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A sizable army needed sources of food and drink for constant replenishment if it was going to move more than about 150 miles from a major supply depot.

Coming out of winter, a lot of rural regions would be running short of food, and in many instances, if an army was able to secure enough food to feed itself and its animals, then local peasants would go hungry or begin to starve. Attempts to hide food supplies from armies, even friendly ones, were common.

If a large army had passed through a region, passing another army through the same region during the same or even the next year or two was a highly risky choice.

Without exceptional management of logistics and supply routes, a besieging army or army on a long march away from a coast or a river often would need to eat some of its own animals (oxen or cart horses, pack horses or mules, warhorses). If the men began to starve, maintaining numbers and order would become extremely difficult.

Daily Rations

1 soldier [needs] about 8-to-14 pounds (~10 lb. minimum) per day of food and drink [~3 lbs. of grain (typically bread or biscuit), ~1 lb. of other foods (meat, salted fish, pickled eggs, beans, and so on), and ~4 to 8 pounds of liquid (~2 quarts minimum to a gallon normally; more like nearly 1 quart per hour in extremely hot conditions).

1 horse [needs] about 8-10 pounds of oats (ideally) or horsebread (a cheap bread made from peas, beans, rye, bran, and others) with some salt mixed in, ~10 lbs. of fodder (hay, straw, grass from grazing), and ~20 pounds of liquid.

1 oxen [needs] fewer oats and grains than horses but still needed about 30 lbs. of fodder or grass, with 1 or more pounds of grains (with added salt) if hauling weight, daily (ideally), and somewhere 20 gallons of water (plus or minus, depending on conditions. A wagon hauling only dry rations could carry about 1 month of dry rations

Pack animals and wagons

You can work these calculations in a number of ways, but you need to remember that saddles, tents, arrows, bow staves, wooden stakes, soldiers’ packs, cooking pots and utensils, sacks of salt or flour, barrels of ale all have a weight and all must also be carried. One reason why a drink like tea is popular with military units is that the tea itself is relatively light and soldiers can boil water in a pot to make it (i.e., the water can come from a local source). If you need to carry ale or wine with you, the barrels, kegs, or tuns equal a lot of weight.

So a 10-soldier unit, if each soldier is carrying about three days of dry rations in a shoulder pack, with 1 pack mule or 1 horse can carry about 1 week of rations with it. (Remember that the pack animal needs to eat, too, and it needs a harness or carrying saddle.)

A 20-soldier unit, supported by 1 normal wagon with 2 horses or oxen pulling it, could carry about 2 weeks of rations and a normal load of equipment (2 tents, spades, axes, cooking pots, spare arrows, and so on) with it. A wagon carrying only the dry ration could carry about 1 month of food. If wagons were available, often soldiers’ packs would be in the wagon, too.

A normal wagon could carry 1 tun of wine or ale, or the equivalent weight in smaller barrels, or somewhere around 2 to 3 weeks of the liquid ration for 20 men.

Securing Supplies

In friendly territory, an army on the march typically would have one or more forward detachments (an officer or a quartermaster, with a small escort) arranging for the purchase and delivery of grain, foodstuffs, and ale (or wine).

in enemy territory, raiding or foraging parties were more commonly used, but depending on the circumstances, a commander might pay for supplies, instead.

Since an army normally only travelled about five to ten miles per day, livestock such as cows, sheep, or goats could travel with the main column to provide a source of fresh meat and milk.