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anton
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Howdoo. pardonnez-mois, je ne parle francais. I would like to know more about Beursault. I shoot a longbow in the north of england. I visited Crepy en Valois Musee years ago and was very impressed with the traditions of French Archery. Thank you for any help. Regards. Anthony Mannion (anton)

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Hy anton, welcome to webarcherie site.

As you see, the site is mainly in french and his aim is to continue this side .... :blabla:

However, i will have a look on documentation i already have.

Try to continue in french, using Babelfish for exemple.

And don't care if your french is not enough fluent, we will help you.

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hi, Anton,

Wecome Aboard,

It is nice to read that archers from England are interested in our toxophilic specificities :)

Now for what is about Beursault, youu have there a very ancient game used to train the archery companies that where created by the King of France after Jeanne d'Arc death (1431), and later confirmed in their privileges by King François the 1st.

This tradition is mainly found today around Paris and in the ancient province of Valois, also proudly known as "Pays d'Arc" (Country of the Bow).

Privileges granted to Bowmen Companies included tax exemption provided bowmen went to the field to shoot every Sunday after mass.

The tradition was tentatively cancelled during the French Revolution

The archery training ended taking place in "archery gardens" called "games", consistent with the simple design shown on the web page JMG gave you the link to.

Two butts are approximatively 60 meters from each other; one is next to the "Logis" (Company House), and is called "Butte Maitresse" (Main butt); the remote one is called "Butte d'attaque" (assault butt).

From one butt to the other, there is a direct path, where the arrows fly, called "Allée du Roy" (King's way); parralel to it, another path dubbed "Allée des Chevaliers" (Knights' way) is the regular path for people walking from one butt to the other, which they commonly do.

Every year in spring, the King's game is held, and the winner of this game is chosen as King by the company for the year to come. In one year, the title will have to be won again, or lost. During ceremonies, while no arrows are shot, the King of the Company leads the bowmen and Knights along King's way, with banner and drums.

The game is shot by rounds; each round has each bowman place himself in turn at about 50meters from the "butte d'attaque", salute the company (hats off, which implies he's wearing a hat ;) ), then shoot one arrow, and walk along Knight's way until he reaches the vicinity of "butte d'attaque" (the huge vertical wooden planks called "Gardes" are protecting him from the arrows of his followers). When everyone has shot his arrow, each in turn removes his arrow from the "butte d'attaque" and shoots it back to the "butte maitresse", then returns along Knight's way....

that was one round, a nice walk for two arrows :)

it takes 20 rounds to complete the game, so that Beursault is more about walking than bow shooting :lol:

The target (or "Carte") has its highlights too :

-its size is about 45 cm in diameter (O, ye olde measures of 'lore)

-the arrow impact must not touch a zone limit, unless it is counted "out of zone" : if your arrow breaks the line between zone 1 and zone 2, you score 1 (of course, so does mine)

-this is why scoring an touch within the periphery or the target is called "Honneur"; it certainly is one, à fifty-ought paces with a longbow! :108:

Thaks again for swimming 'cross the Channel to meet us !!

Edited by PhilPlessis
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