Medieval crossbow: characteristics, description, dimensions and photos. Effectiveness of medieval crossbows Crossbow weapons

Modern warfare is remote, that is, the enemy is hit with bullets, shells, rockets fired from a great distance. Such a method of warfare is not an invention of modern times, even our distant ancestors in the Stone Age learned to hit their enemies from afar with the help of a bow and arrows. However, in the pre-industrial era, there was another type of throwing weapon, with which it was possible to destroy the enemy without entering into close combat with him. This is a crossbow...

Thanks to books and cinema, we know quite a lot about bows and archers, while the crossbow is clearly deprived of attention, and this looks like an undoubted injustice - after all, it can be called the most technologically advanced weapon of antiquity, and crossbowmen are the real elite of medieval infantry.

A crossbow is a type of throwing weapon, which includes a bow placed on a special box. The cocking of the bowstring of a crossbow and its descent is usually carried out using special mechanisms. The name of this weapon comes from two Latin words: arcus, which translates as "arc", and ballisto - "throw or throw."

By the way, in addition to the classic crossbow, there was also the so-called Schnepper, which fired lead bullets.

How a medieval crossbow was loaded

The crossbow was originally conceived as a weapon that surpassed the bow in its power. However, additional power had to be paid for by difficulties in cocking weapons.

Weapons of the early Middle Ages, as a rule, were cocked manually or a special belt hook was used for this purpose. At the same time, the foot was placed in the stirrup, and the bowstring was hooked. After that, the warrior simply straightened his torso. A light hand-cocked crossbow usually had a wider bowstring. The load during the cocking of the crossbow string was distributed between the strongest muscles of the human body - abdominals, extensors of the back and biceps. Later, an improvement was made to the belt hook - a special block mechanism, called the “Samson belt”. Now crossbowmen could cock weapons with a pull force of up to 180 kg.

However, soon this was not enough - due to the rapid development of armor, new, even more powerful types of crossbows appeared on the battlefield. For their loading, additional mechanisms were invented that greatly facilitate the life of crossbowmen. The most common of these was the so-called goat's leg - a special lever system, which was simple and at the same time provided a fairly high rate of fire.

The appearance of plate armor forced gunsmiths to create new crossbows that were even more powerful. "Goat's leg" for their cocking was no longer enough. Various block devices began to be used to pull the bowstring. The English collar was a winch that was fixed at the back of the weapon. This crossbow mechanism was removable. The English collar was reliable and quite simple, but shooting from a crossbow with such a device was not very fast.

The second common mechanism for pulling powerful crossbows was the so-called krankelin or German collar. This crossbow mechanism was a rack and pinion mechanism, consisting of a gear rack, a handle and a pair of gears. Like the English collar, the krankelin was also removable. Its main disadvantages were the high cost and rather large weight.

The history of the crossbow: from Antiquity to Modern times

We don't know where or when crossbow invented. It probably happened in several places at once, independently of each other. There is evidence of the use of crossbows in China, as early as the fifth century BC. True, it was a heavy weapon of large size, which was transported on carts and used in the siege of fortresses. Somewhat later, the Chinese came up with a repeating crossbow, however, how effective it is is unknown.

The ancient Greeks also had a crossbow, it was called a gastrofete or abdominal bow. Historians are still arguing how the bowstring of this weapon was pulled: simply by hand or with the help of an ingenious device, which had to be leaned on by the stomach. The Hellenes were also aware of the large ballistas, which they used during the assault on fortresses. The Romans knew about the crossbow, but practically did not use it.

It should be noted that some features of this weapon prevented the wide distribution of the crossbow. Firstly, the crossbow is a weapon of a foot warrior, so the peoples who fought on horseback preferred a powerful composite bow to it. Secondly, the crossbow interferes with the infantryman in hand-to-hand combat. Crossbow squads should be covered in combat, which in turn requires high organization troops and his tactical training. It is possible that it was for this reason that the crossbow did not become widespread in the early Middle Ages.

In 1139, at the Lateran Council, crossbows fell under a complete ban, as a weapon hated by the Lord. Now they could only be used against the infidels, whom the churchmen did not feel sorry for. However, the military of that time paid little attention to such decisions, since crossbows were very effective in combat.

Crossbows were widely used in Europe during the Crusades. Typical for that time were crossbows loaded with a belt hook, it was during this period that the first crossbows with block devices began to appear. In the XIII century, not a single serious military campaign was complete without the use of a crossbow. The heyday of this weapon - like the English longbow - was the Hundred Years War. The Genoese were considered the most skilled crossbowmen of that time.

With the advent of firearms, the crossbow gradually began to be replaced, but this process dragged on for centuries. The last time this weapon was used during the Danish-Swedish wars, already in the 17th century. True, the Danes did not use crossbows from a good life - they simply had few guns.

Features of the application and combat characteristics of the crossbow

The combat crossbow was significantly inferior to the bow in terms of rate of fire, but it was much more powerful than it and had a significant advantage: while aiming, it could be kept cocked for a relatively long time. Does it matter? Think for yourself.

In a modern sporting bow, the draw force rarely exceeds 30 kg, and in order to draw a medieval combat bow, it was necessary to apply an effort of 70-80 kg. Similar loads are experienced by weightlifters in gym. They absolutely exclude calm aiming, with slow drawing of the bowstring, choice of target and shot. The bow was pulled with both hands at once, “to break”. At the same time, the average rate of fire of an English archer reached 12 rounds per minute. To shoot well with a combat bow, you need to train from childhood. In any of the great "archery traditions" - English, Mongolian, Scythian - the bow was really a folk weapon, to shoot from which it was as natural for a person as it is for today's Brazilians to play football. Good archery consists of three components: the strength of the archer, accuracy and speed of his movements. All this has been developed over the years ...

With a crossbow, everything is easier. The recruit needs to explain the crossbow system, work out the loading algorithm to automaticity, and you can put it on the fortress wall. And it was this, and not the superiority in the power of the shot, that was the main advantage of the crossbow over the bow.

How strong were the crossbows of antiquity? A weapon with a collar had a tension force of 250-300 kg. If we talk about stationary crossbows, then this characteristic could reach 600 kg, but, of course, it was impossible to shoot them from the hand. It can be said that the turning point in the development of the crossbow was the equipping of its block device, after which its superiority in power over the bow became simply overwhelming.

A light crossbow could pierce chain mail at a distance of 80 meters, and at close range it was dangerous even for a warrior in heavy plate armor. A heavy crossbow could pierce chain mail from 250 meters, and a steel cuirass with a padded jacket and chain mail - at a distance of 50 meters. In addition, when shooting flat, the crossbow was the most accurate weapon of the Middle Ages; only rifled firearms could achieve comparable results. The archer could also shoot quite accurately, but only to the point where he used arrows made by himself. Convoy ammunition reduced the accuracy of fire at times.

The main disadvantage of the crossbow was its low rate of fire. When using the gate, the crossbowman could fire two to three times per minute. You can also add that crossbows were expensive - not everyone could afford such a weapon.

The crossbow is an accurate weapon for flat shooting, when two armies clashed in an open field, the value of bows was much higher. Archers could create a density of fire sufficient to disrupt an enemy attack or significantly weaken it. That is why they repeatedly played a decisive role in the battles of the Hundred Years War. The low rate of fire of the crossbow did not allow achieving such results. But the crossbow was good for the defense of fortresses and battles at sea, where this weapon was most often used.

So the debate about what is better than a crossbow or a bow is not too correct. In ancient times, these types of throwing weapons did not compete, but rather complemented each other.

The rebirth of an ancient weapon

In the 20th century, the crossbow was remembered again. The military did it first. In the United States in the 60s, a mini-crossbow was developed for sabotage operations. He was even adopted. The mini crossbow has been in service for over fifteen years. There were other attempts to create small pistol crossbows for various covert events. However, it soon became clear that in this field the crossbow in almost all respects loses to silent firearms.

But crossbows very quickly found their place on the "citizen". They began to be used for hunting and just for fun. Although, it should be noted that such pleasure is not very cheap.

The modern crossbow as a whole repeats the principle of operation of its historical predecessor, the most noticeable difference is the presence of separate arms instead of a solid bow arc.

There is a so-called reverse crossbow, the design of which was described by da Vinci, but it was only recently that they were able to translate his idea into “metal”. Unlike a conventional crossbow, its shoulders are directed in the opposite direction from the shooter.

Among modern species This weapon can also be noted spring crossbow, in which the shot occurs due to the work of steel springs (both in compression and in tension). A spring crossbow can be quite easily made by hand. About the speargun for spearfishing has already been said above ...

Sports crossbows, as a rule, have little power. Their usual shooting distances in competitions are 10 and 30 meters, at which the athlete has to hit a tiny target. Such a crossbow can have simple or recursive shoulders; block systems are not used on this type of weapon. For fun, also purchase a pistol-type mini-crossbow, the shooting technique of which is close to short-barreled firearms.

The hunting crossbow has considerable power. It can be classic or blocky. A block crossbow can have a different number of rollers (from 2 to 8), their shape and location in the structure are very different. A block crossbow, like a bow, has interesting feature- at the end of the tightness of the bowstring, the force decreases sharply.

Plastics, aluminum, steel and even titanium are actively used in the design of modern crossbows. Their bowstring is made of lavsan, aramid thread and dacron. Crossbows can be equipped with open, optical and diopter sights.

Why is it remarkable, why was it loved and what flaws repelled it, and why is ancient weapons so popular in our time? Let's start in order.

Weapon Description - Crossbow

The basis of the whole structure is the bed. A trigger mechanism is fixed inside it. The groove for the bolts is installed on top of the bed, and at its end is placed a cross with shoulders (elements made of elastic materials that take on the main load from the tension of the bowstring) and a stirrup.

Shoulders are mainly made of very strong materials - in the past it was horn, and now steel or high-strength wood of a viscous variety (mahogany, oak, walnut).

Plastic or aluminum parts are fragile and unsafe to use - the weapon is easy to break, especially if you fire a blank: the momentum that should be directed to give speed and penetrating power to the bolt will vibrate throughout the crossbow. At best, the weapon will simply break, and at worst, it will also cripple the unlucky shooter.

The projectile fired from a crossbow is called a bolt.

The standard trigger mechanism, which the crossbow consists of, is: a trigger lever, a washer with a slot for the arrow shank and a bowstring hook (in common people it is customary to call this washer a “nut”), a fixing spring.

Cocking methods

There are a number of ways to cock a combat crossbow:

1. Cocking with two hands. With this method of loading, a requirement was made for a crossbow - a wide bowstring, otherwise the shooter could cut his fingers when cocking.
2. "Goat leg". In the Middle Ages, three more types of crossbow platoon appeared. The simplest of them is the "goat's leg". This is an iron lever that helped cock the bowstring.
3. block mechanism. The first block mechanism appears in the arsenal of England around the end of the 14th - beginning of the 15th century. It is called "English Gate". Medieval crossbow with data tensioner had more power than the previous ones.
4. Rack and pinion cocking mechanism invented by the Germans.

Without cons not done - the more complex the mechanisms of the crossbow, the more time it took to reload it. Therefore, the arrows preferred easy way charging with a goat's foot.

Crossbows of the Middle Ages

The medieval crossbow owes its birth to another throwing weapon - l uku. Warriors and hunters of the past, depending on what the crossbow shoots, wanted to find a way not to pull back and hold the bowstring with their hand, which required considerable strength, but to store energy for a shot using an ingenious mechanism.

Some researchers tend to Ancient Greece as the first state to create a crossbow.

The ancient Greek version was called the abdominal bow - the essence of its loading was the requirement to lean on the lever with your stomach. The estimated age of appearance is the 5th century BC.

In China, a light crossbow was created in the 4th or 2nd century BC, while there were no contacts between ancient Greece and China - these states created weapons independently of each other.

During the Han Empire (206 BC - 220 AD), the crossbow played a significant role in military conflicts, but then fell into oblivion. It was so forgotten that in the 11th century in China, this weapon was presented as a new and hitherto unseen invention.

BC, judging by fragmentary data, there were also crossbows in Europe. However, something in its design did not suit the Romans, and they forgot about it until the 3rd-5th centuries, when the city on seven hills declined. The weapon was again presented under the name of the manualist.

However, it still did not become widespread among the Romans. It was easier for them to hire professional archers from the East for the army, plus powerful throwing machines were used.

The shooters had to arm themselves, and the crossbows of the Middle Ages, in terms of manufacturing complexity and monetary costs, were inferior to an inexpensive and simple bow.

There were a small number of crossbowmen in Rome until the 6th century, at the same time they were also used by Byzantium.

Another big inconvenience of this kind of troops was the inability to successfully fight in close combat, since the crossbow greatly interfered with the warrior, and the infantry was forced to cover the shooter. For such coordinated actions, the most severe discipline was required, and in battle rarely everything goes according to plan.

Crossbowmen of the Middle Ages were not popular.

Crossbows were mentioned in the chronicles of the Crusades, as well as at the beginning of the 13th century (the conquest of Livonia by the Germans).

It is interesting that a kind of progenitor of automatic weapons was created in China - a magazine-type quick-fire crossbow. It appeared in the XII century. The lever made it possible to quickly cock the weapon, but the force when fired was no more than 90 J.

A medieval crossbowman could fire up to 8 aimed shots per minute, while hitting targets with weak protection most effectively.

Japanese crossbow

The design principle is simple: on top of the crossbow there was a magazine with bolts, in which the plumage was recessed. After the shot, under own weight, the arrows themselves rolled into the groove, the bowstring was pulled with a lever and a shot was fired. In one store, from 8 to 12 bolts were placed.

Light type of weapon in Rus'

Data on the appearance of a crossbow in Rus' vary. According to some sources, they appeared thanks to the Bulgars in 1376, but this information was refuted by ancient historical descriptions - they say that the Russians had already come to fight with crossbows. The chronicles also speak of an earlier use of weapons - at least in 1259, it was written about it, calling it a crossbow, in the Ipatiev Chronicle.

Researchers claim that the ratio of crossbows and bows was approximately the same as in modern army machine guns and machine guns. This means that the weapon was used, but by a small number of shooters in the army.

In Rus', there were hand and easel crossbows.

The hand-held ones were charged according to the “goat's foot” type, and the easel ones were powerful large-sized throwing structures mounted on a machine with wheels.

They used various mechanisms - Kolovrat for pulling the bowstring. If people had to pull the bowstring without the help of mechanisms, the strength of 50 people would be needed.

Do not think that it really took so many people to charge before. This is how the tension force was measured, as now, for example, engine power in horsepower.

Combat crossbows

The crossbow is a highly controversial weapon in military history. On the one hand, it is several times superior to the bow both in penetrating power and shooting accuracy, and in the range of the projectile. At the same time, it took very little time to learn shooting, while the bow required constant and hard training.

The reverse taper of the crossbow projectile did not allow the bolt to get stuck in the shield and pierced it, however, at a later time, the lever-type crossbow could no longer cope against cuirasses.

On the other hand, slow reloading, high price and inconvenience in combat repelled most shooters from owning this weapon.

Crossbows were of the following type:

1. With a wooden arch. This type is considered the worst, since the inconvenience of aiming was almost the same as that of bows. But poachers, until the 17th century, used such weapons, most often loading not a bolt, but a bullet or a stone.
2. Crossbows for the army were made much better - from composite materials, and with the development of technology and using elastic steel.

The design of the bolt increased the level of hit at times. The fact is that the archers accurately hit the target with their arrows, but when in battle they were given ordinary, even a slightly different length or type of arrow, the number of misses increased dramatically.

What the crossbow shoots does not matter. A warrior who knew how to shoot could strike the enemy both with his own bolts and, if necessary, picking them up from the enemy or taking them from a comrade.

Ideally, the crossbow was suitable for holding fortifications during the siege. The shooter was protected, they could not suddenly attack him and take him by surprise.

Crossbows in the 21st century

IN modern world crossbows are used for entertainment, sports and hunting, although in Russia, for example, it is forbidden to use these weapons to shoot animals.

There are also unusual varieties of crossbow: for spearfishing or compact, pistol type - the latter is usually bought for children.

Because modern technologies allow every year to make more and more advanced crossbows, then there are rumors about their alleged use by special forces and other elite units.

Modern crossbow - edged weapons

However, this is unlikely and most likely inspired by Hollywood and computer games, where a hero with a crossbow is able to kill an entire army. In fact, modern small arms surpass the crossbow in all respects, so you should not believe in these myths.

For example, for the silent elimination of opponents, the special services use a multiply charged pistol capable of firing 2 shots per second, while reloading a crossbow will take time, and if the enemy is not killed with one shot, he will have time to raise the alarm.

Combat crossbows are equipped with a lot of useful things.

For example, a “shelf” for several arrows on the stock, an optical sight, a laser pointer.

Home-made types of edged weapons, created by amateurs according to drawings and diagrams, are also common. However, this is dangerous - low-quality weapons can seriously cripple the shooter. Hunters use a crossbow to kill animals.

Characteristics of combat crossbows

For example, one of the best crossbows on the market (we will not name it for advertising reasons) has the following characteristics.

How did throwing machines appear and what is the essence of their evolution? Even in prehistoric times, two main projectiles were defined, “cheap” and “expensive”, a stone and a pointed stick that turned into a dart. The dart has better penetration and flies farther, but requires b O more labor costs for its production. So, at one end, the engine is a man, at the other, a projectile. The energy created by a short muscle tension is instantly transferred to the dart, and it flies to the target. Then the first "energy storage" was created - the bow. By pulling the string, a person gradually converts his muscle energy into the elastic energy of a wooden or horn arc, accumulates it, and then instantly releases it, turning it into the kinetic energy of an arrow. Then, before transferring human energy to the “accumulator” (bow arc), they began to “multiply” it with the help of a gate or a cocking lever. So there was a crossbow - a mechanical arrow-thrower. In turn, the "multiplier" and "accumulator" have undergone many private upgrades. The most significant improvement to the "accumulator" was the invention of the torsion bar, a twisted rope of hair and tendons, usually mounted vertically. The shoulders of the bow are inserted into it. The torsion made it possible to narrow the weapon and increase its power. The latter will become clear if we take into account that the stored elastic energy of yew (the tree most suitable for bows) is 900 J per kg, horny tissue - 1500, and tendons - 2500 J.

For the stone-throwing technique, progress for a long time was one-sided - only due to the “multiplier”, namely, due to an increase in the length of the lever. When a person simply throws a stone, he uses his hand as a lever. By putting a stone in a loop of a rope or belt, that is, by inventing a sling, a person significantly lengthened the throwing arm. The lever lengthened even more when the rope was tied to the pole - it was a "fustibal". Then the lever was further lengthened by attaching the pole with a sling to the axle or "fork" at the top of the support post, and a pull rope was attached to the free end of the pole. Then they increased the number of people-throwers, when a few more were added to the single traction rope. Back in antiquity, they began to supply a “sling stone thrower” with a “store” in the form of a torsion bar, which, however, had significant drawbacks (about them will be discussed in the future) and therefore gradually lost ground to a simpler and more reliable scheme with traction ropes. A qualitative breakthrough was the creation of a “accumulator” in the form of a counterweight lifted by several people, whose forces are multiplied many times by a collar and a lever, the role of which during cocking is played by a throwing beam.

In principle, it is also possible to throw stones from a bow (which developed into a crossbow and a ballista), but long practice has proven that the “sling method” is more effective.

3.1. Crossbows.

The crossbow consists of an arc (bow) attached to a wooden stock, a bowstring, a locking device and, most often, a tension device. They shoot from it with short thick arrows - bolts.

Crossbow arcs are wooden, composite (compound) and steel. The solid wooden arc is a shortbow (usually made of yew); it cannot withstand a large load and is used only in the weakest crossbows. A composite arc with the same dimensions is capable of storing much more energy; in it, tendons (resistant to stretching) are glued to the wooden base from the outside, and horny plates (resistant to compression) are glued to the inside. The goat horn was considered the best in Western Europe (for example, the Teutonic Order preferred it). At the same time, a “wooden” crossbow in the 14th century cost half as much as a “horn”, which indicates a much greater difficulty in manufacturing the latter. Theoretically, a steel arc should be the most effective - with the same length and power, it can be made thinner and lighter than a composite one; it can be bent more strongly, it is more durable, more resistant to bad weather. The problem, however, is that for a crossbow arc, you need elastic, free from harmful impurities, capable of repeated bending steel with a strictly defined carbon content, no more and no less. It is extremely difficult to sustainably obtain such steel under artisanal conditions. An arc made of steel of the wrong grade or having cavities can break at the most unforeseen moment, especially in frosty weather. Therefore, in the north of Europe, composite arcs continued to be used along with steel ones until the very end of the existence of combat crossbows.

The stock of a crossbow is made of hardwood, oak, or elm, and is often provided with a stirrup for easy loading. The bowstring is made from hemp ropes, less often from tendons. From repeated use, it stretches and loses the ability to stretch the arc to the right degree, so this is the most frequently replaced part of the crossbow. The bowstring is also stretched from wetting. It is important to remember that a tight crossbow string cannot be pulled over the arc manually, this operation is performed using a special machine. As a result, unexpected rain can drastically reduce the effectiveness of crossbowmen, which was clearly demonstrated, for example, in the battle of Crecy in 1346 or during the operations of Cortes in Mexico in 1519-21. To some extent, this danger was avoided by putting special leather covers on crossbow arcs.

As a locking and triggering device, all medieval crossbows used a roller shutter, which at that time was called a “nut”. It was carved from bone or cast from bronze. "Nut" is reliable, durable, provides a smooth, soft descent even for weapons of high power. It is also important that it holds the string exactly in the middle of the arrow axis, which favorably affects the accuracy of shooting.

Short and thick crossbow arrows are called bolts. The bolt of the “big crossbow”, called the “dondain”, cost 2-3 times more than the bolt of the “one-foot”, “carro” or “garro” (with a difference in weight of 6-7 times, i.e. the work was appreciated more than material). Their shafts are carved from hard, heavy wood (oak, beech, or ash), fitted with leather or brass leaf plumage, and a square steel tip highly effective against mail and any leather or felt armor. Against late medieval lamellar, elaborately curved armor, a faceted tip is less effective, as it tends to slip or ricochet when hit at an angle. Therefore, the bolts of the most powerful crossbows were equipped with “crown” tips ( florisgarotum), with several points in a circle. The penetration of such a bolt is lower, but it does not slip and all the energy remains in the target. Sometimes, in order to prevent the bolt with an ordinary faceted tip from slipping, a special metal circle was mounted on it; such a bolt was called "boson". Sometimes the plumage was attached in a spiral, so that the bolt rotated in flight and had increased stability; such a bolt was called "vireton". The Teutonic Order also used "whistling" bolts ( Heulbolzen) for the purpose of psychological pressure on the enemy.

The most important in terms of increasing power is the way the crossbow is pulled. The following methods can be distinguished:

A. Hand stretching. The shooter stands on the arc with his feet and pulls the string with his hands. The oldest and least effective method. Given the short length of the arc, a crossbow of this kind is comparable to short wooden bows and is dangerous only for an enemy not protected by armor. Its range does not exceed 100-150 m.

B. Tension with a hook and stirrup. The shooter puts his foot in the stirrup of the crossbow, hooks the bowstring with a hook attached to the belt and pulls the arc using the strength of the legs and dead strength. This method is much more powerful and convenient than the previous one, it is still simple, reliable and inexpensive. Such a crossbow is capable of piercing chain mail or brigandine under favorable conditions and easily pierces any caftans lined with felt. A maximum force of up to 150 kg is provided at a rate of fire of up to 4 rds / min. Of course, 150 kg is the upper limit, not the norm; do not forget, however, that this is a very short, “push” effort - the bowstring is pulled back by no more than 15-20 cm. In terms of power, such a crossbow approaches a longbow, surpasses it in ease of training and accuracy, but is significantly inferior in rate of fire, as well as occupied horizontal space and cost.

B. Tensioning with a goat's foot, or foldable, detachable, portable arm. This lever weighs approx. 1 kg is capable of providing a force of 150-200 kg, judging by the surviving samples. Theoretically, the force can even be increased to 300 kg, but in this case the lever will be too long and uncomfortable. This method makes the weapon heavier, increases its cost compared to the previous one, complicates and slows down the process of tensioning. The power of the weapon increases, but not to such an extent that it poses a danger to plate armor. The main advantage of this method is the ease of use from a horse, so it was the main one for equestrian crossbowmen of the late Middle Ages.

G. Gate. Since ancient times, the usual chain hoist has been the main mechanism for tensioning large ballistae, so large easel crossbows have long been called "crossbows with a collar." Its performance is calculated by the formula Q=P x R / r, where Q is the tension force, P is the force on the handle, R is the handle arm, r is the radius of the drum. Since the XIV century, the gate has been used for hand crossbows. It has found the widest application in France, Italy and Spain. With a handle span of only 40 cm and an applied force of 20 kg, such a gate is capable of creating a tension force of 800 kg, but if you add intermediate blocks (this option was called the “English gate”), the generated force increases to 1600 kg. A crossbow of this power is capable of penetrating plate armor when hit at an angle close to 90 degrees. At the same time, the English collar increases the weight of the crossbow by 3-4 kg, reduces the rate of fire to 1-2 shots / min (direct tension takes 12 seconds, but it takes a lot of time to connect to the crossbow), increases the cost of the weapon. In addition, the complexity of the design increases the likelihood of breakdowns and failures due to careless or inaccurate handling, inevitable in combat conditions.

D. Kranekin, or rack and pinion gate. It is also called the “German gate”, since it was most common in Germany (Bavaria was especially famous for the production of kranekins), Switzerland, Flanders, and the Czech Republic. However, they knew how to make such gates in France (“arbalète à cric”). The most powerful and efficient of the small tensioners. The design of the Kranekin provides for the pulling of the bowstring by only 20-25 cm, which implies its use only on relatively small hand crossbows. At the same time, such a mechanism, with an arrow force of only 5 kg, is capable of creating a tension force of 1100-1200 kg, and with 20 kg - up to 5000 kg. This far exceeds the real needs for a hand crossbow. The weight of the Kranekin is 3-4 kg (in the 16th century it was possible to reduce it to 2 kg) and it reduces the rate of fire to 1-2 rounds / min (you have to do about 30 rotations of the gate handle, which takes 35 seconds). In general, kranekin can be considered close in efficiency to the "English collar". Kranekin is more compact, stronger and more reliable, easier to attach to a crossbow and removed, but even more difficult and expensive to manufacture. Kranekin can also be used by a rider.

E. Screw gate. In terms of power, it is comparable to the English collar, but much stronger, more reliable and more convenient to use. At the same time, it further reduces the rate of fire, to 1 shot. in 2 min. Therefore, it is mainly used in large crossbows and springalds, designed for shooting from behind the walls. Very rarely used in hand crossbows.

G. Stationary rack-lever, or “hospie” (haussepied, “high-legged”). It is a long lever with a hook mounted on a vertical rack. The crossbow is leaned against the rack with an arc down, the bowstring is grabbed with a hook and, lowering the long lever, cocks it. Based on the surviving images, it can be concluded that the pox had a gear ratio of 9. With its help, one person, applying a force of 45 kg (quite possible, given that the pox allows you to use your body weight), could cock 400-kg one-foot crossbow, two people - 800-kg two-foot. Naturally, the charging process can be greatly facilitated if a special person is assigned to the pox. One "ospy" often served two crossbows. Modern tests have shown that the charging process from removing the crossbow from the machine to returning to its place takes only 12 seconds. Thus, the rate of fire can be increased to 4-5 rds / min (excluding aiming time). Loading becomes simple and reliable, which is very important in combat stress. The massive and rough lever arm is difficult to damage, unlike portable tensioners. Finally, the cost is significantly reduced - one "ospe" is much easier to manufacture and cheaper than two English gates or kranekins. However, the fundamental disadvantage of "small pox" is the impossibility of application in the field. This device can only be used in fortresses and ships, and therefore stands alone.

Let's add that design feature most European crossbows is the manufacture of the tension mechanism in the form of a separate removable block.

Before considering the characteristics of the main types of crossbows, we briefly outline the theory of their mechanics and ballistics. The potential energy of a crossbow, in a very rough approximation, is equal to half the product of the tension force and the length of the bowstring. Thus, the power of the crossbow can be increased in two ways: either by making the tension mechanism more powerful, or by pulling the bowstring to a greater distance. The first way significantly reduces the rate of fire, reduces reliability, increases the weight and cost of weapons. The second is possible only by increasing the length of the arc (assuming it is made of the same material) and the overall width of the weapon. Since the dimensions hand weapons severely limited, the first way turned out to be the main one in medieval Western Europe.

31-33% of the potential energy of the crossbow goes into the kinetic energy of the projectile. In turn, T \u003d ½ mV 2, where m is the mass of the projectile, and V is its speed. That is, kinetic energy can be spent either to increase the mass of the projectile (and its lethal force), or to increase its speed (and the flight range that depends on it).

Air resistance only slightly affects the range of a crossbow. For the lightest 70-g bolt, the aerodynamic energy loss is only 10% after 100 m, for heavier projectiles this percentage quickly decreases, since with increasing size, mass and energy grow cubed, and the bolt cross section only squared. The main factor preventing the increase in range is gravity.

Flat shooting is considered to be shooting at an angle of up to 20 °, mounted - from 20 ° to 45 °. The maximum range of a crossbow bolt is achieved when firing at 45°. In this case, the projectile rises to a height of several tens of meters at the middle point of the trajectory, and the slightest error in the elevation angle leads to a miss of several meters (see Appendix 2). In practice, without accurate optical instruments and mechanical computers, aimed shooting at the maximum range is impossible. There is some chance to hit only when shooting at a vast dense crowd. Therefore, the maximum range should be distinguished from the aiming range, which is conducted at an angle of no more than 15 °. It is important to note that when shooting upwards, both the flight range and the lethal force of the bolt are significantly reduced, while when shooting from an elevation (for example, from a wall), they increase. Finally, there is a range of a direct shot with an elevation of up to 5 °, when shooting can be carried out "offhand".

With an initial bolt speed of 50 m / s, the range of a direct shot will be approx. 45 m, sighting - 125-130 m from ground level and approx. 180 m from the 20th wall, maximum range - approx. 240 m. With an initial speed of 60 m / s, the corresponding ranges will be 65, 180, 235 and 335 m. It is curious that the medieval measure of the length of the arbalestée (“crossbow shot range”) was 240 m. .

Using lighter projectiles with increased flight speed, it is possible to achieve a significantly greater firing range from the same crossbow - the maximum range can be 400 m or more. However, one should not think that the real (not calculated) aiming range will increase proportionally. The absence of a sight and the roughness of the design, in principle, do not allow accurate flat shooting from mechanical throwing devices at a distance of more than 100-150 m. The only exception is shooting from heavy easel arrow throwers in one pre-calibrated direction - here the effective range at a single target that has entered the affected area , can reach 300 m. Therefore, increasing the ballistic firing range beyond a certain limit becomes meaningless, because a real combat crossbow was aimed at practical tasks, and not setting records. According to J. Lebel, medieval crossbowmen empirically established the optimal balance between the weight of the projectile and its speed, when the latter is fixed at the level of 50-60 m/s.

It should be noted here that it is more profitable to increase the lethal force of the projectile by increasing its weight, and not by increasing its speed. A light 70-g bolt when firing at a distance of 300 loses up to half of its energy due to aerodynamic air resistance and, in addition, is easily blown away by the wind. On the contrary, a heavy bolt of several hundred grams almost does not change the lethal force over the entire flight distance and is much more stable, and therefore more accurate. By the way, the 300th distance is overcome in about 9 seconds (in fact, the bolt overcomes a much greater distance, because it flies in an arc).

Modern researchers pay attention to the stability and uniformity of the medieval classification of crossbows, to the fact that tensioners and bolts were produced separately and independently from the production of crossbows themselves. This implies an early standardization of crossbows according to standard sizes, which persisted until the end of the Middle Ages. Significant changes occurred only in the method of tension with a dividing line somewhere in the second half of the XIV century. Until that time, light crossbows were pulled with the help of a belt hook and stirrup, two-foot fortress and ship crossbows - mainly with the help of "osp", and large easel ones - with the help of a simple collar. The appearance of lamellar armor in the middle of the XIV century required a significant increase in the destructive power of crossbows, especially light ones, and they began to be supplied with tension mechanisms: gates and cranes.

So, a one-foot or light hand crossbow is adapted for firing bolts 32 cm long and weighing 70-80 g. Its stock is 80-90 cm long, the bow span is 70-90 cm. Its weight is 4-5 kg ​​(including A 72 cm steel bow weighs 3 kg, a 90 cm composite bow weighs 2 kg) plus 3-4 kg for the tensioner. When using a hook and a stirrup or "pomp", the rate of fire is up to 4 rds / min, with a collar or kranekin - up to 2 rds / min. The usual pulling force of a collar or crane is about 400 kg. Potential energy at this tension and the length of the bowstring is approx. 17 cm - about 400 J, the kinetic energy of the bolt - 125-130 J. Sources from the beginning of the 15th century claim that a hand crossbow with a Kranekin pierced knightly armor in 50 steps (30-35 m). According to modern estimates, to penetrate a 2-mm knight's breastplate when hit at a right angle, a projectile energy of approx. 90 j. There are also interesting data about the English longbow - its “needle” (bodkin-headed) arrow at a speed of 35 m / s pierces 1.5 mm steel armor in 150-200 m. Probably, a crossbow with a hook and stirrup had similar characteristics.

Naturally, these are average values. For example, a heavy hand crossbow made in Geneva in the 15th century, restored and tested by Ralph Payne-Gallwey in 1903, weighed more than 8 kg (with the tension mechanism disconnected), a steel bow 96 cm long, 2.5 cm thick and wide 6 cm in the central part, the length of the bowstring is 17.5 cm. It was pulled with a small-sized collar that creates a force of 550 kg (and it could be easily handled with one hand). In tests, he sent bolts weighing 85 g at 405-410 m, which implies a flight speed of more than 65 m / s. In fact, this is an intermediate weapon between 1- and 2-foot standards. Payne-Gallway noted that only a very physically strong person could shoot from this crossbow, obviously, it was intended primarily for shooting from a parapet or a light tripod. We also note that the 85-g bolts are clearly lightened for such weapons, the normal 300-m maximum range would be achieved with bolts weighing approx. 150 g.

A 15th-century wall crossbow (Wallarmbrust) from the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna has similar dimensions. Its parchment-covered composite bow has a span of 95.5 cm, the stock is 110 cm long and weighs 8.6 kg.

The light crossbow is the most massive, universal weapon for both field and fortress and naval warfare.

A two-foot crossbow is adapted to fire bolts 64 cm long, 2 cm in diameter and weighing 260-270 g. Its stock is approx. 1.5 m, bow span - about 120 cm. Its weight is 13-15 kg (without a machine) plus 3-4 kg for a tension device. When using "ospy", the rate of fire is up to 4 rds / min, with a collar or kranekin - 1-2 rds / min. The average tension force is supposedly 800 kg. Potential energy with a bowstring stroke length of 27 cm is about 1000 J, the kinetic energy of the bolt is 300-350 J. Such a crossbow can be called "portable", it is of little use for war in the field, except perhaps when defending a camp from wagons or during the siege of fortifications.

The "large crossbow" is adapted for firing bolts 50-80 cm long, 3-4 cm in diameter and weighing about 500 g. This category is the most diverse in size and device, since the "large crossbows" were piece work. The average length is 2-2.5 m, the bow span is 160-200 cm, judging by the surviving descriptions and samples (1.82 m for the famous crossbow from Quedlinburg, 1.62 m for the crossbow from Ingolstadt, 1.87 m for crossbow from Breslau / Wroclaw, 1.9 and 2 m for crossbows from the Museum of the Army in Paris, known papal order in 1349 for 19 crossbows with an arc length of 5 feet, i.e. 1.6 m). Much larger specimens could also exist. The weight with the machine and the tensioning device is 50-80 kg (of which about half falls on the bow), the rate of fire can be estimated as 1-2 shots / min. It should be noted that an easel crossbow can be faster than a hand-held crossbow with the same tensioning mechanism, since this mechanism does not need to be attached / detached during the shooting process and it can have larger handles, that is, tensioning can be done with less effort. The average pulling force is presumably 1300 kg (this is exactly what is needed to provide the necessary ballistic characteristics for the “big crossbow” projectile). Potential energy with a bowstring stroke length of 46 cm is about 2000 J, the kinetic energy of the bolt is 600-650 J. At a distance of 300 m, he is able to penetrate 2-3 people in light armor, standing one behind the other (according to the chronicles). The real range of the crossbow from Quedlinburg (built in 1336 for the castle of Gresburg, Germany) is known - 360 m. . As an exception, it can be used from a wheeled carriage in a field war.

From a tactical point of view, a crossbow is a device for flat, aimed anti-personnel shooting. With a canopy at maximum range, only harassing fire can be fired from it. The low rate of fire, as well as the rare placement of crossbowmen along the front, do not allow reaching such a density of shelling that could confidently suppress the enemy and prevent him from approaching the distance hand-to-hand combat. Therefore, in field combat, crossbowmen are not able to play such a decisive role as archers from a long English bow (in combat conditions, 4 times faster than a crossbow with a hook and stirrup and 6-7 times compared to a crossbow with a collar). The need for a long "charge" forces crossbowmen to hide behind large heavy "pavises". Paveza - a shield made of light wood, sheathed in leather impregnated with waterproof glue (height 1 - 1.5 m, rarely up to 2 m, width 40 - 70 cm), sometimes with props to stand on the ground without outside help, known since the 13th century (first appeared in the Italian city of Pavia, hence the name). At the same time, when shooting from behind shelters, fortifications or ship's bulwarks, a crossbow, especially a heavy one, outperforms an ordinary bow - it is more powerful and more accurate. The ability to keep the crossbow for a long time in a taut, that is, combat-ready state allows you to shoot in a timely manner at short-term targets - for example, in an embrasure or between the battlements of a tower. On the contrary, it is impossible to wait for a target with a constantly drawn bow - too much physical strength is expended. This feature also makes the crossbow a preferred hunting weapon.

Crossbows can also have a certain value for setting fire to wooden fortifications, buildings, cars, ships, although not as great as trebuchet, since a crossbow bolt can only carry a limited amount of incendiary substance (usually tarred tow).

About ratio various kinds weapons in the defense of fortresses says the surviving inventory of the southern French castle of Biul, carried out by order of its owner, Huges de Cardillac: in 1347 it had 2 springalds, 5 “crossbows with a collar”, 5 two-foot crossbows and 26 one-foot crossbows "with a stirrup". 22 firearms were also used. The goal defense was interesting: “On the ground floor, two people are firing cannons and throwing large stones; on the second floor, two people shoot with a two-foot crossbow, then, on the wall, two crossbowmen plus two people to throw stones of the first size”. This combination of crossbows with primitive stone throwing may seem strange, but do not forget that crossbowmen are not able to hit the enemy in the "dead zone" directly under the walls.

In conclusion, we note that the archballists shooting stones from Russian chronicle miniatures of the 16th century (24 miniatures of the Facial Vault) are clearly a fantasy character. Of the really existing large crossbows with a bow span of up to 2 m, it is impossible to effectively throw projectiles over 1-2 kg in weight; a stone core of this size could not seriously damage even a wooden palisade, not to mention the main walls. Theoretically, much larger stone throwers could be made, but their effectiveness would be so inferior to similar trebuchet that the practical implementation of such devices can be discarded as contrary to common sense. Note that the surviving more or less modern (XIII-XV centuries) oriental illustrations show the trebuchet as the main siege weapon of the Mongols.

For the sake of interest, you can consider the expected characteristics of such an extra-large stone-throwing crossbow. Throwing a 20-kg stone at a speed of 50 m/s (the minimum from which we can talk about the use of a battering ram) assumes a kinetic energy of 25,000 J. With a crossbow efficiency of 30%, the potential energy should be of the order of 80,000 J. If we take the length of the bowstring equal to 1 m (which corresponds to a bow length of about 4 m), a pulling force of at least 5000 kg should be provided. The collar of a late medieval hand crossbow usually has a gear ratio of 40; in this case, not a portable, but a larger gate with a large span of handles can be used, so the gear ratio can be increased to 80. It turns out that such a crossbow can be cocked with a handle force of 60 kg. Perhaps two people, turning the handles on both sides of the gate, will cope with this. However, such a crossbow is impossible to manufacture in the field, difficult to transport, maintain, and its performance will be much lower than that of a hybrid trebuchet of comparable power. The existence of such super-large tension machines could only be justified in a society unfamiliar with more efficient gravity technology. But China and the Muslim world (sources of siege technology for the Mongol-Tatars) were not among them.

3.2. Single shoulder tension machines.

Single-arm tension machines can only be used in the easel version and are, in fact, tactically interchangeable with easel crossbows. It is extremely difficult to evaluate their effectiveness due to the lack of proper research. It seems that only the Englishman Payne-Gallway (who called it the “springald”) created a workable model of such a machine. It had an ash throwing lever 1.5 m high, 7.5 cm wide and 5 cm thick. An 85-g crossbow bolt was thrown at 145 m. According to Payne-Gallway, such a device is quite efficient, but inferior to a crossbow. The only advantage, to some extent compensating for weight and bulkiness, is the vertical location of the throwing arm, so a single-arm machine takes up less space in front than a crossbow. This can be significant when placed on ships or at fortress gates. However, the rarity of images of such machines and references to them is hardly accidental. Probably, single-arm tension springs were used only where and when the technological level did not allow the use of torsion springs for the same purpose.

In Latin texts, such devices were sometimes called “maleolli” (according to B. Ratgen).

A drawing by Bartholomew Seitblom (b. 1455-60 - d. c. 1520) from the German city of Nördlingen contains another original version of this type of machine, called the "einarm" and driven by steel plate springs. A kind of tension onager. However, the effectiveness and feasibility of such a machine is highly questionable. This is probably nothing more than one of the late medieval fantasies. Such a weapon could not have been created before the 15th century, but compared to powder cannons, it is obviously uncompetitive.

3.3. Torsion Springald.

This is the only torsion machine of the European Middle Ages, the existence of which can be said with a high degree of certainty. Quite original in design, it, nevertheless, was an attempt to reproduce, to the best of my ability, antique samples. The goal of its creators is obvious - to invent a machine of the same purpose as large easel crossbows, but more powerful for the same size. By design, the springald is quite the same as a heavy crossbow, only instead of one composite or steel arc, it uses two twisted thick horsehair ropes with wooden shoulders inserted into them. A detailed description of the torsion springald, studied and reconstructed by Jean Lebel, can be found at X Legio website .

A rectangular wooden (beech, elm or oak) springald frame has a length of 2 m, a width of 1.5 m and a height of 1.5 m, with the shoulders extended to the sides and the screw gate extended back, the length and width can reach 4 and 3 m, respectively. The weight of the springald is about 150 kg, including a 30 kg metal screw gate and a 4.5 kg walnut closure. However, D. Nichol suggests that the springald shutter could consist of two hooks - aspes(mentioned in the archives of the Avignon popes from 1348), in the manner of the ancient “claw”, by which J. Lebel understands part of the tension device. D. Nichol substantiates his point of view by the fact that in Europe they learned to cast reliable iron “nuts” only in the middle of the 14th century, and earlier bronze or bone “nuts” could not withstand the pressure of the springald bowstring, which is much more powerful than crossbows. However, this is purely speculative. Equally devoid of solid grounds is his assumption that sonifer("thunder") Konrad Kieser denoted the springald's bolt-trigger device, and not the entire machine as a whole.

The screw gate generates a tension force of 1800 kg and, with a string stroke of 138 cm, provides a potential energy of approx. 5750 j. The projectiles are darts 70-80 cm long, 4-5 cm in diameter and weighing about 1.4 kg. At a flight speed of 50 m / s, the effective firing range is 130 m from ground level and 180 m from the 20th tower. With a kinetic energy of approx. 1800 joules (and 2100 joules when fired from the 20th elevation), such a dart could pierce any armor when hit at any angle, or 4-5 people in a row in light armor (according to the chronicles telling about the use of springald in the battle of Mont- an-Pevele in 1304), or overturn the siege shield. At the same time, the rate of fire of the springald was only 1 shot. in 2 minutes, which allowed it to be used only from cover. It was usually served by 2 people.

The only historical record of the range of the springald is a fragment from the "Bellifortis" by Konrad Kiezer (c. 1400), where the range is called a quarter of a Roman mile, i.e. 369 m. However, J. Lebel considers this a clear exaggeration.

Springalds, like medieval ballistas, could be placed on rotaefustae, How on tenendumingenia, i.e. on wooden wheels used as a turning loom, according to a 1293 entry from Carcassonne.

The springalds were located primarily on the gate and bridge towers and had as their goal to control the most important, usually pre-targeted narrow areas - along the bridges and in front of the gates. 1-2 such devices could be installed on large warships, although it seems more for the sake of prestige than because of great utility. as the most powerful weapon for aimed flat shooting, the springald aroused the admiration of contemporaries and often became the object of secrecy tinged with mysticism and colorful exaggerations.

3.4. "Medieval onager".

The existence of such a device in the Middle Ages is in question, and, unlike the torsion springald, skepticism does not decrease over time. Early researchers, such as E. Viollet-le-Duc and R. Payne-Gallway, identified many medieval references to "mangonels" and "feathers" with the late Roman onager, a crude single-armed torsion stone thrower. However, among scientists of our time, the point of view is widespread that torsion onagers began to be intensively replaced by “traction” gravitational machines already from the second half of the 6th century and should have finally disappeared no later than the 8th-9th centuries due to the appearance of even more effective hybrid trebuchet.

It is difficult to talk about the specific characteristics of the "medieval onager", most likely, they did not differ from the characteristics of ancient machines. For the latter, there are several workable reconstructions (Pain-Gallwey, Schramm, Hansen), of which the largest is the reconstruction of Ralph Payne-Gallwey, created about 100 years ago. His onager weighing about 2 tons threw a stone weighing 3.6 kg at 460 m when using a sling and 330 m (i.e. 30% less) in the "spoon" version (for comparison, Schramm's onager threw a 2-kg stone at 300 m). This range has the character of a "sports record", since it is impossible to aim at anything at 460 m from such a device. Obviously, in reality, the onager was intended for throwing heavier projectiles at shorter ranges.

By simple calculations, it can be established that in the "variant with a sling" the mentioned 3.6-kg projectile had a speed of about 71 m / s and an initial kinetic energy of approx. 9000 J. Assuming this kinetic energy and assuming that the firing is on an ideal ballistic trajectory at 45°, a more practical maximum range of 240 m would be achieved with a projectile weighing approx. 7.5 kg (at 50 m/s). Accordingly, a 20-kg projectile (at 30 m / s) from a Payne-Gallway onager will have a range of approx. 85 m, projectile weighing one ancient talent (approx. 26 kg) - 70-75 m, 34-kg projectile - approx. 50 m. These are the ranges when firing at a target located at the same height. If the onager is located on a platform at the top of a wall or tower, and the target is below, you can add a few more tens of meters of range or a few kg to the weight of the projectile.

When defending a fortress, an onager mounted on a wall could throw stones weighing 5-10 kg at a distance of up to 250 m, although the practical more or less effective range did not exceed 130-150 m (according to Hansen's experiments). In this case, his targets would be large crowds, siege shields and not very large siege engines. He could also use stones weighing up to 40 kg at distances up to 50 m against rams and siege towers at the moment they approached the protected wall.

An integral design flaw of the ancient onager is the stopping of the throwing arm by a locking beam. Its purpose, apparently, is to prevent the inertial "unwinding" of the torsion bar (this forced stop is not needed directly for throwing a projectile). The accompanying strong impact leads not only to significant energy losses, but also to the shaking of the entire structure. The latter circumstance leads to frequent repairs that reduce the performance of the machine, and forces it to be re-aimed after each shot. If the machine is not made strong enough or is worn out, the impact of the lever on the stop beam can completely break it up with great risk to the attendants - this fact was noted by Schramm and Hansen. In turn, the requirement for increased strength implies a massive structure, which, in combination with a heavy horsehair torsion bar (presumably approx. 150 kg for the Payne-Gallway machine), means a high cost. Finally, onager, like all torsion machines, is quite vulnerable to moisture, so its use "outdoors" is justified only in the southern, Mediterranean regions.

In conclusion, we note that there are several drawings of the late medieval "mangonels", where the design of a single-arm torsion stone thrower differs sharply from the classical idea of ​​​​the structure of the ancient onager. Their throwing arm is stopped not by a locking beam, but by a flexible rope; a spoon is used instead of a sling. Unfortunately, the lack of reconstructions and technical studies hinders the evaluation of the practical feasibility and effectiveness of such machines.

Rice. 18. "Medieval onager".

From a manuscript of Walter de Milemete, "De secreta secretorum", 1326, Christ Church, Oxford.

3.5. Traction trebuchet.

The traction trebuchet is a flexible beam - a throwing lever, fixed on a vertical rack through an axis. Traction ropes are attached to the short arm of the lever, and a rather short sling is attached to the long arm. A team of several people is taken for the traction ropes, the “gunner” hangs on the sling, slightly bending the lever with the weight of his body and giving it additional strength; at the same time it targets the trebuchet to some extent. Then the team pulls the ropes together, the “gunner” releases the sling with the stone embedded in it, the sling soars up, at the top its end slides off the prong at the end of the lever beam, the sling opens and the stone flies at the target.

The advantages of the traction trebuchet are the extreme simplicity and cheapness of the design, the ability to use completely untrained personnel, the ability to fire canopy from behind cover, and an extremely high rate of fire. Disadvantages - short range and low accuracy. However, their small size makes it possible to install such machines on walls and towers, which increases the range.

According to the experience of modern French amateur reconstructions, such a "perrier", serviced by a team of 8-16 people, is capable of throwing stones weighing 3-12 kg at 40-60 m with a frequency of 1 rounds / min. However, these characteristics are rather the lower limit of the possible. For example, a light sample installed in the English castle of Caerphilly, with a team of 6 people, launches 1-5 kg ​​stones at a frequency of 10 shots / min, while the maximum modern record is 1000 stones per hour. No tension or torsion machine is capable of achieving such a rate of fire. The real range can reach 100 m. For stones weighing 1 kg, a speed of 140 km / h is registered, or approx. 40 m/s.

The largest hauling trebuchet are attested in China, they threw stones weighing about 60 kg over 75 m with a team of 250 people.

The Traction Trebuchet is primarily an anti-personnel weapon used in defense or siege of fortresses. The purpose of such devices is to create a hail of stones that can either suppress the besiegers going to storm, or knock the defenders off the walls. The abundance of such devices and their high rate of fire compensate for the low accuracy of fire. They can also be used for "counter-battery" combat.

Light draft trebuches were successfully used until the 14th century, although their effectiveness gradually decreased as fortress architecture, armor and siege equipment improved.

Among the torsion machines, the main competitor of the light trebuchet was the onager. Onager is much more difficult to manufacture, more massive, has a lower rate of fire, but its range and accuracy are higher.

3.6. Hybrid trebuchet.

In a hybrid trebuchet, or bricol (this term appeared in the middle of the 13th century), the short traction arm of the throwing arm is equipped with a small counterweight to balance the longer throwing arm. This facilitates the work of the traction team. The throwing lever is made rigid, which has a positive effect on the accuracy of shooting.

Modern French reconstructions throw stones weighing 10-30 kg at 80 m with a rate of fire of 1 rounds / min with a staff of 16 people, or 5-10 kg with a rate of fire of 3-4 rounds / min. Historical sources also mention much more powerful machines. A well-known record belongs to a machine used by the crusaders in 1218 during the siege of Damietta in Egypt: it threw 185-kg shells. Information has also been preserved about several Byzantine machines of the 10th-11th centuries, throwing stones over 100 kg in weight, a Byzantine machine of 1138, throwing 50-kg projectiles at least 150 m, two machines, of which crusader teams of 100 people each. in 1147 they fired at Lisbon with 90-kg stones from a distance of 120 m, etc.

Thus, the hybrid trebuchet was several times more powerful than torsion onagers. If we add to this the lower cost, weight, greater reliability, durability, rate of fire, the opinion of the latest researchers (in particular, P. Chevedden) becomes clear, convinced that it was the hybrid trebuchet, after its appearance, presumably during the Arab-Byzantine wars of the early VIII century, that finally supplanted torsion stone throwers. Its power was already enough to destroy thin or fragile walls. It should be borne in mind that many ancient and early medieval Mediterranean fortifications consisted of two relatively thin outer walls made of stone blocks, between which rubble stone was poured or a “stuffing” of washed clay was laid. With external massiveness, such walls were vulnerable to mechanical destruction.

3.7. Trebuchet with counterweight.

Large trebuchet with a counterweight - a pearl and a symbol of the medieval military equipment, an object of prestige for a self-respecting sovereign. Some of them, such as the English king Edward I, the Aragonese king Jaime I the Conqueror, or the German emperor Otto IV, did not consider it shameful to be personally interested in the construction and practical use of such machines. These were the first throwing machines in history with real ramming capabilities, and their appearance led to another revolution in military architecture and siege work.

The design of a large trebuchet is discussed in detail in two articles on the Internet: Trebuchet or Gravity Throwing Machines And Baroballists. Its main parts were a throwing lever (virga), a support (bigua), a counterweight made of lead (petias plumbi) or stones (petras), a sling (funde ad ingenia), consisting of a rope (brachia) and a leather bag (coria), a gate ( turnus) on bronze or iron bearings (paalarios), rotated by levers (pousserios) or a wheel (magnus circulus) and held by a trigger (claves), ropes (vergaturis) with iron or bronze blocks (boitas ferri in quibus pollae vertuntur). Crutches (cavillas magnas) and ropes (chables de ligatures) were used to fasten the car. Here, the main attention will be paid to the comparative characteristics of their main varieties.

According to Philippe Contamine, already in the first half of the 13th century a certain standard of large wall-beaten trebuchet was formed: it was a machine with a lever-beam 10-12 m long, a counterweight of about 10 tons, throwing round stone balls weighing 100-150 kg at 150-200 m with a rate of fire of about 2 rounds per hour, served by a team of 50-120 people. Modern reconstructions demonstrate the ability of a large trebuchet to repeatedly hit a 5x5m target at 160m from the same starting position over and over again.

Lifting a 10-ton counterweight to the 5th height stores a potential energy of 500,000 J. Coefficient useful action The “ideal trebuchet” with a suspended counterweight reaches 70% (according to the calculations of Foley and Eigenbrod), that is, out of the mentioned 500,000 J, 350,000 J will go into the kinetic energy of the projectile (actually, somewhat less, since the friction force between the axis and the throwing arm is not taken into account). Such energy is enough to disperse a 100-kg projectile to more than 80 m / s. For “non-ideal” trebuchet, this indicator is, of course, lower, but by a percentage, and not by several times. Note that the power of large crossbows and springalds is two orders of magnitude less.

Perhaps the most realistic test of trebuchet took place in November 1998 in Scotland. Within 3 weeks, 40 carpenters, using only traditional tools and methods, made two machines. The first was a "mangonel" with a fixed counterweight, designed by a computer at the military institute in Virginia (USA) in accordance with the "ideal" proportions for such a device. Its base had dimensions of 3x5 m, the total height was 9 m, the counterweight of lead plates weighed 6 tons. The second was a “trebuchet” with a suspended counterweight in the form of a triangular wooden box filled with sand. It was made on the basis of a drawing by Villard d'Honcourt (XIII century) and medieval recommendations. His 15-m oak throwing arm had an average diameter of 60 cm and a weight of 2.7 tons. The erection of a support post 7.2 m high took only 4 hours, and the system of wooden blocks described by the ancient Roman engineer Vitruvius was used. The total height with the raised lever was 18 m, the dimensions of the support were 8.5x12.5 m.

As a target, a 5-m-high wall of granite blocks 2.1 m thick was used, corresponding to the average thickness of the castle walls of the 14th century.

The Mangonel shook very strongly when fired, which should have led to rapid self-destruction. At the same time, the efficiency was high: 135 kg hewn stone balls flew 175 m with good accuracy and a speed of 202 km/h (56 m/s).

"Trebuchet" also used a 6-ton counterweight, clearly insufficient for this larger machine. He threw a 125-kg cannonball at the same 175 m, but the speed was lower, 186 km / h (52 m / s). This is actual data - obviously, the elevation angle of both machines deviated from the optimal 45 ° and with a more careful alignment they could show a significantly greater range (the theoretical maximum is 250-300 m). When firing at the 175th, the scattering range did not exceed 4 m in width and 12 m in length. It was planned to increase the counterweight to 11 tons, which was supposed to provide a firing range of 113-kg cannonballs for more than 250 m (previous experiments with a 56-kg machine in Castelnaudary, France, showed just such a range with a ratio of counterweight: projectile = 100: 1), but three weeks of rain and snow prevented the delivery of an additional 5 tons of sand to the test site. Trebuchet with a suspended counterweight had a significantly lower return than the "mangonel", which practically confirmed the theoretical conclusions of Chavedden and Foley.

Two hits from the "mangonel" plus four from the "trebuchet" were enough to break a hole in the 2.1st wall through which a horse could pass.

A smaller but even more efficient machine was the late medieval "kuyar", a machine with paired counterweights. One of the samples, reconstructed in France, with a 3-ton counterweight, throws a 35-kg cannonball at 180 m with a rate of fire of 10 shots per hour, and only 4 people are enough for its platoon.

We note further that the destructive power of the trebuchet strongly depends on the height and geometry of the target, as well as on the trajectory of the cannonball. A hinged ballistic trajectory at 45° is optimal in terms of firing range, but not impact power, since in this case the ball hits a vertical wall at the same 45° angle. Hits get closer to the optimal 90° angle with flat shooting at a shorter range. If the shelling of the inner part of the city, especially located on a hill, is being carried out, steep mounted shooting becomes optimal. The art of the magister tormentorum (the master in charge of storing and using siege equipment - tormenta) lies largely in the ability to find the optimal balance between firing range and the lethality of the cannonballs. In addition, trebuchet balls are most effective when hitting straight surfaces and, especially, the corners of towers. If the tower surface is rounded, there is a significant chance of ricocheting. Therefore, from the XIII century in Western Europe, the towers began to be made round. Finally, the energy of the nucleus falls as it moves up to the midpoint of the trajectory (as the force of gravity is overcome), and then increases again. Therefore, hitting a target at the top (for example, a castle on a rock) will be much less effective than a target at the same level or lower. These are essential points explaining why the same machine can be effective in shelling one fortification and ineffective in another, even if they consist of walls of the same thickness.

Multiple repetition of hits in one point requires the use of projectiles of the same weight and approximately the same shape; this fact is reflected, for example, in the treatise of Aegidius Colonna (c. 1275), who recommended that the cannonballs be weighed before firing. At the same time, even a rough hewing of a 100-kg stone core requires 5-6 working hours.

Trebuchet can be used not only to destroy walls, but also to fight enemy vehicles and inactive siege structures. This struggle is carried out by artillery, i.e. not by a targeted defeat from the first shot, but by a capture in the fork. Unlike torsion stone throwers, the trebuchet is not capable of accurate shooting, but, thanks to its weak recoil, its shots are predictable. After the first miss, you can change the range and side angle to the desired value and so gradually approach the target and cover it. At the same time, “counter-battery” trebuchet are in a more advantageous position compared to wall-beaten ones. In the wall-beating role, it is unprofitable to use the trebuchet from the maximum range, since in this case its projectiles will hit the walls at an ineffective 45 ° angle. On the contrary, in the counter-battery role, you can use faster-firing vehicles of medium caliber and from maximum range, because it is incomparably easier to destroy a wooden device than a stone wall.

Considering historical reports about the destruction of fortresses by stone throwers, it is very important to keep in mind not only the technical capabilities of wall-beating equipment, but also the features of the fortification architecture of the area at this time. There are adobe duvals, as in Central Asia, there are fortifications made of two thin walls, between which rubble stone or clay is poured, there are walls made of small stones, fastened only by their own weight or a weak solution of lime, and the stones can be hewn to varying degrees and fit each other. each other with different densities, there are walls made of large stone blocks, there are walls made of soft limestone, and there are walls made of hard granite, there are walls made of baked bricks (one of the least vulnerable, especially if they are fastened with good cement), there are walls made of wood or log cabins filled with land - the latter technology is considered specifically Russian in our country, but in reality it was practiced throughout Europe in archaic times. Naturally, their ability to resist shelling varies many times.

It should also be borne in mind that the main task of stone throwers is not so much the demolition of walls as such (although breaking through a solid gap that provides free passage for infantry and cavalry is very desirable), but the destruction of shelters for defenders - battlements, parapets, hinged galleries and shields, hinged turrets -breteshes, casemates for ballistas, etc. For a successful assault using conventional ladders, it is enough to expose the top of the wall so that enemy soldiers do not have cover from light throwing weapons.

As long as the battering ram prevailed, and heavy throwing machines were not widespread, the fortress walls often had different thicknesses at the bottom and at the top. At the top, extensive casemates were arranged, limited to a relatively thin outer wall. Naturally, such hollow walls at the top were much easier to fire from trebuchet than solid walls.

Of course, the trebuchet is inferior in power to a large ram, but it has undeniable advantages: a) the already mentioned effect on the upper, and not lower part walls; b) large-scale preparatory work is not required, such as dense backfilling of the ditch and bringing the embankment to the shaft; c) significantly lower vulnerability to retaliatory fire and sorties.

In conclusion, let's talk about the organization of the use of trebuchet and other throwing and siege machines in the Middle Ages. Designed them and supervised the production of ingeniatores. Very little is known about these people - this small, highly paid, closed group, who tried to keep their knowledge secret, did not belong to the aristocracy and was not inclined to advertise themselves, this is not at all characteristic of medieval psychology. Probably, they were from the top of the guild masters or the petty nobility. Judging by the notebook of Villars d'Honcourt, many of them were simultaneously engaged in the construction of cathedrals and castles. This "architectural" origin is not surprising - the trebuchet is very similar to the medieval crane, and its design and use requires serious knowledge in geometry and mechanics, equally necessary in the construction business.

Further, there was the already mentioned position of magister tormentorum - a city or royal official responsible for the storage and use of various military equipment, shells, spare parts. As a rule, in every major city or in the residence of the sovereign there was such an arsenal. Large, properly made trebuchet were not destroyed at the end of the war, but disassembled and placed in storage.

Finally, there were urban artisans who specialized in the direct manufacture of various machines, from hand crossbows to trebuchet. Usually these were carpenters who were entrusted with the entire order as a whole. They made the frame themselves (naturally, with the help of apprentices), and subcontracted blacksmiths, ropemakers, etc. for other parts. Since 1228 the specialty has been known trebuchetarius; in 1244, one such craftsman from Northumberland carved stone cores according to a special pattern, which indirectly indicates the penetration of standardization into the manufacture of trebuchet.

Publication:
XLegio © 2004

Nikolai Borisov

Sometimes questions arise related to the technical side of ancient throwing weapons. For example, what was the speed and range of crossbow arrows from different crossbows, what was the efficiency of medieval crossbows, and others.
Based on the descriptions of ancient weapons, using experiments with modern throwing weapons, it is possible to make estimates and calculations for throwing weapons of the past.
The book "Bows and Crossbows" compiled by Roslavlev, 2002, includes the "Book of Crossbows", written by the researcher of ancient throwing weapons - Ralph Payne-Gallway and published in 1907.
Ralph Payne-Gallwein describes the different designs of crossbows and also gives some of their characteristics.
Here, for example, for a powerful hunting crossbow with a steel arc, he gives such interesting data: the bowstring that is put on the arc should be shorter than the distance between the hooks of the arc by 1.25; 1.875cm, If more, then the arc energy will not be fully used, if less, the same. For this crossbow, the base size is 12.75cm and the working stroke is 15cm. The length of its steel arc is 76cm. The weight of such a crossbow is 6 kg without a crane.
From the book of Ralph Payne-Gallwein it also follows that the minimum working stroke of the bowstring of medieval crossbows was 12.5 cm.
The book contains drawings and measurements of medieval crossbow arrows.

Here is another example - a large siege crossbow, weighing 8.15 kg. Ralph Payne-Gallwein purchased it in the early 20th century, repaired and tested it.
The main data of the crossbow: the tension force is 1200 pounds (544 kg), the working stroke of the bowstring is 17.5 cm, the flight range of the crossbow arrow weighing 85 grams is 420.6 meters. The arrow has a length of 35cm. The arc of the crossbow is a straight steel bow with a length of 96.5 cm.

There is an opinion that the flight of ancient crossbow arrows is very slow and almost without loss of speed, and the initial speed of the ancient crossbow arrow (bolt) was about 50 m / s.
This causes me skepticism, because I can’t believe that a bolt that flew a distance of 420m had such a low initial speed.
Ralph Payne-Gallwein, in the early 20th century, did not have a chronograph to measure the speed of arrows, and I, in the 21st century, do not have ancient crossbows to test them directly.
But, despite this, to find out the initial speed of an arrow (bolt) from an ancient crossbow, and, at the same time, to calculate its efficiency (or the effectiveness of a crossbow) is an interesting and quite feasible task in the 21st century.
To solve this problem, you need to make a replica of a medieval bolt and shoot it with a modern crossbow.
When making a replica, I was guided by an arrow that Ralph Payne-Gallwein shot from a powerful fortress crossbow across the Menai Strait (England). It is known about the arrow that it had a length of 35 cm and a weight of 85 grams. In addition, I was guided by his description and a detailed drawing of a crossbow arrow of somewhat shorter length.
The finished replica of a medieval arrow has the following characteristics: length 35cm, the section of the wooden part has the shape of a square with a side of 16mm at the beginning, then there is a decrease in the section and towards the end it is also a square with a side of 13mm. At the very end, the boom is narrowed on both sides to a size of 10mm. All square ribs are rounded, and the maximum rib diameter is 18mm. The weight of the replica is 81.12 grams, including the weight of the tip - 43.53 grams. In short, the weight of the replica was a little short of 85 grams, but the designs of these arrows differ mainly in length and fit into the overall picture of crossbow bolts of that period.
The main difference between a replica of a medieval bolt and its analogue lies in the design of the plumage. If there are 2 or 3 feathers in a medieval arrow, then mine has 4. They are somewhat smaller than medieval ones, but there are more of them and the total plumage area will not differ much from the plumage area of ​​​​medieval arrows. It must also be borne in mind that some of the medieval crossbow bolts were made without plumage at all.

For calculations on crossbows, it will be necessary to determine the ballistic coefficient of such an arrow. It will not differ much for medieval arrows of similar design.
To determine the ballistic coefficient of a replica of a medieval crossbow arrow, I conducted an experimental shooting from a blocky Horton Hunter Supreme SL crossbow.
The characteristics of the crossbow are as follows:
- tension force - 68.6 kg;
- working stroke - 26.5cm
During experimental shooting, the initial speed of the replica, determined using the Canadian CHRONY chronograph, was 48.31 m / s. The maximum flight range, at an angle of 43 ° to the horizon, was 205.3 m. According to the calculation in the spreadsheet, the ballistic coefficient of the replica is 10.3.
During experimental shooting across the direction of the wind, the arrow flew in the forward and reverse directions for almost the same distance. What can not be said about a modern arrow, in which the difference in flight back and forth was 7; 8%.
In order to conduct experimental shooting with a replica, I had to remove the clamping bar from the crossbow, which prevented the installation of an arrow in the crossbow.
In addition, in order for the arrow to receive the correct direction, it was necessary to install the arrow with an edge into the guide groove. The feathers to the arrow are glued to the ribs, so the feather on the guide rib additionally helped to ensure the correct direction of the arrow along the groove of the crossbow.

Calculation of indicators of a shot from a crossbow by Ralph Payne-Gallwein.

Substitute in the spreadsheet ballistic coefficient 10.3; the departure angle is 43 ° and we will substitute different values ​​​​of speed into the initial data until the flight range is 420.6 meters - the distance that Ralph Payne-Gallwein fired when testing the crossbow. The initial speed will be 75,m/sec. The bolt energy at this speed and weight is 85g. will be - 239J.
Now let's determine the efficiency of the siege crossbow. To do this, you need to have a graph of the "force - tension" curve of such a crossbow
Since we do not have data on the corresponding curve, we can construct it with some assumptions using the information on Longbow type straightbows given on the Internet.
Internet resource address: http://crossbow.wikia.com/wiki/Bow_design
http://www.dryadbows.com/Defining.pdf
and also, the ACS Bows website.
Longbow without a bowstring, is a straight stick, as well as a crossbow steel bow, if the bowstring is removed from it. That is, both of them belong to the category of "simple straight bow".
In theory the best option The force-tension curve for a straight bow is a straight diagonal drawn on a rectangle drawing, the lower side of which is the length of the stroke of the bowstring, and the vertical side is the value of the effort, with a gradual tension of the bowstring.
The area under the diagonal of the rectangle is the potential energy stored by the bow.
In real longbows, the force-pull curve is somewhat concave. So, in Longbow, the area under the force-tension curve is 91% of the ideal one. In our case, there is also a long straight arc, and without a large error, by analogy with Longbow, we can take the stored energy equal to 91% of the ideal one.
Having built such a graph and, having made calculations, we find that the potential energy of Ralph Payne-Gallwein's crossbow will be 425 joules.
Now you can estimate the efficiency of a fortress crossbow when firing bolts weighing 85g. The initial energy of an 85 gram bolt, as calculated above, is 239 J. The efficiency of such a shot will be:
239/425 = 0.562 or 56.2%.
According to the calculation in the spreadsheet, at the end, such a bolt will have a speed of 58.3 m / s. At the same time, its energy upon impact will be 144 joules. Energy loss at a distance of 420.6m will be 40%.
According to wound ballistics, the enemy is defeated if the impact has an energy of 80 - 100 joules. In our case, at the end of the bolt, when it hits the enemy, his defeat is guaranteed, moreover, armor will not save either.
The flight time at an angle of 43 degrees will be 10 seconds. The maximum height of the flight path is 123m.
In this material, there is a photograph of the arrows included in Table 2, plus a replica of the medieval crossbow bolt discussed in this article.

INTRODUCTION

The crossbow is an advanced bow that allows the shooter to aim without straining the bowstring. It improves accuracy and penetration power, and can be used by people who do not have the accuracy and strength needed for an archer. Crossbow appeared around 500 BC. in China, by the 12th century it had spread to Europe; it was first used as military weapon, then became the weapon of hunters and sportsmen. Homemade crossbows applied until 1918 (Second World War). An arrow for a crossbow is heavier than for a bow, it is more often called a bolt. The advantages of a crossbow over a bow are obvious: a large penetrating power (some crossbows pierced any armor from 100 m), an increased firing range (up to 400-450 m), but there are also disadvantages: a long reload time, the high cost of manufacturing a trigger (as a result of which the crossbow only wealthy citizens could afford), the impossibility of using it when moving on a horse (for this reason, it did not find application in the East - among horse archers), as well as the fact that the crossbowman, due to the bulkiness of the crossbow, could not use other types of weapons, his had to be defended - this required a good organization of the troops. Therefore, the crossbow received the main distribution only by the 14th century AD. A bow for a crossbow was originally made similarly to composite bows - from several materials, but when damask and Damascus steel appeared, they forgot about the composite - the tension force of such a crossbow did not exceed the tension force of the bow, and the expediency of its use disappeared.

Crossbow shooting is different from archery and includes three stages:

1. Tension. In the simplest version, the shooter pulls the bowstring with his hands and fixes it with a restraining stop, while the crossbow is fixed with his foot using a special bracket. Over time, tensioning devices appeared, which allowed the use of more powerful bows.

2. Bolt overlay. The shooter holds the crossbow at a slight upward angle and places the bolt in the groove, while the rear end of the bolt is on the stop of the bowstring. Some crossbows are equipped with a spring to hold the bolt, which allows you to shoot at any angle and in any direction.

3. Aim and shoot. The crossbow is applied to the shoulder like a gun, aiming is done by analogy.

Devices for string tension:

1. Brace for the leg and both hands. The method was used with relatively weak bows.

2. Tension strap with hook. The leg fixes the crossbow machine, as in the first method, the shooter bends, the hook on the belt hooks the string, when the arrow is straightened, the string is pulled and fixed.

3. An improved version of method 2: a rope with a movable roller is used, also mounted on a belt.

4. "Goat's leg". The shooter places both curved levers on pins protruding from both sides of the stock, the opposite end pulls towards itself, dragging the bowstring with movable paws.

5. Release lever. It clings to the crochet in front of the stock and presses the bowstring back.

6. Gate with gear rack. Appeared around 1450 in Germany. The bowstring is pulled through the collar. Used for the most powerful crossbows. He was popular with hunters, as the military was not satisfied with the speed of tension and the low rate of fire.

7. Integrated tension arm.

Ways to tension the bowstring of a crossbow.

There were varieties of crossbows for shooting bullets or stones. Their difference is a forked bowstring with a pocket for a bullet. In the 19th century, China began to use repeating crossbows, in which non-feathered bolts were used, which were fed automatically from the magazine when the bowstring was pulled.

They had good range shooting and were more powerful than most bows, but took much longer to reload. On average, most crossbowmen fired 2 shots per minute.

The crossbow was held horizontally and fired with a trigger that lowered a tight bowstring. To load the crossbow, they put it on the ground and held it with their foot. The bowstring was pulled back with both hands or with the help of a device. The crossbow fired a projectile that was much shorter than a normal arrow. It had feathers to stabilize it in flight and had a pointed end.

The crossbowman often carried a passive shield in combat to provide cover while reloading. It was a tall shield with wooden braces attached. A detachment of crossbowmen was a wall of such shields. As they fired, only crossbows and their helmeted heads emerged from the shield wall. This kind of detachment forced the enemy to retreat in open space.

The crossbow was a deadly weapon and was very popular for the simple reason that it took a little time to learn how to shoot. Relatively raw soldiers could become experienced crossbowmen for a short time, and a well-aimed shot could kill an armored knight who took a long time to train. The crossbow was considered criminal in some circles (knights primarily) because it requires so little skill. Richard I of England, the Lionheart, was wounded twice by crossbow arrows. The idea of ​​such great people being killed easily by ordinary soldiers or worse was terrible for noble people. In the twelfth century, the pope tried to ban the crossbow as an inhumane weapon.

1. BATTLE CROSSBOW XIV-XVI CENTURIES. The bow, originally "complex", from the beginning of the 15th century. replaced with steel. Tension force up to 200 kg. The tension was carried out with a "goat's foot" - an iron lever of complex shape, resting on two ledges. When the lever is turned, with an increase in the tension force, the radius of rotation of the lever decreases. Firing range up to 300 m. Rate of fire - 2-3 rpm. Descent - "nut". Worn on the shoulder or belt.

2. BATTLE AND HUNTING CROSSBOW XIV-XVII CENTURIES. The bow, originally "complex", from the beginning of the 15th century. replaced with steel. The tension force reached 300 kg. It was pulled by the "German collar" - a gear rack with two claws in an iron case with a gearbox. Firing range - 300-400 m. Rate of fire - 1-2 rpm. Descent - a rotating "nut" with notches at the top (for the bowstring) and at the bottom (for the nose of the trigger guard). In combat crossbows, the trigger guard is just a lever on an axle, in hunting crossbows it is a complex and very delicate device. Worn on the belt or at the saddle.

3. BATTLE AND HUNTING CROSSBOW XI-XIII CENTURIES. The bow belongs to the type of "complex" bows - it is glued from wood, glued on the inside with bone plates, on the outside - with tendons and covered with birch bark. Tension force up to 120 kg. It is pulled with a foot inserted into the stirrup and a hook on the belt. Firing range up to 200 m. Sighting range, like all crossbows, about 60 m. Rate of fire - up to 4 bolts / min. Descent - a notch with an ejector or a retractable stop. Worn on a belt over the shoulder.

4. ITALIAN BULLET HUNTING CROSSBOW XVI-XVII CENTURIES. Ballestra Bow steel complex profiled. On the string there is a special leather or wicker nest for a lead bullet. Tension force 25-30 kg. Firing range up to 100 m. Sighting range up to 20 m. Stretched by hand. Rate of fire up to 6 bullets per minute. It was used in court hunting for small birds, usually by women.

5. HUNTING CROSSBOW XVII-XVIII CENTURIES. A bow made of steel, often from earlier crossbows. Tension force up to 200 kg. It was pulled with a "goat's foot" - a two-piece lever made of wood. Firing range up to 200 m. Rate of fire 2-3 b/min. The descent is a notch with a stopper. Worn on a belt over the shoulder. When installed over the bowstring strap with a chute from a crossbow, it was possible to shoot with lead bullets.

6. BATTLE CROSSBOW XIV - EARLY XVI CENTURIES. AND TARGET XVI-XVIII cc. Steel bow. Tension force - up to 530 kg. It is pulled by the "English collar" - a system of blocks, chain hoists and a collar. Weaker crossbows had one block, the most powerful ones - 4. Firing range - 300-700 m. Rate of fire - no more than 1 rpm. Descent - "nut". The collar was worn on the belt, the crossbow - on the shoulder.

DO IT YOURSELF - Crossbow "Domoboy"

(click on the picture to enlarge it)

The crossbow is made of a spring from Moskvich. Dimensions are visible from the photo. The tension knot allows even a teenager to cock a crossbow into a combat state. The cable is pulled in two steps and put on the fuse.

Mounted boom flight of at least 400 meters. Tension force up to 50 kg. A device for making arrows allows you to get round blanks from wood bars (preferably hardwoods - oak, hornbeam, beech) using a drill. The stabilizer is made of thick electric cardboard.

The optical sight with a laser pointer is not shown in the photo.

BLUEPRINTS

DIY - Crossbow "Lord"

Characteristics:
Crossbow medieval 14-15th century, England, with a collar.
Length with stirrup - 850 mm
Weight - 4 kg, with a collar - 5.5 kg
Fusiform arrows, beech, birch, plumage - leather 2.5 mm thick. Bolt weight 70 grams, length - 350 mm
The arc is made of a spring from a ZIL car. Length - 700 mm, width: in the middle 45 mm, along the edges 25 mm; thickness: in the middle 8 mm, along the edges - 6 mm
Arc force over 150 kg
Trigger - walnut with a diameter of 32 mm and a thickness of 25 mm
Arc in a protective casing (leather)
The bed is made of oak; covered with natural drying oil
Bowstring - polyamide thread, the diameter of the finished bowstring is 10 mm
Horn stock with mahogany groove
Decorative caps - brass, etched pattern
The gate is made of steel, blocks - brass
Charging a crossbow with a collar is 40-50 seconds. Effort was not measured, but even children charged quite easily
Rope on the collar - capron
Arc fastening - with steel wedges
Aiming range - 250 meters
Bolt flight range - more than 1000 meters

It took several months to collect materials on the collar.

When shooting at close targets up to 100 meters, the wooden part of the bolts was destroyed when it hit the target, punching through a board 8 cm thick.

TRIGGERS

Mechanism?1.

The drawing is schematic and the arrangement of parts is rather arbitrary, but I think everything is clear. Approximate length 8-9 cm.

Mechanism?2.

Mechanism?3.

Mechanism?4.

BEST CROSSBOWS 2007

Modern powerful crossbows There are match and field. It is known that the invention of the field crossbow is attributed to the American Marine archers. Field crossbow ammunition - feathered arrows, duralumin or carbon. In field crossbow shooting competitions, a standard five-color archery target is used. Tension in competitions - 43 kg, shot distance in the open air - 35, 50 and 65 meters, indoors - 10 and 18 meters.

Match crossbows are fired with non-feathered bolts, and the tension when firing from 10 meters is 70 kg, at a distance of 30 meters - 120 kg. Competitions are held in closed or semi-closed rooms - specially equipped shooting ranges.

It should be noted that in terms of their combat characteristics, and most importantly, in terms of the versatility of use, modern, technologically advanced crossbows are in many ways superior to firearms in specific conditions of use. For example, during the Vietnam campaign, crossbows proved themselves well and entered the arsenal of American rapid reaction units.

First of all, crossbows have such an important quality as noiselessness. The absence of interacting metal parts avoids the clanging that accompanies shots even from low-noise and silent rifles and pistols. In addition, the energy capacity of modern materials used in the creation of such crossbows, such as Tenpoint Pro Elite (the best crossbow of the year according to the American magazine Inside Archery) or Stryker (the best new technologies from Outdoor Canada), significantly exceeds the muzzle energy of a nine-millimeter bullet fired by from a pistol.

What are the features, what is the charm of hunting with a crossbow? Each hunter chooses for himself the type of hunting that is most pleasant for him and, as they say, "Caesar's is Caesar's, and locksmith's is locksmith's." Someone likes to stand on a tower near the salt marsh and wait for their doomed victim, someone is interested in driving the beast in a crowd and shooting him as an enemy of the people, and someone enjoys hunting with a crossbow. For many people, hunting with a crossbow is not a trade, but an exciting sport. The main feature of hunting with a crossbow is that the hunter becomes equal with the victim, he himself creates conditions for hunting centuries ago, complicates the process of hunting and, accordingly, raises its prestige. Everyone can fill up a boar from a screw cutter, and there is nothing special to be proud of. If you want to eat - buy pork and eat, and if you want hunting, sports, courage - put your multi-shot cannon aside, pick up a crossbow and go into the forest - show your peasant prowess. The main beauty of hunting with a crossbow is that such hunting is almost silent. A shot from a rifle can be heard from several kilometers away, and in the area all people and animals know who, where and with what caliber ... A shot from a crossbow is almost silent - a light cotton that sinks in the foliage after a hundred meters. Often there are times when the bird does not even fly away and it is possible to reload, correct and shoot again.

What do you need for successful hunting with a crossbow?

Of course, the crossbow itself. Modern crossbows can be divided into two classes - classic crossbows with recursive (curved) shoulders and block crossbows, equipped with a system of eccentric blocks that facilitate loading the crossbow and accelerate the acceleration of the arrow.

Recurve crossbows have a number of advantages - they are light, easy to operate and extremely reliable. With shoulders with a pull force of more than 50 kg, recurve crossbows are suitable for hunting any small, large animal and bird. They are easy to assemble and disassemble, easy to transport. They are universal on a long trip, where every kilogram is counted. Heavy block crossbows are good for hunting large, often dangerous game when you need it. large stock power and high energy. A block crossbow is not always needed.

Shooting at a capercaillie or at a beaver from a "blocker" is the same as shooting sparrows from a cannon.

In general, crossbows are perfect for various types of hunting: both from ambush and from an approach. Modern crossbows most often have shoulders made of high-modulus composite materials, devoid of "fatigue" - the crossbow can be worn cocked for several hours - this gives the hunter the opportunity to quickly shoot at an unexpected target.

The only type of hunting in which a crossbow is useless is shooting at a flying target - it is extremely difficult to hit, almost impossible.

How powerful should a hunting crossbow be?

The power of a crossbow theoretically depends on two parameters:

1) the force that the arc develops at the limiting point of the bowstring;

2) the ultimate ability of the arc to bend or the course (excursion) of the bowstring. There are eccentrics who dream of buying a crossbow with a pull force of 200 or more kilograms. Of course, these are crazy ideas.

For confident shooting at a large hoofed animal at a distance of up to 50 meters, a crossbow with a tension force of 50-70 kg is enough. For hunting wild boar, it is better to take a crossbow a little more powerful - with shoulders of about 80 kg. I want to emphasize once again that you should not chase power - the right ammunition and a good shooting skill will give you much more advantages than the shoulders of monstrous power.

Aim devices.

The main feature of sighting devices is due to the ballistics of the projectile (arrow, bolt) flight, which causes a significant change in the position of the sighting line relative to the departure line with a slight change in the distance to the target. Modern crossbows always have a dovetail, on which you can install whatever your heart desires.

In fact, a crossbow does not need powerful more than 4x optics. 4X32 or 4X24 is optimal, but it is best to use a collimator sight - it is convenient both during the day and at dusk, when you need to aim with two eyes.

The collimator is also good for quick shooting at moving targets. I recommend the collimator as the optimal sighting device for crossbows.

What ammunition is used for hunting with a crossbow?

For hunting a large game, it is advisable to use professional, branded arrows (bolts) made of carbon or fiberglass - they are very light, durable with perfect geometry and the correct "weight distribution". There are sometimes good aluminum arrows, but they are more suitable for training shooting or hunting "by feather".

Often, hunting arrows have a threaded insert on the front cut of the shaft, which allows you to change the tip from sports to hunting and vice versa. The hunting tip is most often equipped with three or more steel blades, in some cases, the tips are collapsible with the ability to replace individual blades.

The plumage of hunting arrows is always longer than that of sport arrows. This is due to the fact that the arrow must instantly stabilize in flight and take up a combat position, this is especially important when shooting at short distances- up to 30 meters. The length of the arrow usually corresponds to the guide of the crossbow and the excursion of the bowstring - most often hunting arrows are 40 to 50 cm long.

The weight of a hunting arrow is approximately 30-35 grams.

Arrows for hunting birds and small game are usually shorter and lighter, they Weight Limit 25 grams and 30 cm long. Fiberglass and aluminum are ideal materials for cheap, "bird" arrows.

Harpoon arrows for hunting fish deserve special mention. By the way, in America, shooting at fish with a crossbow and a bow is a popular pastime, like our hunting with a spear. The harpoon arrow has a special needle shape that allows the arrow to move easily under water and a spearhead with a "tooth". On the back of the arrow there is a small hook to which a nylon thread is tied, the thread itself, in turn, is wound on a non-inertial coil and fixed on a crossbow.

The optimal distance for shooting with a crossbow.

For hunting, it is desirable to use a crossbow with such power that a conventionally direct shot at the chest figure is at least 50 meters. The trajectory of a crossbow arrow has its own characteristics and it is difficult to calculate it at long distances, so it is advisable to shoot at a conditionally direct shot distance - up to 50-60 meters. You don’t have to worry about the accuracy of fire - any decent crossbow is several times superior to a smoothbore gun in accuracy of fire.

Where to shoot?

Killer places for crossbow shooting - not only thoracic region and neck, but also the belly. For example, a wild boar, after an arrow hits the abdomen, simply sits on the ground and screams, a couple of seconds and the second, control arrow stops the torment. The most “lethal” places, of course, are the neck and chest: a hunting arrow easily pushes the ribs apart and, even breaking one of its blades, goes deep inside and inflicts mortal wounds. When hit in the chest of an adult deer from a "60-kilogram" crossbow from a distance of about 50 meters, the arrow goes 20 centimeters inside and reaches the vital organs. If the tip was fixed "tightly" and does not unscrew, then it is no longer possible to remove the arrow from the victim, you can only cut it out.

How humane is hunting with a crossbow?

First, a hunter with a crossbow has only one responsible shot and must clearly decide whether to shoot or not. If the distance or power of the crossbow does not allow you to confidently lay down the beast, it is better not to shoot at all. The crossbowman never shoots like a madman in bursts through the bushes - everything is always decided by a single arrow.

Secondly, it has long been proven that a shot from a crossbow at distances up to 60-70 meters is more effective than a bullet. Unlike a bullet, an arrow does not have a shock, stopping effect, more precisely, a "stopping action" is achieved in a different way - a crossbow or bow arrow, falling into the victim's body, makes it impossible to move, paralyzes.

With a three-edged arrowhead, the arrow inflicts serious damage and causes rapid blood loss.

There are practically no wounded animals in crossbow hunting, so hunting with a crossbow is more humane than with other types of hunting weapons.

What should be paid attention to when hunting with a crossbow?

First of all, safety precautions. This technique is exactly the same as that of a firearm, with only minor additions. The most important thing is that while shooting, it is important to vigilantly monitor the fingers of the left hand - they should not fall on the line of movement of the bowstring - we do not have so many fingers to spread them.

It is necessary to carefully monitor the shoulders of the crossbow so that during the shot the shoulders do not touch branches or foreign objects. It is also necessary to monitor the condition of the bowstring - it should not have any visible damage or tears that could cause the bowstring to break during a shot. Blank shots should not be allowed - they can damage the shoulders and the bowstring. Otherwise, the rules for handling a crossbow are based on the same laws of reason and the rules of conduct on a hunt.

© "Encyclopedia of Technologies and Methods" Patlakh V.V. 1993-2007