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This will look like a typical WOTR retinue or are you adding anything to indicate Welshness? As these are retainers not levies, I presume not? I’m curious as I’ve had similar ideas in the past.
Here we go, a Welsh bill.
But then what happens when a 'lesser' man at arms is armed with a bill, or a halberd or something similar (rather than the more knightly poleaxe). Would we call him a billman or not?And I'm sure the archers wouldn't be averse to handling a bill or other polearm.So even if there are no 'billmen' as they appear in the records, there will probably still be bills hanging around, wielded by both archers and lesser men at arms.
Well exactly. The term 'bill' or 'billman' was no doubt an administrative term for the purposes of book keeping more than an exact and exclusive description of armament. It could simply be this was how many pole weapons that particular lord had paid for to arm an ill-equipped but sturdy recruit, thus fixing their (low) rate of pay and how they were used in battle under a particular captain.