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An '''Army''' is a large grouping of land-based [[fighter|soldiers]] and their supporting; an equivalent term for seagoing fighters is a [[Navy]].  

Armies can be as simple as a mob or raiding party with little to no leadership, or a rigidly hierarchal organization with clearly defined roles for all members.  

Professional standing armies, such as the [[Roman]] [[legion]] or the [[modern]] army, were comparitively rare in [[period]].  While [[medieval]] armies were made of [[fighter|warriors]] who trained their whole lives to fight, unit discipline and organization tended to be limited to personal bonds of [[fealty]].  In addition, many [[feudalism|feudal]] armies had an extremely limited term of service, typically forty days.

== Leadership ==

Most armies are headed by a single [[commanding officer]].  Authorities can be delegated to [[lieutenant]]s, who are in charge of individual divisions or ''units'' of the army.  In large fighting forces (like what would be found at an SCA [[war]]), there might be more than one level of leadership, with orders going from the [[general]] to a lieutenant, to a [[sergeant]], to the individual soldiers.

Historically, it was generally agreed that the better the leadership of an army is, and the more responsive the soldiers on the field are to that leadership, the better an army will perform on the field.  For this reason, generals tend to be accomplished fighers, who studied [[tactics]] and military theory.

== Training and discipline ==

As with any hierarchical organization, if individuals in the organization do not accept their station the performance of the whole unit will suffer.  For this reason, most [[modern]] professional armies undergo extensive training to the aim of instilling discipline, training in specific roles, and an ''esprit d'corps''.


== Armies in the SCA ==

Most [[SCA]] armies tend to be fairly well-trained (better than many armies in [[period]], at least, since our [[fighters]] have reasonable training with their weapons).  SCA fighters also have more in common with [[medieval]] warriors that modern soldiers do, since SCA fighters are volunteers and largely lack the discipline of a professional soldier.

Armies in the SCA are usually raised by [[Kingdoms|Kingdom]] or [[Crown Principality|Principalities]], although some are raised by [[barony|Baronies]] or [[shire|Shires]].  Kingdom armies tend to be made of units comprised of forces fighting by [[barony]] [[shire]] or [[canton]], although large [[household|households]] often fight as descrete units.

Most [[Kingdoms]] in [[North America]] send armies to the annual [[Pennsic War]]

== See Also ==
*[[Mercenary]]