Chapter 50
readx;?? After years of investment and waiting, although Zhang Jiashi himself has obtained unsatisfactory research and development results in firearms, he himself has also thought deeply about the reasons in this regard, that is, even if firearms are relatively primitive, but in many aspects, they are still gradually upgraded, and even occupy a large proportion in some armies, not without reason. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info
After thinking about it, Zhang Jiashi came to the conclusion that even primitive firearms have their own advantages.
Combined, these advantages can be twofold.
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The first aspect is that the production cycle of firearms is relatively short compared to bows and crossbows, and even some relatively large siege equipment.
As far as the Japanese bow that Zhang Jiashi is relatively popular in the army is concerned, the production cycle of a Japanese bow with good quality will not be very short, and even half a year will be required as the minimum time:
A type of longbow used in Japanese kyudo. The length of a standard bow is about 2.2 meters. In ancient times, the Japanese bow was called and generally referred to all longbows with a total length of more than two meters. There is another system that is shorter than the bow and is called. The position of the user holding the bow is mainly the lower arc of the bow, and the length ratio is one-third of the whole bow.
The bow was originally made of bamboo, wood and bladder.
And the bow is very different from other bows. With a length of more than two meters and an upper arc that accounts for two-thirds of the bow's length, the bow is the largest bow in the world. It is also said that the finger bow is in full swing, but it actually conforms to the perfect ratio of the golden section, so the structure of the bow is considered to be the most beautiful among all the bow types.
and the structure of the bow with a long upper and lower length, to a certain extent, it is difficult for the user to balance when holding the bow. In order to use the bow accurately, it is necessary to have a high level of skill, and the hand holding the bow must grasp the amplitude of the bow vibration when firing the arrow, predict the reaction force caused by the difference in the length of the upper and lower arcs of the bow, and use this reaction force to estimate the direction of the arrow and the amount of force to be applied. As long as this reaction force is properly utilized, the trajectory of the arrow can be changed in many different ways.
The most striking feature of Japanese bows and arrows is that they are "short at the bottom and long at the top", and the holding part is generally two-thirds down the upper end, forming the characteristics of weak upper and strong lower, so the use of Japanese bows and arrows requires skilled skills, which may be one of the reasons why Japanese archery has survived to this day.
The difference is that although the crossbow was the longest-range combat equipment in the Cold Weapon Era, the crossbow was not taken seriously in Japan. According to records, the crossbow was transmitted from China to Japan in the Tang Dynasty, but it was only used from the Nara period to the middle of the Heian period, and then gradually became obsolete.
Bows and arrows have played an important role in Japanese history. After the Middle Ages, archery became an essential skill for Japanese samurai, and from the Kofun period onwards, the main weapons used by Japanese samurai in combat included bows and swords. In the Kamakura period, the bow and arrow was a symbol of the samurai, and the way of the bow and arrow was also the main weapon on the battlefield at that time, and the rewards received by those who achieved great results were called the reputation of the bow and arrow, and the best samurai were also called "Yutori", such as the famous samurai Imagawa Yoshimoto and Tokugawa Ieyasu in Japanese history were called "Tokaido Ichikutori". The house of the samurai, which has been passed down for generations, is also known as the house of the bow horse.
At that time, as a military general, it was necessary to practice arrows frequently, and the three types of training that Japanese samurai had to carry out at that time, such as shooting magpies on horseback, shooting hats on horseback, and shooting dogs on horseback. In addition to regular bow and arrow practice, the samurai also engaged in various hunting and hunting activities, which also improved the level of archery skills of the samurai to a certain extent.
In addition to being used as a weapon, bows and arrows also played an important role in various ceremonies held by the royal family. For example, when the crown prince of the imperial family is born, a string sounding ceremony is held to pray for blessings and disasters. There are many rituals related to bows and arrows in Japan, such as archery and bow gambling held in the first lunar month, riding and archery during the Dragon Boat Festival, and archery and horse first events held in October. In Japan, there is also the practice of hanging the Demon Breaking Bow and the Evil Destroying Bow to exorcise evil spirits.
After the Warring States period, iron cannon weapons became popular in Japan, and the status of bows and arrows gradually declined, but many samurai were still reluctant to give up bows and arrows. In the Edo period, archery began to be combined with Zen, and the practice of archery became a part of the samurai's self-cultivation, and archery was officially called kyudo. In recent years, Japanese archery has quietly risen again, and some countries in Europe and the United States have also begun to practice Japanese kyudo, and some middle schools in the United States have included kyudo as a curriculum, so that students can receive oriental psychological training Maruki bow.
Japanese bows are divided into maruki bows, heavy lacquer bows, heavy rattan bows, sashwagi bows, fuchitake bows, three dozen bows, square bamboo bows, and bamboo-wood composite bows. In addition to the bamboo-wood composite bow, the other kinds of bows are all actual combat bows. The general length is centimeters. The standard length of the bamboo-wood composite bow is about 2.2 meters. The ancient Japanese bow was called the "Great Bow". There is also a system that is shorter than the bow and is called the "half bow". The position of the user holding the bow is mainly the lower arc of the bow, and the length ratio is one-third of the whole bow.
The main thing used in Japan from the Kofun period to the beginning of the Heian period was the Maruki bow. The maruki bow is generally made of natural wood, and the cross-section of the bow body is round when the bowstring is not added, so it is called maruki, and the materials are generally catalpa, sandalwood, oakwood, beech, etc. In the early days, the Maruki bow was very simple to make, a round wooden rod soaked in oil and then made into a bow tire and tied to a bowstring. The bow body is painted red or black, and for added strength, the bow body is wound with a strap to increase strength. A shallow groove is carved on the inside of the lower part of the bow, which adjusts the elasticity of the bowstring and prevents the bow from twisting.
The maruki bow is between centimeters long, generally 220 centimeters long, the short one is used for horseback riding, and the long one is used by foot soldiers. The range of the Maruki bow is about 300 meters, which has a lot to do with the strength of the bow material. Although the Maruki bow is a single bow and has a short range, it is no less powerful than a synthetic bow within 70 meters.
In addition to being used as a weapon on the battlefield, the Maruki bow was also used on ceremonial occasions after the Taika Revolution in Japan. The Maruki bow was used in court ceremonial activities in the Nara and Heian periods. At that time, there were also families that specialized in ceremonial shooting, such as the Ban clan and the Ji clan.
Fuzhu Bow:
Bamboo and wood are the main materials, and the wood is generally oak wood, and a layer of bamboo is attached to the outside of the bow body, so it is called Fuzhu. The bamboo pieces attached to it are generally dried, and the bamboo pieces are glued together with the wood, which is extracted from the internal organs of animal skins and fish, and the bonding effect is very good.
Three Punch Bows:
In order to increase the strength of the bow on the basis of the Fuchitake bow, the Japanese attached a layer of bamboo to the outer part of the bow body and a layer of bamboo to the inner layer. After multi-layer compounding, the strength of the bow is greatly improved, but the bow body is prone to cracking and is susceptible to temperature and humidity. In order to prevent the bow from cracking due to moisture, the bow body is painted with paint, which is called a painted bow, and the unpainted bow is called a white wooden bow. The lacquered bow is then rolled up with thin white rattan, which is called a heavy wisteria bow, and the different methods of rolling it also indicate the identity of the military commander and the purpose of the bow. Depending on the position of the rattan on the bow and the number of circles, the heavy wisteria bow also has names such as the main heavy wisteria, the sato heavy wisteria, the two heavy wisteria, and the third heavy wisteria.
Four bamboos to play the bow:
As a product of the early Muromachi period, the bow body is made entirely of bamboo, and two pieces of bamboo are sandwiched between the inner and outer bamboos, and the bamboo pieces are glued together.
Square Bamboo Bow:
It appeared at the beginning of the Muromachi period, and the bow body was made of square wood with four pieces of bamboo attached to each side. In addition to having the strength of a maruki bow, the bamboo four and the square bamboo bow also have good elasticity. The two-year-old bamboo is too soft, the five-year-old bamboo is too hard, and the six-year-old bamboo will have a much weaker ability to rebound after firing the bow and arrow. Therefore, the outer bamboo piece is generally made of three-year bamboo, and the inner bamboo piece is made of four-year bamboo, so that the strength of the inner bamboo is high, and the outer bamboo is soft and elastic.
Bow Tire Bow:
The bow bow is actually a type of synthetic bow that began to appear around the middle of the Muromachi period, and is now used by Japanese archery halls. It mainly refers to the longitudinal arrangement of bamboo slices between the inner bamboo and the outer bamboo, according to the number of bow tires, the name of the bow is also called three bow tire bows, four bow tire bows, etc., and the two sides of the bow tire are side wood. As the number of bow tires increases, the rebound of the bow is stronger, and the firing range also increases, and the maximum firing distance can reach meters, and the effective firing distance is about meters. In archery competitions held in the Edo period, archers used elaborate bows in order to achieve good results.
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From these and bows, or the longbows that have now become the standard weapons of the Great Qin Empire, Zhang Jiashi knows very well that although the production skills of this standard longbow have been improved since the period of the Liaodong Army, some things are not achieved overnight, because at present, it is difficult to make a trick in the production process of bows and arrows.
Even a skilled archer can produce a longbow that meets the specifications, with a cycle time of at least half a year or more.
But firearms are different, as long as there are suitable materials and the maker has a certain level of craftsmanship, then dozens of muskets or arquebuses a month are not too difficult.
This is the case with bows and arrows, not to mention that there are far more craftsmanship and production steps than crossbows and arrows.
In fact, if a crossbow needs to be crafted at a passing level, the crafting cycle is similar to that of a bow and arrow in many cases, as some parts can be crafted in reference to the bow, and in the meantime, other parts of the crossbow can also be produced.
However, due to the long processing cycle of bowstrings and other objects, perhaps in terms of overall output, the production quantity of bows and crossbows will not be much worse than that of firearms, but on the basis of consumables, firearms are undoubtedly more suitable for use in this aspect.
Perhaps if a war is won, the loss of bows and crossbows will not be too serious, and it is not too much of a problem to count on the scattered replenishment of stocks and some aspects.
However, if it suffers a crushing defeat or even the annihilation of an entire army, then the replenishment of its bow and crossbow is often a long time to complete.
It is because of this situation that the production cycle of firearms is relatively short, and it has become an easy product of war attrition, and it is easy to be favored by some far-sighted commanders or high-level national leaders.
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Another factor is that even musketeers with muskets don't need too long to train to become a passing member on the battlefield.
This may even be shorter than the training time required for a traditional crossbowman.
This has become one of the main reasons for the continuous emergence of famous musketeer units in Western countries:
Spanish Bird Gunner:
In the modern Spanish army, it was a mixed infantry formation, with up to 3,000 spearmen, swordsmen and birds, which was almost invincible in Europe at that time, fully complementing the guns and spears used for close-range killing and the bird's guns for long-range killing.
Earlier, after the Hook Men defeated the French at the Battle of Pavia and captured their king alive, the Bird Men had long since firmly established its prestige.
England Red Coats:
The Red Jacket is a term often used to refer to the soldiers of the British ** Brigade during a certain period of history, because in the past, most British Army Corps had red uniforms. In the 17th and 19th centuries, British soldiers had a tight-fitting bolero or long coat in their uniforms. From 1870 onwards, the bright red, which used to be worn by any class, was only used for government officials, police officers and cavalry units.
In 1639, Charles I asked the Scots to convert to the Anglican Church, but the Scots took the opportunity to rebel and attack England. In a hurry, Charles I reconvened Parliament in April 1640 to solve the problem of war finance.
Annoyed, Charles I surrounded 500 Janissaries for a while and wanted to arrest the five parliamentarian leaders, but Parliament succeeded in protecting them. This event marked a complete break between Parliament and the king. Parliament began to recruit troops and in August 1642 war broke out with the king's army. The English Civil War officially began.
In the context of the successive defeats of the Congressional army, he gradually gained a very high position by virtue of his strength, and finally obtained the right to unify and reorganize the parliamentary army. Finally, he formed a new parliamentary army called the "New Model Army". In order to distinguish the white military uniform of the king's army at that time, the new model army uniformed with the red military uniform. The common people usually called them "Red Clothes Army". It was 1645. As the civil war dragged on, James II succeeded in restoring the Stuarts dynasty in 1660. The old Parliamentary Army was reorganized into the Royal Army and retained. His red uniform was also retained.
Finally, in 1688, the two major parties in Congress launched the Glorious Revolution and completely deposed James II. Welcomed William of the Netherlands to the throne of England. Britain established a system of constitutional monarchy.
The Red Jackets also became another name for the Royal Army, and it was not until 1902 that the British ** team changed its uniform. The last battle in the red daze is recorded in history as the Battle of the Moon.
Hessian mercenaries:
The term "Hessian mercenaries" in English usually refers to those German regiments that served in the British in the 18th century. During the American Revolutionary War, Frederick II, lord of Hesse-Kassel, and other German lords recruited tens of thousands of soldiers as reinforcements for British combat forces in North America. Some 30,000 of these people were recruited and were called "Hessian mercenaries", since 16,992 of the 30,067 mercenaries were from Hesse-Kassel.
Some were the sons of George III, who was also the Elector of Hanover, and the others were Wilhelm, Count of Hesse-Hanau, Charles I, Duke of Brunshewick-Lemberg, Frederick, Prince of Wardek, Margrave Karl Alexander, Prince of Ansbach-Berus, and Prince Frederick Augustus of Angelt-Zeebester. The Duke of Hesse-Kassel is also very interesting, he sent mercenaries to England purely for money, and it is said that this man was a profligate, and the country's finances were always strained, until mercenaries became one of the most important revenues of the country. In the general sense, mercenaries are hired to take money, while Hesse in the War of Independence hired money to "return to the public". Several other German states have done so, and it is said that this duke ended up with nearly 200 million in funds by the blood of the soldiers.
These mercenaries accounted for about a quarter of the British army during the American Revolution. They consisted of chasseurs, hussars, three companies of artillery, and four battalions of grenadiers. The infantry was mostly hunters, smoothbore gunners, and platoon infantry. They were armed with front-loading smoothbore guns, and the artillery used three-pounder guns. Each regiment averaged people, and later averaged people.