The first mechanical war machine was the crossbow. Obviously, with the development of cities and siege warfare, the idea inevitably arises of improving the bow so as to make it possible to accumulate energy and provide more time for aiming. The rate of fire drops, but the shot becomes more powerful and the requirements for the eye are reduced.

In Greece, the development of siege technology immediately took on an extremely rapid and at the same time narrowly focused character. There, from the very beginning, complex private technical solutions began to be used related to the tension mechanism, the structure of the bow arc and frame, with a narrow range of general schemes. The Greeks almost immediately abandoned hand crossbows and concentrated entirely on heavy siege engines. The desire for increased power quickly led to the replacement of the classic solid bow with torsion bars - twisted balls of sinew or hair rope with short wooden limbs inserted into them.

On the contrary, in China they tried a wide range of general weapon designs with the relative primitiveness of each individual sample. Moreover, exotic artifacts, irrational from a technical point of view, coexisted with successful models for many centuries. Apparently, for the ancient Chinese way of thinking, the external impressiveness, aesthetics and even exoticism of weapons were no less important than practical usefulness.

The first crossbows

The first archaeological finds of crossbow parts (bronze triggers) and more or less reliable written evidence in China date back to the 4th–3rd centuries BC. The work of Mo Qi (380–350 BC) mentions massive arrow throwers on a frame with four or six wheels, operated by a dozen people. It was a crossbow with a 1.8 m long arc, pulled by a collar, throwing a three-meter dart with a rope tied to it (to return after the shot) plus several shorter arrows. It can be assumed that the first Chinese crossbows were easel and appeared around the 5th century BC.

Even then, the characteristic features of ancient Chinese artillery appeared: external impressiveness combined with low practicality. In particular, a 3-meter dart is too long for such a machine and cannot have good aerodynamics; a rope tied “out of economy” at the back also does not contribute to high speed and flight stability. Obviously, the crossbow could only fire a short distance and was more likely to frighten opponents than to do any real damage to them.

Early bloom

Chinese crossbow making flourished during the Han Dynasty, which reigned in 210 BC. and significantly expanded the boundaries of the Celestial Empire. Easel crossbows, which fired several arrows at once, continued to be actively used - for the defense of fortresses, and also, according to a report from 99 BC, to repel attacks by enemy cavalry on field camps. Hand crossbows also began to be used. Their arches became composite (linings made of horn and tendons were glued to a wooden base), they were stretched with the help of their legs - the shooter sat on the ground, grabbed the bowstring with his hands, and pressed the arch of the bow with his feet. There were also weaker wooden crossbows, pulled simply by hand. This technique was successfully used against the nomadic Huns who inhabited what is now Mongolia.

Crossbow arrows were most often made from bamboo strips impregnated with varnish and glued together, or from hard sandalwood and tipped with bronze or bone. The plumage consisted of strips of skin or feathers. Moreover, the different stages of making crossbows (especially their composite arches) and arrows were timed to coincide with certain seasons and were accompanied by magical rituals. The trigger device of the Chinese weapon was quite successful (similar to a European “nut”), and the gate was primitive (required a lot of effort - apparently, labor was not saved in China). At the same time, crossbows began to spread throughout the countries that were in the Chinese sphere of cultural influence - Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Burma.

Long stagnation

After an active start in the 2nd century. BC. – II century AD stagnation has set in in Chinese crossbow manufacturing. In Chinese history there was no “dip” like in Europe, but there were many ebbs and flows; The former skills did not disappear until the end, but even in favorable periods, much progress was not observed. In particular, the rise was noted in the 7th century (Tang dynasty) and in the 11th–13th centuries; It is noteworthy that the second of the periods did not prevent the Mongols of Genghis Khan from conquering China with a very clear advantage.

Since the 11th century, the first technical characteristics of crossbows appear in Chinese sources. In 1069, the crossbow of a certain Li Hong, with a stock 1 m long, had a tension force of 132 kg, and his arrow from a distance of 370 m penetrated an elm by half a meter. Modern researchers consider such information frivolous. The weapon, comparable in power to a European crossbow with a stirrup, could not shoot further than 200–250 m and, at best, pierced the armor from a short distance.

Chinese information about the effectiveness of easel crossbows with a collar is equally dubious (you can learn more about them in the classic study by S.A. Shkolyar “Chinese pre-gun artillery”). Easel crossbows were divided into two types: devices on a rotary machine and on a stationary one. Their arches were made of boxwood or mulberry wood and reached 3–4 m in length. The tension force of the gate was about 700 kg, which supposedly made it possible to shoot at 1 km and beyond. The effective firing range did not exceed 250–400 m.

Multi-arm crossbows

A characteristic Chinese feature was multi-beam (multi-arc) easel crossbows, first recorded in the 7th century. Double-beam crossbows had two arches mounted opposite each other in one stock, connected at the ends and having one bowstring. The point of this idea was to increase power. Sometimes the system was complicated - a second one was built over one double-beam frame, and both were tensioned with the same collar - such a double crossbow fired two arrows at once. They shot at 180 m. In Cambodia and Vietnam they were even used from the backs of elephants.

Three-bow crossbows were more powerful - two bows one after the other in front, one opposite at the back. They fired at 450 m. However, this design is technically questionable, since its complication inevitably reduces reliability. It is wiser to increase the power of a crossbow by increasing the length and thickness of the arc and increasing its quality (elasticity and resistance to bending). This is exactly the way the Europeans followed.

A three-beam siege crossbow of the Song Dynasty, loaded by the defenders of the city of Dantu (China, 1131) with an arrow with a gunpowder bag attached to it. The pictures show the design of the trigger mechanism

Probably the purpose of the Chinese invention was to narrow the weapon without reducing power, since archballists with a multi-meter span did not fit on fortress towers. In Europe, by the end of the 12th century, this problem was solved by introducing torsion bars. In China, they took the unpromising path of complicating classic crossbows.

Repeating crossbow

Another Chinese specificity was the obsessive desire to create multi-shot crossbows. Apparently, the Chinese had problems with resisting the violent onslaught of barbarian crowds, as well as with training their own warriors in long-range targeted shooting. Therefore, they began to create crossbows that were fundamentally weak and inaccurate, but quick-firing.

By 121 BC. There is a mention of a crossbow with one arc, but with a wide stock with several arrow grooves. One could not expect accuracy and power from many light arrows launched with a single bowstring, but at close range against a dense crowd unprotected by armor they could be effective. At least, ancient Chinese sources praise this weapon: according to reports from the Tang era (7th–8th centuries), seven 90-centimeter arrows were launched by such a machine 700 steps (470 m) and “destroyed everything they hit, strongholds like walls and city towers” (however, such statements should not be taken seriously). Then they began to place a bunch of arrows in one deep trench, and the bowstring was equipped with a cover made of thick leather or iron, called a ladle.

However, the pinnacle of peculiar Chinese invention was the repeating crossbow, supposedly invented by Juge Liang in the 3rd century AD. and called in the 10th century the “fast dragon machine”. It was used in China for two thousand years, until the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895. A primitive wooden magazine was placed above the stock, from which arrows 20–30 cm long were lowered into a groove under their own weight. In 15 seconds, the shooter could fire 10–12 arrows. Naturally, these light arrows had neither range nor penetration, which was sometimes compensated for by smearing them with poison. Apparently, despite the simplicity of the design, there were also problems with reliability, especially in the stressful conditions of close combat. So it was more of a weapon for “special forces” than for line troops.

From Chinese to Mongols

Chinese inventions, along with engineers, were actively borrowed by the Mongol conquerors of the 13th century. They were not interested in hand crossbows, since they could not compete with the skilled Mongol archers, but three-beam easel crossbows were widely used for throwing darts 3-4 cubits long and pots with oil mixtures. During campaigns, they were dismantled into 5–7 parts and transported on carts or camels to the sites of sieges. In particular, 1,000 "teams" of Chinese artillerymen accompanied Hulagu Khan in his attack on Baghdad in 1258.

Crossbows in Japan

Crossbows first came to Japan in 618 as gifts, along with several skilled Chinese captives. Already in 672, they were shooting arrows “like rain” in local civil strife, which implies, according to historians, the use of repeating models. They were installed in border fortifications against the Koreans and Ainu and on ships.

Unlike China, Japanese easel oyumi often threw stones instead of arrows (an irrational decision, apparently caused by the lack of a trebuchet in Japan). Between 1083 and 1089, the stone-thrower-ishyumi (“stone bow”), with a blow to the helmet, stunned and threw to the ground Ban Jiro Kenzo Sukekane, the hero of the “Late Three Years War” (Gosannen Kassen Ekotoba). European stone-throwers-trebuchet in similar situations usually knocked the brains out of heroes, regardless of any helmets (for example, this happened with the crusader Simon de Montfort near Toulouse in 1218). But gradual political stabilization in Japan led to the complete oblivion of crossbow art.

Two worlds, two cultures

Acquaintance with the technical achievements of the ancient and medieval Far East gives the impression of a strange combination of primitivism and sophistication, lethality and fragility, in contrast to the straightforward and brute power of European technology. Weak wooden crossbows, but multi-shot and capable of throwing poisoned arrows with extraordinary speed - in contrast to a heavy crossbow with a steel arc and a powerful serrated collar, which strikes rarely, but with terrible force. The most primitive slings made of bamboo sticks and ropes with a crowded team of bare-legged slings, but with their shells creating clouds of toxic smoke or unquenchable fire - and huge oak trebuchets with a counterweight, crushing two-meter granite walls with several precise hits of carefully cut and weighed 100-kilogram cannonballs. These two approaches, not without difficulty, merged and enriched each other, and gave birth to modern technical civilization.

Try saying the word "AR-BA-LET" out loud. Great kings, intrigues at the royal courts, heady thoughts about freedom... Mortal battles and the joy of victory... The sound of this word crossbow takes us to ancient events. There are many legends, many films have been made in which the main characters held weapons that were formidable at that time.

Such an object of universal admiration can be made in modern conditions with your own hands. Did you know that in fact a crossbow (French arbalete, from Latin arcus - bow and ballista - throwing projectile) is a throwing weapon in the form of a bow mounted on a stock and equipped with a trigger mechanism.

Crossbow.

About the ancestors of modern crossbows

History of the development of the crossbow. The first information about the ancestors of modern crossbows came to us from Ancient China and dates back to the middle of the first millennium BC. Samples of Chinese crossbows have survived to this day. Unlike European ones, which were distinguished by their unsightly appearance, they are completely finished and clear in their design.

The crossbow was a powerful weapon of the Middle Ages. Bolts without feathers weighing up to 100 g, when fired from close distances (tens of meters), pierced a pine log up to 200 mm thick, while the bolt remained in the log, getting stuck in the shaft, the tip came out, and the log split lengthwise. The flight range of light arrows without any feathers weighing up to 50 g reached a kilometer. The bolt pierced the knight's armor from 10 m.

It was a rare shield that could withstand a crossbow bolt, especially at close range. The blow of a heavy crossbow bolt was comparable to the blow of a spear thrown at point-blank range by a strong warrior, with approximately the same wound area. Naturally, both the range and ease of aiming were many times greater than the ballistic capabilities of any spear.

Development of crossbows in Europe

The development of crossbows in Europe did not originate from China. The designs of the locks are completely different; the parameters of the Chinese models differed from the European ones. The stock of a Chinese crossbow was on average 750-850 mm. Bamboo was used to make the bulbs.

Their average length ranged from 750 to 1200 mm. The crossbow had a large tension force (in some samples it reached 360 kg), but there were no tension devices at all, and the crossbowman had to lie on his back and simultaneously cock his weapon with his hands and feet.

Europeans became acquainted with crossbows in Greece in the 5th-6th centuries. ad. At the end of the 19th century. The crusaders met with Arab cavalry, carrying, among other weapons, these strange weapons. It caused surprise and fear among the crusaders during the first crusade, and only in the 12th century did it become widespread, especially in England and France.

Arrowhead.

Crossbows in Ancient Rus'

In Ancient Rus', crossbows, known as crossbows, spread earlier - in the 10th-11th centuries. The normal shooting distance was 250 meters. But since the standard tension force of a crossbow bow without mechanical devices is 50 kg, crossbows did not take root in Rus'. Rus' had nothing to do with the creation or improvement of this effective throwing weapon.

Masters rarely made crossbows, exclusively for the nobility.

Crossbows with mechanical devices for tensioning powerful bows and primitive crossbows, drawn exclusively by hand, were in limited use in Rus'. This is due to the fact that mechanical devices (gear gates, pulleys and even a “goat’s leg”) were too complex for Russian craftsmen to make.

You can read about a very illustrative example of the use of a crossbow in ancient manuscripts. “On August 24, 1382, the Khan of the Golden Horde besieged the capital of the Moscow Principality. During the siege, a horseman in rich clothes once rode up to the walls of the fortress, and immediately began to abuse the defenders of Moscow. All attempts to hit him with a bow were in vain; the enemy was 200 meters from the wall. Finally, one of the townspeople, a clothier named Adam, climbed the tower above the Frolov Gate with a crossbow. A crossbow bolt, piercing the chain mail, felled the insolent man dead, who also turned out to be the son of a Horde khan.”

Crossbow.

Crossbow for hunters

The crossbow remained one of the means of hunting game for hunters due to its noiselessness. But due to the gradual improvement of firearms, which resulted in an increase in the range and accuracy of fire, noiselessness began to be neglected, although even at the beginning of our century, Siberian hunters left stretched cables with brought to them by a constructive resemblance to a crossbow.

And even during the Second World War, there were cases of the use of crossbows by partisans, which, however, was explained by the shortage of firearms. Around the end of 1970 - beginning of 1980, individual enthusiasts appeared in Russia who tried to make crossbows. All masters, with rare exceptions, tried to repeat the successes in the design of new crossbows in the West. No one in Russia has achieved any special characteristics other than accuracy at distances of 10-20 m. Powerful compound crossbow bows were invented abroad.

Therefore, some experts simply took springs from Moskviches. But true masters were interested in making a real, not a toy, crossbow that would approach the powerful medieval crossbows in combat qualities, and test for themselves whether it was such a formidable weapon.

You have to be a fanatic of your craft to try again and again to make real ancient weapons. And after several intermediate attempts, such a crossbow was made in the early 1980s. All attempts to use natural fiber such as hemp in the bowstring of a crossbow have not led to success. Natural fibers were stretched at the first pull of the crossbow with a force equal to 350-380 kg. The freely available artificial fibers produced by the domestic chemical industry at that time behaved even worse.

Therefore, in the crossbow it was necessary to use a steel cable 5 mm thick. The cable was braided with correct industrial weaving into a loop on one side, then the bow was strained with a jack in the rig, after which the second end was braided into a loop directly on the arc. Then the arc was released from the equipment, the bow was straightened, choosing the elasticity of the weaving.

A shot from such a crossbow was accompanied by a loud sound, reminiscent of a shot from a small-caliber weapon, and the blow of the bowstring on the steel hooks holding the bow, which was separated from the stock when carried, was accompanied by a sheaf of sparks. But the bowstring did not last long and began to tear both at the point of impact on the bow mounts and at the place interacting with the “nut”. The string had to be changed after almost 20-30 shots.

Crossbow as a combat weapon

The crossbow as a military weapon in Europe can rival the bow in its importance. With the advent of the crossbow, any person with even basic shooting skills could compete in accuracy with a professional archer, and surpass him in the damaging effect of an arrow (for example, a bolt at a distance of 150 meters hit a man-at-arms and could knock a rider off his horse at a distance of 200 meters).

From that moment on, archers ceased to be a separate, highly paid caste, and they were seriously supplanted by the rapidly growing squads of crossbowmen. Due to its availability, the crossbow was considered a “low” weapon for a long time, unworthy of a noble knight, and the Second Lutheran Council in 1139 banned the use of crossbows against Christians and allowed them to be used exclusively against infidels. But already around 1190, crossbows were used in the troops of Richard I of England and Philip Augustus of France, as a result of which Pope Innocent III revived the ban of the Council, which, however, did not produce any particular results.

The townspeople used crossbows

Townspeople gladly used crossbows in battles with knighthood; guilds of crossbowmen were created in German and Dutch cities under the patronage of St. Sebastian, St. Moritz and others. The commander of the crossbowmen in France received the title “grandmaster of the crossbowmen” and was later equated with the marshals of the French kingdom. Crossbows became more and more widespread among the troops. Charles VII issued a decree ordering the special planting of the yew tree and its use as raw material for the manufacture of crossbow bows.

This is what historical facts show

On August 26, 1346, a battle took place near the town of Crecy between French and English troops. A ten-thousand-strong English army, which included 5,500 archers, was located on a hill, a 30,000-strong French army stood in the lowland, and about 6,000 Genoese armed with crossbows and swords came out to meet the British. Their first volley, fired from a distance of about 140 meters, was practically wasted, most of the arrows did not reach the target, but the response volley of archers, who fired about 50,000 arrows in a minute, was truly devastating.

By the end of the battle, the losses of the French army amounted to about 12 thousand people, while the British lost only about 100 people. The sighting range of the crossbow is up to 60 meters, the flight range of the arrow is almost 300m. Other sources provide the following figures: lightly armored targets were hit at a distance of up to 150 steps, and the defeat of enemy personnel was ensured at a distance of up to 650 steps.

Ballestres

In Spain, ballestres were invented - crossbows with a long thin stock, while in Italy schnappers appeared, which differed from ballestres in the stock curved between the trigger and the bow. Modifications for firing clay or metal bullets appeared, and the first sighting devices were used at the same time. The end of the 16th century was marked by the appearance of crossbows combined with firearms.

In the 16th century, when the crossbow lost its importance as a military weapon, it began to be used as a mass hunting weapon. Hunting crossbows were very widespread in the West as convenient, silent weapons for hunting.

Therefore, the production of hunting crossbows was widespread in the West. It was in crossbows that diopter sights, devices for facilitating the descent (shellers), and comfortable butts first began to be used, which later transferred to firearms.

A crossbow or crossbow, as it was called in Rus', is a bow of increased elasticity, made on a wooden stock with a butt, externally reminiscent of the butts of modern hunting rifles. They shot from a crossbow with short arrows (bolts), usually made of metal.

A guide was hollowed out or mounted in the stock of the weapon, into which the bolt was placed before firing. The main mechanisms intended for shooting were also located there: a tension mechanism for cocking a crossbow and a trigger mechanism for firing a shot.

The history of the creation of the crossbow goes back several thousand years. This is a very old weapon, however, the crossbow was invented much later than the bow. In fact, this is one of the options for developing bows. The first mentions of crossbows in ancient chronicles date back to the 5th century BC. The ancient Chinese thinker Sun Tzu tells us about them. In addition, Chinese archaeologists still find individual structural elements of crossbows, which indicates the high quality of the materials from which crossbows were made in ancient times.

At the same time, the inhabitants of Ancient Greece also made weapons of a similar design. The simplest crossbows were also used by the ancient Romans. In Rome there were several versions of the crossbow. Historians are well aware of their names “manuballist”, “arcuballist”.

For some time, crossbows were consigned to oblivion: they were not made and were not used during wars. The second stage in the development of these weapons occurred in the 12th century. At this time, a series of internecine wars had just broken out in Europe.

The advantages that a crossbow gives over a conventional bow include the faster flight speed of a heavier projectile, better accuracy and, as a result, greater effectiveness in battle. Mechanical devices used to cock a crossbow made it possible to achieve enormous shot power, and also to store it ready for shooting for a long time, which was not possible with a regular bow.

The range of an aimed shot from a crossbow exceeded that of a bow. This was due not only to the springs used, but also to the ammunition used. The crossbow bolt weighed about 400 grams, which, combined with its high flight speed, allowed it to hit warriors protected by armor that could not be penetrated by a bow. In addition, the use of a groove along which the bolt slid during the shot had a beneficial effect on shooting accuracy.

However, the crossbow had one very big drawback. The reloading process was very difficult and took a lot of time, which during the battle could cost a warrior his life. The simplest crossbows were reloaded only by the muscular strength of the shooter himself. He rested the crossbow on the ground, stepped on the stop bracket and pulled the bowstring upward, securing it to a special trigger stop. Only in the 19th century did more complex crossbows appear, the design of which made it possible to increase the rate of fire of these weapons. However, medieval warriors could only dream of such crossbows.

With the development of technological progress, crossbows were modernized and became more complex. They were equipped with additional mechanisms to reduce the load on the shooter and speed up the tension of the bowstring. Instead of a gutter, they began to use tubes with slots (prototypes of future firearms barrels). Thus, the “arquebus” appeared - a crossbow capable of firing bullets.

Nowadays it’s easy to buy a crossbow in almost any store that sells goods for hunting or sports. Using modern composite materials and new technologies, manufacturers have achieved the highest power and reliability of crossbows.

The history of crossbows continues to develop today. However, the scope of use of crossbows these days is extremely narrow. As a rule, this is a sport. However, they remain in service with the military. Special reconnaissance and anti-terrorism units of the leading countries of the world use crossbows to silently shoot at the enemy and to overcome obstacles.

CROSSBOW (French arbalete), a throwing weapon in European countries in the Middle Ages: a steel or wooden bow mounted on a wooden machine (stock); the bowstring was pulled tight by the collar. In Rus' they called it a crossbow. * * * CROSSBOW (French arbalete from Latin arcus - bow and ballista - throwing projectile), cold throwing weapon in the Middle Ages, a steel or wooden bow mounted on a wooden machine (stock). Shooting from a crossbow is carried out with short arrows with leather or wooden fletching (or without it). The first crossbows in Europe appeared in the ninth century. The accuracy and power of crossbow shooting made such a strong impression on contemporaries that in 1139 the Pope at the Second Lateran Council condemned the crossbow as an “ungodly weapon” and proposed to exclude it from the arsenal of Christian troops. However, subsequently, crossbows not only did not go out of use, but, on the contrary, received widespread recognition. They began to be abandoned only in the sixteenth century as firearms spread and improved. German landsknechts used the crossbow until the end of the sixteenth century, and British riflemen fought with it even in 1627. The medieval crossbow consisted of a wooden stock with a butt that allowed it to be thrown over the shoulder. A longitudinal groove was arranged in the stock, where a short heavy arrow was placed. A bow was attached to the stock. A strong, thick bowstring was usually woven from ox sinew or hemp. Depending on the method of cocking the bowstring, medieval crossbows were divided into three main types. In the simplest version, the bowstring was pulled using an attached iron lever called a “goat’s leg.” For a more powerful crossbow, the bowstring was pulled by a gear mechanism. And the most formidable and long-range was the crossbow, equipped with a collar - a block device with two handles. A type of crossbow that fired stone bullets was called a ballister. A lightweight ballister model was called a schnapper. In Rus', crossbows were called crossbows. They have been known here since the 10th century. A crossbow in Rus' was a small bow made of horn or iron, attached to a wooden stock, on which short arrows forged from iron were placed into an existing groove. The taut bowstring clung to a lever, pressing which the shooter released the bowstring. Later, crossbows began to be divided into hand-held and easel. A hand-held crossbow was tensioned using a stirrup (an iron bracket for resting the foot, or a gate), and the descent was made using a simple trigger device. The easel crossbow was mounted on a special machine (frame) with wheels. It used a steel bow and a thick bowstring made of rope or ox sinew, for cocking which a toothed device was used - a self-shooting brace. The introduction of braces represented a major improvement in the design of crossbows, since up to 50 warriors were involved in pulling the bowstring of crossbows in the 12th-14th centuries. In the twentieth century, the crossbow was sometimes used as a military weapon in wars of national liberation, most often as a trap crossbow. During the First World War of 1914-1918, the Germans used the easel crossbow as a grenade launcher. Since the mid-1950s, crossbow sports have been developing in Western countries. Sports crossbows served as a model for the creation of modern military crossbows. In terms of their dimensions and weight, they are close to machine guns and submachine guns and are used in reconnaissance and sabotage units. Combat crossbows are often made dismountable, which simplifies their transportation and camouflage.

Who is who in the world of discoveries and inventions Sitnikov Vitaly Pavlovich

When was the crossbow invented?

One of the oldest types of weapons is the bow. A crossbow is the same as a bow, only its string is pulled mechanically. The first crossbow was invented around 1050 in France. An arrow fired from a crossbow could fly 305 meters or more.

A crossbow is a military weapon that appeared as a result of the improvement of the hand bow. Its bowstring is usually made of steel and is tensioned using a collar. The arrow is inserted into the stock, which also serves as a sight. The destructive power of a crossbow is such that it can hit a living target at a distance of up to a hundred meters or more. In the Middle Ages, the crossbow was the most common weapon, but in the 12th century it was banned as an overly dangerous and insidious weapon.

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