Every culture's arsenal is based on the technology and raw materials available at the time. Prehistoric peoples, often called the Stone Age cultures, made wide use of stone, shaping axes and grinding tools, and creating spears and arrows in order to eke out their survival. As technological skills evolved, so did the type of implements. During the Bronze and Iron Ages, we see the development of metal tools and weapons which persisted through the Middle Ages, albeit dramatically altered over time. Finally, the appearance of gunpowder in Europe in the early 14th century brought about the obsolescence of many weapons - and made the castle useless as well. While the castle was, arguably, the most formidable weapon of medieval warfare, generally when we think of weapons we think of something much smaller, movable, and able to wreak havoc and death on an opponent.
