History of archery

Archers were a widespread if supplemental part of the military in the classical period, and bowmen fought on foot, in chariots or mounted on horses. Archery rose to prominence in Europe in the later medieval period, where victories such as the Battle of Agincourt cemented the longbow in military lore.^{[citation needed]}

Archery in both hunting and warfare was eventually replaced by firearms in Europe in the Late Middle Ages and early modern period. Firearms eventually diffused throughout Eurasia via the Gunpowder empires, gradually reducing the importance of archery in warfare throughout the world.^{[citation needed]}

Archery is still practiced today, for hunting^[2] and as a target sport.^{[citation needed]}

Prehistory

Paleolithic and Epipaleolithic

The oldest known evidence of arrows comes from South African sites such as Sibudu Cave, where likely arrowheads have been found, dating from approximately 72,000–60,000 years ago,^{[3][4][5][6][7][8]} on some of which poisons may have been used.^[3]

Small stone points from the

Likely arrowheads were reported in 2020 from Fa Hien Cave in Sri Lanka, dated to 48,000 years ago. "Bow-and-arrow hunting at the Sri Lankan site likely focused on monkeys and smaller animals, such as squirrels... Remains of these creatures were found in the same sediment as the bone points."^[12][13]

At the site of Nataruk in Turkana County, Kenya, obsidian bladelets found embedded in a human skull and within the thoracic cavity of another human skeleton, suggest the use of stone-tipped arrows as weapons about 10,000 years ago.^[14]

In the Sahara, Mesolithic rock art of the Tassili plateau from 5,000 BP or earlier depicts people carrying bows.^[15]

Based on indirect evidence, the bow seems also to have appeared or reappeared later in Eurasia around the Upper Paleolithic.

In the

Possible fragments of a bow found at Mannheim-Vogelstang have been dated to the Early Magdelenian age (c. 17,500 to 18,000 years ago) and at Stellmoor dated 11,000 years ago.[16] Azilian points found in Grotte du Bichon, Switzerland, alongside the remains of both a bear and a hunter, with flint fragments found in the bear's third vertebra, suggest the use of arrows at 13,500 years ago.^[17]

Other early indications of archery in Europe come from Stellmoor in the Ahrensburg valley north of Hamburg, Germany. They were associated with artifacts of the late Paleolithic (11,000–9,000 BP). The arrows were made of pine and consisted of a mainshaft and a 15–20 centimetre (6–8 inches) long foreshaft with a flint point. They had shallow grooves on the base, indicating that they were shot from a bow.^[18]

The oldest definite bows known so far come from the Holmegaard swamp in Denmark. In the 1940s, two bows were found there, dated to about 8,000 BP.^[19] The Holmegaard bows are made of elm and have flat arms and a D-shaped midsection. The center section is biconvex. The complete bow is 1.50 m (5 ft) long. Bows of Holmegaard-type were in use until the Bronze Age; the convexity of the midsection has decreased with time.

The oldest depictions of combat, found in Iberian cave art of the Mesolithic, show battles between archers.^[20] A group of three archers encircled by a group of four is found in Cueva del Roure, Morella la Vella, Castellón, Valencia. A depiction of a larger battle (which may, however, date to the early Neolithic), in which eleven archers are attacked by seventeen running archers, is found in Les Dogue, Ares del Maestrat, Castellón, Valencia.^[21] At Val del Charco del Agua Amarga, Alcañiz, Aragon, seven archers with plumes on their heads are fleeing a group of eight archers running in pursuit.^[22]

Archery seems to have arrived in the Americas via Alaska, as early as 6000 BC,

North Africa

The ancient Egyptian people took to archery as early as 5,000 years ago. It was widespread by the time of the earliest pharaohs and was practiced both for hunting and use in warfare. Legendary figures from the tombs of Thebes are depicted giving "lessons in archery".^[31] Some Egyptian deities are also connected to archery.^[32] The "Nine bows" were a conventional representation of Egypt's external enemies. One of the oldest representations of the Nine bows is on the seated statue of Pharaoh Djoser (3rd Dynasty, 27th century BC).^[33] Many of the archers in service to Egypt were of

The Assyrians and Babylonians extensively used the bow and arrow for hunting and warfare. The empires in ancient Mesopotamia formed the first standing armies used exclusively for warfare. This included soldiers trained and employed as archers. The archers served as an integral division of the military that was used on foot and on chariots.

The Chariot warriors of the Kassites relied heavily on the bow. The Nuzi texts detail the bows and the number of arrows assigned to the chariot crew. Archery was essential to the role of the light horse-drawn chariot as a vehicle of warfare.^[34]

The

Three-bladed (trilobate) arrowheads have been found in the United Arab Emirates, dated to 100 BC-150 AD.^[35]

Eurasian Steppes

The

Domestication of horses and mounted horseback archery are also believed to have originated in the Eurasian steppes. This revolutionized warfare as well as the practice of archery.

The paleolithic paintings of Bhimbetka rock shelters depict archery.^[36] Vedic hymns in the Rigveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda lay emphasis on the use of the bow and arrow.^[37] The second Veda, the Yajurveda contains Dhanurveda (dhanus "bow" and veda "knowledge"), which was an ancient treatise on the science of archery and its use in warfare. The existence of Dhanurveda or "Science of Archery" in antiquity is evident from references made in several works of ancient literature. The Viṣṇu Purāṇa refers it as one of the eighteen branches of knowledge taught, while the Mahābhārata mentions it as having sutras like other vedas. Śukranīti describes it as that 'upaveda of yajurveda' which has five arts or practical aspects. The Dhanurveda enumerates the rules of archery, and describes the uses of weapons and the training the army. Besides providing the account of the training of the archers, Vasiṣṭha's Dhanurveda describes the different types of bows and arrows, as well as the process of making them. Detailed accounts of training methodologies in early India considered to be an essential martial skill in early India.^[38]

The composite bow in India was being used by 2nd millennium BCE. The bow was used extensively on foot as well on chariots. It was incorporated into the standing armies of the Mahajanapadas, and used in mounted warfare on horses, camels, and elephants with a howdah. The importance of archery continued through antiquity during the Maurya Empire. The Arthashastra, a military treaties written by Chanakya during the Maurya Era, goes in depth on the importance and implementation of archery. It also mentions an archery school at Taxila which enrolled 103 princes from different kingdoms across the empire.

During the era of the Gupta Empire mounted archery was largely supplanted by foot archers. This was in contrast to the nomadic armies on horseback from Central Asia such as the Iranian, Scythians, Parthians, Kushans, and Hunas. Later Indian kingdoms entities would maintain and field large numbers of mounted archers. The use of bows and arrows continued to be used as the mainstay of most Indian armies until the advent of firearms, introduced by Mongol gunpowder empires.^[34][39]

Greco-Roman antiquity

The people of Crete practiced archery and Cretan mercenary archers were in great demand.^[40] Crete was known for its unbroken tradition of archery.^[41]

During the invasion of India by Alexander the Great, archers are listed among the troops Alexander personally commanded.^[42]

The early Romans had very few archers, if any. As their empire grew, they recruited auxiliary archers from other nations.

Around the tenth century the crossbow was introduced in Europe. Crossbows generally had a longer range, greater accuracy and more penetration than the shortbow, but suffered from a much slower rate of fire. Unlike the longbow they did not require special skill or strength to use effectively. They were also controversial, attracting stigma to those who used them, and were outlawed by the Lateran Council of 1139.^[50] Despite this, crossbows were used in the early Crusades, with models having a range of 300 yd (274 m) and being able to penetrate armour or kill a horse.^[51] They fired short metal bolts rather than arrows. The French army relied substantially on the crossbow in late medieval times.^[52]

The

In the Middle East the composite bow was the preferred bow in the later Medieval period. More powerful than the shortbow, they had the advantage over the longer longbow that they could be fired from horseback. However they also required skilled craftsmen to manufacture, and, like the longbow, extensive training to use well. The Byzantine Empire was already using mounted archers extensively by the 5th Century, and the Emperor Mavrikios laid down principles for their use in his seminal military work the Strategikon of Maurice. The core of the Byzantine army was the Cataphract, an armoured horse archer. The Byzantines also recruited mercenary light mounted archers from the Steppes.^[55]

Turkish tribes, of which the

In Korea Joseon adopted a military-service examination system from China that included a focus on archery skills and that contributed to the development of Korean archery as a practical martial art.^[58]

In Asia archery was one of the Six Noble Arts of the Zhou dynasty of China (1146–256 BC); archery skill was a virtue for Chinese emperors.^[45][46]

The

A complete arrow of 75 cm[60] (along with other fragments and arrow heads) dated back to 1283 AD, was discovered inside a cave^[61] situated in the Qadisha Valley, Lebanon.^[62]

A treatise on

A treatise on Saracen archery was written in 1368. This was a didactic poem on archery dedicated to a Mameluke sultan by Ṭaibughā al-Ashrafī.[64]

A 14th-century treatise on Arab archery,

A treatise, A book on the excellence of the bow & arrow of c. 1500 details the practices and techniques of archery among the Arabs of that time.[66]

An anonymous book written in Picardy, France, in the late 15th century details how archery in medieval Europe was practiced. The book was titled Le Fachon de tirer l'arc a main. It describes the means of how a yew bow could be made, the kinds of wood that could be used, how to shoot it, string it and different kind of arrows. According to the writer, its purpose is for posterity, possibly due to the rise of the gun.^[67]

In

The advent of

"Have them bring as many guns as possible, for no other equipment is needed. Give strict orders that all men, even the samurai, carry guns."

— Asano Yukinaga, 1598^[69]

In Ireland, Geoffrey Keating (c. 1569 – c. 1644) mentions archery as having been practiced "down to a recent period within our own memory."^[70]

Early firearms were inferior in

The last regular unit armed with bows was the Archers' Company of the Honourable Artillery Company, ironically a part of the oldest regular unit in England to be armed with gunpowder weapons. The last recorded use of bows in battle in England seems to have been a skirmish at Bridgnorth; in October 1642, during the English Civil War, an impromptu militia, armed with bows, was effective against un-armoured musketmen.^[76] The last use of the bow in battle in Britain is said to have occurred at the Battle of Tippermuir in Scotland on 1 September 1644, when James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose's Royalist highlanders defeated an army of Scottish Covenanters.^[77] Among Montrose's army were bowmen.^[77]

Archery continued in some areas that were subject to limitations on the ownership of arms, such as the Scottish Highlands during the repression that followed the decline of the

Within the steppe of Eurasia, archery continued to play an important part in warfare, although now restricted to mounted archery. The Ottoman Empire still fielded auxiliary cavalry which was noted for its use of bows from horseback. This practice was continued by the Ottoman subject nations, despite the Empire itself being a proponent of early firearms. The practice declined after the Crimean Khanate was absorbed by Russia; however mounted archers remained in the Ottoman order of battle until the post-1826 reforms to the Ottoman Army. The art of traditional archery remained in minority use for sport and for hunting in Turkey up until the 1920s, but the knowledge of constructing composite bows fell out of use with the death of the last bowyer in the 1930s. The rest of the Middle East also lost the continuity of its archery tradition at this time.

An exception to this trend was the

The British initiated a major revival of archery as an upper-class pursuit from about 1780–1840.^[81] Early recreational archery societies included the Finsbury Archers and the Kilwinning Papingo, established in 1688. The latter held competitions in which the archers had to dislodge a wooden parrot from the top of an abbey tower. The Company of Scottish Archers was formed in 1676 and is one of the oldest sporting bodies in the world. It remained a small and scattered pastime, however, until the late 18th century when it experienced a fashionable revival among the aristocracy. Sir Ashton Lever, an antiquarian and collector, formed the Toxophilite Society in London in 1781, with the patronage of George, the Prince of Wales.

Archery societies were set up across the country, each with its own strict entry criteria and outlandish costumes. Recreational archery soon became extravagant social and ceremonial events for the nobility, complete with flags, music and

After the Napoleonic Wars, the sport became increasingly popular among all classes, and it was framed as a nostalgic reimagining of the preindustrial rural Britain. Particularly influential was Sir Walter Scott's 1819 novel, Ivanhoe that depicted the heroic character Locksley winning an archery tournament.^[82]

A modern sport

The 1840s saw the first attempts at turning the recreation into a modern sport. The first

Towards the end of the 19th century, the sport experienced declining participation as alternative sports such as

In the United States, primitive archery was revived in the early 20th century. The last of the

In China, at the beginning of the 21st century, there has been revival in interest among craftsmen looking to construct bows and arrows, as well as in practicing technique in the traditional Chinese style.[88]^[89]

In modern times, mounted archery continues to be practiced as a popular competitive sport in modern

From the 1920s, professional engineers took an interest in archery, previously the exclusive field of traditional craft experts.[92] They led the commercial development of new forms of bow including the modern recurve and compound bow. These modern forms are now dominant in modern Western archery; traditional bows are in a minority. In the 1980s, the skills of traditional archery were revived by American enthusiasts, and combined with the new scientific understanding. Much of this expertise is available in the Traditional Bowyer's Bibles (see Further reading). Modern game archery owes much of its success to Fred Bear, an American bow hunter and bow manufacturer.^[93]

See also

• Archery
• Arash
• Kyūdō, Japanese archery
• Yabusame, Japanese horseback archery
• Gungdo
  , Korean archery
• Turkish archery
• Chinese archery
• Archery in India

References