TRIPLE SHOT

"What is said of Menelaus is worthy of being related. He could take three arrows at once, and with one shot hit three men, by which manner of shooting he killed a great number of the enemy, and was himself almost the cause of their flight."

(Zosimus, Historia Nova)

BYZANTINE ARCHERY

Think of horseback archers, and likely what come to mind are the Huns, the Ottomans, the Scythians, the Parthians, the Persians, the Avars. Few are aware that remarkably skilled horseback archers were just as vital to the success of the military campaigns of the Byzantines. 

It was largely the excellence of the Byzantine Empire's military organization and the martial abilities of its cavalry and bowmen that enabled it to withstand assaults from Persians, Avars, Franks, Slavs, Arabs and many others for more than 500 years between the 6th and 11th centuries.

This excellence was due largely to reforms of the emperor Mavrikios (582-602) codified in an outstanding military manual, the Strategikon, which remained considerably unadulterated for the next 500 years. Well before the Strategikon was written, when the Byzantines were fighting the Goths in Italy in the mid-sixth century, they were already doing so with the tactical edge of mounted archery. An eyewitness, Prokopios, described the skill of the Byzantine horseback archers as follows:

"They are expert horsemen, and are able without difficulty to direct their bows to either side while riding at full speed, and to shoot an opponent whether in pursuit or in flight [the rearward “Parthian shot”]. They draw the bowstring along by the forehead about opposite the right ear, thereby charging the arrow with such impetus as to kill whoever stands in the way, shield and corselet alike having no power to check its force."

The Strategikon depicts an army radically different in structure from the classic Roman model, most obviously because of a fundamental shift from infantry to cavalry as the primary combat arm. The primary type of soldier was neither an infantryman nor a cavalryman but rather both, and a bowman first of all. He required training in both foot and mounted archery with powerful bows, in using the lance for thrusting and stabbing while mounted — with unit training for the charge — and in wielding the sword in close combat. 

Few historical sources give so much detail regarding the training of troops as does the Strategikon, which provides us with specifics of the practice required for these lancer-archers. We read, for example, that the archer was to practice quickly alternating from shooting one or two arrows, to pulling out the spear from its back strap, to replacing the spear, to taking out the bow again:

"On horseback at a run (gallop) he should fire one or two arrows rapidly and put the strung bow in its case, if it is wide enough, or in a half-case designed for the purpose, and then he should grab the lance which he has been carrying on his back. With the strung bow in its case, he should hold the lance in his hand, then quickly replace it on his back, and grab the bow. It is a good idea for the soldiers to practice all this while mounted."

"He should also shoot rapidly mounted on his horse at a run [galloping], to the front, the rear, the right, the left.”

"They should be trained in rapid shooting with a bow... in either the Roman or the Persian manner. They should be trained in shooting rapidly while carrying a shield, in throwing the small javelin a long distance, in using the sling, and in jumping and running."

While it is clear that these special tagmata of mounted archers were trained in the sword and shield, the lance and the sling, the primary weapon was the composite reflex bow, the most powerful personal weapon of antiquity. The composite reflex bow was effective because it accumulated much energy but was equally resistant, so it was a good idea to choose a bow whose string could be pulled back quickly and confidently even on the fortieth arrow, and not just the first. Hence the injunction to use “Bows suited to the strength of each man, and not above it, more in fact on the weaker side.”

Weaker archers with weaker bows could compensate for lack of power with technique:

"We bend the bow toward the ear, sometimes to the neck, and sometimes we draw the bowstring to the breast. Drawing the bowstring back to the ear makes for the most powerful shot".

Power was not everything. Three things were deemed of equal importance in Byzantine archery: accuracy, power and speed:

"In archery we have three goals: to shoot accurately, to shoot powerfully, and to shoot rapidly".

None of these characteristics should be emphasized at the expense of another. What use is rapid shooting without accuracy against moving targets? What benefit is there in an accurate shot that lacks the power to pierce the heavy armour of the enemy? 

The success of the Byzantine archers, no less than the Huns, was their ability to execute powerful shots with precision and speed:

"He should be trained to shoot [the bow] rapidly on foot, either in the Roman [thumb and forefinger] or the Persian [three middle finger] manner. Speed is important in shaking the arrow loose [from the quiver] and discharging it with force. This is essential and should also be practiced while mounted. In fact, even when the arrow is well aimed, firing slowly is useless."

I am not altogether certain of the exact draw method of the Roman and Persian techniques mentioned here and further above. A similar but slightly earlier text on Byzantine archery, written around the early 6th century, may shed some light on the matter: 

"Some archers draw the bowstring with the three middle fingers..."

This sounds much like the Mediterranean draw most Western archers today are familiar with, but it seems to match the above reference to the Persian draw.

"...others with only two. Of those who use two, some will press the thumb upon the index finger..."

This is a technique I had previously never heard of, but the archer, Alexander Stover, has produced an interesting video on the subject, which you can view here.

"...and others just the opposite..."

Just the opposite from the thumb upon the index finger would be the index finger upon the thumb, which sounds just like the thumb draw used by Eastern archers, and which also seems to match the above reference to the Roman draw.

..."The last draws the bowstring back further and fires the arrow with greater force." 

"Each man should practice each one of these methods, so that when the fingers that he has been using become tired from the continual tension, he may use the others".

All the evidence suggests that these lancer-archers of early medieval Byzantium were truly remarkable and versatile bowmen who were used to great effect in a variety of situations in Byzantine warfare. Yet by the late 9th century, East Roman archery was in decline, giving the emperor Leo VI cause to complain in his Taktika (a revised version of Mavrikios' Strategikon) that the Byzantine archers were a shambles, compelling the East Roman army to hire "barbarian" (non-Roman) archers to fight for the Byzantines. 

Perhaps this is why 'Byzantium' is not the first thing to enter our heads when we think of the notable horseback archers of antiquity.

SARACEN ARCHERY AND SPEED SHOOTING

I have been reading Saracen Archery, which is freely available as a PDF here. I was led to this by Lars Andersen's viral Youtube video on the subject of speed shooting.

I became interested in finding evidence of speed shooting in the past and its application in military warfare. With the fad in speed shooting engendered by Lars Andersen's video, I became intrigued by the concept, particularly given my doubts regarding Andersen's historical claims. Indeed, some things said in the narration of the video are false, and are proven to be so by the very historical texts he cites (Arab Archery and Saracen Archery). 

For example, how he could say that target archery was unknown in the past and that the back quiver is a Hollywood myth when both are mentioned in those texts is beyond me. 

But I was also curious to know whether the impressive speed shooting which Andersen demonstrates so accurately was possible with bows which ancient archers would have used for warfare. It is clear from both archaeological and literary sources that war archers of East and West would shoot bows with draw weights of 100 - 150 ibs. Is it really possible to shoot 3 arrows in less than 2 seconds with a bow requiring such strength and still consistently hit one's target? 

Enter Saracen Archery, and two passages (from pages 141 and 142 in the text linked above) which describe both the speed at which the average Saracen war archer was expected to shoot (3 arrows in 1.5 seconds) and the practice of getting a good grouping from 75 yards (the desired diameter of the grouping was 3 feet). 

The poundage of the bow and the flight speed of the arrows are not mentioned. I only know from my own experience that arrows shot at a target 80 yards away with a 30 ib bow take about 3 seconds to land in the desired spot. If we put the following two passages regarding grouping and speed together, it is possible to conclude - though with no certainty - that Saracen archers would shoot 3 arrows before the first arrow even landed, and they no doubt did so with bows weighing over 100 ibs!

In the literature and legends of many countries there are stories of almost incredible shots achieved by archers, and in modern times some remarkable shots have indeed been made. Such feats, however, may be regarded as isolated cases representing the perfect shot out of many thousands made. In our text, on the other hand, we have a rare and important guide to the standard of accuracy expected of every archer. He is required to group his arrows within a circle roughly 3 feet in diameter at 75 yards. The ability to do this with wooden shafts and without the aid of a sighting device such as can be fitted to a bow by the modern archer demands a very high standard of accuracy and bespeaks a well-trained and experienced bowman. It is nevertheless within the reach of anyone who will practise with diligence. 

In terms intelligible to the modern reader the standard of rapidity the author sets for the archer is the ability to discharge 3 arrows in about 1/5 seconds. This is a fast time and one's first reaction is surprise that such a high standard, which few, if any, Western bowmen of today could attain, should be expected of the general run of Mameluke archers. It is nevertheless an attainable standard as is evident from the achievement in modern times of Saxton Pope who did succeed on a number of occasions in shooting 7 arrows in 8 seconds (Elmer, Target Archery, pp. 428-30). Accuracy naturally diminishes with increased speed, and field trials suggest that it is difficult to exceed 8 well-aimed shots per minute. Nevertheless, it cannot be doubted that Muslim archers could shoot at high speed and, given a large enough target, hit with all shots. During the Second Crusade William of Tyre, who must have been conversant with the performance of his own bowmen, remarked more than once on the dexterity of the enemy archer, 'The Saracen cavalry... began to shoot thicker and faster than one could believe possible' is a fairly typical comment of the period (Smail, Crusading Warfare, pp. 76-77 and nn. 8, 9). In contemporary military science the rate of projection of missiles, when multiplied by their weight or explosive force, gives what is termed 'fire-power'. If we may be excused an anachronistic and, in the context an admittedly incongruous, use of words for a nevertheless legitimate purpose, the fire-power of a crossbow shooting 2 x 800 gr. missiles per min. would be 1,600 gr. per min. and might be compared with that of a hand bow shooting 8 x 400 gr., or 3,200 gr., per min. Fire-power combined with mobility is a point upon which modern military teaching lays great stress, and it is this combination that undoubtedly contributed to the effectiveness of Muslim horse-archers in their heyday. That 3 arrows could in fact be regularly shot in about 1.5 seconds we do not question; we only regret that we are not told exactly how the arrows should be held in order to shoot with such elacrity.

A WEAPON OF PEACE

A short video I made inspired by a couple of short texts I love on how archery has happily gone from an art of war to an art of peace.

THE BRITISH ARCHER

Passages from The British Archer or, Tracts on Archery by Thomas Hastings (1831)

The first passage concerns target practice, and it confirms my own experience that trying to move to longer distances before one is consistently excellent at short distance is a pointless exercise. The second passage concerns both the importance of having the right frame of mind for accurate shooting, and the method of achieving the correct distance and straightness for the arrow's flight.

OF SHOOTING AT MARKS

The archer may proceed to shoot at marks, after he has attained a thorough command over his bow, viz. in bracing and unbracing it, and in the five points of archery just treated on. The shorter the distance, (say from about ten to fifteen yards, which agrees with the Persian method already noticed,) the better for the young archer to commence his practice, and at which, he may in a short time become so expert, as to hit the smallest mark. Nothing is so likely to prevent a person from becoming an expert archer, as by commencing the practice of shooting at very distant marks.—The bow-arm, and the eye, must in the beginning of the practice of the bow naturally want that steadiness and experience, which can be acquired only by first shooting at short distances.—Without sufficient practice and experience, long shooting, can be called nothing else, but random shooting. A command over the bow, can be obtained only, by degrees and steady attention. As the young archer finds his improvement, he will be better enabled to increase his lengths to thirty and to sixty yards, which latter has been said to be the key, to all distances within range of the bow. In practising at marks placed at distances from thirty to fifty and sixty, and upwards to one hundred yards, the young archer should always bear in mind, that the best shooting is always the most graceful, because, that which is most graceful is the most perfect; and that it is not enough for him, to be able to hit the mark, but, that his hitting should be attended with the utmost steadiness of flight in his arrows. Great advantage may be gained, by practising at the same time at different distances within one hundred yards, which will accustom the archer to various addresses, or degrees of elevation of the bow, necessary for the destined mark. By thus varying the distances, a much greater confidence is acquired in the art of shooting than could ever be attained by keeping to one fixed length. At private, or at public meetings, it is the usual practice to shoot at targets ; and the distances commonly adapted, are, for the ladies, fifty or sixty yards, and for the gentlemen one hundred yards.

OF TAKING AIM, AND SHOOTING STRAIGHT, AND KEEPING A LENGTH

"No instrument can be more affected by the animal spirits, than the bow." Coolness, attention, and confidence, should ever be present with the archer ; for without these requisites, he cannot expect to attain to any great degree of excellence in his art. Possessed of these, he can take a proper, steady aim; without them, he cannot. At the moment of taking aim, much judgement is required, for the care that is necessary to insure " the keeping the length," is different from that which directs the arrow straight. The first is by the draft and elevation of the bow; the latter is by the eye and mind acting together upon the object of the aim. It should be remembered, that however an archer may find it expedient to give elevation, or otherwise, at the moment of taking aim, (in which he will naturally be directed according to the distance of the mark and strength of his bow,) he should ever accustom himself to keep his eye constantly fixed on the object aimed at. This is indispensably necessary to straight shooting. Ascham particularly insists on this point; he says however, " some, and those very good archers, in drawinge, loke at the marke, untill they come almost to the heade, then they looke at theyr shafte, but at the very lowse, with a second sight, they finde theyr marke againe. This waye, and all other afore of ane rehersed, are but shiftes, and not to be followed in shootinge streight. For leaving a man's eye always on his marke, is the onlye waye to shoote straighte, yea, and I suppose, so redye, and easye a way, if it be learned in youth and confined with use, that a man shall never misse therein. Some men wonder whye, in casting a man's eye at the marke, the hande should go streighte; surelye if he considered the nature of a man's eye, he would not wonder at it. The eye is the verye tongue wherewith witte and reason doth speake to everye parte of the bodye. This is most evident in fencing and feighting. The foot, the hande, and all wayteth upon the eye. The eye is nothing else but a certaine window for wit to shoote out her heade at. The chief cause whye men cannot shoote straight is because they loke at theyr shafts."

Thus it appears from Ascham, (our high authority) and the truth of which may soon be confirmed by experience, that the only advantage to be derived by looking at the shaft head at the loose, is, in order for a just elevation, to keep the length, or proper distance of shot; but which as this author justly observes, " yet hindereth excellente shootinge, because a man cannot shoote streight perfectlye, excepte he loke at his marke, draw and loose equally, and keep his bow arm steadily and firmly fixed at the time of loosing."

ANCIENT TARGET PRACTICE

The following passage is taken from Arab Archery (Chapter 45 - Targets and Target Practice), written around 1500 A.D. The translation is by N.A. Faris and R.P. Elmer (1945), and can be found here.

What fun it would be to be able to use ancient methods of target practice at archery clubs! 

The first thing a novice should do is to practice shooting against targets of all kinds: near and far, still and moving.

The first type [of still target practice] is that of the "imitation horseman" and is done as follows: Take a staff the height of a mounted horseman; attach to its upper end a disk about a span in diameter, representing the horseman's head; one span below the disk place a shield about three spans in diameter, representing the shield of the horseman. The target is then placed at a distance equivalent to the cast of the bow. Thus placed, the novice should shoot against the shield with five arrows. When he can shoot the entire five arrows in succession without missing a single shot, he should then proceed to shoot against the "head" in a similar fashion. He should continue with this practice until he perfects his aim.

The second type of still target is that of the "opposing targets." It consists in placing four targets: one to your right, another to your left, a third in front of you, and a fourth behind you. You then stand in the center, holding four arrows between the fingers of your right hand. Starting with the one on your right and moving on to the one behind you, then the one on your left, and finally the one in front of you, you shoot at each while standing with your feet planted firmly on the ground and not moving from their place at all. The only part of your body which moves throughout the operation is your waist, which pivots around to whatever direction you may be shooting.

When after days, even months, of practice, this operation is perfected, start to practice the same thing while mounted on a calm and steady horse. When this is perfected, start to practice the same while your horse is moving between the targets. Finally, when you become adept at this, hitting the target every time you shoot, start practising the same thing- while your horse is running at full speed. When this stunt is perfected, you have attained the limit toward which every archer sets his eyes. This is, however, not possible except through perseverance and continued practice.

INSCRIPTIONS

Some inscriptions found on bows, arrows and quivers, taken from the book, Arab Archery.

ON BOWS

More dreaded by the dauntless foe

Than any other warlike blow,

Come the wooden shafts which are

Shot with bows that send them far.

They fell his ranks, line after line,

And shower them with death divine.

Piercing through the shield and mail,

They cause the breath of life to fail.

* * *

It falls to me to wield the bow and bend its limbs,

Though in the act of death my arrow far excels it;

For if to slay the foeman marks a weapon's rank,

What can surpass that one which pierces through him?

* * *

Elegant in form and wonderful in structure!

When such a thing is sought, the Arab bow is found.

If enemies approach, it welcomes them with arrows,

Laden with death and bearing fear and awe.

Such is the Arab bow, with victory bound of God;

His holy writ and revelation with its arrows spreading.

ON ARROWS

An arrow from a warrior,

Shot at an unbeliever,

Counts more than many prayers

Said by a pious hermit.

ON QUIVERS

I am full of fatal arrows;

My merchandise is death and pain.

Learn by what thou hast seen of me.

I am the blight of the wide world.

THE TEN STRENGTHS BOW

Most people do not think of archery as a sport for which one must be in shape, but the reality is that in addition to target practice, there is a need also for continuous training to build or maintain strength. Archery requires the use of back muscles which most people do not engage in other activities. If one is not practising archery very frequently, an archer easily falls out of shape. Many archers use training bands to practice their form and to keep their strength and technique honed for real shooting. This is particularly important when one wishes to acquire the strength to build up to bows with higher draw weights.

In ancient times, such strength was acquired simply by pulling a bow over and over again, until one was able to hold the bow at full draw and shoot with accuracy, and steadily progress to a series of higher poundage bows. Alas, to do this nowadays with traditional bows is a rather costly affair. If one wishes to build to a higher poundage, he must acquire a whole new bow, and not just new limbs as one would do with a modern take-down recurve bow. 

In connection with this ancient method of building strength in archery, a friend of mine recently visited a museum where he saw this "ten strengths training bow".

If your eyes are failing you, the text from the exhibit reads thus: 

This test bow was used to assess the strength of candidates in military examinations during the Qing Dynasty (AD 1644-1911). Candidates drew a series of bows up to 18 "strengths". This is a "ten strengths bow", requiring the ability to lift about 130 pounds. Excellence in military exams was one way an officer could rise through the ranks. The other was to show great courage in battle. Archery was an important skill throughout Chinese history, used in hunting, warfare, and physical training. The Manchus, who invaded China and founded the Qing (ching) Dynasty, also valued skill in archery and promoted it in their army.

130 ibs was the weight of a 10 strength bow, yet they went up to 18! Alas, there is no indication of what the poundage of these strengths were - whether each strength was measured by 2 ibs or 5 ibs, or how long it took to build from one strength to the next. Whatever the case, it is quite difficult to imagine the strength of these archers! I think I would probably burst a blood vessel and cause myself some serious spinal damage trying to pull half that weight!

So there you have it: a fascinating piece of archery history for traditional archery geeks. I hope to learn more about it in the future.

A WEAPON FOR PEACETIME

The Bow! That weapon of remote antiquity - once so destructive - so bloody - so cruel: - that Weapon, by which Nations have subverted Nations - among us is now known only as an instrument of polite amusement! 

--Walter Moseley, An Essay on Archery, 1792-- 

Thus have we seen in the lapse of time, one of the most dangerous and destructive weapons of war laid aside... and English Archery, once the terror of foreign enemies, now changed into a pleasing, elegant, and healthful amusement. May we not wish for a similar alteration with regard to every other instrument invented for the destruction of men; and hope for the arrival of those peaceful days, so beautifully described by the poet - 

No more shall nation against nation rise, 

Nor ardent warriors meet with hateful eyes; 

Nor fields with gleaming steel be cover'd o'er, 

The brazen trumpets kindle rage no more; 

But useless lances into scythes shall bend.

And the broad falchion in a plowshare end.

--Anecdotes of Archery, 1792--

WILLIAM TELL And Why His Famous Arrow Shot Is Not So Impressive

Think of an archer shooting an apple off someone's head, and William Tell is probably a name that springs to mind. If you are Swiss, it is likely that you revere him as a national hero, responsible for the birth of Swiss independence in 1307. But throughout the world, he is most famous for shooting an apple off his son's head from 120 paces in one shot. 

If the legend is true, which is far from certain, it was undoubtedly an impressive achievement, but not as impressive as people imagine. Think of Tell performing that legendary feat, and you may be picturing him with a longbow or something similar, but William Tell was renowned for his proficiency with a crossbow, as the famous statue of him in Altdorf testifies. And a crossbow is a very different species of bow. 

What makes shooting an apple off someone's head with a bow and arrow so remarkable? Leaving aside, of course, modern bows with sights and such, success is determined by a number of factors: stance and positioning, knowing or guessing the correct distance, arm height, releasing the string correctly, using your back muscles properly, keeping your bow arm from moving. Any slight deviation in these matters could well be fatal for the boy under the apple.

With a crossbow, however, the only things one really need worry about are aim and distance. No less impressive as the same feat with a rifle, but nowhere near as impressive as accomplishing it with a bow.

Somehow William Tell shooting that apple has been conjured up in the minds of many as a longbow archer. Maybe deep down we all instinctively know which of those two weapons requires the greater skill.