"Archers as Enforcers?" Topic

Hello hello, (from the sunshine state of Montenegro) first time on here, so apologies if this question has been asked before!
Would standing retinue troops be used for policing and enforcing duties. A specific example from the Calendar of Patent Rolls (529) 1467 states that William Griffith took a muster of 700 archers of the Earl of Worcester at Beaumaris on 18 Aug 1467. Griffith was one of a group sent to North Wales the year before to deal with regions and towns that refused to pay their fines and taxes.
So my questions are:
What would a muster look like? A headcount? A headcount and bring along your kit? Or a deployment?
If it is a deployment, what does that involve? Banging on doors and demanding money?
700 archers sounds a lot but the rolls say that Griffith was still investigating shipped goods out of the area in Aug 1475
Any help or ideas all welcome!
cheers,
Alan

I've no evidence, but I'm sure the answer is yes.

Thanks for that! I think some skirmish scenario's are on the cards here then. I am still not sure where you would put 700 archers mind at Beaumaris. The pub wasn't build till 1475, so they could not go round there. And as for why they were there???
Anyway, thanks for the answer. Yes works for me!

p529 of Edward IV's calendar of patent rolls (Vol 1) has an entry for Mar 20 1466 in which William Gruffith (as one of ten named men) are commissioned to investigate non-payment of taxes. This is the reference which Evans in "Wales in the WotR" refers to.
Since the named men are of rank – one earl, two knights, seven esquires – they would have had others with them.

Evans doesn't give a page for the muster entry – it is in Vol 2 and is on p.54.

The muster of 700 archers is not necessarily linked to the tax collection – after all, it is over a year later. Since the 1467 entry makes reference to Worcester being deputy of the Lieutenant of Ireland, perhaps they were mustered in case they were needed over the water. (In this entry he is Gryffyth. He isn't the leader of the muster though.)

Some of the musters in this volume have a specific purpose – generally for being sent to Ireland or to foreign parts e.g. to Burgundy. Others don't mention a purpose and may simply be a check on what was available. The civil war had seemingly finished but there are references to measures taken when a truce with France is about to expire, so that was obviously still a concern. It would also inform whether they had sufficient remaining manpower to allow the various contingents sent to Burgundy, Brittany etc.

Incidentally, the normal garrison of Beaumaris was apparently about 24 men, so an extra 700 would have been a bit of a burden. Even though they are 700 of his retinue, I suspect they were not being kept under arms all the time or else there would be no need to muster them.

Yes, think of the local lord as a crime boss with a pedigree. He has a retinue who are his enforcers they collect taxes and enforce that lord's version of peace. When actually at war he might try to increase his numbers but once there was peace many would find themselves unemployed and become a problem unto themselves.

In the given case, they are specifically tasked with making sure that taxes are being paid to the crown, not for the benefit of a local robber baron. That's not to say that Worcester wouldn't take some of the share, but the aim was to enforce the position of the crown – the King's peace rather than their own version.
I think in this case it is notable that most of those involved were not locals building their own power base. Perhaps it was felt that they would be less likely to have pre-existing prejudices in favour or against certain locals.

The other entries in the same volume are full of people – including many with titles – being prosecuted. A great deal of this also looks as if it about enforcing Edward's position.

There are some cases where someone is acquitted of murder because the victim was an enemy of the crown. What surprised me was that the cases got so far as that – the cases were still examined and not just swept under the carpet.