Springald

A springald, or espringal, was a torsion siege engine device for throwing bolts in medieval times. It is depicted in a diagram in an 11th-century Byzantine manuscript, but in Western Europe is more evident in the late 12th century and early 13th century. It was constructed on the same principles as an Ancient Greek or Roman ballista, but had inward swinging arms and threw bolts instead of stones. It was also known as a 'skein-bow', and was a torsion device using twisted skeins of silk or sinew to power two bow-arms.^[1]

The springald was a defensive bolt thrower based on the torsion mechanism of ancient ballistas, with two arms held in a skein of twisted sinew or hair. Unlike the ballista, it seems to have been housed in a rectangular box-like wooden structure and shot bolts instead of stones. According to digital models and projections, a springald could throw a bolt around 180 meters if mounted on a tower at an elevation of 15 degrees. It appears to have spread across Europe rapidly during the 13th century. According to J Liebel, its appearance may be connected to the invention of the spinning wheel in Europe around 1250, which made the winding of skeins easier. The earliest reference to the springald appears in France in 1249 and its presence is attested to in the arsenal at Reims in 1258. In England, an order of horsehair was made for springalds in 1266. Springalds were commonly used to defend gates from atop towers, where their skeins were safe from wet weather and their bolts could be shot a greater distance. Springalds were expensive to produce: Liebel's calculation for the cost of machines built for the pope at Avignon puts them at six months' wages for an unskilled laborer. By 1382, springalds were being phased out in favor of crossbows or firearms. In some parts of Germany and Switzerland, the springald survived until the early 15th century.^[2]

Se pueden encontrar varios ejemplos reconstruidos. Jean Leibell creó un modelo de 30,5 cm (12 pulgadas) para sus investigaciones sobre ballestas y ballestas de gran tamaño, encargado por el Museo de las Armerías Reales . Un modelo más grande se puede ver en la Torre de Londres . El único ejemplar a tamaño real conocido se encuentra en el Museo de las Armerías Reales en Fort Nelson, Portsmouth , con una longitud aproximada de 2,4 m (8 pies) y capaz de lanzar un proyectil de 2,4 kg (5,3 lb) a más de 55 metros (60 yardas) (superando su alcance previsto) y un proyectil de 1,5 kg (3,3 lb) a más de 77 metros (84 yardas) . Este ejemplar fue retirado por el fabricante, la Sociedad de Artillería Mecánica de Tenghesvisie, para realizar más investigaciones sobre el mecanismo de cuerda y pruebas de disparo. La máquina iba a ser devuelta al museo en la primavera de 2013 para una demostración pública de artillería mecánica en Fort Nelson. También existe o existió un enorme saltamontes en el Parque Trebuchet, Albarracín , España.      

• Se mencionó un espringal en el penúltimo episodio de Juego de Tronos . ^{[ 3 ]}
• El libro Loamhedge de Redwall tiene un ratón llamado "Springald" (probablemente por el artilugio).
• Los Springalds aparecen en el videojuego Age of Empires IV .

• Trebuchet

• Nicolle, David (1996). Libro de referencia sobre la guerra medieval, vol. II . Armas y armaduras. ISBN 978-1-86019-861-8.
• Purton, Peter (2006). "El mito del mangonel: Artillería de torsión en la Edad Media" . Armas y armaduras . 3 : 79–90 . doi : 10.1179/174962606X99155 . S2CID 162238792 .