Tang Crossbows and Crossbow Triggers

Timeline

1. c. 713–741Chang'an · GuanzhongThe Tang Six Codes records that the Armory Director oversaw weapon storage; crossbows were divided into arm crossbows and foot-spanned crossbows, manufactured in workshops under the Court of Imperial Manufactures. Bronze triggers comprised the sight, tooth, housing, and trigger bar, firing via linked mechanism while holding aim, making them one of the Tang's standard ranged weapons.
2. c. 742–780Hexi Corridor · GansuTang garrisons in Hexi, Longyou, Shuofang, and other frontier commands were heavily equipped with crossbows for city defense and field battle. Foot-spanned crossbows required several men to span and could shoot several hundred paces, especially deterring cavalry. Northern peoples like the Tibetans and Turks excelled at mounted archery, and Tang forces used massed crossbow fire to offset this disadvantage, a key element of the frontier military balance.
3. c. 755–800Luoyang · HenanCrossbow bolts were used extensively in siege and defense during the An Lushan Rebellion. Excavated Tang bronze crossbow triggers continue the Han structure, and inscriptions on some pieces confirm their dates. After Emperor Dezong, with regional governors in semi-independence, arsenals across the land still kept records of trigger manufacture and repair, showing the crossbow remained standard ordnance in the late eighth century.