Schiltron Pike

Approx. Period: 1300 AD
Length: 3.50m Width: 0.05m

The Schiltron Pike gets its name from a defensive formation deployed against horse mounted attack. The long and heavy spears are held at increasing angles by three rows of foot soldiers, protected by wooden spikes embedded in the ground in front of the line. It is thought that this tactic was used by William Wallace at the battle of Falkirk 1298.

The Schiltron Pike of the period was a simple sturdy weapon The head is a pointed iron cross head pinned onto the shaft. The shaft is roughly shaped from local wood cut in lengths up to 12 or 15 feet. As deployed in a splayed array around a defensive block formation, the Schiltron would have looked quite formidable to an approaching horseman.