understande, how that in an ordinarye Romane armie, which they call a
Consull armie, there were no more, then twoo Legions of Romane Citezens
which were sixe hundred horse, and about aleven thousande footemen: they
had besides as many more footemen and horsemen, whiche were sente them
from their friends and confiderates, whome they divided into twoo
partes, and called the one, the right horne and the other the left
horne: nor they never permitted, that these aiding footemen, should
passe the nomber of the footemen of their Legions, they were well
contented, that the nomber of those horse shoulde be more then theirs:
with this armie, which was of xxii. thousand footemen, and about twoo
thousande good horse, a Consul executed all affaires, and went to all
enterprises: yet when it was needefull to set against a greater force,
twoo Consulles joyned together with twoo armies. You ought also to note
in especially, that in all the three principall actes, which an armie
doth that is, to march, to incampe, and to fight, the Romanes used to
put their Legions in the middeste, for that they woulde, that the same
power, wherein they most trusted, shoulde bee moste united, as in the
reasoning of these three actes, shall be shewed you: those aiding
footemen, through the practise they had with the Legion Souldiours, were
as profitable as they, because they were instructed, according as the
souldiours of the Legions were, and therefore, in like maner in pitching
the field, they pitched. Then he that knoweth how the Romaines disposed
a Legion in their armie, to fight a field, knoweth how they disposed
all: therefor, having tolde you how they devided a Legion into three
bandes, and how the one bande received the other, I have then told you,
how al tharmie in a fielde, was ordained. Wherefore, I minding to ordain
a field like unto the Romaines, as they had twoo Legions, I will take
ii. main batailes, and these being disposed, the disposicion of all an
armie shalbe understode therby: bycause in joyning more men, there is no
other to be doen, then to ingrosse the orders: I thinke I neede not to
rehearse how many men a maine battaile hath, and howe it hath ten
battailes, and what heades bee in a battaile and what weapons they have,
and which be the ordinarie Pikes and Veliti, and which the
extraordinarie for that a litle a fore I told you it destinctly, and I
willed you to kepe it in memorie as a necessarie thing to purpose, to
understande all the other orders: and therfore I will come to the
demonstracion of the order without repeating it any more: Me thinkes
good, that the ten battailes of one main battaile be set on the left
flanke, and the tenne other, of the other main battaile, on the right:
these that are placed on the left flanke, be ordeined in this maner,
there is put five battailes the one to the side of the other in the
fronte, after suche sorte, that betweene the one and the other, there
remaine a space of three yardes, whiche come to occupie for largenesse
Cvi. yardes, of ground, and for length thirtie: behinde these five
battailes, I would put three other distante by right line from the
firste thirtie yardes: twoo of the whiche, should come behinde by right
line, to the uttermoste of the five, and the other should kepe the space
in the middeste, and so these three, shall come to occupie for bredth
and length, as moche space, as the five doeth. But where the five have
betwene the one, and the other, a distaunce of three yardes, these shall
have a distance of xxv. yardes. After these, I would place the twoo last
battailes, in like maner behinde the three by right line, and distaunte
from those three, thirtie yardes, and I would place eche of theim,
behinde the uttermoste part of the three, so that the space, whiche
should remain betwen the one and the other, should be lxviii. yardes:
then al these battailes thus ordered, will take in bredth Cvi. yardes,
and in length CL. Thextraordinarie Pikes, I would deffende a long the
flanckes of these battailes, on the left side, distante from them
fiftene yardes, makyng Cxliij. rankes, seven to a ranke, after soche
sorte, that thei maie impale with their length, all the left sixe of the
tenne battailes in thesame wise, declared of me to be ordained: and
there shall remain fourtie rankes to keepe the carriages, and the
unarmed, whiche ought to remaine in the taile of the armie, distributyng
the Peticapitaines, and the Centurions, in their places: and of the
three Conestables, I would place one in the hedde, the other in the
middeste, the third in the laste ranke, the whiche should execute the
office of a Tergiductore, whom the antiquitie so called hym, that was
appoincted to the backe of the armie. But retournyng to the hedde of the
armie, I saie how that I would place nere to the extraordinarie pikes,
the Veliti extraordinarie, whiche you knowe to be five hundred, and I
would give them a space of xxx. yardes: on the side of these likewise on
the left hande, I would place the menne of armes, and I would thei
should have a space of a Cxii. yardes: after these, the light horsemen,
to whom I would appoinct as moche ground to stande in, as the menne of
armes have: the ordinarie veliti, I would leave about their owne
battailes, who should stand in those spaces, whiche I appoincte betwene
thone battaile and thother: whom should be as their ministers, if
sometyme I thought not good to place them under the extraordinarie
Pikes: in dooyng or not doyng whereof, I would proceade, accordyng as
should tourne best to my purpose. The generall hedde of all the maine
battaile, I would place in thesame space, that were betwene the first
and the seconde order of the battailes, or els in the hedde, and in
thesame space, that is betwene the laste battaile of the firste five,
and the extraordinarie Pikes, accordyng as beste should serve my
purpose, with thirtie or fourtie chosen men about hym, that knewe by
prudence, how to execute a commission, and by force, to withstande a
violence, and thei to be also betwen the Drumme and the Ansigne: this is
thorder, with the whiche I would dispose a maine battaile, whiche should
bee the disposyng of halfe the armie, and it should take in breadth
three hundred fourscore and twoo yardes, and in length as moche as above
is saied, not accomptyng the space, that thesame parte of the
extraordinarie Pikes will take, whiche muste make a defence for the
unarmed, whiche will bee aboute lxxv. yardes: the other maine battaile,
I would dispose on the righte side, after the same maner juste, as I
have disposed that on the lefte, leavyng betwene the one main battaile,
and thother, a space of xxii. yardes: in the hedde of whiche space, I
would set some little carriages of artillerie, behynde the whiche,
should stande the generall capitaine of all the armie, and should have
about hym with the Trumpet, and with the Capitaine standerde, twoo
hundred menne at least, chosen to be on foote the moste parte, emongest
whiche there should be tenne or more, mete to execute all
commaundementes, and should bee in soche wise a horsebacke, and armed,
that thei mighte bee on horsebacke, and on foote, accordyng as neede
should require. The artillerie of the armie, suffiseth ten Cannons, for
the winning of Townes, whose shotte shoulde not passe fiftie pounde: the
whiche in the fielde should serve mee more for defence of the campe,
then for to fight the battaile: The other artillerie, should bee rather
of ten, then of fifteene pounde the shotte: this I would place afore on
the front of all the armie, if sometime the countrie should not stande
in such wise, that I mighte place it by the flancke in a sure place,
where it mighte not of the enemie be in daunger: this fashion of an
armie thus ordered, may in fighting, use the order of the Falangi, and
the order of the Romane Legions: for that in the fronte, bee Pikes, all
the men bee set in the rankes, after such sorte, that incountering with
the enemie, and withstanding him, maye after the use of the Falangi,
restore the firste ranckes, with those behinde: on the other parte, if
they be charged so sore, that they be constrayned to breake the orders,
and to retire themselves, they maye enter into the voide places of the
seconde battailes, which they have behinde them, and unite their selves
with them, and making a new force, withstande the enemie, and overcome
him: and when this sufficeth not, they may in the verie same maner,
retire them selves the seconde time, and the third fight: so that in
this order, concerning to fight, there is to renue them selves, both
according to the Greeke maner, and according to the Romane: concerning
the strength of the armie, there cannot be ordayned a more stronger: for
as much, as the one and the other borne therof, is exceedingly well
replenished, both with heades, and weapons, nor there remayneth weake,
other then the part behinde of the unarmed, and the same also, hath the
flanckes impaled with the extraordinarie Pikes: nor the enemie can not
of anye parte assaulte it, where he shall not finde it well appointed,
and the hinder parte can not be assaulted: Because there can not bee an
enemie, that hath so much puissaunce, whome equallye maye assault thee
on everye side: for that hee having so great a power, thou oughtest not
then to matche thy selfe in the fielde with him: but when he were three
times more then thou, and as well appointed as thou, hee doth weaken him
selfe in assaulting thee in divers places, one part that thou breakest,
will cause all the reste go to naughte: concerning horses, although he
chaunce to have more then thine, thou needest not feare: for that the
orders of the Pikes, which impale thee, defende thee from all violence
of them, although thy horses were repulced. The heades besides this, be
disposed in such place, that they may easyly commaunde, and obeye: the
spaces that bee between the one battaile, and the other, and betweene
the one order, and the other, not onely serve to be able to receyve the
one the other, but also to give place to the messengers, whiche should
go and come by order of the Capitayne. And as I tolde you firste, howe
the Romanes had for an armie, aboute foure and twentie thousande men,
even so this oughte to bee: and as the other souldiours tooke ensample
of the Legions, for the maner of fighting, and the fashion of the armie,
so those souldiours, whiche you shoulde joyne to oure twoo mayne
battailes, oughte to take the forme and order of them: whereof having
put you an ensample, it is an easye matter to imitate it, for that
increasing, either twoo other mayne battailes unto the armie, or as many
other souldiours, as they bee, there is no other to bee done, then to
double the orders, and where was put tenne battailes on the lefte parte,
to put twentie, either ingrossing, or distending the orders, according
as the place, or the enemie shoulde compell thee.
LUIGI. Surelye sir I imagine in suche wise of this armie, that mee
thinkes I nowe see it, and I burne with a desire to see it incounter,
and I woulde for nothing in the worlde, that you shoulde become Fabius
Maximus intendyng to kepe the enemie at a baie, and to deferre the daie
of battaile: bicause I would saie worse of you, then the Romain people
saied of hym.
[Sidenote: The descripcion of a battaile that is a faightyng.]
FABRICIO. Doubt not: Doe you not heare the artillerie? Ours have alredie
shotte, but little hurte the enemie: and thextraordinarie Veliti,
issuyng out of their places together with the light horsemen, moste
speadely, and with moste merveilous furie, and greateste crie that maie
be, thei assaulte the enemie: whose artillerie hath discharged ones, and
hath passed over the heddes of our footemen, without doyng them any
hurt, and bicause it cannot shoote the seconde tyme, the Veliti, and our
horsemen, have nowe gotten it, and the enemies for to defende it, are
come fore warde, so that neither our ordinaunce, nor thenemies, can any
more doe their office. Se with how moche vertue, strengthe and agilitie
our men faighteth, and with how moche knowledge through the exercise,
whiche hath made them to abide, and by the confidence, that thei have in
the armie, the whiche, see, how with the pace therof, and with the men
of armes on the sides, it marcheth in good order, to give the charge on
the adversarie: See our artillerie, whiche to give theim place, and to
leave them the space free, is retired by thesame space, from whens the
Veliti issued: See how the capitaine incourageth them, sheweth them the
victorie certain: See how the Veliti and light horsemen bee inlarged,
and retourned on the flanckes of tharmie, to seke and view, if thei maie
by the flanck, doe any injurie to the adversaries: behold how the armies
be affronted. Se with how moche valiauntnesse thei have withstode the
violence of thenemies, and with how moche silence, and how the capitain
commaundeth the menne of armes, that thei sustain, and not charge, and
that thei breake not from the order of the footemen: see how our light
horsemen be gone, to give the charge on a band of the enemies
Harkebutters, whiche would have hurt our men by flancke, and how the
enemies horse have succoured them, so that tourned betwene the one and
the other horse, thei cannot shoote, but are faine to retire behinde
their owne battaile: see with what furie our Pikes doe also affront, and
how the footemen be now so nere together the one to the other, that the
Pikes can no more be occupied: so that according to the knowlege learned
of us, our pikes do retire a little and a little betwen the targaettes.
Se how in this while a great bande of men of armes of the enemies, have
charged our men of armes on the lefte side, and how ours, accordyng to
knowlege, bee retired under the extraordinarie Pikes, and with the help
of those, giving again a freshe charge, have repulced the adversaries,
and slain a good part of them: in so moche, that thordinarie pikes of
the first battailes, be hidden betwene the raies of the Targaettes, thei
havyng lefte the faight to the Targaet men: whom you maie see, with how
moche vertue, securitie, and leasure, thei kill the enemie: see you not
how moche by faightyng, the orders be thrust together? That thei can
scarse welde their sweardes? Behold with how moche furie the enemies
move: bicause beyng armed with the pike, and with the swerd unprofitable
(the one for beyng to long, the other for findyng thenemie to well
armed) in part thei fall hurt or dedde, in parte thei flie. See, thei
flie on the righte corner, thei flie also on the lefte: behold, the
victorie is ours. Have not we wonne a field moste happely? But with more
happinesse it should bee wonne, if it were graunted me to put it in
acte. And see, how there neded not the helpe of the seconde, nor of the
third order, for our first fronte hath sufficed to overcome theim: in
this part, I have no other to saie unto you, then to resolve if any
doubt be growen you.
[Sidenote: Questions concerning the shotyng of ordinaunce.]
LUIGI. You have with so moche furie wonne this fielde that I so moche
mervaile and am so astonied, that I beleve that I am not able to
expresse, if any doubt remain in my mynde: yet trustyng in your
prudence, I will be so bolde to tell thesame that I understande. Tell me
firste, why made you not your ordinaunce to shoote more then ones? And
why straighte waie you made them to retire into tharmie, nor after made
no mension of them? Me thought also, that you leveled the artillerie of
the enemie high, and appoincted it after your own devise: the whiche
might very well bee, yet when it should happen, as I beleve it chaunseth
often, that thei strike the rankes, what reamedie have you? And seyng
that I have begun of the artillerie, I will finishe all this question,
to the intente I nede not to reason therof any more. I have heard many
dispraise the armours, and the orders of the aunciente armies, arguyng,
how now a daies, thei can doe little, but rather should bee altogether
unprofitable, havyng respecte to the furie of the artillerie: bicause,
this breaketh the orders, and passeth the armours in soche wise, that it
semeth unto them a foolishenesse to make an order, whiche cannot bee
kepte, and to take pain to beare a harneis, that cannot defende a man.
[Sidenote: An aunswere to the questions that were demaunded, concernyng
the shoting of ordinaunce; The best remedie to avoide the hurte that the
enemie in the fielde maie doe with his ordinaunce; A policie against
bowes and dartes; Nothyng causeth greater confusion in an armie, than to
hinder mennes fightes; Nothing more blindeth the sight of men in an
armie, then the smoke of ordinaunce; A policie to trouble the enemies
sight; The shotte of greate ordinaunce in the fielde, is not moche to
bee feared of fotemenne; Bicause menne of armes stand closer together
then light horsmen, thei ought to remaine behinde the armie till the
enemies ordinaunce have done shootyng; The artillerie is no let, why the
auncient orders of warfar ought not to be used in these daies.]