0:47 Thanks for adding that clip with the gastraphetes "belly bow" in there, but I wish the cocking process was shown. I think the concept should have been kept and refined and simplified, as it permitted very quick firing of bolts especially when used with any kind of magazine built into the stock. A simple pendulum or plumb-bob type mechanism (seen on some handheld grenade launchers today) could have been used to improve the accuracy and coordination of militia or dedicated crossbowmen. Unfortunately, history took a different path and we ended up with slow, bulky, and inefficient windlasses for dismounted crossbows. Joerg Sprave made an incredibly powerful modernized gastraphetes which used TWO 70-lbs modern compound bows. A similar mechanism was also shown on Roman manuballistas, I think. Draw length is really underrated when it comes to crossbows. On another note, I'm almost done writing my first book -- a dark portal fantasy novel. I had my protagonist introduce the concept to the setting for big game hunting, and it ends up being a popular weapon of war prior to the adoption of improved black powder weapons there. Nice and concise video overall!
Crossbow scope has markers that each tic beneath the center allowed for an additional 10 yards. I have a Barnett 410 Ghost and I've shot and hit the target at 100 yards and it penetrates a Black Block target designed for 400 fps and above crossbows and it still penetrates the target by a good 7 inches and hard as hell to pull out. One factor that allows the crossbow bolt deeper penetration and an arrow is the crossbow bolts are generally heavier. They didn't have to penetrate the plate mail armor, armored soldiers would die from the blunt force trauma caused by the heavier bolts. That's why maces and war hammers were a more preferred weapon than a sword against a plate mailed opponent because of the blunt force trauma penetration through the armor. Swords were too light at the point of contact and didn't affect blunt force trauma. A mace could shatter a person's arm through absorption of the impact through the shield. A good blow to the breast plate with a mace could stop a person's heart just from the impact alone.
Crossbow quarrels were often intended not to penetrate armour but to unhorse a knight. Having fallen wearing weighty armour he was so stunned as to be easily subdued if the fall hsdn't killed him bur he was more valuable for ransom than dead. Just like today it was the peasants who didn't matter.
I'd read many years ago that originally the crossbow projectile was termed a 'quarrel'. Now it's invariably referred to as a bolt. Did I understand correctly - ?
I was taught at age 13, with a 70# C bow with a stirrup and it was a "quarrel" then. It was so powerful that we lost many quarrels in the grass that we never found because if you lost sight of it, which we almost always did, it just kept going. My respect and fear of the power of the crossbow started then. FF to history and the pope and the rich and powerful so scared of assignation by rightfully angry peasants they passed laws against them to protect themselves. Sort of like today when we are allowed to "bear arms, to hunt Bambis" but not anything powerful enough to counter a fascist police state that all democrats and liberals dream of.
Crossbows were less accurate than regular bows, not more so. When the archer raised his weapon to put his bolt on an elliptical trajectory the body of his crossbow often obstructed his view; and a crossbow string released by a primitive trigger mechanism gave the bolt a less controlled kick than a regular bow's string gave its arrow. That reduced accuracy considerably. But crossbows could be more easily fired through loopholes; from turrets and behind pavises etc. And heavy crossbows used in sieges, especially in a defensive role, had more killing power than longbows.
All correct, except that the ballistic trajectory of an arrow or a crossbow quarrel is parabolic -- not elliptical. Otherwise, I completely agree with you.
Hm, it seems that you underestimate the precision and penetration power of the crossbow, much superior to that of the bow. For example, in the first mongol invasion of Hungary, there was a bridge that the mongols had to conquer and that was defended by the hungarians. The mongols used the composite bow, superior to the english longbow. However, in the fight for the bridge, which was guarded by a regiment of crossbowmen, they could not do anything. It was necessary for the mongols to bring catapults with which to attack the crossbowmen in order to conquer the bridge.
A bow is a bow. The penetration is the result of the velocity and mass of the arrow. There is nothing special about a crossbow that makes it have higher penetrative power. The true advantage of the crossbow is accuracy; it takes very little training to be able to shoot a crossbow with moderate accuracy.
Most of the time it takes to make a good archer was building up the strength to use a 80+ pound bow . Whereas a crossbow you didn’t have to do this . Which is why they were easier to use for The majority of people
And some people think that more lethal weaponry, and more of them, will make them safer. That's never been the case, anywhere it happened. That's hollywood cowboi b.s. even in the 'wild west', one of the first town ordinances was often that transients deposit their guns while in town, and forbidding wearing guns. Why? Impulse gunfire by amateurs kills random citizens. And that was single action, and often single shot black powder weaponry. Semiauto cordite, with ten round plus mags aren't necessary for any legal or safe activity., Gunned up paranoid freaks don't make good neighbors.
@@armandbourque2468extreme is unwelcome in all cases. But to deny possession rights is ridiculous, especially when you are facing armed criminals every second crime scene.
@@armandbourque2468 did you skip history lessons at school or did I really read "colonized by India"? As for the part on civilized part of this comment, I will take it as an affirmative on your having never been to history classes. Because, Indian mines have exported the iron ores for armies as far back as the days of Alexander. And that is the same Alexander who conquered the world to our gates and then turned back home. For both he couldn't fight his way into India and also that he was influenced by the wise teachings of a sadhu. So, I will suggest you get some history text books, do some reading on european colonization and forcibly trying to civilize civilizations to path of christ (I wonder what jesus would have thought of it). Please feel free to express further frustrations and complexes if you need to. Indians have handled that since centuries.
Which is why a smart medieval king should have used women on the ramparts to defend cities, because anyone can cock a crossbow, but it takes power and big arms to hold a bow at full draw. A crossbow can be lined up and held by a women or kid for an hour, just waiting for King Richard to peek his sneaky head up for just long enough. Not using women in a total war scenario is a giant waste of manpower, which is why Heet lar was such an idiot he forbad it.
@@mutteringmale yeah but i think most crossbows that were powerful enough to be useful in a battle situation would be a bit hard for the average woman to cock, or at least to keep cocking it at length
@@paulharrison2351 I know a lot about crossbows son, having a 70# stirrup cocked one at age 13. Now you tell me all about how you're a paid assasin using a crossbow. Here:
@ maybe he should say what he means then. This is another example of someone trying to be clever and making more mistakes than everyone else whilst doing it
Very Europe focused. You can technically convert any bow to a Crossbow. They may not be great for formation battle fields but the reload speed would be quick. Not everything was in regards to war and soldiers.
Hilarious! In the very first shot, 3 phat guys try to shoot a bow, two of them from the wrong side, which is a common mistake made by liberal directors in movies, them having been brought up by liberal mothers of low intellect which didn't allow their future beta male boys to play with any weapons, or read about them. When I was a kid, we all made our own bows, sling shot and had BB guns. None of us 'put your eyes out" or heard of anyone that did.
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0:47 Thanks for adding that clip with the gastraphetes "belly bow" in there, but I wish the cocking process was shown. I think the concept should have been kept and refined and simplified, as it permitted very quick firing of bolts especially when used with any kind of magazine built into the stock. A simple pendulum or plumb-bob type mechanism (seen on some handheld grenade launchers today) could have been used to improve the accuracy and coordination of militia or dedicated crossbowmen. Unfortunately, history took a different path and we ended up with slow, bulky, and inefficient windlasses for dismounted crossbows. Joerg Sprave made an incredibly powerful modernized gastraphetes which used TWO 70-lbs modern compound bows. A similar mechanism was also shown on Roman manuballistas, I think. Draw length is really underrated when it comes to crossbows.
On another note, I'm almost done writing my first book -- a dark portal fantasy novel. I had my protagonist introduce the concept to the setting for big game hunting, and it ends up being a popular weapon of war prior to the adoption of improved black powder weapons there.
Nice and concise video overall!
08:17 That guy in airsoft refusing to take the hit...
Nope, not me, missed me, that is a flesh wound and that is just on my costume... Pesants!
Crossbow scope has markers that each tic beneath the center allowed for an additional 10 yards. I have a Barnett 410 Ghost and I've shot and hit the target at 100 yards and it penetrates a Black Block target designed for 400 fps and above crossbows and it still penetrates the target by a good 7 inches and hard as hell to pull out. One factor that allows the crossbow bolt deeper penetration and an arrow is the crossbow bolts are generally heavier. They didn't have to penetrate the plate mail armor, armored soldiers would die from the blunt force trauma caused by the heavier bolts. That's why maces and war hammers were a more preferred weapon than a sword against a plate mailed opponent because of the blunt force trauma penetration through the armor. Swords were too light at the point of contact and didn't affect blunt force trauma. A mace could shatter a person's arm through absorption of the impact through the shield. A good blow to the breast plate with a mace could stop a person's heart just from the impact alone.
Crossbow quarrels were often intended not to penetrate armour but to unhorse a knight. Having fallen wearing weighty armour he was so stunned as to be easily subdued if the fall hsdn't killed him bur he was more valuable for ransom than dead. Just like today it was the peasants who didn't matter.
I dont know that it really had the kinetic energy to do that. I mean Ive seen guys take lances and stay in their seats.
@@b.h.abbott-motley2427There isn’t any
It’s nonsense
@@brianhowe201 That's when they see the lance coming -- they can brace for the impact. A quarrel, on the other hand, often comes unseen.
Very Informative and Well Done.
I'd read many years ago that originally the crossbow projectile was termed a 'quarrel'. Now it's invariably referred to as a bolt. Did I understand correctly - ?
I was taught at age 13, with a 70# C bow with a stirrup and it was a "quarrel" then. It was so powerful that we lost many quarrels in the grass that we never found because if you lost sight of it, which we almost always did, it just kept going. My respect and fear of the power of the crossbow started then.
FF to history and the pope and the rich and powerful so scared of assignation by rightfully angry peasants they passed laws against them to protect themselves. Sort of like today when we are allowed to "bear arms, to hunt Bambis" but not anything powerful enough to counter a fascist police state that all democrats and liberals dream of.
Crossbows were less accurate than regular bows, not more so. When the archer raised his weapon to put his bolt on an elliptical trajectory the body of his crossbow often obstructed his view; and a crossbow string released by a primitive trigger mechanism gave the bolt a less controlled kick than a regular bow's string gave its arrow. That reduced accuracy considerably.
But crossbows could be more easily fired through loopholes; from turrets and behind pavises etc. And heavy crossbows used in sieges, especially in a defensive role, had more killing power than longbows.
All correct, except that the ballistic trajectory of an arrow or a crossbow quarrel is parabolic -- not elliptical. Otherwise, I completely agree with you.
Hm, it seems that you underestimate the precision and penetration power of the crossbow, much superior to that of the bow. For example, in the first mongol invasion of Hungary, there was a bridge that the mongols had to conquer and that was defended by the hungarians. The mongols used the composite bow, superior to the english longbow. However, in the fight for the bridge, which was guarded by a regiment of crossbowmen, they could not do anything. It was necessary for the mongols to bring catapults with which to attack the crossbowmen in order to conquer the bridge.
A bow is a bow. The penetration is the result of the velocity and mass of the arrow.
There is nothing special about a crossbow that makes it have higher penetrative power.
The true advantage of the crossbow is accuracy; it takes very little training to be able to shoot a crossbow with moderate accuracy.
What movie was the last clip from. The one where the guy gets hit with about 200 arrows.
American gods Season 1 Episode 1
Most of the time it takes to make a good archer was building up the strength to use a 80+ pound bow . Whereas a crossbow you didn’t have to do this . Which is why they were easier to use for
The majority of people
Well the crossbow works similar to a gun's magazine.
Cool
It all depends on the man using it
When using a text reader for the audio, consider using "bo" instead of "bow" for the correct pronunciation of a bow (the weapon).
And people suppose gun bans will work any better than the Pope's bow ban!?! 😂
And some people think that more lethal weaponry, and more of them, will make them safer. That's never been the case, anywhere it happened. That's hollywood cowboi b.s. even in the 'wild west', one of the first town ordinances was often that transients deposit their guns while in town, and forbidding wearing guns. Why? Impulse gunfire by amateurs kills random citizens. And that was single action, and often single shot black powder weaponry. Semiauto cordite, with ten round plus mags aren't necessary for any legal or safe activity., Gunned up paranoid freaks don't make good neighbors.
😂
You should see the illegal gun industry since after brits and their legacy of arms act put ban to them.
@@armandbourque2468extreme is unwelcome in all cases. But to deny possession rights is ridiculous, especially when you are facing armed criminals every second crime scene.
@vayamasti maybe in india. Or places colonised by india. Civilised places, not so much.
@@armandbourque2468 did you skip history lessons at school or did I really read "colonized by India"?
As for the part on civilized part of this comment, I will take it as an affirmative on your having never been to history classes.
Because, Indian mines have exported the iron ores for armies as far back as the days of Alexander. And that is the same Alexander who conquered the world to our gates and then turned back home. For both he couldn't fight his way into India and also that he was influenced by the wise teachings of a sadhu.
So, I will suggest you get some history text books, do some reading on european colonization and forcibly trying to civilize civilizations to path of christ (I wonder what jesus would have thought of it).
Please feel free to express further frustrations and complexes if you need to.
Indians have handled that since centuries.
it takes years to become a competant archer, but a crossbow requires less skill and only a little training
Which is why a smart medieval king should have used women on the ramparts to defend cities, because anyone can cock a crossbow, but it takes power and big arms to hold a bow at full draw. A crossbow can be lined up and held by a women or kid for an hour, just waiting for King Richard to peek his sneaky head up for just long enough.
Not using women in a total war scenario is a giant waste of manpower, which is why Heet lar was such an idiot he forbad it.
@@mutteringmale yeah but i think most crossbows that were powerful enough to be useful in a battle situation would be a bit hard for the average woman to cock, or at least to keep cocking it at length
@@mutteringmaleu obviously don’t know much about the crossbows of the time as they were not easy to cock and were also heavy
@@paulharrison2351 I know a lot about crossbows son, having a 70# stirrup cocked one at age 13. Now you tell me all about how you're a paid assasin using a crossbow. Here:
Since when did a rifle shoot in a straight line ?
Comparatively speaking I think he meant...
@ maybe he should say what he means then. This is another example of someone trying to be clever and making more mistakes than everyone else whilst doing it
@ title should be changed to .. think I know rifles? think again
0:19 Simone!!
Very Europe focused. You can technically convert any bow to a Crossbow. They may not be great for formation battle fields but the reload speed would be quick. Not everything was in regards to war and soldiers.
Hilarious! In the very first shot, 3 phat guys try to shoot a bow, two of them from the wrong side, which is a common mistake made by liberal directors in movies, them having been brought up by liberal mothers of low intellect which didn't allow their future beta male boys to play with any weapons, or read about them. When I was a kid, we all made our own bows, sling shot and had BB guns. None of us 'put your eyes out" or heard of anyone that did.
Losing a gun is very powerful, firing a bow not as much as a gun 🤔