Longbows, Arrows and the Origin of Fletchers

The surname Fletcher was used as early as the 13th century. In 1203 there were Fletchers living in Staffordshire, England. Ralph le Flescher and Nicholas le Fletcher resided in Lincolnshire in 1273. The Worshipful Company of Fletchers in London was first recorded in 1386. The Guild of the Bowyers and Fletchers, London was recognised as a City Company in 1363. In 1370, however, the Fletchers and Bowstring Makers broke away to form separate companies and demarcation disputes over supervision arose between them until 1429, when a city ordinance defined their respective spheres. The Worshipful Company of Fletchers in London was formally recognised as a company in 1386. There is some evidence that the legendary Welsh longbow archers relied on the skills and expertise of fletchers. Could it be possible, as history may suggest, that ancestors of modern day Fletchers acted as an essential auxiliary workforce to the Medieval longbow archers? If so, does this explain the settlement of Fletcher ancestors in areas of longbow archer communities in Britain and the battle locations at which they were stationed?

1. Origins and History of the Welsh Longbow Archer.

Archaeological evidence in Britain can trace the use of the longbow as far back as 3000 BC and its use was widespread throughout Europe. The longbow may not have had a continuous life of use and development from then until now. It seems unlikely that the Celts and Romans didn't now of its existence and used it on a small scale. Viking restrictions regulated the number of bows and arrows to be provided for peasants. In the year 633, Offrid, the son of Edwin, King of Northumbria, was killed by an arrow in battle with the Welsh and the Mercians. It's not certain the arrow was from a Welsh longbow but this is an early account of the use of the longbow by the Welsh archers in military action (see illustration<). The story promotes the belief which credits the Welsh with inventing and introducing the longbow into the British Isles. The acknowledged expert on the longbow, Robert Hardy, has written:"If the Welsh did not have bows yet, it cannot have been long before they adopted the weapon from the raiding Danes, but it is more than likely that, however they first came by it, the Welsh, among all the tribes in the British Isles, either retained the use of the bow from much earlier times, or invented it for themselves long before there could have been any chance for them to have learned of its use from the Scandinavians."

Until the 17th century there was no regular permanent army in Britain. Archers were part of temporary armies during battles throughout the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. Post battle armies were disbanded and archers returned to their homes and communities. When required again an archer was conscripted or recruited by the feudal gentry.

The death of Offrid in 633 by an arrow from a (Welsh?) longbow precedes its widespread use hundreds of years later by the armies of the English and Norman rulers. There is reliable evidence of its military use by the Welsh in an ambush of invading Saxon horsemen in the Welsh mountains by Welsh longbow archers in 1054. The archers shot so accurately and strongly that the Saxons fled before they could throw their spears. At the siege of Abergavenny in 1182, Welsh archers, using longbows, pierced an oak door four inches thick with their arrows and William de Braose was hit by a Welsh arrow. This arrow went through his chainmail, into his thigh, through the saddle and penetrated the horse he was riding. King Edward 1 recognised that the Welsh archers excelled in the use of the longbow and this was developed by the use of this superb weapon by the Welsh during the military campaigns of the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. South East Wales was where the best longbowmen were found but others were recruited from as far away as Pembroke.

At the battle of Falkirk in July 1299 Edward's army was victorious principally because of the devastating effects of the Welsh longbow archers. The longbow made a significant debut at the battle of Crecy, France in 1346 (see illustration <) and changed the way battles were fought thereafter. Edward 111 called on his Welsh allies who contributed 3,000 of the 6,000 arches who faced the enemy knights. These well-trained Welsh bowmen could 'loose' about 10 arrows a minute. At any moment thousands of arrows would be hissing through the air, looking, as one observer at the time put it, 'so thick that it seemed like snow'. The longbow archers fired volleys of arrows, travelling like a "swarm of bees", rapidly making a decisive advantage over the French crossbow which took longer to 'draw' and slower to shoot arrows.

Achery was like a religion. The Welsh longbow archer played a critical role in the battle of Agincourt (see illustration). On 25 October 1415, English and Welsh longbow archers, many of them from Brecon, under King Henry V completely destroyed the French cavalry at Agincourt. King Henry poured considerable sums of money into equipping his army, ‘purchasing bows, arrows, bow strings....from a number of different fletchers and tradesmen’. A loyal servant of King Henry, John Merbury of Herefordshire, ‘would recruit twenty men-at-arms and five hundred archers from south Wales for the Agincourt campaign’. Sir John Fastolf of Wiltshire also recruited Welshmen for his army at Agincourt. They were clad in distinctive battle clothes, ‘the contingents of archers raised by the crown in Wales and Cheshire were clearly identifiable by their caps and tunics of green and white’ (see illustration).

The powerful longbow in the hands of a skilled and experienced Welsh archer stirred dread in the minds of their enemies. With a large draw weight (pull), a well made arrow could travel between 180 and 200 yards and pierce armour and chainmail. No wonder the longbow archer was feared by his enemies across Europe for three centuries. The feared Medieval longbow archers usually used a two-fingered draw on the string and if captured, the French soldiers would cut off these two drawing fingers. However in close combat it was common for longbow archers to taunt their enemy by holding up their two fingers.

2. The Role of the Fletchers

The efficiency and power of the longbow as a weapon of war and a tool for hunting and leisure sports secured the craft of the bowyer and the fletcher across hundreds of centuries and up to present days.

Bowyers and fletchers were very skilled jobs and they were paid the same rate as the archers. These craftsmen accompanied the army on the march and fletchers had to maintain arrows, keep them useable and ready for battle use at all times. The Medieval arrow, like its present day descendant, had three parts: the shaft, the arrow head and the fletching (feathers).

The shaft could be made using many different woods like ash, birch, oak and yew and could be up to a metre long. Ash was often used for war arrows because it is strong.

(The arrow at the top in this display is typical Medieval.)

Arrowheads were shaped to fit different purposes: the bodkin type (left in picture) was an armour piercing head; the hunting head (4th from left) and the broadhead (2nd, 3rd and 5th from left). The broadhead type was a flesh piercing arrow and sometimes was smeared with beeswax, resin or tallow. The barbs on the head would prevent the arrow being easily withdrawn.

The Medieval arrow had three feathers but not just any feathers were acceptable. Medieval archers preferred the flight feathers from the grey goose because they were tough, durable, cheap and were easily obtainable (see photograph).

Medieval archers had their ammunition carried in barrels on wagons. Sometimes barrels had separate heads from the shafts. It's interesting to speculate that possibly these loose heads were held on the shafts with beeswax, which when embedded in the assailant, would soften the beeswax and thereby allow the shaft to be recovered and used again and again. Back at home in Wales the weapons of war; bows, arrows, swords, spears, knives and lances were made in large quantities and sent by land and sea to supply the needs of armies in battle. In May and June of 1360 approximately 10,000 bows and half a million arrows were delivered to the King's army in London.

3. How does this relate to modern Fletchers?

To summarise, the origins of the Fletcher name stems from the skills described by the making of arrows. As the name Fletcher is from the French root word 'flecher', then its use in our language originates from 1066 and the Norman Conquest. Welsh longbow archers were brave, skilful and feared by their enemies. They were used by Edward 1, Edward 111 and Henry V in many battles e.g. Crecy, Agincourt, where the Welsh longbow archer used thousands of arrows. Most of the Welsh archers were from South Wales, hence the origins of Fletcher (the makers of their arrows) in South Wales. A person with the surname Fletcher today could trace the origin of their name back to this time. It is likely that, following the placement of William of Normandy on the English throne, fletchers migrated from England into Wales. They moved to where their craft was needed, often into the border counties between England and Wales. King Edward 1 paid English archers incentives to relocate to Wales to defend his castles and with them they would take their arrow makers, the fletchers. We can imagine these craftsmen settling into the local Welsh communitiy, intermarrying and beginning families. In the Welsh language, occupational names are not used as surnames, therefore the descendants of the fletchers became Fletcher. The rest is history.

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We gratefully acknowledge the cooperation of the following for:

1. The illustrations by Gerry Embleton. Taken from Warrior 11 ‘English Longbowman 1330-1515’ © Osprey Publishing Limited, www.ospreypublishing.com

2. The photographs of arrows and arrowheads by kind permission of Richard Head. Taken from his website at:

www.english-longbow.co.uk/

3. The help given through discussion and feedback: Mr D.H.Soar, Mick Manns, Barbara, Bethan and Sketty Fletcher

4. The quote by Robert Hardy taken from his book: 'Longbow: A Social and Military History' 1992.

5. References to the Battle of Agincourt taken from ‘Agincourt; the King, the Campaign and the Battle’ by Juliet Barker by courtesy of Mark Fletcher.

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Here you will find some LINKS to relevant websites and they are provided for information only:

• The Craft Guild of Traditional Bowyers and Fletchers was formed in 1989 by a group of craftsmen bow and arrow makers. Although a modern organisation, it recognises the ancient origins of its purpose.
• http://www.bowyersandfletchersguild.org/
• The Worshful Company of Bowyers. A web site which details the history and activities of an ancient company whose origins go back to the 14th century.
  http://www.bowyers.com/