Editing Spear (section)

=====Infantry=====
[[File:Assyrian soldier holding a spear and wearing a helmet. Detail of a basalt relief from the palace of Tiglath-pileser III at Hadatu, Syria. 744-727 BCE. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul.jpg|thumb|Assyrian soldier holding a spear and wearing a helmet. Detail of a basalt relief from the palace of Tiglath-pileser III at Hadatu, Syria. 744–727 BC. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul]]
Broadly speaking, spears were either designed to be used in melee, or to be thrown. Within this simple classification, there was a remarkable range of types. For example, M. J. Swanton identified thirty different spearhead categories and sub-categories in early Saxon England.<ref>{{cite book |title= The Spearheads of the Anglo-Saxon Settlement|last= Swanton |first= M.J.|year= 1973|publisher= Royal Archaeological Institute |location= London}}</ref> Most medieval spearheads were generally leaf-shaped. Notable types of early medieval spears include the ''[[angon]]'', a throwing spear with a long head similar to the Roman ''[[pilum]]'', used by the Franks and Anglo-Saxons, and the [[Winged spear|winged (or lugged) spear]], which had two prominent wings at the base of the spearhead, either to prevent the spear penetrating too far into an enemy or to aid in spear fencing.<ref>{{cite book |title=Armour and weapons |last= Martin|first=Paul |year=1968 |publisher=Herbert Jenkins |location= London|page= 226}}</ref> Originally a Frankish weapon, the winged spear also was popular with the Vikings. It would become the ancestor of later medieval polearms, such as the [[partisan (weapon)|partisan]] and [[spetum]].

The thrusting spear also has the advantage of reach, being considerably longer than other weapon types. Exact spear lengths are hard to deduce as few spear shafts survive archaeologically, but {{convert|6|–|8|ft|cm|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=2}} would seem to have been the average length. Some nations were noted for their long spears, including the Scots and the Flemish. Spears usually were used in tightly ordered formations, such as the [[shield wall]] or the [[schiltron]]. To resist cavalry, spear shafts could be planted against the ground.<ref>e.g. at the [[Battle of Steppes]], 1213. {{cite book|title= The Art of War in the Middle Ages|last=Oman |first=Sir Charles |author-link= Charles Oman|year= 1991 |orig-year= 1924|volume= 1| publisher= Greenhill Books |location= London |isbn= 978-1-85367-100-5|page=451}}</ref> William Wallace drew up his schiltrons in a circle at the [[Battle of Falkirk (1298)|Battle of Falkirk]] in 1298 to deter charging cavalry;<ref>{{cite book |title= William Wallace|last=Fisher |first=Andrew |year=1986 |publisher=John Donald |location=Edinburgh |isbn= 978-0-85976-154-3|page= 80}}</ref> this was a widespread tactic sometimes known as the "crown" formation.<ref>{{cite book |title= The Art of Warfare in Western Europe in the Middle Ages|last=Verbruggen |first= J. F. |year=1997 |edition= 2nd.|publisher=Boydell Press |location= Woodbridge|isbn=978-0-85115-630-9 |pages=184–5 }}</ref> [[Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray]] used a circular schiltron on the first day of the [[Battle of Bannockburn]]. However, the rectangular schiltron was much more common and was used by King [[Robert the Bruce]] on the second day of the Battle of Bannockburn and in the [[Battle of Old Byland]] when he defeated English armies.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Scott |first1=Ronald McNair |title=Robert the Bruce, King of Scots |date=1988 |publisher=Peter Bedrick Books |location=New York |pages=148, 158–159, 202–203}}</ref>

Throwing spears became rarer as the Middle Ages drew on, but survived in the hands of specialists such as the Catalan [[Almogavars]].<ref>{{cite journal |last= Morris|first=Paul |date=September 2000 |title= 'We have met Devils!': The Almogavars of James I and Peter III of Catalonia–Aragon |journal=Anistoriton |volume= 004|url=http://www.anistor.gr/english/enback/v004.htm |access-date=2009-08-04}}</ref> They were commonly used in Ireland until the end of the 16th century.<ref>{{cite book |title= The Irish Wars 1485–1603 |last= Heath|first= Ian|year= 1993|publisher= Osprey|location= Oxford |isbn= 978-1-85532-280-6|page= 36}}</ref>

Spears began to lose fashion among the infantry during the 14th century, being replaced by [[polearm]]s that combined the thrusting properties of the spear with the cutting properties of the axe, such as the [[halberd]]. Where spears were retained they grew in length, eventually evolving into [[pike (weapon)|pike]]s, which would be a dominant infantry weapon in the 16th and 17th centuries.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Renaissance at War |last=Arnold |first= Thomas|year= 2001 |publisher=Cassel & Co. |location= London|isbn= 978-0-304-35270-8|pages=60–72}}</ref>