Greek Inventions
Inventions of Ancient Greece – The Catapult
The Greek catapult was developed by Dionysius the Elder of Syracuse around 350 BC. Dionysius actually called the machine Katapaltai, and they are mentioned in the Siegecraft (Poliorkētika) treatise of Aeneas Tacticus. Originally, because of their large bulk and problems with portability, they were used mainly in seige warfare. Alexander the Great is thought to be the first to use them for cover fire for ground troops in addition to seige warfare, essentially introducing artillary to the military world.
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