The National Field Archery Society (NFAS) is a British organisation that exists to foster and promote field archery as a sport. Information in this article is taken from items in newsletters of the NFAS.

History

Field archery was introduced to the United Kingdom by US armed forces personnel stationed in the UK during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the subsequent

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

period. Archers wanting to practice field archery formed clubs such as the Severn Valley Field Archers and the Dunkery Field Bowmen. In 1959 the British Field Archery Association (BFAA) was formed at

Dunster Dunster is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, within the north-eastern boundary of Exmoor National Park. It lies on the Bristol Channel southeast of Minehead and northwest of Taunton. At the 2011 Census, it had a population ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

. The association held annual championships, and defined various rounds shot at unmarked distances in woodland. The BFAA did not require clear lanes between the shooting position and the target - the preference was for the course to be as natural as possible. In 1970 the BFAA merged with the more recently formed English Field Archery Association (EFAA). The EFAA drew its membership largely from areas around US military bases in the UK, and followed the US practice of shooting at marked distances through cleared lanes. The merged organisation followed the EFAA's preferences for marked distances and cleared lanes. Many archers who had been members of the BFAA were dissatisfied with the changes to the character of field archery. In 1972 a group of archers drafted a constitution and a set of rules that enshrined their preferred style of shooting unmarked distances in natural conditions. This led to the formation of the National Field Archery Society, whose first Annual General Meeting took place on 10 March 1973 at Clayton Community Centre, Norwood Lane, Clayton, Newcastle, Staffordshire.

Current status

The NFAS has grown to become the largest field archery organisation in the UK. The NFAS is not affiliated to any international organisation. The NFAS recognises 12 styles of bow: *

American Flatbow A flatbow is a bow with non- recurved, flat, relatively wide limbs that are approximately rectangular in cross-section. Because the limbs are relatively wide, flatbows will usually narrow and become deeper at the handle, with a rounded, non-bend ...

(AFB) * Barebow (BB) * Bowhunter (BH) * Compound Limited (CL) *

Crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an elastic launching device consisting of a bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar fashion to the stock of a long fi ...

(XB) * Freestyle (FS) * Hunting Tackle (HT) *

Longbow A longbow (known as warbow in its time, in contrast to a hunting bow) is a type of tall bow that makes a fairly long draw possible. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow and are circular or D-shaped in cross ...

(LB) * Primitive (PV) * Traditional Bowhunter (TB) * Thumb Draw (TD) * Unlimited (UL) The general rules are determined by a committee and ratified or rejected by the membership. Specific rules applying to each bow style are determined by votes cast only by archers who shoot that bow style. Rounds are shot at unmarked distances, predominantly using 2D and 3D animal targets. Two championship events are held every year: * 3D Championships -

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weekend, end of May * National Championships - 3rd weekend in September

References

External links

National Field Archery Society
{{Archery Archery organizations Archery in the United Kingdom 1973 establishments in the United Kingdom Sports organizations established in 1973 Sports organisations of the United Kingdom