This manual discusseth the principles, law, and tactics regarding mustering men under arms, the waging o' war, and the administration o' the army o' the realm for young students being tutored in the militares artes and the duty o' a lord. This taketh the form o' the following: the supplying and raising o' the peasant levy, the laws governing the army and thy rights as a lord, the professional soldiery, and the tactics involved in the waging o' wars.

All fighting men must be armed. It maketh nay sense and is impossible to convince a men to march in shirt and bare-handed. Such a person would'st be bootless regardless.

We shall assume hither thy intention is to raise a levy o' spearmen. In many new baronies, thou art alotted a provision o' twenty spears and twenty shields. Our standard levy is thirty-six men in number. This means to fully raise thy village militia thou shalt be responsible for sixteen shield and sixteen spear. We have two means o' acquiring such provisions: production and trade.

Production has many benefits but is a long endeavor. In producing arms we introduce industry which in times of peace may bring profit through trade, though the exploitation of natural resources is harsh on the land and you may find yourself exhausted of iron. Be wise to rich deposits with which a mining village may exploit inexhaustibly.

To produce arms thee must develop such a supply line: iron must be mined, and bloomeries must smelt the ore into slab. Then, a burgage must be constructed withal ample room to construct an extension. As the job o' armsmaking is beyond the knowledge o' a peasant, ensure the burgage hath been upgraded beyond the means o' a peasant. It must not be the first level o' construction. Then, the blacksmithing backyard extension must be constructed. The blacksmith can forge tools, swords, spear and polearm. Instruct the tenant to forge spears until sixteen or more are manufactured.

To supply the militia withal shields is a much more simple task. Thou shalt need a lumber camp to fell logs, and shall already have such in thy village. Thou shalt need a sawyer to cut it into planks. Lastly, as in blacksmithing, thou shalt need a second or third level burgage withal room for an extension in the backyard. Construct a joinery in the backyard, and the family who claims tenancy shall employ themselves as joiners. They may construct shields small and large as well as wooden parts for trade. Instruct them to manufacture large shields. Small shields may not be used in a levy o' spears.

An you find thyself disinterested in production and have a rich population, trade may acquire such provisions as well. Simply construct the trading post and employ a family in its laboring. Purchase rights to trade routes in spear and large shield, and inform the merchants o' thy desired surplus. Keep this in thy mind, that thy surplus is what shall be purchased in excess. This means an you import a surplus o' sixteen spear, the traders shall first import sixteen spears, and each man o' the militia shall acquire them from the market. This shall leave thee withal nay spear in store, and the merchants shall import sixteen more. When thou hast an excess o' sixteen in storage, they shall cease trade. This means in total thou shalt import thirty-two spears. Sixteen shall be purchased by the levy, and sixteen shall remain in storehouse.

When thou hast acquired spear and shield for all militia, the levy shall be prest to raise. Thee may additionally arm them withal helmet, mail shirt, and gambeson. However, they may be raised without them. 'tis recommended to ensure they are armored however, as they shall be slain swiftly without them. These are produced in backyard extensions by armorsmiths and tailors out o' iron and linens, but may be purchased by a trading post

A lord must be privy as to what levy he may form as well as the laws regarding the drawing o' the levy.

'tis the law o' the realm by decree o' king greg that nay more than five peasant levieth be drawn, or six should'st a lord yet have nay manor nor retinue. Beyond the employment o' a retinue o' men-at-arms, this createth an upper limit o' one-hundred-eighty or two-hundred-sixteen armed peasants.

The peasant levy is an impermanent unit o' soldier. Unless drawn, they shall remain employed as previous, and only take up the spear and shield when the order is given. But take heed! all men called in service are temporarily halted from their labors, and shall not work their jobs. Do not be wall-eyed to see fields unsown and mills unturned when at war.

Thither are four possible forms o' levy. The levy o' footmen, spearmen, polearmsmen, and archer. Just as the old fable o' the "rock, the paper, and the scissors" seeth paper entrap rock, rock slay the scissors, and the scissors cleave the paper, the sort o' arms oft decideth the victor.

Spearmen are best employed as a frontline, as they hold well on their own. Yet their is not the strength o' slaying, but rather the defense o' a position.

Footmen are armed withal sword and outfight the spearmen. Spears make poor dueling tools and they fall apace to a well-trained swordsman.

Polearms are uniquely suited to the dispatching o' a lord's retinue. They may fordo armor and present an active danger. Inspect the foe men. Do they employ mail and gambeson? Advise polearms for the destruction o' the frontline, and utilize polearms in the defense o' thy spearmen from men-at-arms. Do not allow them to engage withal thy retinue o' men-at-arms!

A lord hath the right to raise a levy o' men whenever and for how long he desires, and should'st they not yet route have full control o'er them and their command.

A lord is well entitled to a fortified manor. Thy manor may house a retinue o' so-called "men-at-arms", the town guard employed in thy service. Thy personal retinue are professional soldiers and shall not be employed in town. All related expenseth come not from the well o' the town but a lord's own personal treasury. Ensure thee tax the wealth so that thee may employ a well armed and armored personal retinue. Without a garrison tower, thee may employ twelve men-at-arms in thy retinue. To increase this, enter the castle-planner and construct a garrison tower. This allows room for an additional twelve.

Inspect the retinue, they may be customized to thy liking, and may be as livery as thee like. 'tis customary that a retinue maintain a livery color, but this is not required. Thee may also in inspection hire out more men to fill out thy retinue, or purchase armor for thy men. Thee may save half o' thy money by purchasing armor from thy armorsmiths, or import them for full price.

Thy retinue as professional soldiers are uniquely skilled in the dispatching o' men. They outmatch e'ry levy but are put in danger by polearms. Utilize them to protect the town from brigands and to protect thy frontline.

The superiority o' one manner o' soldier o'er the other is the primary concern o' making war and shall make one half o' our philosophy. The other half is maneuver.

We have discussed previously the role o' the three close-fighting levieth. Spearmen hold the line, swordsmen conduct the slaying, and polearms fordo armor. Men-at-arms slay all but be wary o' polearms.

We have not yet discussed archers.

Archers in this land are untrained and poorly accouter'd. Do not yet concern thyself in their employment until such a time as King Greg increaseth the training and the arms o' the archers.

Our hope is as organized a battle as possible. Organized, clean fights allow us to engage our minds and outsmart our foe. Should'st it devolve into a wild brawl, nay tactics shall prevail; only strength o' arms may save thyself.

Arrange thy spearmen in a line. Should'st thee not determine the tactics thee intend to use employ thy swordsmen and polearmsmen in flank. Thy men-at-arms should'st meander freely by the line o' spears to protect them from swordsmen.

The following passages shall all discuss the varying tactics thee may employ as well as the history o' the maneuver.

In commanding men we are afforded a number o' orders in which the men are familiar. A commanding officer may command men to occupy a formation as deep or shallow and as wide or narrow as desired. Narrow formations decrease force concentration but are difficult to envelope, deep formations offer massive force concentration but are easily surrounded.

Ordering the men to give ground shall begin an organized retire. This meaning the men shall continue to face the foe and fight, but step backwards while doing so. This draws the frontline back, and can be used to lure the foe men into an ambuscado, or to move into more favorable ground, such as an the high ground is behind thee.

To alert the men to missiles is useful to those men withal shields, polearms have nay ability to take heed. They shall raise their shields and shrug arrows withal ease.

Thee may also command men to take nay special orders, and to stand and fight at their own mind.

A defensive posture shall ensure the men focus on preserving their lives and their formation. As such, they shall attack very few times, but take few casualties o' men. Spearmen are best suited for this, and this command can be used to keep the foe men stuck-in withal thy shieldwall while thee command swordsmen or otherwise to wheel around and attack the foe in the rear.

Lastly thou canst command the men to push the foe formation. Should'st the foe not make sufficient push otherwise, they shall slowly bodge. This pusheth the foe formation backwards, and can be used to push them into thy ally stationed behind them at the loss o' the bonus o' the charge, or to force the foe into a less favorable position.

The limited population o' our rural nobility as is so common in this county as well as the laws imposed upon us limiting our total legal levy significantly inhibit our ability to engage in complicated tactical art. However, the old art o' the hammer and the anvil as invented by Alexander Magnus allows us to employ simple and deadly strategy as 'tis uniquely suited for our small scale o' conflict.

Assume thee raise four levy o' spearman and employ two o' men-at-arms, or three levy o' spearman, one o' men-at-arms, and one o' polearms.

Arrange thy spearmen in a line, nay more than two or three men to a column so that thy formation is shallow and wide. Instruct these men to hold their line. Arrange all other men behind them, or distantly to one side. This includeth any and all men-at-arms or polearmsmen.

Ensure thy foe's men engage withal thy spears. They are uniquely suited when well-equipped to hold against hardship. Their role is not to dispatch men, but rather to entrap them. Our thinking hither is that they shall be stuck-in and dedicated to the slaying o' our spearwall and fail to respond to a flanking maneuver.

'tis thy men-at-arms and and polearmsmen who marry make a living o' the slaying o' men, and so all the role o' the hammer belongs to them. While the foe's line is stuck against a mure o' shield and spear, maneuver thy soldiers o' attack.

Be it that they lay behind thy spearwall, instruct the men to move to either flank and proceed behind the foe, turning, and to charge into their rear. Be it that they lay to the side, instruct the men to proceed into the side o' the foe, and charge along their length. The first may encircle them, though the second choice allows thy men to concentrate their strength o' arm against few, ensuring they are overwhelmed.



In better times perhaps we may employ steed and steel as the hammer to strike the slag laying upon our anvil, but sadly we can allot only man and steel alone against your enemy.

This solution to a battle is simple, ay, but it allows for expedient victory and for e'en an inferior army to prevail against a larger force. However, its greatest application is in competition against an equivalent foe. This is the reason we ensure our spearwall is shallow and wide; we must ensure that though the detachment allows fewer men in the shieldwall that we may not be encircled as the foe presseth thy flank.

Let this form the building block o' thy tactics, and employ it in all scale, from single moments betwixt few men in a battle, to massive movements o' an army.

An invention o' Alexander and employed in all his battles, it would'st become a favorite o' the romans and be employed in all wars sith. Famously, caesar defeated the hammer and anvil by ambushing the hammer and in seizing the initiative, put his rear guard against the anvil. hey lost hope and fled, routed by Caesar.

Concentration o' force is the primary method to breach a frontline. The principle o' force concentration is as follows: unite a mass o' men against a smaller moiety o' the foe. The employment o' a proper frontline breach is simple. Instruct the men to form a deep and narrow column and charge into the frontline. Do not instruct them to engage heavily withal the foe! while the intention is to slay a few, an you get stuck in, they shall collapse around thy men and encircle them. Instead, direct the men to run through the frontline and pass the rear. This is most expertly performed by swordsmen.

In what situation would'st thee breach a frontline? Imagine thou hast a line o' spearmen facing the foe's line o' spearmen. To fight would'st be to gamble. Thee should'st pull the appropriate unit and concentrate them front o' thy spears. Fighting spearmen, employ swordsmen. Identify which unit o' spearmen thee wish to push through, be careful to not pass betwixt two units lest thee allow thy fighters to become surrounded.

Should'st all go well, thou shalt have swordsmen behind the foe, a hole in their frontline, and the initiative. Seize the initiative and push forward withal thy spearmen and instruct the swordsmen to attack their spearmen from behind.



An you hesitate, thee may find the swordsmen in peril against the foe retinue.

This shall allow thee to apace dispatch a formation o' spearmen by encircling them and then concentrate both spear and swordsmen against whoever the foe sends to support.

'twas the Romans who initially devised this resolve against the Germans. Until the dark ages and the fall o' the empire, they would'st array legions into the tribes and overwhelm them, allowing the rear guard to engage the front. This wast later developed into the tactic as described hither among generals o' our time.