Have the methods of employment made the same progress?
3. Progressive Introduction of Fire-Arms Into the Armament of the Infantryman
The revolution brought about by powder, not in the art of war but in that of combat, came gradually. It developed along with the improvement of fire arms. Those arms gradually became those of the infantryman.
Thus, under Francis I, the proportion of infantrymen carrying fire arms to those armed with pikes was one to three or four.
At the time of the wars of religion arquebusiers and pikemen were about equal in number.
Under Louis XIII, in 1643, there were two fire-arms to one pike; in the war of 1688, four to one; finally pikes disappeared.
At first men with fire-arms were independent of other combatants, and functioned like light troops in earlier days.
Later the pikes and the muskets were united in constituent elements of army corps.
The most usual formation was pikes in the center, muskets on the wings.
Sometimes the pikemen were in the center of their respective companies, which were abreast.