Schiltron

A large but compact division of spearmen; a defensive formation of foot-soldiers forming a rectangle or oval, holding pikes or spears outwards so as to present a sharp fence to attackers. It was called a 'pike hedgehog'. This is not very different from the phalanx used by the Greeks and esp. the Spartans. It was a formation very difficult to break up directly with the spears holding off the knights on their *destriers, for instance. However, they were vulnerable to archers and their blizzards of arrows. Once the formation was broken the knights could then charge in. William Wallace used this formation at the Battle of Stirling Bridge (1297) with success; also at Bannockburn in 1314. After that, the English knew better and used the bow and clouds of arrows to kill all in the formation. Then the knights and their horses could break through. Later, it evolved into the infantry 'square' as used by Wellington at Waterloo.