The Worshipful Company of Bowyers is one of the livery companies of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

. Originally, bowyers (

longbow A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall Bow and arrow, bow that makes a fairly long Bow draw, draw possible. A longbow is not significantly Recurve bow, recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow an ...

-makers) and fletchers (

arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers ...

-makers) composed one organisation. However, in 1371, the fletchers petitioned the lord mayor to divide into their own company, the

Worshipful Company of Fletchers The Worshipful Company of Fletchers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. Originally, bowyers (longbow-makers) and fletchers (arrow-makers) comprised one organisation. However, in 1371, the fletchers petitioned the Lord Mayor ...

. Demarcation disputes arose between the two over supervision until 1429, when a City ordinance defined their respective spheres. It was not until the late 1480s that the bowyers acquired a coat of arms and a set of coherent written ordinances. The actual trade of the bowyers still survives. Although originally made for use in war and hunting, there is now some demand for longbows used in target archery. There are several practising bowyers in the membership of the company and it maintains a great interest in the craft. The bowyers are also involved in the sport of

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In ...

and give awards and medals each year at the

Royal Toxophilite Society Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a c ...

and school competitions. The Bowyers' Company mostly exists as a charitable institution, as do a majority of the 110 livery companies, with a focus on giving to charities where it can make some difference. HMS ''Northumberland'' is affiliated to it. The Bowyers rank 38th in the

order of precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...

of the companies, immediately above the Worshipful Company of Fletchers. Uniquely, among all the city's livery companies, companies without livery and guilds, it is the only company with a two-year officer and mastership cycle going back to at least 1488. The company

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. M ...

is ''Crecy, Poitiers, Agincourt'', a reference to the

Battle of Crécy The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 in northern France between a French army commanded by King PhilipVI and an English army led by King EdwardIII. The French attacked the English while they were traversing northern France du ...

, the

Battle of Poitiers The Battle of Poitiers was fought on 19September 1356 between a French army commanded by King JohnII and an Anglo- Gascon force under Edward, the Black Prince, during the Hundred Years' War. It took place in western France, south of Poit ...

, and the

Battle of Agincourt The Battle of Agincourt ( ; french: Azincourt ) was an English victory in the Hundred Years' War. It took place on 25 October 1415 ( Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. The unexpected English victory against the numeric ...

, all battles between medieval England and France in the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantagen ...

in which longbows and

English longbow The English longbow was a powerful medieval type of bow, about long. While it is debated whether it originated in England or in Wales from the Welsh bow, by the 14th century the longbow was being used by both the English and the Welsh as a ...

s were used to great effect by English and Welsh archers, before

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

took over towards the end of the war. The coat of arms contains three

flote A flote is a woodworking tool used in the art of bowyery. Flotes are specialized, traditional hand tools that are used to shape the bow during the process of tillering. Flotes appear on the arms of the Worshipful Company of Bowyers The Worsh ...

s, tools traditionally used for smoothing and shaping wood.

References

External links

The Bowyers' Company official website

Bowyers A bowyer is a master-craftsman who makes bows. Though this was once a widespread profession, the importance of bowyers and of bows was diminished by the introduction of gunpowder weaponry. However, the trade has survived and many bowyers conti ...

Archery organizations 1371 establishments in England {{archery-stub