Real Medieval Fire Arrows! (Sorry Hollywood)

Medieval fire arrows were real! So I followed the old books, made some and tested them in every way I could think of. We have loads of old manuscripts, pictures, drawings, fire arrow heads and recipes of fire arrows but because some people haven’t looked at the old information and can’t make them work, lots of people think they were a myth. You see them everywhere in films and computer games so it is easy to dismiss them as a modern popular culture affectation - they were as real as you are. So this film is an exhaustive description of what they were and how they made them work, woven through with a series of tests and demonstrations and showing the sources. If you want to know about fire arrows this is the film for you. 00:00 Intro and highlights 00:38 Burn Duration Demonstration 02:05 Safety Warning 02:35 Hollywood loves fire on a stick! 04:12 The evidence and archaeological record 05:39 Construction of fire arrows 07:58 Lighting and shooting process 09:00 Close up burn 09:56 Distance test 10:34 Shooting a target 11:00 Shooting in a field battle? 11:51 Tod Cutler advert. Lots of shiny things for sale 12:20 How do Fire Arrows work? - Slo mo 13:14 The Alchemy of Fire Arrows 14:55 Stirling castle - Trebuchet! 16:09 Medieval manuscript evidence 17:58 Getting hit in the face by a flaming arrow? 18:57 Noxious Smoke! 20:07 Medieval Chemical weapons? 22:07 Scenario - Arrow into window 22:36 Scenario - Thick Oak palisade 23:43 Scenario - Pitched building or ship 24:50 Scenario - Hay store or Thatch 25:51 Don’t underestimate the smoke 26:21 Conclusion For budget medieval weaponry of fantastic accuracy and value For commissions and custom work For merch For those who enjoyed Arrows vs Armour Target posters are here We have a Patreon page and if you liked this and wish to support the channel please consider having a look at that Arrow heads by Longbow by Joe Gibbs Italian yew bow by the late Chris Boyton Books referenced European arrowheads and crossbow bolts Gunpowder technology in the fifteenth century (translation of the book of the firework) Axel E.W. Muller The Pirotechnica of Vannoccio Biringuccio (translation) Cyril Stanley Smith and Martha Teach Gnudi Weapons of Warre The Mary Rose Trust