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The French fury of Antwerp in 1583 is an example. The duke of Anjou didn't have much authority over The Netherlands, and he sought to improve it by trying to take Antwerp, by a ruse. He asked for a ro …

Blackbeard carried so many weapons not for self-defence, but simply to impress his victims. A Colt M1911 weighs 1100 grams. An average flintlock pistol from the 1800s weights about the same. … However, they carried those heavy weapons in holsters on the saddle. Rarely on their person. Those pistol armed cavalry units weren't that great. …

No. Observing a disastrous effect doesn't mean you can solve it. Yes, it was a well known fact. Splintering caused a tremendous amount of dead and wounded sailors, many were maimed for life. Of course …

It was not used by infantry, they had different weapons to work with. A warhammer was a weapon that needed specialized training. Most infantry didn't have a lot of training. D&D is a fantasy game. …

The few times a railway gun actually made a difference, it could have been done with different weapons are far less cost and effort. …

Not really, for two reasons: 1- Gravity works fine The idea is to defeat attackers when they are the most vulnerable. Which is when they try to storm the castle. Why set up complicated machinery if yo …

What exactly is a miracle weapon? My definition would be: something that all of a sudden changes the outcome of a conflict and decides a war. Hannibal used clay pots filled with snakes to be thrown on …

Not a weird weapon, but a weird name: the (lengthened) morning star is called in Dutch 'goedendag'. That translates to good morning, or good day. It is actually a viciously efficient and easy to pro …

It looks like a cutlass or klewang to me. I can't see the actual length, but it seems too short for a cavalry sabre. Unless there were pony regiments somewhere. ;-) Google on 'Dutch Marechaussee klew …

No. Game of Thrones is a fantasy series, loosely based on medieval and renaissance history. This is an example of fantasy. I've searched for unusual trebuchet types, and came up blank. All I found wer …

Most archers weren't that good, and didn't have such powerful weapons. I didn't mention combat stress. That's something you have to figure in as well. …

Many advanced weapons systems in common use today are much older: The Boeing B52 flew 69 years ago. There is no replacement planned. It will fly almost certainly for another 30-40 years. … Sometimes weapons remain in extended use for many reasons. …

I've visited the Gevangenpoort (Prisoners Gate) museum in The Hague, The Netherlands, decades ago when I was a lad. They have dievenvangers or man catchers on display. The Gevangenpoort is one of the …

They were fairly to reasonably effective. Otherwise nobody would have bothered with them in the first place. War is not about having the biggest baddest whatever. It is about applying force in the bes …