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were predominantly older men, with the average age being 32. They often had to be re-equipped after service, breeding resentment among the villagers. They would also misuse their position to oppress the peasantry, while pretending to be simply obeying the king's will.
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and abolish the militia a year later, ordering their equipment to be put in store in the parishes. The cost of this permanent force was too great for the kingdom's finances, with the standing army being disbanded in 1483–1484 after Louis XI's death. In 1485 the
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was recruited in every parish of France. The parish was obligated to choose an archer and supply him with the specified equipment. The archer would train himself on feast-days and holidays. They were free from all taxes (hence the name) and were paid four
423:. They were also used in field battles, though their combat effectiveness against professional troops was low, such as against the Germans at Guinegate. In addition, they were prone to desertion, treason and capitulation.
453:
The franc-archers was a stock figure of fun in literary satire as early as the late 15th century. In these satires the franc-archer is portrayed as vainglorious, cowardly and militarily useless.
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raised 22,000 of them for such a purpose. They occasionally served in the field during campaigns such as in 1522 and 1523. They were levied for the last time after the French defeat at
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445:. Lacking any unit training or discipline, they lost 6,000 men killed in action and many of them looted the enemy camp instead of fighting.
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fought in companies of 200–300 men. The companies were led by nobles and were later put under the command of 4 captains-general. The 1448
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356:. In 1466 they used the pike for the first time and by the late 1470s some companies were employing Swiss-style pikemen. During the
640:
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deficient combat performance, indiscipline and unreliability led Louis XI in 1480 to train a professional army under
Marshal
607:
148:
548:
Arthur
Augustus Tilley, Medieval France: A Companion to French Studies, Volume 5 (CUP Archive, 1964), pp. 159-61.
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were primarily used for frontier defense against foreign enemies and against bandits in the interior such as the
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395:, arm-pieces, a mail skirt and a helmet. Two-thirds were to be pikemen and the rest would be armed with
700:
435:
175:
155:
690:
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80:
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was required to have a horse. The Decree of 17 January 1522 listed the updated equipment of the
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levy was raised for 18 months and was organised into 44 ensigns of 500 men, each led by five
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should be chosen from among the most apt in the use of arms; who was to be exempt from the
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8:
628:
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218:("free archers") militia were the first attempt at the formation of regular infantry in
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system was re-established and they were employed again in the
Flanders campaign of the
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of Montil-lès-Tours on 28 April 1448, which prescribed that in each parish an
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Dr
Faustroll (2007):Pataphysica 4: Pataphysica E Alchimia 2,pub iUniverse,
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676:. Vol. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 15.
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291:
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Renaissance France at War: Armies, Culture and
Society, c.1480–1560
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the
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and certain obligations, to practise shooting with the bow on
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were primarily used for frontier defense. In May 1513
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distinguished themselves in numerous battles with the
256:, and assisted the king in driving them from France.
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348:helmet, dagger, sword, a bow, a sheaf of arrows, a
473:, meaning either "free-moles" or "free-beetles".
696:Military units and formations of the Middle Ages
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593:William Duane (1810): A Military Dictionary
344:specified the equipment of the archer as a
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581:
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302:were definitively disbanded in 1535.
40:. Portrayal in the 1484 manuscript
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461:as cowards in his 1542 edition of
434:performed poorly at the battle of
14:
712:
268:Philippe de Crèvecœur d'Esquerdes
202:Philippe de Crèvecœur d'Esquerdes
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319:for every month of service. The
149:War of the Burgundian Succession
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26:
616:
360:in 1488, Esquerdes took 12,000
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364:for his campaign in Flanders.
1:
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169:War of the League of Cambrai
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449:Franc-archers in literature
438:while under the command of
367:In 1513, the 22,000-strong
306:Recruitment and composition
222:. They were created by the
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328:Organization and equipment
42:Vigiles du roi Charles VII
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673:Encyclopædia Britannica
176:Italian War of 1521–26
143:War of the Public Weal
426:During the reign of
52:28 April 1448 – 1481
629:Woodbridge, Suffolk
623:Potter, D. (2008).
572:, pp. 324–327.
560:, pp. 102–103.
334:Hundred Years' War
130:Hundred Years' War
701:Archery in France
642:978-1-84383-405-2
455:François Rabelais
279:under Esquerdes.
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71:Kingdom of France
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691:Medieval archery
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417:Francs-archers
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369:francs-archers
362:francs-archers
352:and a coat of
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38:francs-archers
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385:franc-archer
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36:creates the
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582:Potter 2008
570:Potter 2008
558:Potter 2008
537:Potter 2008
512:Potter 2008
457:mocked the
421:aventuriers
377:Machiavelli
332:During the
282:During the
246:Charles VII
125:Engagements
115:Nickname(s)
54:1485 – 1535
34:Charles VII
685:Categories
477:References
463:Pantagruel
405:arquebuses
375:. In 1510
373:centeniers
342:ordonnance
242:feast-days
224:ordonnance
190:commanders
183:Commanders
77:Allegiance
436:Guinegate
401:crossbows
391:, a mail
292:Louis XII
156:Guinegate
136:Castillon
428:Louis XI
397:halberds
389:corselet
200:Marshal
661::
440:Marshal
411:Service
358:Mad War
277:Mad War
254:English
238:Sundays
194:Marshal
188:Notable
163:Mad War
101:Militia
59:Country
655:
639:
610:, p.61
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465:. The
393:gorget
350:jerkin
346:sallet
317:francs
298:. The
286:, the
233:taille
228:archer
220:France
68:
49:Active
296:Pavia
264:'
212:The
81:Royal
32:King
637:ISBN
604:ISBN
430:the
415:The
403:and
354:mail
336:the
259:The
248:the
240:and
107:Size
97:Role
87:Type
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519:^
496:^
407:.
399:,
310:A
645:.
491:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
