Edexcel GCSE History · 1HI0
Paper 1, Paper 2
A soldier hired to fight primarily for payment, rather than through feudal obligation or allegiance to the ruler. Receiving wages as an ordinary member of a national army does not itself make a soldier a mercenary.
Revise: Societal Influence and Patterns of Change in WarfareAs feudal obligations weakened and securing military service became more difficult, kings increasingly paid soldiers to fight, including hired mercenaries.
- Revise: Composition and Command of the Medieval Army
A soldier who fights for payment rather than because of an obligation to provide military service.
- Revise: New Weaponry, Tactics and the Decline of the Knight
A soldier hired to fight for pay rather than serving because of a feudal obligation.