Military Macclesfield and Britain's Battles 1066-1656 Dorothy Bentley Book New

Amberley Publishing

The Black Prince hunted in Macclesfield Forest, and his wife, Eleanor of Castile was Lady of the Manor and Forest of Macclesfield. But it was Edward I who first appreciated how skilled the town's long bowmen were. They helped win the battles of Crecy, Poiters and Agincourt, and were paid 6d. per day, whereas the Welsh long bowmen received 3d per day. There is also a fascinating story of the town s troops involved in the battle of Flodden.\n\nCheshire was treated differently from other counties, and was a palatine where animals were kept for war service from the time of Edward I, who also hunted in the local forest. It was an important centre for supplies during times of war in Ireland and Scotland, and to subdue revolts in Wales. Macclefield's foresters, who administered the forest, provided troops for the sovereign up to the time of the Civil War, and were important commanders.\n\nThe ancestral homes of those foresters are great tourist attractions today e.g. Lyme Hall, famous for t.