"The Burghal Hidage provides details about the strengths of the garrisons in 33 fortifications established during the reign of Alfred the Great, indicating a structured military system."
"If every hide is represented by one man, then every pole of wall can be manned by four men, requiring 80 hides for twenty poles of wall."
"The document illuminates the provision of the income from 27,000 hides to support an equal number of garrison troops, reflecting the military logistics of the time."
The Burghal Hidage, composed during King Edward the Elder's reign, details the garrison strengths of 33 fortifications in Wessex. It indicates that military planners required four men for every five meters of wall, necessitating 80 hides for twenty poles of wall. The document reflects a well-organized military-administrative structure, with 27,000 hides allocated to support an equal number of garrison troops. This information is widely accepted by specialists as an accurate representation of early tenth-century military logistics in Wessex.
Read at Medievalists.net
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