It is extremely difficult to discover the exact condition of England's military organisation17 when Henry the Seventh was fairly seated on the throne. The old feudal18 system, which had been turned by the nobles to such disastrous19 account for their own ends in the Civil War, seems to have been but half alive. Compositions, indents20, and commissions of array had already weakened it in the past, and indents in themselves had been shown to be unsafe. The difficulties wherein Henry found himself are shown by two statutes22 imposing23 the obligation of military service on two new classes, namely holders24 of office, fees or annuities25 under the crown, or of honours and lands under the King's letters patent. It was stipulated26 that they should receive wages from the day of leaving their homes until the day of their return to them; but they were strictly27 forbidden to depart without leave, and their service was declared to be due both within the kingdom and without. But in fact the sovereign seems to have been driven back on the force which represented the old Saxon fyrd, and had its legal existence under the Statute21 of Winchester. Noblemen and gentlemen could of course still show a body of retainers, but many, indeed most, of the ancient magnates had perished, and recent experience had shown the danger[110] of permitting their retinue28 to become too powerful. A curious complication, to which I shall presently return, in the collapse29 of the old feudal service was the extreme dearth30 of good horses. Altogether everything tended to compel resort to the national militia31 as the principal military force of England. Two allowances to the levies32 of the shire seem to have been finally established in this reign, namely coat-money and conduct-money. The first, as its name denotes, helped the soldier to provide himself with clothing and was a step further towards uniform; and indeed it is possible that it was deliberately34 designed to exclude the liveries of the nobility, already condemned35 by statute, in favour of the national white with the red cross of St. George. The conduct-money was simply the old allowance which was seen in the days of William Rufus, but which from henceforth apparently36 was refunded37 to the shire from the Exchequer38. Both, however, though paid in advance to the soldier, were ultimately deducted39 from his pay, and are therefore of interest in the history of the British soldier's stoppages. Finally, we find indications of a stricter discipline in a statute that makes desertion while on service outside the kingdom into felony, and subjects captains who defraud40 men of their pay to forfeiture41 of goods and to imprisonment42.
A few points remain to be mentioned before we pass to the reign of Henry the Eighth. The first was the establishment of that royal body-guard, which with its picturesque43 old dress and original title of Yeomen[90] of the Guard still survives among us. Though doubtless imitated from the Scottish Guard of the French kings, it is of greater interest as being composed not of aliens but of Englishmen, and as the first permanent corps44 of trained English soldiers in our history. Another smaller matter cannot be ignored without disrespect[111] to military sentiment. After the victory of Bosworth Field Henry offered at the altar of St. Paul's Cathedral a banner charged with "a red fiery45 dragon" upon a field of white and green, the ensign of Cadwallader, the last of the British kings, from whom he was fond of tracing his descent. The scarlet46 of this red fiery dragon became from this time the royal livery, and was for the present reserved, together with purple, to the King's use alone.[91] But the green and white was more liberally distributed both to soldiers and mariners47. A white jacket with the red cross of St. George had long been a common distinction of the English soldier, and the white as a colour of the Tudors now became so general that for a time "white coat" was used as a synonym48 for soldier.
Lastly must be noticed the definite establishment of the Office of Ordnance49 for the custody50 of military stores. The early history of the office is exceedingly obscure, and the existence of King Edward the Second's artillator hardly warrants us in assuming the permanent foundation of the department in the fourteenth century. The record of a Clerk of the Ordnance in 1418 sets the office on surer ground, and in 1483 the appointment of a Master-General advances it to a stage at which it becomes recognisable by us even at the present day; for the title of Master-General was held by John, Duke of Marlborough, and by Arthur, Duke of Wellington.
With Henry the Eighth we reach a new example in our history of an English soldier-king. Young, able, accomplished51, and ambitious, he was strongly imbued52 with the military spirit, and possessed53 many qualities that must have made him a popular and might have made him a distinguished54 commander. He excelled[112] in every exercise of arms; he was the finest archer55 in his kingdom; he had studied the art of war in the best authorities; he understood the conduct both of a siege and of a campaign; and lastly, he was no mean artillerist56. This last attribute, however, he shared with several sovereigns of his time. Artillery57 was a favourite hobby with the crowned heads of Europe, possibly as a symbol of their military strength, for being unable to give themselves the pleasure of a great review owing to the inevitable58 confusion and expense, they were fain to console themselves with the several pieces, each one of them called by its pet name, that composed their park of ordnance. Altogether Henry was a prince who bade fair to restore the military prestige of England.
1509.
1511.
His first step was to increase his standing59 force by the creation of a second body-guard of men-at-arms,[92] composed of young men of noble blood; the reason given being that there were far too many such young men in the kingdom who were untrained in arms. The corps, as might have been expected with the best dressed sovereign in Europe, was so gorgeously arrayed that it perished after a few years under the weight of its own cost. His next act was more practical, a writ60 to the sheriffs for the better enforcement of the Statute of Winchester, which is interesting for its attempt to restore the command of the forces of the shore to their original holders.[93] Concurrently61, however, we encounter a large number of the old-fashioned indents and commissions of array, all issued in prospect7 of English intervention62 in the eternal strife63 of the Hapsburgs and the Valois.[94] In 1512 an expedition was sent to the south of France, and there the defects of the army were lamentably seen. Although the importation of hand-guns and arquebuses shows that England was not blind to the progress of fire-arms in Europe, this force [113]was armed principally if not exclusively with the old-fashioned bows and bills, and worse than all, these bows, which had been issued from the stores in the Tower, were found nearly all of them to be useless. Moreover, the victuals64 were "untruly served" to the men, their pay was withheld65 from them, and, acutest of all grievances66, they could get no beer. The Council of War, in which the command was vested, could never agree as to a plan of operations, and though it kept the men thus inactive made no attempt to drill or exercise them. The natural result was a mutiny. One large band struck work for eightpence a day in lieu of the regular sixpence, several others swore that nothing should keep them from going home, and the disturbance67 was only quelled68 by the hanging of a ringleader.[95]
1513.
Henry seems to have had suspicions of the state of affairs, for in the same year Acts were passed to renew the existing statutes against desertion and fraud; though from the incessant69 re-enactment of these particular provisions it is clear that they were either easily evaded70 or negligently71 enforced. In the following year, however, Henry took the field in person in Normandy, where his presence appears materially to have altered the complexion72 of affairs. His force was designed to have consisted of thirty thousand men, but was reduced by impending73 trouble with Scotland to less than half that number. The details of its organisation are still extant, and it is curious to find that, after but two generations of severance74 from France, the French terms vanguard, battle, and rearguard have given place to fore-ward33, mid-ward, and rear-ward. Another novelty is the addition of wings, which had formerly75 been attached to the vanguard only, to the midward also; which was clearly a new departure.[96] There is again a strong tendency, which after a year becomes a rule, to make the tactical units of uniform strength, one hundred men being the common establishment for a company. [114]Every captain too has an officer under him called his petty captain, a name which appears in the statutes of the previous reign, and was not yet displaced by the title, as yet reserved to the King's deputies only,[97] of lieutenant76. The ensign[98] does not yet make his appearance, for the grouping of companies is strictly territorial77, and one standard apparently alone is allowed to each shire. Every company, however, has the distinctive78 badge of its captain, and the archers79 of the King's Guard are dressed in uniform of white gaberdines. Lastly, there are in the army fifteen hundred Almains, the landsknechts of whom account was given in a previous section, eight hundred of whom, "all in a plump," marched immediately before the King. Possibly this place of honour was granted to them to kindle80 the emulation81 of the English, but more probably because Henry, following the evil example of the French, trusted more to trained mercenaries than to his own subjects. We shall constantly meet with such contingents83 of aliens among the English during the next forty years, until at last England awakes, like every other nation in Europe, to the truth that her own children, as carefully trained, are worth just double of the foreigners.
The most remarkable84 of the mounted men in this army were the Northern Horsemen, who, called into being at some uncertain period by the eternal forays on the Scottish border, now appear regularly on the strength of every expedition as perfectly85 indispensable. They were light cavalry86, the first deserving the name [115]ever seen in our army, and probably the very best in Europe. They wore defensive87 armour88 of back and breast and iron cap, carried lance and buckler or sometimes a bow, and were mounted on "nags89" which were probably nearer thirteen than fourteen hands high. For duties of reconnaissance they were perfect, and they must be reckoned the first regular English horse that were the eyes and ears of the army. We shall see them at a later stage merged90 in a mounted body much resembling them, namely the demi-lances, which were destined91, during the period of transition that is before us, to fill the place already almost vacated by the men-at-arms.
There is no need to dwell on the incidents of a not very eventful campaign. The panic flight of the French at the Battle of the Spurs upheld the old belief that they could not stand before the English; and the siege and capture of Terouenne under the personal direction of Henry helped to confirm it. A fruitless attack on an English convoy92, curiously93 resembling the Battle of the Herrings in its main features, also helped to maintain the ancient reputation of the English archers. Lastly, the siege of Tournay gave Henry an opportunity of showing off some of his new artillery. There were twelve huge pieces, called the twelve apostles, of which he was particularly proud; but as St. John stuck in the mud and was unfortunately captured, it is well not to say too much of them. But the French were by no means impressed with the appearance of their old enemies in the field. "The English," wrote Fleuranges in a patronising way, "are good men and fight well when parked in a strong position, but otherwise I make no great account of them."
1513,
September.
September 9.
But while Henry was plying94 his apostles against Tournay, some still older enemies of the nation had formed a very different opinion of the English. For in September, Thomas, Earl of Surrey, met the Scots at Flodden Field, and dealt them a blow from which they never wholly recovered. The odds95 against the[116] English were heavy, for they could bring but twenty-six thousand men against forty thousand or, as some say, eighty thousand Scots, and the position taken up by James the Fourth was so strong that Surrey could not venture to attack it. With ready intelligence he made a detour96 from south to north of the Scottish host, and James, who had not attempted to molest97 him during the movement, hurried down, fearful of being cut off from his base, to meet him in the open field. The sequel is an example of the helplessness of pedantry98, even of the newest pattern, in the face of genuine military instinct. The Scotch had studied the methods of the landsknechts; they were armed principally with pikes; they were drawn99 up in five huge battalions100, after the Swiss model, and they advanced to the attack in silence "after the Almain manner." Lastly, they had with them some of the finest artillery hitherto seen.[99] Yet all this availed them nothing. The English too were formed, after a method which had lately come into fashion, in two divisions, fore-ward and rear-ward, each with two wings; but Surrey boldly wheeled both into one grand line,[100] holding but one small body of horse in reserve, and appears to have overlapped101 the cumbrous masses of the enemy. There is no need to give details of the battle; it began between four and five in the evening and was over in an hour. The English leaders seem to have shown not only bravery but skill. The English archers as usual wrought102 havoc103 against unarmoured men; the English bills got the better of the Scottish pikes, and the English light cavalry, admirably handled, twice saved the infantry104 from defeat. Ten thousand Scots were slain105, and James himself, with the head and heir of almost every noble house in Scotland around him, lay covered with ghastly wounds among the dead. He had, from some whimsical return to an obsolete106 practice, dismounted his men-at-arms, who, in obedience107 to the new fashion which counselled [117]protection against the new-fangled bullets, were clad in the heaviest armour. Arrows fell harmlessly from them, and even bills could not cut them down with less than half a dozen strokes; but they could not fly, and the bill-men did not weary of killing108. And so on Flodden Field was shown a forecast of what was to be seen later in Italy, when infantry, finding men-at-arms prostrate109 on the ground, hammered them to death like lobsters110 within their shells before they could break through their armour.
Still the lesson of Flodden to the English was mainly that bows and bills were still irresistible111; and to a conservative people none could have been more welcome. Henry, who was an enthusiastic archer, had already renewed a statute of his father's prohibiting the use of the cross-bow without a licence, and he now withdrew all licences and extended the prohibition112 to hand-guns.[101] The long-bow, on the other hand, received all the encouragement that enactments113 and sentiment could afford it. Henry dressed himself and his body-guard in green, which was the archer's peculiar114 colour; and the Venetian ambassador Giustiniani writing in 1519 described, with but slight exaggeration, the English military forces as consisting of one hundred and fifty thousand men, whose peculiar though not exclusive weapon was the long-bow. Men-at-arms were extinct, light cavalry insignificant115 in number. Giustiniani, however, did not add that the archers were now more efficiently116 equipped than at any previous period, being provided with two stakes instead of one, and further protected by a breastplate.[102] Nor did he notice a new weapon, the Moorish117 or Morris pike, which had lately come into use among the English, and had brought them a little closer to the famous infantry of the Continent.
1520.
It is, however, almost with a smile that we see Henry with undiminished satisfaction flaunting118 his [118]archers in the face of Francis at the Field of Cloth of Gold. Francis on his side produced his Swiss, and gave the English an opportunity of studying the first infantry in Europe. Fleuranges was at their head, and as his eye wandered from the scarlet and gold of the body-guard to the white and green of the other English troops, he probably felt justified119 in his opinion that they could not meet his own men in the open field. Henry, however, was unchangeable,[103] and the only sign of novelty that we see at this famous pageant120 is a horn-shaped flag borne in the retinue of Cardinal121 Wolsey, the cornette, which was in due time to give its name to the standard-bearers of the English cavalry.[104]
1522.
1523.
1525.
Peace never endured long in those days, and in 1522 Henry was again at war with Francis, in alliance with Charles the Fifth. Again the English deficiencies became patent. In his expedition to France, which led to little result, Henry was forced to rely principally on Charles for cavalry;[105] and when it was evident that France would require to be fought on the Scottish border also, the Earl of Surrey, who held command in the north, begged for a reinforcement of four thousand landsknechts. The French, he said, would certainly bring pikes with them, and the English were not accustomed to pikes, though they would soon learn from the Almains.[106] In plain words, the English soldiers with their existing equipment were unfit to meet the French in the field. Fortunately the Duke of Albany, who was opposed to Surrey, was a coward, and little came of the alarm in the north. But the danger seems for the moment to have aroused Henry to a sense of his backwardness, for we find in 1523 a scheme for the purchase of ten thousand eighteen-foot [119]pikes and corselets, five thousand halberds, and ten thousand hand-culverins with matches,[107] bullet-moulds and powder-flasks complete. This is the first indication of a design to equip the army according to the best rules of the age, and, if it had been adopted, little change would have been needed for a century and a half. It is difficult to say why it was not, for at this time there are signs of an intention to take the improvement of the army seriously in hand.[108] But Henry changed his policy. Peace was made, and was immediately followed by a proclamation to enforce the statute for the encouragement of the long-bow and the discountenance of cross-bows and hand-guns.[109] We must come down to the prolonged rejection122 of breech-loading artillery by the country in our own day before we can find a parallel to such perversity123.
1539.
Nevertheless, in spite of all Henry's efforts fire-arms seem to have taken some hold on England, and particularly on London. In the general alarm that followed the insurrection known as the Pilgrimage of Grace, the King relied principally on London; and in 1537 he granted a Charter of Incorporation124 to the Artillery Company of the city, an association formed for the improved training of the citizens in weapons of volley, which term included hand-guns and cross-bows as well as the long-bow. This association survives as the Honourable125 Artillery Company. Again, at the great review of the London trained-bands two years later we find like symptoms of a change. The old account of this pageant is of singular interest for the sight which it gives us of the most efficient soldiers in England. The force consisted of fifteen thousand picked men, all able-bodied and properly equipped, and all, except the officers, clothed in white even to their shoes. [120]White was at once the old colour of England, the colour of the city, and the colour of the Tudors. The men paraded at Mile End, the famous drill-ground which was later to pass into a proverb, at six o'clock in the morning, and at eight moved off on their march to Westminster, in the three orthodox divisions of fore-ward, mid-ward, and rear-ward. First came the artillery, thirteen field-pieces, with their ammunition126 and "gun-stones," for shot was not yet always made of metal, in carts behind them. Then came the banners of the city, and then the musketeers, five in rank, with five feet of distance between ranks; after them came the bowmen in open order, every man a bow's length[110] from his neighbour; then followed the pikemen with their morris-pikes, "after the Almain manner," and lastly came the bills. Every one of the five divisions in each ward had its own band, its own colours, and its officers riding at its head; and it is worthy127 of note that the hand-guns and pikes took precedence of the bows and bills. So they marched on in their spotless white to Westminster, where the King awaited them on a platform. As the musketeers passed him they fired volleys, for a volley was of old the salute128 to the living as well as to the dead, the great guns were man?uvred and "shot off very terribly," doubtless to an accompaniment of female screams, and the force marched back through St. James' Park to the city. The review was intended as a demonstration129 against the menaces of foreign powers, and it had its due effect.
1544.
The danger passed away; but within four years Henry was again in the field fighting with Charles the Fifth against the French. There is little that is worth remarking in the campaigns that followed. The English as usual took with them their bows and bills, and the archers still came off with credit. A contingent82 of landsknechts was with them, who behaved so ill[121] as to draw upon themselves more than ordinary dislike; and indeed the palmy days of the landsknechts were over. One portion of the English army alone provoked the warm admiration130 of Charles, namely, the Northern Horsemen. Wallop, the English commander, took justifiable131 pride in them, and detached them to clear the country before the Emperor on his departure. Away started the sturdy border-men on their tough little ponies132, while Charles watched with all his eyes; and when he saw them breast an ascent133 before them and "hurl134" up the hill, he cried out with honest delight.[111]
Nevertheless it must be confessed that Henry, though the eight and thirty years of his reign were perhaps the most eventful in the history of the modern art of war, did singularly little for the army. The passion for the bow, which evinced itself in repeated enactments and proclamations to the very close of his reign, and the false system of hiring mercenaries, led to a neglect of the infantry which might easily have proved disastrous. For the cavalry, though here again he was inclined to use mercenaries, he showed more care. He was much exercised by the decay of the English breed of horses, and passed three several Acts for its remedy. The wording of these throws a flood of light on our ancient troop-horse. To improve the breed it was enacted135 that every owner of a park should keep from two to four brood-mares not less than thirteen hands high, and that no stallions under fourteen hands should be employed for breeding; the hand to be reckoned as four inches and the measurement to be made to the withers136. From the operation of this Act the counties of Northumberland, Cumberland, and Westmoreland, the home of the Northern Horsemen, were excluded. By a subsequent Act it was ordained137 that all chases, forests, and commons should be driven once a year, the unlikely mares and foals slaughtered138, and no stallions allowed to run free that were under fifteen hands in height. What effect these measures may have wrought[122] I am unable to say; but the knowledge of the small stature139 of brood-mares can help us to a better understanding of the difficulties which beset140 the maintenance of an efficient cavalry.[112]
1513.
But the arm wherein Henry worked most improvement was undoubtedly141 the artillery. We find him at first purchasing all his guns abroad, for the most part in Flanders, and procuring142 his gunners also from foreign parts; but it is clear, from the number of Englishmen whose appointment to the post of gunner remains143 on record, that the English were rapidly learning their business from their instructors144, while as early as 1514 we find Lord Darcy pleading for the employment of native gunners.[113] There is evidence too that the artilleryman's art was by no means so rare as it had been, gunners receiving no more than the ordinary soldier's pay of sixpence a day.[114] The casting of ordnance in England was less common, though there are scattered145 notices of English gun-founders from the beginning of the reign. Finally, in the year 1535 John Owen began to make even the largest guns, and obviated146 the necessity of depending on foreign makers147 for artillery. In 1543, moreover, Henry induced two foreigners to settle in England, Peter Bawd and Peter van Collen, who among other improvements devised mortar-pieces[115] of large calibre and shells to fire from them. Shell, indeed, was frequently used in the campaign of 1544, and Henry was early in appreciating its advantages. There was, however, still the difficulty of finding horses to draw the field-guns, which he seems to have attempted to overcome as early [123]as in the third year of his reign by some kind of registration148 of waggoners and teams. The drivers were to wear the white coat and red cross, and to be mustered149 and paid every month; and for their protection it was ordered that their paymaster should take no bribes150 from them beyond one penny a month from each man, a curious commentary on the financial morality of the army. Be that as it may, however, there exists no doubt that Henry the Eighth created the British gunner who, as his proud motto tells, has since worked his guns all over the world.
1542.
1544.
His zeal151 as an artillerist led Henry also, perhaps almost insensibly, towards the peculiar organisation for defence which was copied at a later period by the colonies, and for a short time was expanded even into an imperial system. The mounting of valuable guns entailed152 the necessity of maintaining a small body of trained men to keep them in order; and thus grew up the practice of stationing small independent garrisons153 in all the principal fortresses154, which garrisons were immovably attached to their particular posts and constituted what was really a permanent force. Thus almost at a stroke the military resources of England fell into three divisions—the standing garrisons just mentioned, the militia which could be called out in case of invasion, and the levies, nominally155 feudal but in reality mercenary, which were brought together for foreign service and disbanded as soon as the war was over. The attention devoted156 by Henry to the defence of the coast identifies his name peculiarly with certain modern strongholds, which stand on the same site and bear the same appellation157 as he gave them three centuries ago. Nor must it be forgotten that, though he did comparatively little for the army, Henry did very much for the navy, and perceived that the true defence of England was the maintenance of her power on the sea.
Two small points remain to be mentioned before we dismiss the most popular of English kings. A dear lover of music he took an interest in his military bands,[124] and we find him sending all the way to Vienna to procure158 kettle-drums that could be played on horseback "after the Hungarian (that is to say the Hussars') manner," together with men that could make and play them skilfully159. Ten good drums and as many fifers were ordered at the same time, with advantage, as may be hoped, to the English minstrels. Lastly, Henry was the first man of whom we may authentically160 say that he brought the English red-coats into the field for active service. Red garded with yellow was the uniform worn by his body-guard at the siege of Boulogne; and perhaps it was right that the scarlet should have made its first appearance in the presence of such old and gallant161 enemies as the French.
1547.
1549.
Under the rule of his boy successor we find little change in the old order of things. There was the usual fight with the Scotch on the border, and yet another crushing defeat, at Pinkie, of the old inveterate162 enemy. But hired Italian musketeers contributed not a little to the victory; and the state of the forces of the shires was most unsatisfactory. Fraudulent enlistment163 and desertion, doubly expensive since the payment of coat- and conduct-money had been instituted, were as common as ever, and the dishonesty of officers was never more flagrant. A stringent164 Act was passed to check these irregularities, with apparently the usual infinitesimal measure of success. Foreign troops were never so much employed in England, though even they complained of unjust dealing165. The insurrection in the west was suppressed principally by landsknechts and Italian harquebusiers, not however before they had suffered one repulse166 from the men of Devon, beyond doubt to the secret joy of all true Englishmen. Nevertheless the reign saw the rise of the Gentlemen Pensioners167 and, more important still, the appointment of a lord-lieutenant in every county, to be responsible for the forces of the shire. The latter was no doubt a stroke in the right direction, but it did not touch the heart of the matter. The worn-out machinery168 which[125] had been patched and tinkered for five centuries was not so easily to be repaired; and a new fly-wheel, though it might turn magnificently on its own axis169, could not keep the other broken-down wheels in motion.
1553.
The reign of Queen Mary brought the most important change in the military system of the country that had occurred for two centuries. The Statute of Winchester was superseded170 and a new Act enacted in its place. The reform, however, was in reality quite inadequate171 to the occasion. It provided for the supply of more modern weapons and for a new distribution, according to a new assessment172, of the burdens entailed by the maintenance of a national force; but in substance the new statute was drafted on the lines of the old, and the variations were very superficial. The extinction173 of men-at-arms hinted at by Guistiniani is sufficiently174 proved by the mention of two different kinds of cavalry, "demi-lances" or "medium" horse and the light horse with which we are already acquainted; and progress in the equipment of the infantry is shown by the mention of long pikes and corselets and of harquebuses. But alongside of these improved weapons are the familiar bows and bills; and a clause which, considering that Mary had married the heir of Spain is truly marvellous, provides that a bow shall in all cases be accepted as an efficient substitute for an arquebus. These details, however, are comparatively unimportant. The difficulty was one, not of arms, but of men; and Mary knew it. She would have formed a standing army if she had dared, but as she designed it principally for the coercion175 of her own subjects she ventured neither to ask for the money to establish it nor to brave the indignation that would have followed on its establishment.
1557.
1558.
Her unpopularity at the close of her reign, so strikingly in contrast with the devoted loyalty176 which she had enjoyed on first mounting the throne, told heavily against the efficiency, always largely dependent[126] on sentiment, of the forces of the shire. Never children crept more unwillingly177 to school than the English contingent which joined the Spaniards after the battle of St. Quentin. Never half-witted woman looked on with more helpless, impotent distraction178 at the robbery of her jewels than the once iron-willed Mary, when Guise179 marched up to Calais. The English garrison made all the resistance that could be expected of brave men, but they were outnumbered, and the commanders asked in vain for reinforcements. The Government awoke to the danger too late; and, yet more sadly significant, the forces of the shires came unwillingly to the musters180 and came unarmed. Yet Mary's name is bound up with two material benefits conferred on the British soldier. The men who went to St. Quentin received eightpence a day, the sum for which her father's men had mutinied forty years before; and from this time, for two full centuries, eightpence replaces sixpence as the soldier's daily stipend181. More thoughtful too than any of the kings that came before her, she left directions in her will for the provision of a house in London, with a clear endowment of four hundred marks a year, "for the relief and help of poor, impotent and aged182 soldiers" who had suffered loss or wounds in the service of their country. For all her man's voice and masculine will, she had a woman's heart which warmed to the deserving old soldier, and whatever her demerits in the eyes of those who wear the gown, her memory may at least be cherished by those who wear the red coat.
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insular
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| adj.岛屿的，心胸狭窄的 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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sentimental
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| adj.多愁善感的，感伤的 | |
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garrison
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| n.卫戍部队；驻地，卫戍区；vt.派(兵)驻防 | |
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continental
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| adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的 | |
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aggression
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| n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害 | |
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7
prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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prospects
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| n.希望，前途(恒为复数) | |
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regaining
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| 复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地 | |
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reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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scotch
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| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
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lamentably
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| adv.哀伤地，拙劣地 | |
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deficient
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| adj.不足的，不充份的，有缺陷的 | |
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16
landmark
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| n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标 | |
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17
organisation
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| n.组织，安排，团体，有机休 | |
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18
feudal
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| adj.封建的，封地的，领地的 | |
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19
disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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20
indents
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| v.切割…使呈锯齿状( indent的第三人称单数 )；缩进排版 | |
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21
statute
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| n.成文法，法令，法规；章程，规则，条例 | |
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22
statutes
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| 成文法( statute的名词复数 )； 法令； 法规； 章程 | |
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23
imposing
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| adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的 | |
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24
holders
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| 支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物 | |
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25
annuities
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| n.养老金；年金( annuity的名词复数 )；（每年的）养老金；年金保险；年金保险投资 | |
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26
stipulated
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| vt.& vi.规定；约定adj.[法]合同规定的 | |
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27
strictly
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| adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地 | |
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28
retinue
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| n.侍从；随员 | |
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29
collapse
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| vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷 | |
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30
dearth
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| n.缺乏，粮食不足，饥谨 | |
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31
militia
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| n.民兵，民兵组织 | |
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32
levies
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| （部队）征兵( levy的名词复数 )； 募捐； 被征募的军队 | |
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33
ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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34
deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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35
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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36
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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37
refunded
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| v.归还，退还( refund的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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38
exchequer
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| n.财政部；国库 | |
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39
deducted
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| v.扣除，减去( deduct的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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40
defraud
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| vt.欺骗，欺诈 | |
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41
forfeiture
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| n.（名誉等）丧失 | |
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42
imprisonment
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| n.关押，监禁，坐牢 | |
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43
picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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44
corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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45
fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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46
scarlet
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| n.深红色，绯红色，红衣；adj.绯红色的 | |
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47
mariners
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| 海员，水手（mariner的复数形式） | |
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48
synonym
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| n.同义词，换喻词 | |
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49
ordnance
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| n.大炮，军械 | |
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50
custody
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| n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留 | |
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51
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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52
imbued
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| v.使（某人/某事）充满或激起（感情等）( imbue的过去式和过去分词 )；使充满；灌输；激发（强烈感情或品质等） | |
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53
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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54
distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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55
archer
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| n.射手，弓箭手 | |
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56
artillerist
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| 炮手，炮兵，炮术家 | |
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57
artillery
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| n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队) | |
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58
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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59
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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60
writ
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| n.命令状，书面命令 | |
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61
concurrently
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| adv.同时地 | |
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62
intervention
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| n.介入，干涉，干预 | |
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63
strife
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| n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争 | |
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64
victuals
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| n.食物；食品 | |
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65
withheld
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| withhold过去式及过去分词 | |
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66
grievances
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| n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚 | |
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67
disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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68
quelled
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| v.（用武力）制止，结束，镇压( quell的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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69
incessant
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| adj.不停的，连续的 | |
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70
evaded
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| 逃避( evade的过去式和过去分词 )； 避开； 回避； 想不出 | |
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71
negligently
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72
complexion
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| n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格 | |
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73
impending
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| a.imminent, about to come or happen | |
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74
severance
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| n.离职金；切断 | |
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75
formerly
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| adv.从前，以前 | |
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76
lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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77
territorial
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| adj.领土的，领地的 | |
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78
distinctive
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| adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的 | |
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79
archers
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| n.弓箭手，射箭运动员( archer的名词复数 ) | |
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80
kindle
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| v.点燃，着火 | |
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81
emulation
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| n.竞争；仿效 | |
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82
contingent
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| adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队 | |
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83
contingents
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| （志趣相投、尤指来自同一地方的）一组与会者( contingent的名词复数 )； 代表团； （军队的）分遣队； 小分队 | |
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84
remarkable
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|
| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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85
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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86
cavalry
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| n.骑兵；轻装甲部队 | |
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87
defensive
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| adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的 | |
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88
armour
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| （=armor）n.盔甲；装甲部队 | |
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89
nags
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| n.不断地挑剔或批评（某人）( nag的名词复数 )；不断地烦扰或伤害（某人）；无休止地抱怨；不断指责v.不断地挑剔或批评（某人）( nag的第三人称单数 )；不断地烦扰或伤害（某人）；无休止地抱怨；不断指责 | |
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90
merged
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| （使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中 | |
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91
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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92
convoy
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| vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队 | |
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93
curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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94
plying
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| v.使用（工具）( ply的现在分词 )；经常供应（食物、饮料）；固定往来；经营生意 | |
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95
odds
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| n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别 | |
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96
detour
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| n.绕行的路，迂回路；v.迂回，绕道 | |
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97
molest
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| vt.骚扰，干扰，调戏 | |
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98
pedantry
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| n.迂腐，卖弄学问 | |
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99
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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100
battalions
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| n.（陆军的）一营（大约有一千兵士）( battalion的名词复数 )；协同作战的部队；军队；（组织在一起工作的）队伍 | |
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101
overlapped
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| _adj.重叠的v.部分重叠( overlap的过去式和过去分词 )；（物体）部份重叠；交叠；（时间上）部份重叠 | |
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102
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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103
havoc
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| n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱 | |
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104
infantry
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| n.[总称]步兵(部队) | |
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105
slain
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| 杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词) | |
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106
obsolete
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| adj.已废弃的，过时的 | |
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107
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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108
killing
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| n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财 | |
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109
prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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110
lobsters
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| 龙虾( lobster的名词复数 )； 龙虾肉 | |
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111
irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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112
prohibition
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| n.禁止；禁令，禁律 | |
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113
enactments
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| n.演出( enactment的名词复数 )；展现；规定；通过 | |
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114
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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115
insignificant
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| adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的 | |
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116
efficiently
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| adv.高效率地，有能力地 | |
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117
moorish
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| adj.沼地的，荒野的，生[住]在沼地的 | |
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118
flaunting
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| adj.招摇的，扬扬得意的，夸耀的v.炫耀，夸耀( flaunt的现在分词 )；有什么能耐就施展出来 | |
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119
justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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120
pageant
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| n.壮观的游行；露天历史剧 | |
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121
cardinal
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| n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的 | |
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122
rejection
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| n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃 | |
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123
perversity
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| n.任性；刚愎自用 | |
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124
incorporation
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| n.设立，合并，法人组织 | |
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125
honourable
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| adj.可敬的；荣誉的，光荣的 | |
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126
ammunition
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| n.军火，弹药 | |
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127
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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128
salute
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| vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮 | |
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129
demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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130
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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131
justifiable
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| adj.有理由的，无可非议的 | |
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132
ponies
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| 矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑 | |
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133
ascent
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| n.(声望或地位)提高；上升，升高；登高 | |
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134
hurl
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| vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂 | |
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135
enacted
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| 制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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136
withers
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| 马肩隆 | |
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137
ordained
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| v.任命（某人）为牧师( ordain的过去式和过去分词 )；授予（某人）圣职；（上帝、法律等）命令；判定 | |
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138
slaughtered
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| v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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139
stature
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| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
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beset
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| v.镶嵌；困扰，包围 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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procuring
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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143
remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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instructors
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| 指导者，教师( instructor的名词复数 ) | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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obviated
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| v.避免，消除（贫困、不方便等）( obviate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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makers
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| n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式） | |
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registration
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| n.登记，注册，挂号 | |
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mustered
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| v.集合，召集，集结（尤指部队）( muster的过去式和过去分词 )；（自他人处）搜集某事物；聚集；激发 | |
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150
bribes
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| n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂 | |
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151
zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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entailed
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| 使…成为必要( entail的过去式和过去分词 )； 需要； 限定继承； 使必需 | |
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garrisons
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| 守备部队，卫戍部队( garrison的名词复数 ) | |
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fortresses
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| 堡垒，要塞( fortress的名词复数 ) | |
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nominally
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| 在名义上，表面地； 应名儿 | |
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devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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appellation
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| n.名称，称呼 | |
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158
procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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159
skilfully
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| adv. (美skillfully)熟练地 | |
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authentically
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| ad.sincerely真诚地 | |
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161
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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inveterate
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| adj.积习已深的，根深蒂固的 | |
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163
enlistment
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| n.应征入伍，获得，取得 | |
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164
stringent
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| adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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repulse
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| n.击退，拒绝；vt.逐退，击退，拒绝 | |
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pensioners
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| n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 ) | |
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168
machinery
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| n.(总称)机械，机器；机构 | |
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169
axis
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| n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线 | |
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170
superseded
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| [医]被代替的，废弃的 | |
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171
inadequate
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| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
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assessment
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| n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额 | |
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extinction
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| n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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175
coercion
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| n.强制，高压统治 | |
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176
loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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177
unwillingly
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| adv.不情愿地 | |
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178
distraction
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| n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐 | |
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179
guise
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| n.外表，伪装的姿态 | |
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180
musters
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| v.集合，召集，集结（尤指部队）( muster的第三人称单数 )；（自他人处）搜集某事物；聚集；激发 | |
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181
stipend
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| n.薪贴；奖学金；养老金 | |
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182
aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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