Trebuchet: A Medieval Siege Weapon

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*Information isn't parenthetically cited, as there is no direct quote, but credit is given to source in work cited

h15477

Science 8 A, Period 6

11/20/16

Introduction

Many people know the catapult as a medieval siege weapon that is second to none. One can find the catapult in just about any game about medieval warfare such as Clash Royale, etc. However, a lesser known siege weapon, yet way more powerful one, is the trebuchet. First made in China in about 500 B.C, the trebuchet was a weapon that can even be called the atomic bomb of the medieval world. First introduced to Europe in about 500 A.D, it was used extensively to siege, or take over, enemy fortresses. Trebuchets, the name is "derived from the Old French Word trebucher meaning to throw over"(Alchin), were then introduced to England during the Siege of Dover in 1216 when the French used trebuchets to obliterate the walls of Dover Castle*. Although these weapons struck fear into all who witnessed there destructive powers, they eventually became obsolete when the canon was created. However, the purpose of this project is not to lay siege to a castle's walls, the overall purpose is to understand the physics of a trebuchet enough to modify one to improve its launch distance. …show more content…
However, the physics behind it are actually quite rudimentary. The driving force behind a trebuchet is really just gravity. First, "A very large force is applied to the shorter end of the arm, the load is on the other longer end of the arm with the fulcrum in

Medieval Instrument Of War

but to get the tactical advantage man had to find a way of hitting the enemy from a distance. This age of war the medieval age came from where most of mankind was almost always in a constant struggle over land. After the collapse of the Roman Empire many new societies formed, and not every kingdom had the intention of sharing land with neighboring communities this sparked medieval warfare in the areas of Europe and the Middle East. In order for one to gain the tactical advantage against the enemy…

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Trebuchet Research Paper

The trebuchet is a siege machine that is from around the 3rd century BC China. A successor of sling technology, it used tension-holding ropes to propel a projectile towards its target. In the medieval era, it reached Europe and was used extensively in the wars between England and France. Even the modern name trebuchet comes from the French word “trebuch”, or to tumble and tumble. In Europe, one of the most famous uses of the trebuchet was fighting the Cathar heresies in Southeast France. The French…

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Medieval Siege Weapons

You may think castle's defences are primitive, but actually the techknowledgey back then was pretty amazing, from murder holes and arrow loops built into a castle to defend against enemies, trebuchets and catapults and to know how to defend against one. But most commonly was siege warfare. All of these factors needed to be taken into consideration when building a castle. When building castles, everything had a purpose. Even the spiral direction of drum tower. One defence castles had at their disposal…

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Catapults Research Paper

though one does not. Catapults are a large array of medieval weaponry used to hurl large projectiles over long distances. These weapons of utter chaos and mass destruction were crucial to midevil armies if they wanted to conquer anything. The image of them hurling explosive bombs at opposing forces in open fields is largely wrong. They were used to siege castles, break down walls, poison enemies and destroy morale, though the main usage was for siege these would set up outside castles. Castles being…

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Chinese Weapons Research Paper

such as Anglo-Saxons, French, and Greeks to be the Greatest. However, the European warriors were actually always trying to catch up to the Chinese. In fact, Chinese made advances in sword making, archery, siege weapons, and ballistics long before Europeans had grasped those ideas The sword is a weapon of war that was used around the world developed individually by different groups of people. The Chinese perfected art of sword making in the Bronze Age. Before the invention of the…

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Essay on Catapults: Catapult and Catapult Project Catapults

Hannah Bales Physics- 2nd Mrs. Scott 9 October 2014 Catapult Project Catapults are siege engines that use an arm to hurl a projectile a great distance. The word "catapult" referred to a dart-thrower, while "ballista" referred to a stone-thrower, but over the years, the two terms switched meanings. Catapults were assembled at the site of a siege, and an army carried few or no pieces of it with them because the wood that was needed was usually easily available on site. The Greeks invented the…

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Trebuchet Research Paper

The trebuchet is an ancient siege weapon that reflects the intelligence of ancient engineers. There is evidence that the first trebuchet was introduced by the Chinese in the 3rd or 4th century BC. This trebuchet was not very reliable, as it used human body weight to propel an object. However, it led to later improvement of the design. The counterweight trebuchet, a more efficient design of the trebuchet, was created by people living around the Mediterranean in the 12th century. For example,…

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Medieval Weapons

In medieval times there were many different types of weapons. There were also different types of armor. They even had a basic chemical weapon. There were also some different siege weapons. In medieval times there were a large amount of variations of weapons used. Caltrops are little spiked weapon thrown on the ground. They were mainly used to keep cavalry from going through an area. They could also be used to slow down infantry. They were usually designed so that no matter how they land…

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Catapults: Large Scale Warfare

Catapults are an interesting device that has been used throughout human history. The catapult was influenced by another medieval weapon by the name of the crossbow. Catapults were used for large scale warfare. The word catapult comes from the Greek words, “kata” and “pultos”. Kata means downwards and pultos is a small shield that was taken into battle. The early term for a catapult, katapultos, was taken to mean shield piercer. Catapults were used by many countries, such as the Chinese, Romans, French…

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How Did Medieval Weapons Start

History of Medieval Weaponry The Medieval era is known for a multitude of things, such as castles, kings, the plague, and of course the weapons. Ranging from the first spears and swords, to the various advances in weaponry, and even the introduction of the cannon, forms of weaponry changed vastly across the Medieval era. So, where did it all start? During the earliest parts of the Medieval era, most soldiers were outfitted with chainmail armour or bulky clothing (The Evolution) so weapons made for…

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