ROYAL ARMOURIES MUSEUM OBJECTS IN CONTEXT SHEET 2

THE ENGLISH CIVIL WARS

SOLDIERS, ARMOUR AND WEAPONS
a) PIKEMAN (see g. 1 and 2) A pikemans armour weighed about 11 kg and cost two pounds seven shillings and four pence. This was worn over a woollen jacket. The distinctive pikemans pot helmet was lined, but as it could not stop musket balls, it was often replaced by a woollen cap. A pikeman carried about 25 kg in total including breast and backplate, helmet, 4.5 metre (16 foot) pike, knapsack and a sword. However, armour was phased out 16425, certainly pikemen in the New Model Army were not armed.The pike was an excellent defensive weapon employed in mass, especially against cavalry.The cavalry rarely broke infantry ranks except when the footsoldiers were tired. Infantry fought in deep formations of about 6 ranks. b) MUSKETEER (see g. 3) In 1632 Charles I urged the revival of the longbow which could be red at six times the rate of a musket. However, it only took a few days to train a musketeer in the loading of a musket and the use of volley re, whereas training a longbowman took years. A musketeer cost about 1 19s 6d to arm. He had little armour, except perhaps a steel helmet. Attached to his bandolier, or cross belt, were twelve wooden bottles each containing a charge of gunpowder. He would be equipped with a sword for hand to hand combat. Reloading a musket took at least thirty seconds.The match-lock musket weighed about 7kg and was often red resting on a stand. It could kill up to 400 metres, but the effective range was when you could see the whites of the eyes of the enemy.The match cord was lit just before battle so the musketeer could not respond to a surprise attack.The glowing cord also made them very visible at night.The gun had a powerful recoil and red a lead ball. In wet weather misres were frequent. Dragoons were mounted infantry who rode into battle and then fought on foot.They were armed with muskets. Fig. 1: A Pikeman

Fig. 2: Pikemans armour from Hexhams Principles of the Art Military, 1642.

Fig. 3: Musketeers armour from Hexhams Principles of the Art Military, 1642.

Fig. 4: Cuirassier armour from J.Bingham, Tactics of Aelian, 1616.

c) CAVALRY (see g. 4) During the sixteenth century there had been several different types of cavalry according to the arms and armour carried. By 1642 there were only two; the cuirassier and the harquebusier, with two main tactical approaches; rearms based or shock based using the sword as the main weapon. Cavalrymen were trained to charge with their right knee tucked behind the man on their rights left leg, in les 3 deep, and in ranks of 2 or 6 wide.The cuirassier armour was heavy and expensive (20kg/45) and hampered mobility but gave maximum protection allowing the cuirassier to concentrate on using his two pistols and carbine. Deep formations allowed them to operate like mounted musketeers. Harquebusiers wore less armour; at most a leather buff coat (12), helmet, bullet-proof breastplate, backplate and a bridle gauntlet.They carried two intlock pistols in the holsters of their saddles, and a sword.This meant that they had the mobility to choose between using pistols and charging with the sword. Charging in two or three ranks proved the more effective tactic, although initial success could be lost if victorious troopers refused to stop chasing the foe. By the end of the Civil Wars cuirassiers disappeared leaving the charging harquebusier as the only cavalry. d) ARTILLERY Gunners were seen as masters of the satanic arts; a reputed gunners saying was The rst shot for the devil, the second for god, the third for the king. John Milton saw cannon as a devilish machination to plague the sons of men. The injuries could be very severe. At Rowton Heath, balls hit infantry at point blank range of 200 yards and there were legs and arms ying a pace. However, the results in battle were less than expected. A major problem was the weight and immobility of guns, with even 6 pounders (sakers) weighing several tons. Also, the guns were not capable of great accuracy, so were more useful at sieges than fast moving actions. At Edgehill and Naseby most rounds ploughed harmlessly into the ground.

BATTLES
In the seventeenth century most battles in Europe were fought between April and November. In Britain, however, as Captain Atkyns said; There did hardly one week pass in which there was not a battle or skirmish fought or a beating up. Before the battle chaplains exhorted the troops, or used sermons to rouse the men. On 23 January 1643 the parliamentary soldiers at Leeds sang psalms.The standard formation was two wings of cavalry with the infantry in the centre.The guns were placed in pairs between the brigades.The actual battles could be terrifying. Gunpowder smoke was very thick and armies often moved to try to get up wind of each other. Due to impaired visibility accidents inevitably happened.At Crewkerne in May 1645 Gorings cavalry had a two hour exchange of re with each other, under the impression that they were ring at the enemy. Captain Atkyns said of the battle of Landsdown 5 June 1643; The air was so darkened with smoke of powder that for a quarter of an hour there was no light seen but what the re of the volleys gave: and twas the greatest storm that I ever saw,... my horse had two musket bullets in him which made him tremble under me at that rate, and I could hardly with my spurs keep him from lying down, and he did me the service to carry me off to a led horse and then died. Victory went to the group which destroyed the organisation of its opponents, thus turning a unit into a crowd.A defeated army often lost the will to ght.After the Battle of Marston Moor the Kings horsemen ed to Marston Trussell churchyard, were cornered and butchered by the parliamentarians.
For further information on the armour and weapons see: David Blackmore, Arms and Armour of the English Civil Wars, 1990, ISBN: 0948092084 available from: Royal Armouries Museum, tel: 0113 220 1812 or fax: 0113 220 1889.

Royal Armouries Education Department, Leeds LS10 1LT

Board of Trustees of the Armouries 2000. TEACHERS MAY PHOTOCOPY THIS SHEET.
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