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The Woodmen of the Ancient Forest of Arden are an exclusive society of longbow shooting toxophilites, founded (or possibly re-founded) in 1758 in the village of Meriden, in the Borough of Solihull, in the ancient Forest of Arden.
The society was founded by Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Aylesford and five other men at the Bulls Head coaching inn in the village of Meriden in 1758. The society itself however considers this date the re-founding, claiming that their society is a revival of a much older organisation of Woodmen of the Forest of Arden. The ancient Royal Forests of England were subject to forest law, which was exercised by a number of ancient offices of woodmen including the forest 'Warden', 'Forester' and 'Verderer' - there is however scant evidence that the forest of Arden was ever itself governed by forest law. Nonetheless, the society claims this heritage and utilises some of these titles for its officers. The meetings of the society are called Wardmotes. During the era of Forest Law, verderers and woodwards would police the forests with bow and arrow, and archery forms the basis of the modern society. The society practices clout archery according to the regulations of Finsbury Fields from 1590, and employ target distances prescribed in statute - in this case the Unlawful Games Act 1541, which mandated shooting no less than 180 yards. [1] [2]
Heneage Finch had been practicing archery at his Meriden estate Packington Hall for a number of years before founding the society, and it is claimed he had connections with the Royal British Bowmen, Royal Kentish Bowmen and the Royal Toxophilite Society. [3] A sward was established to shoot on at Packington Outwoods, and an octagonal structure, now known as Forest Hall (similar to the forest courts of old like Speech House in the New Forest) was established as a club house in 1788. The first secretary was Wriothesly Digby of the Digby's of Coleshill. [4]
In 1786 the title of the head of the society was changed from 'Captain of the Grand Target' to 'Perpetual Warden of the Forest', and his deputy the 'Lieutenant of the Grand Target' was renamed as 'Senior Verdurer'. [5] The archer who hits the first gold in shooting for the horn is named 'Master Forester'. [6] The winner of the gold medal is known as the 'Captain of Numbers' and the winner of the silver medal the 'Lieutenant of Numbers'.
In 1788 the number of members was limited to 75; the limit was increased to 80 in 1815.
In 1835 the society elected Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel, Lord of the Manor of Hampton in Arden, without a vacancy — the only time the rule restricting the society to 80 members has ever been broken.
In the early 19th century a neoclassical pavilion was added to the Outwoods where the society shoot. [7]
With the exception of the John O'Gaunt Archery Club they were the only English country archery club to have celebrated a centenary by the start of the 19th century.
The society has a uniform originally designed in 1785, modelled on the uniforms of verderers, and little changed today, of white trousers, green tailcoat, and a green tie beneath a buff weskit. A hat was added 100 years later. They use yew tree longbows, and must create a unique 'cresting' or mark on their arrows. [6]
In 1787 the society was presented with a large silver bugle, called the Silver Bugle of Arden, by the Earl of Aylesford as a prize, it is never shot for at a distance "less than nine score yards", which may be extended to "twelve score".
In 1788 the countess of Aylesford presented to the society the "silver arrow," to be annually shot for at "nine score yards".
In 1818 Wriothesley Digby, the Secretary of the society, donated a gold medal, the 'Optime merenti', for the greatest number of hits at 100 yards during the August meeting. He also presented a silver medal 'Bene merenti' for the second best.
In 1887 the Royal Company of Archers of Scotland presented a silver bowl as a challenge price for clout shooting. It is competed for "by points at nine and ten score". [8]
Membership is largely drawn from the old aristocratic and gentry families of the region, such as the Digbys of Coleshill, Greswoldes of Solihull, and the Barons of Norton. Other notable members have included:
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows. The word comes from the Latin arcus, meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern times, it is mainly a competitive sport and recreational activity. A person who practices archery is typically called an archer, bowman, or toxophilite.
The English longbow was a powerful medieval type of bow, about 6 ft (1.8 m) long. While it is debated whether it originated in England or in Wales from the Welsh bow, by the 14th century the longbow was being used by both the English and the Welsh as a weapon of war and for hunting. English longbows were effective against the French during the Hundred Years' War, particularly in the battles of Sluys (1340), Crécy (1346), Poitiers (1356), and Agincourt (1415). They were less successful later on, as longbowmen had their lines broken at the Battle of Verneuil (1424), although the English won a decisive victory there; they were completely routed at the Battle of Patay (1429) when they were charged by the French mounted men-at-arms before they had prepared the terrain and finished defensive arrangements. The Battle of Pontvallain (1370) had also previously shown longbowmen were not particularly effective when not given the time to set up defensive positions.
The bow and arrow is a ranged weapon system consisting of an elastic launching device (bow) and long-shafted projectiles (arrows). Humans used bows and arrows for hunting and aggression long before recorded history, and the practice was common to many prehistoric cultures. They were important weapons of war from ancient history until the early modern period, where they were rendered increasingly obsolete by the development of the more powerful and accurate firearms. Today, bows and arrows are mostly used for hunting and sports.
The Worshipful Company of Bowyers is one of the livery companies of the City of London.
The Metropolitan Borough of Solihull is a metropolitan borough in West Midlands county, England. It is named after its largest town, Solihull, from which Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council is based. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of seven boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region. Much of the large residential population in the north of the borough centres on the communities of Castle Bromwich, Kingshurst, Marston Green and Smith's Wood as well as the towns of Chelmsley Wood and Fordbridge. In the south are the towns of Shirley and Solihull, as well as the large villages of Knowle, Dorridge, Meriden and Balsall Common.
The Forest of Arden is a former forest and culturally defined area located in the English West Midlands, that in antiquity and into the Early Modern Period included much of Warwickshire, and parts of Shropshire, Staffordshire, the West Midlands, and Worcestershire. It is associated with William Shakespeare as a territory of his youth, and the setting of some of his drama.
The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland, is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a personal bodyguard to the King on his visit to Scotland. It is currently known as the King's Bodyguard for Scotland or, more often and colloquially, The Royal Company. It is located in Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland. The Royal Company of Archers has a long history in Scotland as a body that celebrated both the recreation and talent of local archers. As a body established by the Monarch, the company has a long history of unique prizes, influential supporters, and ceremonial roles. It has an associated charity, the Royal Company of Archers Charitable Trust, dedicated to helping disadvantaged individuals with their health and wellbeing in Scotland.
A bodkin point is a type of arrowhead. In its simplest form it is an uncomplicated squared metal spike, and was used extensively during the Middle Ages. The typical bodkin was a square-section arrowhead, generally up to 11.5 cm (4.5 in) long and 1 cm (0.39 in) thick at its widest point, tapered down behind this initial "punch" shape. Bodkin arrows complemented traditional broadhead arrows, as bodkin point arrows were designed to defeat mail armor while broadhead point arrows caused more serious wounds and tissue damage.
The Mongol bow is a type of recurved composite bow historically used in Mongolia, and by the horse archers of the Mongol Empire. "Mongol bow" can refer to two types of bow. From the 17th century onward, most of the traditional bows in Mongolia were replaced with the similar Manchu bow which is primarily distinguished by larger siyahs and the presence of prominent string bridges.
Bowhunting is the practice of hunting game animals by archery. Many indigenous peoples have employed the technique as their primary hunting method for thousands of years, and it has survived into contemporary use for sport and hunting.
A flatbow is a bow with non-recurved, flat, relatively wide limbs that are approximately rectangular in cross-section. Because the limbs are relatively wide, flatbows will usually narrow and become deeper at the handle, with a rounded, non-bending handle for easier grip. This design differs from that of a longbow, which has rounded limbs that are circular or D-shaped in cross-section, and is usually widest at the handle. A flatbow can be just as long as a longbow, but can also be very short. Typical lengths would be 68–70 inches (172.5–178 cm) for a flatbow, 70–72 inches (178–183 cm) for an English longbow, and 72–76 inches (183–193 cm) for a warbow-weight English longbow; but these styles may easily overlap each other. Traditional flatbows are usually wooden self bows, though laminated and composite flatbows have been made in ancient and modern times. Modern flatbows commonly use fiberglass.
Turkish archery is a tradition of archery which became highly developed in the Ottoman Empire, although its origins date back to the Eurasian Steppe in the second millennium BC.
Solihull is a market town and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands, England. Solihull is situated on the River Blythe in the Forest of Arden area. The town had a population of 126,577 at the 2021 Census, and its wider borough had a population of 216,240. The town is located 8 miles (12 km) southeast of Birmingham and 13 miles (21 km) west of Coventry.
Archery, or the use of bow and arrows, was probably developed in Africa by the later Middle Stone Age. It is documented as part of warfare and hunting from the classical period until the end of the 19th century, when it was made obsolete by the invention and spread of repeating firearms.
Target archery is the most popular form of archery, in which members shoot at stationary circular targets at varying distances. All types of bow – longbow, barebow, recurve and compound – can be used. In Great Britain, imperial rounds, measured in yards, are still used for many tournaments and these have slightly different rules to metric (WA) rounds, which are used internationally. Archers are divided into seniors and juniors, with juniors being those under the age of 21.
Archery GB is the largest national governing body for the sport of archery in the United Kingdom. Archery GB is responsible for all levels of archery within the UK from elite to development level and supports over 40,000 members. Archery GB is the umbrella organisation for English Archery Association, Archery Northern Ireland, Scottish Archery and Welsh Archery Association. Under Archery GB are eight Regional Societies and many different county societies. It is affiliated to the World Archery Federation (WA); and is a member of the British Olympic Association. The society's motto is: "Union, Trueheart and Courtesie".
Clout archery is a form of archery in which archers shoot arrows at a flag from a relatively long distance and score points depending on how close each arrow lands to the flag.
In archery, a recurve bow is one of the main shapes a bow can take, with limbs that curve away from the archer when unstrung. A recurve bow stores more energy and delivers energy more efficiently than the equivalent straight-limbed bow, giving a greater amount of energy and speed to the arrow. A recurve will permit a shorter bow than the simple straight limb bow for given arrow energy, and this form was often preferred by archers in environments where long weapons could be cumbersome, such as in brush and forest terrain, or while on horseback.
Modern competitive archery involves shooting arrows at a target for accuracy and precision from a set distance or distances. This is the most popular form of competitive archery worldwide and is called target archery. A form particularly popular in Europe, North America, and South America is field archery, shot at targets generally set at various distances in a wooded setting. There are also several other lesser-known and historical forms, as well as archery novelty games.
Heneage Finch, also known as Joseph Heneage Finch (1849-1885), 7th Earl of Aylesford, was a British aristocrat, a Member of the House of Lords and friend of Edward the Prince of Wales. Finch enjoyed many outdoor pursuits, and in his social circle was nicknamed "Sporting Joe."