Changes
Bows
,/* Archery in warfare */
===Archery in warfare===
Using archery in warfare appears to have been common in mainland Europe but probably not in Britain or Scandinavia. Why this was so is difficult to understand. Bows were used to both attack and defend fortifications but not apparently in direct combat. <br>
In Charlemagne’s armies it became an essential weapon: ‘lanceam, scutum et arcum cum duas cordas, sagittas duodecim’ Capitulary of Aarchen Aachen of 802/3, c 9. This instruction is most likely the result of the Carolingian wars against the Avars who we know from grave finds used composite bows with bone lathes [Manley 1985: p.226]. <br>
We have evidence from manuscripts that in battle archery was often performed by two men working together, one firing while the other supplied arrows.
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{{Ref|Gebühr 2000|x}}
{{Ref|Halpin 2008|x}}
{{Ref|Hőrnig Hoernig 2005|x}}
{{Ref|Manley 1985|x}}
{{Ref|Nicolle 1984|x}}
