A bill is a pole weapon that was originally used to cut branches from trees. During wars, this tool was sometimes adapted so it could serve as a weapon for foot soldiers.
The weapon originated from a simple and widely used agricultural and forestry tool that was known throughout Europe. This made the bill cheap to produce and easy to use for ordinary soldiers, who already had experience with it in their daily work.
In medieval England, the bill was extremely popular. A distinction was made between different types of bills, such as the black, brown, and forest bill. What exactly the difference between these types was is no longer entirely clear today – they may have differed in design or length. Bills were adapted for use in the army by adding extra protruding points or hooks.
Early Bills have been found in Frankish graves from the Merovingian period, showing that the weapon already existed at that time.
The Englishman George Silver wrote in 1599 that a black bill should be approximately 1.5 to 1.8 meters long, while a forest bill should be 2.4 to 2.7 meters long. In French, this weapon was called anicroche.
From this weapon comes the French expression "Il n'y a pas d'anicroche", which means: there is no problem or everything is proceeding without difficulties.
Guisarme and Halberd
The bill is very similar in size, shape, and use to the halberd. Both weapons developed in a similar way, probably because they had to serve the same purpose: a pole weapon with a point for thrusting, a hook to pull someone or something toward you, and a blade or axe for hacking.
The bill should not be confused with the bill, another pole weapon that was also derived from agricultural tools.
Roncola
In English, the term "Italian bill" is used for a similar Italian weapon, the roncone or roncola. The Italian version usually had, in addition to the cutting blade, a long point for thrusting.
Peasant pole weapons such as the bill and guisarme were increasingly replaced by professional variants such as the halberd in the late 15th century.
In the early 16th century, they were largely replaced by the pike. Around this time, European armies consisted mainly of pikemen and musketeers. However, the English preferred to stick with their own combination of bill and English longbow.
Even during the time of the Tudors, bills were still widely used by ordinary citizens who were called upon as soldiers to fight against the Scots. The Battle of Flodden in 1513 is a well-known example: the Scots used pikes like on the European mainland, while the English fought with bills.
When English troops participated in the Italian War of 1542–1546, the bill was still their primary pole weapon.
By the mid-16th century, the English increasingly switched to army units consisting of pikes and archers, but the bill remained in use, just as other countries continued to use two-handed swords, the zweihander, and halberds.
In 1588, English troops consisted of: 36% musketeers, 6% musketeers, 16% archers, 26% pikemen, and 16% bill-carriers. According to Lansdowne MS 56, attributed to Lord Burghley, an ideal army should consist of: 50% archers, 30% pikes, and 20% bills.
Along with the pike, the bill was also mentioned as one of the main weapons of Irish rebels in Ulster during the uprising of 1798.
Although the bill was no longer considered a modern weapon in the 17th century, it was still brought to the New World by English colonists. There, the weapon had to help protect against attacks by Native Americans and Spanish soldiers. Bills have actually been found during excavations in Jamestown, Virginia.
Internal links
- Guisarme: Medieval pole weapon with hook and axe blade
- Voulge: 15th-century French pole weapon with single-sided blade
- Halberd: Medieval pole weapon and ceremonial axe
- Fauchard: medieval pole weapon of sickle shape
Sources:
- Historical Context: The chronicles about the Battle of Flodden (1513), where the English Bill clashed with the Scottish pike.
- Museum Collection: The Tower of London arsenal, which houses hundreds of 'bills' from the Tudor period.
