ARCHER

(From the Latin arcus, a bow.) A bowman; one who uses a bow. The use of the bow in war may be traced to the earliest antiquity, and to the history of almost every people. The exact time wlien the English long-bow began to be used in war is not exactly ascertained: the Normans brought with them the arbalest or cro -bow; but from the reign of Edward II. the long-bow, the favourite national weapon, seems to have been fully established. When fire-arms began to come into use, various attempts were unsucce fully made, by statute and proclamation, to prevent this ancient weapon becoming obsolete. In France the officers who attended the lieutenant of police were, before the Revolution, always called archers, although provided with carbines. Artillery is a French term, originally signifying archery, and the London artillery company were a fraternity of bowmen. [s. 85]