Crossword clues for arquebus
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Arquebus \Ar"que*bus\, Arquebuse \Ar"que*buse\ (?; 277), n. [F. arquebuse, OF. harquebuse, fr. D. haak-bus; cf. G. hakenb["u]chse a gun with a hook. See Hagbut.] A sort of hand gun or firearm a contrivance answering to a trigger, by which the burning match was applied. The musket was a later invention. [Written also harquebus.]
Wiktionary
n. an obsolete matchlock firearm
WordNet
Wikipedia
The arquebus ( or ) (sometimes spelled harquebus, harkbus or hackbut; Italian Archibugio, Dutch haakbus, meaning "hook gun", or "hook tube") is an early muzzle-loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. An arquebus was originally a gonne with hook, and later a matchlock firearm. Like its successor the musket, it is a smoothbore firearm, but was initially lighter and easier to carry.
It is a forerunner of the rifle and other longarm firearms. An improved version of the arquebus, the caliver, was introduced in the early 16th century. The word is derived from the English corruption of calibre as this gun was of standard bore, increasing combat effectiveness as troops could load bullets that would fit their guns (before, they would have to modify shot to fit, force it in, or cast their own before the battle).
Heavy arquebuses mounted on wagons were called arquebus à croc. These carried a ball of about .
Usage examples of "arquebus".
They are exercised with arquebus and crossbow in the park, and the mounted men are taught to manoeuvre and charge, so that, in case of need, we can show a good face against any body of troops of equal numbers.
He had just left the king, who was playing at tennis, and was walking homewards with two or three gentlemen, when an arquebus was fired from a house not far from his own.
One hand on his arquebus, he held the other, palm out, towards the desk.
Half of his ray was already swallowed, and the force on the arquebus was making him lean back.
Unlike any arquebus Pedi had ever heard of, however, these had no problem with water or weatheras they demonstrated with the very first volley.
At least some of that many normal arquebus would have had their priming soaked during the crossing, but all of these weapons fired successfully into the mass of pirates hammering at the shield wall.
A third shot dispatched the pirate who had been supervising the work party up forward, and he kicked the arquebus out of the hands of a twitching body at his feet.
The central gatehouse was flanked by two defensive towers, both of them loopholed to sweep the exterior of the gatehouse with arquebus and light artillery fire.
The Krath army used about one arquebus for every ten soldiers, and between those, the Marines on the right, the Diaspran infantry on the left, and the occasional bombard firing from either side, the fields were covered in a veritable smokescreen.
Then there was a loud explosion as an arquebus was fired, the bullet crashing through the door.
The discharge of the arquebus in the cabin was continued from time to time.
Every so often, he would take the slowmatch from out the clamp and whirl it around several times in the air before once more securing it back into the serpentine of his clumsy arquebus, for if that scurvy, ill-natured pig of a Seosaidh Scot who had robbed him of his well-earned sleep and set him to this useless, thankless task should come by and find his match unlit, he surely would set about thrashing Raibert.
He also made certain that the falchion was loose in the sheaththe broad, thick, heavy blade was centuries older than the elderly arquebus, but cold steel was at least always dependable, if well honed and hard-swung.
Dropping the useless arquebus, Raibert sensed that his only chance now lay in escapefor who ever heard of a lone, common man trying to fight a Monster out of Hell with only a pistol and an old chlaidhimhland while he could go back the way he had come, the Monster seemed headed that way too .
The poor fellow lost his forearm and hand when an arquebus ball took him just at the elbow and so ended his soldiering days.