The Baggage Train

     All 17th Century armies travelled with a baggage train. This was the logistical support of the marching troops. Generally, it consisted of servants and retainers of the officers, tradesmen such as armourers, farriers and blacksmiths and, often, the wives and families of soldiers. In effect, a marching army dragged a microcosm of 17th Century life around behind it.

     You would expect to find ladies and gentlemen of the highest degree along with the middling sort of people like army sutler’s and tradesmen, often accompanied by their wives. Below them would be the soldier’s wives and families who followed the army because there was nothing to sustain them at home.

     Finally, at the bottom of the pyramid, the baggage train was a refuge for the weakest members of society. Those who have been ruined, orphaned or cast adrift by the war.
     Their only means of support being to sell their labour by the day, beg from the soldiers or, if they could bribe or avoid the Provost’s men, sell themselves.

     The Provost Marshall of the army dispensed a style of justice that was mostly discipline. His men would police the baggage train just as they did the soldiers of the army. Taking up and hanging those who were found guilty of stealing, deserting or wasting (wanton destruction) without too much consideration given to the rules of evidence. These offences were set out in the “Articles of War,” which were the laws governing the army. Taking the Lord’s name in vain and swearing of oaths were forbidden to Royalist soldiers no less than Parliamentarian. The zeal with which these rules were enforced, though, may be said to have varied.

     Our baggage trayne includes men and women who prefer a civilian role to a military one and of course the society’s children. Normally we will have soldier’s wives or village women, cooking the soldier’s meal of the day in the sutlery, we also have women sewing, weaving, making cord and sorting out laundry.

     There is usually a wood-turner or bodger and his young apprentice, who can do simple repairs in the camp. A scrivener will write letters for the soldiers or he may be attached to the household. We may also have musicians, dancers, strolling players, puppeteers, peddlers and rogues. Sometimes a market is portrayed and occasionally a woman of easy virtue finds her way into camp.

     Our children are very important, bringing the camp alive with their playing, and helping with tasks in the camp and household. This accords with the 17th Century view of children in that each had a task and a responsibility. Childhood innocence and lack of responsibility are largely a Victorian invention. The children were no less subject to the “Articles” of rules of war than their parents. The Provost’s men made no distinction of age when taking up a thief.

     The Baggage Train complements the Military and the Household, these being the three divisions that, together, make up 17th Century Life & Times. As such, each is indispensable to our aim of presenting the visitor to our events with the full flavour of live in the 17th Century.

      The Household

        The other side of the 17th Century we often portray is the household. When ever we get to use a site that allows us to actually use rooms and original furniture we re-create a house and its occupants as they would have been. Below are some of our members re-creating a civil war family at East Riddleston Hall in Yorkshire.

     The house hold is made up of both the gentry that sit in residence and the servants that look after them from the lowest scullery maid up. Our household team has spent many years researching evidence on how these house's were run and how people behaved.

     When period rooms and buildings are available for use in our events we often portray a gentry family complete with its servants. This household can include the master of the house, his wife, children and other relatives and hangers on as well as those who cook and clean or who work in one way or another for the owners, either within the house or out on the estate.  

     The type of gentry re-created varies greatly depending on the venue and its historical connections. We aim to be able portray everything from a wealthy merchant climbing the social ladder up to a local dignitary with a few retainers then up to the landed gentry (those with great titles) or someone with equally very high status connections. The type and social status of gentry changes not only the finery of costume and accoutrements that are used but also the way in which the household is run and interacts with each other. A sleepy manor on a farming estate owned by a minor knight of the realm would be far less formal than a gathering of courtiers at an exquisite banquet thrown by a duke or an earl for example.

     Key to the portrayal of the gentry is there servants and estate workers, then as now those who are placed higher up could not survive without the essential staff that keep their estates in check.

     At the top of the pecking order is the House or Estate Steward, the steward would normally be an educated man sometimes even a member of the gentry themselves. The stewards duties varied from estate to estate but in general they were responsible not only for the day to day management of the entire staff of the estate but a whole ménage of other important roles and tasks. They collected rents, kept detailed financial accounts, they exploited mines, forests, quarries and mills, acted as election agents, almoners, lawyers and ambassadors to other gentry, arbitrated disputes in local courts, gathered news and most importantly regularly reported by letter to there masters who would often be away from home for great lengths of time.

      Next in line would be the housekeeper responsible for the general up keep of the house and those who did all the cleaning, cooking and serving down to the lowest potboy in the kitchens. Attached the household might be other skilled servants such as a scrivener or even musicians gathered to entertain the gentry in there idleness.

     There may also be estate workers such as tenant farmers, game keepers and bailiffs, come to visits the house to settle disputes or pay rents, even the poor and destitute of the parish might come to beg for leftover scraps from his lordships plate. Our portrayals are aimed to be as authentic as possible and include many of these varied and colourful characters.

     The Camp  

    Many women during the Civil War, either by choice or circumstance, followed the armies around the country. Some women wanted to stay by their husbands sides, others found themselves widowed, homeless or both and felt that their best chance of survival was to travel with the camp. Many of the latter women made a meagre living providing services for the soldiers.

     Visitors to our events will often be greeted by a fully functioning garrison camp.

     The main area of the camp is the suttlers tent. The picture on the left shows five members preparing the authentic mid-day meal which is freshly prepared and cooked each day of the event., All the methods, utensils and recipes used are authentic. The suttlers provides around 80 meals per day.

     We source original recipes and follow them closely. Mistress Kate is shown making the soldiers favourite - beer and honey cakes. Other duties around the camp could have included washing and mending clothes, gathering firewood, scavenging for supplies and if they were really down on there luck then even prostituting themselves to the soldiers (although this was severally punishable in both army's during the war)

     The soldiers and camp followers eat together in the camp with simple bowls, knife and spoon. The officers however would eat in the officers tent, their pewter tableware including two pronged fork and decorative spoon is a far cry from the wooden wares the soldiers have.

     Goodwife Hodgson, shown here making a skirt for her mistress, is an accomplished seamstress and would have survived well on camp. Her well equipped sewing kit is often put to use repairing soldiers shirts that have been torn in battle. She also makes clothes for the children's' bartholomew dolls. These basic dolls which resemble gypsy pegs were a common toy for all children.
 

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