The oldest representation of a possible battering ram comes from the tomb of the noble Khety of the 11th Dynasty"), where a pair of soldiers advance towards a fortress under the protection of a mobile structure with a roof, carrying a long pole that may represent a simple battering ram.[1]​.

During the Iron Age, in the ancient Middle East and Mediterranean, the trunk of the battering ram was hung from a wheeled frame by ropes or chains so that it could be made more massive and easier to hit its target. Often the tip of the ram was reinforced with a metal head or cap, while the vulnerable parts of the shaft were joined with metal reinforcing bands. Vitruvius details in his text De architectura that Ceras the Carthaginian was the first to make a ram with a wooden base with wheels and a wooden superstructure, with the ram hanging inside. However, this structure moved so slowly that he named it testudo (Latin for "turtle").[2]

Another type of ram was one that maintained the normal shape and structure, but the supporting beams were made of saplings tied together. The frame was then covered with skins as usual to defend against fire. The only solid beam present was the ram hanging from the frame. The structure itself was so light that the men carrying the ram could carry it on their shoulders, and the men themselves could hit the ram against the wall when they reached it.[3]​.

Many rams had curved or sloping wooden roofs and side screens, covered with protective materials, usually cool, damp skins. These canopies reduced the risk of the ram being set on fire and protected the ram operators from volleys of arrows and spears launched from above.

An image of an Assyrian battering ram shows how sophisticated attack and defense practices had become by the century BC. C. The defenders of the city wall try to set fire to the battering ram with torches and have also put a chain under it. The attackers try to pull the chain to free the battering ram, while the aforementioned wet skins on the canopy protect against the flames.

By the time the Kushites made their raids into Egypt, c., the walls, siege tactics, and equipment had undergone many changes. The first shelters that protected sappers armed with poles who tried to break the brick walls gave way to battering rams.[4]​.

The first confirmed use of rams in the West occurred between 503 and 502 BC. C. when Opiter Verginius") became consul of the Romans during the fight against the Aurunci people:.

The second known use was in 427 BC. C. when the Spartans besieged Plataea").[5]​ The first use of battering rams in the Mediterranean basin, presenting in this case the simultaneous use of siege towers to protect the battering rams from attack, occurred on the island of Sicily in 409 BC, in the siege of Selinus.[6]​.

Defenders defending castles, forts, or bastions sometimes attempted to thwart the battering rams by throwing obstacles in front of the battering ram, such as a large sack of sawdust, just before the battering ram's head hit a wall or door, or by using hooks to immobilize the battering ram. ram record. Alternatively, the ram could be set on fire, sprinkled with fire-heated sand, hit with rocks thrown from the battlements, or surrounded with a rapid departure of troops.

Some battering rams were not hung from ropes or chains, but were supported by rollers. This allowed the ram to reach a greater speed before hitting its target, making it more destructive. Vitruvius describes such a ram, as used by Alexander the Great.

Alternatives to the battering ram included the drill, sapper's mouse, pickaxe, siege hook, and hunting ram. These devices were smaller than a battering ram and could be used in tight spaces.

At least ten soldiers were needed to move a siege battering ram. In order for the ram to reach the base of the fortifications, it was essential to first fill the ditches&action=edit&redlink=1 "Moat (ditch) (not yet written)"). The Romans used it in their battle tactics.

In castles, defenders attempted to thwart the rams by throwing obstacles in front of them, such as a large bag of sawdust, just before it hit a wall, or by using grappling hooks to immobilize the logs, set the ram on fire, or make an exit to attack it directly. A structure, chicane or drawbridge also helped protect the exits.

There is a popular legend in Gloucester, that the famous nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty, referred to a ram used during the siege of Gloucester in the First English Revolution. However, the story is probably false: during the siege, which lasted only a month, no battering rams were used, but many cannons were used. The idea seems to have its origins in a hoax by history professor David Daube, author of a piece written for The Oxford Magazine") in 1956, which was very successful despite obvious implausibilities (for example, he plans to cross the Severn "River Severn (United Kingdom)" by driving the ram downhill at high speed, despite the width of the river being approximately 30 m at this location).

Antique

The covered ram, a machine developed in the Near East during the campaigns of the Second Assyrian Empire, was the system most used to beat the walls of a city. There were several models, as shown in the reliefs of the palaces of Tiglath-Pileser III, in which a double-headed battering ram is represented acting under the protection of archers, and Sennacherib, in which a mobile battering ram acts against towers and walls.

Diodorus Siculus[7] indicates that the battering ram was used for the first time in Greece during the siege of Samos by the Athenians in 440 BC. C., its inventor being Artemón de Clazómenas, an engineer in the service of Pericles,[8]​ although various sources describe for previous chronologies the use of wooden frames to approach the fortifications, as in the site of Elis.[9]​.

The ram, protected by a mantlet or a cover reinforced with skins to increase its thickness or prevent the expansion of flammable liquids, and on which water was poured to prevent combustion, was a rocker structure, whether or not equipped with wheels, that could repeatedly hit a point on the wall until its stability was broken.

The Carthaginian army profusely used battering rams against Saguntum, managing, according to classical writers[10]​, to knock down a good part of the walls from the first moments of the siege, without, however, achieving these successes being crowned by the conquest of the city.

At the same time that the Carthaginians introduced the ram into the central Mediterranean,[11] techniques were developed to make its use more difficult and the destruction of walls due to collapse.

Aeneas the Tactician describes various systems designed to prevent battering rams from hitting the walls,[12] procedures that are not, however, originally from Greece, since they are already represented in the reliefs of the Assyrian city of Nimrud corresponding to the reign of Sennacherib (883-859 BC).

These techniques are not reflected in the classical sources relating to the Iberian Peninsula, although there are measures that must be taken to alleviate the collapse of part of the fortifications. For this reason, and given that both are complementary, it can also be said that the Iberian warriors would have known the ways to confront the battering rams from the top of the walls.

At the time when a section of the wall was demolished, the accumulation of construction material that occupied the place continued to serve as a base for the defense of the city,[13] although the best system to stop the damage caused by the battering rams or the sap was the construction of a new wall inside the besieged square to replace the previous one. This solution is the one adopted by the defenders of Sagunto when the siege weapons or Punic machines manage to break the defensive perimeter of the city, thus stopping the damage and prolonging the resistance.[14]​ The application of the precepts of Aeneas the Tactician on the construction of interior walls has an excellent example in the siege of Plataea by the Lacedaemonians.[15]​.

Modern use

Battering rams still have a use in modern times. Police forces often employ small, one- or two-man metal battering rams, known as enforcers&action=edit&redlink=1 "Enforcer (batter) (not yet drafted)"), to force open locked portals or effect forced entry. Modern battering rams sometimes incorporate a pneumatic cylinder and piston driven by compressed air, which are activated by striking a hard object and significantly enhance the momentum of the impact.[16]​ The legality of using battering rams in the context of a search warrant may be subject to judicial review.[17]​.

By extension, a battering ram is generally used to indicate an elongated object that is intended to strike and damage a target after being forcefully pushed against it. A ram of this type is, for example, the one used for crash tests.

• - Alesia's site.

• - The destruction of Jerusalem.

• - Use during the Crusades.

• - The fall of Rome.

• - The siege of Constantinople.

A popular myth in Gloucester holds that the famous children's rhyme, Humpty Dumpty, is about a battering ram used at the siege of Gloucester in 1643, during the English Civil War. However, this story is false; During the siege which lasted only a month, no battering rams were used, although some cannons were used. The idea appears to have originated in a history essay by Professor David Daube, written for Oxford Magazine in 1956, and this was believed by readers despite obvious improbabilities (for example, the plan to cross the River Severn by launching the ram down the hill at great speed, even though the river is about 30 m (100 ft) wide at this point).

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Reconstruction of Château des Baux.

• - Roman Bélier.

• - Viking battering ram.

• - Reconstruction of Château des Baux.

• - Catapult.

• - Onager "Onager (siege weapon)").

• - Gastraphetes.

• - Oxybeles.

• - Espolón (nautical) "Espolón (nautical)").

• - Taran.

• - Impact (mechanical) "Impact (mechanical)").

• - Moon landing (crime) "Moon landing (crime)").

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Ariete.

• - The battering ram: the first of the siege machines.

The oldest representation of a possible battering ram comes from the tomb of the noble Khety of the 11th Dynasty"), where a pair of soldiers advance towards a fortress under the protection of a mobile structure with a roof, carrying a long pole that may represent a simple battering ram.[1]​.

During the Iron Age, in the ancient Middle East and Mediterranean, the trunk of the battering ram was hung from a wheeled frame by ropes or chains so that it could be made more massive and easier to hit its target. Often the tip of the ram was reinforced with a metal head or cap, while the vulnerable parts of the shaft were joined with metal reinforcing bands. Vitruvius details in his text De architectura that Ceras the Carthaginian was the first to make a ram with a wooden base with wheels and a wooden superstructure, with the ram hanging inside. However, this structure moved so slowly that he named it testudo (Latin for "turtle").[2]

Another type of ram was one that maintained the normal shape and structure, but the supporting beams were made of saplings tied together. The frame was then covered with skins as usual to defend against fire. The only solid beam present was the ram hanging from the frame. The structure itself was so light that the men carrying the ram could carry it on their shoulders, and the men themselves could hit the ram against the wall when they reached it.[3]​.

Many rams had curved or sloping wooden roofs and side screens, covered with protective materials, usually cool, damp skins. These canopies reduced the risk of the ram being set on fire and protected the ram operators from volleys of arrows and spears launched from above.

An image of an Assyrian battering ram shows how sophisticated attack and defense practices had become by the century BC. C. The defenders of the city wall try to set fire to the battering ram with torches and have also put a chain under it. The attackers try to pull the chain to free the battering ram, while the aforementioned wet skins on the canopy protect against the flames.

By the time the Kushites made their raids into Egypt, c., the walls, siege tactics, and equipment had undergone many changes. The first shelters that protected sappers armed with poles who tried to break the brick walls gave way to battering rams.[4]​.

The first confirmed use of rams in the West occurred between 503 and 502 BC. C. when Opiter Verginius") became consul of the Romans during the fight against the Aurunci people:.

The second known use was in 427 BC. C. when the Spartans besieged Plataea").[5]​ The first use of battering rams in the Mediterranean basin, presenting in this case the simultaneous use of siege towers to protect the battering rams from attack, occurred on the island of Sicily in 409 BC, in the siege of Selinus.[6]​.

Defenders defending castles, forts, or bastions sometimes attempted to thwart the battering rams by throwing obstacles in front of the battering ram, such as a large sack of sawdust, just before the battering ram's head hit a wall or door, or by using hooks to immobilize the battering ram. ram record. Alternatively, the ram could be set on fire, sprinkled with fire-heated sand, hit with rocks thrown from the battlements, or surrounded with a rapid departure of troops.

Some battering rams were not hung from ropes or chains, but were supported by rollers. This allowed the ram to reach a greater speed before hitting its target, making it more destructive. Vitruvius describes such a ram, as used by Alexander the Great.

Alternatives to the battering ram included the drill, sapper's mouse, pickaxe, siege hook, and hunting ram. These devices were smaller than a battering ram and could be used in tight spaces.

At least ten soldiers were needed to move a siege battering ram. In order for the ram to reach the base of the fortifications, it was essential to first fill the ditches&action=edit&redlink=1 "Moat (ditch) (not yet written)"). The Romans used it in their battle tactics.

In castles, defenders attempted to thwart the rams by throwing obstacles in front of them, such as a large bag of sawdust, just before it hit a wall, or by using grappling hooks to immobilize the logs, set the ram on fire, or make an exit to attack it directly. A structure, chicane or drawbridge also helped protect the exits.

There is a popular legend in Gloucester, that the famous nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty, referred to a ram used during the siege of Gloucester in the First English Revolution. However, the story is probably false: during the siege, which lasted only a month, no battering rams were used, but many cannons were used. The idea seems to have its origins in a hoax by history professor David Daube, author of a piece written for The Oxford Magazine") in 1956, which was very successful despite obvious implausibilities (for example, he plans to cross the Severn "River Severn (United Kingdom)" by driving the ram downhill at high speed, despite the width of the river being approximately 30 m at this location).

Antique

The covered ram, a machine developed in the Near East during the campaigns of the Second Assyrian Empire, was the system most used to beat the walls of a city. There were several models, as shown in the reliefs of the palaces of Tiglath-Pileser III, in which a double-headed battering ram is represented acting under the protection of archers, and Sennacherib, in which a mobile battering ram acts against towers and walls.

Diodorus Siculus[7] indicates that the battering ram was used for the first time in Greece during the siege of Samos by the Athenians in 440 BC. C., its inventor being Artemón de Clazómenas, an engineer in the service of Pericles,[8]​ although various sources describe for previous chronologies the use of wooden frames to approach the fortifications, as in the site of Elis.[9]​.

The ram, protected by a mantlet or a cover reinforced with skins to increase its thickness or prevent the expansion of flammable liquids, and on which water was poured to prevent combustion, was a rocker structure, whether or not equipped with wheels, that could repeatedly hit a point on the wall until its stability was broken.

The Carthaginian army profusely used battering rams against Saguntum, managing, according to classical writers[10]​, to knock down a good part of the walls from the first moments of the siege, without, however, achieving these successes being crowned by the conquest of the city.

At the same time that the Carthaginians introduced the ram into the central Mediterranean,[11] techniques were developed to make its use more difficult and the destruction of walls due to collapse.

Aeneas the Tactician describes various systems designed to prevent battering rams from hitting the walls,[12] procedures that are not, however, originally from Greece, since they are already represented in the reliefs of the Assyrian city of Nimrud corresponding to the reign of Sennacherib (883-859 BC).

These techniques are not reflected in the classical sources relating to the Iberian Peninsula, although there are measures that must be taken to alleviate the collapse of part of the fortifications. For this reason, and given that both are complementary, it can also be said that the Iberian warriors would have known the ways to confront the battering rams from the top of the walls.

At the time when a section of the wall was demolished, the accumulation of construction material that occupied the place continued to serve as a base for the defense of the city,[13] although the best system to stop the damage caused by the battering rams or the sap was the construction of a new wall inside the besieged square to replace the previous one. This solution is the one adopted by the defenders of Sagunto when the siege weapons or Punic machines manage to break the defensive perimeter of the city, thus stopping the damage and prolonging the resistance.[14]​ The application of the precepts of Aeneas the Tactician on the construction of interior walls has an excellent example in the siege of Plataea by the Lacedaemonians.[15]​.

Modern use

Battering rams still have a use in modern times. Police forces often employ small, one- or two-man metal battering rams, known as enforcers&action=edit&redlink=1 "Enforcer (batter) (not yet drafted)"), to force open locked portals or effect forced entry. Modern battering rams sometimes incorporate a pneumatic cylinder and piston driven by compressed air, which are activated by striking a hard object and significantly enhance the momentum of the impact.[16]​ The legality of using battering rams in the context of a search warrant may be subject to judicial review.[17]​.

By extension, a battering ram is generally used to indicate an elongated object that is intended to strike and damage a target after being forcefully pushed against it. A ram of this type is, for example, the one used for crash tests.

• - Alesia's site.

• - The destruction of Jerusalem.

• - Use during the Crusades.

• - The fall of Rome.

• - The siege of Constantinople.

A popular myth in Gloucester holds that the famous children's rhyme, Humpty Dumpty, is about a battering ram used at the siege of Gloucester in 1643, during the English Civil War. However, this story is false; During the siege which lasted only a month, no battering rams were used, although some cannons were used. The idea appears to have originated in a history essay by Professor David Daube, written for Oxford Magazine in 1956, and this was believed by readers despite obvious improbabilities (for example, the plan to cross the River Severn by launching the ram down the hill at great speed, even though the river is about 30 m (100 ft) wide at this point).

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Assyrian bas-relief.

• - Reconstruction of Château des Baux.

• - Roman Bélier.

• - Viking battering ram.

• - Reconstruction of Château des Baux.

• - Catapult.

• - Onager "Onager (siege weapon)").

• - Gastraphetes.

• - Oxybeles.

• - Espolón (nautical) "Espolón (nautical)").

• - Taran.

• - Impact (mechanical) "Impact (mechanical)").

• - Moon landing (crime) "Moon landing (crime)").

• - Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Ariete.

• - The battering ram: the first of the siege machines.