Trained band

Although Charles I tried to assemble armies of around 30,000 militia for the 1639 and 1640 Bishops' Wars, there was considerable reluctance to serve outside their counties, and a proportion were armed only with longbows.

[5][6] In 1588, the Trained Bands consisted of 79,798 men, categorized by their primary weapon: 36% arquebusiers, 6% musketeers, 16% bowmen, 26% pikemen, and 16% billmen.

This shows large variations in size, equipment and training; the largest was Yorkshire, which had 12,000 men, then London, with 8,000, increased in 1642 to 20,000.

[8] In the early stages of the 1642 to 1646 First English Civil War, the Trained Bands provided the bulk of the forces used by both Royalists and Parliamentarians, but were often unwilling to serve outside their home areas.

Generally, upon reaching a certain age a man was required to join the local trainband in which he received periodic training for the next couple of decades.

[3] Typically, each town would elect three officers to lead its train band with the ranks of captain, lieutenant and ensign.