XPost: soc.history.war.misc, soc.culture.scottish, alt.religion.   
   hristian.presbyterian   
   XPost: alt.religion.christian.baptist   
   From: cequka@iprimus.com.au   
      
   "Don Phillipson"  wrote in message   
   news:eio3oo$ral$1@theodyn.ncf.ca...   
   > "Raktizer Omheit"  wrote in message   
   > news:454ec049_1@news.iprimus.com.au...   
   >   
   >> The Scottish aristocracy was so arrogant and snobbish that they refused   
   >> to   
   >> grant to their middling class or middle class peasantry the right to use   
   >> longbows on a large scale when fighting in major battles against English   
   >> longbow archers. This led to disastrous and humiliating defeats for the   
   >> Scottish armies against English armies at the Battles of Dupplin Moor in   
   >> 1332, Halidon Hill in 1333, St. Neville's Cross in 1346, Flodden Field in   
   >> 1513, Solway Moss in 1542, and Pinkie Cleugh in 1547.   
   >   
   > Why should anyone think bowmen on either side were "middling   
   > class or middle class peasantry" in 14th-16th century wars?   
   >   
   Don, many historians whom I have read have described the English longbow   
   archer as belonging usually to the yeoman class, which in its day formed a   
   well-to-do class of farmers who were neither rich nor poor.   
   >   
   > A principal difference between Scotland and England before   
   > recent times was the weakness of the Scottish class system,   
   > mainly the equality of everyone (except the 5 per cent wealthiest)   
   > in schools, churches, law courts etc.   
   >   
   Don, if that's the case, then why did the English longbowmen, with the help   
   of knights and pikemen, defeat the Scots so many times in battle? Why did   
   the Scots fail to use the longbow to the extent that the English did?   
   >   
   >> Cromwell . . .  was in many ways conservative and   
   >> realistic in socio-economic policies, as witnessed by his refusal to give   
   > in   
   >> to the Communist demands of Gerard Winstanley's "Diggers" or "True   
   >> Levellers," and also by his refusal to allow the "Social Democratic"   
   >> platform of John Lilburne's "Levellers" to succeed.   
   >   
   > We notice that Scotland developed no such movements,   
   > proposed as the cure for something that largely did not occur   
   > in Scotland.   
   >   
   Don, Scotland has long been a strong supporter of left-wing parties, with   
   the exception of the somewhat fascistic Liberal Union-Conservative period in   
   U.K. history from 1895-1905, when compared to their more wealthy English   
   neighbours, where the Conservative party has been stronger in the amount of   
   votes gathered.   
   >   
   > --   
   > Don Phillipson   
   > Carlsbad Springs   
   > (Ottawa, Canada)   
   >   
   >   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)