The yeoman farmer is often thought of as a uniquely English institution, which, although not quite absolutely true, is a rather reasonable conclusion. Nowhere else in Europe were there so many commoner farmers who owned enough land (over 20 acres), and were industrious enough with it, to live a rather comfortable existance by Medieval standards. But there were similar farmers all over Europe, there were simply not enough of them to form such a distinct and powerful class as they did in England. The paucity of nobles in England, and pre-Norman land owning customs, led to the growth of this yeoman class. From the yeomen came the even more successful "gentleman farmers" who eventually comprised the English gentry. If nothing else, this spreading around of the wealth led to a significant amount of grassroots support for the nobility, and is one of the reasons why Britain is still a functioning monarchy. Like their noble neighbors, a yeoman usually had at least one horse, and knew how to ride it. While lesser people might have to walk into the nearest town, a yeoman would ride. And he had that longbow too.