Without further ado, let’s talk about the siege equipment commonly used in ancient times.
1. Bow and arrow: a long-distance, high-speed lethal instrument, equivalent to modern guns.
In the history of ancient wars, battles between cities were the most brutal form of warfare in ancient times. In order to capture cities and territories more effectively, many abnormal weapons were developed, among which the heavy crossbow was a terrifying weapon. The most representative of the heavy crossbows is my country's three-bow bed crossbow.
The three-bow bed crossbow, also known as the "Eight Ox Crossbow", uses hard wood as the shaft and iron pieces as the feathers. It is as big as a javelin and has a range of more than 1,000 meters. It is worthy of its name. In addition to being widely used in field battles, killing weapons can also be used in offensive and defensive battles between cities.
This thing is quite spectacular when launched, and it can be nailed directly into the city wall at close range. (Most of the ancient city walls were made of earth rams.) During the volley, hundreds of "javelins" were nailed into the city wall, allowing the siege soldiers to climb up.
2. Chong chariot, also called "Linchong" or "duolou", is a kind of armored siege tower, which uses the power of collision to destroy city walls and gates.
To put it bluntly, this thing is to hit the rammed earth walls and wooden city gates head-on, using its own weight to accelerate. It is often used at the end of a battle.
3. Cloud ladder, a ladder as high as a cloud, sounds very domineering.
There were many ways to attack a city in ancient times, but most of them relied on quickly ascending the city as a prerequisite for victory. Therefore, A ladder that can directly cross the barrier was born.
In order to ensure the safety of people pushing ladders, since the Song Dynasty, the ladder has absorbed the improvement experience of the ladder in the late Tang Dynasty. The bottom of the ladder has been designed as a vehicle with shields on all sides. The outside is reinforced with rawhide, and people push it in the shed. The car can effectively resist the enemies' stones, bows and arrows thrown from the city wall. Friends who have watched The Lord of the Rings will remember the scene of the siege of the city by ladders. The towering city wall was quickly lost due to several ladders, which shows the role of ladders.
4. Catapults
Catapults began to be used in the Spring and Autumn Period. After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, they became an important weapon for attacking and defending cities. It is a type of ancient chariot. Mount the machine pivot to eject stones. Because the sound is like thunder, it is called the Thunderbolt Chariot.
Its appearance is the progress of technology and the need of war. The structure of the original catapult was very simple. It was a huge lever with stones loaded in leather sheaths or wooden baskets at the long end. Dozens of ropes were tied to the short end. When an order was given, dozens of people pulled the ropes at the same time. Use the principle of leverage to throw the stone.
The first large-scale use of catapults in the history of Chinese wars should be when Li Xin attacked Chu. The Chu army secretly prepared a large number of catapults. When the Qin army crossed the river, they suddenly launched them at the same time, and countless sharp stones hit them like a dark cloud. The Qin army of 200,000 was completely defeated, and Li Xin himself was defeated and committed suicide. This shows the power of the catapult at that time.
5. Grappling hook
One end of the grappling hook is connected to a rope and thrown to the city wall. The soldiers can climb the city wall, but the risk is very high. If they climb halfway, they will be discovered by the enemy and they will be chopped with a knife. Break the rope and the person falls.
Grappling hooks are generally used in nighttime surprise attacks.
There are basically so many siege machines, but there are many ways to siege the city.
① Siege: surrounded by heavy troops, cut off your food and water, starve you for three to five years, open the door and surrender on your own.
Being besieged by the enemy is terrible. Food is dwindling day by day, and physical strength is weakening day by day... There have been many incidents of cannibalism due to being besieged in the history of war.
② Fire attack: Use bows, arrows, and slings to throw fire into the enemy's city, which can cause significant damage to the enemy.
③Tunnel warfare:
Tunnel warfare is not the exclusive domain of the anti-Japanese soldiers and civilians in the central Hebei Plain. In ancient times, attacking an impregnable city would cause heavy losses to one's side.
Sun Tzu's Art of War said, the first is to attack the enemy, the second is to attack the enemy, the second is to attack the enemy, and then the third is to attack the city; the method of attacking a city is as a last resort. Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, attacking the city head-on is the stupidest way.
④Water Attack
As the name suggests, it is to use water instead of soldiers to attack the enemy.
The main forms of water attack include "building a dam and flooding the city", "breaking the embankment and rushing the enemy", "trapping the enemy with no water", etc.
In ancient times, city walls were mostly made of rammed earth. Watering them with water naturally became a shortcut to siege the city. Soak them in water for two or three days. If you don’t move, the city wall will fall apart and turn into mud.
⑤ Earth Attack
Directly fill the opponent's city with soil.
The impression seems to be that Mongolia used this method when they attacked a certain city. One hundred thousand cavalrymen each carry a bag of sand and throw it under the enemy's city wall. In just half a day, they can build a mountain of earth. Then the army enters the city directly along the mountain of earth, killing them all the way, with great domineering force.
⑥Plague
Use catapults to throw rotten cattle, sheep, even human corpses, and dung into enemy cities to spread diseases and plagues, leaving the enemy unable to fight back.
A very disgusting and perverted trick!
⑦Noise
It is also a disgusting tactic. Tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of soldiers stand in front of your house, beat gongs and drums, yell and curse, making noise day and night, two days a day. Fortunately, you will definitely have a mental breakdown in ten days and a half.
⑧Spy Infiltration
You all know about the Trojan horse scheme, right? A group of special forces sneaked in and cooperated inside and outside, which was very troublesome.
The above are all commonly used siege methods in ancient wars.
In general, the siege party has an absolute advantage. If they can defeat you, they will fight. If you cannot defeat them, they will take the body back home, and they will not run out of the city to chase you. Although a head-on confrontation would result in heavy losses, generally speaking, the siege party holds the initiative on the battlefield, and in history, the end of the battle was often declared when the siege party breached the enemy's city.