Rasta

Ok. I asked how many battles were decided at 400 yards. Is your answer one?

Reginleif

But both Longbows were Mass Infantry weapons,albeit Bows being more specialised than Muskets. So they were mostly fired upon a group of men in a tight formation

Lord_of_Gauda

I will take the musket/crossbow over longbow for a very simple reason: The longbow might win you a battle but the musket/crossbow will win you the war. Ie, longbows are tactically superior to the musket but the musket is strategically superior.

This is because, in 'pure operational terms', the longbow is the superior weapon: it has a higher rate of fire and a much higher operational range. These two factors, make it the 'superior weapon' on the battlefield.

But consider this: a musket or a crossbow takes days to make, while the longbow takes months to cure and set. The ammuntion of a crossbow or a musket are cheaper to make ( crude bolts or simple pellets as opposed to smithed arrowheads attached to a shaft with aerodynamic tails) and you can hand a musket to a peasant, who will be competent at firing it after practicing it for a couple of days. Whereas with a longbow, to have any sort of competency, takes months, if not years of practice.

Charlie Bravo

Several people have mentioned weather as a factor but a musket is effected by incliment weather, too. A soaked primer pan or the loss of powder due to it getting wet could be very unfortunate for a musketeer.

Lord_of_Gauda

longbows dont do particularly well in sodden conditions either: if the ground is muddy due to rain or swampy, the longbowman has problems anchoring the bow securely enough to get a good enough draw.

Reginleif

I surrender to thee, Rasta I can´t find a number find number for the distance traversed by the french Knights.

Reginleif

I surrnder to thee, Rasta. I can´t the distance between the battle lines anywhere. I´ll keep looking

Charlie Bravo

Anchoring the bow? I'm not sure I understand, mate.

Lord_of_Gauda

The longbow is taller than the average user. The firing mechanism for it is, you take the bottom-end of the shaft and firmly set it in ground, so that you can draw the bow to its proper draw-strength. Longbows are not freehand weapons, they *must* be grounded. Which is pretty hard to do when the ground is sodden or marshy.

Charlie Bravo

I've never shot a longbow that way in my life, mate. I've always shot it freehand with slightly bent knees. And the longbow is crafted (or should be to any serious longbowman) to fit the individual. It should never be taller than the person firing it.