History and Differences Between Bows
In this project, I will write about the general history of archery, the history of the three most popular bows, what makes them different, and how they would be best used today. I am doing this project because I enjoy doing archery and learning about history.
Bows are thought to have first been used during the transition from the Upper Paleolithic to the Mesolithic era. One of the oldest signs of archery is considered to be arrows made of pine with a flint point from about 8,000 BC. One of the oldest bows found came from the Holmegaard swamp in Denmark dating back to around 6,000 BC. Another early piece of evidence of archery is bone arrows that were discovered in the Sibudu Cave in South Africa from around 6,100 years ago. Another early example of archery is in Nataruk, Kenya when obsidian bladelets thought be part of arrows were found. The Huns, Seljuq Turks, Mongols, and Eskimos had what are considered to be some of the most powerful bows with composite bows made of thin laths of wood made stiff at the back of the bow with strips of horn, and made strong at the front with glued on layers of cow sinew. Bows are widely considered to have been the primary war weapon until guns were invented as well as being considered the most powerful missile weapon until the revolving pistol.
Longbows were mainly made of yew but also included other woods such as ash, hazel, or elm. They were often made of a single cut of wood cut down to the correct size and shape in a process that sometimes took four years. The longbow is believed to have been invented in Wales around early 2,000 BC. The oldest longbow found to date was found in Ashcott Heath in Somerset, UK, dating back to 2665 BC. The longbow is known for being as tall as a man averaging about 6 feet tall with a draw weight of around 150 pounds. It is capable of shooting and killing at a range of over 200 feet, even if the targeted person is wearing armor. A well trained longbowman could shoot six well aimed shots in a minute or a less aimed shot every five seconds.
The longbows were particularly useful to the English during the Hundred Years War. Their usefulness was proven during the Battle of Sluys in 1340 when the bows were able to wreak havoc on the swarm of French ships; during the Battle of Crecy in 1346 during which the French lost about 11 princes, 1,200 knights, and 30,000 soldiers while only losing 100 people when the battle was extremely in the French favor with the French having 60,000 people total to the English’s 20,000; and at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 when the English killed around 20oo French elite knights.The Battle of Agincourt in 1415 is perhaps the most famous of the longbow victories. The Battle of Verneuil in 1424 is when the longbowmen began to be less successful as they had their lines broken; this continued at the Battle of Patay in 1429 when the English were completely routed.
The selective cutting of yew caused major shortages and deforestation around the world. The first major import of yew bow staves was in 1294. A major shortage in 1350 caused King Henry IV of England to order his bowyer to enter private land to cut down yew, ash, and hazel trees. In 1470, the practice of compulsory cutting of trees was renewed. In 1472, the Statute of Westminster mandated that all ships had to carry 4 bow staves for every ton of cargo. In the early 1480s, King Richard III increased the mandate to 10 bow staves for every ton of cargo. Because of the shortage of wood for bow staves in 1483, the cost of bow staves rose from 2 pounds per hundred bow staves to 8 pounds per hundred and in 1510, the Venetians were able to get 16 pounds per hundred. Because the demand for bow staves in 1507 raised the deforestation, the Holy Roman Emperor pleaded with the Duke of Bavaria, the ruler of Bavaria, which was one of the main suppliers of the wood, to stop cutting the trees down. After his first plea went unnoticed, the Holy Roman Emperor tried again. This time with information on how the selective cutting of yew was destroying the forests by breaking the canopy and allowing wind to harm neighboring trees. In 1568, although the demand for wood was high, there were no mature trees to be found.
Crossbows were made of wood with a curved C shape held in place by a string that is attached to a stock, or as it was also known a tiller, which held the arrow and connected the trigger to the string. Crossbows are believed to have been invented in the 5th or 6th century BC but are believed to not have really gained popularity until the Middle Ages. The crossbow was not very accurate but was highly effective at a short or medium range. The crossbow was used mainly in Asia and Europe.
The first crossbow stocks with bronze triggers were found in Asia in tombs 3 and 12 in Qufu Shandong dating back to the 6th century. In the mid 5th century, bronze crossbow bolts were found at a Chu burial site in the city of Yuntaishan, in Jiangling County in the Hubei Province of China The crossbow was commonly used in China during the Warring States period, about mid 4th century onward. In 169 BC, the crossbow was described as the primary weapon of the Chinese army by official Chao Cuo. In a military manuscript from 1044 the crossbow was described as the most effective weapon against nomads and as a highly effective sniper weapon. In 1004, during the Liao dynasty, military general Xiao Talin was killed by a crossbow sniper at the Battle of Shenzhou.
In Europe, crossbows first appeared in ancient Greece during the 5th century BC. Crossbows did not gain prominence till the Battle of Hastings, in 1066, between the Norman/French army and the English army and continued to be popular until around 1515, when the invention of efficient firearms caused a major drop in popularity. In battle, crossbowman occupied the central position which meant that they were the first line of defense, the first line of offense, and the people in the most danger. Because of their usefulness, crossbowmen were paid more than foot soldiers and were held in much higher esteem than foot soldiers. The rank of commander of crossbowman was one of the highest rank in many medieval European armies including the armies of Spain, France, and Italy. In Spain, they were so highly ranked that they were on par with the knightly class, which was one of the highest castes of the Medieval Ages. Oddly enough, considering how much crossbowman were esteemed, the crossbow was also insurgent peasants and serfs weapon of choice. The crossbow was also the weapon of choice for the famed Genoese mercenaries.
The crossbow is widely considered to have been the most popular weapon throughout Europe during most of the Middle Ages, starting around the 12th century. The exception to this was England, where the longbow was more popular. The main reason the crossbow was more popular than the longbow was because unlike the longbow which took years to get proficient and even more years to get adept, the crossbow could be effectively used after only a couple of weeks of practice. Because of this shorter learning time, crossbow mercenaries were paid more than longbow mercenaries, but the crossbow mercenary had more equipment and had assistants they had to pay. So, they ended up with less money overall than the longbowman did because they only had themselves to pay for and had less equipment. Other drawbacks to the crossbow was that the string was exposed to the elements because the crossbows did not have removable strings like the other bows used.
The French army was one of the European armies with crossbows, which they utilised during the Hundred Years War. The French lost the Battle of Sluys in 1340 when the English longbows were able to fire on the closely packed French ships; during the Battle of Crecy in 1346 when they had devastating losses even though the battle was extremely in the French favor with the French having around 60,000 people to the English’s 20,000; at the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 when the English longbows were able to kill around 2,000 French elite knights; The Battle of Agincourt in 1415 is perhaps the most famous of the crossbow failings. At the Battle of Verneuil in 1424 the crossbows were more successful by breaking the lines of the English; the French’s success continued at the Battle of Patay in 1429 when the English were completely routed. After the hundred years war the French use of crossbow declined because the French after seeing the devastating effect of longbows tried to convert to their regular use but longbows never caught on in France, and the French eventually went back to the regular use of crossbows. The French continued to use crossbows through 1520 even though handguns were used by most of Europe by then. The Spanish extensively used the crossbow in their new world adventures even way after the handgun was the main weapon in Europe. Two notable examples of this were when Hernán Cortés was able to conquer the Aztec empire due to the help of crossbowman, and when Francisco Pizarro traveled through Peru, he had many crossbowmen at his side but by the time Peru was conquered he only had a dozen or so crossbowman left in his service.
The first evidence of recurves ever found was in the possession of Ötzi the Iceman who had an unfinished bow dating back to 8000 - 9000 BC in Schleswig, Holstein, in Germany. Recurves were also mentioned in many ancient writings - most notably the Bible in Psalms 78:57, which is dated by most scholars to the eighth century BC, and in The Odyssey as the bow that none of Penelope's suitors could bend and was eventually their destruction when Odysseus returned. The recurve was used by many others - primarily the Persians, Scythians, Dacians, Cumans, Hyksos, Magyars, Huns, Greeks, Turks, Mongols, and Chinese. They were also used in Egypt starting around the second millennium BC. The recurve was also the standard weapon of ancient Roman archers. Recurves were the most common type of bow in North America because of the forests where the larger and longer longbow would be cumbersome. Recurves were also used by the Mongols on horseback because longbows would get tangled in the saddle or reins. Presently, recurves are the official bow of the Olympics, and it is against the rules to use any other b0w except in certain cases in the Paralympics.
The compound bow was invented by Holless Wilbur Allen in Billings, Missouri in 1966, because he wanted a more efficient bow. He created it by sawing off the limbs of a recurve bow and attaching pulleys to make the bow pull easier with the same amount of power as a recurve or longbow. On June 23, 1966, he applied for a patent but his patent was not accepted until December of 1969. The compound bow is used in certain exceptions for the Paralympics. The compound bow is also the most used bow in the United States
Some pluses to longbows are: they are extremely powerful, they have a very long range, they can shoot fast, they have little equipment, and they are easy to carry around because you can destring them. Some drawbacks to longbows are: they are large, they take many years to get good at, they take many more years to become experts at, and they take enormous amounts of strength to operate. Some positives to crossbows are: they take very little time to learn, they take little time to master, they are powerful, and they have a fairly long range. Some problems with crossbows are: they need a lot of equipment, they are more subject to the weather, they are less accurate, and they can not shoot as fast as longbows. Some helpful points of recurves are: they are accurate; they are fast, they are powerful, and they are small. Some troubles with recurves are: they are not as powerful as longbows, they are not as fast as longbows, if strung wrong the bow can be destroyed, and they are more subject to breaking because of the extreme strain on the bow. One plus of compound bows is they are powerful with little effort. One downside of compound bows is they are not particularly accurate. If you are looking for a bow to be used in a medieval battle, that bow would be the longbow because the longbow has a fast shooting speed, enough power to go through armor, and extensive range. If you are looking for a bow to use when on horseback, that bow would be the recurve because although the compound bow is powerful it is not very accurate on the ground much less on a horse, unlike the recurve which is small, powerful, and accurate. If you want a bow for hunting, your best bet would be the compound because it is small, but powerful, and you can load and shoot fairly fast. If you want a bow to use when shooting at people from the trees, then the crossbow is your best option because a longbow would get caught in the branches, a recurve would not be powerful enough, and a compound would not be accurate enough. As a whole no bow is superior to another, but in different situations, each bow brings some positive qualities.