Traditional English Longbow Making 2 days with Tony Saunders

Make your own Traditional English Longbow with Tony Saunders

Unfortunately, we are unsure that a Longbow course with Tony will be possible in 2022. Due to ash dieback, there is an acute shortage of suitable timber.

During this two day course you will start with a selected quarter length of ash called a stave, around 6ft 4" in length,  which will be reduced using the traditional axe and bill hook tools of yesteryear. In time the students will each move onto a shave horse where the draw knife and finally spoke shave will be the tool of choice. The stave will then be 'trained' to bend with great care - also known as 'tiller' the bow - under Tony's watchful eye.

If it is wet you will work under gazebos, with shave horses still well distanced.  Please note this course can be physically demanding and requires an element of stamina - you will be pairing down the bow stave using traditional tools of yesteryear.

Once the draw length of the bow is achieved we can estimate the draw weight and start making the specially calculated double bow string. At the end we will be able to shoot the bows in some open farmland, hopefully looking across to Greystoke Castle and put your longbow through its paces. This is the traditional method for creating a longbow - no laminates or short cuts. The tree was cut down and the bow created - just as in this workshop.

The English longbow is a powerful type of medieval weapon used both in hunting and as a weapon in medieval warfare. The English use of longbows was effective against the French during the Hundred Years' War, particularly and most famously at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415.

9.30-4.30pm
£200 Lunch included
Material Charges approx £10

Dates for this course - see the table below to book:

 * Fri 25th and Saturday 26th June 2021 *  We hope to receive further dates from Tony- please sign up on the June waiting list and we will inform you as soon as this happens.

Kindly note there will be a materials charge payable directly to the tutor on the day of £10 for the milled ash staves . Typically this course runs with around 8 students. Suitable for Beginners.

Please bring:  The tutor provides everything required for the longbow course – however if you have your own tools (spoke shave or draw knife) that you prefer to use, please do bring them along.  This is an outdoor course so please dress accordingly to the weather. Gazebo will be used if it is wet.

About the tutor   Tony is a multi award winning conservationist with ten years experience in coppice, ancient woodland management and green woodwork. He has been running Longbow courses for several years from his woodland workshop at Brown Robin Nature reserve near Grange over Sands.