greek weapons

One of the many types of soldiers found in ancient Greece was the hoplite. Also known as the typical foot soldier, hoplites were the backbone of the Greek army. They were the men who went into the hand-to-hand combat situations that were the way classical Greek wars were fought – hoplites went into battle in broad daylight, facing the opposing army head-on with no tactics of strategy or hiding. These men were totally reliant on their own skills, as well as the skills and bravery of their neighboring soldiers.
He typically wore 65 pounds worth of armor, and carried a large shield which itself would often be used as a weapon; the shield could be used to break the opposing army's weaponry, which were usually long spears with wooden handles. The hoplites also carried these spears as their weapons of choice; the spear was a six to eight foot long weapon with a head made of iron, a butt end made of bronze, and a shaft of wood (usually ash). These spears broke frequently, so the butt was an important part that could additionally be used in battle.
Of course, the spear was only one of the ancient Greek weapons. Another interesting weapon was the ballista, which was a powerful ancient crossbow type weapon. While not used by the hoplites in battle, the ballista was still an important part of combat in Greece. Historians believe that the ballista was used as a siege weapon, when attacking forts or other installations in areas where foot soldiers could not tread.

Ancient Isreal weapons

The Israelites used some traditional weapons. The story of Ehud, who plotted a daring one-man assassination attack on King Eglon of Moab. The standard sword of this period was curved, with one sharp edge used for slicing and slashing. It is sometimes called a sickle sword, and is the basis of the expression "smite the enemy with the edge of the sword. This type of weapon would not have served Ehud’s need, since it could not easily have been concealed from the palace guards, nor could it be used to thrust or stab to death. So the text explains: "Ehud had made a double-edged sword about a foot and a half long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his clothing. Such metal weapons were still very rare in Israel.
Because Ehud was left-handed, he hid his sword on the right side; right-handed soldiers would wear their swords on their left side. This reversal may explain Ehud’s success in getting past the king’s guards. By implying that he was the bearer of a confidential message, Ehud got rid of all of Eglon’s attendants. When Ehud told the king that his message was from God, Eglon stood up and put himself in an ideal position for Ehud to stab him with the concealed sword. As the sword had been designed for stabbing, it probably had a relatively short hilt, which would have penetrated Eglon’s fat body. Having accomplished his piece of treachery, Ehud fled, calling his waiting men into battle. With their king dead, the Moabites would have retreated hastily across the river Jordan to their homeland, or sought for reinforcements from Moabite territory. By taking control of the fords across the river, Ehud’s men were able to win the ensuing battle decisively.

Roman weapons

Roman military regime was one of the strongest military powers in the ancient world because of the superior weapons and also because of their war tactics. The Roman army was open-minded in adopting the war tactics and also the weapons of their enemies if they could be benefited from it. A sword and a spear were the main weapons of a Roman soldier. Weapons of Ancient Rome A few of the sophisticated weapons of an ancient Roman soldier are listed below. Gladius - An Ancient Roman Sword - Over the centuries the sword, one of the ancient Roman weapons went through many changes. Caesar used a type of sword called "Gladius". It was slightly curved and was used as thrusting weapon in close combat. Gladius was sheathed on the left side of the body. It was a short sword with a wide blade and infantry used this ancient Roman weapon. Helmets - A helmet is a head gear worn by an ancient Roman soldier to protect his head, neck and the sides of his face. A helmet is a part of ancient Roman weapons and was made of iron or alloy of copper. Body Armour - A body amour is war tunic worn by an ancient Roman soldier. It was made using a combination of iron and leather. The soldiers also used flexible limp amours to protect their arms and legs. Shield - The Roman shields were made of thick wood bordered with copper alloy or iron. The shields were oval, rectangular or hexagonal. Swords - One of the weapons carried by an ancient Roman soldier was a sword. It was a powerful weapon used during the 3rd BC. It was long-pointed and double-edged Iberian weapon called as the "Spanish sword". With passing of time the ancient Romans also made changes to basic design of the sword. Dagger - Another ancient Roman weapon was a dagger. A dagger had an elaborately decorated sheath with precious stones studded on it.

chinese weapons

Ge: The most popular Chinese long weapon used in ancient times was the Ge. In the very beginning, people just tied a piece of stone on top of a staff as a weapon. When bronze was used, people made many beautiful Ge heads. In the ancient world, soldiers fought from "fighting wagons" using long weapons. Ge was very useful for this. When rider horse became popular, Ge was obsolete generally. Ge remained in use through the Three Kingdom Period (220 - 265).
Jian: The most commonly used Chinese weapon overall is Jian, the straight double-edged sword. Not just a weapon, it also symbolizes many values of traditional Chinese culture and character. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, bronze Jians of very high quality were produced. They were respected and revered as holy weapons. Many legends of heroes and their wondrous deeds date from these periods.
Qiang: or spear is the most popular of the Chinese long weapons. Through many centuries of practice and research, spear skills were developed to such a high level that defense against spear skills became the most challenging of all defensive maneuvers. At the same time, of course, strategies and skills for such defensive maneuvers were avidly sought. Here we show some ancient spearheads. Although they are of varying shapes, more attention was actually paid to the quality and production of a spear’s staff than to the spear’s head.
Fu: is an axe, is not a common military weapon but it was commonly used by members of the security forces guarding emperors, kings, nobles or generals. It symbolized the power and prestige of the guard’s high-ranking employer.
And finally Dao: or saber, became a popular weapon much later than Jian. Sabers made of bronze are, therefore, rare. By the time iron was widely used for the manufacture of weapons, Dao rather than Jian had become the predominant military short weapon. The shape of Dao has changed a lot over time so that today there are many different variations.
These are some of chinas most popular and rare weapons.

Anciant India's Weapon's

Warfare in ancient India centered around the chariot. Indian chariots were nothing like the light, sleek chariots of Egypt. They were massive, made of wood and iron, and intricately decorated in gold. They had four wheels, and typically held two men-the charioteer, and an archer who also had a weapon for hand to hand combat. This archer, standing on the chariot, would be a good six or more feet off the ground, giving him a significant advantage over enemy infantry. Some chariots held more men, the largest could hold seven men. Indian chariots were so large and heavy that they required four to six horses to pull them. Unlike Egyptian chariots, which moved quickly and fired arrows into the enemy ranks, Indian chariots often charged right into melee battle. They crushed enemy soldiers under their wheels, trampled them under the horses, all while the soldier(s) on the chariot fired arrows into them, or fought it out hand to hand.
The cavalry of Indian armies is, for the most part, not noteworthy. The cavalry of the Middle Eastern and Arab armies were probably superior. There are exceptions though. The Rajput cavalry was extremely skilled, and man for man, was more than a match for the Mughal cavalry, as they proved several times. They were lightly armored, and moved extremely swiftly. Armed with a light curved sword and a small circular shield, they could charge and fight with incredible speed. Many carried bows and arrows, and were expert archers. The Rajput army was almost entirely composed of cavalry, and were powerful enough that they were able to keep the Muslim forces in check for many years. In the other armies of India cavalry were also used, sometimes in large numbers, but rarely were they equipped with bows and arrows. Their role was either to protect the elephants and chariots, or to charge into melee battle.
The cavalry of Indian armies is, for the most part, not noteworthy. The cavalry of the Middle Eastern and Arab armies were probably superior. There are exceptions though. The Rajput cavalry was extremely skilled, and man for man, was more than a match for the Mughal cavalry, as they proved several times. They were lightly armored, and moved extremely swiftly. Armed with a light curved sword and a small circular shield, they could charge and fight with incredible speed. Many carried bows and arrows, and were expert archers.

African weapons

During the 1970s and 1980s, South Africa pursued research into weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. Six nuclear weapons were assembled. With the anticipated changeover to a majority-elected government in the 1990s, the South African government dismantled all of its nuclear weapons, the only nation in the world to date which voluntarily gave up nuclear arms it had developed itself.
The country has been a signatory of the Biological Weapons Convention since 1975, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty since 1991, and the Chemical Weapons Convention since 1995
South Africa built its nuclear weapons at the Circle facility near Pretoria that was run by the South African armaments corporation Armscor. The building contained a high security vault which stored highly enriched uranium awaiting processing into weapon components and the finished nuclear weapons. South Africa also had other storage vaults for nuclear weapons, but these vaults were not used during the height of the program in the 1980s.
South African developed an elaborate set of security, safety, and control mechanisms over their nuclear weapons, prototypes, and test devices. This short report focuses on the storage of South Africa's nuclear weapons and the procedures, weapon design philosophy, and hardware that increased the ability to control access to these weapons. This information is drawn from ISIS archives and will be included in a ISIS report on South Africa's nuclear weapons program and its subsequent dismantlement.

egyptian weapons

The Old Kingdom had soldiers equipped with a great variety of weapons: shields, spears, cudgels, maces, daggers, bows and arrows. Quivers and battle axes came into use before the second Intermediary Period, which was a time of revolution in the Egyptian martial arts. The earliest metal arrowheads date from the 11th dynasty (ca.2000 BCE), made of copper hardened by hammering.
The principal weapon of the Egyptian army was the bow and arrow. Nubian mercenaries formed the best archery units. It was transformed into a formidable weapon with the introduction by the Hyksos of the composite bow made of horn, sinews and wood, combined with body armour - which was often little more than broad leather straps - and the war chariot, enabling fast attacks at long range.
The infantry of the New Kingdom carried spears, battle axes, scimitars and daggers. The scimitar came to Egypt from Syria, where Thutmose III used it first. There are many depictions of the gods handing the pharaoh this weapon of victory. It quickly became part of the infantryman's basic equipment.

Mesopotamian weapons

The club is one of the oldest weapons used by man, clubs they are easily fashioned from branches. Strong and shock absorbing, wood is an almost perfect material for making many implements, weapons among them. Its lightness on the other hand is a drawback when the intention is to hit ones opponent over the head with it in order to crack his skull.
The mace is another anciant Mesopotamian weapon. A mace is a wooden club with a head of some hard and heavy material fastened to it. Stone suggested itself to ancient weaponmakers: it was easily available and could be shaped with proven techniques. There were two difficulties to overcome, though. Stone shatters relatively easily and a reliable fixing of the head to the wooden handle was difficult to achieve. With the advent of copper both these obstacles could be overcome, despite the expense and difficulty of extracting and casting copper.
Improvements to the mace were few. The Egyptians tried to give them a disk shaped form in order to increase their impact or even endow them with some cutting capabilities, but with improving defensive equipment the mace disappeared as a fighting weapon, and gave way to the battle axe. According to the archaeological records disk and pear-shaped mace heads were frequently used, in contrast to all the other forms which were unusual.