For any medieval history or longbow enthusiast, Monmouth will always be associated with Henry V, born in its Castle in 1387. Less well known is that it is likely he spent his formative years at the Courtfield Estate in Welsh Bicknor. The estate is reputed to have originally been called Greenfield and was given the 'Court' prefix in his honour. Henry cut his military teeth fighting the rebel Owain Glyndwr. During the battle of Shrewsbury, between the two claimants to the title 'Prince of Wales', he was badly injured by an arrow strike below his eye. However, he refused to leave the field until the day was won. A slightly stunted statue of Henry V was placed below the clock face of the Shire Hall in 1792. The figure seems to resemble Shakespeare's villain Richard III more than Henry himself.
Even before the days of Henry, South Wales had a strong archery tradition that the North of the country did not enjoy. Gerald of Wales, writing in 1188 about his journey through Wales, recounted feats of archery prowess from South Welsh archers. "The people of Gwent in particular, are more skilled with the bow and arrow than those who come from other parts of Wales." He goes on to describe the equipment used by the Welsh archers and interestingly is explicit about the bow wood used. Surprisingly, this is not yew, which was the favoured wood of English armies of the Hundred Years War and early Tudor period. All of the137 whole longbows found on board the Mary Rose, the flagship of Henry VIII, were made of yew. "The bows they use are not made of horn, nor of sapwood, nor yet of yew. The Welsh carve their bows out of the dwarf elm-trees in the forest. They are nothing much to look at, not even rubbed smooth, but left in a rough and unpolished state. Still, they are firm and strong."
Common and wych elm were often used for warbow throughout the Middle Ages but are inferior to South Wales yew when made into a longbow. However, when made into a flatter short bow, reminiscent to that of the Plains Native Americans, the wood shines. Therefore, is it that the English longbow can be said to be evolved from that of the Welsh bow that Gerald described? Certainly they were effective and the Welsh archers were of a high calibre. Shrewd military hawk Edward I was quick to see the benefit of such men in his army and Welsh archers played a significant part in his many victories over the Scots. It was said that an English or Welsh archer, serving in an English army, carried twenty-four dead Scots under his belt. Twenty-four corresponded to the number of arrows an archer carried 'under his belt'. This number of arrows is known as a sheaf and the word is derived from the Old English word for a bundle of wheat. However, the yew longbow design has existed for thousands of years. In Somerset the 'Ashcott Bow' was excavated and dated to 2665 BC and is found in a number of cultures. Ötzi the Iceman had a yew longbow on him when he died in the Alps of his wounds 635 years earlier. He and his equipment were frozen and preserved until they were discovered in 1991. Despite the huge time gap, Ötzi would have recognised a Mary Rose bow, as it was so similar to his own.
Another inseparable link between archery and Monmouth is the eponymous cap. Monmouth became a centre for wool goods production during the 15th and 16 century.
The Monmouth cap is mentioned in Shakespeare's stirring Henry V. Fluellen says to the King...
"Your majesty says very true: if your majesties is remembered of it, the Welshmen did good service in a garden where leeks did grow, wearing leeks in their Monmouth caps; which, your majesty know, to this hour is an honourable badge of the service; and I do believe your majesty takes no scorn to wear the leek upon Saint Davy's day."
The King replies... "I wear it for a memorable honour; For I am Welsh, you know, good countryman."
Monmouth has the good fortune of being next to the Wye, which made exporting goods easier. It is also a short distance away from Archenfield in Herefordshire, which was noted for producing outstanding felting wool from Ryeland Sheep.
On a role of soldiers, who fought at the battle of Agincourt in 1415, is Thomas Capper. The surname is derived from the makers of the knitted caps who enjoyed membership of a craft guild. An original 16th century Monmouth cap can be seen in the town's museum. Leading expert on the cap is Kirstie Buckland, a Monmouth resident. She still faithfully knits the caps of which the author is a proud owner. No country can really lay an exclusive claim to the longbow or archery but certainly Monmouth has an indisputable place in archery history.
(Written by Jeremy Spencer, who is an event organiser for the English Warbow Society. He is a member of The Craft Guild of Bowyers and Fletchers and last year broke the World Record for the longest shot from a traditional longbow with a wooden arrow at 415 yards when shooting for the county of Monmouth)