I really like the way the skirt of the jacket sits on this figure, it came out nicely to a lick of paint. The horse was painted in Foundry Buff Leather, shade then washed with a brown mix of Foundry Bay brown shade, Citadel contrast skeleton horde and a bit of water. The rider was painted in shade tones and washed at this stage also. When dry I re-applied the Buff leather shade, mid and highlight to the horse then washed a blue/grey mix (Foundry British blue grey shade, Granite shade, tiny bit of black) on the legs, rump and nose. I added water to some parts to thin it and the darker parts were left, use the brush to add and lift water off at this stage to create a tonal effect. While the wash was still wet i added spots of buff leather highlight to represent dapples. When dry I re-highlighted some areas on the head and socks then painted the tack and brass fittings.
The flag is Pete's Flags, I asked for a sheet of St George banners and streamers of varying dimensions and Pete kindly obliged. The Horse was painted using Wargames Foundry Tan, shade mid and highlight. The whole horse was painted in the shade tone then washed with a mid-brown mix of Foundry Bay brown shade, Citadel contrast Cygor Brown and Technical Medium. When dry the shade mid and highlight were re-applied.
I think another reason for the wait on this unit is that to do it properly they really need a dismounted version as well as some horse holders which i'm sure we shall see in due course. In the interim the certainly make for an impressive unit. As I predominately game skirmishes I'm sure they'll get a lot of use as well.
Initially I decided to give the unit a simple banner of St. George for versatility and as there were two worthy candidates for the leader that I couldn't decide between.
Both commanded a body of mounted archers in 1513 and details of these actions survive to show how they were used in a similar fashion of ambush in the Scots and French campaigns of 1513. Both of these are yet to be gamed so there's still a chance that I may well choose to add these commanders to the unit.
First up is Sir William Bulmer (1465-1531)
Sir William Bulmer was descended from a long-established Yorkshire family, he earned his knighthood in the Earl of Surrey’s Scottish campaign of 1497. Sixteen years later Thomas Ruthall, bishop of Durham, singled him out for praise after his part in the ill raid and Flodden. Thereafter he was increasingly employed both by Ruthall and his successor Wolsey, and by the crown, as a soldier and administrator. He also served as one of three knights entrusted with the King’s security at the Field of Cloth of Gold.
I'm not 100% on the heraldry above, this features in two Flodden books and some flags i've seen but there could be possible alternatives.
For my particular interest on this occasion it is Bulmer's command of a body of Mounted Archers in the summer of 1513 that takes my attention;
Bulmer was ordered by Surrey on 1 July 1513 to take a force of 200 mounted archers to watch the border.
In early August Alexander Lord Home gathered a force of some 7000 of his Scots borderers to carry out a raid into Northumberland which proved very successful and a source of much plunder for his men. Bulmer was not able to prevent this raid but used his numerically inferior force to lie in ambush at Millfield on the expected route of return.
After a successful foray, Home was returning with substantial booty when, on 13th August 1513, he was ambushed by Bulmer's archers who had formed up either side of the road to enfilade Home's force as he passed through. According to Hall, the archers 'shot so wholly together' that they killed some 500-600 Scots in the opening arrow storm, a panic and flight ensued as the raiders scattered for cover with Bulmer's men in pursuit, no doubt all the better for being able to mount up. The archers took 400 prisoners including Home's standard bearer and put the rest to flight. The English recovered all the booty taken and Home’s foray became known as the ‘Ill Raid’.
Update;
In June 2022 The aforementioned 'ill raid' was gamed and I couldn't resist having Bulmer.
There is no effigy that I am aware of so Bulmer's command is at best guesswork. I opted for him still wearing a surcoat and earlier armour as was common for lesser nobility.
His banner bearer is straight from the Perry Miniatures border horse command set and has had minimal conversion, i had to file away some of the existing saddle and add an arrow bag.
The banner was painted free hand, I like the slight variation as would be the same for the real item.
As I was adding Bulmer's command I also created another base of archers to keep the numbers up so I can now field two units of mounted archers. (6 bases, 12 figures in total).
Our next candidate takes us to France:
Sir John Giffard (c. 1465-1556), of Chillington in Staffordshire was a soldier, courtier and member of Parliament.
Giffard's military career saw him in the King's army in the 1513 Invasion of France, a member of the King's bodyguard at the Field of Cloth of Gold, he may also have served in the invasion of 1523 and was sent to quell the rebels during the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536. A typical career soldier and from what I've found rather skilled with the Longbow.
In 1513, aged 48 he was the King's standard bearer as his ward rode out of Calais to join the army besieging Therouanne and would distinguish himself playing a key part commanding a troop of mounted archers in the Battle of the Spurs . He was Knighted later in the campaign at Tournai.
Halls Chronicle recounts the opening phases of the Battle of the Spurs after scouts had reported that a body of French Gendarmes were approaching ;
'Then euery man prepared hym selfe to battayle resortynge to the standarde, the horsemen marched be- fore the footmen by the space of a myle, still came curroures berynge tydynges that the Frenche armye approched.
The kynge bad sette forwarde and to auaunce hys banner in name of God and Sainct George. The Almaynes seynge this (to what purpose it was not knowen) sodainly embatteled them selfes on the left hande of the kyng and left the brest or fronte of the kyngs battayle bare. As the kyng was thus marchyng forwarde towarde the battaile, to him came the Emperour Maximilian with. 30 men of armes he and all his companye armed in on sute with redde crosses: then by the counsayll of the Emperour the kynge caused cei taine peces of small ordinaunce to be laied on the toppe of a long hill or banke for the out skowerers: thus the kynges horsemen and a fewe archers on horsebacke marched forwarde. The kyng woulde fayne haue been afore with the horsmen, but his counsayll pcrswaded him the contrary, and so he taried with the footmen accompanied with themperour.'
Maximilian advised Henry to send small pieces of field artillery along with some mounted archers ahead to take a ridge in the path of the French.
'The Frenchmen came on in. iii. ranges, 36. mens thickenes & well they perceiued the kynges battayle of footmen marching forward: the erle of Essex capitayne of the hors- men, and sir Iho Peche with the kynges horsmen and the Burgonyons to the nomber of a 600. stode with banner displayed in a valey.'
400 English & Burgundian Horsemen alongside 100 mounted archers commanded by Gifford advance to the top of the hill to take first sight of the advancing French;
'The lorde Walonne and the lord Ligny with bastarde Emerv and there bende to the nomber of. 400. horsmen seuered them selfes and stode a syde from the Englishmen with banner displayed remoued vp to the toppe of the hill, and there they mett with sir Ihon Gyl- forde a. 100. talle archers on horsebacke, which had askryed the Frenchemcn.'
The Burgundian and English horse make themselves known to the French while the archers dismount using a hedge as cover;
'Now on the topp of the hill was afayre plaine of good groundc, on the left hand a lowe wodde, and on the right hand a falo\ve felde. The lord Walonne and the Burgonions kept them a loofe, thenappered in sight the Frenchmen with banners and standardes displaied. Then came to thecapitaynes. of Thenglishmen of armes, an English officer of armcs called Clarenseux and sayde, in Gods name sett forward, for the victorie is yours for I see by them, they will not abide, and I will go with you in my coate of armes. Then the horsmen set forward, and the archers alighted and wore set in order by an hedge all a long a village side culled Bornye [Bomy]:'
The French horse take the bait and advance into a volley from the archers followed swiftly by a charge from the English horse;
'the Frenchmen came on with 33 standardes displayed, and the archers shotle a pace and galled their horses, and the English speres set on freshly, cryegsainct George, & fought va- liantly with the Frenchmen and threw downe their standards, the dust was great and the crye more, but sodainly the Frenchmen shocked to their standards and fledde, and threw away there speres, swerdes, and mascs and cut of the bardes of their horses to ronne the lighter, when the hinder parte saw the former fly, they fled aiso, but the soner for one cause which was this.'
Having visited the battlefield, the path of the French advance is rolling fields, the French horse approached down a gentle slope seeing the English /Burgundian Horse at the other side but it is unlikely they would have immediately seen the light artillery nor archers thus the first volley would have come as an unpleasant surprise and softened the charge immediately prior to the English/Burgundian counter-charge.
I found Giffard's coat of arms (above) and also his standard which seems almost perfect in his role as commander of a troop of mounted archers;
However, upon further reading I found that Giffard was not granted this standard until 1523, this and the family crest both relate to an incident involving a Panther which had escaped from his menagerie of exotic animals at Chillington Hall.
The Panther had escaped from its cage into the Forest of Brewood. Sir John and his son Thomas took their longbows and went in search of it, finally catching up with it about to pounce on a woman and child. Sir John took his longbow and as he shot, it was his son shouted “Prenez haleine, tirez fort”, Take breath, pull strong.
A waymarker still stands at the lodge of Chillington Hall marking the supposed spot of the incident.
From this incident the first of the family's two crests were granted. The first, granted in 1513 no doubt at the start of Giffard's interest in the Panther, is a;
“Panthers head couped full-faced spotted various with flames issueing from his mouth”.
The second granted in 1523, is a; "demi-archer, bearded and couped at the knees from his middle, a short coat, paly argend and gule, at his middle a quiver or arrows or in his hands a bow and arrow, drawn to the head ” with the motto “Prenez haleine, tirez fort”.
The inherent dangers of exotic animals immortalised in heraldry !
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I predominantly game with a bespoke set of rules based upon Lion Rampant, here's the unit profile and special rules for Mounted Archers:
|
UNIT NAME
|
Mounted Archers
|
POINTS
|
4
|
|
Attack
|
6+
|
Attack Value
|
5+
|
|
Move
|
5+
|
Defence Value
|
6
|
|
Shoot
|
6+
|
Shoot Value /
Range
|
5+ / 12”
|
|
Courage
|
5+
|
Maximum
movement
|
12”
|
|
Armour
|
2
|
Special Rules
|
Evade
|
Models per unit: 6
Special Rules, Mounted Archers & Mounted Arquebusiers
• Movement; the unit can make a single mount or dismount at the start or end of a movement phase and must dismount to fire. A unit cannot mount, move and dismount and must mount to move.
• Evade, upon a successful roll of 7+ the unit may perform an evade action when charged with a -1 shoot value and moves a half move as cavalry. This represents the unit firing then quickly mounting to escape.
• (Arquebusiers) Shot: Unless in cover all units count as -1 Armour against Shooting by this unit in half range or less.
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