31-551: The Leach trench catapult (sometimes called a Leach-Gamage catapult ) was a bomb-throwing catapult used by the British Army on the Western Front during World War I . It was designed to throw a 2 lb (0.91 kg) projectile in a high trajectory into enemy trenches . Although called a catapult, it was effectively a combination crossbow and slingshot . It was invented by Claude Pemberton Leach as an answer to
62-409: A Pythagorean of that name who seems to have flourished in the late 5th century BC. He probably designed his bow-machines on the occasion of the sieges of Cumae and Milet between 421 BC and 401 BC. The bows of these machines already featured a winched pull back system and could apparently throw two missiles at once. Philo of Byzantium provides probably the most detailed account on
93-569: A cricket ball or Mills bomb 120–150 yd (110–140 m). However, with new rubbers it was reported to be able to propel a jam tin grenade or No. 15 ball grenade up to 200 yd (180 m). The first was produced in March 1915 and by October of that year over 150 had been made. Twenty were allocated to each division. From the end of 1915 they were replaced by the French-made Sauterelle grenade launcher, and, in 1916, by
124-408: A diesel engine or a dropped weight to acquire their momentum, such as Shuttle Loop installations between 1977 and 1978. The catapult system for roller coasters has been replaced by flywheels and later linear motors . Pumpkin chunking is another widely popularized use, in which people compete to see who can launch a pumpkin the farthest by mechanical means (although the world record is held by
155-481: A pneumatic air cannon). In January 2011, a homemade catapult was discovered that was used to smuggle cannabis into the United States from Mexico. The machine was found 20 ft (6.1 m) from the border fence with 4.4 pounds (2.0 kg) bales of cannabis ready to launch. Haryanka dynasty The Haryanka dynasty was the first dynasty to rule Magadha , a region in ancient India . Initially,
186-691: Is mentioned in Mahavagga . His advisors included Sona Kolivisa, Sumana (flower gatherer), Koliya (minister), Kumbhaghosaka (treasurer) and Jīvaka (physician). He was given the title of Seniya . Both Jain and Buddhist texts claim the king was a follower of their respective religions. Uttaradhyayana Sutra says he was a follower of Mahavira , whereas Sutta Nipata depicts him and his wife, Khema , as followers of Buddha . The latter further mentions he deputed Jīvaka to assist Buddha's Sangha . He also married Chellana and Kosala Devi , sister of Pasenadi . According to George Turnour and N.L. Dey,
217-527: Is mentioned in ancient texts. They mention gramakas (village headmen) who headed village assemblies and mahamatras (high-ranking officials) who had executive, judicial and military functions. Historically, this period coincided with the Achaemenid conquest of the Indus Valley during the rule of Darius I from about 517/516 BCE. Bimbisara reigned from 544 to 492 BCE. The extent of his kingdom
248-437: Is particularly noteworthy as it constitutes the first clear evidence for the switch to torsion catapults, which are more powerful than the more-flexible crossbows and which came to dominate Greek and Roman artillery design thereafter. This move to torsion springs was likely spurred by the engineers of Philip II of Macedonia. Another Athenian inventory from 330 to 329 BC includes catapult bolts with heads and flights. As
279-594: The 2-inch medium trench mortar and Stokes mortar . Copies of the Leach catapult, made locally by the Royal Engineers , were used in the Gallipoli Campaign . Catapult A catapult is a ballistic device used to launch a projectile a great distance without the aid of gunpowder or other propellants – particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines . A catapult uses
310-781: The Latin 'catapulta', which in turn comes from the Greek Ancient Greek : καταπέλτης ( katapeltēs ), itself from κατά ( kata ), "downwards" and πάλλω ( pallō ), "to toss, to hurl". Catapults were invented by the ancient Greeks and in ancient India where they were used by the Magadhan King Ajatashatru around the early to mid 5th century BC. The catapult and crossbow in Greece are closely intertwined. Primitive catapults were essentially "the product of relatively straightforward attempts to increase
341-426: The 1840s, the invention of vulcanized rubber allowed the making of small hand-held catapults, either improvised from Y-shaped sticks or manufactured for sale; both were popular with children and teenagers. These devices were also known as slingshots in the United States. Small catapults, referred to as "traps", are still widely used to launch clay targets into the air in the sport of clay pigeon shooting . In
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#1732772362002372-529: The 1990s and early 2000s, a powerful catapult, a trebuchet, was used by thrill-seekers first on private property and in 2001–2002 at Middlemoor Water Park, Somerset, England, to experience being catapulted through the air for 100 feet (30 m). The practice has been discontinued due to a fatality at the Water Park. There had been an injury when the trebuchet was in use on private property. Injury and death occurred when those two participants failed to land onto
403-519: The 5th century BC the mangonel appeared in ancient China , a type of traction trebuchet and catapult. Early uses were also attributed to Ajatashatru of Magadha in his 5th century BC war against the Licchavis . Greek catapults were invented in the early 4th century BC, being attested by Diodorus Siculus as part of the equipment of a Greek army in 399 BC, and subsequently used at the siege of Motya in 397 BC. The word 'catapult' comes from
434-622: The German Wurfmaschine , a spring-powered device for propelling a hand grenade about 200 m (220 yd). The design was a Y -shaped frame with natural rubber bands pulled taut by a windlass and held in position by a hook release. They were manufactured by the Gamages department store in Central London and cost £6 17s 6d to make. In tests, the Leach catapult could propel a golf ball 200 yd (180 m), and
465-562: The Greek bows. A detailed description of the gastraphetes , or the "belly-bow", along with a watercolor drawing, is found in Heron's technical treatise Belopoeica . A third Greek author, Biton (fl. 2nd century BC), whose reliability has been positively reevaluated by recent scholarship, described two advanced forms of the gastraphetes , which he credits to Zopyros , an engineer from southern Italy . Zopyrus has been plausibly equated with
496-586: The capital was Rajagriha . Later, it was shifted to Pataliputra , near present-day Patna in India during the reign of Udayin . Bimbisara is considered as the founder of the dynasty. According to Buddhist text, the Mahavamsa , Bimbisara was appointed king by his father, Bhattiya, at the age of fifteen. This dynasty was succeeded by the Shishunaga dynasty . The governance structure of Haryanka dynasty
527-448: The establishment of a theory of belopoietics ( belos = "projectile"; poietike = "(art) of making") circa 200 BC. The central principle to this theory was that "all parts of a catapult, including the weight or length of the projectile, were proportional to the size of the torsion springs". This kind of innovation is indicative of the increasing rate at which geometry and physics were being assimilated into military enterprises. From
558-413: The highly rated history of Philistus , a contemporary of the events then. The introduction of crossbows however, can be dated further back: according to the inventor Hero of Alexandria (fl. 1st century AD), who referred to the now lost works of the 3rd-century BC engineer Ctesibius , this weapon was inspired by an earlier foot-held crossbow, called the gastraphetes , which could store more energy than
589-507: The mid-4th century BC onwards, evidence of the Greek use of arrow-shooting machines becomes more dense and varied: arrow firing machines ( katapaltai ) are briefly mentioned by Aeneas Tacticus in his treatise on siegecraft written around 350 BC. An extant inscription from the Athenian arsenal, dated between 338 and 326 BC, lists a number of stored catapults with shooting bolts of varying size and springs of sinews. The later entry
620-546: The name of the father of Bimbisara was Bhatiya or Bhattiya, but the Puranas refer him as Hemajit, Kshemajit, Kshetroja or Ksetrauja and the Tibetan texts mention him as Mahapadma . Ajatashatru reigned from 493 to 462 BCE. He married Vajira , Kosala 's princess. In some sources, Bimbisara was imprisoned and killed by his son and successor, Ajatashatru , under whose rule the dynasty reached its largest extent. Ajatashatru
651-486: The range and penetrating power of missiles by strengthening the bow which propelled them". The historian Diodorus Siculus (fl. 1st century BC), described the invention of a mechanical arrow-firing catapult ( katapeltikon ) by a Greek task force in 399 BC. The weapon was soon after employed against Motya (397 BC), a key Carthaginian stronghold in Sicily . Diodorus is assumed to have drawn his description from
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#1732772362002682-426: The safety net. The operators of the trebuchet were tried, but found not guilty of manslaughter, though the jury noted that the fatality might have been avoided had the operators "imposed stricter safety measures." Human cannonball circus acts use a catapult launch mechanism, rather than gunpowder, and are risky ventures for the human cannonballs. Early launched roller coasters used a catapult system powered by
713-517: The same time, Greek fortifications began to feature high towers with shuttered windows in the top, which could have been used to house anti-personnel arrow shooters, as in Aigosthena . Projectiles included both arrows and (later) stones that were sometimes lit on fire. Onomarchus of Phocis first used catapults on the battlefield against Philip II of Macedon . Philip's son, Alexander the Great ,
744-402: The sudden release of stored potential energy to propel its payload. Most convert tension or torsion energy that was more slowly and manually built up within the device before release, via springs, bows, twisted rope, elastic, or any of numerous other materials and mechanisms. During wars in the ancient times, the catapult was usually known to be the strongest heavy weaponry. In modern times
775-489: The takeoff runway is too short for a powered takeoff or simply impractical to extend. Ships also use them to launch torpedoes and deploy bombs against submarines. In 2024, during the Israel-Hamas war , a trebuchet created by private initiative of an IDF reserve unit was used to throw firebrands over the border into Lebanon, in order to set on fire the undergrowth which offered camouflage to Hezbollah fighters. In
806-479: The term can apply to devices ranging from a simple hand-held implement (also called a " slingshot ") to a mechanism for launching aircraft from a ship . The earliest catapults date to at least the 7th century BC, with King Uzziah of Judah recorded as equipping the walls of Jerusalem with machines that shot "great stones". Catapults are mentioned in Yajurveda under the name "Jyah" in chapter 30, verse 7. In
837-466: The use of catapults became more commonplace, so did the training required to operate them. Many Greek children were instructed in catapult usage, as evidenced by "a 3rd Century B.C. inscription from the island of Ceos in the Cyclades [regulating] catapult shooting competitions for the young". Arrow firing machines in action are reported from Philip II 's siege of Perinth ( Thrace ) in 340 BC. At
868-530: The walls. Defensive techniques in the Middle Ages progressed to a point that rendered catapults largely ineffective. The Viking siege of Paris (AD 885–6) "saw the employment by both sides of virtually every instrument of siege craft known to the classical world, including a variety of catapults", to little effect, resulting in failure. The most widely used catapults throughout the Middle Ages were as follows: The last large scale military use of catapults
899-712: Was contemporary with Mahavira (599–527 BCE) and Gautama Buddha (563–483 BCE). Ajatashatru fought a war against the Vajjika League , ruled by the Lichhavis , and conquered them. Udayin or Udayabhadra is mentioned in Buddhist and Jain texts as the successor of Ajatashatru. The Puranas , however, mention him as the fourth king after Darshaka. Puranas mention Nandivardhana and Mahanandin as successors of Udayin. According to Buddhist tradition, Anurudhha, Munda and Nagadarshaka were his successors. Haryanka dynasty
930-520: Was during the trench warfare of World War I . During the early stages of the war, catapults were used to throw hand grenades across no man's land into enemy trenches. They were eventually replaced by small mortars . The SPBG (Silent Projector of Bottles and Grenades) was a Soviet proposal for an anti-tank weapon that launched grenades from a spring-loaded shuttle up to 100 m (330 ft). Special variants called aircraft catapults are used to launch planes from land bases and sea carriers when
961-751: Was the next commander in recorded history to make such use of catapults on the battlefield as well as to use them during sieges. The Romans started to use catapults as arms for their wars against Syracuse , Macedon, Sparta and Aetolia (3rd and 2nd centuries BC). The Roman machine known as an arcuballista was similar to a large crossbow. Later the Romans used ballista catapults on their warships. In chronological order: Castles and fortified walled cities were common during this period and catapults were used as siege weapons against them. As well as their use in attempts to breach walls, incendiary missiles , or diseased carcasses or garbage could be catapulted over