The bow could be 1,5 to 1,9 meters long. Most of the time the archers were part of the infantry and then enrolled among the poorest. Their equipment was cheap: the bow, two dozens of arrows and a sword to carry on the battle when all the arrows had been shot.

The best archers in Europe were English. They could shoot 12 arrows per minute. Their role was to disorganize the adversary troops by attacking from different points of the battlefield.

The bow was also used for hunting (ahh! the criminals!) The most famous one is "l'arc faé" (the "bewitched bow") of Tristan: it was made by the young man when he hid himself with Iseut in the woods. That bow was said to never miss its target.

Picture from Les échecs amoureux, Ms fr.143.