The Dress of our ancient archers, is given (Grosse remarks, in his Antiquities) in several chronicles. Fabian says "The yeomen hadde, at those dayes, their lymmes at libertye, for their hoseyn were then fastened with one point, and their jackes were longe, and easy to shote in, so that they mighte drawe bowes of great strength, and shote arrowes of a yarde longe. Captains and officers should be skillfull of that most noble weapon, and to see that their soldiers, according to their draught and strength, have good bowes, well nocked, well strynged, everie strynge whippe in their nocke, and in the middes rubbed with wax, braser and shuting glove, some spare strynges trymmed as aforesaid, everie man, one sheafe of arrows, with a case of Leather defensible against the rayne, and in the same shefe, (or 24 arrows) whereof eight should be lighter than the residue, to gall and astoyne the enemye with the hail shot of light arrowes, before they shall come within the danger of their harquebuss shot. Let everie man have a brigantine or a little cote of plate, a skull, or huffkyn, a maule of leade of five foot in length,[72] and a pike, and the same hanging by his girdle, with a hooke, and a dagger. Being thus furnished, teach them by musters to march, shoote and retire, keepinge their faces upon the enemy. Sumtyme put them into great nowmbers, as to battell apperteyneth, and thus use them oftentimes practised, till they be perfecte, for those men in battell, ne skirmish cannot be spared. None other weapon may compare with the same noble weapon."
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An ancient archer |