Arbalest

This article is about the medieval European crossbow. For a crossbowman, see Arbalist (crossbowman).

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Crossbowman cocking an arbalest using a cranequin

The arbalest (also arblast), a variation of the crossbow, came into use in Europe around the 12th century.[1] The arbalest was a large weapon with a steel prod, or bow assembly. Since the arbalest was much larger than earlier crossbows, and because of the greater tensile strength of steel, it had a greater force. The greater draw weight was offset by a shorter draw length, which limited the total potential energy that could be transferred into the crossbow bolt. A skilled arbalestier (arbalester) could loose two bolts per minute.[2]

  1. ^ Ramsey, Syed (September 2016). Tools of War: History of Weapons in Ancient Times. Vij Books India Pvt. ISBN 978-93-86834-12-6.
  2. ^ "Heavy Medieval 1250lbs Windlass Crossbow - TESTED in Slo-Mo". YouTube.