Turn on some information about crossbows and Yuanrong crossbows
Turn on some information about crossbows and Yuanrong crossbows
The author and place of origin are unknown
During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, people developed crossbows on the basis of bows, and after the Qin Dynasty, people began to manufacture and widely use the Qifa crossbow, which can fire several arrows at the same time (the crossbow machine with three arrow slots has been unearth ZL022513302 ed). In order to make the artifacts recorded in the Chinese history books go into the annals of the world, the world invention application number PCT/CNO3/01067 was applied for the profit and loss repeater. Summary of patent contents: (1) The crossbow of the public Zhou is a weapon held by ancient soldiers when fighting, and the crossbow is recorded in the history books during the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang invented > said: profit and loss of the crossbow is called the Yuan Rong, with iron as the arrow, the arrow is eight inches long, and a crossbow and ten arrows are fired. However, because its drawings and physical objects have long been lost, it is a mystery whether there has ever been such a weapon. (2) The present invention creatively develops the structure of a bow and an arrow, turning "bursting" into the only reality in the world. (3) The present invention reproduces the form of ancient weapons 1,700 years ago, and provides evidence for the traditional wisdom of the Chinese nation. Experts, reporters, and the public watched the production materials, structure and operation effects of the profit and loss repeater at the Wuhou Temple in Chengdu, and the TV station broadcast the actual object of the repeater and the shooting process. The real object of the profit and loss crossbow has been collected in the Wuhou Temple Museum.
After translation, demonstration, manufacturing, and operation experiments, the scientific and accurate data are obtained, and the ancient saying "profit and loss crossbow, called Yuan Rong, with iron as the arrow, the arrow is eight inches long, and one crossbow and ten arrows are fired" (in the order of actual operation).
*Repeater: A bow that uses mechanical power to shoot arrows continuously.
* One crossbow with ten arrows: One repeater with ten arrows in its magazine.
*Loss: Reduces the number of arrows in the Arrow Box. (Experimental data: 4 chickens have been shot to death, and no more arrows are needed.) )
*Benefit: Fill the reduced arrows in the arrow box, (Profit and loss repeater: Repeater with random increase or decrease to change the number of arrows)
*Launch: Shoot all 10 arrows in the arrow box in a general and orderly manner. (Test data: 10 arrows shot in 6 seconds)
* Called Yuan Rong: People call the crossbow the main general.
* Iron arrows: Usually ordinary arrows are made of arrowheads, wooden poles, and feathers, and the feathers play a balancing role when the arrows fly long distances. However, if the arrows of the repeater are made in the usual way, the feathers of the arrow body and the wall of the arrow box will be obstructed, so that the arrows cannot naturally fall to the firing position under the action of gravity. Therefore, the arrows of the repeater are made in an unconventional way, and it is scientific and reasonable to "use iron as the arrow". The use of iron arrows for repeaters solves three major problems: (1) Since the size of the whole arrow is only "eight inches", the arrow is light and does not have much lethality. Iron Arrow solves this problem. (2) If a magnet is attached to the bottom of the arrow box, the iron arrow will be adsorbed on the arrow trough, which solves the problem that the inclination angle of the crossbow body is greater than 90 degrees when the repeater shoots upward, and the arrow in the arrow box leaves the arrow trough and falls in the opposite direction, and the arrow slips when the bow is lowered downward. (3) The problem of continuous arrow supply is solved, and the continuous supply of arrows and continuous firing can be completed.
* The length of the arrow is eight inches: At that time, Kong Ming's length of the arrow was eight inches, which was quite scientific and accurate. According to manufacturing practice, if the shaft of the arrow exceeds 8 inches, the arrow magazine increases, the interaction of the mechanism will not be smooth, and the weight of the iron arrow will increase if it exceeds 8 inches, which will affect the range of the arrow; The size of the arrow is less than eight inches, the arrow magazine is shortened, and the crossbow's string arms are opened at a small distance, and the firing power will be weakened. Therefore, "eight inches of arrow" is the best size.
It is difficult to equip all-iron arrows with feathers, and iron arrows without feathers will lose their balance and roll over when flying long distances, which cannot achieve the effect of long-range weapons. The production of wooden arrow shafts requires high precision, and it is difficult to make manually, and it is not easy to manufacture and use in large quantities. Due to the limitations of technical conditions at that time, Zhuge Liang and his descendants failed to solve the problem of "arrow", resulting in a great reduction in the practicability of the repeater, coupled with the profit and loss of the crossbow mechanism interaction requires high precision, when used in the field, the parts are easily deformed by the influence of rainy weather and other weather, so that the crossbow launch mechanism fails, and is neglected by the military department until it disappears. People have recorded its profound and mysterious combination, magical functions, and unique arrows have recorded the "skill of the divine crossbow, what a subtle" and "profit and loss crossbow, called the Yuan Rong, with iron as the arrow, the arrow is eight inches long, and a crossbow and ten arrows are fired. ”
P&L Repeater Function Data:
The capacity of arrows is 10, the arrow is eight inches long (ancient ruler), the crossbow is 65 cm long, and the bow arm is 150 catties.
Firing range: 50 meters for iron arrows (the range of the crossbow varies according to the strength of the bow arm), 120 meters for the general arrow (no feather arrow "Jade Sea": the arrow is called the flying spear), a single shot accurate shot of 30 meters is the target of the whole target, and the continuous rapid fire is 6 seconds to shoot ten arrows.
Ancient bows and crossbows (on Zhuge crossbows, i.e. Yuanrong crossbows)
When it comes to bows and crossbows, we can't fail to mention arrows, bows and crossbows are the source of strength, arrows are the carrier of strength, and the performance of the carrier is right
The exertion of power has a considerable impact. Mature design arrows are usually divided into three parts: arrowhead, arrow shaft and arrow feather, the arrow head is the battle head, the arrow shaft is the balance part, and the arrow feather is the adjustment part. Light and tough bamboo and wood are always the preferred materials for arrow shafts. And to make the flight and fall follow the correct angle, so as to fly farther, the attack is more effective, the eagle feather is the top grade, the goose goose feather is the worst, and in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, according to the floating state of the arrow shaft, the length of its installation can be determined.
When the arrow pierces the body, the barbs of the two wings will firmly hook the closed wound and be difficult to pull out, and the blood groove will be like a vampire bat to draw out the enemy's blood. By the time of the Warring States period, the new three-sided wing style made it more difficult for arrows to heal even when they were pulled out, and the corresponding blood troughs increased to six.
Qin arrowheads increased their poisoning lead levels, and like some Qin swords, the surface chromium oxygenation technology of the Flyover era made some arrowheads enduring. However, copper is relatively rare, and the Qin Dynasty has tried to make arrow collars with iron, and with the development of the steelmaking industry in the Western Han Dynasty, all-iron arrowheads have also come out. In the early days, iron arrowheads were cast, apparently reluctant to resist the viciousness of the copper arrow style, but soon found that they were not as sharp as the latter, so they had to switch to forging. The disadvantage of forging is that the intricate shape of the cast must be discarded in favor of the four-edged blade of an iron sword, but the advantage is more significant, forging will make it much tougher than its predecessors. The bronze arrow exited the stage, and its beginning and end were in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The first type of forged iron arrow established the basic characteristics of iron arrows before the Song Dynasty - flat quadrangular shape, which was a style conducive to forging. From the Wei and Jin dynasties to the Sui and Tang dynasties, the classification of iron arrows was simple, and the route of development was to make them harder and longer enough to penetrate the increasingly sophisticated iron armor and tear the muscles and bones of the enemy.
The refinement of the types of iron arrows began in the Song Dynasty, which was really an interesting era, while the military and government were weak, military technology was developing by leaps and bounds. The Song Dynasty had an admirable patience to meticulously craft each weapon, and the style of arrows was also refined, such as iron spine arrows, cone arrows, etc., the shapes have been detached from the monotony of flat quadrangular shapes, and have become more professional. The Southern Song Dynasty opened the curtain of the era of firearms, and the continuous wars against the Jin and Yuan quickly matured firearms and became the force that dominated the fate of the battlefield. However, while the rate of fire and hit rate of firearms were only suitable for firepower coverage, the growth of the arrow sequence continued into the Ming Dynasty, and continued to create more dazzling types and shapes.
Archery was one of the 'six arts' of the Zhou Dynasty and one of the most powerful means of attack in ancient times. In the early days, if a boy was born in the family, the nobles would shoot six arrows to the four directions of heaven and earth to show the world that the man wanted to conquer, which showed his status in people's hearts. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the popularization of composite technology greatly increased the potential energy that could be stored in the bow body, so that people could convert more power into the bow body within the pull range allowed by the physiological structure, and shoot faster and farther arrows.
The extraordinary strength of the ancients is astonishing, and the elite archer can pull out a 70-kilogram strong bow, and it is estimated that the effective range should be between 50-70 meters, and the longest range is several times more. Of course, this is also inseparable from the credit of the wrench that began in the Shang Dynasty. The humble invention of the wrench, however, made it feasible to pull a strong bow and crossbow without the pain slowing down the rate of fire or even cutting the finger. The significance of the wrench to the archer was so great that the princes and nobles of the Qing Dynasty, who started as a horse archer, eventually turned it into a kind of jewelry. The bow is characterized by its lightness and speed, which made it always occupy the main position of the cavalry long-range weapon sequence until the middle of the Qing Dynasty, and when the development of firearms eliminated the strong crossbow, the bow was still able to play its own strength and be equal to firearms for 400 years.
The development of crossbows in the military field benefited from the invention of composite bows and copper crossbow machines, otherwise with their shorter pull, they could not compete with the lethality of the bow. The crossbow is characterized by being far and accurate, and there is time to aim calmly, but winding is more laborious and time-consuming. According to these characteristics, crossbows were often used for defense and ambushes, and the continuity of fire relied on the rotation of several groups of shooters. However, there are exceptions, such as the wheel tactics of the Tang Dynasty cavalry. During the Warring States period, the crossbow became a major problem for the chariot, and the powerful lethality of long-range strikes overshadowed the chariot's sturdy shield armor. However, strong was not the only direction of development of crossbows at that time, and crossbows that were light enough had another advantage in simplifying the firing steps to increase the rate of fire, so a mini-repeater with an arrow magazine and movable arm appeared, which can be regarded as the predecessor of the Zhuge crossbow.
The Western Han Dynasty had a profound influence on the development of strong crossbows. Not only on the basis of increasing the Wangshan in the Qin Dynasty, but also adding a scale, so that the crossbow has a stable ballistic reference, and with the replacement of the wooden crossbow silhouette with the copper crossbow profile, the bearing capacity of the crossbow body to the tensile force has also been greatly enhanced. The maximum pulling force of the rowing machine-like waist crossbow can reach 370 kg, which is simply incredible, and the effective range is more than 500 meters, but unfortunately it is rarely used after the Han Dynasty because it is not as practical as arm and pedal tension. In the period of the Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang made the Yuan Rong commonly known as the Zhuge crossbow in order to fight against the powerful cavalry of the Wei State, and the name of Yuan Rong came from a kind of main general chariot in the Spring and Autumn Period, and the descendants referred to the meaning of the general. The most alluring thing about Yuan Rong is that it is clever rather than practical, although it is short-lived, but the ingenious design of the wind arm to shoot 10 poison arrows quickly has become an ancient legend talked about by contemporary people.
The fierce wind of the grassland finally summoned the king of the huge strong crossbow for the Northern and Southern Dynasties - the bed crossbow. This kind of crossbow also appeared in the Warring States, and it was called 'repeating crossbow' at that time, which should be the meaning of taking multiple crossbows as one, but unfortunately the descendants were once lost. At this time, the bed crossbow is wound with a multi-head ox force winch shaft, the power has been greatly stronger than the crossbow of the Warring States manpower winch shaft, firing a huge javelin with skin or iron leaf as the feather, mainly used to attack and defend the city when crashing the tower, siege device, city wall, etc., the longest range of the Song Dynasty pole is more than 1.5 kilometers, it is the farthest range of cold weapons in the ancient world.
It was the Tang Dynasty that gave the bed crossbow mobility, and the ox-drawn crossbow not only greatly improved the flexibility of deployment and the chance of survival, but also added to the icing on the cake by hooking the rope to the axle so that it could be wound while traveling, which greatly improved efficiency. The crossbow device is a crossbow with a pulling force of 860 kg, with 7 launch slots, the maximum range is more than 1 km, and the arrows used in the middle slot are more than 1 meter long.
The crossbow was greatly developed in the Song Dynasty, and the Song court, which was heavy on infantry, regarded it as a weapon against the cavalry peoples of the north. Crossbowmen mostly use crossbows, using three groups of round-robin firing method, and the invention of the 'divine arm bow' made the effective range of the Song army up to 370 meters. Bed crossbows range from two to four crossbows, from small to huge, there are many types, and the two-bed and three-bed bows can also be tied to an iron pocket with dozens of ordinary arrows on the string, so that the bed crossbow has the function of killing and injuring people. Xu is good at riding and archery of the Yuan Dynasty was too arbitrary, but the clean hand up and down the knife, the crossbow left in the previous dynasty, so the crossbow fell from the peak of the Song Dynasty to the extreme decline of the Yuan Dynasty, with the continued development of firearms, there is no chance to turn over.
I always thought that... Glory's research on the Three Kingdoms has always been rigorous. But when I saw the invincible power of the "Yuan Rong crossbow" on the battlefield in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms X. It's kind of infuriating and funny... A little military common sense knows that the Yuanrong crossbow is never designed like this. If ancient China had always had a "Yuan Rong crossbow" with great lethality and high mobility like the Three Kingdoms X, many nomads in northern China would not have had a chance to rise at all... With great lethality and high mobility, this weapon is the nemesis of cavalry... It's like a modern machine gun... No matter how many cavalry comes, there is no return... But in fact, the real "Yuan Rong Crossbow" is by no means as exaggerated as in Three Kingdoms X.
Some people wonder, why is the power of the Yuan Rong crossbow so strong? It can penetrate multiple troops, and even damage troops hiding behind the city gates... That's right, there is no doubt that it is so strong ... The power of the "Yuan Rong crossbow" can be said to be the most lethal of all weapons in the era of cold weapons No heavy cavalry armor can block an arrow... The underdevelopment of heavy cavalry in ancient China has a lot to do with the extensive use of crossbows Of course, the cost of training a heavy cavalry is also one of the reasons.
But because of its power, not just a soldier can control it... Basically, the "Yuanrong crossbow" is an improvement from the "repeater", and the "repeater" is improved from the "crossbow". A crossbow is a bow that is fired mechanically and first appeared during the Warring States period. By the Han Dynasty, crossbows could already be fired continuously, so they were called "repeaters". Zhuge Liang improved the repeater and designed a weapon that could fire ten arrows in a row, called the "profit and loss repeater", also known as "Yuan Rong". The arrows of the profit and loss repeater are made of iron, which is fast and powerful, and is known as the "mountain destroyer", which means that the crossbow is strong enough to destroy the mountain. However, the "Yuanrong crossbow" weighed more than 200 kilograms, not to mention the difficulty of transporting, and even the arrows had to be put on the bow by kicking the strings with both feet to install the arrows. Basically, it is mostly used as a weapon to defend the city or for ambush, and there is also a possibility that it is matched with the formation line in the "Eight Formations". It's not like in Three Kingdoms X.,It has the mobility that doesn't lose to the infantry.,Can move immediately.。
However, the firing method of the "Yuan Rong Crossbow" is different from the ordinary "Qi Fire Repeater". The "Salvo Repeater" means that after all the loaded arrows have been fired at once, the arrows must be reinstalled once. It is the prototype of the "Yuanrong crossbow" that has a modern machine gun, which has the function of automatic loading. Of course, as for the specific operation, it has been lost... However, Liu Hong, the general of Zhennan in the Western Jin Dynasty, once saw the power of the "Yuanrong crossbow" and said a word... The skill of the divine crossbow is so subtle! It can be proved that the firing method of the "Yuan Rong Crossbow" is definitely very different from the "Qifa Repeater Crossbow" that Liu Hong is used to for hundreds of years. Otherwise he would not have uttered such admiration.
I think that in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms X, the advanced weapon of the "crossbow" should be the "repeater", at least in the Han Dynasty, there were already hand-held repeaters... It's just that it takes a lot of time to reload the arrows...
Another digression, during the period of the Three Kingdoms, Shu Han's military science and technology was the crown of the Three Kingdoms. It is precisely because Shu Han has always been at a disadvantage that the situation compels Shu Han to create sophisticated and advanced weapons to resist and defeat stronger enemies. Many kinds of weapons and tools were invented and manufactured for these reasons, such as the "Yuanrong crossbow" invented by Zhuge Liang mentioned earlier. There is also a kind of "side bamboo bow crossbow", Wu people like the side bamboo bow and crossbow of Shu Han very much, but they will not make it, and later when they know that the captured Shu Han generals Meng Gan, Jiao Xiong, and Li Song will make it, they immediately let them make it. It can be seen that the side bamboo bow and crossbow is also one of the advanced shooting weapons that Shu Han had but Sun Wu and Cao Wei did not.
There is also the so-called "magic knife". Zhuge Liang once ordered Pu Yuan to make a saber and kill Ruoshui, known as the "magic knife". According to the "Zhuge Liang Biography", Zhuge Liang once ordered to make 3,000 sabers, take the Chengdu River water quenching, this knife "with bamboo Mina iron beads full of middle, raise the knife to break,
If you fall into the water, you will be called the world." There are also well-known wooden oxen and flowing horses designed to carry military rations, etc.
As for the tactics of crossbowmen .. In fact, it has also been used in large quantities in the Three Kingdoms... When Zhuge Liang retreated from the Sixth Northern Expedition, he had expected that Sima Yi would send troops to pursue. Therefore, the crossbowmen set up an ambush, and sure enough, Zhang He planned to die from the crossbow arrows... In fact, why Zhuge Liang almost didn't succeed in retreating every time he failed in the Northern Expedition was actually because the Shu soldiers had the most powerful crossbowmen in the Three Kingdoms... Just like that, Cao Wei's elite division was cavalry, while Sun Wu was a naval army... Shu Han is a crossbowman... The power of the crossbowmen happened to be the nemesis of the cavalry, so that Cao Wei had to be careful when he wanted to pursue the army of Shu Han later.
Zhuge Liang's famous eight-array diagram is actually a mixed military array that combines the four arms of infantry, crossbow, chariot, and cavalry. Use the chariot to form a large phalanx with a number of small phalanxes as a unit, the infantry crossbowmen are staggered among them, and the front part of the formation is set up with obstacles such as iron thistles, horses, deer bars, etc., when the enemy cavalry group charges, the crossbowmen are used to rely on the chariot to shoot the enemy; When the enemy approached, the pikemen relied on the chariot to resist; The enemy rushed into the formation, and due to the obstruction and restriction of the chariots, the forces were inevitably divided, so they took the opportunity to rely on the small phalanx and flank them with various long and short weapons, and each one was broken.
During the Battle of Jieqiao, Yuan Shao also used a large number of crossbowmen to defeat Gongsun Zhan's famous white horse cavalry. Since then, Gongsun Chan has been in a slump, and was finally destroyed by Yuan Shao...
Even, Oda Nobunaga's invention of the iron cannon "three stages" has long been used in ancient Chinese crossbow tactics. In the Han Dynasty, there was a multi-column firing tactic that divided the soldiers into groups such as 'upper crossbow', 'advanced crossbow' and 'hair crossbow', which could effectively maintain the continuous firepower. The principle is the same as that of the third stage of the iron cannon.