Guns and Roses

Cannons first appeared in Europe in 1280. These early weapons were largely unreliable and it took many years before they reached their peak. In 1453, Constantinople, capital of the Byzantine Empire, fell to the Ottomans after its walls, said to be the thickest in Europe, were breached by cannon fire

A crossbow could be used to its full capability after just a week of training, whereas the longbow required years of practise before it could be used well. It also required an incredible amount of strength to pull back the string. The use of a longbow took such a toll on a man that his skeleton would become deformed by the strains put upon it

The billhook consisted of a pole, which could be up to 9 feet (2.7 m) long, topped by a short blade which curved round into a hook. Surprisingly, they were quite an effective weapon, especially against mounted opponents. The hook often caught on the rider's armour, pulling him from his mount to the ground, from where he could be dispatched with a dagger

Clergymen were forbidden by their religion from drawing blood. They got round this by using the mace, which was a crushing weapon, used for bludgeoning rather than stabbing. They consisted of a heavy head, covered with either studs, spikes or flanges upon the end of a short handle. Maces were more successful against armour than swords as the force from one of their blows was sufficient to break bones without actually penetrating through the armour. They were a popular weapon in the Middle Ages as they were both cheap and effective

The battle-axe of a horseman was similar to a pole-axe, except it had an axe-head rather than a hammer and its shaft was shorter, enabling the rider to carry it in one hand. A leather strap was attached to the handle and passed round the bearer's wrist making the loss of the weapon less likely, should the rider lose his grip

The bow itself was usually made from the wood of a yew tree, although ash and elm were occasionally used. The string was made from flax or hemp

The length and width of a sword depended on its intended use. Those intended for hacking and chopping had shorter, thicker blades. The longer swords, which had more slender blades, were used as stabbing and thrusting weapons. These were more common during the Wars of the Roses as armour was too strong to be hacked through. The favoured technique of a swordsman was to stab his weapon at the weaker points of his opponent's armour

The most popular dagger at the time of the Wars of the Roses was called a 'rondel', so named because of its round guard and pommel. They were used primarily to prise open the visors of fallen foes and to finish them with a stab through the eye. They were also useful in penetrating the gaps in the joints of suits of armour. Their blades were around 12 inches (30 cm) long; more than sufficient to cause fatal injuries

Early guns were notoriously unreliable and lacked accuracy. Their main benefit was that the noise they made when fired served to frighten both men and horses, often sending them into a panic. Developments in gunpowder and firearm design during the time of the Wars of the Roses significantly improved the weapon and led to its replacement of bows as the dominant ranged weapon over the next hundred years

The pole-axe had a shaft as tall as a man which ended in a spike. On one side of the spike was a hammer and on the other a curved blade, or 'fluke'. The spike was capable of puncturing plate armour and the hammer caused crushing damage to both the armour and the man inside. The fluke could be used to trip an opponent. Against armoured men the pole-axe was a successful tool; against an unarmoured man it was a truly formidable weapon