A prosopographical analysis of the military service given by the English gentry and nobility during the wars of Edward I and his son can add a great deal to our knowledge of the mounted armoured forces of this period. The foregoing chapters have demonstrated the frequency with which members of the aristocracy gave military service, their connections to other members of the military community and the methods by which they were recruited. If, as is commonly perceived, Edward I inherited a far from glorious military legacy from his father, then by the end of his reign he would appear to have fashioned a well-trained military elite, hardened by years of regular campaigning and strengthened by a sense of group solidarity that was reflected in the wide dissemination of new and increasingly complex coats of arms. Yet, as we have seen, the armies of this period were not universally successful; there was no continuous spell of victorious campaigning such as that which earned the armies of Edward III a glowing reputation during the 1340s and 1350s. The gradual process of conquest was punctuated by significant reversals both in Wales and Scotland. In Gascony the English were usually on the defensive. Why, then, were the armies of this period, despite their obvious and significant triumphs, generally less successful than the forces raised later in the fourteenth century? And how can a study of the men-at-arms of this period assist our investigation?