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crossbow

A crossbow is a weapon consisting of a bow mounted on a stock that shoots bolts. It was created in the Mediterranean and in China separately. A mechanism in the stock holds the bow in its fully-drawn position until it is shot by releasing a trigger. Crossbows played a significant role in the warfare of North Africa, Europe and Asia. Crossbows are used today primarily for target shooting and hunting.

Sketch by Leonardo DaVinci, c. 1500

MACES

mace is a simple weapon that uses a heavy head on the end of a handle to deliver powerful blows. A development of the club, a mace differs from a hammer in that the head of a mace is radially symmetric so that a blow can be delivered equally effectively with any side of the head. A mace consists of a strong, heavy wooden, metal-reinforced, or metal shaft, with a head made of stone, copper, bronze, iron or steel.

The head is normally about the same or slightly thicker than the diameter of the shaft and can be shaped with flanges, or knobs to allow greater penetration of armour. The length of maces can vary considerably. The maces of foot soldiers were usually quite short (two or three feet, or 700 to 900 mm). The maces of cavalrymen were longer and better designed for blows from horseback. Two-handed maces could be even larger. The flail is often, though incorrectly, referred to as a mace. The Flanged Mace was a formidable hand-to-hand combat weapon in Medieval times, capable of smashing even the heaviest plate armour when wielded by a mounted knight. Our 7-flanged mace is typical of those used throughout Europe. Equipped with a leather wrist and saddle thong, it features a wire-wrapped, spiral-bound grip and is built on a steel tube, rather than a solid rod, to provide better balance.

However in the early 16th century the wheelock was invented. A metal wheel spun against a piece or iron pyrites generating sparks that ignited the gunpowder. As a result most cavalry stopped using lances. Instead they carried two or three pistols each, ready to fire, and sabres.

Meanwhile the traditional English weapon was the longbow but handguns were increasingly used. The longbow slowly went out of use during the 16th century. However muskets took a long time to reload and during that time the infantry needed protection from cavalry. They were protected by men with pikes (a weapon like a long spear).

Samurai fought with long swords called katana and short swords called wakizashi. They also used spears called yari and daggers called tanta. Samurai also had skewers called kogai and small knives called kozuka.

Indian soldiers fought with a curved sword called tulwar or with a type of Sabre called a shamshir. (Known in Europe as a scimitar).

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12y ago

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