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A longbow is a type of bow that is tall—roughly equal to the height of the user; allowing the archer a fairly long draw, at least to the jaw. A longbow is not significantly recurved. Its limbs are relatively narrow so that they are circular or D-shaped in cross section. Flatbows can be just as long; the difference is that, in cross-section, a flatbow has limbs that are approximately rectangular. Longbows have been made from many different woods by many cultures; in Europe they date from the Paleolithic, and since the Bronze Age were made mainly from yew, or from wych elm if yew was unavailable. The historical longbow was a self bow made of wood, but modern longbows may also be made from modern materials or by gluing different timbers together. Organizations which run archery competitions have set out formal definitions for the various classes; many definitions of the longbow would exclude some medieval examples, materials, and techniques of use.〔(The (UK) National Field Archery Association's definition of a longbow )〕〔(The International Field Archery's definition )〕 According to the British Longbow Society, the English longbow is made so that its thickness is at least ⅝ (62.5%) of its width, as in Victorian longbows, and is widest at the handle. This differs from the Medieval longbow, which had a thickness between 33% and 75% of the width. Also, the Victorian longbow does not bend throughout the entire length, as does the medieval longbow. Longbows have been used for hunting and warfare, by many cultures around the world. ==History== In the Middle Ages the English and Welsh were famous for their very powerful longbows, used to great effect in the civil wars of the period and against the French in the Hundred Years' War (with notable success at the battles of Crécy (1346), Poitiers (1356), and Agincourt (1415).〔("The Efficacy of the Medieval Longbow: A Reply to Kelly DeVries," ) ''War in History'' 5, no. 2 (1998): 233-42; idem, "The Battle of Agincourt", ''The Hundred Years War (Part II): Different Vistas'', ed. L. J. Andrew Villalon and Donald J. Kagay (Leiden: Brill, 2008): 37–132.〕 The first book in English about longbow archery was ''Toxophilus'' by Roger Ascham, first published in London in 1545 and dedicated to King Henry VIII. The average length of arrow shafts recovered from the 1545 sinking of the Mary Rose is . Although firearms supplanted bows in warfare, wooden or fibreglass laminated longbows continue to be used by traditional archers and some tribal societies for recreation and hunting. A longbow has practical advantages compared to a modern recurve or compound bow; it is usually lighter, quicker to prepare for shooting, and shoots more quietly. However, other things being equal, the modern bow will shoot a faster arrow more accurately than the longbow. The last recorded use of the longbow in war was by British Lt. Col. Jack Churchill, who used it to kill a German soldier in World War II. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「longbow」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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