Siege Weapons of the Far East

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More Primary Sources Needed... - Rated
An aspect of the Osprey range is that the quality is very variable. Pretty pictures (however dubious) take precedence over reference to primary sources in many cases. Dr Turnbull is very good in his specialism - the later Sengoku-jidai period of samurai history - but I'm not so sure about his veracity on other topics.

What is his source for hand-held crossbows used by early samurai? (in the plate depicting the Fujiwara defending a fort in 1189). I've read translations of early war chronicles mentioning 'o-yumi' but everything I've read suggests that these were crossbow *artillery* although nothing concrete seems to exist. Unfortunately the text and plate notes shed no light on sources.

More Primary Sources Needed... - Rated
An aspect of the Osprey range is that the quality is very variable. Pretty picures (however dubious) take precedence over reference to primary sources in many cases. Dr Turnbull is very good in his specialism - the later Sengoku-jidai period of samurai history - but I'm not so sure about his veracity on other topics.

What is his source for hand-held crossbows used by early samurai? (in the plate depicting the Fujiwara defending a fort in 1189). I've read translations of early war chronicles mentioning 'o-yumi' but everything I've read suggests that these were crossbow *artillery* although nothing concrete seems to exist. Unfortunately the text and plate notes shed no light on sources.

Siege Weapons of the Far East 1 : AD 300-1300 - Rated
This is an important book for anyone with an interest in either siege warfare and weapons, or the military history of the ancient and medieval empires of the far east. A considerable amount has been written about the siege weapons and war machines of Medieval Europe, Rome, ancient Greece and the Hellenistic Empires. However, until the arrival of this book, there was very little available to western audiences on the siege weapons of the far east. What little English language information was available on this subject was scattered in brief sections or appendices of larger works. The author is to be applauded for taking on this unusual, difficult, but (for military historians) important subject. Important because, from the 6th to the 16th centuries AD, the Chinese were the world leaders in siege weapons.

The book itself is well written, very easy to read and highly enjoyable. I must emphasize that this is not an academic treatise in the style of E. W. Marsden's classic "Greek and Roman Artillery", rather it is a concise summary of what is a very large subject, that will appeal equally to both general readers and serious students.

Mr Turnbull is an experienced author who has previously specialised in works on Japanese history. In this book he wisely concentrates on developments in China (the engine of development and inovation in siege weapons), with Japan, Korea and south east asia treated as secondary subjects. In another wise move Mr Turnbull has chosen to place the development of true gunpower weapons into a second volume.

The text is informative and well supported by illustrations taken from original souces, photgraphs and seven dramatic colour plates. Purists and accademics might in due course argue over some of the fine detail in this book, but as as a highly readable introduction to the subject and a basic reference book it cannot be beaten.