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moclest training, now enabled part-time militiamen to become an even morę effective Figliting lorce. As a result, in medieval Europę the Italian crossbowman becanie as feared as the English longbowman.

One major criticism levelled against the crossbow was that its ratę of shooting was too slow, but this lias been exaggerated. Of course, it could not shoot as fast as a handbow, yet tlie early crossbow was not as slow as sonie suggest. In fact it was only in the late-14th and 15th centuries, with the adoption of complicated mechanical spanning devices, that the crossbows ratę of fire slumped. In return, however, these new spanning devices provided a power which longbows and even early handguns could not beat. Nevertheless the crossbow’s limitation led to the establishment of a new corps of pavesari carrying large mantlet shields, whose job it was to protect the crossbowman as be reloaded.

Naval battle between Caesar and the Britons in the Codice Sallustiana madę in Bologna in 1320-30. Notę the crossbowmen in both ships and the special rigging-cutting weapons. (Ms. Rici. 1538, c.12, Biblioteca Riccardiana, Florence)

Handbows and crossbows were also used difFerently. Handbows could be aimed at individual targets, but were morę usually employed as massed-fire weapons, showering large numbers of arrows into a prede-termined killing zonę. Though the crossbow offered an ever increasing power-to-weight ratio, the fact that it was held horizontally meant that it could not provide a ‘falling barrage' of arrows. Tactically it was like the single-shot musket, multiple \olleys only being possible if separate ranks shot in sequence. The arrows and bolts shot from a crossbow were also far morę efficient than those despatched from a handbow. The latter used long arrows, which were subject to lateral stress around the bow when released and consequently quivered during the first phase of flight. The crossbow bok was projected in a straight linę, and because it lay on top of the crossbow’s stock it did not need to be as long as an arrow. These stubbier morę aerodynamic bolts also gave improeed accuracy, rangę and armour-piercing capability.

The increasing use madę of crossbows had a elear impact upon armour. This was especially the case in Italy, where face-covering

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