"1:1 ECW battali battle deployment" Topic

I'm thinking of putting together a 1:1 scale ECW battalia, probably New Model army. I've looked though all the material I have about how they would form for battle and I've found I have little information about where the officers, sergeants and drummers stand. I've only found one diagram in contemporary works (Bariffe and Venn) which show only a single company, and I can't see how this would be work for a battalia of ten companies.

Streeters' Naseby engraving lacks detail at the level I am looking for, but does show an officer in front of, and behind, each division of muskets and pikes, It also has three ensigns with flags at the front of the pike division. I assume they would move to the rear as they got closer to the enemy. It also show an interval between the pike and musket division, which is also shown in the company diagrams.

The things I am seeking to answer are:

1. where were the drummers placed
2. where did the sergeants stand
3. were all the company flags taken on to the field
4. were the officers equally spread out in front of and behind the musket and pike division, or were more placed to the rear
5. were there intervals within the musket divisions and well as between the pike and musket divisions. Some information I have read indicated that the muskets were divided into groups five or six files wide

Can anybody enlighten me, preferably with some reference I can follow up. I realise that there aren't the hard and fast rules for deployment that appears in the next century, where everyone's place was prescribed in regulation, and that there was much variation in practice, so I'm looking for a plausible arrangement to show a deployed battalia.

As far as we can guess, from a LTB example, if a company was deployed in a Battalia then they had their colour with them. It was also deployed in a particular order too. Can't remember the source off the top of my head, but if you have a look at KeepYourPowderDry you're most likely find it in one of my flag posts.

As for deployment, I can't think of anything other than Venn.

IIRC correctly, there should also be intervals between every 4 or so files of musketeers to allow firing by introduction, although this was from a Royalist source so may have been abandoned as a dated practice by the NMA.

I utilised my 15mm figures to see what a full sized regiment would look like. There's a lot of caveats with my representation (mostly due to the length of my kitchen table). But a worthwhile exercise as it generated rather a lot of discussion both on the blog and on Twitter. You can see it link

BillyNM – Everyone seems to have used the Dutch drill before and at the start of the war. That meant ten ranks deep and small groups of muskets with sub-intervals for the Dutch counter march firing drill. Everyone appears to have moved to a six rank formation quite early on. I get the impression that there was also a move towards a "Swedish" style volley and salvo firing method, but I can't find as reference to it.

KeepYourPowderDry – you seem to have had a similar thought, journey and conclusion to me! I like the 15mm battalia, why twelve ranks, not ten? I looked at the comments to your post and saw a reference to Elton, which I have a PDF copy of. I've waded through book 3, which is about drawing up regiments of several companies, and it seems that the offices would be in front and behind each division, their place dictated by their "dignity". As you said the ordering of the company components being also specified by the same.

Looking at a copy of the "Abridgement of the English Military Discipline" from 1686, where they still form up in six ranks and threes division, the sergeants are formed on the flanks for each divisions in line with the first and last ranks. Any left over are to "assist the officers". Drummers are only mentioned for exercise and marching. For exercise they form two groups, one on each of the outer flank of the musket divisions, level with the front rank. For marching they form three groups, a group marching in the second rank of each division.

Thank you both for you input.

12 ranks – limitation of the table

I get the impression that 17th century troops adopted a whole bunch of postures depending on what they were doing:

Manoeuvreing and set-up in the battle line – large spacings, many ranks.

War – small spacings, three ranks. Compression achieved using file doublings.

Ten company regiments might operate as five company battalia, which gives:

Senior captain (eg lt col or major) in command at rear
Three captains at the front of the pikes
Spare captain somewhere – maybe as adjutant with oc or controlling reserves
Lieutenants in charge of musket divisions and skirmishing blocks

Drummers somewhere – probably at the back and then between pike and musket divisions in the fight.

Sergeants – either covering an officer or as supernumeraries.

Ensigns – buried in pike block in a single line, perhaps only two colours per battalia.

Corporals would be the file leaders along with senior soldiers. Lancepassadoes would be half-file leaders.

Dutch operations – muskets in pairs of files x ten deep.

Swedish adherants in corporalships of four files x six deep