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In terms of the kind of dialogue that existed between attack and defense, it is very clear now to me that the appearance of trebuchet on the scene shifted that balance radically in favor of attack.
It gained tremendous respect for the medieval engineers. They were able to build a frightfully powerful and highly accurate, and easily adjustable machine.
If you are under siege, you’ve got to try to knock these things out before they are actually built. ‘cause once they are built, you are sunk.
The trebuchet is a big machine who can block the wall, and also a trebuchet must be the wolfwall.
Wallwolf.
Wolfwall?
Wallwolf.
Wallwolf. It’s so difficult. We must change this name. Wallwolf. Haha,hehe.
It’s clear from the experiment that both types of trebuchets work. Because it can so easily be increased in weight, the swinging box design was the improvement that tipped the balance in favor of attack. So the great wall-busting siege engine Edward employed in Sterling Castle was almost certainly a trebuchet with a giant swinging counterweight.
A weapon that dominated siege warfare for 200 years. It was not until the late 15th century, the end of the Middle Ages, that the superiority of cannon clearly emerged. And the trebuchet vanished into the mists of time.
Become a medieval engineer on NOVA’s website. Build your own trebuchet and knock down the castle walls.
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