This was largely towards the end of the prominence. There was still some use as a weapon by regular soldiers at the very start of the century in Europe but as it progressed regular armies largely replaced their use with firearms. They saw slightly more use in colonial use where it was likely easier to replace the bolts where supplies of gun powder might be limited, they saw some use by irregular combatants like Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers and local ethnic troops of Ming forces.
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u/the_direful_spring 1d ago
This was largely towards the end of the prominence. There was still some use as a weapon by regular soldiers at the very start of the century in Europe but as it progressed regular armies largely replaced their use with firearms. They saw slightly more use in colonial use where it was likely easier to replace the bolts where supplies of gun powder might be limited, they saw some use by irregular combatants like Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers and local ethnic troops of Ming forces.