Early Medieval Artillery
In
the age of empires, where written history begins, bronze and then
iron swords and axes were the weapons of close combat while the
bow
and arrow, crossbow and the spear, were the weapons of lethality at a
distance. As defenders began to invest in high walls to
stop
attackers, and especially their horses 1), a new category of weapon
entered the inventory (along with infantry, and cavalry): the
artillery.
Within
the generic name catapult are two types of
weapons,
both called trebuchet, as well as torsion based stone throwers.
The trebuchets used the properties of a lever to convert a large force
moving slowly through a small arc into an equivalent force moving a
small mass through the same (angular) arc at a higher velocity.
The traction trebuchet
used soldiers
pulling
ropes along with unequal lever arms and a sling to launch stones.
The
counterweight
trebuchet
used a counterweight and unequal lever
arms. The tension was stored by pulling the throwing arm down
before launch (raising the counterweight).
The traction trebuchet began to be used about 400 BC in China, and was
used by King Richard the Lion Hearted at the siege of acre in 1191
(during the crusades). The mongols and the Muslims also used them
after a rapid learning experience.
There was also the magonal
which
was based on using the torsion of ropes of hair as a spring, and the balista a giant crossbow dating from Roman
times.
Specs
Weapon
Appearance
Payload
Range
Traction Trebuchet
400
BC
100 kg
30 - 60 m
Counterweight Trebuchet 1100
AD
50-100 kg 300
m
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1) The Great Wall of China
was to prevent the passage of horses.