"A question about billmen" Topic

Do you class billmen as light or heavy infantry? From my initial research, it seems like light infantry if not peasant militia would be the best classification.

Thanks in advance,

Vince

Depends how heavily armoured they are.

'Billmen' could be peasants using improvised polearms but that is not usually what is meant by the term. English armies rarely called up what you refer to as peasants – there were better troops available most of the time.

Generally they were either retainers of the lords and captains, effectively professionals; or a local 'militia' who (in theory at least) had some training or experience.

By the later 100yw period both would have some protection but the retainers had better as a rule. Minimum of leather or padded jack and probably an iron cap. Maximum of partial plate and open-faced helm.

Depends what your definitions of "light" and "heavy" infantry are. But billmen are armoured troops who don't rush around the field at speed and fight solely at close quarters in the line of battle, which is "heavy" enough for me.

As Gurkhan says, it depends on your definition of light and heavy. If you define light as skirmishers, they are not light, so must be heavy (or medium?). If you define light as less armoured close order troops, with a seperate skirmisher definition, then they are light. Depends on the rules.

In ADLG they are Heavy Infantry with polearms, armoured or unarmoured. In most rulesets they are close-formation, melee infantry, perhaps with an advantage against cavalry. They are not skirmishers as their resilience comes from the close formation and melee ability.

Thanks for the valuable input.
Looks like my billmen will be classed as heavy infantry.