aubrey, Mems., 41.) — Bushworth says, "The
standard was taken out of the castle, and carried into the field, a
Uttle on the back side of the castle wall ;" and that it resembled the
City streamers used at the Lord Mayor's Show ; that above 2,000
persons were present altogether ; and that at night it was carried
back to the castle, and set up again next day. (i., pt. iii., 783.)

442 THE BRITISH ARMY.
It was here that the King's nephews, Eupert and
Maurice, joined the army. The former had been
appointed to command the horse, and he infused fresh
life to the cause; as Sir Philip Warwick observed,
" He put that spirit into the King's army, that aU
men seemed resolved.'^1) But in the midst of the
rejoicings consequent upon the arrival of the young
princes, the news arrived that Portsmouth had faUen,
"which almost struck the King to the heart." (2)
commission On the 29th of August, his Majesty issued the
of Array. ,
following proclamation and instruction to the Com
missioners of Array : —
S21*T)£E£&£5 a desperate and dangerous Eebellion is raised,
and an Army marching against Us, and such other of Our good
Subjects whose Loyalty and Affection is eminent unto Us, in severally
Counties of the kingdome, under pretence of some Authority from both
Our Houses of' Parliament, and the same is done by our consent, and
for the safety of our Person, whereby many of our loving Subjects
are misled and engaged in undutifull and disloyall Actions against
Us their Soveraigne, and .to oppose persons immediately authorized
by Us, as disturbers of the peace : We do, for the Information of all
Our good Subjects, that they may bee no longer corrupted or seduced
by these false and damnable infusions, declare, That We do disavow
Our consent to any of the pretended Ordinances, and do protest
against the same, and all the proceedings thereupon, as seditious and
treasonable to Our Person, Crowne, and Dignity, And do declare,
That the Army now under the command of the Earle of Essex, and
raised in any part of the Kingdome by his direction, or by the direc
tion of any pretended Ordinance, is raised against Us, and to take
(x) Memowes, 277.
(2) Clarendon, Hist—" Goring then went to France," as Bul-
strode says, " with the money he had received on both sides,
without making good his promises to either." That author adds,
" That if his conscience and integrity had equalled his wit and courage,
he had been one of the most eminent men of his age. His subsequent
return and command in the army was, doubtless, occasioned in a great
measure by the very active assistance which he afforded to the Queen,
whilst in Prance, in procuring both money and arms." (See Note to
Evelyn's Journals, v. 110.)

COMMISSION OF ARRAY. 448
away Our life from Us, And that he, and all who shall adhere to him,
are Traytors by the known established Lawes of this Kingdom : And
therefore Our expresse command unto you, and to every of you is,
"I.
" That you forthwith raise all possible power for the apprehension
of the sSid Earle of Essex, and his Confederates ; and that with such
forces of Horse and Foot you shall fight with, kill, and slay all such
as shall by force oppose you in the execution of these Our Commands,
and such who shall presume to put the Ordinance of the Militia in
execution against our expresse pleasure and consent. And you shall
pursue the said Bebels and Traytors in the said Counties, or in any
other Counties or parts of the Kingdome into which they shall retire
themselves. All which forces» so to be raised, shall have the same
pay as the rest of Our Army is to have.
"II.
" Tou shall defend and protect all Our Subjects from violence and
oppression by the illegall pretended Ordinance concerning the Militia,
the pretended Ordinance for the Earle of Essex to be Generall, or any
other Ordinance to which We have not or shall not give Our consent.
And shall not suffer any of Our loving Subjects to be troubled or
molested for refusing to submit to the said pretended Ordinances,
but shall assist and defend them from any Summons, Messengers,
Serjeant, or Warrant, which shall disturbe them for the same. And
the said Messengers or Serjeants you shall apprehend and commit
to Prison as seditious Disturbers of the Peace of the Kingdom.
" III.
"Tou shall, to your utmost power, assist the execution of Our
Commission of Array, which ought to bee obeyed by the known
Lawes of the Land ; And if any Pactions or Seditious Persons shall
raise any Power to oppose Our said legall Commission, or the execu
tion thereof, you shall, in your several Counties, levie men, and them
lead out of your said Counties to the place where such force is raised,
and suppresse the same. More especially, you shall be ayding and
assisting to the Lord Marquesse Hertford, who is authorized, by Our
Commission, Generall of Our Forces in the Western parts ; and to
the Earle of Cumberland Our Lieutenant General for the County of
Torke; and to the Lord Strange, and Colonell Goring : And to that
purpose you shall levy such other Forces of Horse and Foote as the
said Marquesse shall, by his Commission, give you power to do, under
such Colonels, Commanders, and other, officers as shall be by him
appointed, or directed within the severall Counties mentioned in his
Commission, as the Earle of Cumberland, and as the Lord Strange
shall likewise direct in the Counties within their severall Commissions.
"IV.
" Our expresse pleasure and Command is, That you disarme all

444 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Popish Recusants, and all such other dangerous and ill-affected
Persons, and Brownists, Anabaptists, and other Sectaries, as well
Clergymen, as others, as have testified, or shall testifie their ill dis
position to the peace and Government of the Kingdome. And you
shall endeavour, by causing Our severall declarations, Messages, and
Answers to be publikely read in Churches and other places, to cleare
Our proceedings from all false imputations and aspersions ; and shall
from time to time certifie Us of all things necessary for the publique
Service. And that Our directions to you, and your advertisements
to Us may have a cleere and ready passage We do hereby Command
all Post-Masters, That they do not suffer any Letters or other Dis
patches, to or from Us, to be intercepted or stayed, as they will
answer the contrary at their utmost perils. And if any bold person
by what authority soever, shall presume to make such stay of those
Dispatches, you shall apprehend such persons, and shall give all
assistance, and protection to those persons employed in such
Dispatches. "V.
" If you shall finde any disaffected persons raising any parties
against Us, spreading scandals or imputations to Our proceedings,
Uke to disturb the peace of the Kingdome, you shall cause all such
persons (upon good proofs of their misdemeanors) to be apprehended
and committed to prison, till they shall answer their Offences in such
manner as is agreeable to Law and Justice.
"VI.
" Tou shall take from the said Bebels and Traytors, and their Ad
herents, all Arms, Ordinance, and Ammunition ; and such as they
have taken from any of Our good Subjects, you shall restore againe
to the true Owners. And whereas divers Seditious persons, under
pretence of Commissions from the Earle of Essex, presume to Levy
Horse and Foote, and to collect money for the same, you shall seize,
upon all Horses, Armes, Ammunition, Money, Plate, or other pro
visions whatsoever, raised or provided under any such Pretences, and
without Our expresse Authority, for the fomenting, or maintaining
any such unnaturall and unlawfull War against Us, the BeUgion, and
Law of the Kingdome. And you shall assure all such Our well
affected Subjects, who shall contribute any Aid and Assistance to
Us, in this Our great necessity, or observe these Our Instructions,
That We will protect them with our utmost Power, and venture
our Life and Crowne in their just Defence, Which Besolution of
ours, you shall publish and declare upon all occasions for the better
encouragement of all our good Subjects in that behalfe,.
" Given under Our Privy Signet, at Our Court at Nottvnqham,
the 29 of August, 1642."

INCIDENTS OE THE CIVIL WAR. 445
The events of the calamitous war that ensued are
matters of history with which aU persons interested
in the EngUsh annals are famiUar, the details of which
devolve on the general historian; but before taking
leave of this part of the subject, it will be apposite to
examine somewhat as to the organisation of those
armies of feUow-countrymen, that fought so fiercely
against one another. Horrible as, at best, must be
every civU war, yet this English one was, perhaps,
attended with fewer atrocities than have usuaUy
characterised a state of things so unnatural ; witness
the French and German wars. Cruelties there must
have been, perpetrated on either side, for the nature
of a civU war is necessarily exasperating, when per
sonal hatred is added to aU the other bad feelings
which ordinary warfare excites.
One of the most cruel incidents during this Cruelties.
unhappy period was the order by the Parliament
that aU troops that came from Ireland to fight
under the Eoyal banner (denounced as "Irish rebel
Papists ") should be denied quarter, and that aU such
taken prisoners should be hanged.
Worse, however, than this was the scene that
occurred after Naseby, where women were mutilated
and slaughtered. A Puritan writer, who boasts
triumphantly that "the Lord did show himself" on
that occasion, states that " one hundred of them
(women) were slain upon the ground, and most of the
rest were marked in their faces or noses with the
slashes and cuts, and some cut off; just rewards for
such wicked queans." AU were slaughtered indis-

446 THE BRITISH ARMY.
crbninately, under the title of " Irish women." After
wards he writes that there were " slain on the whole,
in fight and flight, about 3,000 men, and between
three and four hundred Irish queans." (x)
The perpetration of these enormities was not,
unfortunately, confined to one side ; and on one occa
sion we hear of the EoyaUsts, under Prince Eupert,
committing themselves to a wholesale butchery of
men, women, and chUdren — at least, according to the
account given by the other side.(2) At the siege of
Nantwich, the women are recorded as having par
ticipated in the defence of the town, by pouring
hot brine upon the assailants. (3)
Amenities. In some instances the war was carried on by
the chief performers with the amenities of polished
life; for instance, Eupert, Uke "The Duke" in the
Peninsula, sometimes relaxed his military cares by
the sports of the field, of which he was an enthusiast.
(*) Vicars' Jehovah Jireh, pt. iv., p. 163. Also before, " they within
(at Grenville's house at Tavistock), crying out for quarter, which was
granted to all except bloody Irish rogues." (Ibid., pt, iii., 297.)
(2) " There came letters also on Thursday last from Bristol, by
which we were informed of the taking of Cirencester by Prince Bobert,
on Friday last ; that after the town had stood it out in fight four
hours, and killed a great number of the CavaUers, above 1,000, as is
conceived, the enemy shooting a grenade into a barn, full of corn,
set it on fire, which so annoyed the townsmen that they were forced
to give ground, and the enemy, entered the town, and being much
enraged with their losses, put all to the sword they met with,, both
men and women and children, and in a barbarous manner murdered
three ministers, very godly and reUgious men." (Special and
Remarkable Passages expounded to both Houses of Parliament, Feb. 9,
1642. In King's Collection of Pamphlets, British Museum.)
(3) " The great service of the townswomen headed^ by an heroine
of the name of Brett, who defended the walls with the utmost bravery,.
by pouring hot brine upon the assailants." (Partridge, Hist, of
Nantwich, p. 616.)

the king's adherents. 447
The capture of his falconer gave Essex the opportunity
of performing an act of graceful liberality.
Extract of a letter from Lord Essex to Sir Samuel
Luke, March, 1644 :—
"I am informed that the Prince's falconer and
hawks were taken by your troops, which, if you find
to be so, I desire you will send them both unto the
Prince, as from me/'f)
This act of courtesy was gratefully acknowledged
by Colonel Legge, from Oxford, in the Prince's absence.
Again, Sir Thomas Fairfax being surrounded by
the Earl of Newcastle at Bradford, resolved to cut
his way out to Leeds. He was accompanied by his
wife. She was taken prisoner; but not many days
after, the Earl sent back the lady in his own coach. (z)
The King found himseb supported in the civil war
by the bulk of the nobUity and gentry, by the Church
of England, and by the Eoman Catholics. The
adherence of the two last was a more than question
able benefit, for the former of the two endeavoured
to inculcate such high doctrines of monarchy and
Church as were obnoxious to the majority of their
congregations; and on account of the unpopularity
of the latter, Charles was unable at first to avail
himseb of their assistance ; he even issued a pro
clamation that no Papists should serve him in the
army;(3) and it was only when his affairs grew from
bad to worse, that he saw the necessity of making no

(l) ElUs's Orig. Letters, cccclxxxi., 3 S., vol. iv.
(2) Fairfax Corres., i. 99.
(3) Aug. 10, 1642.— Bushworth, i., pt. iii., 772.

448 THE BRITISH ARMY.
distinction of creeds, and of strengthening his hands
wherever he could. (1)
On the other hand, the City of London and most
of the great corporations, and the commercial portiom
of the community in general, supported the democratic
views of the House of Commons. The counties were
divided in their interests according to the influence of
the landed proprietors, but generaUy they were in
favour of Parliament versus King.(2)
No alteration had hitherto taken place here m
the mode of raising armies, which were stiU com
posed of the miUtia (3) — men obliged to serve, and a
sprinkling of volunteers : these were, however, mostly,
if not exclusively, men who sought commands as
officers, having seen service abroad. Every militia
man ordered upon active service received presse, or
prest-money — a bounty on joining — and, since the
commencement of the reign of Henry VII., he was

(:) " This rebellion is grown to that height, that I must not look
to what opinion men are, who at this time are willing and able to
serve me. Therefore I do not only permit, but command you, to
make use of all my loving subjects' services, without examining their
consciences (more than their loyalty to me), as you shall find most
to conduce to the upholding of my just regal power." (ElUs, Orig.
Letters.) (3) Bushworth, i., pt. iv., 630.
(3) " A letter to the justices of Salford Hundred, dated 25th of
September, 1590, requires their presence and attendance at the next
general muster of the MiUtia of Lancashire. (Harl MS., 1,926, art. 100,
fol. 105.) — This is the first time we find the* soldiers raised in the
country called ' MiUtia ;' a term which Jacob (Law Diet.) applies to
the trained bands raised in counties, and under the direction of the
lieutenancy." (Lanaash. Lieut, 231.) — -Again, the term seems used
for the miUtary government. " P. S. — Tou may be pleased to move
the militia, that this bearer may have some gratuity," &c. Lewis
Dives. (Copied in Warburton's Prince Rupert, iii. 148.)

COAT AND CONDUCT-MONEY. 449
entitled to a coat and marching allowance. This was
caUed "coat and conduct-money." These charges
varied according to the times. In 1492 the conduct
money was calculated at the rate of 6d. for every
twenty miles each soldier should march, to be
reckoned from his residence to the place of joining
the army — each soldier to swear to the number of
miles marched by him.^) In 1574, it was fixed at a
halfpenny per mile.(3) In 1627, coat-money appears
to have been settled at 12s. 6d., and conduct-money
at 8d. per diem, accounting twelvemiles for a day's
march. In 1640, it was 8d. per diem, but the day's
march was not less than fifteen miles. (3) Coat and
conduct-money was sometimes advanced by the dif
ferent counties wherein the troops were raised, to be
afterwards repaid by Government. From a speech
made in the House of Commons by Sir J. Culpeper,
we may infer that Charles's necessities prevented these
county charges being discharged. " Coat and con
duct-money," says he, " acquired as a loan, or pressed
as a due, in each respect equally a grievance. The
trained band is a militia of great strength and
honour, without charges to the King, and deserves
aU due encouragement." (4)
(') Bymer, sub ann.
(2) " The Queene's Ma**6 did allow for conduct money to everie
souldier a half peney a myle from the hundreth where he dwelleth,
unto the towne of Liverpoole." (MS. quoted in Lancash. Lieut, 65.
(3) Bymer, sub ann.
(4) Rushworth, i., pt. iii., 33. — The exactions of coat and conduct
money, and the taking away the arms of trained bands of divers
counties, formed two items in " The Remonstrance of the Commons
to the King, Dec, 1641.
VOL. I. D D

450 THE BRITISH ARMY.
The foot soldiers were to receive 8d. a day, which
was to be defrayed by the counties, so long as the men
were exercised there. They were to enter upon the
King's pay as soon as they left the county; and,
having received their coat and conduct-money, and
the arms of the county, they were to be deUvered
over to the King's officer by indenture. (l)
It would appear that there were county arms only
for the trained bands ; and when greater demands
were made for troops in the counties, these men had
to purchase theb arms from the Government magazine
at the Government rate. In Nalson, p. 487, we read:
" And are to deUver up the arms borrowed of the
trained bands, when they shall march out of that
county." On the disbanding of the army, the arms
were to be returned and delivered again into store,
and the money to be repaid the men, (3) who were
however, to be put under stoppages of 2d. per diem
to make good any losses or damages received to the
arms. (3) The cavalry received 2s. 6d. as daily pay,
and were to return theb horses, or to be mulct of £5
of their pay.
([) Nalson, 378.
(2) " H. M. doth recommend to Pari'- the care of disbanding the
horse, that the soldiers may be repaid the money which hath been
taken from them for their arms, that so accordingly men may not
disperse themselves, to the disturbance of the kingdom, and that the
arms may be restored to the magazines, for the defence of the King
and this kingdom." (Lords' Journ., an. 1641, p. 343.)
(3) "That the House of Corns, have considered of che orders
made by the Lord- General concerning the soldiers, that there should
be 2A- per Diem abated out of every soldier's pay, to satisfy for the
price of such arms as should be carelessly lost, or returned imperfect,
which was to continue from April to the 2"d Feb., 1640, and to be
defalked by the Treasurer of the Army." (Ibid., p. 403.)

his majesty's proclamations. 451
A proclamation was issued by the King, "for
bidding all His Majesty's subjects belonging to the
train'd bands or mUitia of this kingdom to rise, march,
muster, or exercise, by vertue of any Order or Ordi
nance of one or both Houses of Parliament, without
consent of His Majesty."
"Whereas, by a statute made in the 7th Ed.L," &c.
A counter-declaration by the Lords and Commons
was, of course, speedily set forth, declaring "that
neither the statute of the 7th Ed. I., nor any other law
of this kingdom, doth restrain or make void the Ordi
nance agreed upon by both Houses of ParUament,"
&c.O Another proclamation by his Majesty, " requiring
the assistance of aU his subjects on the north-side
Trent, and within twenty mUes southerd thereof, for
suppressing of the rebels now marching against
him," went on to state " that such of our sd subjects
as shaU come unto Us at (either to our sa town of
Nottingham, or to any other place where We shd
happen to encamp), armed and arrayed, with Horse,
Pistols, Musketts, Pikes, Corslets, Horses for Dragoons,
or other fitting arms and furniture, We shall take
these into our pay (such of them excepted who shaU
be willing, as Voluntiers, to serve us in this our
necessity without pay)," &c. (2)
At first the Eoyal cause seemed attended with
every possible disadvantage ; indeed, so desperate
appeared the condition of affabs, " that the King was
privately advised of some, whom he trusted as much
(') Rushworth, i., pt. ni., 551. (2) Appen., Grenville's Hampden.
D D 2

452 THE BRITISH ARMY.
as any," to abandon aU thoughts of raising an army,
and to proceed with aU haste to London, and to
appear in Parliament House before they had any
expectation of him. (*) He was totaUy destitute of
money, proprio jure, his only means being derived
from the contributions of the nobUity, gentry, clergy,
and universities ; whereas, on the other side, aU the
sea-ports, except Newcastle, being in the hands of
Parliament, they were secure of a considerable
revenue. They were also in possession of all the
magazines of arms and ammunition, which they took
care to seize at first; and as they had the command
of the sea, theb fleet intercepted the greatest part of
the stores sent to the King from HoUand, or made
the landing of them a service of great risk and
difficulty. (2)
scarcity of in order to procure arms, Charles was obliged ito
borrow those of some of the train-bands, under pro
mise of returning them as soon as peace should be
restored. Arms were not easily procurable even in
this way, nor was the security for their return very
encouraging; and the counties whose property they
were, either decUned to deUver them, or had them
removed to magazines of greater security, or were
(') Clarendon, b. vi.
(2) Clarendon gives a spirited description of the arrival of the
small ship Providence, freighted with 200 barrels of powder, and
2,000 or 3,000 arms, with seven or eight field-pieces, which the
Queen had dispatched from Holland. She was chased by the
Parliament's cruisers, but being of light draught, she escaped by
running into a narrow creek of the Humber, and landed her
stores near Burlington, from whence they were safely dispatched to
the King at York. (Hist, b. v.)

SCARCITY OF ARMS ON THE KING'S SIDE. 453
using them at the time against the King. So mis
cellaneous was the arming, that we are told, in the
dearth of ordinary implements of war, old bits of
armour and ancient weapons were brought forth from
theb resting-places; and the long-bow, and brownbiU,
and cross-bow resumed their place among military
equipments, and were put again on active service.
It was not till some months after, when the stores
of HuU, Newcastle, Plymouth, and the Tower of
London were distributed, that the musqueteers and
dragooners found weapons suitable for theb desig
nations; and, indeed, to the end of the civil wars
many of the fighting men were furnished only
with the rudest implements, and many thousands,
particularly Welshmen, fought only with staves and
Danish clubs. (x)
Both armies were almost entirely composed of Composition
. of the two
men (some of the officers excepted) who had never Armies.
seen a battle-field; and in another respect they re-
(l) Among the stores sent to Sir W. Waller by ParUament were
1,000 clubs. (Jour. Com., December 9, 1643.) — "The storekeepers
had orders to deliver, for the use of Windsor Castle, 150 of the Danish
clubs." Club-men, or club-risers, was a name assumed by a party
in the provinces, whose arms were clubs or farming implements.
They were banded together for the ostensible object of the protection
of life and property, irrespective of King and Parliament. On their
banner they had this rough couplet for their motto : —
" If you take our cattle,
We wiU give you battle."
The Parliament, in some instances, had furnished their friends with
clubs, but the club-men often seemed to have turned against them.
Fairfax encountered a host of them on his march into the west ; and
Cromwell was at last compelled to take summary means for putting
them down. (See Letters from Fairfax in the Journals of the Lords
vii. 184.)

454 THE BRITISH ARMY.
sembled each other : commissions had been given,
not to persons most fit to command, but to those
who were most willing and able to raise men; and
the men, on both sides, considered their services as
voluntary, and felt theb own importance; so that it
was a dangerous matter to attempt to coerce them
by strict discipline, lest they should carry their ser
vices to the opposite side. In other respects there
was a wide difference. To make use of the language
of Lord Macaulay, " The Parliametarny ranks were
fiUed with hbelings, whom want and idleness had
induced to enlist. Hampden's regiment was regarded
as one of the best; and even Hampden's regiment
was described by CromweU as a mere rabble of
tapsters and serving-men out of place. The Eoyal
army, on the other hand, consisted in great part of
gentlemen, high-spbited, ardent, accustomed to con
sider dishonour as more terrible than death — accus
tomed to the use of fire-arms, to bold riding, and to
manly and perilous sport, which has been weU caUed
the image of war. Such gentlemen, mounted on theb
favourite horses, and commanding little bands, com
posed of theb younger brothers, grooms, gamekeepers,
and huntsmen, were, from the very first day on which
they took the field, quaUfied to play theb part in a
skirmish. The steadiness, the prompt obedience,
the mechanical precision of movement, which are
characteristic of the regular soldier, these gaUant
volunteers never attained. But they were at first
opposed to enemies as undisciplined as themselves,
and far less active, athletic, and daring. For a time,

IMPRESSMENT ABANDONED. 455
therefore, the Cavaliers were successful in almost
every encounter." Q)
As popularity had now become an important
element, the King forbore to make use of impressment.
It would have been attended with very little success
if he had, and its legaUty was very questionable after
his assent to the Petition of Eight. His endeavour
to turn the train-bands to account had signally failed,
the appointment of the lord-Ueutenants, who had
the ordering of that force, had most of them faUen
into the hands of ParUament, and so the King designed
to resort to the ancient process of the array of the
miUtia ; but this proved abortive, and so, of those
who ranged themselves under the Eoyal banners, if
not belonging to the nobility, gentry, or theb depen
dents, were men who had enlisted themselves under
the proclamation of the 29th of August, 1642, referred
to on page 442.
Again, there were in the King's army many who
secretly disapproved of the war, but who were deterred,
for special reasons, from abandoning the Eoyal colours.
Such was Sir Edward Varney, the standard-bearer,
who told Hyde that he foUowed the King because
honour obUged him, but the object of the war was
against his conscience, for he had no reverence for the
bishops, whose quarrel it was ; (2) and Lord Spencer,
who wrote to his wife, " If there could be an expedient
found to salve the punctiUo of honour, I would not
continue here an hour." (3)
0) Hist of England, i., ch. i., 113. (5) Clarendon's Life, 69.
(3) Sydney Papers, ii. 667. .

Cavalry.

456 THE BRITISH ARMY.
There was also a class (and it was a numerous one)
of buUying, reckless adventurers — soldiers of fortune,
whom the campaigns of the Palatinate and the wars
of the Low Countries and of Gustavus Adolphus had
generated. These men returning home, found ready
employment in the King's service. Theb presence
and example gave a flippant sort of devil-me-care tone
to the army, and their vices brought disgrace on the
name of Cavalier. (l) (See The Army Lists of the Round
heads and Cavaliers, containing the Names of the Officers
in the Royal and Parliamentary Armies of 1642, edit.
by Edward Peacock, F.S.A.)
Royalist It is easy to infer that the cavaby was likely to
be the most efficient portion of the Eoyal army.
Organised under the auspices of the energetic Eupert,
it became — what cavaby ought* always to be — " the
eye of the general." Ever on the alert, now rushing
here and surprising the enemy, reconnoitring or bring
ing in suppUes, sweeping all before it in the solid
charge, the prestige of the Prince's name carried
dismay, and wherever the CavaUer trumpets sounded,

(*) This epithet (Uke that of Soundhead*) was first bestowed as a
reprpach, a little before the King left Whitehall (Clar., Hist Rebel),
as though it were un-English to support a French queen's cause.
The King aUudes to it in his reply to the ParUament remonstrance
concerning Sir Thos. Fairfax's petition : " for the courage and beha
viour of the CavaUers (a word by what mistake soever, it seems in
much disfavour here) there hath not been the least complaint." (Ibid.)
And in his address to the army before the battle of Keinton : " Tou
are caUed Cavaliers in a reproachful signification; but let them know
that the valour of Cavaliers hath honoured that name, both in France
and in other countries." (Somers' Tracts, iv. 478.)
* VFrom this custom of wearing their haires cut close round their heads, that
name of Roundhead hecame the scornefull terme given to the whole Parliament party."
(Iri/e of Col. Hutehinson, 99.)

THE ROYAL CAVALRY. 457
the advance was generally successful. Bat an impor
tant element was wanting — steadiness ; and it is easy
to beUeve in its absence in a force constituted as this
was. These bold horsemen were unaccustomed to
disciphne ; the mettle 'that spurred them into action
ran away with them afterwards. The same fault
existed from the commander to the trooper, and the
cavaby was at once the most fatal to the King as to
his enemies. Had the cavalry been kept in hand, -the
fields of EdgehUl and Naseby might have been won
for the King. Clarendon says " that this difference
was observed all along in the discipline of the King's
troops ; that though they prevailed in the charge,
and routed those they charged, they seldom rallied
themselves again in order, nor could be brought to
make a second charge again the same day ; which was
the reason they had not an entbe victory at Edgehill :
whereas the troops under Fairfax and CromweU, if
they prevailed, or though they were beaten and
routed, presently raUied again, and stood in good
order, tUl they received further directions."
The Eoyal cavalry did not always sustain its
character for gallantry. "At Alresford, in 1644,"
writes the same historian, " the King's horse never
behaved themselves so UI as that day. For the main
body of them, after they had sustained one fierce
charge, wheeled about to an unreasonable distance,
and left their principal officers to shift for themselves.
The foot behaved themselves very gallantly, and had
not only the better of the other foot, but bore two or
three charges *from the horse with notable courage,

458 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and without being broken ; whilst those horse, which
stood upon the field, and should have assisted themj
could be persuaded but to stand."
Prince Eupert commenced his command with 800
ill-equipped horse ; but in another month he paraded
at Shrewsbury about 2,000 troopers ;(]) and in a
year's time we hear of him at the head of " a glorious
body" of cavaby, "at least 6,000 strong." (2>
Foremost among this division was the troop of
Life Guards, commanded by Lord Bernard Stuart, (3)
and composed of noble and wealthy CavaUers, who had
no separate command. This was the show-troop of
the army, and was very superior in their equipment
to the rest of the cavalry. Lord Clarendon estimates
the amount of income possessed by this single troop
as equal, " upon my modest computation," to that of
aU the Lords and Commons (in London) who made
and maintained the war. Sir Philip Warwick,^)
who teUs us he himself " rode therein," computes this
income at £100,000 per annum — equal to at least
three times that according to our present standard.
Their servants, under the command of Sir WilUam
Killigrew, made another fuU troop, and always
marched with their lords and masters. (5) The ordi
nary troops of cavalry were composed, for the most
part, of yeomeh able to bring their own horses into
the field, or were raised by the country gentle-
(') Clar., Rebell, ii., b. vi., 372.
(>) Ibid., iii., b. vii., p. 130.
(3) Afterwards created Earl of Lichfield.
(4) Memoires, p. 47.
(5) Clarendon,- Hist, ii., b. vi., p. 374.

No. 38.

1. f^g Incomplete Falling-beaver Helmet. The visor opens on a hinge on the
forehead. The beaver is wanting. (Official Tower Catalogue.)
2. Pot Helmet of pikeman. Cir. a.d. 1620.
3. T1^5 Helmet with two-part visor and semi-circular apertures for vision.
About 1600.

A MISCELLANEOUS ARMING. 459
men,^) and were armed at first anyhow — perhaps
from the armouries that decorated the ancestral haUs.
" Among the horse," writes Clarendon, " the officers
had their full desire if they were able to procure old
backs, and breasts, and pots (iron skull-caps), with
pistols or carabines, for their two or three first ranks,
and swords for the rest ; themselves (and some soldiers
by their example) having gotten, besides their pistols
and swords, a short pole-axe." (2)
Plate XXXVIII. — A pot helmet of pikemen, cir.
1620. Also a curious type of the helmet of about
a.d. 1580. The visor opens from a hinge on the
forehead. Tower ^. Likewise a helmet with a
two-part visor, and semi-circular apertures for the
vision, about a.d. 1600. Tower ^.
In this reign mention is made, for the first time Dragoons.
in England, of that useful description of troops
termed Dragoons. They were commanded by Sir
Arthur Aston. They seem to have been very weak
in numbers. Of this the King complains in a private
letter to the Earl of Newcastle, dated Oxford,
December 15th, 1642 :—
(') Lacy the player, who served his master during the Civil War,
brought out after the Bestoration a piece called "The Old Troop,"
in which he seems to have commemorated some real incidents which
occurred in his military career. He informs us how the cavalry raised
by the country gentlemen for Charles' service were usually officered :
" The honest country gentleman raises the troop at his own charge ;
then he gets a Low-Country Ueutenant (one who had served in the
Low Countries) to fight his troop safely; then he sends for his son
from school to be his cornet; and then he puts off his child's coat to
put on a buff coat : and this is the constitution of our army." (Note
to Scott's Rokeby, can. iv., p. 74.)
(2) Hist, iii., b. vi., p. 267.

460 THE BRITISH ARMY.
"My next greatest want is dragooners, which I
want the more because it is the EebeUes (indeed,
only) strength, theire foot having no inclination to
winter marches."^)
Regiments Another custom was introduced in this reign that
esignated. kag surYive(j ^o our <jaVj that of designating regiments
by distinctive appellations. We hear of the King's
Life Guards (foot, dressed in red — Fairfax Corres.
Civil War, ii. 421), composed of Derbyshire miners, (s)
and Eoyal Horse Guards (see Forster's Oliver Crom
well, vi. 209), and the Prince of Wales' Eegiment of
Horse (Bulstrode, 78), and the Queen's Eegiment, and
others ; or they were distinguished by the names of
theb colonels. The Parliamentary regiments were,
for the most part, dressed according to the livery of !
theb colonels, and were designated according as these
colours might be — as Sir WiUiam Constable's " blue
coats," Lord Eobarts' " red coats," Colonel Meyrick's
" grey coats," Lord Saye's " blue coats," &c. Colours
of coats were various on both sides; and we find
Colonel Legge taken prisoner by mistaking Hamp
den's "green coats" for those of Lord Northampton
(Nugent, 268). Essex's body-guard was composed
chiefly of young lawyers (Ludlow's Mems., i. 42), from
which we may learn that the admirable spirit evinced
by the members of the Inns of Court in modern times
(:) Ellis's Orig. Letters, 1 S., iii., 1. ccclvii., p. 294.
(2) The King addressed a letter to Thomas Bushell, Esq., Warden
of the Mint, for his service " in raising us the Darbyshire Minors for
our Ufe Guard at our first entrance to this warr, when the Lord
Lieutenant of that countie refused to appear in the service." (Lbid.,
2 S., vol. iii., p. 310.)

THE ROYAL INFANTRY. 461
is only a revival of the military ardour which influ
enced them at an earUer period. Lord Campbell states,
in his Lives of the Chancellors, vol. ii., 604, that a
commission was granted to Lord-Keeper Littleton
to raise a corps of volunteers for the Eoyal service
among the members of the legal profession.
The EoyaUst infantry, at the commencement of E°yalist
the war, was divided into three brigades ; their
equipment, at first, was very incomplete, being in
debted for their arms to the contributions of private
armouries. Some three or four thousand of them
marched without any weapon beyond a good stout
cudgel. C) Bulstrode (p. 86), says that hundreds of
Welshmen were in this predicament. Many of them
carried pitchforks or such-like tools, and many had
only cudgels ; yet they came into action as boldly as
those who were best equipped. In the whole division
there was not a pikeman who had a corslet, and very
few musqueteers who had swords. Notwithstanding
these disadvantages, we find them, in two months after
the raising of the standard, making a very good fight
at EdgehiU. The number of the King's infantry there,
according to the Parliamentary report, which was
probably an exaggerated one, amounted to 12,000. (2)
They were opposed to superior forces. The battle
was a drawn one ; but the King ought to have reaped
a victory, had it not been for the misbehaviour of
Eupert and the cavalry, who, after gaUantly routing
the enemy's cavalry, pursued them to a distance, and
then aUowed his troopers to piUage, instead of quickly
(') Clarendon, Hist, b. vi. (2) May, Hist. Long Pari, ii. 66.

432 THE BRITISH ARMY.
returning to the field and finishing the work that was
still on hand.
RoyaUst There was a small force of artiUery attached to
the Eoyal army, and its performances were as incon
siderable as its numbers. The King's " train of
artiUery was bat mean," says Clarendon, "and his
provision of ammunition much meaner." (}) The fact
of private houses being able to hold out, and, in some
cases, to repel attacks, for weeks and for months
during a regular state of siege, does not give us an
elevated opinion of the progress made in artiUery at
that date, or of the advancement of the service of
field engineering. Bydolphe House, besieged by the
Parliament's forces, held out for a month, and was
taken at last by assault. (3) - The defence of Lathom
House, which withstood a siege from the 28th of
February to the 25th of March, under the intrepid
Charlotte de la TremouiUe, Countess of Derby: —
worthy descendant of the renowned WUUam of
Nassau — until relieved by Prince Eupert, was one
of the most gaUant exploits of the war. The house
was defended by eight or nine smaU pieces of
,ordnance, and by a garrison of 306 officers and men ;
while the besieging force varied from two to three
thousand men, and was provided with a considerable
train of artillery. (3) Basing House withstood the
(>) Hist, Ui. 251.
(2) See an " intercepted letter from Sir Thos. Fairfax to the Earle
of Essex," copied in Warburton's Prince Rupert, &c, ii. 380.
(E) There is an interesting journal of the siege of Lathom House,
by Captain Edward Halsall, in the Ashmoleari Library (A. Wood,
MSS., D. 16). It is also printed in Mrs. Hutchinson's Mem. of Col
Hutchinson. (Bohn's edit., 1846.)

No 39-

Helmet of Lord Brooke, worn when he was shot by Dumb Dyot,.^
the visor at different angles, according to the notch used.

No. 40.

The Breast and Back of Lord Brooke, who was shot at Lichfield.
(Warwick Castle.)

CHURCHES ATTACKED. 463
attacks of besiegers on and off for two years, and
was only reduced at last by the vigorous measures
of Cromwell.^) The helmet of Lord Brooke, worn when he was
shot by " Dumb Dyot " from the Cathedral, is pre
served in Warwick Castle, and is represented on
Plate XXXIX. The piece at the side is the visor-
prop, fuU size ; its use being to keep up the visor at
different angles, according to the notch used. The
breast, and back of the same nobleman are Ukewise
in the same coUection. (See Plate XL-)
A striking instance of the poverty of the King's
resources at starting is copied from MSS. in War-
burton's Memoir of Prince Rupert (Note, vol. i.,
(') Churches being generaUy strong places, were often garrisoned
and attacked by either party. " Skippon, with about 1,000 foot, a
party of horse, and few pieces of artillery, marched from Newport-
Pannel, December 21, 1643, to Grafton Begis, where the King's
forces had a strong garrison in an house of the Lady Oraines, and
the Church; and after three days' siege, Sir John Digby, the
Governor, desired a parley and agreed to surrender. The prisoners
taken were Sir John Digby ; Major Brookland, who, having deserted
from the Parliament service, was shot ; Captain Clark ; Captain
Longfield ; Captain Butler ; 80 troopers ; 100 foot ; three ministers ;
and several gentlemen, that came as voluntiers." (Bushworth,
vol. ii., pt. ni., p. 196.)
Lichfield Cathedral had been garrisoned by the Eoyalists, and
was stormed by the Parliamentarians. Lord Brook, who with Sir
John Gill commanded the assailants, was shot with a musket-ball
through the visor of his helmet. The Eoyalists remarked that he
was MUed by a shot fired from St. Chad's Cathedral and upon St.
Chad's Day, and received his death-wound in the very eje with
which he had said he hoped to see the ruin of aU the cathedrals in
England. The magnificent edifice in question suffered terribly upon
this and other occasions ; the principal spire being ruined by the
fire of the besiegers — "  fanatic Brook
The fair Cathedral storm'd and took."
Marmlon, can. vi. 36.

464 THE BRITISH ARMY.
p. 110). (x) The Prince had scarcely arrived at No£
tingham, when "Lord Digby, the governor, came. to
him, saying he had received a despatch from the King
(who was then before Coventry), . asking for two
petards. (2) Eupert hastily proceeded to examine the
arsenal (as it was called by courtesy), but" no petard
was to be found. At length, Colonel Legge got two
apothecaries' mortars, which they adapted to that
purpose, and sent off post to the King."
The following extract from a Puritan pamphlet (3)
gives us an idea of the precision of the practice of the
Eoyal Artillery of that time : —
n " We (the Parliamentarians) have fortified North-
wich (in Cheshire) with trenches, .sconces, &c, for the
securitie of aU those parts which have been much?
infested by the Commission of Array, and the E. of
Derbie's (4) forces at Warrington ; and we have often
sallied out for the clearing of those parts which were
most in danger. One place above others hath been
extremely assaulted ; Mr. Brooke of Norton, a neere
neighbour to the E. Eivers, against which they
brought their cannon, with many horse and foot,
and feU to batter it on a Sabbath-day. Mr. Brooke
hath 80 men in the house ; we were careful he should
lack no powder ; with aU other things, Master Brooke
(') Most of the original letters from which this work and the
Fairfax Correspondence were compiled, were purchased for the British
Museum, and are now bound up in chronological order in the Add.
MS., 18,979 to 28,982.
(2) Machines for bursting open gates, &c.
(3) Cheshire's Successe, London, March 25, 1642, reprinted in
Ormerod's History of Cheshire, vol. i., p. 37.
(4) " That grand and gracelesse patron of Papists." (Vicars,
Pa/rhamentary Chronicles, part i., p. 297.)

THE PARLIAMENT'S ARMY. 465
furnished them fuUy. A man upon his tower, with
a flag in his hand, cryede them aime whUst they
discharged theb cannon, saying, 'Wide, my lord, on
the right hand; now wide two yards on the left; two
yards over, my lord,' &c. He made them swell for
anger when they could not endanger the house, for
they only wounded one man, lost forty-six of their
owne, and theb canonier," &c.
On the other side, we hear of a- foreigner directing
the engineering department.^)
On the 9th of September, 1642, the Earl of Essex takes
Essex, the popular commander of the Parliament's
army, left London to enter upon his command.
On his arrival at Northampton, he found his forces
amount to about 14,000 men.(z) The mUitary
arrangements were presided over by a committee
of private safety ; (3) the total of the Parliamenta
rian force throughout England was computed at
25,000 men. Some of these regiments were also
badly off for arms. The train-bands of London,
who formed a very considerable portion of this
army, were, of course, properly armed; and other
regiments were provided from the stores of HuU,
which had been removed to London.- Besides the
train-bands, the army was composed of men who had
readUy enlisted, this being the popular side; inso-
(l) "Their valiant and faithfull Germane engineer" (Col. John
Eoseworm). Ibid.— Also, Exceeding Joy full Newe out of Lancashire,
fyc, being a True Relation of the Parliament Forces taking the Townes
of Warrington and Whitechwrch, &d, Lond.,. 1641. Beprinted in
Grmer'od's Civil War' Tracts.
(2) May, Ui. 5.
(*) Lord Nugent's Hampden, part viii..
VOL. I. E E

466 THE BRITISH ARMY.
much that we are told that 5,000 enUsted in one day.
The pay of the Commons was also like their notions —
liberal. (*)
But, notwithstanding the resources which were at
the command of the Parliament, money became before
long very scarce. Lord Fairfax, who had been ap
pointed to the command of the forces in the North,
wrote to "the Committee of Lords and Commons for
the safety of the Kingdom," (3) "I have not above a
week's pay provided beforehand, and no visible main
tenance for them (the soldiers), unless I give them free
quarters upon the country — a cure, in my conception,
as dangerous as the disease." Some Scotch officers
had come and offered theb services; but he goes on
to say, "We are now straitened, that we can have
no men resort to us to put under command, nor
have we money to pay them."
The train-bands of London consisted principaUy
of apprentices, whose masters had been compeUed by
ordinance of Parliament to reckon their mUitary
service as a portion of theb apprenticeship. (3) These
young soldiers fought very gaUantly, " whose experi
ence of danger, or any kind of service, beyond the easy
practice of their postures in the Artillery Carden, men
had tiU then too cheap an estimation." (*) At the
battle of Newbury, " they behaved themselves to
(:) The lord general received £10, the general of the horse (the
Earl of Bedford) £6, per diem.
(z) FaArfax Corrss. Civil Ww, i. 28.
(3) " That all apprentices who will Ust in their army, shaU have
their time of that service in for their freedom." (Whitelock, 64.)
(4) Clarendon, Hist, iv. 236.

ESTIMATION OF THE COMMANDERS. 467
wonder." Eupert, in his desperate charges, " could
make no impression on their stand of pikes, but was
forced to wheel about." (*) The Eed Eegiment of the
City had been surprised by the King at Brentford, in
November, 1642, when he threatened to hang the
soldiers if they did not join his army. " A smithe was
brought to burne them on the cheekes with hot irons,"
whereupon 200 declared for the Eoyal service, and
" 140 tendered theb persons to be stigmatised rather
than yield;" they were, however, released unhurt. (z)
Neither side had much generalship to boast of. Kins's
° x Generals.
The EoyaUst army was the best officered of the two,
but jealousies among the leaders terribly Unpaired
the efficiency of the King's service. The fiery Eupert
maintained his privilege of receiving no orders save
from the King himseU, and this led to occasional
embarrassments. (3) Nor was Charles blameless. He
aUowed the judgment of his commander-in-chief to
be overruled by his nephew. Lord Lindsey, " a man
of great honour, who had spent his youth and vigour
of his age in mUitary actions and commands abroad,"(4)
and who, at the commencement of the war, had raised
a regiment of 600 men, felt so aggrieved by the want
of deference shown by the King to his opinion, that
he respectfully decUned to form the order of battle at
EdgehiU, Eupert's plan of action having been selected
in opposition to his. He told his friends that he did
not look upon himself as the general, but that he
(*) Clarendon, vii. 24.
(2) EUis's Letters, 1st S., in. 294.
(3) Clarendon, Hist, iii., b. vi., p. 270.
(4) Ibid.— Bulstrode, 79. E E 2

468 THE BRITISH ARMY.
would fight as a colonel at the head of his regiment
of Lincolnshire men, and there he would die. And
so it was; he fell mortaUy wounded, having his
thigh broken by a musket-baU, and his son, Lord-
WiUoughby, refusing to leave, his father, was taken
prisoner by his side. (:)
Lord Euthven, afterwards Earl of Brentford,
who had been made field-marshal by the. King at
Coventry, was promoted from adjutant of the horse
to the chief command of the army. He was a
Scotchman, a brave man, a thorough soldier, and
a staunch EoyaUst, (2) and little else.
Prince Eupert cannot be classed as a great general,.
his quaUties being rather, those, of a dashing leader,
and an enterprising partisan, (3) He was only twenty-
three sat the time of his taking service in- the King's
army.. He was brave to temerity, but rash and head^
strong, with aU the plundering propensities, of a mere-
soldier ,of fortune. He possessed-a precipitate valour,
rather ifchan a. moral courage. He seldom engaged but
he gaiaed the. advantage, which he generaUy lost by?

(') The characteristic, battle-prayer of that gallant soldier, Sir'
Jacob Astley .(subsequently created Lord Astley), uttered just before
the charge, at Edgehill, should not be forgotten. Sir PhiUp Warwick
records it, ,and says : " Sir Jacob Astley made a' most excellent,-
pious, sfcftrjt, and soldierly prayer, &c, '0 Lord,, thou knowest
how busy p[ .must be this day ; if I forget thee, do not thou forget
me!' and wiih.that rose up and said, 'March on, b°ys,!"'-*-This
will remind ius of the laconic prayer of the Prench knight La Hire,.
at the .siege of Montargis, " Dieu, je te prie que tu fasses aujourd'Eui'
pour La Hire autant que tu voudrois que La Hire fist pour toi, s'il
etait Dieu, et tu fusses La Hire." (Saint Eoix, Essais Hist.)
(!) Sir P. Warwick, p. 229.
(3) Macaulay, Hist. ,of England, i., ch; i., p. 114.

THE KINGS STRATEGY. 469
pursuing it too far. He surrendered Bristol to Sir
Thomas Fairfax almost as soon as he appeared before
it; upon which the King deprived him of all his com
missions. Prince Maurice was a year younger than
his brother, and was not of so active and fierce a
nature, but knew better how to follow up any advan
tages gained over the enemy. He wanted a Uttle of
his brother's fire, and Eupert a great deal of his
coolness. He laid siege to several places in the west,
and took Exeter and Dartmouth. His most signal
exploit was the victory at Lansdown.
Without proceeding to enumerate those on the
EoyaUst side who displayed a capacity to command,
it may be stated that some of the best manoeuvres
that were executed during the war, were devised by
•the King himseb. (x)
It appears that two corps d'armees — one under
the command of Essex, amounting to 12,000 foot and
3,000 horse, and the other under WaUer, with 7,000
foot and 1,500 horse — were marching so as to sur
round and besiege Oxford, where the King lay with
an army of 8,500 foot and 4,000 horse. The King
soon discovered the design of his enemies, and when
Lord Hopton had been defeated by WaUer, near
Winchester, March 29, 1644, the King withdrew
the garrison of 2,500 men from Eeading, in order
to concentrate his forces at Oxford.
On the 26th of May, Essex entered Abingdon ;
and on the 28th, crossed the river at Sandford Perry,
and so passing through Littlemore and the Cowleys,
Q) Vide Forster's Oliver Cromwell, iv. 128.

470 THE BRITISH ARMY.
reached BulUngdon Green, Islip, and Bletchingdon,
May 29th ; on the evening of which day he made
his first attempt to seize the pass of Gosford Bridge,
near Kidlington. (l)
It is told by Anthony Wood, that Essex drew
up his army on BulUngdon Creen, "whilst the car
riages slipped away behind them ; " and that the King
beheld this hostile array from the top of Magdalen
Tower. (3) It was obviously of the greatest impor
tance to Essex to lose no time in seizing the passes
over the CherweU, in order to connect himself with
WaUer, who was making what haste he. could on the
Berkshire side of the Isis to join Essex.
Having failed in his attempt to cross the Cher
weU on the 29th, it was repeated on the 31st; but
Sir Jacob Astley, having raised a redoubt and breast
works, again succeeded in repeUing the attack, as he
did a thbd time, June 1. Neither was this the
whole of Astley's success, for upon Essex's trying to
cross the river higher up, at Enslow Bridge and
Tackley Ford, he was again repulsed.
The King's best chance of extricating himself was
to fight with one of these armies in the absence of
the other, but this he could not accompUsh. It was
his earnest wish from the time that he feU back
upon Oxford to have held Abingdon, and he was
highly displeased with Lord Wilmot for having,
contrary to orders and without fighting, evacuated
C1) Bushworth, vol. v., p. 653.— Whitelocke, p. 85.— Clarendon, iv.,
p. 725. (a) Annals, ii. 472.

A DANGEROUS POSITION. 471
it on Essex's approach; and when that general had
separated himself from WaUer by crossing Sandford
Ferry, he attempted to recover it : but though un
successful in this^1) the King was able, by marching
some dragoons and musqueteers from Charlbury, to
defeat Waller's repeated attempts to cross the Isis at
Newbridge. The bridge here was probably a weak
and narrow wooden one, for when at last WaUer
succeeded in crossing, June 2nd, Eushworth informs
us that he crossed over in boats called punts. (2) But,
before he advanced, he took care to repair the bridge
sufficiently to aUow troops to pass over it; a pre
caution which some of the King's subsequent move
ments upon Abingdon proved to be very necessary;
for to prevent Waller from effecting a speedy junction
with Essex, the King made a feint of drawing out his
forces in order to attack Abingdon, thereby causing
WaUer to faU back towards Newbridge.
On the 2nd of June, the King finaUy abandoned
the pass at Newbridge; and, on the same day, sent
orders to Sb Jacob Astley to withdraw his troops
from the passes over the CherweU, which he had
hitherto so victoriously maintained at Cosford Bridge,
Enslow Bridge, and Tackley Ford.
But these manoeuvres of the King were now The Crisis.
drawing fast to a close — the crisis was at hand. His
position appeared so desperate, that Clarendon says,
"It was generaUy reported in London that Oxford
was taken, and the King a prisoner." The ParUa
ment was afraid of the King's putting himself
(*) Mercurims AuUcus, May, 1644. (2) Yol. v., p. 670.

472 THE BRITISH ARMY.
under the protection of Essex, of whose leaning to
monarchy it was jealous. The King's remark when he
heard this well accorded with his known fortitude :
" That possibly he might be found in the hands of
the Earl of Essex, but he would be dead first." (})
Notwithstanding the fearful aspect of affairs, the
King, by a happy union of great courage and good
counsel, extricated himself from the peril which
encompassed him. Charles, in this extremity, had
no other forces to rely on than those that were with
him. Prince Eupert was moving into Lancashire
to help the Earl of Derby at Lathom House, and
Prince Maurice was uselessly expending his strength
before Lyme; in Dorsetshire.
The particulars of this perilous enterprise have
been given in a work entitled Historical Discourses,
with this special notice on its title-page: "The
happy progress and success of the arms of his
Majesty, from March 30th to November 23rd, 1.644,
written by his Majesty's special command, and cor
rected almost in every page with his own hand, by
Sir Edward Walker, Knight, Clerk of the CouncU to
King Charles."
Lord Clarendon, who coUected his account of the
King's retreat from the information of Sir Edward
Walker, merely says, " that he marched out of the
North Port of Oxford, attended by his own troop^
to the place where the Horse and commanded (i.e.,
selected) Foot waited to receive them, and from
0) Clarendon, iv. 730.— Also DisraeU's Commentaries on the Life
of Charles I., vol. i., p. 75,

THE KING'S SKILFUL MARCH. 473
thence, without any halt, marched between the
two armies, and by day-break was at Hanborough,
some miles beyond aU theb quarters ; but the
King rested not tUl the afternoon, when he found
himself at Burford, and then concluded that he
was in no .danger to be overtaken by any army
that was to foUow with baggage and a train of
artiUery." Q)
On the ParUament's side, the Earl of Essex, Parliament's
although a brave and experienced soldier, had no
qualifications for a high command. Dilatoriness and
indecision were the over-mastering faults in his
character. Had he exerted himseU at first he might
have put an end to the war, or rather there might
have been no war at aU. (2) So iU-provided was the
King at first starting, and so imminent was his
danger, that Sb Jacob Astley, the sergeant-major
general, informed him " that he could not give any
assurance against his Majesty's being taken out of
his bed, if the rebels should make a brisk attempt
to that purpose." (3)
Sb Thomas Fairfax, who succeeded Essex in the
.chief command, was perhaps the best officer on that
side. Among those who were not soldiers by profes_-
sion, but whose principles impeUed to take up arms,
Hampden shone conspicuously; but, doubtless, the
(*) Yol. iv., p. 731.^Se^ Account of the Night-March of King
Charles the First from Oxford, by Wolmercot, Yarnton, Hanborough
Bridge to Burford and Worcester. By Yaughan Thomas, B.D.
1850. (2) Clarendon, Rebell, iii., b. vi.
Ibid., p. 320.

474 THE BRITISH ARMY.
only master-mind which the circumstances of the
times brought forth, was OUver CromweU. From the
outbreak of the war, when he — being member for
Cambridge — raised and commanded a troop of horse,
there soon became manifest that fixedness of purpose,
that energy and forethought combined with practical
brains and iron nerves, which heralded his future
greatness. Cromwell at once saw the errors of the
existing system, and he set at work to rectify them.
The technical rules of war are easy to be learnt, but
the application of them requires more than mere
learning. He possessed in an eminent degree that
useful gift, the knowledge of character. He culti
vated the enthusiasm of the young soldiers, and he
conquered. (x) " Your troops," said he, according to
his own account of himseb, in conversation with John
Hampden, "are most of them old, decayed serving-
men and tapsters, and such kind of feUows ; and the
King's troops are gentlemen's sons, younger sons, and
persons of quaUty. Do you think that the spirits
of such base and mean feUows wiU be ever able to
encounter gentlemen, that have honour and courage
and resolution in them? You must get men of
spirit — of a spbit that is likely to go on as far
as gentlemen wiU go, or else I am sure you wiU
be beaten still. I told him I could do something
in it. I did so, and I raised such men as had the
fear of Cod before them, and made some conscience
of what they did ; and from that day forward, I must
say to you, they were never beaten, and wherever(
(') Lord Nugent' s Mem. of John Hampden, part vni.

OLIVER CROMWELL. 475
they were engaged against the enemy they beat
continually." (1)
It was on such principles as these that he formed The ironsides
that immortal phalanx of Ironsides, of which it
was no vain boast of the commander that it was
never known to yield or be beaten in battle. " We
never charged but we routed the enemie," writes
CromweU after the victory of Marston Moor. (3)
The plan on which he proceeded to raise these
invincibles, was to secure a better class of men,
"most of them freeholders and freeholders' sons,"
writes Whitelock, " and who upon matter of conscience
engaged in theb quarrel." He selected also none
but reUgious men, whose hearts he sought to engage
in the cause for which they fought, so that instead
of a band of sordid mercenaries, each one regarded
himself as a missionary going forth on a holy errand.
"Truly, I think," wrote Cromwell, "that he who
prays and preaches best, wUl fight the best." (3)
Upon the first muster of his men, Cromwell is
said to have tried the metal of the recruits by
(:) This conversation will be found reported in a cotemporary
pamphlet, entitled Monarchy asserted to be the Best Form of Govern
ment, in a Conference at Whitehall between OUver Cromwell and a
Committee of ParUament." (London, 1660, 8°, p. 38.)
(2) Eorster's OUver Cromwell, vol. vi., p. 139. — It was at Marston
Moor that this regiment obtained its title of " Ironsides." It appears
they were armed with " head-pieces, back, and breastplates of iron."
(Lilly's Life and Times, p. 177.)
(3) EUis's Letters, 2 S., vol. in., 1. ccci. — " These men," says Baxter,
" were of greater understanding than common soldiers, and therefore
were more apprehensive of the importance and consequence of the
wars; and making not money, but that which they took for the
pubUc feUcity, to be their end, they were the more engaged to be
vaUant," &c.

476 THE BRITISH ARMY.
a little stratagem. Having previously placed some
resolute men, on whom he could rely, in an
ambuscade near some of the King's garrisons, at the
appointed time these concealed men came forth—
their trumpets sounding a charge— and gaUoped
furiously on their comrades. They, of course, be-
Ueved that the enemy was upon them, and the faint
hearted immediately took to flight. So CromweU
was enabled to judge who were to be trusted, and
declined any further attendance of those who deserted
theb colours. (a)
But whether this was the method which he
adopted or not, it is certain that he must have made
a selection of men suited to his purpose, and these
he prepared for conflict by a most careful training.
" His men," says a political enemy of CromweU, " who
in the beginning were unskilful both in handUng
theb arms and managing their horses, by diligence
and industry became exceUent soldiers : for Crom
well used them daily to look after, feed, and dress
their horses ; and, when it was needful, to lie together
on the ground; and besides, taught them to clean
and keep theb arms bright, and have them ready for
service ; to chuse the best armourer, and to arm them
selves to the best advantage. Trained up in this kind
of military exercise, they excelled all their feUow-
soldiers in feats of war, and obtained more victories
over theb enemies." (2) They were aU fanatics, or
(x) Heath's Flagellum, p. 31-33, quoted in Eorster's Oliver Crom
well, iv. 89.
(2) Bate's Elenchi, &c, part ii., p. 270, quoted in Forster's British
Statesmen, iv. 89.

CROMWELL'S training of HIS MEN. 477
shortly became so, and Cromwell made use of their
zeal and credulity. They became fearless of danger,.
and good pay and plunder " seemed to them a natural
member of godliness.'^1)
On raising them, he spoke plainly, lest there No Mistake.
should be any mistake. They were to understand
that it was not for the King and ParUament they'
were to fight, but for the ParUament only : " there
fore, if the King chanced to be in the body of the
enemy, he would as soon discharge his pistol upon
him as any private man ; and if theb consciences
would not let them do the Uke, he advised them not
to enlist themselves under him." (3)
Thus did the future ruler of England proceed to
sow the seed of that army which,. humanly speaking,*
could hardly faU of conquest; whose sobriety and
inteUigence was unequaUed; and whose courage and
devotion made it famous in repute, and terrible all
over the world.
Very little armour was worn by the Eoyal troops,.
the buff-coat being found far more serviceable ; most
of the cavaby were protected only by back, breast,
and pot. (3) Among the ParUamentary troops armour
(l) Sir P. Warwick, 252'.
(2) Mems. of the Protectorate House, &c, by Mark Noble, vol. i.,
271, edit. 1787.
(8) The Bang to Prince B,upert : —
"Charles E.
"Whereas there are sundry quantities of horsemen's arms, as
backs and pots, .remaining in our magazine here at Shrewsbury," &c.
"9th Oct., 1642."
(Rupert Corres., Brit. Mus., before quoted.— It seems singular that
"backs " only should be mentioned.)

478 THE BRITISH ARMY.
was more prevalent. Ludlow teUs of a wonderful
escape which he had, because he got into a melee
without his " suit of arms ;" and that he was obliged
to walk about aU night at EdgehiU to keep himsetf
warm, having then nothing but his " suit of bon" to
cover him.t1) "The Ironsides" derived this soubriquet
from their* armour, and that of "Hasebig's Lobsters"
— "that impenetrable regiment," as Clarendon caUs
it — from theb "bright iron sheUs."(2) Most of the
portraits of that day, which have come down to us,
are in complete armour; but this appears to have
been rather the garb of ceremony than the fighting
dress of the time. The only piece of armour worn by
Charles at the battle of EdgehiU was a steel cap ; (3)
otherwise, we might haye applied to the occasion the
beautiful Unes of Lord Macaulay :—
" The King is eome to marshal us, in all his armour drest,
And he has bound a snow-white plume upon his gallant crest ;
He looked upon his people, and a tear was in his eye —
He looked upon the traitors, and his glance was stern and high..
Bight graciously he smiled on us, as rolled, from wing to wing,
Down all our Une, a deafening shout, 'God save our Lord the King!'"
An iron hat worn by Charles is preserved in
(J) Memoirs of Genl. Edmund Ludlow, edit. 4°, Lond., 1771, p. 22.
(2) " A regiment of five hundred horse, under the command of
Sir Arthur Haselrig, which were so prodigiously armed, that they
were caUed by the other side the regiment of lobsters, because of their
bright iron shells with which they were covered, being perfect cuiras
siers, and were the first seen so armed on either side, and the first
that made any impression on the King's horse ; who, being unarmed,
were not able to bear a shock with them, besides that they were
secure from hurts of the sword, which were almost the only weapons
the other were furnished with." (Clarendon, Hist, b. vii., 91,
118). (3) Bulstrode, p. 78.

No. 41.

B ©

Iron Hat, worn by Charles I., now preserved in Warwick Castle. The nasal,
or nose protection, seems to be resuscitated in this instance, as in some
other of the Commonwealth specimens ; the bread arrow on the rim was
probably affixed when it was in the Government possession, at a later
period.

REPUBLICAN TROOPS. 479
Warwick Castle. It is represented on Plate XLI.
The nasal seems to be resuscitated in the broad iron
protector in front. The broad arrow, on the rim,
was probably affixed when it was in the Covernment
possession at a later period.
The headsman has done his work with the unfor- CromweU
tunate Charles Stuart, and OUver CromweU is now protector
Lord Protector of England. In 1657 a treaty of
offensive alUance was signed between England and
France, the express purpose of which was the reduc
tion of CraveUnes, Mardyke, and Dunkirk by the
joint arms of the two countries. For this purpose an
EngUsh army of 6,000 men was landed at Boulogne,
to co-operate with the French army. The charges of
half of the EngUsh force were to be borne by France,
and the other half was to be defrayed by the
Government of England. We see here an in
stance of the vigour that was instiUed into the
EngUsh administration. No Coventry regiments —
no hab-starved band of iU-paid ' ragamuffins, was
dispatched abroad, but a force of veteran regiments —
trained in the civU wars, and organised under the iron
rule of CromweU — supported the reputation of their
country by their bearing and disciphne, and were
probably the finest troops of the age. We are told
that they received new clothing for the occasion.^)
They were commanded by a good man, no favourite
courtier, but an officer who had seen rough service
in Ireland, Sir John Eeynolds.(3) Their appearance
O Perfect PoUtician, p. 232.
(2) Appointedcaptain-general and commander-in-chief. (Thurloe,
vi. 230.)

480 THE BRITISH ARMY.
excited so much attention that Louis XIV.- made a
journey expressly to see them.^1)
It must be borne in mind that, since the dis
persion of the Spanish Armada, no deed of arms
worthy of a great nation had been performed by the
EngUsh. It may be negative praise to say that
during the peaceful reign of James nothing was
attempted ; but under Charles we find' recorded posi
tive dishonour at home from the; Scots, disgrace on
the coast of France, and disasters in Spain. Crom*
Well raised the dignity of this nation abroad, and
placed it once more, in a military' point of view, high
among the nations of Europe. His ambition was to
render the name of an Englishman as great as ever
that of a Eoman had been.(3)- "The shadow of his
name overawed the most confident and haughty;"
says a modern writer. " He intimidated HoUand, he
humiliated Spain, and he twisted the supple Mazarih-
the ruler of France, about his- fingers.- AU these
nations had then attained the summit of theb pros
perity ; aU were unfriendly to the rising power of
England ; aU trembled at the authority of that single
manj who coerced at once her- aristocracy, her priest>
hood, and her factions." (3)
(a) " Tour forces already landed are cried up by all that have seen
them for the bravest men that ever were in the Prench service. Their
reputation is so great that the Court maketh a journey here expressly
to see them. I have been earnest with the Cardinal (Mazarin) to
retard the King's arrival here into such time the whole 6,000 are
landed, and fitted for his Majesty's view." (Lockhart, Ambassador
to Prance, Ibid., p. 288.)
(2) Burnet's Own Times, i., b. i., p. 138.
(3) These are the expressions of Walter Savage Landor, quoted
in iTorster's OUver Cromwell.

MILITARY DESPOTISM. 481
Under the Protectorate, those visions of liberty
for which men had contended so obstinately were at
once dissolved by the establishment of an unbroken
miUtary despotism. The army had raised Cromwell
to power, and that army he was determined to main
tain ; and in defiance of Parliament, and in contempt
of the people's complaints, he kept together to the
end of his reign a force which at one time amounted
to 80,000 men, which, we are told, was well and con
stantly paid. (J) And " thus," says Ludlow (iii. 21),
" the troops of ParUament were corrupted by him,
and kept as a standing force against the people."
The good policy of paying weU induced young men
of education to enUst ; and it was considered " a
good employment for a gentleman, and a competent
provision, to have near twenty shiUings by the week,
Uving weU, and keeping themselves and their horses
for some six shUlings a week."(2) A portion of them
afterwards proved mainly instrumental in bringing
back the son of that monarch whom they had put to
death. Charles II., in all the popularity of the com
mencement of his reign, never ventured to retain a
standing army of more than 5,000 men ! . .
The system of the militia had naturaUy become
confused during the civil war; but when the Scots
invaded this country in the cause of the young
Charles, a bill passed through all its stages in one
day for reviving and renewing the expired Act con
cerning the militia.
But, not satisfied with these military resources, Military
Districts.
(]) Thurloe, State Papers, i. 395. (2) Gumble's Life of Monck, p. 34.
VOL. I. 1' F

482 THE BRITISH ARMY.
one of the politic measures emanating from the pro
found mind of the Lord Protector was to organise a
second army, which should be powerful enough, in
case of emergency, to aid the operations of the first,
or to control it if it fell off from implicit obedience
to his will. This new measure was craftily intro
duced on fiscal pretexts. A large army and a
formidable navy could not be maintained without
great expense, and so it occurred to Cromwell to cast
this expenditure on the Eoyalists, whose disaffection
to the State, and blind support of a hopeless cause,
had been mainly instrumental in promoting this
expenditure. So he divided England into twelve
districts, and an officer, with the title of major-
general, was appointed to the command of eack(1)*
Military The most arbitrary powers were entrusted to them.
Despotism. They had to collect the tenth penny (as it was styled),
the tenth, that is, of the annual income of all who
should be considered hostile to the Commonwealth,
and attached to the cause of the exiled Charles ; and
(') Kent and Surrey  Colonel Kelsey.
Sussex, Hampshire, and Barkshire . . . Colonel Goffe.
Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Dorset
shire, Somersetshire, Devonshire,
Cornwall (being the whole Western
quarter), Oxfordshire, Bucking
hamshire, Herts  ... General Disbrowe.(*)
Cambridgeshire, Isle of Ely, Essex,
Norfolk, and Suffolk  Lord-Deputy Pleetwood.(f)
London   Major-General Skippon.
Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire,
Derbyshire, Warwickshire, and
Leicestershire  Commissary- General Whaley.
(*) Or Desborough, brother-in-law of CromweU.
(t) Brother-in-law of CromweU.

THE MAJOR-GENERALS. 483
they could enforce the payment by seizing the persons
and distraining the estates of all such as were re
fractory. Every master of a household who was con
sidered disaffected, was required to give security for
the behaviour of aU his servants, who were liable to
be caUed to appear before the major-general, or his
deputy, at such time and place as either should ap
point. A registry of all such persons was to be kept
in London, and every change of residence was imme
diately to be communicated to the major-general of
the district. Every person, whether foreigner or
otherwise, who came from beyond sea, was required,
within twenty-four hours after his landing, to appear
before the officer whom the major-general should
appoint, to deliver his name, and an account of the
place whence he came, and to which he intended to
go, &c. These were some of their most important
duties. There were general matters of police of
which they were directed to take special cognisance ;
and there were secret orders — a portion of which is
preserved in Thurloe.
The mUitary force at the disposal of the major-
generals was the command of the militia of their
Northamptonshire, Beds, Butland-
shire, and Huntingdonshire ... Major Boteler.
Herefordshire, Shropshire, and N.
Wales  Colonel Berry.
Cheshire, Lancashire, and Stafford
shire  Colonel Worsley.
Yorkshire, Durham, Cumberland,
Westmoreland, Northumberland The Lord Lambert.
Westminster and Middlesex  Colonel Barkstead, Governor of
the Tower.
Monmouthshire and S. Wales ... Admiral Dawkins. p y 2

484 THE BRITISH ARMY.
districts, to be organised afresh, and kept distinct
from the rest of the army of England, which was
placed on permanent pay. From the correspondence
in Thurloe, it appears that the intention was to make
this a strong militia cavalry, (l) though not exclusively
so ; and the object may have been, although it is not
so stated, to secure a more substantial class of men,
who brought their own horses, rather than those who
were liable only for foot service. The new soldiers
confessed their weakness before the veterans of
the Eepublic : they felt " as a new quickset hedge,
that would for a while need an old hedge about
it." (*)
a.d. 1657. The whole measure was a very iniquitous impo
sition, and the decimation and restriction clauses in
direct subversion of that act of oblivion, formerly
procured by Cromwell himself, which pretended to
abolish the memory of all past offences. (s) There
seemed a bitter malice in its conception, that the
adherents or victims of a certain line of policy should
maintain an army and navy which was to be directed
against them.
Ludlow, one of the purest of EepubUcans, thus
stigmatises the measure : " He (Cromwell) divided
England into cantons, . over each of which he placed
a bashaw, under the title of major-general" (vol.
ii. 519). Ceneral Monck, a traitor to the Eoyal
cause, displayed no generosity on the occasion,
(*) Thurloe, iv. 156.
(2) Ibid., Major-General Goffe to Secretary Thurloe, iv. 161.
(3) Lingard, viii., ch. vi. (edit. 1849).

CLOSE OF THE .PROTECTORATE. 485
and highly approved of the scheme, or professed to
do so. (*)
Such a state of things was not likely to last long.
A commonwealth administered by military despotism
is an anomaly in poUtics. The desire of the country
for a permanent head of government grew daily more
intense. The Eoyalists would not choose Cromwell
for king, nor would the Eepublicans submit to the
arbitrary rule of one of themselves. (z) The close of
the Lord Protector's career was embittered by the
miserable apprehension that the fabric which he had
raised would be shattered in his own life-time. When
the strong hand that had supported it was removed,
the vast machine spontaneously collapsed. It owed
its origin and its faU aUke to military usurpation.
With much personal ambition, CromweU was yet character of
. CromweU.
a sincere patriot ; and although the people objected
to be "dragooned by the Lord Protector and his
myrmidons," as Blackstone forcibly words it, " the
country was certainly indebted to him for over
throwing a corrupt and tyrannical Covernment, with
its Star Chamber and other enormities. He obtained
for us religious liberty ; and he confirmed a resolution
of the House of Commons destroying the Court of
0) " I am glad your highness hath put your affairs in England
into so good a posture, by framing such a militia, which (with the
help of the army that is now on foot there) will be able, I hope, to
keep the people from any insurrection, and to resist the common
enemy." — George Monckffrom Edinburgh, to the Protector. (Thurloe,
iv. 162.) (a) " Cromwell : ' What if a man should take upon himself to be
king?' Whitelocke : 'I think that remedy would be worse than
the disease.' " (Whitelocke, 471.)

486 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Wards, and all tenures by homage and knight-service,
with aU the penalties of feudalism : which pro
visions, with additional clauses, were afterwards
turned into a regular Act of Parliament after the
Eestoration."^) ,
General Monck saw that his interest would be
best consulted by the restoration of the monarchy.
He was the chief actor in that final scene of the
Creat Eebellion. He reaped all the credit, and most
of the honours, consequent upon Charles Stuart's
accession to the throne of his ancestors, when the
rejoicings of a nation, exuberant with long-suppressed
loyalty, hailed the dawn of a day so darkly con
trasting with the criminal glories of the Common
wealth. (') Com/men., b. ii., ch. xxiii. — See also Journal Com., July, 1643,
when a committee was appointed to prepare an ordinance to take
away Court of Wards, &c. A bill was accordingly brought in a few
months later; but the war going on, the remedy by this method
being tedious, the two Houses, on the 24th of February, 1646, came
to a resolution that the Court of Wards, &c, should that day be
abolished.

Helmet, supposed to have belonged to Oliver Cromwell, and now in Warwick Castle.

2
o

p

Casque of King James IL, with cheek-pieces and visor of perforated steel representing the Royal Arms,
with scroll-work of thistles below. (Horse Armoury. Tower.)

CHAPTEE XVIII.
BODY GUARDS THE ONLY ANCIENT STANDING FORCES — SERGEANTS-AT-
ARMS  DERIVATION  PRENCH SERGEANTS — PRIVILEGES — CEREMONIAL
AT INVESTITURE — ARCHER-GUARDS OF EDWARD III., RICHARD II.,
EDWARD IV. — YEOMEN OF THE GUARD — GENTLEMEN-AT-ARMS.
The first and only standing forces employed by our Body-guards.
kings until the Eestoration were their personal body
guards. These, however, — although they accom
panied the Sovereign when he took the command
of the army in the field, — from their numerical
strength, were more calculated to add dignity to
the Crown, than to effect great operations in war.
The Sergeants-at-arms (servientes armorum) are
the most ancient establishment of this nature ; they
were instituted by Eichard I., and are said to have
been raised for the purpose of watching around him
in the Holy Land against the attacks of a Prince,
corruptly known as " the Old Man of the Mountain,"
whose infatuated disciples believed they were secur
ing to themselves the entrance to Paradise by mur
dering aU whom their chief devoted to destruction.
These abominable sectaries were called Assassini, (*)
a term said to have been derived from their using
an intoxicating preparation of hemp, still known in
(') " Accini " (i.e., de Assassis), according to Hoveden, fol. 716.

488 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the East by the name of Hashish, (f) hence Hashishih,
hemp-eaters. A branch of the Ismailites — noi the
descendants of Ishmael, but a sect existing in the
bosom of Islamism, and so called from the Imam
Ismail — they estabUshed themselves in the hill
fortress of Alamoot, situated to the north of Casiri,
in Persia. Its position, in the midst of a moun
tainous region, caused its master to receive the title
of Sheikh al Jabal, i.e., Prince of the Mountains;
and the double sense of the word Sheikh, meaning
both prince and old man, has occasioned the his
torians of the Crusades to caU him the " Old Man of
the Mountain." In the East and West, Christians
and Moslems fell victims to the plunge of their fatal
daggers, their only arm, till at length these enemies
of mankind were crushed under the iron tramp of
Hulakoo and the Mongol avengers, and the name
only remains perpetuating their infamy by being
adopted in its most odious sense, in the languages
of Europe. (2)
The Syrian or Western branch of the Assassini,
however, continued to exist for some years later.
Massiat, not far from Beyrout, was their principal
stronghold. Among other victims, Conrad, Lord of
Tyre and Marquis of Montferrat, was murdered by
two Assassins disguised as monks, (3) in the market
place of Tyre in 1192. The motives for this murder
(l) "In India, hemp is cultivated as a luxury, and used solely
as an excitant. Prepared hemp is called by the Arabs- hashish."
(Burnet's Botany, p. 560.)
(2) Gibbon's DecUne and Fall, lxiv.
(3) Abulfeda, ad ann. 588.

JUSTIFICATION OF RICHARD I. 489
have been the subject of much controversy. Some
writers have ascribed it to the instigation of King
Eichard I., and Von Hammer, after a careful review of
the circumstances, does not absolve him. Q-) A letter,
purporting to be written by the "Old Man of the
Mountain," acquitting the King of the murder, was
addressed to Leopold, Duke of Austria, when he
detained Eichard a prisoner on pretext of reprisal
for the murder. This letter is printed in Eymer,
i. 23. (2) The avowal would certainly be an act of
generosity which we should not expect on the part
of a remorseless sheikh. This letter, in aU proba-
biUty, was a forgery; it proves, however, nothing
except an injudicious anxiety on the part of the
EngUsh to obtain the release of their King.
A warrior like Cceur-de-Lion — who had acquired
such ascendancy in the army of the Crusaders, where
so many independent chieftains had assembled — must
necessarily have aroused jealousy, but the best justifi
cation of Eichard must be derived from the generosity
of his character, whatever ferocity his valour may
have possessed. (3) Prince John had behaved most
basely to him during his absence ; on his return he
threw himself at his brother's feet, and craved pardon
(') Geschichte der Assassimen.
(2) " To Leopold, Duke of Austria, the Old Man of the Mountain
sends greeting :
" Seeing that many kings and princes, beyond sea, accuse the
Lord Bichard, King of England, of the death of the Marquis, I swear
by the God who reigns for ever, and by the laws which we observe,
that he had no share in his death. The cause of the Marquis's death
was as follows," &c.
(3) See Note B, p. 224, to History of the Assassins ,- translated by
0. C. Wood, M.D.

490 THE BRITISH ARMY,
for his offences, which, at the intercession of the
Queen-mother Eleanor, was readily granted. " I
forgive him," said the King, "and hope I shaU as
easUy forget his injuries, as he wiU my pardon."
And when mortaUy wounded at the siege of Chaluz
by a cross-bowman, he not only pardoned him after
the town was taken, but also before his death ordered
him to have a hundred shilUngs given to him.
If Brunton the chronicler is to be beUeved, we
may infer that neither the dying Marquis nor his
widow beUeved that Eichard was the instigator of the
murder. (l) The King's countrymen attached no faith
to the accusation. The captivity of a superior lord
was one of the cases provided for by the feudal
tenures, and aU the vassals were bound to give an aid
to his ransom. Twenty shilUngs was levied on each
knight's fee in England, but as this did not produce
sufficient for the purpose, the zeal of the people
supplied the deficiency. Churches and monasteries
melted down their plate ; bishops, abbots, and nobles
paid a fourth of their yearly rent; the parochial
clergy contributed a tenth of theb tythe: all this
was purely voluntary. The requisite sum' being
thus coUected, Queen Eleanor and the Archbishop of
Eouen set out with it to Germany, paid the money to
the Emperor and the Duke of Austria at Metz, and
freed the royal captive. The joy of the English at
the re-appearance of their monarch was unbounded.
(!) " Post mortem vero dicti Conradi Marchisi, Franci c(ui nondum
discesserant, petebant ab uxore Marchisi ad opus regis Prancjm
custodiam urbis Tyri. Qua? respondit eis, Se wulU earn reddere nisi
regi Anglios, sicut domim/us suus moriens ordmavit" (p. 1,243.)

ORIGIN OF SERGEANTS-AT-ARMS. 491
PhiUp Augustus on his return to Prance — having French
deserted the cause of the Crusaders — openly imputed °rgArms!a
to Eichard the murder of Montferrat, and appointed
a guard for his own person, aUeging the necessity of
defending himself from a Uke attack. " Contrary to
the custom of his ancestors," say the contemporary
writers, " he was always escorted by armed men, and
instituted for greater security guards of his body,
selected from the men most devoted to him, and
armed with great maces of bon or brass." Q) The
institution of these body-guards, then called sergenis-
a-masses, astonished and displeased many, and obliged
the King to convoke the assembly of the barons and
bishops of Prance. He renewed to them his former
imputations against the King of England: "Is it
then extraordinary," asked he, "that I should take
more care of myself than usual ?"(2)
Such appears, certainly, to have been the origin
of the institution of the Prench sergeants-at-arms,
which existed many centuries after the belief in the
mysterious power of the Old Man of the Mountain
had disappeared. The English chroniclers make no
aUusion to the appointment of a body-guard by
Eichard. It is remarkable how much more ample in
detaUs are the accounts of the French writers, a
remark which appUes equaUy to the present time, so
that often we are obliged to have recourse to French
records to elucidate points of EngUsh history. One
would be led to suppose, however, that the fact of
Q) Vide Thierry, Hist, de la Conquete de VAngleterre, t. ii., 1. xi.
(«) Guill. Neubrig., p. 437.

492 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the appointment of a body-guard by Eichard I. would
not have been lost sight of by the English or French
chroniclers, and if estabUshed by him in the Holy
Land, it would tend moreover to strengthen the belief
that he had not subsidised the services of the chief
of the Assassins.
There are intimate points of resemblance in the
duties and privileges of the English and French
sergeants-at-arms, which supply the strongest argu
ment that the institution of the two corps was
contemporaneous ; but Dr. Samuel Pegge, who col
lected all the information to be obtained on the
subject, could only conjecture that the appointment
of sergeants-at-arms in the English royal household
was coeval with the French. (*) At what time soever
this body-guard made its appearance at our court,
its creation was unquestionably most ancient.
The word "sergeant" comes to us from the French
sergent, modified from the Latin serviens, which term
seems to have been applied at first to aU servants
of the Crown, on account of the servitium or service
rendered by them. Servientes sometimes denoted
retainers, not necessarily tenants, sometimes esquires,
more commonly officers of the household, and later
serving-men. In Blount's Tenures we read, "May-
ford, Co. Surrey, is a Serjeantry of our Lord the
King (19 Hen. III.), and the owner of it ought to
find one Servientem, with an Haubergeon and a
Lance." This seems to be in distinction to the
service of finding " Hominem Peditem," or " Homi-
0 CuriaUa, vol. ii., pt. v.

SOCIAL POSITION OF SERGEANTS. 493
nem cum arcu et sagittis," which we find recorded
in the same work. In the Wardrobe Account of
Edward I., there are several entries of individuals
who offered themselves and received pay, and were
admitted to serve at arms (tanquam serviens ad arma) ;
others, again, substituted for such as were obliged to
serve (loco servientis ad arma), and they were to
partake alike of the advantages, as the other "ser
vientes " of the King's household. Q) Their daily pay
was Is. for themselves and horses, and without horses
8d. They do not seem to have been under the
immediate banners and guidance of particular knights
and bannerets ; some were both maintained and paid
by the King (tarn ad mensam quam ad vadia regis in
municione castri), which appears to have been the case
when they were in garrison. A knight received 2s.
per diem, a shield-bearer Is., a constable without a
horse Is., a vintenar (a commander of twenty men)
4d. ; so we can pretty well ascertain the position
of a sergeant-at-arms to be what we may term a high
non-commissioned officer. Edward I. had twenty-nine
sergeants-at-arms, and they received two marks each
for a winter-robe. (2) The "servientes" of the panetry,
buttery, and napery also received the same.(3) The
gradations of officers in the old establishment of
Eoyal Households consisted of pages, grooms, yeo
men, and sergeants. (See Spelman, v. Serviens. — Also
Household Hen. VI, p. 19, Soc. Ant.) Servientes
(•) Liber Quotidianus (Soc. Ant.), pp. 211-214.
(*) Ibid., p. 316.
(3) Ibid, p. 314.

494 THE BRITISH ARMY.
included the mass of the troops beneath the knightly
dignity. In the ordinances for the behaviour of
Eichard I.'s and Philip II. 's army, on theb passage
to the Holy Land, none but knights (milites) or
clerics were allowed to play at games of chance for
more than twenty solidi. But if servientes or sailors
play, &c, they were to undergo the very unpleasant
punishment of being ducked for three consecutive
days. (Hoveden, 675.) Servientes ad arma were
soldiers in armour, and consequently of superior posi
tion, as all found their own equipment. PhiUp II.,
therefore, or Eichard I., in selecting officers for the
responsible duty of watching around them day and
night, doubtless made choice of those mUitary men —
of a grade between the knights and petty officers —
who were best adapted for the office, and on whom
they could rely for continuous service.
The French sergeants-at-arms rendered essential
service to Philip Augustus, by the valiant stand they
made at the battle of Bouvines. Their heroism is
recorded on two stone slabs, which were originally
erected in the Church of St. Catherine du Val des
Ecoliers at Paris, and are now preserved in the Church
of St. Denis. 0 They bear the foUowing inscrip
tion : —
" A la priere des Sergens d'Armes, Monsieur St.
Louis fonda cette Eglise, et y mit la premiere pierre :
et fut pour la joye de la Victoire qui fut au pont de
Bouvines l'an 1214. Les Sergens d'Armes pour le
(') These stones are figured by Daniel, Lenoir, Willemin, and by
Guilhermy.

COSTUME OF FRENCH SERGEANTS. 495
terns gardoient le dit Pont : et voui'rent qui si Dieu
leur donnoit Victoire, ils fonderoient l'Eglise de
Sainte Catherine, et ainsi fut-il."
It may be inferred from this, that sergeants-at-
arms were primarily persons of ample fortunes, and
it is stated that they were all gentlemen, and even
persons of distinction. (*) On one of these interesting
relics aforesaid, are sculptured figures of St. Louis
and his two sergeants-at-arms, in the costume which
they wore on occasions of ceremony, or when doing
duty in the palace. On the other, a Dominican friar
(probably theb chaplain) and two sergeants, equipped
for the field, or for escort duty. They are entbely
covered with plate-armour (the heads alone excepted)
over a chain gambeson ; > one of them wears on his
head, apparently, a bassinet ; the other the peculiar
flowing cap of the fifteenth century, from which we
are enabled to assign the date of these sculptures. (2)
They are aU armed with swords, and bear their dis
tinctive weapon, the mace, which is about as large as
those borne by beadles at our English universities.
They are also armed with cross-bows, (3) and in 1388
with lances. (*) The number of these guards at first
is not stated, but they must have been numerous, as
they were reduced by Philip VI. to one hundred. (5)

(') Mem. de la Chambre des Comptes ; cited by Daniel, Mil. Fran.,
torn, ii., liv. ix., ch. xii.
(*) See also Meyrick, i. 89.
(3) " Ils porterent toujours leurs Carquois pleins de Carreaux."
(Stat. Philip IV., 1285.)
(4) See Mil. Fran., torn, ii., liv. ix., ch. xii.
(5) Mem. de la Chambre des Comptes, fol. 104.

496 THE BRITISH ARMY.
In 1393 there were only eight; after that they fell
into insignificance, and theb office has disappeared
altogether ; with us they survived in power to a
much later period, and they still exist, although
now entirely degenerated into a civU capacity.
In the Household Book of Edward III., p. 3,
printed by the Society of Antiquaries, we find : —
" Sergeants-at-Arms, with their retinew —
Standard Bearers  4

Sergeants
Men of Arms ...
Archers on horse
Archers on foot

67 3 7
9

In the succeeding reign of Eichard II. they fell
into disgrace, as we shall perceive from the following
extract of the statute ordering their dismissal : —
"At the grievous complaint made by the Commons
to our Lord the King, in this Parliament, of the
excessive and superfluous number of Sergeants-at-arms,
and of many great extortions and oppressions done by
them to the people, the King therefore doth wiU,
that they shaU be discharged ; and that of them and
others there shall be taken of good and sufficient
persons to the number of thirty and no more from
henceforth; and, moreover, the King prohibiteth them
to meddle with anything that toucheth not their
office." (x)
We have some account of them in Henry V.'s
reign, in the book of Orders of Thomas of Lan
caster (brother of the king). It would appear that
(') " Item, a la grevous compleint de la communalte fait a notre
seignur le roi," &c— Stat. 13 Bic. IL, cap. vi. — See Taylor's Regality,
p. 159.

SERGEANTS-AT-ARMS. 497
disputes of precedence had arisen at the siege of Caen
(1417), from which place these orders are dated.
"Orders made by Thomas of Lancaster, for the
placing of Kings (at arms), Heralds, and Serjeants-at-
arms :
" The said Serjeants, who are principally founded
and ordained for the conservation of the person of the
King and his Lords, shaU keep place, and go on
either side, that is on the right hand and on the left
before him that shaU carry the sword, or before the
other Lords, to keep and defend away from the press
of the people on either side.'^1)
We are indebted to the researches of Mr. Pegge
for bringing under notice a further account of these
officers in one of the Harl. MSS., Kb. 229. It bears
no date, but appears to belong to about the time of
James I., or his immediate successors. It is headed,
"The office of the Serjeant-at-arms attending the
King's Majesty:"
"Know that, in times past, no gentleman per
formed the service of a Serjeant-at-arms, nor was
ever sworn to the King, if he were not the son of a
Knight at the least ; but of late time it hath pleased
our Sovereign to elect thereunto the worthy son of a
Centleman without reproach." (Fol. 254.)
"And the Serjeants-at-arms in Service Eoyal,
ought to stand before the King in such fashion
attired, that is to say, his head bare, and aU his body
armed to the feet with arms of a Knight riding,
wearing a gold chain with a medal bearing aU the
(]) From Vincent's Precedents, in the College of Arms.
VOL. I. G G

498 THE BRITISH ARMY.
King's Coats with a Peion (x) Eoyal or Mace of silver
in. his right hand, and in his left a truncheon.
" That a serjeant-at-arms may apprehend or attach
any subject of the King, or other whatsoever he be,
remaining in the four seas of England, or any part
thereof, be it in any house, castle, or fort, that will
(may) be taken to make his arrest, may raze and beat
down to the ground, always excepted the eldest son
of the King, and the ladies his daughters. "
"The serjeants-at-arms, by theb oath, may, and
by the right of the Sovereign ought to go before the
King, armed for the mere safeguard of the person of
the King's Majesty. And the power of a serjeant-
at-arms is, that if rescue be made unto him, he may
levy the power of the county, where the rescue is
made." These officers possessed considerable privileges •-
no one else dared to present himseU in the King's
presence, armed. (3) They were amenable to the
King only, or to the Constable, and their appointment
was for life, not being liable to dismissal on the
demise of the Crown, like other officers of the
household, subject, of course, to the Sovereign's
pleasure, dum se bene gesserint, for Eichard II. dis
missed them all summarily. The constitution of the
French sergeants-at-arms, in these respects, was exactly
similar. (3) The French ones were placed in charge of
(*) "A barbed javelin."? (Meyrick, i. 89.)— "A pawn at chess."
(Stevens's Span. Diet)— The head of a pawn resembles the ancient
¦mace. (2) Statute 1 Edward III., st. 2, c. 15.
(3) Bouteiller, Somme Rwrale, 1. ii. — See Du Cange, v. Serviens.

DUTIES OF SERGEANTS-AT-ARMS. 499
distant castles occasionaUy, but the EngUsh sergeants
appear to have been invested with wider powers than
their CaUic confreres. Their duty was not only to
attend the King and watch around his person in his
palace, and in full armour when he lay abroad, but
also to arrest traitors and other offenders about the
Court, for which the mace was deemed sufficient
authority, and they received fees from the persons
arrested, proportioned to their rank.
" Brandon. Tour office, Serjeant ; execute it.
Sergeamt-at-Arms. Sir,
My Lord the Duke of Buckingham, and Earl
Of Hereford, Stafford, and Northampton, I
Arrest thee of high treason, in the name
Of our most Sovereign King." — Hen. VIII., a. i., s. 1.
It is remarkable that Henry VIII. did not make
use of a sergeant-at-arms to arrest Wolsey. He em
ployed a gentleman of his privy-chamber on that
errand^1) Charles I. sent a sergeant-at-arms to
apprehend the five members of the House of
Commons. (3)
In the reign of Henry IV., we find a sergeant-at-
arms employed to convey the King's commands in a
letter to the Abbot of Eobertsbridge, to contribute
a forced loan.(3)
Edward IV. had "Sergeantes of Armes iiii.,
chosen, proved men of honour and condition, whereof
ii. alway to be attending uppon the King's person
(*) Cavendish's Life of Cardinal Wolsey. — See also Pegge's Curialia,
vol. i. Addit. to Gentlemen of the King's Privy Chamber.
(2) Clarendon, ii. 556. — Also Eorster's Arrest of the Five Members,
p. 122. (3) Sussex Archaeol Colls., viii. 160.
G G 2

500 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and chamber, and to avoyde the press of people
before." (])
Henry VII., when about to proceed on his
expedition into France, in 1492, summoned amongst
others the sergeants-at-arms to attend him in person.
A new body-guard had then been instituted — the
Yeoman of the Guard, and the fact of the sergeants
requiring a warning, would show that they were
graduaUy subsiding into domestic officers.
" If any serjeant-at-arms, having any fee for the
said office, go not with the King's Crace in this
voyage over the sea, having no license of the King's
Highness, under the Creat Seal, to be out of the said
army, that he forfeit his fee granted to him for
exercising of the said office." (3)
By a statute of Henry VIII., " all serjeaunts-
at-arms for the time being may use and wear in
theb apparell dublets of velvet, damask, or chamlet
(camlet), and in their jacketts and coates damask and
chamlet, and gowns of chamlet, at their pleasure." (3)
By this we may learn that they had no distinctive
uniform. The Household Book of Orders of Edward VI.
states : — " There shall be serjeants-at-arms four,
chosen, proved men of honor and condition, for1 the
King and his honourable household. Whereof two
alway to be attending upon the King's person and
chamber." Probably in addition to the former ones.
(>) Lib. Nig. Domus R. Edw. IV., p. 4; printed by Soc. Ant.
(2) Eastall's Statutes, an. 7 mo. Hen. VII., c. 3.
(») 7th Hen. VIII., c. 7.

PAY OF SERGEANTS-AT-ARMS. 501
In the procession to Westminster, " serjeants-at-arms,
with theb maces, going on either side the way."
(Leland's Collectanea, iv. 311.)
Queen EUzabeth had twenty-five sergeants-at-
arms, with daily pay of 12d. each, and a table. (:)
In King James I.'s time, they received the same
amount of pay, but were reduced to sixteen. (3)
Charles I. granted them, in the first year of his
reign, an exemption from the payment of fifteenths
and tenths. (3) In 1629, he took away the table from
them, and aUowed each of them 15d. per diem in
lieu of it. (*)
We lose sight of them during the interregnum
of the Commonwealth. Charles II. increased their
daUy pay to 3s., and 2s. 6d. board wages. (B) Also
it was ordered "that the sixteen serjeants-at-arms
wait quarterly, and four wait each quarter; that
four serjeants-at-arms do give theb attendance every
Sunday and Holy-day, and whensoever We shaU go
to church : and that two serjeants-at-arms only shaU
attend us in all progresses, and attend whenever the
Sword of State is carried." (6) James II. was at
tended by sixteen at . his coronation. " The Lord
Chamberlain issued his warrant to the Master of the
Jewel-house to deUver sixteen of His Majesty's maces
in his custody, to the serjeant-at-arms, therein men-

) Bibl. Cotton., Titus, B. iii.
2) Order of Household, an. 1604, in Bibl. Harl, No. 642.
3) Bymer, xviii. 328.
4) Ibid., xix. 126.
Botulus Servorum, in the Lord Chamberlain's Office.
6) Ordinances of Charles II.'s Household, p. 357, Soc. Ant.

502 THE BRITISH ARMY.
tioned:" as we read in Sandford's History of the
Coronation of James II. , p. 35, and a figured repre
sentation of them is given.
In the MS. before quoted (Harl, No. 297), an
account is given of the ceremony of investing a
sergeant with his collar : —
" The Creation of a Serjeant-at-arms .-"
"On a sermon-day, in his Majesty's passage to
chapel, his Majesty is pleased to make some stay in
the Presence Chamber; and there the serjeant-atT
arms to be created is presented by the Eight Honour
able the Lord Chamberlain, and the serjeant faUs
down on his knees.
" Then the senior serjeant having the collar of
S.S., delivers it to the Lord Chamberlain, and his
lordship presents it to his Majesty, who is pleased to
put it about the neck of the serjeant-at-arms. The
senior serjeant likewise delivers the mace to the Lord
Chamberlain, which his lordship presents to his
Majesty, and his Majesty lays it on the right
shoulder of the person to be created, and says, ' Eise
up, serjeant-at-arms, and esqube for ever.' " Q)
The ceremony of creation is now wholly dis
pensed with, and the office is conferred by patent.
The sergeants that now remain are annexed to
certain high offices. There is one in attendance on
the Lord Chancellor, another on the Speaker of the
House of Commons, and a third on the Lord Mayor
of London. Another was formerly attached to the
(') See Curialia, part v.

ARCHER GUARD OF EDWARD III. 503
Lord High Treasurer, until that office was abolished
in 1782. The Chancellor formerly formed a part of
the King's household, which may account for his
being attended by that officer.
The Speaker's sergeant is likewise considered an
officer of the House of Commons. His appointment
runs thus : — " We do give and grant to our trusty
and weU-beloved ... the place and office of one
of our serjeants-at-arms in ordinary, to attend upon
our royal person when there is no ParUament; and
at the time of every ParUament to attend upon the
Speaker of the House of Commons."
Eichard III. conferred upon the Lord Mayor of
York for the time being the title of captain, or chief
sergeant-at-arms. " Major Civitatis illius pro tem
pore existens imperpetuum esset capitaUs serviens ad
arma."(1) ARCHER GUARD OP EDWARD III.
King Edward III. raised a corps of 120 mounted ^ff7 G"ar<*
° r of Edward III.
archers (sagittarii equites), " of the best and bravest
men that could be selected in aU England," as a
personal guard, " ad eos, juwta latus nostrum mora-
turos, retinendum." To these, and to the thirty
sergeants-at-arms, the safety of his person was con-
(x) Bymer, xii. 258, an. 1485. — The mace was granted to the Chief
Magistrate of York, and the title of Lord Mayor, by Bichard IL, in
1393. The same King also gave his own sword from his side to be
borne for ever before the Lord Mayor of York. This sword is said
to have been presented to that King by his father-in-law, the Emperor
Sigismund. It is borne only on grand occasions ; it is very heavy,
and could only be wielded by a powerful man. (See Drake's Eboracum,
b. i., ch. vi., and Torr's Antiq. of York.)

Yeomen of
the Guard.

504 THE BRITISH ARMY.
fided. The order for their election in 1356 is given
in Eymer. Eichard II. selected Cheshbe-men as a body-guard,
on account of theb known attachment to his person ;
and orders were addressed to the Dukes of Lancaster
and York, and the Earl of Derby, to raise men-at-
arms and archers for this purpose.^) Some have
reckoned their number at 2,000 ;(2) they mounted
and relieved guard night and day.(3) He took the
Cheshire archers of his guard into Ireland. (*)
In the Household Book of Edward IV., we find
that the King had twenty-four archers, who ran
before him in pairs, "pur gard corps du Roy." These
were caUed the "King's wachemen." (Liber Niger
Domus Regis, fol. 43, Bibl. Harl. 642. — Also House
hold Ordinances, printed for Soc. Ant., p. 47.)
YEOMEN OF THE GUARD.
" The King's Body Cuard of Yeomen of the
Cuard" was instituted by Henry VII., at his corona
tion in 1485. " On which day," says Lord Verulam
" (as if the crown upon his head had put peril into
his thoughts), he did institute, for the better securing
of his person, a band of fifty archers, under a captain,
to attend by the name of Yeomen of his Cuard." (5)
In order to give the body-guard an ostensible
appearance of mere state, the King wished "that
Bymer, viii., p. 14.
*) Vita Ric. IL, p. 132.
f) Walsingham, Hist. Angl, p. 354.
4) Ibid., p. 357.— Otterbourne, p. 200.
Hist of the Reign of Henry VII., p. 7.

YEOMEN OF THE GUARD. 505
it might be thought to be rather a matter of dignity
(after the imitation of what he had seen abroad), than
any matter of diffidence appropriate to his own case ;
and he made it to be understood for an ordinance not
temporary, but to hold in succession for ever."
HaU gives pretty nearly the same account of the
origin of the corps : — " Wherefore," says he, " for
the savegarde and preservation of his owne body, he
constituted and ordayned a certayn numbre, as weU
of good archers as of divers other persons, being
hardy, strong, and of agilitie, to give dailye atten-
daunce on his person, whom he named 'Yomen of
his Oarde,' which president men thought that he
learned of the Frenche Kyng when he was in
Fraunce; for men remember not any Kyng of Eng
land before that tyme which used such a furniture
of daUy souldjours/'O The chronicler probably
aUuded to the number of the guard being stronger
than any heretofore.
The French model alluded to above, which
Henry VII., when Earl of Eichmond, may have
seen, appears to have been — from much analogy in
its composition — a corps of archers of the guard
organised by Louis XL, in 1475, caUed "La Petite
Garde de son Corps!' (2)
The term yeoman is a corruption of young manC),
and was originaUy used to denote- menial servants,
(¦) Chronicles, p. 425. — Also Holinshed.
(») Daniel, Mil. Fran., torn, ii., liv. ix., ch. xiii.
(3) "Yeoman. Sax. gemanan, consortium, tubernia; gemane et
geman, communis, vel potius a geonga, quod juvenem significat."
(Spelman, Gloss.— See also Notes and Queries, 3rd S., ix. 434.)

506 THE BRITISH ARMY.
who were selected for being strong and active^-
consequently young. In a statute, 33 Hen. VIII.,
c. x., s. 6, " any servantes, commonly called ybunge-
men (yeoman in original), or groomes, husbandmen,
laborers, and artificers." In Romeo and Juliet we
read :
" Such comfort as do lusty young men feel." (Act. i., sc. 2.)
Eitson, in his note to this line, says : — " Young men
are certainly yeomen. So in A Lytell Geste of Robyn
Hode, printed by Wynkin de Worde : —
" ' Bobin commaunded his wight yong men,
¦ Of Iii. wyght yonge men,
Seven score of wyght yonge men. <
Buske you, my merry yonge men.'
In aU these instances Copland's edition, printed not
many years after, reads — yeomen."
It was the yeoman retainer, or the faithful yeo
man domestic, who had helped to fight the battles
of England. Elizabethan writers often speak of the
ancient yeomen, who distinguished themselves in a
military capacity in the wars of the Middle Ages :
the expression, however, is only to be taken in a
general sense, as denoting the stout, able-bodied,
inferior ranks of the people who composed the greater
part of the infantry. There were no troops specially
caUed yeomen. It was not till about the time of
Henry VII. that the term yeoman occurs in its
present acceptation — namely, as a petty landholder,
probably as having received small grants of land as
a reward for services. Camden gives the foUowing
Ordines Angliae, and says : — " Quod ad reipublicaa

SOCIAL CONDITION OF YEOMEN. 507
nostrse divisionem attinet, constat ex Eege, sive
Monarcha, NobUibus, Civibus, Ingenuis, quos yeomen
vocamus, et Opificibus." His definition of yeoman
is : — " Plebeii, sive yeomen, quos alii Ingenuos [from
eyyewjs, free-born], lex nostra homines legates dicit, et
ex agris, quos optimo jure tenent, quadraginta ad
minimum soUdos quotannis coUigunt."
The yeomen, therefore, at that time, composed a
distinct class of society between the cives or burghers,
and the opifices or working men. It is in this sense
that the term yeoman is here to be understood, both
with regard to natural rank in society, as well as to
the subordination of officers in the royal household.
This corps was expressly to be composed of the prime
of those persons.
We often find mention made in the books of
royal establishments of yeomen of the Crown. These
were yeomen selected for general service in the King's
household — men to be relied on not only for honesty,
bat likewise for prowess, and from this body "the
Cuard" might have been selected. They are described
in the Liber Niger Domus Edwardi IV. : —
"Yeomen of Crowne, xxnij. most semely persones,
clenely and strongest archers, honest of conditions
and of behavoure, bold men, chosen and tryed out of
every lordes house in England, for theyre cunning
and vertue ; thereof one to be Yeoman of the Eobes,
another to be Yeoman of the Wardrobe of Beddes in
Household; these ij in certayntie ete in the King's
chambre dayly; other ij be Yeomen Ushers of
Chambre, &c. Also it accordeth that they be chosen

508 THE BRITISH ARMY.
men of manhoode in shootyng, and speciaUy of ver-
tuose conditions." (Household Ordinances, printed for
Soc. Ant., p. 38.)
The Yeoman Body-guard has continued through
out the reign of every EngUsh sovereign since its
institution to attract attention from the richness and
peculiarity of its costume (the only instance in this
country of the original fashion being retained), worn
by men of stalwart size; and to claim respect for
itself by the fideUty and admirable conduct of its
members, who have ever (under trying circumstances,
too, sometimes) continued to watch around the person
of the sovereign with unswerving loyalty.
Mr. Pegge, to whom most of these remarks are
due, records the foUowing minute from the CouncU
books to the honour of the corps, as being, as far as
he could ascertain, the only crime of notoriety that
can be imputed to this large body of men, of humble
birth, in the course of fuU three hundred years Q) : —
" In Council, Bishop's Waltham,
"July 14, 1554.
" This day Eichard Smith, one of the Yeomen of
the Cuard, for spreading abroad lewd and seditious
books, was committed to the Marshals ea, his coat
being first taken from his back, and he discharged
his service."— Bibl. Harl., W- 643, fol. '31.
HaU, however, records one other case, " exceptio
probat regulam .•" —
"One Newbolt, Yeoman of the King's Carde,
(') CwiaUa, pt. iii., p. 28.

NUMBER OF YEOMEN OF THE GUARD. 509
whom the King highly favored, slew wilfully a
servant of my Lord WUloughby's, in the Palace at
Westminster; wherefore the King, abhorring that
deed, and setting aside aU affection, caused him to be
hanged, in the Palace of Westminster, where he hong
twoo daies, in example of other." (l)
The number of the Yeomen of the Cuard has strength or
. ¦, • i t ¦ ¦ the Guard.
varied m each succeeding reign, sometimes aug
mented by one sovereign, at others reduced on the
plea of economy by another, or some of them dis
charged or put on half-pay summarily. Our bluff
Harry, whose sumptuous spirit was so unUke that of
his prudent progenitor, increased theb number to
such an amount, that they became something more .
than a mere body-guard, and were able to take part
in military operations in the field. Theb smaUest
number at any time during this reign appears to have
been two hundred, of which one hundred were
mounted. Although this King had instituted a new guard,
under the name of " Spears," now called Oentlemen-
at-arms (of whom more hereafter), he nevertheless
maintained this, his father's garde- du- corps, in a
bountiful manner ; and when he left England to take
the command of the army at the siege of Terouenne,
in 1513, he was then attended by "six hundred
archers of his Cuard, all in white gaberdines and
caps."(2) This is the first occasion of their pro
ceeding on active service, and they did their work
well. When Tournay fell into the King's hands,
(') Chron., an. 1511, fol. xvi. (2) Hall

510 THE BRITISH ARMY.
he left among other forces for its protection, four
hundred archers of the guard. They styled them
selves, besides Yeomen of the Guard, "Constables
of Tournay," in a petition to Cardinal Wolsey. (l)
In 1515, "all the souldiours, except such as were
of the King's Garde, rebelled, and put the Lord
Montjoye (Lieutenant of Tournay) in jeopardy of
his life." (2)
Three years afterwards, when the place was given
up to Francis I., Henry did not forget their services,
for "he sent for all the Yeomen of the Cuard that
were come from Tournay, and after many good words
given to them, he granted to them iiiirf. the day,
without attendance, except they were specially recom
mended." (3)
In 1520, when the Earl of Surrey was appointed
Lord Deputy of Ireland, he selected to accompany him
" sundry gentlemen who had seen service at Tournay,
and one hundred yeomen of the King's Cuard." (4)
They continued to serve there for some years, for at
the capture of the castle of Maynooth, in 1635,
" John Griffin, Yeoman of the King's most honour
able Cuard, was killed with ordnance at the entry."(5)
The fact of theb proceeding to Ireland is remark
able, as being the only instance of the body-guard
going on active service when the King was not
present. (') Cott. Lib., CaUgula. — Also Strype's Appen., i., pt. ii.
(2) Hall.
(3) Ibid., p. 598.
(4) Hall, p. 601.
(6) See Froude, Hist of England, ii. 299.

HENRY VIII. AND HIS YEOMEN. 511
Henry VIII., despite his selfishness and tyranny,
was a popular monarch. His manly appearance, and
his fondness for athletic games, went far to recom
mend him to the English people. The Yeomen of
the Cuard, being good archers, were often called upon
to display their skiU before their royal master. He
was proud of his hardy yeomen, and they were a
favourite corps. One day in May, 1515, they planned
a little surprise for the King, after the prevailing
fancy of the time. " The King and Queen (Katharine)
were staying at Greenwich, and as they rode toward
Shooter's HU1, they espied a company of tall yeomen,
clothed aU in green, with green hoods and bows and
arrows, to the number of two hundred. Q) Then one
of them, who caUed himself Eobin Hood, came to the
King, desiring him to see his men shoot, and the
King was content. Then he whistled, and all the
two hundred archers shot and losed at once; and
then he whistled again, and they shot again, and
theb arrows whistled by craft of the head,(2) so that
the noise was strange and great, and much pleased
the King, the Queen, and aU the company. All
those archers were of the King's guard, and had thus
apparelled themselves to make solace to the King."
Afterwards Eobin Hood, to sustain his character,
regaled their Majesties with venison and wine, "to
(l) " The Guard " then continued at its full complement of 600, as
400 were in garrison at Tournay.
(2) Frequent mention of whistling arrows is made by writers, as
a common device in diversions of this sort ; though originally they
had in all probability a real and substantial use as signals in the
night, given by the outposts in the field or in garrison. They
are supposed to have been first imported from China.

512 THE BRITISH ARMY.
their great contentacion," and then escorted them
back to Greenwich^1)
Upon another occasion, when " keeping a princely'
court at Windsor," the King caused sundry matches
to be made with the long-bow, and by way of encou
ragement, he promised one of the archers of his guard,
named Barlow, that if he won aU the prizes, he should
i be duke over all archers. Barlow was successful,
" whereat the King greatly rejoiced, and named him
Duke of Shoreditch, for that this Barlow did dweU
there." (3)
In 1544, the Yeomen of the Guard escorted the
King to the siege of Boulogne. "Sb Anthony
Wyngfelde, with five hundred of the garde, camped
at Caussey Poinct."(3) From the same source we
learn " The Ordre how the King's Majestie Departed
out of the Toune of Calleys, on Fridaye, the 25th of
July." " Then the garde on fote, that is to say, 25 archers
on the right side, and as many gunners (arquebusiers T)
on the left side; . . . the King's Majestie in the
myds of his Pikemen (Gentlemen Pensioners ?) ; then
foUowed the men of armes ; also alooff off, there were
50 archers on horseback, and on the left side as many
(>) Hall, p. 56.
(2) Wood's Bowman's Glory, or Archery Revived, 1682. — In 1785,
the Earl of Aylesford, then Captain, in honour of the original insti
tution of the Yeomen as a body of archers, gave three prizes to be
shot for with the long-bow by ten of the Yeomen. The cup, bearing
an engraved inscription recording the event, was won by Balph
Coulthard. (3) Diarium; super viagio Regis, obsidione et captions Bolowiae,
in Bymer, torn, xv., p. 52. — Also Bibl. Cotton., CaUgula, E. 4,
fol. 90.

YEOMEN IN EDWARD VI. 's REIGN. 513
Gonners on Horsebacke; and at Sandingfelde stood
embatyled the Captaine of the garde, with all the
garde and others in good ordre, till the King was
past; every bande in ordre having his banner dis
played." In the succeeding reign of Edward VI. the
guard (l) continued in high estimation. The young
King inherited his father's fondness for athletic sports,
and often diverted himself in company with his
Yeomen. " It was appointed," we read in his journal,
" there should be ordinarily an Hundred Archers and
an Hundred Halberdiers, either good Wrestlers, or
Casters of the Bar, or Leapers, or Eunners, or taU
men of personage."
When the Marshal St. Andre arrived at the
Court, having been appointed by Henri II. of France
to invest the King with the Order of St. Michael, he
was entertained, amongst other ways, with feats of
archery and trials of strength. " Monsieur le Mare-
schal dined with me. After dinner, saw the strength
of the English archers." The King did not consider
it inconsistent with his dignity to contend in the
sports with his yeomen, even in the presence of the
French Marshal. He is candid enough to admit on
what points he was beaten. " The first day of the
chaUenge," says he, " at Base (i.e., Prisoner's base) or
Eunning, the King won." And " on another day, 1
lost the challenge of shooting at Eounds, and won at
Eovers." (') The Yeomen are often spoken of as " The Guard," in King
Edward's Journal, and elsewhere.
VOL. I. - H H

514 THE BRITISH ARMY.
In 1552, when the young King went "in pro
gress " to Sussex, he was attended by his own guard,
to whom, by warrant dated the 5th of June, had been
delivered "cxxvj. liverie bowes and iiij**- guUt jave-
linges, for theb furniture for this year, and cxxv.
sheaves of arrows, which with their cases and gbdles
cost xxxiij^'. yjs- viijd "Q) And in anticipation of the
progress of 1550, there was " a warrant to Sir Philip
Hobie, Knight, Master of the Ordnance, and to his
deputies, to deUver unto John Pers, clerke of the
cheque, ccc. livery bowes, ccc. sheefs of arrows, with
girdells and cases to the same, and also ccc. halberds,
for the furniture of ccc. of the King's Majestie's
Yeomen Extraordinarie, to attend on his Highness'
person during his pleasure;" and on the 6th of
September foUowing, "a warrant to Sb Edward
Peckham, for vjCxxli. to the Yomen of the garde
extraordinarye, for wayting this progresse for Julie
and August."(2)
Queen Mary kept up the strength of " the Guard,"
and expended a great sum on the ornamentation of
their uniform, as may be learnt by an order, preserved
in the Harl. MSS., No. 643, "to deliver to Peter
Eichardson, maker of the spangles for the rich coats
of the Queen's Highness's guard, the sum of one
thousand pounds."
The coats were likewise to be embroidered, as
appears by another warrant, of the same year, to pay
"to the above-mentioned Peter Eichardson, gold-
(») MS. Beg. 18, c. xxiv., f. 2196.
(2) See Sussex Archaeol. Collec, x. 199.

A FOREIGNERS ACCOUNT OF THE GUARD. 515
smith, for 7,175 ounces of spangles gilt, delivered to
the Queen's embroiderers, for embroidering the coats
of Her Majesty's Guard, Footmen, and Messengers."
Queen EUzabeth continued the Yeomen in Ordi
nary to the number of 200, but reduced the Extra-
Yeomen to 107.C)
Hentzner gives some account of the Yeomen of the
Guard. He was present at Greenwich in 1598, and saw
Queen EUzabeth dine in pubUc according to custom.
" The Yeomen of the Guarde," he writes (Satellites
Regii), " entered bareheaded, cloathed in scarlet, with
a golden rose upon theb backs, bringing in at, each
turn a course of twenty dishes." " This guard consists
of the taUest and stoutest men that can be found in
aU England, being carefuUy selected for the service. "(3)
Mr. Pegge states that the office of carrymg up the Beef-eaters.
dishes to the royal table continued to be a branch of
theb duty up to the time when he wrote, 1791.(3)
Whether, after this service performed, they took their
station by the buffet, or side-board on which the plate
was displayed, and so derived theb sobriquet of
beef-eaters, or from the fact of theb weU-fed appear
ance, being all notoriously big men, and theb dress
making them look bigger still, is not very easy to
determine, and is fortunately a point of no great
importance. Mr. Pegge dissents from the buffet
derivation, with which, he asserts, they had nothing
to do ; that duty devolving on an officer of superior
Q) CuriaUa, pt. iii., p. 29.
(2) Travels in England. Edit. Strawberry Hill, p. 52.
(3) CuriaUa, p. 31.
H H 2

516 THE BRITISH ARMY.
rank, viz., a gentleman usher; and he beUeves that
they have to thank King Henry VIII. for the
appellation, from an amusing cbcumstance related in
Fuller's Church History, book vi., which, in brief, is
to the foUowing effect : —
The King, disguised as one of the Guard, called
on the Abbot of Eeading, who set before the visitor
a sirloin of beef, to which the pseudo-yeoman did
ample justice, and which elicited a remark from the
Abbot, that he would give a hundred pounds to be
able to eat as heartily. Shortly afterwards the good
Abbot found himself committed a close prisoner to
the Tower, and kept on bread and water ; at length
a piece of beef was set before him, of which the holy
man ate voraciously. The King then appeared in
propria persona, and claimed the hundred pounds.
Mr. Pegge remarks on this, that the Abbot would
never afterwards see a Yeoman of the Guard without
connecting the idea of a beefeater, and the story,
when circulated, might have entaUed that name upon
the corps. Fuller caUs it " a pleasant and true story,"
very unpleasant, however, to the Abbot, and very
improbable to us, so far as the derivation of the name
is concerned, but quite in accordance with the spirit
of the time.
The term is used by Prince Eupert in a letter
to Colonel Legge, dated Hereford, March 31, 1645 :
" Desbe the King to bring as few scullions and beef
eaters with him as possible, else this army and he
cannot quarter in a place." (f)
(:) Copied in Warburton's Prince Rupert, p. 73.

TABLE OF THE GUARD. 517
Be the derivation as it may, it is certain that
theb table was so liberaUy supplied, up to the time
of its aboUtion, when board-wages were aUowed as
an equivalent, that the term beef-eater may not have
been misapplied, as appears from the foUowing ex
tract : — "The Table.
"Thirty men mounted guard, or signed the muster-roll at St.
James's every day. Daily allowance for the table for those thirty
men, a messenger and servant : —
Beef  24 lbs. \ 58 lbs, weighed out
Mutton  18 lbs. > before the Yeomen's
Veal  16 lbs. ) servant or messenger.
Butter  2 lbs.
Bread  36 loaves.

Beer

{27 gallons in winter.
S

1 28 gallons in summer.
"Vegetables in sufficient proportion and of the best in season.
Salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, and mustard.
" The dinner was cooked in the Eoyal Kitchen, and served in two
dinners, one for each guard. "Extra Allowances.
" Haunches of venison twice in the year ; five geese on Michael
mas Day ; and three plum-puddings every Sunday.
" On the birthdays of the King and Queen, the whole of the men
capable of attending being on duty, the allowance was 216 lbs. of
meat, 6 lbs. of butter, 144 loaves, 104 gallons of beer, and 20 doz. of
wine, full quart bottles.
" On the birthdays of each of the Boyal family, and whenever
the guns fired on other occasions, called 'pitcher days,' — double
bread, 18 gallons of beer, and 5 doz. of wine, &c. &c.
" The table was abolished, by order of the Lords of the Treasury,
in 1813, and board-wages allowed as an equivalent when on duty.
The "Ushers now receive four shillings, and the men two shillings
and six pence per diem." (Records of the Corps of the Yeomen of the
Guard, by Thos. Smith, 1832.)
James I. had 200 Yeomen of the Guard, Q-) and
during the short life of his son Henry, a detachment
(*) Account of the Household of King James I. (1615), in College
of Arms.

518 THE BRITISH ARMY.
of them was ordered to attend on him as a personal
guard, when his estabUshment was formed. It was
ordered that " two of them shall, with their halberds,
attend at the gate to assist the porters to execute
their office." (x)
Charles I. employed them to proceed to Somerset
House, to enforce the extradition of the French
attendants of the Queen : —
"His Majesty dispatched away to London the
Captain of the Guard, attended with a competent
number of his Yeomen, as likewise with heralds,
messengers, and trumpeters ; first to proclaim his
Majesty's pleasure at Somerset House gate, which,
if it were not speedily obeyed, the Yeomen of the
Guard were to put it in execution, by turning all
the French out of Somerset House by head and
shoulders, and shutting the gate after them. Which
news, as soon as the French heard, their courage
came down, and they yielded to be gone next tide." (8)
During the Commonwealth, the Yeomen of the
Guard — like other royal appendages— disappeared,
but were revived at the Eestoration. Charles II.
reduced, in 1668, their number to 100, and the
supernumeraries were placed on half-pay of £15
per annum, and this has continued to be the esta
bUshment of the corps down to the present time.
They had diet as well as wages when in waiting,
but this was taken off in the reign of Queen Anne.
(*) Bibl. Harl., 642, fol. 257.— Also Birch's Life of Prince Henry,
p. 448. (2) Ellis's Orig. Letters, 1 S„ vol. iii., p. 245.

WEAPONS OF THE GUARD. 519
A room is allotted to them in St. James's Palace,
which is caUed the Guard-Chamber. (*)
There is no record as to when the halbert or Arms.
the present partisan was introduced into the corps.
The term " archers " may have clung to them, long
after the bow had ceased to be their appropriate
weapon; as in France the "Archers du Grand Prevdt."
the "City Archers," and "Archers du Guet," con
tinued to be so denominated, although their arms
were, or had become, halberts or arquebuses. As
archery grew gradually out of use, the arquebus
generaUy succeeded to the bow. In a passage just
now quoted, Henry VIII. leaving Calais was escorted
by " the garde on fote, that is to say, twenty-five
archers on the right side, and as many gunners on
the left side." These last were unquestionably
armed with the arquebus. Further on mention is
made of fifty archers on horseback : these may have
retained the bow, for the figure of a mounted Yeo
man of the Guard with the rose on his breast, and
a bow in his hand, is very conspicuous in the illus»
tration in Montfaucon of the interview of Francis I.
and Henry VIII. (2) In the engraving of the siege
of Boulogne, there are evidently four Yeomen of the
Guard on duty near the person of the King ; they
are distinguished by theb halberts, which have fringe
(') Present State of the British Court, 1720.
(2) Monumens de la Monarchic Framboise. — See also the bas-
relief of the H6tel Bourgtheroulde at Eouen, representing the
meeting of Henry VIII. and Francis I., with figures of Sergeants-
at-Arms and Yeomen of the Guard, and others, modelled in the
Benaissance Court, Crystal Palace,

520 THE BRITISH ARMY.
depending from the top of the shafts. A mounted
Yeoman of the Guard is also figured in Grose's Mili
tary Antiquities, with an arquebus or carbine in his
hand. It is copied from a work entitled Diversarum
Gentium Armatura Equestris, printed at Amsterdam,
1617. Mr. Pegge is of opinion that the present
partisan was not introduced till the Bestoration.
On a memorial brass in Wingfield Church is repre
sented the figure of a Yeoman of the Guard, in his
coat, holding his halbert in his left hand, and with
his right giving a loaf of bread to two poor men.
Beneath is this inscription : — " Here lyeth the Body
of Thomas Montague, borne in this Parish, where also
he dyed March 31, 1630, when he had lived almost
92 years, and had byn a good parte thereof a Yeo
man of the Guard, and a Friend to the Poore." Q)
In the procession of King Edward VI., the
Yeomen appear with axes, then caUed biUs or hal
berts. In Eoper's Life of Sir, Thomas More, p. 551,
we read of "the companies of the Guard, with
HaUbards and BiUes." These weapons were not
adapted for service on horseback, and therefore were
exchanged for others when men were on mounted
duty. The French Archers of the Guard, after the
reign of Charles VII., carried halberts at Court, and
exchanged them for lances when serving with the
army; and from the time of Francis I. a portion
of them were armed with the arquebus. (3) When
George II. went to Hanover in 1743 to take the
(') Ashmole's Antiquities of Berkshire, iii. 35.
(2) See Daniel, Mil. Fran., torn, ii., liv. x., p. 147, edit. 1721.

REMUNERATION OF THE CAPTAIN. 521
command of the army, the Yeomen of the Guard who
attended him mounted guard with their partisans when
the King halted, but on other occasions they were
armed with carbines. "These carbines," says Mr.
Pegge, " are now (1791) lodged in the Tower." (*)
The Captain of the Yeoman of the Guard received
no fee or salary from the King until the Eestoration,
his only allowance having been a gown, as an official
habit, of the value of £14. (3) The office, however,
was generally combined with one of emolument, such
as the Vice-Chamberlainship, which post, at the time
of making the Eltham Statutes (1526), carried with
it a salary of 100 marks. (3)
Charles II. , in lieu of the gown, bestowed the
more substantial remuneration of a salary of £1,000
per annum. In 1835, it was raised to £1,200, as
aU fees payable to the Captain on appointments
were aboUshed.
Tbe Captaincy is always held now by a Peer,
and has been so since the Eestoration, and he is
the only officer of the corps who vacates his office
on a change of ministry. He carries an ebony
baton, tipped with gold, as his badge of office, and
like the other officers of the corps, wears a rich
modern miUtary uniform.
The Lieutenant was added to the Ust of officers
(') CuriaUa, pt. iii., p. 89.
(2) Desiderata Curiosa, 4to, vol. i., p. 59.
(3) As in the case of Sir Anthony Wingfield, temp. Henry VIII.
Also the Lieutenancy of the Tower held by Sir Hugh Vaughan, temp.
Henry VII. — Sir Walter Ealeigh held the office at the same time
with that of Gentleman of the Privy-Chamber.

522 THE BRITISH ARMY.
in 1668, with a salary of £500, which continues the
same. He bears a baton, but mounted with silver
instead of gold.
The Ensign, or Standard-bearer, was added to the
corps at the same time with the Lieutenant, his
salary being then fixed at its present amount of £300
per annum. There is no standard of the corps in
existence now, but there is no doubt there was
one formerly. (l) This officer also bears an ebony
baton, similar to the Lieutenant.
Four Exons, or, as they are styled in theb com
missions, " Corporals," were also additions made at
the period before referred to. Their subsequent name
of Exon or Exempt is manifestly borrowed from those
officers of the French Garde du Corps, who were styled
in their commissions Capitaines Exemts des Gardes du
Corps, (a) and they had charge of the night-watch. (3)
In both cases the two offices are completely paraUel.
The Exon of the Yeomen of the Guard is a resident
officer, who sleeps at St. James's, as commander of
the yeomen on duty, which no other officer of the
corps does. In consequence of this service, he was
exempted from the usual guard-mountings. (4)
As to the word " Corporal" — no doubt derived, as
many other mUitary terms were, from the Spanish (6) —
(l) In the Gentleman's Mag. for May, 1790, p. 400, a description
of a drawing is given of the Standard of the Gentleman Pensioner
in 1639. (2) Daniel, Mil. Fran., torn, ii., liv. x., p. 141, edit. 1721,
(3) Eichelet, Diet
(4) A list of French officers "exempts de monter la garde," see
Elemens de I'Art MiUtaire, par d'Hericourt. (1748. Soc. Ant.)
(5) " Cabo de esquadra,'qui caput et qui cseteris prasest." (Minshen.)

REFORMS BY WILLIAM IV. 523
it had originally a wider sense. Thus Holinshed,
speaking of the armament sent by EUzabeth, in
1560, to assist the Scots against the French, uses
the word "Corporals" for Captains; and Stowe,
speaking of the naval force fitted out for the " Portu
gal Expedition" in 1588, aUuding to five captains of
ships, caUs them " Corporals of the Squadrons." (p.
755.) Corporals of the Field, eodem tempore, were
equal in rank with a Captain of Horse, and performed
the same duties as Aides-de-Camp do at present.
The office of the Clerk of the Cheque was insti
tuted by Henry VIII. In 1660 the pay of this
officer was advanced from £20 to £150 per annum.
In 1772 he was permitted to wear the uniform; and
in 1787 he was aUowed to carry a baton.
King WiUiam IV. took considerable interest in
both Body-guards of Gentlemen-at-Arms and Yeo
men. In 1835 his Majesty commanded that in
future " the officers in both corps shall be named by
the King, who wiU reserve to himseU exclusively the
selection of the most proper persons, as vacancies
occur, from Usts kept by the Commander-in-Chief of
the Army."
It was also ordered that " the Lieutenant of the
Yeomen of the Guard shaU be, or have been, a
colonel or Ueutenant-colonel in the army ; the Ensign
and Clerk of the Cheque, lieutenant-colonels or majors
in the army ; and the Exons, captains.'^1)
By highly proper regulation, vacancies among
privates for the future were to be filled up by that
(') None but officers on half-pay are eligible.

524 THE BRITISH ARMY.
class which is ah honour to the country — deserving
non-commissioned officers, not lower in rank than
sergeants. The height of the Yeomen (namely, five
feet ten inches) to be dispensed with, the chief object
being good character and meritorious service; but
they are not to be of too short a stature. By these
salutary regulations, this National Corps is placed on
a higher footing than ever, and should at least retain
that share of popular respect which it has ever
enjoyed. The present establishment of the Yeomen of
the Guard, without the commissioned officers, is as
follows : — One Assistant- Adjutant; two Messengers,
four superannuated ; two Exempts ; and ninety-five
Yeomen, eight of whom are now called Serjeant-
Majors, formerly Ushers, and receive £8 a-year more
than a private yeoman. Six of the corps hold the
ancient additional office of Yeomen Hangers ; and
two that of Yeomen Bed-goers. The duties of the
former were to take down and put up the royal
tapestry or arras, which was formerly always carried '
with the King when he went from one palace to
another ; and the latter had charge of the King's
bedding. They had also charge of the King's tent
and camp equipage, and went with George II. to
Hanover in 1743. The pay of these officers is also
£8 more than the privates. The pay of the privates
is now reduced to £31 per annum, in addition to
their army pensions.
The places were originally bought, even until
after the accession of William IV., and heavy fees

WARDERS OF THE TOWER. 525
were paid on appointment; for instance, in the year
1800 :— £ s. d.
To the Captain  315 0 0
Clerk of the Cheque  10 10 0
Deputy  110
Captain's Secretary  5 5 0
Captain's Servant  0 16 0
Cloaks  500
Treat  550
Messenger  220
Sword  0 2 0
Quilt  026
Parliament, Is. 6d. ; Servant, 2s. .036
Stamp and Warrant  15 0
£346 12 0

The Warders of the Tower are a distinct body,
never incorporated with the Yeomen of the Guard.
They were probably Yeomen of the Crown, and most
likely acted as Warders or Keepers of the Tower
when that place was used as a palace as well as a
garrison. They did not even wear the uniform till
the reign of Edward VI. In a letter written by Sir
WiUiam Wade, Knt., Lieutenant of the Tower, dated
August 24, 1612, it appears, " That before the first
commitment of the Duke of Somerset, in the time of
King Edward VI., the Warders did never weare the
King's coate ; but he, seeing the paines they tooke,
and to winne their favour, and to leave a memoriaU
of his favour to them, promised to procure His
Majesty's cloth whensoever it should please His
Majestie to sett him at liberty, which he, upon his
enlargement, performed; and so it was ordered at
that time they should be sworne Extraordinary

526 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Yeomen of the Chamber, and that hath continued
ever since." (x)
In the warrant which they receive at the present
time from the Constable of the Tower — who has the
sole and uncontrolled appointment of them — they
are styled " Yeomen of the Guard Extraordinary and
Yeomen- Warders of the Tower."
In Queen Elizabeth's reign, their daily pay
amounted only to 8d.*; and, after some years of
petitioning, they obtained an increase of 6d. per
diem at the hands of James I. They appear to
have been a neglected set of men, for, on a petition
of theirs, Lord Dartmouth, Master-General of the
Ordnance in 1683, reported that they had not re
ceived any clothing for three years.
Abolition of The appointment of Warder had been permitted
to be sold by the Lieutenants of the Tower until the
year 1688, when the foUowing proper order was
issued : —
" At the Court of WhitehaU, the 20th July, 1688:
"Whereas it was this day represented to His
Majesty that the places of Yeomen Warders of
the Tower of London have been usuaUy sold, and
granted during life, the continuance of which practice
must necessarily be prejudicial to His Majesty's
service, &c. &c.~
" And His Majesty is further pleased to order,

(J) "A warrant of Exchequer to deliver to Peter Eichardson,
goldsmith, £600 prest, to be employed in fine silver, to make
spangles for the livery coats of the guard, the yeomen of the Tower of
London," &c. (Strype's Eccles. Mems., an. 1551.)

Purchase.

No. 44.

Yeoman of the Guard, ,687. (From Sandford's Coronation of James II.)

COSTUME OF THE GUARD. 527
that henceforward no Lieutenant of his Tower of
London do presume to seU the Yeoman Warders'
places," &c.
Certain orders for the regulation of the duty of
the warders were issued in the 5th of James I.,
directing that twenty-five shaU always remain within
the Tower, also as to the keeping of the gates, from
their first opening untU the closing at night, and
that each warder shaU bear a halbert or bUl, where
soever he goes within the said Tower. The ancient
ceremony observed at the opening and shutting of
the gates and delivery of the keys, is kept up to the
present day. The number of the warders is forty,
and they are now selected from meritorious non-com
missioned officers of the army.
With respect to the handsome and unique dress costume.
of the Yeomen, it is interesting to regard it as being
the only EngUsh costume extant which retains a
close resemblance to that in existence nearly four
hundred years ago. Plate XLIV. represents a Yeoman
of the Guard in 1687, from Sandford's Coronation of
James II
The first mention of it that appears is in 1513,
when Henry VIII. was attended to the siege of
Terouenne by "six hundred archers of his garde,
al in white gabberdines and cappes/'O This was
probably a miUtary dress adapted for active service ;
but, apparently, no distinctive costume was appro
priated to them untU 1556.
By the sumptuary statute, 7 Hen. VIII. c. 6 (a.d.
(•) Hall's Chron., sub anno 1513.

528 THE BRITISH ARMY.
1515), "Yeomen of the King's Garde, and Yeomen of
the Queen's chamber that be daily Wayters and Yeo
men of the Crown, may wear in their doubletts black
velvet, satyn, or damask, and' in their gowns chamlett."
From an Order in Council, we gather that it
was the King's intention to equip the guard in
uniform in the eighth year of his reign, but it was
not carried out tiU the eighteenth : —
" Henry VIII., &c. — Whereas We, by Our letter
signed with our hand, bearing date, at our Manor
of Greenwich, the 1st of May, in the \iiith year of
Our Reign, for divers considerations Us moving, have
determined to give Livery Coats, as weU to the
Yeomen of our Garde, as unto aU other Yeomen,
Grooms, and others, have commanded Our trustie
and well-beloved servant John Surley, Esq., Cofferer
of our Household, to deUver unto Our trusty Servant
Laurence Eglesfield, Yeoman Usher of our Chamber,
for the buying of ccxiii Yardes and an half (very-
exact) of Broad Cloth, of colour Red, for Coats for
lx. Yeomen of Our Garde, at vs. niid. the yard, &c.
" Given under our Signet, at our Castle of
Wmdsor, the tenth day of June, in the xvui. Tear of
Our Reign." (Cotton. Lib., Vespasian, c. xvi.)
It is somewhat curious that only sixty coats
were ordered; but the year 1526 was one of economy
and reform, which produced the Eltham Statutes,
It has already been stated that in this year sixty-
four yeomen were displaced, and sent home on a short
allowance, to be ready when caUed for. But as the
effective force of the corps, after these displacements,

¦ COSTUME OF THE GUARD. 529
far exceeded the number of coats ordered, either a
selected number only were to be clothed uniformly,
or those on duty were to use the coats, turn about.
From that time to the present the coats have always
been red.
Sir Joseph Ayloffe, in his description of the
picture at Windsor Castle, representing the interview
of the two above-named sovereigns, says : — " The
Marquis of Dorset is followed by six of the Yeomen
of the Guard on foot, bearing partisans on their
shoulders. Their habit is scarlet, guarded and laced
on the skirts and sleeves with garter blue velvet,
and on their breasts and backs is the Union Rose,
ensigned with the crown royal embroidered with
gold. Q) See also the engraving at the Society of
Antiquaries of the procession of Edward VI. to
Westminster, taken from the fresco at Cowdray
House, Sussex. The rose was combined with the
thistle after the accession of James I., and the sham^
rock was added in 1802, after the union with Ireland.
The effigy of one " WilUam Payne, late Youman
of the Garde " (who died in 1568), on a brass in the
Church of East Wickham, Kent, represents a stout
man, with pointed beard, in doublet and trunk hose
(the sleeves are puffed at the shoulder, or are over
lapped with a sort of epaulet), with the rose and
crown on his breast, a ruff round his neck, and a
sword by his side.
On the brass in Wingfield Church, before-
mentioned (p. 520), there is the same style of doublet
(') Archaeologia, iii., p. 250.
VOL. I. J l

530 THE BRITISH ARMY.
or tunic, with pudding sleeves. The breast appears
to show embroidery, perhaps some of the spangles
which we hear of in Queen Mary's reign.
The Yeomen were furnished with scarlet hose up
to the reign of George II., which occasioned a foreign:
visitor, in 1741, to observe that the Yeomen of the
Guard were as red as lobsters ;-—
" Une troupe d'Anglo-Suisses, qu'on nomme
Yoman of the Card, et par derision Roast-beef ou
Beef-eaters, c'est a dire Mangeurs de Bceuf, remplissent
la Salle des Gardes et en font les fonctions, dont la
principale est de se ranger en haie, de tapper de la
hallebarde et de crier, ' Rangez-vous,' lorsqu'iis voyent
arriver un etranger ou autre personne de distinction.
Leur quarrure ne dement pas le sobriquet qu'on leuj; s
donne, et ils sont marques en ecrevisses c'est a dire,
v&tus de rouge depuis les pieds jusqu'a la tete/'O
The stockings have since been worn of different
colours^— -blue, grey, and white— until finally the
scarlet hose, with the ruff of Queen Elizabeth's time,
was restored to them by George IV. The Earl of
Aylesford, Captain in 1785, ordered rosettes of red
leather to be worn instead of shoe-buckles ; these are
now made of ribbon, red, white, and blue, in unison
with those round the hat.
The following warrant was issued before the
coronation of George III. : —
" Right Trusty and Right WeU-beloved Cousin
and Councillor, — We greet you well, and will and
(') Letters de M. le Baron Bielfield (8°, 1763), torn, i., Lett, xxix.,
p. 262.

ROYAL WARRANT. 531
command you forthwith to deliver, or cause to be
deUvered, unto our Right Trusty and Right WeU-
beloved Cousin and Councillor, Hugh Lord Viscount
Falmouth, Captain of the Yeomen of our Guard and
Warders of our Tower of London, or unto Savile
Cockayne Cust, Esq., Clerk of the Cheque to the
same, these Parcels following — that is to say, one
hundred and forty coats of fine crimson, in grain
cloth, lined with blue serge and guarded with blue
velvet, edged and lined with gold lace, with rose,
thistle, and crown, mottoes and scrowles, with our
letter G. R. embroidered on back and breast of each
coat, with silver spangles gilt, for one hundred
Yeomen of our Guard, and forty Warders of our
Tower of London ; and one hundred and forty pair
of Uke crimson cloth breeches, guarded with velvet
and laced with gold lace ; one hundred and forty
black velvet bonnets, with crimson, white, and blue
ribbands ; one hundred and forty, pair of grey worsted
rowUng stockings ; one hundred and forty basket-
hUted swords, with brass hilts and silver handles,
double gilt ; one hundred and forty partizans, chased
and gilt, with cawls of crimson, skye-colour, and
white sUk ; and sixteen more partizans, chased and
ornamented as aforesaid, of a shorter and less size,
being more commodious to be used by our aforesaid
Guard when they attend the Royal chairs ; one
hundred and forty waist belts, and one hundred
carbine belts, guarded with blue velvet and gold
lace ; one hundred and forty pair of Buck gloves ;
and £140, to be also delivered to the said Savile
i I 2

532 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Cockayne Cust, for watch gowns for them ; with two
large Cart Canvass Wrappers ; and a large Bible,
bound in rough leather, for the use of our Warders
in the Tower of London : the said apparel to be
put on and wore on the Day of Our Coronations
Given under our Signet, at the Palace of St. James's,
this 29th day of May, 1761.
" By His Majesty's Command, " Bute."
The Yeomen still wear the carbine belt over the
shoulder, from left to right. Although only fifty
formerly carried carbines, the whole were subse
quently supplied with them, probably for the sake of
uniformity, and a sword worn from a waist belt-.
The only difference made in the equipment of the
Warders of the Tower, is the absence of the shoulder
belt, as they never carried carbines.
On the 2nd of August, 1786, Margaret Nicholson,
a lunatic, tried to assassinate King George III. with
a knife, as his Majesty was alighting from his carriage
at the garden gate of the palace ; as she was making
a second attempt, her arm was seized by one of the
Yeomen of the Guard.
On the threatened Chartist demonstrations in
1848, St; James's Palace was garrisoned by the whole
of both the Body-guards ; the passages and haUs were
then filled with men clad in the old picturesque
garb, reviving scenes of past history. On that occa
sion, muskets and bayonets were confided to the
Yeomen — arms more congenial to the veterans now

Arms.

GENTLEMEN-AT-ARMS. 533
composing the corps than the partisan, appropriate as
it may be to State occasions.
The alacrity with which they turned out on the
10th of April is favourably acknowledged by a memo
randum inserted in the Orderly Book, by order of the
Captain, the Marquis of Donegal.
GENTLEMEN-AT-ARMS.
The Band of Gentlemen Pensioners, or as it has Gentiemen-at-
been called since 1830 (by command of King
WilUam IV.), " the honourable Corps of Gentlemen-
at-Arms," was originally a body-guard of horsemen,
estabUshed by Henry VIII., in the first year of his
reign, 1509, previous to his coronation. His father,
as we have just seen, had instituted the Yeomen
Guard, but the young and sumptuous -minded
monarch was not content with an escort of yeomen,
and so appointed an expensive corps of gentlemen,
to be an honourable guard about his person, and to
add dignity and splendour to his court.
A brief notice only of this corps is required here,
the subject having already received ample justice at
the hands of Mr. Pegge (CuriaUa, part ii.), and of
Mr. Curling. (x)
In some original statutes preserved in the Cot-
tonian Library, (2) the ostensible reason for the embo
diment of " young gentlemen of noble blood" is stated
in the preamble, namely, that by the exercise of arms
(J) Some Account of the Ancient Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms, by
J. Bunce Curling, Clerk of the Cheque. 1850.
(2) Titus, A. xiii. — The original indented deed, with the sigu-
manual.

534 THE BRITISH ARMY.
they may be better quaUfied to serve their sovereign,
either in peace or war. Most Ukely, however, the
King wished to have a dashing escort of young noble
men to add to the brilliancy of his presence.
" Certain Ordinances and Statutes devised and signed by
the King's Majestie for a retinewe of Speares or
Men-at- Armes, to be chosen of Gentlemen , that be
commen [coming], and extracte of noble Blood.
Withe a forme of their Othe.
"Henry R., — Forasmoche as the King our Sov-
raine Lorde, of his greate noblenesse, wisedom, and
prudence, considereth that in this his reame of England
be many young Gentlemen of noble Blod, which have
non exercise in the Feate of Armes, in handling and
useying the Spere and other faits of Werre on horse-
backe, like as in other Reames and Cuntreys be
dayley practised and used, to the greate honor and
laude of theim that soo dothe, his Highnes hath
ordeyned and appointed to have a Retynue daUy of
certaine Speres called Men of Armes, to be chosen of
Gentlemen that be comen and extract of noble Blod,
to thentent that they shall exercise the said Feate of
Armes, and be the more mete and able to serve theire
Prince, as well in tyme of Werre as otherwise, and to
have good wages to live upon accordingly.
" And to thentent, alsoo, that every of them shall
knowe howe to order and demeane themselfs, his
Highnes hath made, ordeyned, an established certaine
Ordenances and statutes following :
" Furst, every of the said Gentlemen shall have

ORDINANCES AND STATUTES. 535
his Harneys complete and other Habiliments mete
and necessary for him, with twoo Double Horses at
the leaste for himself and his Page, convenient and
necessarye for a Man of Armes ; also his Coustrell,
with a Javelyn or Demye-launce, weU armed and
horsed as it apperteyneth ; And they shall obeye in
every condieon the Captaine that shall be ordeyned
and deputed by the King's Highnes or his Deputie
Lieutenante to have the rule, conducte, and gov'nance
of theim in all things that their shall be commanded
to doo on the King's behalf.
" Item, that they shaU make theb abode in such
places as the King's Grace shaU appointe theim, or
the said Captaine or the Deputie Lieutenante in the
King's name, whedder it be in places nigh his person,
or elsewhere, upon pain for every such defaulte to
lose six day's wages.
" Item, that every of the forsaid Men of Armes
shaU furnyshe and make redy twoo good Archers well
horsed and harnessed, and to bring theim to muster
before the King's Grace, or suche persones as his Grace
shaU appointe, within a nioneth at the farthest after
the daye that they shaU be commanded soo to doo by
the King's Grace, or their Captaine or Lieutenante,
and not to faille soo to doo, upon paine of losing
their Romes, and their bodies to be puny shed atte the
King's pleasure.
" Item, for the wages and ent'teyning of the
said Speres and Archers, the King's Highnes hath
ordeyned and appointed that every Spere shall have
and receive for Himselfe, his Coustrell, his Page

536 THE BRITISH ARMY.
and his two Archers, thre shilUngs and foure pens
sterlings by the daye, to be paid by hands of the
Treasourer of the King's Chamber, which is appointed
by the King's Highnes to paye them the same.
" Item, the King's pleasure is, that the said
Lieutenante sball have for the Wages and Enter
taining of HimseU, his CoustreU, Page, and six
Archers, six shiUings by the daye, to be payed in
like manner as the said Speres shaU be.
"Item, the King's Grace woll that the said
Captaine or Lieutenante, with suche other psones as
his Grace shall appointe, shaU every quarter of the
yere as it shal be the King's pleasure, see the
Musters of the said Men of Armes and their Com
pany; if any of them lakke Horse, Harneys, or be
not sufficient, the said Captaine or Lieutenante shaU
restrain his wages.
" Item, that the said Speres shall always be in
the more arredynes [readiness], they shaU always be
redy to muster before the said Captaine, &c.
" Item, that the said Speres and their Company
shall keep good rule and guv'nance, and paye in redy
money for their vittals and aU necessaries, &c.
" Item, that none of the said Speres shall presume
to take" his Lodging by his owne auctorite, but be
ordered therein and take such Lodging as by the
King's Herbergiers for that purpose deputed,
" THE OTHE.
The oath. »i shal be true and faithfull Subjecte and Ser-
vante unto our Soverine Lord King Henry the VIII.,

THE OATH. 537
and to his Heirs, Kings of England, and diligently
and truely give myn attendaunce in the Rome of oon
of his Speres, and I shal be reteyned to no man,
psone, ne psones, of what degre or condicon soever
he be, by Othe, Lyvree Bagge [badge], Promise, or
otherwise, but oonly to his Grace, without his especial
Licence. And I shal not hereafter knowe or hear of
any thing that shal be hurtefull or prejudiciall to his
most royal pson, specially in treason, but I shal with
stand it to th' uttermost of my power, and the same
with all diUgence, to me possible, disclose to the
King's Highnes, or to the Captaine of the said Speres
or his Deputie-Lieutenante, or such others of his
Counsaile as I shal know wil discover the same unto
his Grace. I shal not laye to pledge ne putte awaye
suche Horse and Harney s as I nowe have mustered
with before the King to any psone or psones, ne put
oute of service any Archer, Custrell, or Page, that I
have nowe with me, unless I have before showed
cause respnable soo to doo to the King, or the said
Captaine, or his Deputie-Lieutenante in his absence;
nor suffer others to do so without disclosing the same.
I shaU also truely and faithfully to my power observe
and kepe from this daye forwards all and every article
comprized in a Booke assigned with the King's
Hand. On this I shall be obeysaunte unto my Cap
taine or Deputie-Lieutenante. And aU suche causes
secrete as shal be shewed unto me by the King's
Grace, the said Captaine or his Deputie, I shall keep
counsaill without discovering of the same to any
pson till I be commaunded. I shall diligently give

538 THE BRITISH ARMY.
my attendaunce with my Retynue upon the King's
Grace in suche wise I shall be commaunded, and not
departe from the Courte without Licence. AU suche
Horse, Harneys, &c, as I. muster in to be my own
proper goods. To muster only with my own Archers,
Custrell, or Page. And thus I shall well and truely
observe and kepe, and serve the King in the said
Rome of oon of his Speres. — So helpe me God and
theis Holy Evangelies."
It has been shown that the formation of the
Yeoman Guard was attributed to a French model,
so also it is clear that the Gentleman Pensioners
owed their origin to the same source. The Yeo
men were formed after the French " Lesser Guard,"
the Pensioners after the " Grand Guard," or " Com
pagnies des Cent Gentils-hommes du Bee de Corbin"
so named from the particular shaped axe or par
tisan, which they carried. A description of them
is given by Daniel, and the analogy is complete.
They were formed from gentlemen of the " King's
Hotel," or " Pensionnaires " hence, no doubt, the
origin of the name of the English corps. (l) It
appears by the following " Orders of King James II"
a.d. 1685, that the term "gentleman-at-arms" was
applied to those who were candidates for admission
into the corps : —
"I. The Honourable Band of our Gentlemen
Pensioners having the honour to have daUy access
to our Presence Chamber, as being our nearest Guard
(') Milice Fvancoise, torn, ii., liv. ix., p. 100, edit. 1721.

ORDERS OF JAMES II. 539
and principal military Corps of our Household — in
which honourable Band our Royal Father in his late
Civil Wars, as well as other Princes our Predecessors,
having found great service as well in the guard of
their Royal Persons as that it hath served them as
a Nursery to breed up the Nobility and Gentry of
the Realm in military discipUne, and fit them to be
Commander in their Wars — and we having taken
notice that several Persons have been admitted into
the said Band not qualified as heretofore for that
service, which has rendered the said Band less
grateful to Us ; We think fit and ordain that hence
forth none shall be admitted to be of the Forty
Gentlemen Pensioners in Ordinary but the sons of
Noblemen or Gentlemen of Blood, or such persons
who by their valour and good conduct in the Wars
have distinguished themselves as Commissioned
Officers in our forces, and who shaU, for the term
of six months at the least, have served at their
own proper charge as Gentlemen at Arms, commonly
called Gentlemen Pensioners Extraordinary of the
said Band."
In Article 21 of these Orders, it is laid down
that " The Gentlemen Pensioners in Ordinary and
the Gentlemen-at-Arms Extraordinary of the said
Band, shall be advanced to be commissioned officers
in Our Army, preferably to all other persons what
soever." The corps had deteriorated — not in loyalty, no
doubt — but by the introduction into its ranks of
persons possessing neither military qualifications, nor

540 THE BRITISH ARMY.
position in society to warrant their admission. By
a regulation passed in King George IV. 's reign, it
was determined that " no candidate shall be deemed
eUgible to enter the ranks of the Gentlemen-at-Arms
who is or has been connected with trade." The
Gentlemen-at-Arms are styled esquires in their warrant
of appointment, and rank with captains in the army.
Moreover, "the Captains of the Band had freedom
and power of disposing of all places of Gentlemen
Pensioners in Ordinary, and of all Gentlemen Pen
sioners Extraordinary, which shall at any time
become vacant, in as full and ample manner as any
Captains of the Band have enjoyed and practised
the same before the last establishment in the year
1670." (x) But WUliam IV., who, as it has been8
abeady observed, took a warm interest in the Body
Guards, restored the ancient requirement that none.
should be admitted to the corps but " such persons
who by their valour and good conduct in the wars
have distinguished themselves as Commissioned
Officers in the forces."
The foUowing Order was issued by him : —
"Brighton, December 3rd, 1830.
" The King transmits to the Captain of the Corps
of Gentlemen-at-Arms, for his guidance, a regulation
enclosed, which His Majesty has thought fit to
establish with respect to filling up the vacancies
which may hereafter occur by death or retirement, not
entitled to sale, in that corps,
"William R,
(') Orders of King Jame3 II., ut supra.

REGULATION OF WILLIAM IV. 541
"The whole of the officers to be named by His
Majesty, who will reserve to himself, exclusively, the
selection of the most proper persons, as vacancies
occur, from Usts kept by the Commander-in-Chief of
the Army, who will be responsible to the King for
the past conduct and merit of those who may be re
commended. " The Lieutenant either to be, or to have been,
a Colonel or Lieutenant-Colonel in the British Army,
or Corps of Royal Marines.
" The Standard- Bearer, the Clerk of the Cheque,
and the Harbinger to be, or to have been, Lieutenant-
Colonels in the Army or Marines.
" The Private Gentlemen to be, or to have been,
Captains or Subalterns in the British Army or Royal
Marines, to be selected from lists kept by the Com
mander-in-Chief, and by him laid before the King,
who will make his choice both of the Officers and
Private Gentlemen of the Corps.
" The Officers and Private Gentlemen, if on half-
pay, are to enjoy the same together with their
salaries." This unquestionable improvement, however, re
verses the intention of the founder, namely, that the
band should be a nursery for officers of the army.
The Gentlemen Pensioners were granted the privi
lege by their founder of doing duty by detachments,
which was called " quarterly-waiting," as appears by
the orders issued when Sir Anthony Browne was
captain, which are preserved in the Harleian MSS.,
No. 6,142. These orders are without date, but Henry-

542 THE BRITISH ARMY.
Bourchier, Earl of Essex, who was the first captain
of the band, whom Sir Anthony Browne succeeded,
died 1540. The whole band was to give attendance
under cheque as formerly at the four principal feasts
of the year, viz., Christmas, Easter, Whitsuntide, and
AllhaUows. The privilege is stated to have been
granted at the special suit of Sir Anthony Browne,
and in consideration whereof, the pensioners were to
provide three horses furnished instead of two. (1)
Passing over some notices, when the pensioners
acted merely as a guard of honour at home, they are
found actively engaged as an escort to their founder
in his expedition to France in 1544. In the printed
account before quoted, (2) we find "the King's Ma
jestie in the myds of his Pikemen;" and in the picture
of the siege of Boulogne, we discover, what may
fairly be presumed to be, the King's "retinue of
Spears" in close attendance on the royal person,
while a charger, richly caparisoned, probably the
King's, is awaiting immediately in their front, held
apparently by one of the Yeomen of the Guard.
In the succeeding reign, we may see them in the
young King's procession from the Tower to West
minster : " The pensioners and men of armes, with
their polle-axes on either side the way on foote." (3)
On the day of the coronation, the pensioners ap-
(') The same privilege was conferred on the French Gentlemen
Guard in 1585 : — " Sa Majeste ordonne que les deux cents gentils-
hommes de sa maison servirent chacun par quartier pres de sa
personne." (Mil. Fran., torn, ii., liv. ix., p. 105.)
(2) See Yeomen op the Guard, p. 512 ante.
(3) Leland's Collectanea, iv. 312.

A FIELD-DAY IN 1551. 543
peared "apparelled all in red damaske, with their
pole-axes in their hands." (a)
It was the custom of those days for most of the
great officers of state and principal nobility to be in
charge of bands or troops of men-at-arms, which were
then maintained with allowances from the Crown, and
which command they held frrespectively of any other
pubUc office or employment. They were occasionally
mustered and marched before the King, and with them
the Gentlemen Pensioners. One of these grand field-
- days took place in 1551, of which Strype gives an
account, and also the reason assigned for holding it :^-
"The King was minded to see his standing
Forces, Horse and Foot, muster before him, and the
rather that he might be in a readiness in case any
rising might happen, as was apprehended by the dis
contented Duke of Somerset and his party. So there
were letters written and directed to certain of the
Chief Officers of the Army to have the Gendarmary
and Bands of Horsemen, which were appointed there
in a readiness to be seen by His Majesty, the Sun
day foUowing HaUowtide next, being 8th November.
And a Uke letter was dispatched to the Marquis of
Northampton (Captain of the Band of Pensioners), to
have the Band appointed him in a readiness, with all
the Pensioners and Men of Arms attending the Court.
" In Hyde Park was then a great Muster in the
King's presence, after this manner. First came the
King's trumpeters. Then
" The Lord Bray, in gilt Harness, Captain of
(') Ibid., pp. 322-324.

544 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the Pensioners, (a) and a Great Banner of the King's
Arms. Then
" All the Pensioners in complete Harness and
great array, in White and Black, five and five in a
rank ; and after them came their servants, in number
an Hundred, with Great Horses and Harness, in
White and Black, with Spears." (2) ¦
There were eleven companies or troops mustered
under their respective captains or proprietors, bearing
the standards of their family arms, and clad in the
family colours.
It may here be observed that the term "company"
or " troop " had formerly a much more enlarged mean
ing than at present. It referred to what would now
almost constitute a regiment : for instance, the " Pen
sioners," the "Gentlemen," with their two archers,
amounted to 150 horsemen without the officers. In
after years we find the " troop of Horse Grenadier
Guards," and other independent "troops," simUarly
constituted. The King goes on to say, that " the horses all
fair and great, the worst would not have been given
for less than twenty pounds : there was none under
fourteen handfulls and a half the most part, and
almost aU the horses with their guider going before
them. They passed twice" about St. James's Field,
and compassed it round and so departed."
(') He was the Lieutenant, and commanded in the absence of the
Captain, Lord Northampton, who marched at the head of the fourth
company, his own corps, who mustered under his own standard,
and wore his family colours.
(21 Eccles. Mems., anno 1551.

Rebellion.

CRITICAL STATE OF LONDON. 545
The foUowing reign of Queen Mary was ushered
in amidst a crowd of difficulties. Rome and the
projected Spanish marriage presented elements of
insoluble discord. The Queen scarcely knew whom
to trust. She was even so ill advised as to think
of surrounding herself with an Irish body-guard ;
and she went so far as to send a commission to Sir
George Stanley for their transport. The scheme
was, however, abandoned. (l) Six months had barely Wyatt's
elapsed since her accession, before the metropolis
was thrown into consternation by the news that Sir
Thomas Wyatt, with an army of rebels, having suc
cessfuUy encountered the royal troops at Rochester,
was in direct march on London. We are told that
there was " so great a terrour to all sorts of people,
that at Westminster HaU the Serjeants and other
lawyers pleaded in harness," (a) and that Dr.
Weston " sang mass in harness before the Queen ;
tradesmen attended in harness behind their counters ;
the metropoUs, on both sides of the water, being in
an attitude of armed expectation." (s) It was a situa
tion sufficiently appaUing for the Sovereign, or, in
deed, for any one. On Saturday, February 3, 1554,
Wyatt, at the head of the insurgents, marched into
Southwark, with the design of entering the City.
London Bridge was then a long, narrow street, with
a gate at the Southwark extremity, and a draw
bridge near the middle. The gate was secured, and
(!) Tanner, MSS. 90, Bod. Lib.— Froude, vi. 102.
(2) Baker's Chron., p. 318.
(8) Froude, vi. 170.
VOL. I. J J

546 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the drawbridge broken down. There, was extraor
dinary inaction on both sides. Had there been zeal
for the Queen's cause, the rebels would have been
crushed. The leading men wavered. Had Wyatt
been able at once to have entered the Cit y, the rising,
in all probability, would have been successful, but
delay was fatal to his cause. In the darkness of
night, Wyatt scaled the leads of the gate-house, and
made a personal reconnaissance.^) He considered
his advance that way to be hopeless. He, however,
hung thereabouts till Tuesday, when he resolved to
make for Kingston, cross the river there, and so enter
London. His friends in the City promised to receive
him, could he reach Ludgate by daybreak on Wed
nesday. He marched out with about 1,500 men.
He had cannon with him, which delayed his march,
but at four in the afternoon he reached Kingston.
Thirty feet of the bridge were broken away, and 300
men were stationed on the other side. These, how
ever, fled after a few rounds from the guns. A row
of barges lay on the opposite bank ; he induced three
men to swim across and tow them over; they were
then moored where the bridge was broken, beams and
planks laid across them, and a means of transit was
thus afforded of sufficient strength to bear the guns
and wagons.
wyatt crosses By eleven o'clock at night the river was crossed,
the Thames. ' T °
and the march resumed. The weather was bad, and
the roads heavy ; and through that winter night the
motley party plunged along. The Rochester men
.(>) Holinshed.

PREPARATIONS FOR DEFENCE. 547
had most of them gone home, and those who re
mained were mostly London , deserters, or fanatics
who beUeved they were fighting the Lord's battle.
Between two and three in the morning the Queen
was caUed from her bed. She was informed that the
insurgents had forced the bridge, and would shortly
be in London. She was urged to fly — that her barge
was ready, and she could escape to Windsor. Mary,
however, evinced the spbit of the Tudors — she was
firm, and wisely determined to remain. (*)
At four o'clock a.m. drums went round the City,
calling the armed citizens to an immediate muster at
Charing Cross ; and by eight, more than ten thousand
men were stationed along the ground, then an open
field, which slopes from PiccadiUy to Pall Mall. The
road on which Wyatt was expected to advance ran
nearly on the site of PiccadiUy itseU. At the top of
St. James's Street guns were placed, and the gentle
men, who formed four squadrons of horse, were pushed
forward towards Hyde Park Corner.
The Yeomen-Guard was out with the musters, a
part stationed with Sb John Gage and some horse at
Charing Cross. The duty of guarding the Queen's
person was entrusted to the Gentlemen Pensioners.
Disaffection, however, existed there. Sir Humphrey
Radcliff, the Lieutenant, was "a favourer of the
Gospel," as we learn, from the hand of one of the
band, a "Hot Gospeller," who gives an account of
(') " But more than marvel it was to see that day the invincible
heart and constancy of the Queen herself, who, being by nature a
woman, and therefore commonly more fearful than men be, shewed
herself in that case more stout than is credible." (Holinshed.)
j j 2

548 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the conduct of the Pensioners on that eventful occa
sion^1) The writer, who had done good military
service in the two preceding reigns, had been under a
cloud for having published what was considered a
seditious poem. He had been released from New
gate on account of his state of health, and by giving
security. When Wyatt marched into Southwark, the
Pensioners were commanded to watch in armour that
night at the Court. It was not unreasonable that so
notorious a person as Underhill should be prohibited
from remaining on duty at such a time of danger.
"After supper," says he, "I put on my armour, as the
rest did, for we were appointed to watch all the night.
So, being all armed, we came up into the chamber
of presence with our poleaxes in our hands, wherewith
the ladies were very fearful. Some lamenting, crying,
and wringing their hands, said, ' Alas ! there is some
great mischief toward ; we shall aU be destroyed this
night. What a sight is this, to see the Queen's
chamber fuU of armed men : the Uke was never seen
nor heard of!' Mr. Norris, chief usher of Queen
Mary's privy chamber, was appointed to caU the watch
to see if any were lacking ; unto whom Moore, the
clerk of our check, deUvered the book of our names ;
and when he came to my name, 'What,' said he, 'what
doth he here?' 'Sir,' said the clerk, 'he is here ready
to serve as the rest be.' ' Nay, by God's body,' said
he, ' that heretic shall not watch here. Give me a
pen.' So he. struck my name out of the book."
0 Underbill's Narrative : Harl.. MSS., 425.— See also Strypej
Eccles. Mems., anno 1553, iii. 100. /

SPIRIT OF THE QUEEN. 549
Wyatt was delayed on his march by the breaking wyatt arrives
down of a gun at Brentford, which he ought to have a bridge. *
left behind, in order to have kept his appointment in
the City, as he was urged to do ; but he obstinately
persisted in waiting until the carriage could be re
paired, so that it was nine o'clock before he brought
what remained of his force — wet, hungry, and faint
with theb night-march— up the hill from Knights-
bridge. Near Hyde Park Corner a lane turned off; a
troop of horse was posted there ; and as the insur
gents straggled on without order, when half of them
had passed, the cavalry dashed out, and so divided
them, and aU who were behind were dispersed or cap
tured. The Queen's guns then opened fire upon those
in front, and killed three men; but Wyatt hurried
on, and, turning to the right, struck down towards
St. James's. He then went along the present PaU
MaU, amidst a line of citizens, who might easily
have stopped him, but they made way for him and
let him pass. As he came up to Charing Cross, Lord
Courtenay turned his horse's head, and, followed by
Lord Worcester, gaUoped down to Whitehall, caUing
out, " Lost, lost ! " and carried panic to the Court.
The guard broke at his flight, and came hurrying
behind him. The Queen, who had been watching
from the palace gaUery, alone retained her presence
of mind, and declared, that if others durst not stand
the trial against the traitors, she herself would go
out into the field and try the quarrel, and die with
those that would serve her. (l)
(») Holinshed, p. 1,099.

550 THE BRITISH ARMY.
A portion of the rebels had separated from Wyatt
at Hyde Park Corner, and made their way to West
minster, and so up to Whitehall. But finding the
gates closed, they shot a few arrows at the windows,
and passed on. At Charing Cross they were en
countered by Sir Henry Jerningham, Captain of the
Guard ; Sir Edward Bray, Master of the Ordnance,
and Sir Philip Paris, who were sent by the Earl of
Pembroke with a band of archers to intercept them.
Here there was a Uttle fighting. Both sides being
dressed alike — viz., in white coats, except the Guards
— the rebels could only be distinguished by the mire
and dirt on their clothes ; so the cry on the Queen's
side was — "Down with the daggle-tails!"
The Pensioners, who were then in the haU, de
manded that the gates might be opened, declaring
that " it was too great shame that the gate should be
thus shut for a few rebels, and that the Queen should
see them fell down her enemies before her face."^)
The gates were then opened, and the Gentlemen
Pensioners issued forth ; and there is no saying what
feats of arms they might not have performed had not
their Royal mistress restrained them, for she desired
that they would not go out of her sight, as her only
trust was in them for the defence of her person that
day. They marched up and down for the space of
an hour before the window of the gallery over the
gate, where the Queen was, when news was brought
that Wyatt was taken. "Anon after," continues
Underhill, "the Guard of Pensioners were aU brought
(') Underbill.

surrenders.

EXPENSES OF GENTLEMEN PENSIONERS. 551
into the Queen's presence, and every one kissed her
hand, of whom they had great thanks and large
promises, how good she would be unto them ; but
few or none of us got anything."
Wyatt marched as far as "a common inn caUed wyatt
the BeU Sauvage,"^) but, finding Ludgate closed
against him, he tried to make his way back again.
But his luck had also now turned ; a herald at Temple
Bar called out to him to surrender, and he there
deUvered up his sword ; and, to prevent the press,
Sb Maurice Barkley, who " by chance was riding
to London upon his horse with footcloth without
armour," took him. up behind, and he was afterwards
safely lodged in the Tower.
In the reign of Queen Elizabeth, the position of a
Gentleman Pensioner was a very expensive one ; it
was considered a high honour to be a member of the
band. The Earl of Clare said "that when he was
pensioner to the Queen, he did not know a worse man
of the whole band than himself; and that aU the
world knew he had then an inheritance of £4,000
a-year."(2) Mrs. Quickly, indeed, gives a Gentleman
Pensioner the precedence of an earl;(3) and the mag
nificence of his dress is aUuded to in Midsummer
Night's Dreanii where we are told of Titania, that —
" The cowslips tall her pensioners be ;
In their gold coats spots you see."
Hentzner, who went to Greenwich on a Sunday,
(J) Holinshed.
(2) Biographica Britannica, sub voce Holies, n., vol. iv., p. 2,628.
(3) Merry Wives of Windsor, act ii,, scene 2.

552 THE BRITISH ARMY.
to see the Queen pass through the Hall on her way
to the Chapel, says "she was guarded on each side
by Gentlemen Pensioners (Satellites nobiles), fifty in
number, with gilt battle-axes." By the fact of the
whole band being in attendance, that Sunday must
either have been a high-day, or perhaps, the Court
.being out of town, aU were required to attend.
The band in attendance on Queen Elizabeth, with
their poll-axes, is clearly discernible in the painting
representing Her Majesty in procession to Blackfriars,
in June, 1600. In this picture, in the coUection of
Lord Digby, at Sherborne Castle, the Gentlemen Pen
sioners are dressed uniformly in black cloaks, with
ruffs about their necks. (l)
It was probably in consideration of the constant
services which the Queen exacted from this band —
which may be said to have reached its zenith during
her reign — that she was induced to give a table to
those on duty, a privilege which they had never
enjoyed before, and which, in the foUowing reign,
appears to have been commuted for an equivalent in
board wages ; for in the State Paper Office there
exists an order on the Exchequer, signed by James I.,
in 1616, for an "imprest of six thousand pounds, for
wages and board wages then due to the officers and
the band in general." (a)
(') An engraving of this picture was made by Vertue for the
Society of Antiquaries, in 1742, and until lately was considered as
the visit of the Queen to Hunsdon House, Herts, in 1580. (See
Mr. Scharf's (F.S.A.) able exposition of it in the Archceolog. Journ.,
No. 90, p. 131.)
(2) Book of the Court, by W". J. Thorns, p. 355.

LETTER FROM LORD HUNSDON. 553
On the accession of James I., the Captain of the
Pensioners, George Lord Hunsdon, who had been
appointed to the command at the death of his father,
thought it proper to address the following letter,
tendering the services of the band to the King. As
it gives a description of the Corps, it is worth re
printing : —
"Most mighty and most gracious Liege and
Sovereign, —
" Amongst many other honours and duties which
I owe unto the memory of my late deseesed Sove
reign, this is not the least; that it pleased her
Majesty, upon the deceese of my lord and father, who
also enjoyed the same honourable office, to grace me
with the Captainship of her Band of Gentlemen
Pensioners ; which place and dignity I have to this
present enjoyed ; for the further continuance whereof
I humbly desire to understand your Majesty's direc
tions, and withal do think it a matter agreeable to
my duty and aUegiance, plainly and truly to inform
your Majesty of the institution, nature, quality, and
service of this honourable band. They are in all
fifty gentlemen, besides myself, Ueutenant, standard-
bearer, clerk of the cheque, and gentleman harbinger,
chosen out of the best and the ancientest families of
England, and some of them sons to Earls, Barons,
Knights and Esqubes, men thereunto especially re
commended for their worthiness and sufficiency, with
out any stain or taint of dishonour, or disparagement
in blood. Her Majesty and other Princes her pre
decessors have found great use of theb services, as

554 THE BRITISH ARMY.
weU in the guard and defence of theb royal persons,
as also in sundry other important employments, as
weU civU as mUitary, at home and abroad ; inasmuch
as it hath served them always as a nursery to breed
up Deputies for Ireland, Ambassadors into foreign
parts, Counsellors of State, Captains of the Guard, (:)
Governors of Places, and Commanders in the wars
both by sea and land. Withal, I cannot omit to
signify unto your Majesty the alacrity and affection
wherewith, upon the decease of her Majesty, they did
embrace your Majesty's title and cause ; insomuch
that upon my motion they did most willingly offer
themselves to a strong and settled combination, by
solemn oath and vow, to defend and prosecute your
Majesty's lawful right and title by themselves, theb
friends, aUies and foUowers (being no contemptible
portion of the kingdom), to the last drop of theb
blood, against aU impugners whatsoever ; with which
humble and dutiful desires of theirs to serve your
Majesty I thought it my part and duty to acquaint
you, and withal humbly desbe to know your Majesty's
pleasure and resolution concerning them. I have
caused them to remain aU about the court, with their
horses, armour, and men, to attend the body of our
late royal mistress ; and being generaUy aU desirous
to wait upon your Majesty at your entry into this
(') Queen Elizabeth's handsome favourite, Sir Christopher
Hatton, for instance, from being appointed one of tbe Pensioners, be
came successively a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber, Captain of
the Yeomen of the Guard, Vice-Chamberlain, a Knight of the Garter,
and at last High Chancellor. (See Memoirs of Sir Christopher
Hatton, by Sir Harris Nicolas.)

DEFECTION. 555
kingdom, as those that would be loth to be second to
any in all obsequious and serviceable duties to your
Majesty, where I humbly desire your Majesty's
further direction, " And ever desbe Almighty God," &c. (x)
Two years after the accession of James — namely, Powder Plot.
in 1605* — occurred the Gunpowder Plot, and, unfortu
nately, two members of the band were seriously
impUcated in it: one no less a personage than the
Captain, the Earl of Northumberland (who had
succeeded Lord Hunsdon) ; and the other, Thomas
Percy, a kinsman of the Earl. This latter was a
prime mover in the conspiracy, and when the plot
was discovered, fled to the country, making for
Holbeach House, in Warwickshire, the residence of
Stephen Littleton, one of the associates, and there,
with a few others, he was hunted down and shot
by the posse comitatus, headed by the sheriff of the
county. Northumberland came under a grave sus
picion of a guUty knowledge. He was sentenced by
the Star Chamber to pay a fine of £30,000, to be
deprived of aU his places, and to undergo perpetual
imprisonment for misprision of treason, in admitting
his kinsman into the band without tendering to him
the oath. After suffering fifteen years' imprisonment
in the Tower, he was then released.
During the reign of Charles I. the Pensioners
gave faithful service to theb sovereign. For some
(') Printed in Chamberlayne's Present State of England (1748),
pt. ii., p. 126.

556 THE BRITISH ARMY.
reason the band did not attend the King to Scotland
in 1640, (J) but upon his return from that country in
the next year he was " royally feasted" at Guildhall,
whither he was attended by the Earl of SaUsbury,
Captain of the Pensioners, followed by "the Gentle
men Pensioners, with their poll-axes, aU mounted,
with pistols at theb saddles." (a)
When the King made his indiscreet entry into
the House of Commons in the next year, he was
attended by his Guard of Pensioners and Halr
bertiers.(3) In the foUowing year, when Charles was at
Oxford, and had reason to fear assassination, it was
commanded that "as often as his Majesty did ride
abroad, the Captain of his Majesty's Guard (Yeomen), t
the Lieutenant of the Pensioners, and four of the
Pensioners, should ride continuaUy near his Majesty's
person, to suffer none of mean condition, or unknown
to them, to come near his Majesty."
At EdgehiU the King was, begged to withdraw
to a place of safety, " having his Guard of Pensioners
on horseback with him."(4) According to a MS. in
the possession of Dr. Lingard, one of the band per
formed there an act of especial service to the royal
family : " The Prince of- Wales, about twelve years
old, who was on horseback in a field under the care
of Sir John Hinton, had a narrow escape. ' One of
the troopers observing you,' says Hinton, 'came in
(') Clarendon, State Papers, ii. 90.
(2) Eulhworth, vol. i., pt. iii., p. 431.
(') Ibid., p. 477.— Ludlow, p. 11.
(4) Bulstrode, p. 80.

GENTLEMEN PENSIONERS RESTORED. 557
full career towards your highness. I received his
charge, and having spent a pistol or two on each
other, I dismounted him in the closing; but being
armed cap-a-pie, I could do no execution on him
with my sword : at which instant one Mr. Mathews,
a Gentleman Pensioner, rides in, and with a poll-axe
decides the- business."^)
Orders for the government of the band, issued
in 1633, wiU be found in Mr. Curling's History,
p. 97. Whether the Band of Pensioners was dismissed
in form at the time of the Protectorate, or merely
dissolved by the accidents of the times, does not
appear. CromweU had a body guard, which con
sisted of 140 horse, formed apparently on the model
of the Pensioners.
At the Restoration, such of the old band as had
survived the shock of civil war, appear voluntarily
to have attended, deeming themselves, it is presumed,
rather suspended than dismissed. They were soon,
however, regularly re-embodied ; and in the following
July, when Charles II. dined in state at Guildhall,
they marched on foot on each side of the King's
carriage, with pistols in their hands, under the com
mand of the Earl of Cleveland, their captain.
In 1670, the strength of the band was reduced
from fifty to forty, at which it has ever since
continued, and the pay of the several ranks was
fixed, namely: £1,000 to the captain, £500 to the
lieutenant, £310 to the standard-bearer, £4,000 to
(*) History of England, sub anno 1642.

558 THE BRITISH ARMY.
the forty gentlemen, £120 to the clerk of the cheque,
and £70 to the gentleman harbinger. Since the
above was given, no augmentation or alteration has
taken place up to the present day.
An important order was promulgated in 1670,
so far as the Pensioners were concerned, namely,
that the King resumed the appointment of the whole
band, which had previously been lodged in the hands
of the captain; but in 1677, an exception was made
to this rule in favour of the Earl of Roscommon, in
consequence of the sense the King entertained of the
constant loyalty of his family to the late King, and
of their great sufferings for the same, and "power
was thereby given to him to dispose of such places
as shaU be vacant by death, so long as the said Earl
shaU continue captain." Every gentleman was, how
ever, to be presented to the King on appointment
for his approbation. (x) This privilege was again un
reservedly conferred upon the captain by James IL,
and appears never to have been revoked until
WUliam IV. made the alteration in the constitution
of the band.
The honour of knighthood was usuaUy conferred
by the Sovereign at his coronation on some of the
officers or gentlemen of the corps. Charles I., soon
after his coronation in Scotland (1633), knighted no
less than seventeen of his Gentlemen Pensioners. Ajfc
the coronation of George III., the Standard Bearer
(*) According to the petition of Samuel Alston, who was dis
possessed of his place by Lord Lovelace, £500 was the purchase
price for admission into the band.

THE BAND ORDERED ON ACTIVE SERVICE. 559
and the Senior Gentleman were knighted. It subse
quently became the practice of knighting the Lieu
tenant of the Band, as weU as the Lieutenant of the
Yeomen of the Guard, as a matter of course, whereby
many who had been anxious for that distinction were
induced to purchase into these corps, thereby reducing
to a marketable commodity that which by right should
be regarded as a record and reward of services rendered
to the Sovereign and country.
The band has ever since existed merely as a
guard of the Sovereign, within the verge of the
court, on state ceremonials, and as such, rather as
an appendage to Royalty than as a military body;
with one exception — in the rebellion of 1745, the
Pensioners received orders to hold themselves in readi
ness to accompany theb royal master to the field.
The news, however, of the battle of CuUoden, made it
unnecessary for his Majesty to take the command in
person. The foUowing order was sent to the Clerk of the
Cheque, by Sir WiUiam Wynne, the lieutenant : —
"Sir, — The Rebels having advanced to Derby,
the King has signified his intention to set up his
standard on Finchley Common ; you are therefore
commanded to warn the Gentlemen of the Band to
be in readiness with their Servants, Horses, and arms
tq -attend his, Majesty there. " William Wynne."
With respect to their arms, the poll-axe has ever
been their distinctive weapon, whether mounted or

560 THE BRITISH ARMY.
on foot. Even in the battle-field, the axe was borne
by the gentlemen so late as the Civil War, as has
abeady been narrated. It has also been mentioned
that they were armed with pistols.
With regard to theb dress, there seems generally
to have been a conformity : thus, at the siege of
Boulogne, they were habited alike ; and again, at the
coronation of Edward VI., and* at one of the musters
in his reign, they appeared in complete harness, and
in white and black. In the reign of Mary they
mustered in white and green, a favourite colour of
the house of Tudor. Charles II. laid down that
they " be not obliged to wear or use any other habit,
or give any other livery, than such as they them
selves shall think fit." James II. ordered that each'
of them shaU be provided " with a case of pistols, a
broad-sword, an iron back, breast and head piece;"
and further, that their "habits, arms, and clothing,
shaU be such as We or their Captain shall appoint."
" The trumpeters of Our Household attending on
the said Band when they are under arms, shaU on
every such attendance henceforth be mounted upon
white horses."
In 1712 (Queen Anne's reign), the Captain, the
Duke of Beaufort, issued an order, "that the band
should wear theb new clothes, red topped shoes, a
white feather, and hat according to pattern :" and for
mourning, on the 6th of April, 1714 (on the decease
of the Princess Sophia, daughter of Frederick, Elector
Palatine, King of Bohemia, and Elizabeth, daughter
of our James I.), "theb regimental coat, a black

COURT MOURNING UNIFORM. 561
waistcoat, breeches and stockings, a mourning sword,
and a plain hat." On the 2nd of August following,
the gentlemen were ordered to carry their axes in
mourning, on account of the Queen's death ; and on
the 10th, to attend the funeral in close mourning,
cloaks excepted. At the funeral of George I.,
they were directed to "have for mourning a scarlet
coat, trimmed with black, with a black cloth waist
coat and breeches, black band and buckles, and the
axe in mourning," that is, the tufts black, and shafts
covered with black velvet, in place of their usual
covering of erimson velvet, "ornamented with gilt
nails. The Drawing-Rooms, as we now caU them, were
introduced on the accession of George II. and Queen
, Caroline, and were held in the evening. The Duke
of Montagu, the Captain of the Pensioners, in 1734,
ordered that ".five of the gentlemen do attend every
morning .in the Presence Chamber, with their axes,
from the hour of ten in the morning tiU his Majesty
is gone. to dinner; and that they also attend with
theb battle-axes in the Presence Chamber every
' Drawing Room night, and other pubUc nights, from
eight o'clock in the evening till his Majesty is retbed,
and always to stand to their arms when any of the
Royal Family or the Captain pass by."
On the death of Queen CaroUne, in 1737, they
were to appear " in a scarlet cloth coat, trimmed with
black, with sleeves faced with black cloth, without
buttons on the sleeves or pockets, with a black
cloth waistcoat and breeches, cambric weepers, broad
vol. i. K K

562 THE BRITISH ARMY.
hemmed, shammy gloves, crape hatbands, black
swords and buckles."
Lord Hobart, the Captain in 1745, directed tlje
gentlemen to discontinue the scarlet hose, which had
previously been ordered to be worn on the birthday
of George I., and to wear instead stockings of light
grey. In addition to which, the band was in future
to parade in brigadier perukes and buckskin gloves.
On the demise of George III., the band was directed,
in common with military and naval officers, to wear
only crape round the left arm.
George IV., at his coronation, presented each
Gentleman Pensioner with a magnificent dress, copied,
it is stated, from that represented as worn by the
band in the time of Queen Elizabeth, in the picture,,
ordered to be painted by Lord Hunsdon, before
aUuded to. It consisted of a scarlet doublet, slashed
with blue, and covered with innumerable gold
buttons ; red silk stockings, white shoes, with red
and. black roses, white gloves, and a black hat, with
red and black feathers. Each dress is said to have
cost £200.
Previous to the coronation of her present Majesty,
the Band was ordered to be equipped in a style more
appropriate for a cavalry corps than that worn during
the last two reigns, which had been assimUated to
the regimentals worn by the officers of the foot-
guards. With the concurrence of the Captain, Lord
Foley, Her Majesty sanctioned the present uniform,
viz., a gUt helmet with plume of white feather,
scarlet coatee, with facings of blue velvet, coUar and

No. 45.

Gentleman Pensioner, 1687. (From Sandford's Coronation of James II.)

PRESENT UNIFORM. 563
cuffs embroidered in gold, gold epaulettes, gold em
broidered pouch and gold belt, blue cloth trousers
with gold oak-leaf lace, heavy cavalry sash, sword,
gold sling belt, boots and spurs, and white leather
gauntlets, v
Plate XLV. — Gentleman Pensioner, 1687. From
Sandford's Coronation of James II

end of vol. i.

OAaaEH., FETTEB, AMD OAIPIK, BSUE SAUVAGE WOKKS, LONDOH, E.C.