The Normans often used archers and had been on the receiving end of volleys before, but never anything like the Longbows, which quickly decimated the front line of Flemish infantry. The Norman commander Robert, “Bright Flame” ? , or Raibeart, must have been shaken by his sudden heavy losses because he ordered his elite Norman cavalry to prepare to charge around the hill. These Norman horsemen, the most feared fighting force in Europe, quickly rounded the flanks and formed up at a trot, then a gallop, then a charge, this fearsome cavalry force of almost two thousand heavily armored horsemen, began to close on the Welsh lines, when suddenly the Longbowmen switched targets and began pouring volleys into the densely packed Norman cavalry, “…raining down Hell from above…”, breaking all cohesio
