Editing Yeoman (section)

=== Yeoman archer (14th–15th centuries)<span class="anchor" id="Yeo Arch"></span> ===
{{Main|Yeoman Archer}}
[[File:Battle_of_crecy_froissart.jpg|thumb|Battle of Crécy, as depicted in a 15th-century illuminated manuscript of [[Froissart's Chronicles|Jean Froissart's Chronicles]]. Both armies are shown stylistically; archers in the foreground. English archers are shown with the legendary longbow, while the Italian mercenaries struggle with their [[crossbows]].]]
The Yeoman Archer is a term applied specifically to English and Welsh military longbow archers (either mounted or on foot) of the 14th–15th centuries. Yeoman archers were commoners; free-born members of the social classes below the [[nobility]] and [[gentry]]. They were a product of the [[Feudalism in England|English form of feudalism]] in which the military duty of a knight to his lord (which was implicit in [[Land tenure|tenure]] feudalism) was replaced by paid, short-term service.

The Yeoman Archers were the English Army's response to a chronic manpower problem when trying to field an army on the European continent during the 14th century. Against 27,000 French knights, England could only muster at most 5,000 [[men-at-arms]].{{r|2015_Taliaferro|p=39}} With this 5:1 tactical disadvantage, the English needed a strategic advantage.

When [[Conquest of Wales by Edward I of England#Campaign of 1282–83|Edward I invaded Wales in 1282]], he quickly realized the battlefield importance of the opposing Welsh archers. Firing from ambush, they inflicted serious casualties on Edward's army. When [[English invasion of Scotland (1298)#Invasion|Edward invaded Scotland for the second time in 1298]], his army consisted mostly of infantry (12,500 of 15,000 men).<ref name=UK_Battlefields_Falkirk>{{cite web |url=http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/resource-centre/medieval/battleview.asp?BattleFieldId=62 |title=Battle of Falkirk I |date=2020 |website=UK Battlefields Resource Centre |publisher=The Battlefield Trust |access-date=9 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029190536/http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/resource-centre/medieval/battleview.asp?BattleFieldId=62 |archive-date=29 October 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> His infantry included about 10,500–10,900 Welshmen.{{r|Welsh_Soldier|p=27-9}} 2,000 men, including archers, were raised as part of the Lancashire and [[Cheshire archers|Cheshire levies]] under the [[Commission of Array]].{{r|Welsh_Soldier|p=27-9}} At the [[Battle of Falkirk#Background|Battle of Falkirk]], the English army archers opened up the Scottish [[schiltrons#Circular schiltrons|schiltrons]] with hails of arrows. The Scottish infantrymen fled the battlefield, to be pursued and killed by the English cavalry.<ref name=UK_Battlefields_Falkirk_pdf>
{{cite web |url=http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/media/601.pdf |title=Falkirk I |date=2020 |website=UK Battlefields Resource Centre |publisher=The Battlefield Trust |access-date=9 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200722084526/http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/media/601.pdf |archive-date=22 July 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In 1333, his grandson, Edward III, undertook his first invasion of Scotland, which culminated with the [[Battle of Halidon Hill]].<ref name=Battlefields_Brit_Halidon>{{cite web |url=http://www.battlefieldsofbritain.co.uk/battle_halidon_hill_1333.html |title=Battle of Halidon Hill (1333) |date=2019 |website=Battlefields of Britain |publisher=CastlesFortsBattles.co.uk |access-date=8 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101004102/http://www.battlefieldsofbritain.co.uk/battle_halidon_hill_1333.html |archive-date=1 November 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Battlefields_Trust_Halidon>{{cite web |url=http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/resource-centre/medieval/battleview.asp?BattleFieldId=16 |title=Battle of Halidon Hill |date=2020 |website=UK Battlefields Resource Centre |publisher=The Battlefields Trust |access-date=8 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101080442/http://www.battlefieldstrust.com/resource-centre/medieval/battleview.asp?BattleFieldId=16 |archive-date=1 November 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Halidon Hill is where the 20-year old Edward III learned how to combine archers and dismounted men-at-arms – tactics that he would employ during his [[Crécy campaign]] in France.<ref name=HistoricEngland_Halidon>{{cite web |url=https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1000012 |title=The Site of The Battle of Halidon Hill 1333 |date=2020 |website=Historic England |access-date=8 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208201151/https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1000012 |archive-date=8 December 2020 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The English victory at the [[Battle of Crécy]] was followed by another victory at the [[Battle of Poitiers]], and a final victory at the [[Siege of Calais (1348)|Siege of Calais]]. After the [[Battle of Agincourt]], the Yeoman Archer had become as legendary as his bow. By negating the tactical advantage of large numbers of [[cavalry]] (mounted knights and men-at-arms) with their ability to rapidly fire volleys of arrows, Yeoman Archers are considered part of the [[Infantry revolution]] of the 14th century. They could be deployed as "Archers on horse" (mounted archers who could reach the scene quickly, dismount, & set up a firing line) or as "Archers on foot" (foot archers who followed as reinforcements).{{r|2015_Taliaferro|p=45}}