An ancient design, emerging from Central Asia in the second millennium BC, the composite bow was adopted by a staggering variety of cultures, from nomadic tribal peoples such as the Huns, Turks and Mongols, to mighty empires such as the Romans, Byzantines, Persians, Arabs and Chinese. Offering high power and portability, the composite bow was an ideal cavalry weapon, though it was also used by infantry in open battle and as a siege weapon. In this important study, an expert on Eastern military technology tells the story of this extraordinary piece of military hardware; how it was made and how various cultures developed differing tactics for using it. He explains why the composite bow achieved such stunning successes and how it endured as a weapon of choice for thousands of years.

War bows dominated battlefields across the world for centuries. In their various forms, they allowed trained archers to take down even well-armoured targets from great distances, and played a key role in some of the most famous battles in human history. The composite bow was a versatile and devastatingly effective weapon, on foot, from chariots and on horseback for over a thousand years, used by cultures as diverse as the Hittites, the Romans, the Mongols and the Ottoman Turks. The Middle Ages saw a clash between the iconic longbow and the more technologically sophisticated crossbow, most famously during the Hundred Years War, while in Japan, the samurai used the yumi to deadly effect, unleashing bursts of arrows from their galloping steeds. Historical weapons expert Mike Loades reveals the full history of these four iconic weapons that changed the nature of warfare. Complete with modern ballistics testing, action recreations of what it is like to fire each bow and a critical analysis of the technology and tactics associated with each bow, this book is a must-have for anyone interested in ancient arms.

A comprehensive account of the history and construction of these unique hunting tools.

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2016 Reprint of 1947 Second Edition. Full facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. Klopsteg is assured a place in the history of archery through his scientific investigations of the bow and the revolution in archery technology that he launched. His introduction to archery came in the summer of 1929 when he bought a primitive archery set for the amusement of his three daughters. With his own training in physics and research experience in projectile flight, Klopsteg found himself fascinated by the ancient art of shooting arrows with the bow and quickly adopted the sport as his own hobby. Klopsteg, with the trained eye of the scientist, questioned whether the traditional English longbow which had remained essentially unchanged for centuries, expressed the bow's most efficient form. This scientific investigation of the physics of archery launched a revolution in bow design. Soon other archers were successfully experimenting with manmade materials for both bows and arrows, and the technology of archery is today very different from the sport as Klopsteg first found it. In addition to his research into the efficient design of the bow, Klopsteg pursued an academic investigation into the history and technology of Turkish archery. The result of his studies was the publication of "Turkish Archery and the Composite Bow." The publication of this book contributed to the adoption of the composite bows of reflexed shape in the late 1930s.