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D³ugi ³uk angielski: strza³y
1. Clive Bartlett, English Longbowman 1330-1515, s.26-27:CYTAT
Arrows
Many people have heard of the famous 'clothyard' arrow. Unfortunately, this term is a literary invention. The description is a misquotation from a ballad of circa 1465 spread into literature by 17th century balladeers and poets. There is no historical justification for it, and much erroneous research has been done into the length of the clothyard in order to establish a length for the war arrow.
War arrows were known as 'Livery', 'Sheaf or 'Standard1. Livery because they were issued; Sheaf from the Anglo-Saxon word for a bundle, or perhaps because 24 or 30 arrows tied together look like a sheaf of grain; Standard either because they were made to the length of the legal standard yard or, more probably, because the whole design was subject to a government specification.
War arrows had a large diameter so they could carry a large head to do maximum damage. To keep their weight to a minimum, light timber was preferred, and they are described in contemporary documents and by Ascham as made of 'aspe' (aspen - populus treinula) which is indeed ideal for mass-produced arrows. The trees, grown in wet conditions, are easily propagated from cuttings, extremely fast growing and produce a timber both light and strong. However, medieval herbals are contradictory in their defi-nition of 'aspe' and it may have been used as a generic word for all the native poplars.
Ash arrows also appear on medieval inventories, and Ascham actually recommended ash for war arrows on the supposition that, being heavier, they would give a 'greater stripe', i.e. hit harder. But as he specified some ash, it must have been as true then as it is now that suitable ash is difficult to obtain, and producing arrowshafts involves a lot of wastage. And on large diameter arrows the weight of ash does make a considerable difference to performance. Perhaps heavy shafts were for use at short range. Ascham lists fifteen timbers, including aspen, alder, elder, birch, willow and the heavier ash and hornbeam ? all of which have been recovered from the Alary Rose. It is surprising, however, that he does not mention the most popular of native trees of 19th and 20th ccnturv archery, the Scots Pine (pinus sylvestris).
All the available information on the Alary Rose arrows is included in the caption to the accompanying drawing, and this can be taken as a description of the typical war arrow of the period under discussion. However, the author wishes to add a few further points. There are 15th century references to fletching lengths of up to 12 in. One 1475 supply list has 350 'sheffes of arrowes of ix ynches [9 in.] fethir', 1,750 'sheffes of arrowes of viii ynches (8 in.] ethir1 and 7,960 sheafs of'vii Ynches [7 in.J fethir\ The reason for the different lengths of feathers, and whether they related to different heads, is not yet known. Fletchings were glued and tied on. The thread lay in a thickly applied glue compound which also covered the base of the feather to give good waterproof protection.
Spare ammunition for the archers was carried in the wagons, either in chests which were sometimes covered in leather or in that universal container of the Middle Ages, the barrel - often fitted with locks.
A few contemporary illustrations show boxes of arrows without heads next to barrels of heads. It is possible that heads were 'jammed' on or just held on with wax. The advantage of this would be the ease with which an arrow could be recovered from where it was embedded, fitted with a new head and re-used.
Sir John Smythe, writing in 1590, stated that in every sheaf of 24 arrows, 8 should be lighter 'flight' arrows to 'gall' the enemy at longer distances, but there is no evidence that this was ever practised.
2. Fragment De Banco Roll z 1298 r., przy okazji opisu ¶mierci Simon'a de Skeffington autor dok³adnie przedstawia wygl±d ³uku i strza³:CYTAT
'with an arrow from a bow, the arrow being barbed with an iron arrow-head 3" long and 2" broad, and the fletch of the said arrow was made of ash three-quarters of an ell long and 1" thick, the said fletch being feathered with peacock feathers, and the bow being of yew and the bowstring of hemp, the length of the bow being one ell and a half and i;i gross circumference 6" thick, with a length of bowstring of a fathom and a half, and in thickness half an inch, and with that arrow gave him a blow on the left side of the breast, 3" from the said breast, descending 2" and the depth 6", so that he immediately died of the blow.'
Cyt. za Jim Bradbury,
The Medieval Archer, s. 81. Fragment tym bardziej ciekawy, i¿ jest to stosunkowo wczesny opis, siêgaj±cy panowania Edwarda I.
3. Post Daniela Bochry, opis d³ugo¶ci strza³ znalezionych we wraku okrêtu Mary Rose:CYTAT
Wiêkszo¶æ strza³, które znaleziono, by³a spakowana do worków po 24 szt;
mo¿na by je podzieliæ na dwie grupy: do 31.5" d³ugo¶ci 1/2" przy grocie i 3/8" przy nasadce, 5/16" g³êboko¶æ rowka na ciêciwê, 1/8" ¶rednica rowka, 2" rogowa wklejka, 7-7 1/2" lotki
kolejna grupa to 28" (1/2" ¶rednicy przez oko³o 20" od grotu, potem g³adkie zwê¿enie do 3/8 przy nasadce) reszta podobnie jak wyzej.
Proporcja dluzszych do krotszych w workach wynosila 16 do 8
4. Clive Bartlett, English Longbowman 1330-1515, 4 typy promieni znalezionych we wraku
Mary Rose.
[Na dole, za³±cznik]
5. Roger Ascham, Toxophilus, 1545, komentarz E. Arber, London 1868; s.129 Dla mi³o¶ników staroangielskiego.
CYTAT
Steles be made of dyuerfe woodes as.
Erafell.
Turkie wood.
Fuflicke.
Sugerchefte.
Hardbeame.
Byrche.
Afflie.
Ooke.
Seruis tree.
Hulder.
Blackthorne.
Beche.
Elder.
Afpe.
Salow.
Przek³ad na jêz. angielski
http://www.archerylibrary.com/books/toxophilus, t³umaczenie siemko2
CYTAT
Steles be made of divers woods: as
Brazil [fernambuk],
Turkey wood [?jaka¶ odmiana kasztanowca?],
Fustic [morwa],
Sugar-chest [],
Hardbeam [grab zwyczajny],
Birch [brzoza],
Ash [jesion],
Oak [d±b],
Service-tree [jarz±b domowy],
Blackthorn [tarnina],
Beech [buk],
Elder [czarny bez],
Asp [osika],
Sallow [wierzba iwa, ³oza]
:
CYTAT
D³ugie na 77-82 cm angielskie strza³y wyrabiano z osiki. Jej wiotko¶æ jest przys³owiowa, lecz na promienie nadawa³y siê nieco sztywniejsze, zdrewnia³e czê¶ci. W wyborze wiotkiego surowca chodzi³o o to, aby strza³y "prze¶lizgnê³y" siê po ³êczysku i wyrówna³y lot w dalszym odcinku przez wyt³umienie drgañ. (...) Anglicy nie stosowali stopek, traktuj±c pociski jako jednorazowe (...). Dla prostoty i tanio¶ci opatrywali je w trójk±tne ostre i d³ugie lotki, mocowane klejem i nici±.
Postaram siê uzupe³niæ w najbli¿szym czasie.
Jak macie jakie¶ interesuj±ce ¼ród³a to zamieszczajcie - to chyba jedyny sposób, aby unikn±æ ja³owej dyskusji i wyra¿eñ typu "gdzie¶ czyta³em..." itp.
, ale s±dzê ¿e ta ksi±¿ka mo¿e wiele wyja¶niæ, choæ nie wiem czy akurat traktuje raczej o ³ukach tureckich: