Page:VCH Norfolk 2.djvu/544

 A HISTORY OF NORFOLK gentlemen,' including Edmund Withypole, William Brampton and William Gresham, were to be summoned before the Council as defaulters in ' setting furth of the demylaunces oute of the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk/ Before the year was over Elizabeth ascended the throne to find the treasury empty and the defensive forces of the country weak and disorganized. Measures were at once taken to place things on a more stable footing, and the musters taken in the summer of 1560 show ^ for Norfolk, including Norwich, a total array of 9,000 footmen, divided into companies of 300 a piece, with 200 light horse in addition. ' Harquebutters ' were to number 1,500, archers 2,500, pike and bill men 5,000. But lack of arms prevented the realization of this ideal. Only 600 arquebuses or coriers* were avail- able, though ' long bowes furnishede ' numbered 2,000, and it would be very unsafe to infer from the firearms in store that there was a corresponding number of trained men to handle them. Apparently there was some falling off in numbers in the course of the decade, as in 1569 the commissioners for the musters reported * to the Council that within the county of Norfolk and the city of Norwich they had ' augmented and increased corslettes to the number of twoe hundred and fiftie, and shotte, as harquibuttes, qualyvers and coriers, to the nomber of twoe hundred and fourtie more than were before the comynge of the seid comissions and letteres.' ' Haquebutters * were now estimated at 620, archers 1,800, and billmen 4,938, beside 190 light horse, and 40 demilances. The firearms actually available were 789. Three years later, in 1572,° the 'able and chosen men' of the county numbered 7,600, classed 440 as ' harquibutters,' 1,260 as archers, 1,300 as pikemen, and 4,600 as billmen, but the contingents of Norwich, Yarmouth, and King's Lynn are not included in this array, and would, if added, have brought it up to, even if they did not carry it beyond, the previous estimate. In 1577 the total number of able men, including artificers, pioneers, and labourers, even without the array of Norwich and Yarmouth, is reported * as numbering 12,032. By instructions from the central government 500 men — a meagre enough proportion — had been specially trained as ' shotte,' and as a result the commissioners find most of them ' verie apte and handsome for that service. The charges whereof none of the poarer sorte haue bene towched withall (for so your honours willed), and therefore it hath bene the greater charge to thos of the better callynge.' To render the training less burdensome care was taken to select places and days ' least to the hyndraunce of the people from their ordinarie labour and travell.' Already in 1580 preparations were being made to organize the national defence in case of invasion, and 3,000 of the Norfolk levies were allotted to reinforce the county of Suffolk should need arise.'' The government also inquired as to the number of horses available, and on 20 September, 1583, a view and general muster of the mounted men of the shire at Norwich showed a total of 53 lances and 325 light horse.* In the following year we hear of 2,000 footmen who were to be properly organized under seven ' y^cts, P. C. vi, 568. » S. P. Dom. Eliz. xiii, 20. ' A variety of arquebus with a longer barrel. * S. P. Dom. Eliz. Iviii, g. ' S. P. Dom. Eliz. Ixxxix, 28. ' Ibid, cxvi, 10. ' Acts, P. C. xii, 103. » S. P. Dom. Eliz. clxiii, 3. 502