From a layman’s point-of-view it seems like the Bow & Arrow would be better for war since they, shoot much more efficiently, are cheaper to make and in even some cases significantly stronger.
I know that learning to shoot a bow is no easy task so would that be the main reason muskets became so popular?
In my simple man’s brain I’m wondering why you don’t see or hear anything about bows being used during something like the American Revolutionary war. Could it be that by then muskets had reached a certain level of design that made it more useful than a bow?
In: Engineering
It takes years for someone to build up the strength and skill to effectively use a bow that’s powerful enough for warfare. The difficulty in learning how to use a bow and building the muscle required for it is why medieval England instituted laws that *required* men to practice regularly with a bow throughout their entire adult lives. This is why England’s longbowmen were so effective. But again, it took years for someone to become effective.
On the flipside, it took days, maybe a week or two, for someone to become effective with muskets since they didn’t need to build up the muscles that archery required. This meant that musketmen could become a very effective fighting force much more quickly than archers could, especially when you consider that muskets can double as spears when you put a bayonet on them. Also, when you lost all your musketmen in a battle, they were very easy to replace. It was virtually impossible to quickly replace your veteran longbowmen.
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