This is actually an onager. An old technology that had fallen out of use by about the 6th century. They were replaced by the real mangonel, which is a traction trebuchet (aka a petrary or perrier) which is capable of a much faster rate of fire of the same size of projectile. These were invented in China and brought west during the early Middle Ages.
just watched the trebuchet video, it's amazing how the mangonel and the trebuchet shoots EXACTLY the same distance. not to mention the odds of that lady walking by at the exact moment of the shot in BOTH cases... wow!
Anyone else notice that they use the same shot of the moat for all these videos? The trebuchet uses the exact same shot and the Perrier uses it again only mirrored.
this thing is cool since it's possible to have many of these with only on man necessary to service it. would likely be easier to transport due to it's compactness compared to the trebuchet.
I agree! To do that, they’d have to bring that horizontal beam and vertical beams (stop beam?) cut back towards the arm at an angle. To allow that throwing arm to hit that stop beam sooner, this throwing that rock higher.
Siege warfare was often about waiting. Defenders waiting behind walls and attackers waiting out the defenders within the walls. The only other option was to attack. Try to go over the walls, which created fatal funnels of the ladders used to scale the walls. That is assuming a ladder (or siege tower) could even be brought to bear upon a wall. Moats, ditches and barriers kind of made that tricky. Tunneling was an option, but was almost as time-consuming as a siege of attrition and dangerous for the attackers. So what was the solution? Breach the wall. You get a breach and ground troops can flood into the defensive position. Even small projectiles can breach a wall if you keep lobbing them. Catapults throwing relatively small but dense projectiles can achieve that, but it takes repetition. That may seem odd to us, but we have to remember what could the defenders do? Counter attack with their own catapult? Not likely. Their own walls deny them a clear line-of-sight on the attackers. They would have to fire over their walls and thus lose some range. Also, the attackers aren't worried about maintaining the integrity of a defensive wall. All of the advantage is on the attackers' side as they chip away at the walls. Let's take another tact. What if small projectiles are useless at breaching the wall even over the course of days, even weeks? What if they can only be hurled over the wall but cannot physically breach the defenses themselves? You still have a vital weapon against the defenders. It adds pressure to an already tense situation. It takes away any sense of personal safety such that you can be killed even if you are not manning the walls. It chips away at morale and conviction.
I read in several sources that even romans used wall artillery during some defensive operations (for example, against Persia in Nisibis war). So it's obviously possible to some degree...
Maybe in middle age they would put a mark on the place the rocks use to hit, then they would put two of these catapults next to each other to shoot rocks attached with a rope or a chain, then when enemies armies reach the marks the rocks and the chain would do a mess on them, unless the rock falls in a right angle
The halt doesent have much to do with the release , the stop is there just to stop the arm , the actual thing that releases the rock is that angled nail on top of the throwing arm . Idk stopping might just make the process happen slightly sooner depending on how the angled hook is set
That's just a modern distinction that some people try to draw. Mangonel just means 'engine of war' and in that time was used to describe torsion catapults, counterweight catapults, even siege towers and siege rams sometimes. Onager just means 'bucking donkey' or something similar, probably because of the jump when the arm hit the crosspiece. So basically all the hyper-specific definitions are modern constructs, at the time the right word would more depend on the exact time period and place, not exactly what kind of catapult it was.
@@dimitrikemitsky you are right, but where this video is inaccurate is in suggesting that torsion catapults like this were widely used in the Middle Ages. Whatever you want to call them, they were made obsolete by the introduction of the traction trebuchet in the 7th century or so.
This fires a small projectile with fast speed so I assume its an anti-personnel weapon then? Does it fire multiple projectiles like in Age of Empires 2 may I ask :)
they should have added a second ratchet mechanism then it'd be a case of going backwards and forwards instead of taking the bar on and off all the time
Please, correct me if I am wrong, but isn't this an onager? Given how the thing is operated? I have a bit diffuclty understanding clearly the differences between onager, mangonel and trebuchet. Any clarification on the subject is highly appriciated!
This was 4 years ago so I doubt you'll ever see it, but they did have similar tech. There were hinged sockets so you'd turn it, flip it across the hinge, turn it, flip, etc. In other cases, they'd have the axle being wound build with spokes upon which you'd fit a socketed handle, so you'd have two people, one fits the socket and turns, then takes out and the next guy turns while the first repositions. So it's effectively constant turning.
_maybe the only useful rooftop defense machine (in case ballista has difficult range of fire, from too high up).. is a mangonel.. it fires at the horde, if it invades from the outskirts of a base.. slower to load, so having them on roofs or behind palisade (if you're being 'forward defensive') is best.. since ballistae don't shoot through a Palisade, but this thing fires right over them, so it's great for defending those streets that are already barricaded, to gently bombard the enemy trying to break through.. a basic platform or flat frame can be used as a ladder to mount them on roofs, or take them down, to defend the streets if the enemy attacked from the other side of the base, and you're holding them back with Palisades.. they can fire medium rocks, like the trebuchet fires large rocks.. but with tens of times more strength than throwing them with a normal arm has.._ *Heavy Rooftop Defense (when you have average sized rocks, smaller rocks are for direct throwing attacks)*
Could anyone tell me what that metal wheel lock is and the handle they are using to rewind the swing arm at 0:12? What would those two thing be called these days?
It’s exactly the same thing. Onager is the proper name, mangonel referred mostly to traction trebuchets, which practically completely replaced them during the Middle Ages as they are better in every way.
torsion engine like a balista from rome or from that era, but more like an onager which ment wild ass and was more like a much smaller version of this engine using the torsion of the rope, on a ballista however they would often use rope and sinew from animals though, and since the arms moved they could and did break off, it was a very dangerous but very powerful wepon for seige warfair, well the ballista that is for its era in warfair, just saying though the way they power is the same.
im sure some used rope but didnt alota machines actually use animal ligaments? which ones used those? supposed to be more powerful than rope, more springy, rubbery right? im guessing meat factories use em for something? i wanna see some wealthy history lover buy some and make a rope and work with a group to see how it works, even if it doesnt work will learn alot im sure. seems like one of the only things i havnt yet seen attempted.
True. However, before cannons became really powerful (mid 1300-hundreds to mid 1400:es), trebuchets could be used to throws barrels of gunpowder towards the enemy castle.
Flaming pitch or tar was possible but remember they were generally not super mobile, often on walls surrounding wooden towns, and they are made entirely of wood. They'd think twice before they start lighting shit on fire.
I dont think 1-2 minutes is accurate for loading time. Remember they had armies, so there were probably 6-7 people on one mangonel at a time. And if they had 8-10 weapons at their back, I bet those things were loosing every second.
pelleban They certainly used slings to great effect, but most of their large hardware was rigid with a bowl, so it was essentially an overarm throw. I'll see if I can find something to back it up, but I tend to use memory, education and books over google or wiki!! In a lot of ancient depictions, the mangonel is drawn with a big spoon or bucket on the end of the throwing arm. This is also true of most catapults you see in Hollywood movies. The fact is, a sling is much more effective at throwing a stone than a spoon is. In one historical reference, they use the term "scorpion" and "onager" for the same machine. It's like an Onager for the way it kicks, and the iron sling-hook on the end of the arm resembles a scorpion's stinger on the end of his tail. The iron hook was the sling attachment, not a spoon! The advantage a bucket has over the sling is that it's easier to load, easier to aim, and you can load more than one projectile in the bucket. A sling would scatter them way too much, but a bucket full of stones would make an effective anti-personnel weapon, especially at moderately close range. Keep in mind that these were military weapons. The armies didn't want the enemy to learn how to build one properly. So whenever anyone made a diagram or described the machine, they would leave out key details. As Mangonel is derived from the greek for 'war engine(machine)', all onagers, scorpions and trebuchets are Mangonels, while not all Mangonels are necessarily any of the above!!! Pedantry aside, I believe 'onager' was a colloquial roman term given to a torsion driven catapult, which may or may not have had a sling... :-/
Well you're right of course I wouldn't :) But here's the thing - while this machine takes eternity to load and drains your strength the end result is a projectile that will take only one man down. One arrow will achieve the same result and European archers have been recorded to shoot more than 10 arrows a minute :) A perrier, for instance, is an artillery piece that can shoot rocks too with much more firing capacity :)
Duncan Demicoli not a armored knight, at least not without the knight being at spitting distance. only the heaviest bows and archers with years of training could take out such a target at under 100 yards, a common man could operate a mangonel with a few hours or days of training and take out a knight and his horse at 300yards, a triumph of mechanization. the loading process showed here was slow because they weren't in a rush here. they'd be going much faster in a actual battle. this thing has the loading rate of a cannon or slightly slower and it still has multiple projectile capability. open your mind a little and not only look at the options they showed in the video, this isn't the only size or ammo they used.
This is actually an onager. An old technology that had fallen out of use by about the 6th century.
They were replaced by the real mangonel, which is a traction trebuchet (aka a petrary or perrier) which is capable of a much faster rate of fire of the same size of projectile. These were invented in China and brought west during the early Middle Ages.
If medieval siege engineers saw this torsion engine stone thrower they'd say "This belongs to museum".
That’s what I thought
just watched the trebuchet video, it's amazing how the mangonel and the trebuchet shoots EXACTLY the same distance. not to mention the odds of that lady walking by at the exact moment of the shot in BOTH cases... wow!
and the same bird flying in the exact direction..
this device requires more engineers my lord
THE FEELS!!!
morning milordship
I was not expecting a stronghold joke to show up, but I'm glad it did.
"No taxes is good taxes, thats my motto!"
It's very late my lord. Perhaps you should have a rest?
Would you like a snack, my lord?
ugh. Feels indeed.
mangonel ready sire
It's good, but it's not quite able to launch a 90kg stone projectile over 300m.
Yes, The trebuchet is the superior siege weapon.
@@iBakSteen no Trebuchet is sending a 90 Kg stone 300meters.
@@juncearyoutube3336 RUclips search bar bro
@@skizzardthelizardwizard5394 ive seen videos of most biggest trebuchets in the world, they dont even come remotely close to throwing 90 Kg over 300m.
@@juncearyoutube3336 a trebuchet can launch a 90kg projectile over 300 metres
When I went to Caerphilly castle there were some dead carp in the lake. Now I know why.
Those carp would eat you and your entire family.
@@LukeCuddy So the carp fired the first shot?
sure you did
Wow, I'm extremely impressed with the velocity. That big ass rock going at those speeds will surely leave a small crater.
Our pond is under attack once more, my liege!!
The land walker again?
Aye!
By their trebuchet?
Naye!
By what then?!
MANGONEL
By the Shrimps!!!
Anyone else notice that they use the same shot of the moat for all these videos? The trebuchet uses the exact same shot and the Perrier uses it again only mirrored.
Evan Smirnow because they are all lined up in front of the moat.
No, it's literally the same video footage (notice the man walking on the left side of the screen).
"Prepare to loose...aaand loo- WOLOLOLOL"
*unit converted*
Woolloooloooooooó
They need to upgrade this to a Mangonel as soon as they reach the Imperial Age
*Siege Onager
@@ardd.c.8113 this guy upgrades 👍🏻
along with the greased wheels siege engine speed upgrade as well....
This is great I am looking for something that lauches 90kg projectiles over 300m
Check out the trebuchet
@@vjpz5813 see trebuchet stupid
@@vjpz5813 see trebuchet stupid
The whole idea of this video was actually pretty cool.. only downside is the footage that was taken. How far and fast it went didn't do it any justice
not mangonel, onager
Alexandru Moise both
ok
@cristopher wong china actually
this thing is cool since it's possible to have many of these with only on man necessary to service it. would likely be easier to transport due to it's compactness compared to the trebuchet.
He said pull with all your might, Dan..
He was tired af
Good to see them load it caerphilly.
They definitely have to adjust the throwing angle. It almost shoots horizontally. At about 45° they would get a by far wider range.
I agree! To do that, they’d have to bring that horizontal beam and vertical beams (stop beam?) cut back towards the arm at an angle. To allow that throwing arm to hit that stop beam sooner, this throwing that rock higher.
This is the ancestor of Modern Mortars.
"This device require skilled engineers my lord"
Siege warfare was often about waiting.
Defenders waiting behind walls and attackers waiting out the defenders within the walls.
The only other option was to attack. Try to go over the walls, which created fatal funnels of the ladders used to scale the walls. That is assuming a ladder (or siege tower) could even be brought to bear upon a wall.
Moats, ditches and barriers kind of made that tricky. Tunneling was an option, but was almost as time-consuming as a siege of attrition and dangerous for the attackers.
So what was the solution? Breach the wall. You get a breach and ground troops can flood into the defensive position.
Even small projectiles can breach a wall if you keep lobbing them. Catapults throwing relatively small but dense projectiles can achieve that, but it takes repetition. That may seem odd to us, but we have to remember what could the defenders do? Counter attack with their own catapult? Not likely. Their own walls deny them a clear line-of-sight on the attackers. They would have to fire over their walls and thus lose some range. Also, the attackers aren't worried about maintaining the integrity of a defensive wall. All of the advantage is on the attackers' side as they chip away at the walls.
Let's take another tact. What if small projectiles are useless at breaching the wall even over the course of days, even weeks? What if they can only be hurled over the wall but cannot physically breach the defenses themselves? You still have a vital weapon against the defenders. It adds pressure to an already tense situation. It takes away any sense of personal safety such that you can be killed even if you are not manning the walls. It chips away at morale and conviction.
I read in several sources that even romans used wall artillery during some defensive operations (for example, against Persia in Nisibis war). So it's obviously possible to some degree...
this was a very interesting and insightful read, thanks
I feel like I also learned somthing about the origin of the dude who invented the ratchet
Why dont they show the projectile going through the air in slow motion and at real time to get an idea of power and range
Maybe in middle age they would put a mark on the place the rocks use to hit, then they would put two of these catapults next to each other to shoot rocks attached with a rope or a chain, then when enemies armies reach the marks the rocks and the chain would do a mess on them, unless the rock falls in a right angle
The halt doesent have much to do with the release , the stop is there just to stop the arm , the actual thing that releases the rock is that angled nail on top of the throwing arm .
Idk stopping might just make the process happen slightly sooner depending on how the angled hook is set
isn't this an onager? I thought mangonels didn't have a torsion rope
That's just a modern distinction that some people try to draw. Mangonel just means 'engine of war' and in that time was used to describe torsion catapults, counterweight catapults, even siege towers and siege rams sometimes.
Onager just means 'bucking donkey' or something similar, probably because of the jump when the arm hit the crosspiece.
So basically all the hyper-specific definitions are modern constructs, at the time the right word would more depend on the exact time period and place, not exactly what kind of catapult it was.
@@dimitrikemitsky you are right, but where this video is inaccurate is in suggesting that torsion catapults like this were widely used in the Middle Ages. Whatever you want to call them, they were made obsolete by the introduction of the traction trebuchet in the 7th century or so.
This fires a small projectile with fast speed so I assume its an anti-personnel weapon then? Does it fire multiple projectiles like in Age of Empires 2 may I ask :)
they should have added a second ratchet mechanism then it'd be a case of going backwards and forwards instead of taking the bar on and off all the time
Mangonel ready sire!
Please, correct me if I am wrong, but isn't this an onager? Given how the thing is operated? I have a bit diffuclty understanding clearly the differences between onager, mangonel and trebuchet. Any clarification on the subject is highly appriciated!
i was very interested in this video grrrr
Alex Wood hiiiiiii alex
Jess Grenfell hi jess grenfell hiiii
It'll be more powerful if they put wheels on it.
so the advantage of this one is,,,you can transport it without disassembling it?
With such equipment it's easy...
(Asterix and Obelix Mission Cleopatra)
This video was really cool, kind of.
Blankgamer Yo ikr grr
What is use for artillery piece that requires several minutes to load and fires at range that is less than archer's shot?
Also if it's really 1000lb, less draw-weight than a heavy crossbow
defensive. safe behind the walls of a castle... I guess.
1.It causes more damage than an archer
2.it hurts the enemy morale
3. It can be used to demolish fortifications
That thing may be a thousand years old but it still works...
a one way disengageable wrench would make this so much easier.
They need something like a socket wrench that can tighten and reset without having to remove the bar!
+Han Shot First95 This was very early Middle Ages technology that became over-shadowed by far more efficient tech.
This was 4 years ago so I doubt you'll ever see it, but they did have similar tech.
There were hinged sockets so you'd turn it, flip it across the hinge, turn it, flip, etc.
In other cases, they'd have the axle being wound build with spokes upon which you'd fit a socketed handle, so you'd have two people, one fits the socket and turns, then takes out and the next guy turns while the first repositions. So it's effectively constant turning.
Catapult ready malord!
_maybe the only useful rooftop defense machine (in case ballista has difficult range of fire, from too high up).. is a mangonel.. it fires at the horde, if it invades from the outskirts of a base.. slower to load, so having them on roofs or behind palisade (if you're being 'forward defensive') is best.. since ballistae don't shoot through a Palisade, but this thing fires right over them, so it's great for defending those streets that are already barricaded, to gently bombard the enemy trying to break through.. a basic platform or flat frame can be used as a ladder to mount them on roofs, or take them down, to defend the streets if the enemy attacked from the other side of the base, and you're holding them back with Palisades.. they can fire medium rocks, like the trebuchet fires large rocks.. but with tens of times more strength than throwing them with a normal arm has.._
*Heavy Rooftop Defense (when you have average sized rocks, smaller rocks are for direct throwing attacks)*
Could anyone tell me what that metal wheel lock is and the handle they are using to rewind the swing arm at 0:12? What would those two thing be called these days?
Could someone explain how the trigger rope works?
I showed this to an army of Arbalests.
They are all dead now.
what is the range?
How many times does he say "again?"
am i wrong to assume you'd require less turning of the cog if they use a larger cog?
Larger cog same turning, unless geared.
it seems a small project, not enough to damage a fort. and what are the odds it hits somebody
The teachers put this on the screen today
so its like a modernized version of the roman onager
It’s exactly the same thing. Onager is the proper name, mangonel referred mostly to traction trebuchets, which practically completely replaced them during the Middle Ages as they are better in every way.
Long, width, tall?
use two cranks on both side with 2 guys pulling in turns.
now instead of:
pew pew pew
you can now:
pew pew pew pew pew
Woah…. Get me on it☠️
Who dredges the pond when it is full of projectiles?
That is not a torsion trebuchet... The lies! It burns!
i like burritos
Please consider adding captions for your deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers. I was able to watch but not listen and hear properly. Thank you.
torsion engine like a balista from rome or from that era, but more like an onager which ment wild ass and was more like a much smaller version of this engine using the torsion of the rope, on a ballista however they would often use rope and sinew from animals though, and since the arms moved they could and did break off, it was a very dangerous but very powerful wepon for seige warfair, well the ballista that is for its era in warfair, just saying though the way they power is the same.
This device killed de Montfort in June of 1218 crushing his face and changing the course of history.
Agreed.
I bet they used this to sling those dodecahedrons
awesome
likely a lot safer to shoot into a lake than a wall, no shrapnel...
"God Sayve the King!"
Good Shoot
Mini?
In my dream is big like a house
im sure some used rope but didnt alota machines actually use animal ligaments?
which ones used those? supposed to be more powerful than rope, more springy, rubbery right?
im guessing meat factories use em for something?
i wanna see some wealthy history lover buy some and make a rope and work with a group to see how it works, even if it doesnt work will learn alot im sure.
seems like one of the only things i havnt yet seen attempted.
Don't they shoot barrels of explosives too?
+Hari Naicker if they had explosives,they would use cannons.but yes,they can shoot anything that fits into the pouch
True. However, before cannons became really powerful (mid 1300-hundreds to mid 1400:es), trebuchets could be used to throws barrels of gunpowder towards the enemy castle.
+Elias Wewel they actually throwed some kind of roman greek fire chemical style, on barrels
Flaming pitch or tar was possible but remember they were generally not super mobile, often on walls surrounding wooden towns, and they are made entirely of wood.
They'd think twice before they start lighting shit on fire.
Age of empires 2
Biggest badabooms ever 11
Why are they showing how to operate this deadly weapon? don't they know someone can 3d print one???
Hii Alex wood
Jess Grenfell hi jess grenfell
Alex Wood who r u
Alex Wood alex
Alex Wood Dimples
Jess Grenfell idk
This is an onager, not a mangonel, and neither would launch a 90kg projectile over 300m.
All that and you probably would just take out a halberdier if you're an especially good shot.
Seems like it would only be really effective in a target rich environment.
Taneth yeah I use them in stronghold 2 on tower tops for defense and it loads with around 3 to 5 rocks per shot for more effectiveness
This is not a mangonel
Mangonels do not use torsion
The other half of the equation
Thats not a mangonel
Static mangonel
Catafolt ready for war
cool
Torsion Engines
wouldn't like to see the guy the rock would hit.
I dont think 1-2 minutes is accurate for loading time. Remember they had armies, so there were probably 6-7 people on one mangonel at a time.
And if they had 8-10 weapons at their back, I bet those things were loosing every second.
I wonder how many poor fish were killed?
This isnt a mangonel...
Isn't that an onager?
No, a Roman Onager had a bucket rather than a sling!! They both kick like a mule (onager) though!!! ;-)
Ben Knight Can you link some info on that cause I am pretty sure romans used slings. (since it makes projectiles go further than a bucket)
pelleban They certainly used slings to great effect, but most of their large hardware was rigid with a bowl, so it was essentially an overarm throw. I'll see if I can find something to back it up, but I tend to use memory, education and books over google or wiki!!
In a lot of ancient depictions, the mangonel is drawn with a big spoon or bucket on the end of the throwing arm. This is also true of most catapults you see in Hollywood movies. The fact is, a sling is much more effective at throwing a stone than a spoon is.
In one historical reference, they use the term "scorpion" and "onager" for the same machine. It's like an Onager for the way it kicks, and the iron sling-hook on the end of the arm resembles a scorpion's stinger on the end of his tail. The iron hook was the sling attachment, not a spoon!
The advantage a bucket has over the sling is that it's easier to load, easier to aim, and you can load more than one projectile in the bucket. A sling would scatter them way too much, but a bucket full of stones would make an effective anti-personnel weapon, especially at moderately close range.
Keep in mind that these were military weapons. The armies didn't want the enemy to learn how to build one properly. So whenever anyone made a diagram or described the machine, they would leave out key details.
As Mangonel is derived from the greek for 'war engine(machine)', all onagers, scorpions and trebuchets are Mangonels, while not all Mangonels are necessarily any of the above!!!
Pedantry aside, I believe 'onager' was a colloquial roman term given to a torsion driven catapult, which may or may not have had a sling... :-/
Wow 😮
a lot of energy is wasted on the stopper
Without the stopper it would just flip the rock into the ground.
IKR OMG
Why were these not in Civilization?
1:15 "oh shit"
The mangonel looks a lot stronger than the trebuchet.
wow
anyone here because of age of empires 4?
So much effort for that?
Onager not mangonel.
i liked my own comment @jessgrenfell
어ㅓ
....and!....😃👓
Un
Oscar alexis Jhon wow
What a perfectly useless piece of equipment.
useless? I bet you wouldn't feel good if you were on the receiving end of that rock.
Well you're right of course I wouldn't :) But here's the thing - while this machine takes eternity to load and drains your strength the end result is a projectile that will take only one man down. One arrow will achieve the same result and European archers have been recorded to shoot more than 10 arrows a minute :) A perrier, for instance, is an artillery piece that can shoot rocks too with much more firing capacity :)
Duncan Demicoli not a armored knight, at least not without the knight being at spitting distance. only the heaviest bows and archers with years of training could take out such a target at under 100 yards, a common man could operate a mangonel with a few hours or days of training and take out a knight and his horse at 300yards, a triumph of mechanization. the loading process showed here was slow because they weren't in a rush here. they'd be going much faster in a actual battle. this thing has the loading rate of a cannon or slightly slower and it still has multiple projectile capability. open your mind a little and not only look at the options they showed in the video, this isn't the only size or ammo they used.
***** keepmit on a tower top or wall for castle defense and load multple stones and shoot into the swarm or troops
Or use a small beehive!
Age of empires 2