The bow and arrows used by man as a military and hunting weapon were invented so long ago that the history of their creation is covered in the darkness of the past millennia. Such a device, capable of successfully hitting a target, was widely used by many ancient peoples on all continents of the Earth inhabited by people, with the exception of Australia. An improved version of such weapons was a crossbow. He undoubtedly exceeded the bow in a number of indicators, in particular the lethal force and the accuracy of the sight. Crossbows were very common in medieval Europe and were actively used during the Crusades. This is evidenced by ancient chronicles, paintings and frescoes.
The principle of the crossbow
It was not difficult for the ancient hunters to make the simplest bow. All that was needed was to think of sharpening the arrows, taking a suitable arcuate stick and attaching a bowstring to it. But no matter how complicated and improved later such designs, they all had a very unpleasant inconvenience. At that moment, when the owner of the bow was aiming, he was forced, pulling the bowstring, to keep it in such a state that reduced the strength of the boom. That is why people tried to come up with special mechanisms that produce the indicated for the hunter or warrior. At the time of the shot, a cunning device released the clamp. This was done by pressing the arrow on the trigger. As a result, the bowstring gave a powerful impetus to the arrow.
Crossbow in ancient times
The problems described for the first time were successfully solved in ancient Greece. The crossbow was not widely used here, just according to some historical sources, separate analogues of such weapons existed. There is written evidence that they were used in the battle of Syracuse.
Weapons of this kind were made and successfully used in the East during the early reign of the Han Dynasty (II century BC). There it proved itself from the most excellent side in the struggle of the ancient Chinese with their opponents. However, innovative designs have been forgotten for many centuries. And the situation changed only when the medieval crossbow entered the stage of history.
Instrument of war
There is artistic evidence (images on tapestries) that one of the weapons at the Battle of Hastings (1066, October) was crossbows. They served excellently by the Norman warriors. So are some written testimonies.
This type of weapon in the armies of Europeans appeared in the IX century. The image of the crossbow was also found in the manuscript of a certain Spanish monk, dated to the VIII century. The poems of medieval authors broadcast that three centuries later, among the warriors of William the Conqueror, skillful crossbowmen stood out, striking the enemy with their accuracy, courage and the capabilities of the weapons they use.
In the first half of the 12th century, Anna Komnina, the Byzantine princess, mentioned in her letters a medieval crossbow weapon, calling it terrifying, striking a target from great distances and having deadly power. And in fact, facts are known when such a military device pierced through bronze statues. And striking during the siege of the strong walls of the city, the arrow pierced the stone completely, sometimes even went outside.
How the medieval crossbow was used
It was possible to pull such a construction in several ways, for example, holding it with your left hand or with your free right. Or, leaning on the semicircle of the bow with their feet, immediately with two hands, the soldiers with all possible force pulled the bowstring with one jerk. And before aiming, the arrows were laid in a special gutter. It looked like a cylinder cut in half and was in the middle of the device.
For this weapon, arrows were not very long, but their ends were extremely heavy and thick. They bore a special name - bolts. The tension of the medieval crossbow made it possible to break through strong iron bibs and the most reliable shields. And getting into the enemy’s body, the arrow not only pierced him through, but continued its flight, almost without slowing down its speed, as if it had just passed the void.
Convenience
A medieval crossbow is a weapon convenient for a warrior also because the protected shooter turned out to be better than when using a bow. During the shooting, he had the opportunity to be almost completely in the shelter, sticking out only his head and the tip of the device, while he could choose any convenient direction to hit the desired target.
Although the efforts that should have been expended to actuate such a mechanism were quite significant, the shooter's energy was saved due to the lack of the need to maintain a certain balance between the speed and accuracy of movements, and it was also not necessary to measure them with the expended force, as arrows from a bow did.
Crossbows in Russia
Ancient chronicles about the use of weapons, which our ancestors called self-arrows, give very conflicting evidence. According to some written sources, the crossbow in the Middle Ages in Russia was known and used in battles in the middle of the XIII century. This is confirmed by historical findings dating back to quite early periods of Russian history. For example, in the ruins of the city of Izyaslavl, which arose in the XII century and was destroyed by the Mongol-Tatars about a century later, the remains of a warrior were discovered. On his belt there was a special hook for a crossbow bowstring. True, the weapon itself was not found. Therefore, this historical evidence has not been unambiguously evaluated.
There are also facts that self-arrows appeared in Russia only in the XIV century. This type of weapon was adopted from the Bulgars during historical military campaigns in those lands of the Russian army.
However, among our ancestors, a crossbow can not be attributed to the number of especially popular types of weapons. The explanation for this should be sought in the inconvenience of the design compared to a mobile bow, difficulties in charging, as well as a large mass and high cost.
Crossbow
Let us now consider what a medieval crossbow was in Russia, the characteristics of this device, designs, and other interesting facts related to this type of weapon.
The main part of the gunshot - bow - was made of iron or horn. He was attached to a wooden butt. It also had a bed and a special groove in which forged short bolts were made, usually made of iron. On this device there was a trigger lever, the pressure on which actuated the entire mechanism, that is, released the previously engaged bowstring.
Types of self-arrows
The manual crossbar for convenience of an emphasis of a leg when charging had a special iron bracket. A primitive trigger device ensured the release of the bowstring when firing.
The other was easel crossbow. This design turned out to be more powerful and massive. If the medieval hand crossbow was approximately one meter in size (the exact parameters are shown in the figure below), then in this case they turned out to be much more impressive. Here, the main part of the structure was mounted on a special frame on wheels, otherwise called a machine. The bow was made of steel, a thick sturdy bowstring was made of cowhide or rope. For cocking, special gear devices called self-shooting rotations were used. The tensile force of this design was estimated at twenty human forces.
Can I make a medieval crossbow with my own hands?
Nowadays there are enough enthusiastic people who are ready to engage in the reconstruction of ancient weapons. Including attract fans of this kind of activity and crossbows. But such pleasure requires patience and a significant investment of material resources.
How to make a medieval crossbow? One of the most important parts of the design is considered an arc. The arrow departure speed depends on it, and it is this indicator that determines the power of this type of weapon, being fundamental. A similar part can be made of metal. Wood is also suitable, it is the easiest material to use, although similar designs lose in power. Here it is possible to take oak, birch, maple and other types of wood.
Mechanism assembly
All parts of this design with their sizes can be seen in the photo. The medieval crossbow was assembled from similar details. After all the components are cut out, you need to attach the arc to the bed. This is done using an ordinary rope, which is threaded through the window, as shown in the picture.
The simplest model of the trigger mechanism should be considered such an option when the bowstring is hooked on a built-in pin. And in order not to shoot ahead of time, you should use the clip. You can make a bowstring from synthetic fibers using dacron, lavsan and other materials of the same kind.
The effectiveness of metal crossbows
What was the range and speed of the arrows for a hand crossbow made of steel? According to some data taken from books on medieval weapons, such a movement did not occur too quickly. However, it was carried out practically without loss of speed, which was approximately 50 m / s. At the same time, the arrow flew an average distance of about 420 m. Of course, these data can be questionable, because in those days there was no chronometer, and nowadays there are no such types of weapons.
Including in order to clarify the specified information, replicas of medieval crossbows are created. Recreating this type of weapon helps refresh historical information.
Skillfully executed copies have, judging by the reviews, the following indicators:
- with a bolt weight of 85 g, the design efficiency is 56.2%;
- bolt flight speed - 58.3 m / s;
- energy at impact is 144 J;
- when flying at an angle of 43 °, the flight time is 10 seconds;
- the maximum height of the trajectory of the bolt is 123 m.
As a rule, replicas are made for artistic filming, which helps to recreate the atmosphere of bygone centuries.
Modern crossbows
This type of ancient weapon is not forgotten in our days. Of course, not everyone takes the modernized crossbow in a modernized version seriously, there are enough skeptics. And yet, designs that work according to the principles described above are increasingly being used to manufacture the latest types of weapons.
What explains the renewed interest in the crossbow? The reason should be sought, among other things, in the fact that materials appeared whose application allows us to improve the principles of operation of ancient types of weapons. And because of this, you can easily eliminate the main disadvantages of crossbows, including the inconvenience associated with the huge weight of the structure. Bows are now made from light and at the same time strong metals, lodges from plastic. Moreover, not so long ago, the designed folding crossbows significantly increase the convenience in carrying and compactness. And if you add other improvements: laser target indicators, which significantly help to hit a target at medium and short shooting distances, as well as collimator and optical sights, and other technical improvements, the crossbow becomes by no means an archaic, but a very convenient modern weapon.