First and foremost among the weapons of siege warfare were the stone-throwers, the two most well-known of which are the catapult and mangonel.

The catapult consisted of a mounted axle into which a long pole was fitted to fory a "T". At the end of this pole was an open, spoonlike container into which the projectile to be fired was placed. The axle would then be locked into place so that it could not rotate; then the pole would be pulled downward near the container end, loaded, and released. It would then snap back to its original position, heaving its projectile toward the target.

Unlike the tension principle of the catapult, the mangonel employed the principle of counter-weight. On a wooden platform, a long pole would be placed so that it could be rocked up and down, much like a child's see-saw.

At the forward end, a container would be attached which could be filled with weights of any sort; at the opposite end, a sling or projectile-holding apparatus would be attached. This end would then be winched down, loaded, and released: the downward force of the counterweight would then whip the pole up and over, releasing the projectile toward the target.

The ammunition used by these siege weapons ranged from giant wallbusting boulders to containers of Greek Fire. Among the most notable of the former were the flint stones which Richard brought from Messina which were used at Acre. On impact, one was said to have splintered so effectively that it killed twelve Turks.

Greek fire, one of the most effective and devastating weapons of the middle ages, seems to have been a mixture of naptha oil, sulfur and bitumen, but a variety of combinations no doubt existed. Its flame could not be extinguished by water; apparently vinegar or human urine with sand was need to douse its blaze.

At Acre, the opposing sides actually named their mangonels. Philip has one called the "Bad Neighbor". The Muslims had one they referred to as "Bad Kinsman." Apparently, the two finally squared off and dueled, "Bad Neighbor" being temporarily knocked out as a result.

Another siege weapon was the mobile battering ram. In its simplest version, this consisted of a fairly large, openended shed which was mounted on wheels with a stoutly built roof to deflect the debris and projectiles thrown down at it by those manning the target wall. A heavy pole with a ram at its head was suspended from the roof-with chains. The "cat", as it was called, was pushed forward from inside until it reached the wall; then its crew would swing the ram back and release it, letting it crash into the wall. This would go on until a breach had been made for the attacking units.

A more complex version was employed by Richard I. Although basically the same in principle, it had the added advantage of being built high enough so that a drawbridge hinged to its front could be lowered to the level of the enemy parapets, thus allowing infantry within the "belfry" (as it was called) to make a simultaneous attack on the upper parts of the wall while the battering was going on below. Also, bowmen could be placed on the stories of the belfry to fire through slits on any enemy troops who presented themselves as targets.

In a discussion of the weapons of siege warfare, one tends to lose sight of the actual objective, the capture of a given city by a breach of its walls. Once the all-important breach was made, it was not the siege weapons which caotured the city, but the rank and file who had to fight their way through that constricted space.

The weapons of the Crusades' siege warfare are certainly interesting, but without the men to exploit the breaches they made, they would have been useless.

A Military History of the Third Crusade

Introduction
Jihad
Battle of Arsouf 1191
Conclusion and Bibliography
The Crusader Army
The Muslim Army
Ordnance of Siege Warfare
Crusader Kings