ring was released, and these javelins were sent 350 - 500 yards into the air. "-It was necessary that any such piece of siege artillery should outrange the arrows of the archers and stones of the slingers on the walls by a reasonable margin in order to be of much use when set up in an effective position." (Haven 1). A crossbow device, larger than an arbalest but smaller than a ballista, was called a scorpion. It could propel eight-foot spears a good distance. The ballista had been around since the Roman times. They would mount the firing mechanism between rows of horses or mules for easy transportation. It was called the carroballista or "cart catapult." Although the ballista served its purpose well, it was not the most valuable in battle. "The trebuchet of the Middle Ages was the largest and most powerful of the whole range of hurling engines." (Davidson 23). The trebuchet worked on the lever principal. A long beam rotated up and down on a crossbeam. The shorter half of the beam was heavily weighted down, and from the longer end hung a pouch of rope. Projectiles were placed in the pouch and flung through the air up to eight hundred yards. The long end was tied to a base that kept it from being thrown into the air by the counterweight. Once this rope was severed, the projectile went into motion. Possible projectiles of the trebuchet were living prisoners, jugs of Greek fire, rocks, and animals. Another large weapon of siege was used primarily in storms, the battering ram. In its early stages, the ram was no more than a hefty beam with a mass of metal attached to the end. Men would hoist the cumbersome boom onto their shoulders and run into a wall or door as many times as needed until the surface under attack gave way. In the Middle Ages, it was developed into more of a machine, for the ram hung from the center of a tent under which the men operating the ram could hide. The ram could be swung like a pendulum much more easily than having ...
