Since ancient times, people have made and used various types of weapons. With its help, a man obtained food, defended himself from enemies, and guarded his home. In the article we will consider ancient weapons - some of its types that have been preserved from past centuries and are in the collections of special museums.
From stick to club
Initially, the first weapon of man was an ordinary strong stick. Over time, for convenience and greater efficiency, they began to make it heavier and give it a convenient shape. By shifting the center of gravity to the end of the gun, they achieved maximum acceleration and a heavier blow. So there was an ancient weapon - the club. For use in a collision with enemies, wedges made of stone or metal were driven into the branch. The manufacture was cheap and did not require any specific skills in use. Any strong man could use it, unlike a spear, in the throwing of which you had to train in advance.
Heroic Mace
In connection with the constant conquest of territories and the emergence of wars, the requirements for weapons as a striking tool grew. A wooden club did not cope with the tasks assigned to it. Therefore, they began to chain it with iron and equip with spikes. Thus arose the following ancient Russian weapon, which came to be called the mace. At the end of its hilt was a stone or metal top with spikes or iron feathers. A reasonable distribution of power made it possible to shorten the gun. There was no need to drag him on his shoulder, it was enough to put the mace in his belt. Moreover, its effectiveness was sometimes superior to the quality of the sword. Mace stopped the enemy faster than sweeping the armor with the sword.
Melee weapons
Along with the club, the soldiers used such an old edged weapon as an ax and a sword. The ax is a battle ax that was used in close combat. The chopping part of this gun is made in the shape of a crescent. The usefulness of the ax was that a rounded blade could cut helmets and shields without getting stuck in them. The ax hatchet differed from the clumsy one in that it was straight and convenient for interception from one hand to another. The balance was maintained due to either the severity of the butt, or the presence of a second blade. The ax chopping blows were very effective, but they spent a lot of warrior strength. She could not swing as often as a sword. The advantages were that the ax was easy to forge, and a dull blade did not reduce the impact force. The ax was able to break the neck and ribs under the armor.
It is worth noting here that such an ancient weapon as a sword, although it was military, was created using expensive technology, and only mercenaries and aristocracy had it. He was able to deliver cutting, chopping, and stabbing blows. In Russia, swords appeared in the middle of the VIII century thanks to Scandinavian warriors who exchanged them for beaver and fox furs. Their origin is evidenced by the stamps available on the blades found on Russian lands. The remaining details of the swords were made or improved by Old Russian masters. Later, the sword replaced the saber, which the Russian soldiers borrowed from the Tatars.
When the smell of gunpowder
With the invention of gunpowder in the X-XII centuries, an ancient firearm arose, which began to be used in China. The first use of guns in Russia is mentioned in the description during a collision with Khan Tokhtamysh in 1382. Such a weapon was called a handbrake. It was a metal tube with a handle. Gunpowder, poured into the barrel, was set on fire through a special hole with a hot rod.
At the beginning of the 15th century, a wick and then a wheeled lock appeared in Europe to set fire to the contents. When you press the trigger, the cocked spring launched the wheel, which, in turn, rotating, rubbed against flint, carving sparks. In this case, the powder ignited. It was a complex old weapon, which could not replace the wick ignition, but became the prototype of the pistols.
Shock-silicon castle appeared in the middle of the XVI century. In it sparks igniting the powder carved flint inside the trigger and striking the flint. The cartridge, in which there was a lead bullet and a powder charge, was introduced into use at the end of the 17th century. Later, the weapon was equipped with a bayonet, which allowed to participate in close combat. In the Russian army, the principle of the operation of weapons did not change, the differences were only in certain types of structures corresponding to each type of army.