One of the many sieges where the Romans used the Ballista was the Siege of Aracillum in 25BC. The siege was fought during the Cantabrian Wars between the Romans and Cantabri. The Roman Generals in charge were Gaius Antistius and Augustus Caesar, they commanded five roman legions which consisted… More…

The Ballista was an ancient missile launcher designed to hurl javelins or heavy balls. Ballistae were powered by torsion derived from two thick skeins of twisted cords through which were thrust two separate arms joined at their ends by the cord that propelled the missile. The cords were… More…

Blog Post 3:

The Siege of Dover Castle

Year: 1216 AD

Location: Dover on the English coast

Opposing forces:

Attackers:

The attacking forces consisted of English and French rebels with the express purpose of overthrowing King John and replace him with Prince Louis, commonly nicknamed “The… More…

Siege of Yodfat

The opposing sides and armies were the Romans and the Galiliean Jews. The Romans were commanded by Titus Flavius Vespasianus and the Jews were commanded by Yosef Ben Maitityahu. The Jewish army consisted of 42,000 combatants and the Roman army consisted of 60,000 men… More…

Siege of Baghdad

The siege of Baghdad latest from January 29 to February 10, 1258. The Mongol forces used Trebuchets as a siege weapon during this siege. Hulagu intended to further extend his rule into Mesopotamia. Hulagu was instructed to attack Baghdad. On January 29, the Mongol army began to… More…

the trebuchet was a priceless item that was used frequently in the 4th century. It was on the same level as the catapult and they both were used for hurling small to large rocks to smash castles and or city walls. The medieval men worked hard on the trebuchet as it was one of the harder designs to… More…

The trebuchet is a siege engine that uses a large swimming arm to fire a projectile at a target or enemy. The trebuchet is an ancient war weapon that dates back to 300bc but it was extensively used by the french after they had seen how to use and build the weapon.  The technology used back… More…

Blog Post 3

The battle of Xiangyang was a key battle between the invading Yuan Dynasty armies fought by the Mongols and the Southern Song forces between 1267 AD and 1273 AD.  It was one of the longest sieges in the medieval world and was the longest campaign in the war against the… More…

In 400 bc the ballista was made and it was made by the romans in 400 bc this weapon really helped the roman army when they were in war mainly because it uses a torsion bases weapon with a bolt meaning that it would be able to get better accuracy.  Another reasoning is that it would mean we… More…

My groups war engine is a torsion catapult also known as a Mangonel which was invented in the year 400BC, and was used by the Romans. The romans used a torsion catapult in times of war.

In these medieval ages there were many missiles that were used for the torsion catapult e.g. Stones, Fire,… More…

HoH Blog Post 3

Our chosen siege weapon, being the Mangonel, was used in a variety of battles, one of them being the siege of Dover otherwise known as the battle of Sandwich and often had the nick name ‘The Great Siege’. The siege was just outside of Dover, England. This was the… More…

The ballista was one of the most effective and most valued weapons in the Roman arsenal. The ballista was generally used as an artillery weapon that would rain down large bolts on enemy positions so that troops would have an easier time attacking, similarly to how artillery was used in World… More…

Opposing sides:

The Kingdom of England VS The Kingdom of Scotland. Under the rule of King Edward the first and Sir William Oliphant respectivley. 

Date/Location of Battle:

The battle occured in 1304 at Stirling castle in Stirling Scotland, Until around 1307 in which King… More…

Hands on History: Blog Post 2

The Siege weapon my group has chosen to build is the Ballista which was originally built by the Greeks but adapted by the romans.

The romans originally used Aleppo Pine which is one of the strongest types of wood found in Italy, they also used Lead and Iron… More…

Torsion catapults were used from the 4th century onwards by the Roman Empire, using the catapult designs known as Onagers and Mangonels. Originally designed as a lighter version of the Roman ballista, the Onager, and Mangonel quickly replaced them, being simpler than their more complex… More…

HOH Blog Post 3 

The English first used our siege engine, the Mangonel, in the year 1216, in the Siege of Dover. But otherwise known as the battle of Sandwich and often had the nick name ‘The Great Siege’. The two nations who were opposing one another in this siege… More…

A battle in which our siege engine, the mangonel, was used, was the Siege of Dover, or the Battle of Sandwich, often given the nickname “the Great Siege”. The siege was just outside of Dover, England. This was the first time the mangonel was used in England. The two nations who… More…

The siege engine my group is using is a torsion catapult which was invented in the year 400BC, and was used by the Romans. The romans used a torsion catapult in times of war.

Back then creating a catapult would not have been easy as they did not have tech labs, with multiple electric drills and… More…

Hands on History – Blog post 2:

The Mangonel was believed to have been originated by the Romans in 400BC. The word ‘Mangonel’ is received from the Latin word ‘Manganon’, which literally means ‘an engine of war’. But the Mangonel wasn’t… More…

Today in the modern world we have all the technology to us we can build anything g we can build buildings that  a really tall we can build weapons that shoot out bullets that go really far and we have technology such as laptops phones and Ipods we have a lot of good technology but back in… More…

As we build our prototypes of our taution powered ballista I feel very grateful for my multi-thousand RPM electric drill driver and my ionized screws and bolts. I do feel very sympathetic for the early engineers who pioneered technology with a dodgy hammer, some nails and a lot of timber. Our taution… More…

The torsion power ballista is said to be created in 338 - 326 B.C in Greece. They allegedly invented screws/nails, rotary mills, screw press, bronze casting techniques, water clock and the torsion catapult. Some of the challenges that the builders would have faced would be that they cut… More…

The trebuchet is a siege engine/weapon used for throwing projectiles at enemies. The trebuchet first appeared in China during the 4^th century BC. It then spread westward and was adopted by the Byzantines in the mid 6^th century AD. The most common and well known trebuchet is a counter-weight,… More…

The Mangonel was invented by the Roman Empire in the 4^th century BC and became very popular later in Europe when it was introduced to the French and then the English in the 12^th century AD. It worked alongside ballistae at one point in history and then went into battle with trebuchets at later… More…

Empathy Task: Historical Construction Techniques

The Mangonel is believed to be an ancient war engine invented by the Romans in 400BC as a light alternative to a ballista which also had the addition of wheels. The Mangonel was also used by the French and the English. It was first used by the English… More…

Hands on History Blog

Torsion catapults are siege weapons developed at the beginning of the fourth century bc. Simple torsion devices could have been developed earlier, but the first existing evidence of a torsion siege engine comes from the Chalcotheca, the arsenal on the acropolis in… More…

The Mangonel was used by many empires and races, such as the Romans (400BC), the French and the English (1216 onwards). The Romans created it for use as a light alternative to the ballista about 800 years before the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The Mangonel sat in the dust for a long… More…

The Trebuchet is an ancient siege weapon used to fire rocks using a swinging arm and man power. This weapon first appeared in China in the 4^th century BC. The counterweight trebuchet (our one) appeared in Christian and Muslim lands in the 12^th century and made it to the 13^th century. This… More…

My group's siege weapon is the ballista. The ballista was used primarily during the Roman Empire from around 27BC to 476AD. It's essentially a very large cross bow, capable of easily impaling enemies from over 400 metres away. While the Romans were very technologically advanced for their time,… More…

When: The Trebuchet was first used In China during the 4th century, during that time the romans were using aqueducts, roads, bridges and dams. Along with having an advanced waste disposal system borrowed from the minoans

What: their were many tools and machines used by people during the fourth… More…

Hands on History Blog Post Ballista

The Making of the Ballista and challenges they had on making it.

Century: 6^th century Ballista technology for the Greeks and when the Romans absorbed the Greek city states into the Roman republic they used the Greek technology in 146 BC (1^st… More…

The first ballista was built in 400 BC for Dionysius of Syracuse by the Greeks. With the invention of torsion spring bundle technology by the Ancient Greeks, the first ballista was able to be built. This allowed lighter projectiles to be shot with higher velocities over longer distances. It was… More…

This assignment is a very different to ones I have done before, as for the first time we get to build a siege weapon and get to put all of my knowledge towards this project. Just designing a functional siege weapon will be difficult, and constructing the siege weapon will be extremely hard… More…

This assignment is very different to ones I have encountered before, as it will require me to put my knowledge into something practical. Simply designing a functional siege weapon will be very difficult, and constructing it will be even harder. Depending on what type of siege weapon we decide to… More…

I initial thoughts on this project is that it's going to be very hard to accomplish, mainly due to measuring the wooden and string materials and our tech helper having enough time to help everyone. The small scale design should be relatively easy, as we just need to measure and cut the wooden… More…

This project is unlike any other project I have done before at Newington. It seems like it will be one that runs over the entire semester, meaning that it will be a long process to create this replica siege engine. The students will need a sense of planning and strategising over these… More…

This semester I believe that my initial expectations are very different to what we will be actually doing and making later this term. Despite this I feel that this term will be a new and fun experience and a very big change to the last semester in Hands on History. Although I have come to the… More…

I'm looking forward to building and designing a siege weapon this semester. I think that the engineering and the building of the actual weapon will be the hardest part of this task. We will have to research thoroughly to ensure that our siege weapon can function properly while being safe. I… More…

I believe that this assignment/project has the potential to be an extreamly interactive and entertaining project. For starters, the group work is very different to what we have seen. Instead of making a powerpoint (with way to many words on it) that we read off about sieges or ancient games, we… More…

expectations: my guess for this project is that we will be able to create a reasonable working siege engine, i believe that it will have at least average power and range, when it comes to accuracy and fire rate im guessing that their scores wont be as high as we are going for a mangonel which… More…

I am looking forward to this project. I believe that this project will take a lot of time and many attempts but it will be worth it. After researching how siege weapons were created in medieval times, I know that there will be problems constructing these weapons since instruments and other… More…

For the second semester our main goal is to create a functional catapult. We will have multiple mini assignments and assessments along the way which will all add up for a total mark. This is a group project meaning there will be disputes and different perspectives on what and how to create our… More…

I know that this project is going to be good. It will be a challenge, but it will be worth the effort and the pain. It is perhaps the best assignment I have ever been given. However, there will be really big problems such as feuds between the group and parts not being completed on… More…

My initial thought of this project is that it would definelty be difficult, choosing mechanisms, and working out what is the best design, as its almost guranteed that you will make a mistake. I think this project not only helps improve your tech skills and hands on skills, but it also will teach… More…

I feel this upcoming semester will be very engaging and fun as we are able to create something that hasn't been done before in our school. However, this means that we will face some challenges and have to make something without being able to see a finished prototype as no one else has done this… More…

I believe that this term and project will be very challenging to myself and my classmates. It will tackle our technology and reasearching skills and also test our hands on skills. I also believe that this project has an element of fun and a rewarding component. This is becasue this term we got… More…

I think that this term will definitely be one of the most interesting as we will be choosing our own Siege Engine. What i am expecting is to see a weapon that works but is probably not going to be as effective as the equipment used in Medieval times. Although i feel like my team will be… More…

My initial thoughts for this seige weapon was that it would be the best choice due to the fact of it using a bolt which is fast meaning that the momentum of the bolt would impact the barrel and make it fall over. 

Some difficulties is that we have some group members away meaning that… More…

This semester I hope will be better than semester one. however like every challenge there are problems i anticepate to run into. I initially anticipate to have to go through a rigorous designing phase to narrow down our ideas to the best one. Along with this we shall modify current designs… More…

I believe that during our new project/ assignment Siege weapon building, there will be problems such as not completeing certain parts of the weapon, team members failing to complete thier work and running out of time. But this projecgt seems to be quite interesting and fun because… More…

I think this part of the semester will be a very interesting and exciting. Some reasons as to why the building part will be exciting, because the one we are the ones who will be designing then making the siege weapon, we all have big expectations but not too much knowledge. Making the siege… More…

I think this semester will be a very fun and interesting one with us building our own siege weapons. I think that at first, it'll be hard to understand how exactly to begin building our chosen siege weapon as we all have big expectations but not too much knowledge. We may have to research our… More…

Yesterday we played Mancala the Oware version. This game requires skill and strategy as you will need to find a way of defeating your opponent as fast as you can even though you had 10 minutes to defeat your opponet. Oware is an Ashanti abstract strategy game among the Mancala family board… More…

Group 4: William S, Jake G, Andre F and Dhruv K.

We did marn grook and boogalah which both focus on the aborigonal history and we did 2 activities which were marn grook where you would kick a ball up in the air and try catch the ball with which we used a soccer ball, the second game was… More…

Group 3: Ethan Dinopoulos, Martin Mai, Thanh Pham and Barnaby Haslem

This week we played Kendo and talked about feudal Japan. This involved 3 activities, the first one was hitting 5 cans of the wall one by one, the second one was hitting people taped onto a pole, the third involved… More…

Group 2: Ivan Vashchilin, Ethan Bucholtz, Alex Radin and Christian Stefani

The game we played this week is called Ludus Latrunculorum. In it, the player must take out the other player's king, thus ending the game. You were also able to take enemy pieces, but you had to kill the… More…

The game we played this week was the modern Pentathlon. This involved five events, fencing, 200m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a combined event, pistol shooting with a 3200m cross-country run. We played a modernised version by doing a 3-min swim to see how many laps a… More…

The game we played this week was Nine Men's Morris. Nine Men's Morris involves 9 distinguishable pieces (we used coloured dots on small paper pieces) for each player to use that have to be strategically placed on the board to create a "mill" (row of three). Once a mill is created, the… More…

This week, me and my team members played two versions of the ancient chinese game of Go. The first version we played was the original version, though we made the boards smaller, where one player/s would have back stones (we used cardboard), and the other player/s would use white stones. Each turn a… More…

On Tuesday, we played two versions of the Ancient Egyptian game Senet. The first version was our simplified version, in which if you landed on any of the squares that had symbols on them, you would go back four spaces. The second and more complicated version was different as each of the squares with… More…

Yesterday we played two versions of knuclebones. The male version and childrens version. The male version consisted of throwing four dice in the air and catch them on the back of your hand. Then you would throw those dice up and pick the ones off the ground and catch it again. It really was… More…

For this week’s lessons, Mr Fisher and I thought we would focus on indigenous Australia. Unlike Liar’s Dice, the two games we selected are more physical and had to be played outdoors. These games were Puloga and Taktyerrain.

In order to fully understand these games, it was… More…

This week for the first proper week of Hands on History Mr Ruddock and I chose to research and play Liar’s Dice. Overall we were very happy with how it went. We thought it was an enjoyable game, which gave us some interesting insights into what life was like for mariners and pirates,… More…

I hope I can learn I can learn about the type of weapons civilisations used to attack castles and defend their homes. I hope I can also learn what games people played for entertainment and gambling purposes. I want to learn about religion, agriculture, building materials and weapons. What… More…

Q1. We can learn how ancient society and modern society understood and thought about games and leisure. By doing this we can learn how people had fun and enjoyed their lives through various time lines. We will learn how in ancient times most games were violent and brutal but now… More…

I think that there are many things we can learn from games and leisure from the past. Studying these things can give us helpful insights about what people preferred to do in their spare time, it also can show us how they designed and made game/leisure items and who in… More…

Games across the ages

I think we can learn a lot from games and leisure activities and from the past. They can teach us the values of a certain society and what they thought was normal. We can learn how those values have changed throughout the years by comparing old games to new ones.

This… More…

I hope to learn about what societies were like back when they existed. I also want to learn about how they found amusement and what they did to bide the time and what kind of games they played for fun. I hope to learn lots about all about the games ancient and modern societies and how they… More…

Games, Leisure and History

I believe you can learn quite a lot about the past and present by studying games as it teaches you what the people enjoyed, what sort of materials they had to make games (e.g. Plastic, wood, metal etc.), how their games and lifestyle can relate to how much free… More…

In Hands on History I hope to learn about what socioties were like hundreds of years ago and how they found amusment in the games they played and how different these games were to each other. I would also like to know how different the games we play compared to the games they played and… More…

I think that we can learn many things from studying games and leisure from the past and present. Some of these things include manufacturing techniques and interests of that day and age, also some of these games can teach us ancient war tactics and therefore we can learn about war from one… More…

What can we learn about past and present from studying games and leisure?

What we do for leisure and/or what games we play can tell us a lot about societies both past and present. They tell us about their traditions and culture, show the influence of them on what we do today, what… More…

Some of the things I hope to learn during the course of this year whilst doing this subject are how some of these games if not all came to be what they are today but I feel what I will get out of this subject are some new skills that I may use in later life and I may learn someing that I… More…

I will learn about the past mainly from the middle ages and how games were played and how different they were back in ancient times. As time has flown by there have been various changes to sport however most sports that were played do not exist anymore and I think I will learn about those and… More…

I think that we can learn a lot from past and the present from studying games and leisure activity’s. We could learn many things, like what kind of materials were available in the society or, for example, if the object had many different working parts, then the time era from back then… More…

So far, Hands on history has not been that exciting as we're just creating our groups and blog posts, but i can tell it's going to be a fun year as we're making weapons and we have fun assignments like the one that is coming up right now.

 I believe I can get a lot of things out of this subject. firstly I will learn about the ancient games and how they played them.  also I will learn the meaning of the games and and the reason that certain culture played them. Secondly I will learn to cooperate in groups and make… More…

What you think you can learn about the past and the present from studying games and leisure?

I personally think that this subject will teach me about how entertainment was back in ancient times and how they handled not having technology. I want to know how leisure was back then… More…

Learning this course/topic can teach me a lot of things about the past and present. One of them would be the cultural habits of an ancient Chinese society. From studying games and leisure, I can learn the role of education, religion and the government. The types of games which were played in the… More…

Q1. From what I have seen I think I could learn a lot from the games back then as when looking at what entertainment they watched and enjoyed you could not only see how developed there civilisation was but how developed the people were

Q2. I think I’ll learn a lot from this class and… More…

I think this study will help me learn about how different cultures made entertainment over the coming years. This will give me a better understanding of different societies and how there entertainment has impacted the world of today.

I hope to get a broader understanding of how the world has… More…

By studying games and leisure from the past, we can learn how pastimes have evolved through the ages. we can learn how differently people have found entertainment with what they had at the time. We can also compare how games were played in the past and present, and with that information,… More…

I think I can learn many things from studying past leisure activities. I think lerning about games from the past will help us understand when and how technology has changed over time as well as the way we enjoy ourselves, manufacture goods and distribute them across the world.

I think this… More…

Welcome to the Blog for Hands On History 2017, a Stage 5 Elective History course at Newington College. We will use this blog to reflect upon and publicise what we do in class.

Details about coursework, assessment, etc is available through Canvas. Students, please go there for all the important… More…