Man catcher: Difference between revisions
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{{short description|Type of polearm}} | {{short description|Type of polearm}} | ||
{{Multiple image | total_width = 300 | perrow = 2 | header = {{big|Man catcher}} | |||
| image1 = Brandvakter Stockholm 1822.jpg | |||
| image4 = Väktarsax Västernorrland - M292.jpg | |||
| image3 = Väktarsax Småland - M 68553 (2).jpg | |||
| image2 = Väktarsax Småland - M 68553 (3) (cropped).jpg | |||
| footer = {{ubl|'''Top left''': Swedish fire-watchmen [<nowiki/>[[:sv:Brandvakt|Brandvakt]]] with man catchers, Stockholm, 1822.|'''Top right''': Nightly troublemaker who has ended up in the night guard's man catcher, 19th century Sweden.|'''Bottom left''': Demonstration of an early modern Swedish man catcher against a mannequin's head.|'''Bottom right''': Early modern Swedish man catcher with locking arms.}} | |||
}} | |||
== | A '''man catcher''' (compare {{langx|de|Menschenfänger}}), also known as '''catchpole''',<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=chVfUm2Hz3MC&q=catchpole+mancatcher&pg=PA166 |title=A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor: In All Countries and in All Times |isbn=9780486131290 |last1=Stone |first1=George Cameron |date=13 March 2013 |publisher=Courier Corporation }}</ref> is a capture tool for [[law enforcement]] work and similar.<ref name="kåb45/40">{{cite web |title=Kulturen, En årsbok, 1945 |url=https://www.kulturen.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/kulturens-arsbok-1945.pdf |website=kulturen.com |access-date=2025-07-22}}</ref> It is a form of [[polearm]], consisting of a long shaft equipped with a semicircular arc at one end, intended to be thrusted against an opposing individual, with the aim of encircling their waist, limbs, or neck, followed by further thrusts to push the captured person up against a wall or the ground in order to limit and lock their ability to move and escape. | ||
== Historical use == | |||
=== Europe === | |||
Man catchers were used in Europe during the [[Late Middle Ages]] and the [[Renaissance]], with some countries, like [[Sweden]], using it conventionally until the late 19th century.<ref name="Smålands museum">{{cite web |url=https://digitaltmuseum.se/0210215221637/bygel |title=Bygel |access-date=2025-07-22 |publisher=[[Smålands museum]] |website=digitaltmuseum.se |language=sv }}</ref> The European design consisted of a pole mounted with a two pronged head. Each prong was semi-circular in shape with a spring-loaded "door" on the front. This created an effective valve that would allow the ring to pass around a man-sized cylinder and keep it trapped.<ref name="Smålands museum"/><ref name="kåb45/40"/> | |||
Man catchers were a sort of policing weapon, and was used to capture people alive by their neck and drag them to the ground where they could be helplessly pinned. Some early designs assumes that the captured person wears armor to protect him against the metal prongs, which could easily hurt the neck of a person without armor. Such could be used to pull a person from horseback. In later periods, man catchers were mainly a weapon against drunkards and other troublemakers.<ref name="Smålands museum"/><ref name="kåb45/40"/> The man catcher was also used to trap and contain violent prisoners.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/everyday_life/control/1750-1820/TL.0151/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060114130135/http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/everyday_life/control/1750-1820/TL.0151/ |archive-date=2006-01-14 |title=Making the Modern World - Everyday Life - Control - 1750-1820}}</ref> | |||
=== Japan === | |||
===Japan=== | [[File:Fight-atop-Horyukaku-the-Hakkenden-Tale-Utagawa-Kuniyoshi-c1840.png|thumb|Painting showcasing Japanese medieval [[law enforcement]] polearms, such as the ''[[sodegarami]]'', ''[[tsukubō]]'', and ''[[sasumata]]'']] | ||
[[File: | Similarly, the Japanese ''[[sodegarami]]'', ''[[tsukubō]]'', and ''[[sasumata]]'' were used by Edo-era [[law enforcement]] for apprehending suspects. However, the ''sasumata'' was most like a man catcher in usage as its forked head was designed to pin the suspect's neck, legs, arms, or joints against a wall or the ground.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}} | ||
=== Gallery === | |||
<gallery> | |||
File:Man catcher, Germany, 1601-1800 Wellcome L0057575.jpg|Early modern German man catcher with locking arms and inward facing spikes | |||
File:Torimono sandogu (tools for capturing criminals) (cropped).jpg|Medieval Japanese ''[[sasumata]]'' man catcher with shaft thorns against counter grips | |||
File:Haenel Kostbare Waffen Tafel 69.jpg|Man catcher spear with a blade and twin catching arms | |||
File:Väktarsax Västernorrland - M292 (1).jpg|Close-up of the head to a Swedish man catcher | |||
</gallery> | |||
== Modern use == | |||
Modern mancatchers are often used with shields by police and security guards to isolate and restrain individuals while protecting themselves. | |||
=== China === | |||
[[File:Mancatcher.png|thumb|upright|Set of modern mancatchers used by security guards in China found inside a supermarket]] | |||
A type of locking man catcher is available for staff at train stations, supermarkets, and airports in China to capture and restrain individuals in a non-lethal manner.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}} | |||
Some mancatchers may be designed with sharp prongs to discourage a restrained person from grabbing the polearm. | |||
In some junior and middle schools, security guards are equipped with non-locking variants designed to seize a person's waist or prevent them from advancing. It is essentially a two-pronged fork, a ''U''-shape projecting from a pole.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}} | In some junior and middle schools, security guards are equipped with non-locking variants designed to seize a person's waist or prevent them from advancing. It is essentially a two-pronged fork, a ''U''-shape projecting from a pole.{{Citation needed|date=February 2019}} | ||
===India and Nepal=== | === Japan === | ||
[[File:Japanese non-lethal police weapon.jpg|thumb|upright|Modern ''[[sasumata]]'' man catcher used by riot police in Japan]] | |||
While man catchers are no longer in western use, the Japanese police (and thereof) retain modern variants of the ''[[sasumata]]'', that are semi-flexible, with padding, blunt endpoints, and other slightly modified geometry, designed to significantly reduce the chance of injury to restrained civilians. These variants are designed for use by non-soldiers—specifically, they are intended for use by a Japanese [[riot police]] mounted on horseback. In such a case, the mounted riot police would typically be arranged in formation line abreast, and would use a row of raised ''sasumata'' to hold back large crowds. These mounted riot police answer to the Japanese [[National Police Agency (Japan)|National Police Agency]]. Since the outbreak of serious riots is uncommon in Japan, the modern ''sasumata'' is rarely used. Nevertheless, the necessary training is kept up to date.<ref>Cunningham, Don. Taiho-jutsu:Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai. Boston; Rutland, Vermont; Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, 2004.</ref> | |||
=== India and Nepal === | |||
During the [[COVID-19 pandemic in India]], police in Chandigarh implemented a mechanical device resembling a man catcher in order to capture suspects while maintaining a safe social distance. It was created to be used on a person's waistline. They called it a "social distancing clamp" or a "lockdown-breaker catcher". It was based on an idea from police in Nepal, where officers have reportedly detained over 1,400 suspects using a similar "multifunctional arrest device". Mancatchers were also used for other purposes such as pulling dead bodies out of the water. The main difference between the designs is that those used in India expand the size of the clamp depending on the person's waistline.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/30/848327731/how-to-nab-suspects-while-social-distancing-indian-police-try-giant-tongs |title=Police In India Test Huge Tongs To Nab Suspects From A Distance Amid Coronavirus |last=Frayer |first=Lauren |date=April 30, 2020 |website=NPR |access-date=April 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6706200/nepal-police-use-long-pole-of-the-law/| title = Nepal police use long pole of the law |work=The Canberra Times |date=March 31, 2020}} </ref> | During the [[COVID-19 pandemic in India]], police in Chandigarh implemented a mechanical device resembling a man catcher in order to capture suspects while maintaining a safe social distance. It was created to be used on a person's waistline. They called it a "social distancing clamp" or a "lockdown-breaker catcher". It was based on an idea from police in Nepal, where officers have reportedly detained over 1,400 suspects using a similar "multifunctional arrest device". Mancatchers were also used for other purposes such as pulling dead bodies out of the water. The main difference between the designs is that those used in India expand the size of the clamp depending on the person's waistline.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/04/30/848327731/how-to-nab-suspects-while-social-distancing-indian-police-try-giant-tongs |title=Police In India Test Huge Tongs To Nab Suspects From A Distance Amid Coronavirus |last=Frayer |first=Lauren |date=April 30, 2020 |website=NPR |access-date=April 30, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6706200/nepal-police-use-long-pole-of-the-law/| title = Nepal police use long pole of the law |work=The Canberra Times |date=March 31, 2020}} </ref> | ||
==See also== | == See also == | ||
*[[Monk's spade]], one end has similar function but for animals | * [[Monk's spade]], one end has similar function but for animals | ||
==References== | == References == | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
==External links== | == External links == | ||
* {{Commons category-inline|Man catchers}} | * {{Commons category-inline|Man catchers}} | ||
Latest revision as of 12:09, 19 October 2025
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Multiple image".
A man catcher (compare Template:Langx), also known as catchpole,[1] is a capture tool for law enforcement work and similar.[2] It is a form of polearm, consisting of a long shaft equipped with a semicircular arc at one end, intended to be thrusted against an opposing individual, with the aim of encircling their waist, limbs, or neck, followed by further thrusts to push the captured person up against a wall or the ground in order to limit and lock their ability to move and escape.
Historical use
Europe
Man catchers were used in Europe during the Late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, with some countries, like Sweden, using it conventionally until the late 19th century.[3] The European design consisted of a pole mounted with a two pronged head. Each prong was semi-circular in shape with a spring-loaded "door" on the front. This created an effective valve that would allow the ring to pass around a man-sized cylinder and keep it trapped.[3][2]
Man catchers were a sort of policing weapon, and was used to capture people alive by their neck and drag them to the ground where they could be helplessly pinned. Some early designs assumes that the captured person wears armor to protect him against the metal prongs, which could easily hurt the neck of a person without armor. Such could be used to pull a person from horseback. In later periods, man catchers were mainly a weapon against drunkards and other troublemakers.[3][2] The man catcher was also used to trap and contain violent prisoners.[4]
Japan
Similarly, the Japanese sodegarami, tsukubō, and sasumata were used by Edo-era law enforcement for apprehending suspects. However, the sasumata was most like a man catcher in usage as its forked head was designed to pin the suspect's neck, legs, arms, or joints against a wall or the ground.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Gallery
-
Early modern German man catcher with locking arms and inward facing spikes
-
Medieval Japanese sasumata man catcher with shaft thorns against counter grips
-
Man catcher spear with a blade and twin catching arms
-
Close-up of the head to a Swedish man catcher
_(cropped).jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
Modern use
Modern mancatchers are often used with shields by police and security guards to isolate and restrain individuals while protecting themselves.
China
A type of locking man catcher is available for staff at train stations, supermarkets, and airports in China to capture and restrain individuals in a non-lethal manner.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Some mancatchers may be designed with sharp prongs to discourage a restrained person from grabbing the polearm.
In some junior and middle schools, security guards are equipped with non-locking variants designed to seize a person's waist or prevent them from advancing. It is essentially a two-pronged fork, a U-shape projecting from a pole.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Japan
While man catchers are no longer in western use, the Japanese police (and thereof) retain modern variants of the sasumata, that are semi-flexible, with padding, blunt endpoints, and other slightly modified geometry, designed to significantly reduce the chance of injury to restrained civilians. These variants are designed for use by non-soldiers—specifically, they are intended for use by a Japanese riot police mounted on horseback. In such a case, the mounted riot police would typically be arranged in formation line abreast, and would use a row of raised sasumata to hold back large crowds. These mounted riot police answer to the Japanese National Police Agency. Since the outbreak of serious riots is uncommon in Japan, the modern sasumata is rarely used. Nevertheless, the necessary training is kept up to date.[5]
India and Nepal
During the COVID-19 pandemic in India, police in Chandigarh implemented a mechanical device resembling a man catcher in order to capture suspects while maintaining a safe social distance. It was created to be used on a person's waistline. They called it a "social distancing clamp" or a "lockdown-breaker catcher". It was based on an idea from police in Nepal, where officers have reportedly detained over 1,400 suspects using a similar "multifunctional arrest device". Mancatchers were also used for other purposes such as pulling dead bodies out of the water. The main difference between the designs is that those used in India expand the size of the clamp depending on the person's waistline.[6][7]
See also
- Monk's spade, one end has similar function but for animals
References
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- ↑ Cunningham, Don. Taiho-jutsu:Law and Order in the Age of the Samurai. Boston; Rutland, Vermont; Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, 2004.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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