The English longbow, a weapon of understated simplicity and devastating effectiveness, is synonymous with medieval warfare and English military dominance from the 13th to 15th centuries. Crafted from a single piece of yew, over six feet long, the longbow earned legendary status on bloody battlefields, such as Crécy, Poitiers, and Agincourt. Its impact, however, was not limited to the battlefield. The longbow influenced military training, legislation, and craftsmanship, and even left behind a lasting imprint in archaeological and osteological records.
Terry Bailey explains.
Archers at the 1356 Battle of Poitiers. By Loyset Liédet.
Origins and evolution
The English longbow's origins are often shrouded in myth, misinterpretation, and regional pride. While its fame is firmly rooted in English military history, the bow's development was a long process influenced by earlier designs, neighboring cultures, and battlefield necessity.
The exact origin is a much-debated subject, however, it is generally agreed that similar weapons were used by Welsh forces as early as the 12th century. The English first encountered the longbow in Wales during campaigns under Edward I. Impressed by its power and range, he incorporated it into the military forces. By the early 14th century, the longbow had become England's primary missile weapon.
Needless to say, bows of one design or another have been used in the British Isles since the Mesolithic period (circa 8,000–6,000 BCE), with archaeological finds such as the Starr Carr site in Yorkshire providing evidence of simple hunting bows made of elm. These early bows were primitive by later standards, likely used for hunting rather than warfare.
Nevertheless, by the time of the Iron Age and into the Roman period (1st century BCE – 4th century CE), archery was practiced but did not dominate British military tactics. The Roman legions themselves preferred the short composite bow, primarily used by auxiliaries from the East.
The bow of Gwent
The first true longbow-style weapons are believed to have been used by the Welsh, from the region of Gwent, in southeast Wales. Chroniclers such as Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) writing in the late 12th century observed the formidable power of Welsh archers:
"They do not use the arrow with the crossbow, but with a very strong bow… They do not discharge the arrow from the ear, like the English, but from the breast."
These bows, made from elm or ash, had impressive range and force. One story told by Gerald recounts a Welsh archer driving an arrow through a knight's thigh, via maille armor, and into the saddle, pinning him to his horse. This raw power left a lasting impression on the invading Normans.
Adoption
As outlined the longbow was formally adopted by the English military during the reign of Edward I (1272–1307), particularly during his campaigns against the Welsh and Scots. Edward's wars in Wales exposed his armies to the effectiveness of the native Welsh bowmen. Recognizing its potential, Edward began integrating the bow into his forces.
By the early 14th century, under Edward II and Edward III, the longbow had become central to English military doctrine. It was standardized in terms of length (around 6 feet) and draw weight (often exceeding 100 pounds). The introduction of massed ranks of longbowmen marked a tactical revolution, replacing the slower, heavily armored knight as the dominant force on the battlefield. The institutionalized archery through training, and laws, making it the skill of every Englishman, marked a turning point in medieval warfare, as England's military might shift from armored nobility to the shoulders of its yeoman archers. Something the French nobility felt was unacceptable to leave the defense of France to the common folk.
Scandinavian influences
Some historians have speculated on whether the longbow might have been influenced by earlier Norse or even Slavic designs. While composite and reflex bows were common in Eastern Europe and Asia, there is little direct evidence that such designs influenced the longbow's development. Unlike composite bows, which were shorter and made from multiple materials (wood, sinew, horn), the English longbow was a self-bow, crafted from a single stave of yew. Its simplicity and size distinguished it from most other contemporary bows.
The yew wood used to craft the English longbow was ideally imported from the Alps or Italy, where the climate produced staves with the right balance of sapwood (which resists tension) and heartwood (which resists compression). Measuring about six feet in length, it could draw weights of 80 to 150 pounds, requiring extraordinary upper-body strength and years of practice.
Specialist professions:
The Bowyer and Fletcher
The longbow's production was the work of highly skilled specialists. A bowyer was responsible for crafting the bow itself. Bowyers required an intimate knowledge of wood properties and curing processes. They often aged the yew for several years before shaping it, to prevent warping and ensure maximum power and flexibility.
Whereas, the Fletcher crafted the arrows. These were typically made from ash or poplar shafts, with goose-feather fletchings and bodkin or broad-head iron tips. Arrowheads were sometimes produced by specialist arrow-smiths, a further specialist subset of blacksmiths. Each arrowhead type served different purposes, bodkins for penetrating maille armor, and broad-heads for causing devastating wounds to unarmored opponents.
Legislative support: Archery mandated by law
Archery became not only a military skill but a civic duty. Recognizing its strategic value, English monarchs implemented laws to ensure a steady supply of trained archers. Most famously, in 1363 under Edward III, a royal decree ordered that:
"...every able-bodied man on Sundays and holidays shall practice archery, and all other sports are forbidden."
This law was enforced for centuries. Even during the reign of Henry VIII, archery was promoted over other recreational activities like ball sports. Towns and parishes were required to provide butts (archery practice fields), and boys as young as seven were trained in its use.
Devastation on the battlefield
The longbow's effectiveness was not merely theoretical, it was proven repeatedly in major battles.
Battle of Crécy (1346): The English, under Edward III, faced a numerically superior French army. The disciplined volleys of English longbowmen decimated the French cavalry and Genoese crossbowmen. Chroniclers describe tens of thousands of arrows darkening the sky, breaking the momentum of France's elite forces.
Battle of Poitiers (1356): English forces under Edward the Black Prince used longbows to repel successive French cavalry charges. The high rate of fire and armor-piercing ability of bodkin arrows disrupted French formations.
Battle of Agincourt (1415): Perhaps the most iconic use of the longbow, Agincourt saw Henry V's lightly armored troops defeat a much larger French force. English archers, protected by muddy terrain and stakes, unleashed continuous volleys that devastated the advancing knights.
Longbow-men could shoot 10–12 arrows per minute, with a range advantage over the crossbow, while a crossbowman might manage two bolts at a far lesser range. The psychological and physical toll on enemy forces was immense. Arrows penetrated armor, pierced horses, and created chaos in tight formations.
Out of the approximate 7,000 English troops at Agincourt 5,000 were skilled archers who faced up to 20,000 French.
Side note:- Various numbers exist for the French army but most historians have settled on a figure of around 20,000, although this is not a solid figure.
Archaeological and osteological evidence
The legacy of the longbow is preserved not only in chronicles and law codes but in the archaeological record.
The Mary Rose Archers
The Mary Rose, Henry VIII's flagship, sank in 1545 and was raised in 1982. Among the thousands of recovered artefacts were over 170 longbows and more than 3,500 arrows. The bows were between 6 and 7 feet long, with draw weights over 100 pounds confirming historical accounts.
Skeletons of the crew revealed that archers had significantly larger shoulder and upper arm bones than other sailors. Their asymmetrical skeletal development, especially enlarged left arms and bowed spines, proved the longbow's physical demands. These findings have given modern researchers an unprecedented glimpse into the training and physiology of medieval archers.
Victims of the longbow
On the receiving end, forensic evidence from battlefield mass graves also tells a story. At Towton (1461), the largest and bloodiest battle of the Wars of the Roses, skeletons showed arrow impact injuries consistent with longbow strikes. These include embedded arrowheads in bones, shattered skulls, and rib injuries, all confirming the arrow's ability to kill through armor.
Decline and legacy
Despite its effectiveness, the longbow declined in the late 15th and early 16th centuries with the rise of gunpowder weapons. Firearms were easier to train with and had increasing penetrative power. Nevertheless, English archery continued into the 16th century, and even into the early Elizabethan period, largely due to its symbolic and cultural significance.
The longbow's legacy endures in both folklore and national identity. Characters emerged from Ballards such as mythologized Robin Hood demonstrating his prowess with the longbow, while Shakespeare immortalized longbow-men in Henry V with the rousing speech at Agincourt.
The English longbow was more than a weapon; it was a cultural institution, a craft, a law, and a legacy. Its rise was driven by skilled artisans, sustained by legal mandate, and proven by historical battlefield success. The longbow reshaped medieval warfare and lives on in museums, skeletal remains, and the cultural memory of England. From Mary Rose's silent testimony to the moss-covered bones at Towton, the story of the longbow is one carved not just in wood, but in the annals of history.
In conclusion, the English longbow was not merely an instrument of war but a transformative force in the medieval world, shaping tactics, influencing society, and leaving an enduring mark on history. Its power lay not only in its deadly range or the thousands of arrows unleashed in thunderous volleys but also in the institutions, laws, and traditions it spawned. It turned commoners into crucial components of military might, brought about an entire economy of craftsmanship, and left traces in both physical remains and national myth.
Its ascendancy marked a rare moment in history when discipline, training, and technological efficiency briefly triumphed over brute force and feudal hierarchy. For nearly three centuries, the longbow tilted the balance of power on the battlefield, allowing outnumbered English armies to defy expectations and secure legendary victories. The skeletal remains of archers, the embedded arrowheads in battlefield graves, and the preserved weaponry from the Mary Rose speak to its lasting power, not just as a tool of destruction, but as a symbol of England's martial ingenuity and cultural pride.
Though eventually overshadowed by gunpowder, the English longbow continues to capture the imagination of historians, archaeologists, and the public alike, especially in Cinematography. It stands as a testament to how a simple weapon, in the hands of the skilled and determined, can alter the course of nations. Its story is one of craftsmanship, law, war, and identity, woven into the very fabric of English history.
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Notes:
Comparing the English longbow with the crossbow
The medieval English longbow and the crossbow were two of the most significant ranged weapons of their time, each with distinct advantages and disadvantages that reflected differing military philosophies and battlefield roles.
The English longbow, made primarily from yew, was a powerful weapon with a long draw length that allowed it to shoot arrows at high velocity and over long distances. Its chief advantage lay in its rate of fire; a well-trained archer could loose 10–12 arrows per minute, significantly outpacing a crossbowman's 2–3 bolts over the same period.
The longbow was particularly effective in massed volleys, as indicated in the main text, famously demonstrated by English armies at battles such as Crécy (1346), Poitiers (1356), and Agincourt (1415). Furthermore, it was relatively light and did not require complex mechanical components, making it more resilient and less prone to failure in wet or muddy battlefield conditions thus easy to maintain.
However, the longbow also had notable drawbacks. Its effective use required years of intensive training and physical conditioning, as drawing a war bow often required a pull strength of over 100 pounds. This created a dependence on a professional or semi-professional class of archers, which not all nations could field. Additionally, accuracy with the longbow at long ranges was inconsistent compared to the more mechanically stable crossbow.
The crossbow, on the other hand, was easier to learn and required less physical strength to operate, making it ideal for militias or conscripted troops with limited training. Its bolts could penetrate heavy armor at shorter distances due to their high kinetic energy, especially with the use of windlass or cranequin mechanisms that allowed for stronger draw weights than a human arm alone could manage, making the crossbow an effective weapon in siege warfare and close-quarter skirmishes.
Yet the crossbow's slow reload time and heavier design made it less effective in fast-moving battlefield scenarios. In open-field combat, where rapid volleys could disrupt cavalry charges or inflict heavy casualties quickly, crossbowmen were often at a disadvantage unless protected by pavises or supported by infantry.
Needless to say, the longbow offered superior speed and range for trained forces, while the crossbow provided armor penetration and accessibility for less experienced troops. Each weapon reflected its society's military priorities and constraints, and both played pivotal roles in shaping the tactics and outcomes of medieval European warfare.
Rate of fire
The rate of fire for an English or Welsh longbowman during the medieval period was remarkably high compared to most other missile weapons of the time.
A well-trained longbowman could typically shoot between 10 and 12 arrows per minute in combat conditions, though in short bursts and under optimal circumstances, some accounts suggest rates as high as 15 arrows per minute. This rate was sustained not only by the physical strength and stamina of the archer but also by extensive training that began in childhood, legally mandated in England by royal decree to ensure a ready supply of skilled archers.
Unlike crossbows or early firearms, which required time-consuming loading and aiming processes, the longbow allowed for rapid nocking, drawing, and loosing of arrows. The technique was refined for speed and rhythm, often with archers carrying sheaves of arrows easily accessible in the ground before them or slung at their sides. In battle, longbowmen could unleash a volley of arrows capable of devastating enemy ranks before they even reached the front lines.
However, this high rate of fire came at a cost. The physical demands of drawing a longbow, often with draw weights of 100 to 150 pounds, meaning that longbowmen developed distinctive skeletal and muscular adaptations as detailed in the main text, especially in the shoulder and arm. Sustained shooting throughout a battle could lead to fatigue, gradually reducing the rate of fire. Despite this, the longbow's ability to deliver a rapid and continuous hail of arrows made it one of the most effective battlefield weapons of the Middle Ages, playing a key role in English victories such as already detailed, (Crécy (1346), Poitiers (1356), and Agincourt (1415)).
If we take Agincourt as an example, with approximately 5,000 archers each releasing 10 or 12 arrows a minute, the vast amount of missiles that were unleashed on the French army is hard to imagine yet that amount of missiles every minute would have had a devastating effect with a serious destructive force dealt to the enemy force.
Various arrowheads for the English longbow arrows
The formidable English longbow relied heavily on the type of arrowhead fitted to the shaft. The choice of arrowhead was not arbitrary, it was specifically tailored to the type of target the archer was expected to face. These arrowheads varied in design, material, and function, and they were integral to the success of English archers on the battlefield.
One of the most common arrowheads used with the English longbow was the bodkin point. This was a long, narrow, and often square-sectioned head, designed primarily for piercing armor. During the 13th to 15th centuries, as plate armor became more prevalent on the battlefield, bodkin points were refined to better penetrate the steel surfaces. Their shape allowed them to focus the force of the arrow into a very small point, enhancing their ability to slip between the joints of armor or even punch through mail or plate at closer ranges.
Another significant type was the broad-head, which had a wide, flat, and often barbed shape. These were primarily used for hunting, but in warfare, they could be devastating against un-armored or lightly armored foes, including horses and archers. The wide cutting edges inflicted serious wounds, making them effective for disabling or killing with a single shot. Their use against soft targets made them a versatile option in mixed-combat scenarios.
Additionally, specialized variants such as crescent-shaped or forked arrowheads existed, often for specific purposes such as cutting ropes or disarming sentries. Fire arrows were also available, which had special tips designed to carry burning material to ignite enemy structures or vessels.
Each arrowhead type was carefully crafted to suit the longbow's high draw weight and immense kinetic energy, ensuring maximum effect in battle or siege.
Thus, the success of the English longbow in warfare was not just a result of the bow's power and the archer's skill, but also the careful selection of arrowheads suited to particular tactical needs. This synergy between bow, arrow, and user helped define English military effectiveness during key conflicts such as the Hundred Years' War.
The English longbow is a symbol of freedom
The English longbow became more than just a battlefield weapon; it evolved into a potent symbol of freedom and agency for the common man in medieval England. Unlike the expensive warhorses and heavy armor that defined the knightly class, the longbow was a relatively inexpensive and accessible weapon. It could be wielded by yeomen, (freeborn commoners), who, with discipline and training, became the backbone of England's military strength.
This democratizing power of the longbow was reinforced by law. With monarchs, mandating longbow practice among the general population. Archery became not only a civic duty but also a shared national identity that cut across class boundaries. A skilled archer was a respected figure, and his ability to defend his homeland or influence the outcome of battle offered a rare form of empowerment in a rigidly stratified society.
The longbow thus stood as a tool of personal agency and patriotic contribution, binding the common man more closely to the English crown while subtly challenging the dominance of the feudal elite. As time passed, the longbow's symbolism persisted in English folklore and popular memory.
Legends of Robin Hood, the outlaw archer who defied tyranny and defended the rights of the poor, echoed these ideals. Whether fact or fable, such stories emphasized the longbow not merely as a weapon, but as a representation of fairness, resistance to oppression, and the valour of the ordinary Englishman. In this way, the longbow became etched into the national consciousness as a powerful emblem of freedom.
Shakespeare
Shakespeare's Henry V played a pivotal role in immortalizing English longbow-men.
KING HENRY V:
What's he that wishes so? My cousin Westmoreland? No, my fair cousin: If we are mark'd to die, we are enow to do our country loss; and if to live, the fewer men, the greater share of honour. God's will! I pray thee, wish not one man more. By Jove, I am not covetous for gold, nor care I who doth feed upon my cost; It yearns me not if men my garments wear; Such outward things dwell not in my desires: but if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive. No, faith, my coz, wish not a man from England. God's peace! I would not lose so great an honour. As one man more methinks would share from me for the best hope I have. O, do not wish one more! Rather proclaim it, Westmoreland, through my host, that he which hath no stomach to this fight, let him depart; his passport shall be made, and crowns for convoy put into his purse: We would not die in that man's company that fears his fellowship to die with us.
This day is call'd the feast of Crispian: He that outlives this day, and comes safe home, will stand a tip-toe when this day is named, and rouse him at the name of Crispian. He that shall live this day, and see old age, will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours, and say 'To-morrow is Saint Crispian:'Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars and say 'These wounds I had on Crispin's day.' Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot, but he'll remember with advantages what feats he did that day. Then shall our names, familiar in his mouth as household words—Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter, Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester—Be in their flowing cups freshly remember'd. This story shall the good man teach his son; And Crispin day shall ne'er go by, from this day to the ending of the world, but we in it shall be remember'd; We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he to-day that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,This day shall gentle his condition: And gentlemen in England now a-bed shall think themselves accursed they were not here, and hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks that fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.
