medieval crossbow which shot arrows or stones
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Arbalest Definition from Language, Idioms & Slang Dictionaries & Glossaries
(n.)
Alt. of Arbalist
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), edited by Noah Porter. AboutAlt. of Arbalist
arbalest
\ar"ba*lest\ (&?;), arbalist \ar"ba*list\ (&?;), ] n. [of. arbaleste, ll. arbalista, for l. arcuballista; arcus bow + ballista a military engine. see ballista.] (antiq.) a crossbow, consisting of a steel bow set in a shaft of wood, furnished with a string and a trigger, and a mechanical device for bending the bow. it served to throw arrows, darts, bullets, etc. [written also arbalet and arblast.] --fosbroke. [
arbalest
n : medieval artillery used during sieges; a heavy war engine for hurling large stones [syn: catapult, arbalist, bricole, onager, trebuchet, trebucket]
Noun
1. medieval artillery used during sieges; a heavy war engine for hurling large stones and other missiles
(synonym) catapult, arbalist, ballista, bricole, mangonel, onager, trebuchet, trebucket
(hypernym) artillery, heavy weapon, gun, ordnance
Arbalest Definition from Social Science Dictionaries & Glossaries
(Fr: arbalète, Ger. Armbrust, Crossbow) The correct term for a crossbow, introduced early in the 14th century. The crossbow consisted of a bow mounted on a stock that could be cranked or pulled into place using more leverage than could be used on a conventional longbow. The result was a very high-powered, lower trajectoried weapon of great destructive potential. It fired a bolt , a shorter version of an arrow. However, the firing time on a crossbow was slow compared to the longbow, and for that reason and owing to the vastly higher expense during the period, the longbow remained the favored missile weapon of the 14th and 15th century in England and in France. From time to time the crossbow was banned by various laws, but it remained a weapon of great popularity during the late 14th century in the low countries, the Swiss states, in Germany and in Italy.
A crossbow with a steel box stave
crossbow
Arbalest Definition from Encyclopedia Dictionaries & Glossaries
The arbalest (also arblast) was a late variation of the medieval European crossbow coming into use during the 12th century. A large weapon, the arbalest had a steel prod ("bow"). Since an arbalest was much larger than earlier crossbows, and because of the greater tensile strength of steel, it had a greater force. The strongest windlass-pulled arbalests could have up to 22 kN (5000 lbf) of force and be accurate up to 900 m. A skilled arbalestier (arblaster) could shoot two bolts per minute.
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