catapult

 

(kăt'əpŭlt') , mechanism used to throw missiles in ancient and medieval warfare. At first, catapults were specifically designed to shoot spears or other missiles at a low trajectory (see bow and arrow). They were originally distinguished from ballistae and trebuchets, both of which were large military engines used to hurl stones and other missiles, but these distinctions later blurred. Later, larger catapults mounted on a single arm also hurled stones, pots of boiling oil, and incendiaries at a high trajectory. They were used to attack or defend fortifications. Catapults were widely employed in siege warfare, but with the introduction of artillery they passed from use. In the 20th cent. catapults using hydraulic pressure were reintroduced to launch aircraft from warships.

A catapult is any siege engine which uses an arm to hurl a projectile a great distance, though the term is generally understood to mean medieval siege weapons. The name is derived from the Greek κατά (against) and βαλλεῖν (to hurl (a missile)). (An alternate derivation is from the Greek "katapeltes" meaning "shield piercer," kata (pierce) and pelta (small shield)). Originally, "catapult" referred to a dart-thrower, while "ballista" referred to a stone-thrower, but the two terms swapped meaning sometime in the fourth century AD.

Catapults were used mainly in siege. An army would carry a few necessary pieces with them because wood was easily available. Although usually incorrectly depicted with a spoon on the end of the arm (as in the picture to the right) catapults were most often equipped with a sling to hold the projectile.

History

In Europe, the first catapults appeared in Greek times around 400 BC–300 BC^[1]. According to Greek engineer and inventor Hero of Alexandria, the first types derived from by the earlier gastraphetes ("Belly-bow"), consisting in composite bow mounted transversely on a stock, much like the crossbow. A larger version of this was called an oxybeles and is the precurser to the ballista. Biton attributes created the first crewed catapult to one Zopyrus from Taranto, in southern Italy.

Early adopters of the catapult design were Dionysius of Syracuse (who called it katapeltikon) and Onomarchus of Phocis. Katapaltai are mentioned in the Siegecraft (Poliorkētika) treatise of Aeneas Tacticus, from around 350 BC. It is probable that standard torsion-powered catapults entered in common use in Greek world and Macedon only around 330 BC. Alexander the Great introduced the idea of using them to provide cover on the battlefield in addition to using them during sieges. Projectiles included both arrows and (later) stones.

Romans started to use catapults probably as arms for their wars against Syracuse, Macedon, Sparta and Aetolia (3rd–2nd century BC). Standard use of artillery (ballista and onager) is attested only from the time of Julius Caesar, however.

Muhammad bin Qasim, a Muslim general used a catapult, named Aroos, against the army of Sindh. Due to an underground leakout, he came to know that Hindus residing inside the walls of the fort had a strange belief. According to them, the fort of Raja Dahir was safe until the religious flag mounted on top of the fort was safe. Muhammad bin Qasim, still 18, was able to shoot a bullseye at the flag. Eventually it was grounded and Muslims took over the city with decisive victory.

In the Medieval times, when the trebuchet was introduced a relatively short time before the advent of gunpowder, the catapult became basically obsolete. Cannons soon replaced catapults as the standard siege weapon in Europe in the 14th century.

During medieval times, catapults and related siege machines were the first weapons used for biological warfare. The carcasses of diseased animals or even diseased humans, usually those who had perished from the Black Death, were loaded onto the catapult and then thrown over the castle's walls to infect those barricaded inside. There have even been recorded instances of beehives being catapulted over castle walls.

The last large-scale military use of catapults was during the trench warfare of World War I. During the early stages of the war, catapults were used to throw hand grenades across no man's land into enemy trenches.

Until recently, in England, catapults were used by thrill-seekers as human catapults to experience being catapulted through the air. The practice has been discontinued due to fatalities, when the participants failed to land onto the safety net.

See also

• Siege engine
• Onager (siege weapon)
• Trebuchet
• Slingshot
• Aircraft catapult
• Mass driver
• Ballista
• Mangonel

References

1. ^

   Catapult History. Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
   

External links

• Sunward Aerospace, feature a working Catapult Model Kit
• Offers catapults for science projects and engineering courses on experimentation (commercial site)
• Catapult Plans and Design
• Medieval Catapult Articles
• Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity - An Illustrated History
• Video of Spring Trebuchet in Action
• A modern slinging catapult for competition & entertainment, features photos and videos of a pumpkin hurling and appliance tossing catapult
• The official web site of the Chateau des Baux, catapult shootings every day =='

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