[Archers] Hugh Soar's CROOKED STICK

[Jay Nardone]

That's a great book!

 

Janyn

 

 

From: archers-bounces at seahorse.atlantia.sca.org
[mailto:archers-bounces at seahorse.atlantia.sca.org] On Behalf Of bary sears
Sent: Tuesday, January 03, 2012 6:26 PM
To: Garth Groff; archers at seahorse.atlantia.sca.org
Subject: Re: [Archers] Hugh Soar's CROOKED STICK

 

Let me recommend, also by Soar, Secrets of the the English Warbow.  It's
fairly technical, but not too much, and has a section on matching fletches
with shafts.

 

barre

 

From: Garth Groff <ggg9y at virginia.edu>
To: archers at seahorse.atlantia.sca.org 
Sent: Tuesday, January 3, 2012 9:07 AM
Subject: [Archers] Hugh Soar's CROOKED STICK

Noble friends of the bow,

Just before Christmas I stumbled on a gently used copy of Hugh Soar's THE
CROOKED STOCK (Westholm, 2005 & 2009). This is an archery book of which I
had never heard, though I have two other works by Soar (I ought to have read
the blurbs on their dust jackets). Anyway, I snatched it up for just $20.

This is really a great book. It is not particularly long or deep, but Soar
explores a number of medieval archery topics that are not well covered in
other works (including his own two books on the warbow). For example, he
devotes a few pages in one chapter on medieval children's archery, and shows
us a youngster's finger tab (which looks surprisingly modern). He also notes
several times that left-handed archers ("sinistrals") were not tolerated,
and if they couldn't adapt would not be allowed in retinues. The book
continues discussing the changing post-medieval fortunes of archery in
general, and the longbow in particular, almost up to the present. There are
many photos of beautiful 18th and 19th century sport longbows in the
author's own collection, usually with detailed descriptions. He also covers
the brief craze for steel bows. Soar even shows us one longbow which belong
to the fabled Olympic archer and soldier "Mad Jack" Churchill (he's in
Wikipedia), who potted a German soldier with a hunting arrow during the
retreat to Dunkirk (though Soar doesn't say this is THE infamous bow). The
appendix also discusses such side issues as the history of bracers and
quivers.

Altogether, I think this book is a very valuable work, and fills in some
important gaps in the history of English archery. I urge you all to read it
sometime, even the modern sections. It should be easily available through
interlibrary loan.

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Shire of Isenfir TA Marshal
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