How A Burgundian Archer Shall Be Armed

Throughout the 15th century, the English became involved with Burgundy on multiple occasions, both as opponents and allies. During the various conflicts between the two countries, the Burgundians developed a high level of respect for the English archers. So, today, we will be looking at a Burgundian archer. However, to be more accurate, we are actually looking at an English captain of a typical mercenary longbowman company. Average archers looked fairly similar across Europe, and didn't necessarily have to be well armed to be hired in the service of various militaries. So, by looking at a captain, we see all the related archery kit as well as some fine examples of high status armour which is of a typical Burgundian style. First, the soldier wears his arming jacket. This is a padded coat which provides a base layer of protection while also serving as a tough fabric base to tie his armour to if he wants to be better armoured. The arming jacket is emblazoned with the heraldry of the county of Suffolk, a crown and two crossed arrows, showing that this military captain is paying homage to his home county in East Anglia, England. You will note that this archer is wearing three-quarter riding boots. This is because, despite the English longbowmen typically fighting on foot, the English mercenaries were expected to provide their own horse, and were paid extra for doing so. Secondly, the archer wears a male collar or standard to provide neck protection. Male standards are constructed in a certain way that they provide a good level of overlap around the throat where the weave of the male links is much denser, and usually larger links are arranged around the shoulders and chest, known as the mantle. This is one of the first examples of this man's higher status armour, as the male collar features a decorative trim of brass or gilded links. Next, a cuirass is worn. While at first glance this may look like a type of brigandie, this is actually a full breastplate, consisting of an upper breastplate, placard and folds. The placard and folds have been blued, which is achieved by a process of polishing the steel then applying linseed oil. Then, a lick of flame is carefully applied to the metal, which turns the colour of the steel a blue-purple colour. This is a historical process, and requires great skill as too much heat will turn the steel a dull grey or black. Bluing the armour makes it rust resistant, and also greatly elevates the status of the wearer due to the extra talent required to make such a harness. The upper breastplate is covered in burgundy dyed velvet. The velvet sheet is tailored to the breastplate and then riveted in place. Again, it provides an additional layer of protection for the armour, but also helps soften the blows of incoming strikes just a little bit, aiding the soldier's chances to a serious injury during combat. Above all, this makes the armour more fancy and high status. And the Burgundians were famed for their experimental artistic styles of armour, featuring multiple mediums of coloured plate, silk and velvet fabrics, gilding, plumage and tassels featuring on their armour during the 15th century and beyond. Now, the captain wears his belt with kidney pouch and dagger. This is a quillon dagger. It was quite popular throughout the entirety of the middle ages, and served as a vital component of any archer's ensemble. Archers weren't necessarily required to own a sidearm to be recruited as a mercenary, but hand-to-hand combat was expected amongst the English bowmen companies. The lower status archers would carry a wooden club or mallet as a minimum, likely to hammer stakes into the ground as well as being utilised as a melee weapon. But knives and daggers were also commonly used by archers, the bollock dagger being a particularly popular choice amongst the lower classes. This quillon dagger is more of an upper class style of weapon, and either this or a rondel dagger would be more favoured by a soldier with the rank of captain. Next, the arming belt with sword and scabbard is worn. The Burgundians began hiring English mercenary companies, paying top dollar for the well-armoured and highly experienced archers the English provided. These longbowmen had proved themselves throughout the Hundred Years' War against France on the doorstep of Burgundy, and the Burgundians were keen to utilise these well-trained soldiers within their ranks. The archer now removes his hat, and wears a padded arming cap. The final piece of plate armour that the archer will wear today is the bezeless sallet. Again, this helmet has been given a brass finish, making it exceedingly high status and more than adequate for a captain in charge of a company of longbowmen. The sallet features a reinforced plate on the brow, and a curved tail to protect the nape of the neck. A blue dyed feather plume is also present to give the armour an extra level of typical Burgundian flamboyancy and artistic flair. This sallet is a reproduction of an excellently preserved original currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York. In the Ordinanzen von Karl den Könen, translated to Ordinances of Charles the Bold, who was a prominent Duke of Burgundy during the late 15th century, the text gives us a vital insight into what the Burgundian military were expecting from the English longbow mercenaries. An abridged version of the text reads, The mounted archer must possess a horse, and should wear a bezeless sallet, a gorget, a brigandine, or a sleeveless male shirt under a ten-layered jack. He should carry a long, sharp two-handed sword, and a double-edged dagger. So here we see the longsword in all its glory, hinting that these English archers were expected, and likely paid with the assumption, to engage in melee combat when required. A quiver full of arrows is handed to the archer, and is attached to the belt by the use of a forged metal S-shaped hook. Of course, no archer is complete without his bow. The squire hands the captain his longbow, which importantly does not have its bowstring attached yet. Keeping longbows, or indeed any bow streamed for long periods of time, weakens the bow and makes them more liable to breaking. So the archers kept their bowstrings separate, usually stowed away under their caps to keep them dry and out of rainy weather. Then, just before a battle, they would knock the bow and do a few dry pulls on the string to warm up the bow ready for shooting. Finally, the archer wears his gloves. Leather gloves like these are an alternative to wearing a brace and finger guard, and archery gloves could also be made of deerskin. Now the longbowman is fully armed and ready for war. He is standing in front of a church, specifically All Saints Church at Crowfield, Suffolk. In England, it was a soft law that men were required to practice archery after church service on a Sunday, either in the churchyard or at the village green. And so, as a tip of the hat of this medieval law, this archer looses a few arrows to hone in on his skills, ready for the campaign ahead. At this point, I would like to thank the reenactors featured in today's video, both the archer and his squire. They are members of the Suffolk Swords reenactment group in East Anglia, and are doing great work portraying alternative styles of armour during the 15th century. I have left a link to their social medias in the video description below, and I urge you all to support them by giving them a follow. Supporting these reenactors allows us to make more armouring videos just like this, and get more people involved on the channel to show off highly authentic arms and armour throughout various periods of history. Showing our support also helps preserve the great hobby of reenactment, and allows future generations to learn about hands-on history, and perhaps be inspired to get into the creative hobby themselves.