Trees Can Kill as Well. the Longbow
Rashed Abdulhak
Mr. Ford
Writing II
19 February 2013
Trees Can Kill as Well
During the Middle Ages men clad in steel armor, or “knights”, were the tanks of that time. They could withstand most sword strokes and were able to charge at other knights. This resulted in both sides taking heavy casualties and battles being mostly won by sheer numbers. During the Hundred Year War England was always outnumbered by the French army. Due to England being a smaller country, most of its population were peasants. That meant less knights in the army and therefore France had an advantage. That all changed. The longbow was made for the death of enemies and it killed many men indeed. England used the longbow to win many battles and it did. England was the first country in the world to deploy the longbow. It was deployed in many battles and was the main reason why England defeated France. Many famous battles like Agincourt, Poitiers, and Crecy were won by an outnumbered English army which more than half of which were longbow men. It was highly effective because of its ability to pierce platemail at more than 100 yards. Also it was very effective because of the ability of the wielder to fire many shafts per minute (Perham).
Warfare changed because of the way battles were being fought, the time of knights was at an end. A knight spent years trying to hone his skills and raising taxes from peasants working on his land to buy armor so that he could be safe from swords. But knights were merely plucked off their horses by shafts from arrows fired by mere peasants who don’t have two guineas to rub together. This marked the end of the feudal age, where battles were survived due to more luck than skill and bravery. Why be brave when bravery is rendered useless? When a length of Birchwood with a narrow tip, that is fired by a length of Ash measuring six feet and six inches, made by a bowyer in London, and finally given to an English peasant who was the wits of a fool has the ability
Mr. Ford
Writing II
19 February 2013
Trees Can Kill as Well
During the Middle Ages men clad in steel armor, or “knights”, were the tanks of that time. They could withstand most sword strokes and were able to charge at other knights. This resulted in both sides taking heavy casualties and battles being mostly won by sheer numbers. During the Hundred Year War England was always outnumbered by the French army. Due to England being a smaller country, most of its population were peasants. That meant less knights in the army and therefore France had an advantage. That all changed. The longbow was made for the death of enemies and it killed many men indeed. England used the longbow to win many battles and it did. England was the first country in the world to deploy the longbow. It was deployed in many battles and was the main reason why England defeated France. Many famous battles like Agincourt, Poitiers, and Crecy were won by an outnumbered English army which more than half of which were longbow men. It was highly effective because of its ability to pierce platemail at more than 100 yards. Also it was very effective because of the ability of the wielder to fire many shafts per minute (Perham).
Warfare changed because of the way battles were being fought, the time of knights was at an end. A knight spent years trying to hone his skills and raising taxes from peasants working on his land to buy armor so that he could be safe from swords. But knights were merely plucked off their horses by shafts from arrows fired by mere peasants who don’t have two guineas to rub together. This marked the end of the feudal age, where battles were survived due to more luck than skill and bravery. Why be brave when bravery is rendered useless? When a length of Birchwood with a narrow tip, that is fired by a length of Ash measuring six feet and six inches, made by a bowyer in London, and finally given to an English peasant who was the wits of a fool has the ability