Arquebus

The arquebus was a significant form of long gun used by infantrymen from the 15th to the 17th centuries.

An infantryman who used this weapon was known as an arquebusier. The term itself is believed to come from a Dutch word meaning "hook gun." This name described early versions that featured a hook-like projection or lug on the underside.

This lug helped soldiers steady the weapon against battlements or other objects while firing. Over time, the arquebus evolved from a defensive tool into a versatile handheld firearm that changed how armies operated across the globe.

The most important technological leap for the arquebus was the matchlock mechanism.

Before the matchlock, soldiers had to fire hand cannons by holding them under an arm and using a hot pricker to ignite the powder. The matchlock changed this by using two main parts: the match and the lock. The match was a long length of rope soaked in saltpeter that remained smoldering. The lock mechanism held this match within a clamp. When the soldier squeezed a trigger, the lock lowered the burning match into a priming pan. This ignited the priming powder, creating a flash that traveled through a touch hole. That flash then ignited the main gunpowder inside the barrel, propelling the bullet out of the muzzle.

While the matchlock allowed soldiers to aim with both hands, it was quite difficult to operate. Soldiers had to be very careful not to accidentally ignite the gunpowder while loading. To prevent this, they often had to detach the smoldering match during the loading process. Sometimes the match would go out, so soldiers kept both ends lit to ensure they had a flame. The loading process was incredibly complex and required many steps. In 1607, a Dutch manual by Jacob de Gheyn listed 28 separate steps just to load and fire the gun. In China, General Qi Jiguang even composed an 11-step song to help soldiers practice the rhythm of loading.

Because reloading was slow, taking anywhere from 20 seconds to a full minute, militaries developed volley fire.

Volley fire turned individual soldiers into organized firing squads. In this system, rows of soldiers would take turns firing so that there was a continuous stream of shots. The Ottoman Janissaries used this technique during the Battle of Mohács in 1526. Later, the technique was pioneered in China by Qi Jiguang and adopted in Japan during the late 16th century. In Europe, Count William Louis of Nassau-Dillenburg suggested using a Roman counter-march technique to allow matchlocks to provide fire without cease.

Different versions of the weapon appeared in various regions and time periods. Around 1521, a heavier version called a musket was developed to better penetrate plate armor.

While the musket was once a specific heavy weapon, the term eventually became a generic name for smoothbore gunpowder weapons. Another standardized version was the caliver, which appeared in the latter half of the 16th century. The caliver featured a standardized bore, which meant bullets fit more easily. This allowed troops to load their weapons much faster than before, when they often had to modify bullets by hand. Other specialized mechanisms like the wheellock appeared around 1505, but they were three times more expensive than matchlocks.

The history of the arquebus is spread across many empires. In the Ottoman Empire, arquebusiers were noted in the 1440s, and 400 served in Sultan Murad II's campaign.

In Europe, the weapon saw heavy use during the reign of King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary. In his Black Army, one in four soldiers was an arquebusier. In Russia, a smaller version called a pishchal appeared in 1478. By 1545, two thousand pishchal'niki were levied, including one thousand who fought on horseback. This shows how the weapon was adapted to different military needs and social structures.

The development of the arquebus represents a major shift in military technology. It acted as the successor to the hand cannon and the forerunner to the flintlock musket. As armor declined in use during the mid-16th century, the importance of the heavy musket also changed. However, the transition to trigger-operated, shoulder-fired weapons was permanent. The arquebus moved warfare away from simple hand cannons toward the highly organized, systematic firing methods used by early modern armies. This evolution paved the way for the more advanced flintlock and percussion firearms that followed.