Signal Banners

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Some thoughts on the simple use of Banners in large Skirmishes and Wars

While recently reminiscing on my battlefield experiences and after reading an excellent short article by Johann von Rothenburg it occurred to me that while many Units use banners to mark their position on the battlefield so that friendly troops may rally to them and our enemies may tremble at their approach, I have never heard of them being used to deliberately provide dynamic tactical information or signaling. This very short article is intended to make some suggestions on how to remedy this and stimulate further discussion.

As pointed out by Johann in his article “One of the most defining factors in SCA style command is the lack of information and the short timeframe allowed for decision making. The SCA commander has a limited field of view from inside his helm and very limited communications with the other commanders once the battle is joined. He must gather the information he can from his viewpoint and commit his forces as quickly as possible” (SCA Melee Fighting Website, March 2007)

A) Picture yourself in battle, your forward line is engaged, you have enemy Units approaching, you are taking heavy casualties, your reserves are limited and you are under heavy fire from enemy archers. You can see a short distance either side and beyond the heads of those on either side you can see the banners of the Units on either side. How do you decide what to do beyond the task originally assigned to you, if only you could tell immediately what was going on either side of you, if only you could ask for help.

B) Or consider your position to the rear watching the forward Units of your Army and other than watching them move forward or give ground wondering how they were doing and wondering where to send your reserves. Sure either commander could send a runner, who would have to make it all the way there, and all the way back with a clear message or command.

Now consider the circumstances of:

C) The commander looks left and right he sees the Unit to the left is doing well and the Unit to the right needs help. He chooses to send his reserves to the right and gives orders to hold the line. <>OR

D) The commander survey’s his line, he sees the left flank is overall doing well, his centre is advancing and his right is struggling. With some confidence he dispatches reserves to the right and a runner to the centre with new orders. <>

How might this be achieved you ask?

Well if each Unit has a banner that is wielded by an ensign close to the Unit commander then at the direction of the commander then the ensign can relay basic tactical information.

A		A banner held still and upright may be used to indicate that all is well or going to plan.
B		A banner angled forward can indicate that the Unit is doing well and either advancing or inflicting more casualties than they are receiving.
C		A banner angled to the rear can indicate that the Unit is not doing so well and is either being forced back or taking more casualties than they are giving out.
D		A banner being waved from side to side may indicate that they are not doing well at all and the commander believes they are at risk of being over run or breaking.
E		A banner moved up and down repeatedly could be used to ask for more archery or artillery support.
F		No banner may be used to indicate that all command troops are dead and to "..tell Laura I love her.."

Alternatively Banners and other signalling devices can be used by Army commanders, with colours representing Left (Red), Centre (Blue) and Right (Green) battles* and similar flag movements. E.G. Blue Banner repeatedly moved to a forward angle to order an advance in the centre, Green banner repeatedly angled to the rear to order a withdrawal on the Right Flank and a Red banner held upright to indicate that the Left flank should stand their ground.

A few of things would be needed to give this a chance of working, ensigns and commanders knowing what each signal meant, strong and disciplined ensigns, commanders looking around to see what is going on, and lastly Banners or Pennons that were easily wielded and easy to see.

May you always come home with victory or good stories or both,

Peter D’Gaunt Noir

*Battle e.g. Vanguard, Main Battle and Rearguard.


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