Ribauldequins - Leonardo da Vinci studies

A ribauldequin, also known as a rabauld, randy, ribault, ribaudkin, infernal machine or organ gun, was a late medieval volley gun with many small-caliber iron barrels set up parallel on a platform, in use in medieval and early modern Europe during the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

period. The name ''organ gun'' comes from the resemblance of the multiple barrels to a

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurised air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a Musical keyboard, keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single tone and pitch, the pipes are provide ...

. When the gun was fired, multiple barrels discharged their projectiles at once, yielding a much higher rate of fire than single-barrel (typically larger-caliber) guns. Organ guns were lighter and more mobile than most previous artillery pieces, making them more suitable for engaging enemy personnel rather than fixed fortifications such as castles. As an early type of

multiple-barrel firearm A multiple-barrel firearm is any type of firearm with more than one gun barrel, usually to increase the rate of fire or hit probability and to reduce barrel erosion or overheating. History Volley gun Multiple-barrel firearms date back t ...

, the ribauldequin is sometimes considered the predecessor of the 19th century mitrailleuse.

History

The first known ribauldequin was used by the army of

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

in 1339 in France during the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

. Edward's ribauldequins had twelve barrels which fired salvoes of twelve balls. Ribauldequins were also used in the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...

. During the

Second Battle of St Albans The Second Battle of St Albans was fought on 17 February 1461 during the Wars of the Roses in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England (the First Battle of St Albans had been fought in 1455). The army of the Yorkist faction, under the Earl of War ...

, Burgundian soldiers under

Yorkist The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, th ...

control utilized the weapon against the Lancastrian Army led by Queen

Margaret of Anjou Margaret of Anjou (; 23 March 1430 – 25 August 1482) was Queen of England by marriage to King Henry VI from 1445 to 1461 and again from 1470 to 1471. Through marriage, she was also nominally Queen of France from 1445 to 1453. Born in the ...

.Weir, Alison "The War of the Roses" 1995 Juan de Lezcano mounted ribauldequins in his ships during the Spanish conquest of Mers-el-Kébir. Nine-barreled ribaults were used by

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

and other participants in the

Italian Wars The Italian Wars were a series of conflicts fought between 1494 and 1559, mostly in the Italian Peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and Mediterranean Sea. The primary belligerents were the House of Valois, Valois kings o ...

. King Louis XII of France is believed to have possessed an organ gun with 50 barrels, all of which fired at once. Pedro Navarro used organ guns against the French at the Battle of Ravenna, on 11 April 1512. In Eastern Europe such guns were commonplace into the 17th century.

References

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{{Early firearms 1339 Medieval artillery Multiple-barrel firearms Renaissance-era weapons

History

See also

Similar weapons

References

External links