Shenbi Crossbow and Repeating Crossbow

Timeline

1. 1068–1098Directorate of Armaments, Kaifeng · Henan ProvinceLi Hong, a Tangut of Western Xia, presented the Shenbi bow to Emperor Shenzong of Song; once the Song court mastered the technique, it was mass-produced centrally at the Directorate of Armaments, with private manufacture restricted. Shen Kuo's Dream Pool Essays states it could pierce heavy armor at three hundred paces, making it a standard strong crossbow of the Song army.
2. 1100–1127Garrison stations of Northern Song imperial armies across the circuits · ChinaBesides the single-shot Shenbi crossbow, the Song crossbow system included repeating crossbows capable of continuous fire and large bed crossbows for city defense and set-piece battles; around the Jingkang era, Song forces used crossbow bolts to counter Jin cavalry charges, laying the foundation for post-crossing tactics.
3. 1140–1141Yanjiaowan (around Long County, Shaanxi) · Shaanxi ProvinceWu Lin created the 'layered formation': long spears in front, with strong bows, strong crossbows and Shenbi crossbows firing in kneeling echelons—Shenbi crossbows first at nearly a hundred paces, then massed fire from strong bows and crossbows at seventy paces, linked by barrier-horse iron hooks and rotating in turn, effectively checking Jin cavalry on the Sichuan-Shaanxi front.
4. 1141–1150Southern Song Huainan defense line · HuainanAround the Shaoxing peace treaty, Shenbi crossbows and repeating crossbows remained standard issue for Southern Song garrisons in Huainan and Jingxiang; Jin commander Wanyan Zongbi said he feared only the Song's Shenbi bows and heavy axes, reflecting their central role in the 1140s ranged anti-cavalry system.