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Hand Firearms in 15th-Century Poland. Why Did the Breakthrough Happen?
Subtitle:Fasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae. Fasc. 34 (2021)
Creator: Publisher:Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences ; Polish Academy of Sciences. Łódź Branch
Place of publishing: Date issued/created: Description: Type of object: Subject and Keywords:firearms ; Poland ; 15-16th century ; arms ; mercenaries ; handgonne ; hackbut
Abstract:The first mention of the use of artillery in Poland comes from 1383. Information on hand firearms is slightly later. In 1410, the use of one handbuchse by municipal guards in Kraków was recorded. However, over the next decades, hand firearms in Poland did not play a significant role. According to the records of mercenary infantry from the 1470s, less than 1% of soldiers owned firearms (simple handgonnes and hackbuts). Small arms started to play a bigger role only in the 1490s. According to the lists of mercenary infantry from 1496, 27% of shooters had firearms, while the rest still used crossbows. In the following years, the percentage of soldiers with firearms increased, exceeding 80% in 1500. It should be noted that in the late 15th century in mercenary censuses there is a new type of weapon called rusznica, a term that should be associated with matchlock handgonnes. The weapon quickly gained recognition from mercenaries. After 1498, matchlock handgonnes also appeared in the equipment of mounted mercenaries and members of the court banner. Matchlock handgonnes almost completely replaced crossbows in the armament of mercenary infantry. The author tries to present these changes in a European context, and explain how such changes in the armament of foot soldiers were possible in such a short time
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Fasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae
Volume: Start page: End page: Resource type: Detailed Resource Type: Format: Resource Identifier:0860-0007 ; doi:10.23858/FAH34.2021.008
Source:IAiE PAN, call no. P III 348 ; IAiE PAN, call no. P III 349 ; IAiE PAN, call no. P III 368 ; click here to follow the link
Language: Rights:Creative Commons Attribution BY 4.0 license
Terms of use:Copyright-protected material. [CC BY 4.0] May be used within the scope specified in Creative Commons Attribution BY 4.0 license, full text available at: ; -
Digitizing institution:Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences
Original in:Library of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences
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