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Gunpowder, whether black powder or smokeless powder, is a substance that burns very rapidly, releasing gases that act as a propellant in firearms. Both forms of gunpowder are low explosives. As it burns, a subsonic deflagration wave is produced rather than the supersonic detonation wave which high explosives produce. As a result, pressures generated inside a gun are sufficient to propel a bullet, but not sufficient to destroy the barrel. At the same time, this makes gunpowder less suitable for shattering rock or fortifications, applications where high explosives are preferred.

History and development

A Mongol bomb thrown against a charging Japanese samurai during the Mongol Invasions of Japan, 1281.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines the English word gunpowder as "An explosive mixture of saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal, chiefly used in discharging projectiles from guns and for blasting." ^[1] This article follows the Oxford definition. Biochemists and scientific historians^[2] like Joseph Needham, however, sometimes use the word gunpowder to refer not only to the explosive defined thus by the Oxford English Dictionary and so defined by us at the top of this article, but also to previous concoctions of combustible material mixed with saltpeter.

India

Early fireworks were developed in India and China, possibly for display at religious festivals. ^[3] Modern Diwali rituals pertaining to the Ramayana employ fireworks. ^[4]

Historian H.M. Elliot's paper "On the Early Use of Gunpowder in India" suggests that saltpetre, a principal ingredient of gunpowder, was possibly present in the explosives used in the fiery devices mentioned in the Ramayana and Mahabharata.^[5]

The question as to the knowledge of gunpowder or any similar explosive substance, by the ancient people of India is one of great historical interest. It is clear from their medical works that they were acquainted with the constituents of gunpowder and possessed them in great abundance. Their writings make frequent references to arms of fire and rockets -- which appear to be an Indian invention, though not mentioned by name in Sanskrit writings. - Professor Wilson (1848), director of the Royal Asiatic Society, quoted in H.M. Elliot.^[5]

There are references in ancient Hindu literature to smoke balls, suggesting a knowledge of incendiaries. ^[6]

Vishwamitra, who is represented in the Ramayana as giving different kinds of weapons to Rama, speaks of one as agneya and another as shikhara. Some scholars have interpreted the later as reference to a combustible weapon. Other mentions of fiery weapons have been made in ancient Indian works. In the Mahabharata, there is a mention of a "flying ball emitting the sound of a thunder cloud". ^[7]

China

Early saltpeter explosives were the first known chemical explosives and propellants.^[8] The facilitation of combustion by addition of saltpeter was discovered very early in China. An early record of saltpeter combustion comes from a Chinese Han era book The Kinship of the Three compiled in 142 A.D. by Wei Boyang^[9]^[10], where he recorded experiments in which a set of ingredients were said to "fly and dance" in a violent reaction. By 300 A.D., Ge Hong, an alchemist of the Jin dynasty conclusively recorded the chemical reactions caused when saltpeter, redwood and charcoal were heated together in his book "Book of the Master of the Preservations of Solidarity".^[11] Another early record of saltpeter mixtures, a Chinese book from c. 850 A.D. called "Classified Essentials of the Mysterious Tao of the True Origin of Things," indicates that saltpeter-aided combustion was an unintended byproduct of Taoist alchemical efforts to develop an elixir of immortality:^[12]

Some have heated together sulfur, realgar and saltpeter with honey; smoke and flames result, so that their hands and faces have been burnt, and even the whole house where they were working burned down.^[13]

The Chinese used saltpeter explosives in warfare in 904 A.D., as incendiary projectiles called "flying fires." The use of saltpeter explosives was soon expanded to explosive grenades hurled from catapults. The next step was to use these mixtures as propellants. The first such use was recorded in 1132 in experiments with mortars consisting of bamboo tubes. Mortars with metal tubes (made of iron or bronze) first appeared in the wars (1268-1279) between the Mongols and the Song Dynasty.^[14]

Spread of Gunpowder

The dates, places and figures involved in the inventions of gunpowder be determined. Gunpowder is not one substance, but many, of differing properties. Gunpowder depends on the availability of pure nitrates or saltpetre, which does not occur naturally, and is not be found by accident.^[15]

There is no direct record of how black powder itself was invented, or how it came to be known in Europe and Asia. Most scholars believe that saltpeter explosives developed into an early form of black powder in China, and that this technology spread west from China to the Middle East and then Europe, possibly via the Silk Road.^[16]^[17]^[18] Other historians believe that several cultures contributed to the development of gunpowder, as James Partington writes in his History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder:

Gunpowder is not, of course, an 'invention' in the modern sense, the product of a single time and place; no individual's name can be attached to it, nor can that of any single nation or region. Fire is one of the primordial forces of nature, and incendiary weapons have had a place in armies' toolkits for almost as long as civilized states have made war.

The first written record of the composition of black powder, from anywhere in the world, was in Roger Bacon's "De nullitate magiæ" at Oxford in 1234.^[19]

In Bacon's "De Secretis Operibus Artis et Naturae" in 1248, he states:

We can, with saltpeter and other substances, compose artificially a fire that can be launched over long distances... By only using a very small quantity of this material much light can be created accompanied by a horrible fracas. It is possible with it to destroy a town or an army ... In order to produce this artificial lightning and thunder it is necessary to take saltpeter, sulfur, and Luru Vopo Vir Can Utriet.

The last part is probably some sort of coded anagram for the quantities needed. In the Opus Maior he describes firecrackers around 1267:

"a child’s toy of sound and fire made in various parts of the world with powder of saltpeter, sulphur and charcoal of hazelwood."^[20]

Bacon does not, however, claim to have invented black powder, and his reference to "various parts of the world" implies that the black powder was already widespread when he was writing.

The process of "corning" black powder was a further important improvement, and was developed in Europe probably during the late 14th century.^[21] Corning involves forcing damp powder through a sieve to form it into granules which harden when dry, preventing the component ingredients of gunpowder from separating over time, thus making it far more reliable and consistent. It also allowed for more powerful and faster ignition, since the spaces between the particles allowed for oxygen necessary for speedy combustion. However, the prevalence of superstitious belief in alchemy and magic commonly led, at least in the early days of firearms, to the adulteration of the mixture with exotic, but of course deleterious products, usually mercury salts, arsenic and amber.

The first Chinese recipe for black powder given by Needham is from 1628, almost four hundred year's after Roger Bacon's book.^[22] It comes from a book called the Wu Pei Chih, which lists all the saltpeter explosive recipes from the 1606 Ping Lu, but includes exactly one new mixture, for "lead bullet gunpowder" (chhien chhung huo yao), composed of 40 oz. of saltpeter, 6 oz. of sulphur, and 6.8 oz. of charcoal. As Needham observes, "The explosive is used here as a charge of black powder."^[23]

Some scholars hold that around 1240 the Arabs acquired knowledge of saltpeter from the East, perhaps through India. They also learned about fireworks and rockets.^[24]

Chinese sources sometimes represent later, or foreign, inventions as earlier native ones for the greater glory of China, and much caution is advised in accepting these claims. European sources, on the contrary, generally attribute innovations to the East, or to refugees, rather than to native invention. Incidentally, the first Roman embassy to China reached there by ship in AD 166, and the silk trade flourished for centuries, so the transmission of western influences to China can hardly be doubted. A Roman legion captured by the Parthians was sold to a Chinese emperor, and many of the men remained even after they were ransomed, they had become valued as engineers. Some writers have even suggested that gunpowder, in the restricted sense, reached China from the West. The first cannon in China were introduced by Jesuits in 1520, and the Japanese accounts state fireworks were introduced to Japan by the Dutch around 1600, at the port of Sakai, near Osaka. Gunpowder could not have been introduced to Europe by the Chinese, because gunpowder did not then exist. However, the Chinese did make a very valuable and ingenious contribution in the form of nitrates.^[15]

Gunpowder in Europe

In spite of China's initial progress, Europe surpassed it in pyrotechnic development in the 14th century, about the time the gun was invented. Shot and gunpowder for military purposes were made by skilled military tradesmen, who later were called firemakers, and who also were required to make fireworks for celebrations of victory or peace. During the Renaissance, two European schools of pyrotechnic thought emerged, one in Italy and the other at Nürnberg, Germany. The Italian school of pyrotechnics emphasized elaborate fireworks, and the German school stressed scientific advancement. Both schools added significantly to further development of pyrotechnics, and by the mid-17th century fireworks were used for entertainment on an unprecedented scale in Europe, being popular even at resorts and public gardens.^[25]

By 1788, as a result of the reforms for which Lavoisier was mainly responsible, France had become self-sufficient in saltpeter, and its gunpowder had become both the best in Europe and inexpensive.^[26]

During the 18th century gunpowder factories became increasingly dependent on mechanical energy.^[27]

Gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Gunpowder production in the United kingdom appears to have started in the mid 13th century with the aim of supplying The Crown.^[28] Records show that gunpowder has being made, in England, in 1346, at the Tower of London; a powder house existed at the Tower in 1461; and in 1515 three King's gunpowder makers worked there.^[28] Gunpowder was also being made or stored at other Royal castles, such as Portchester Castle and Edinburgh castle.

By the early fourteenth century, according to N.J.G. Pounds's study The Medieval Castle in England and Wales, many English had been deserted. Others were crumbling. Their military significance faded except on the borders. Gunpowder made smaller castles useless.^[29]

Henry VIII was short of gunpowder when he invaded France in 1544 and England needed to import gunpowder via the port of Antwerp.^[28]

The English Civil War, 1642-1645, led to an expansion of the gunpowder industry, with the repeal of the Royal Patent in August 1641.^[28]

Early guncotton works were used in both England and France. Gelatinising the product with acetone, and the use of stabilisers discovered in the 1880's rendered it safe. However, Vieille's Poudre B of 1886 was used in the new French leBel rifle.^[15]

Decline of gunpowder production

The introduction of Smokeless powders for military purposes lead to a contraction of the gunpowder industry.

Cessation of gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

The Home Office removed gunpowder from its list of Permitted Explosives, shortly afterwards, on 31 December 1931, Curtis & Harvey's Glynneath gunpowder factory at Pontneddfechan, in Wales, closed down; and was demolished by fire in 1932.^[30]

The last remained gunpowder mill at Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey was damaged by a German parachute mine in 1941 and it never reopened.^[31] This was followed by the gunpowder section at the Royal Ordnance Factory, ROF Chorley, the section was closed and demolished at the end of World War II; and ICI Nobel's Roslin gunpowder factory which closed in 1954.^[31]

This left the sole gunpowder factory at ICI Nobel's Ardeer site in Scotland.^[31]

Gunpowder in the USA

Template:Sectionstub Prior to the War of Independence very little gunpowder had been made in the USA; and, as a British Colony, most had been imported from Britain.^[32] In October 1777 the British Parliament banned the importation of gunpowder into America.^[32] Gunpowder, however, was secretely obtained from France and the Netherlands.^[32]

The first domestic supplies of gunpowder were made by E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company.^[32]

In the United States, saltpetre was worked in the "nitre caves" of Kentucky at the beginning of the 19th century.^[15]

Composition

Black powder is a mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate or, less frequently, sodium nitrate), charcoal and sulfur with a ratio (by weight) of approximately 15:3:2 respectively. Modern black powder also typically has a small amount of graphite added to it, to reduce the likelihood of static electricity causing loose black powder to ignite. The ratio has changed over the centuries of its use, and can be altered somewhat depending on the purpose of the powder. Historically, potassium nitrate was extracted from manure by a process superficially similar to composting. "Nitre beds" took about a year to produce crystallized potassium nitrate. It could also be mined from caves with high concentrations of potassium nitrate, often resulting from the residue from bat dung accumulating over millennia.

Versions of unburnt black powder containing potassium nitrate are not hygroscopic, although versions of black powder containing sodium nitrate tend to be slightly hygroscopic. Because of this, the most common form of black powder containing potassium nitrate can be stored in unsealed powder flasks for very long periods of time, measured in centuries, provided no liquid water is ever introduced, while remaining viable. Similarly, muzzleloaders have been known to fire with a trigger pull many decades after being loaded, after being hung on a wall during an earlier era in a loaded state, provided they are kept dry. In contrast, versions of black powder or gunpowder intended for blasting contain sodium nitrate, and are not known for being as stable over such long periods of time, unless sealed from the moisture in the air.

Residue from burnt black powder, in contrast to unburnt black powder, is hygroscopic, and thus fired black powder residue proves extremely harmful to the steel in guns and gun barrels because it forms corrosive alkalis as moisture is taken into the burnt black powder residue, which typically weigh slightly more than 50% of the unburnt black powder weight.

Gunpowder in Europe

Building on the progress made in the Orient over the centuries, Europe quickly adapted gunpowder their artillery, surpassing the rest of the world in pyrotechnic development by the 14th century, about the time the gun was invented. Shot and gunpowder for military purposes were made by skilled military tradesmen, who later were called firemakers, and who also were required to make fireworks for celebrations of victory or peace. ^{[citation needed]} During the Renaissance, two European schools of pyrotechnic thought emerged, one in Italy and the other at Nürnberg, Germany. The Italian school of pyrotechnics emphasized elaborate fireworks, and the German school stressed scientific advancement. Both schools added significantly to further development of pyrotechnics, and by the mid-17th century fireworks were used for entertainment on an unprecedented scale in Europe, being popular even at resorts and public gardens.^[25]

By the early fourteenth century, according to N.J.G. Pounds's study The Medieval Castle in England and Wales, many English castles had been deserted. Others were crumbling. Their military significance faded except on the borders. Gunpowder made smaller castles useless.^[33]

By 1788, as a result of the reforms for which Lavoisier was mainly responsible, France had become self-sufficient in saltpeter, and its gunpowder had become both the best in Europe and inexpensive.^[34]

Gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Gunpowder production in the United kingdom appears to have started in the mid 13th century with the aim of supplying The Crown.^[28] Records show that gunpowder has being made, in England, in 1346, at the Tower of London; a powder house existed at the Tower in 1461; and in 1515 three King's gunpowder makers worked there.^[28] Gunpowder was also being made or stored at other Royal castles, such as Portchester Castle and Edinburgh castle.

Henry VIII was short of gunpowder when he invaded France in 1544 and England needed to import gunpowder via the port of Antwerp.^[28]

The English Civil War, 1642-1645, led to an expansion of the gunpowder industry, with the repeal of the Royal Patent in August 1641.^[28]

Decline of gunpowder production

The introduction of Smokeless powders for military purposes lead to a contraction of the gunpowder industry.

Cessation of gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

The Home Office removed gunpowder from its list of Permitted Explosives, shortly afterwards, on 31 December 1931, Curtis & Harvey's Glynneath gunpowder factory at Pontneddfechan, in Wales, closed down; and was demolished by fire in 1932.^[30]

The last remained gunpowder mill at Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey was damaged by a German parachute mine in 1941 and it never reopened.^[31] This was followed by the gunpowder section at the Royal Ordnance Factory, ROF Chorley, the section was closed and demolished at the end of World War II; and ICI Nobel's Roslin gunpowder factory which closed in 1954.^[31]

This left the sole gunpowder factory at ICI Nobel's Ardeer site in Scotland.^[31]

Characteristics and use

Gunpowder is not classified as a high explosive because it has a very slow decomposition rate and therefore a very low brisance. This same property that makes it a poor explosive makes it useful as a propellant — the lack of brisance keeps the black powder from shattering a gun barrel, and directs the energy to propelling the bullet.

The main disadvantages of black powder are a relatively low energy density (compared to modern smokeless powders) and the extremely large quantities of soot left behind. During the combustion process, less than half of black powder is converted to gas. The rest ends up as a thick layer of soot inside the barrel and a dense cloud of white smoke. In addition to being a nuisance, the residue in the barrel is hygroscopic and an anhydrous caustic substance. When moisture from the air is absorbed, the potassium oxide or sodium oxide turn into hydroxides, which will corrode wrought iron or steel gun barrels. Black powder arms must be well cleaned inside and out after firing to remove the residue. The thick smoke of black powder is also a tactical disadvantage, as it can quickly become so opaque as to impair aiming; it also reveals the shooter's position.

The size of the granule of powder and the confinement determine the burn rate of black powder. Finer grains result in greater surface area, which results in a faster burn. Tight confinement in the barrel causes a column of black powder to explode, which is the desired result. Not seating the bullet firmly against the powder column can result in a harmonic shockwave, which can create a dangerous over-pressure condition and damage the gun barrel. One of the advantages of black powder is that precise loading of the charge is not as vital as with smokeless powder firearms and is carried out using volumetric measures rather than precise weight. However, damage to a gun and its shooter due to overloading is still possible.

Black powder is well suited for blank rounds, signal flares, and rescue line launches.

Additionally, the low brisance of black powder made it useful when blasting monumental stone such as granite and marble. Black powder caused fewer fractures when compared to other explosives, with the result that more of the quarried stone could be used. Gunpowder is used to make fireworks by mixing with chemical compounds that produce the desired color.

Notes

^ "gunpowder, n. 1a" The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. Oxford English Dictionary Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50100435.
^ The New York Times Online Edition: Joseph Needham, China Scholar From Britain, Dies at 94. By SARAH LYALL. Published: March 27, 1995.
^ The Chemistry of Fireworks By Michael S. Russell Contributor Royal Society of Chemistry. Page number 7. Published 2000. Royal Society of Chemistry. Science. ISBN 0854045988
^ Lighting lamps in every house and Viashnava temple. The rich have costly illuminations, the poor at least one small lamp. Squibs, crackers and more elaborate fireworks are lighted. - The Hindu Religious Year by Muriel Marion Underhill. Association Press.
^ ^a ^b Bhattacharya, Asitesh (2006). "Gunpowder and its Applications in Ancient India". Chapter 2 in: Gunpowder, Explosives and the State: a technological history. Brenda J. Buchanan (Editor). Page number 43. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-5259-9
^ Balakanda: Ramayana as Literature and Cultural History By Varadaraja V. Raman. ISBN 817154746X. page 129
^ The Evolution of the Artillery in India: From the Battle of Plassey (1757) to the Revolt of 1857 By Romesh C. Butalia. Published 1998. Allied Publishers. ISBN 8170238722. page 17-19
^ Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Cambridge University Press. p. 74. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.
^ Peng, Yoke Ho. [2000] (2000). Li, Qi and Shu: An Introduction to Science and Civilization in China. Courier Dover Publications. ISBN 0486414450
^ Needham, Joseph. Cullen, C. [1976] (1976). Science and Civilisation in China. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521210283
^ Liang, Jieming (2006). Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity, pp. Appendix C VII
^ Kelly, Jack (2004). Gunpowder: Alchemy, Bombards, & Pyrotechnics: The History of the Explosive that Changed the World. Basic Books. p. 3. ISBN 0-465-03718-6.
^ Kelly 2004:4
^ Gernet, Jacques (1996). A History of Chinese Civilisation. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-49781-7.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d University of Denver. Cannons and Gunpowder. Composed by J. B. Calvert.
^ Brown, G. I. (1998). The Big Bang: A History of Explosives. Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-1878-0.
^ Gernet 1996
^ Kelly 2004
^ "Gunpowder". Encyclopedia Britannica. London. 1771. frier Bacon, our countryman, mentions the compofition in exprefs terms, in his treatife De nullitate magiæ, publifhed at Oxford, in the year 1248.
^ Kelly 2004:25
^ Kelly 2004:60–61
^ Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Vol. 7. Cambridge University Press. p. 345. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.
^ Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Cambridge University Press. p. 345. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.
^ Kelly 2004:22
^ ^a ^b Fireworks, Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007 © 1997-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
^ Title: Crescendo of the Virtuoso: Spectacle, Skill, and Self-Promotion in Paris during the Age of Revolution. Author: Paul Metzner. Published: University of California Press, 1998
^ Frangsmyr, Tore, J. L. Heilbron, and Robin E. Rider, editors The Quantifying Spirit in the Eighteenth Century. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1990 1990. pp 292
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "Success to the Black Art!". Chapter 1 In: Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.
^ Ross, Charles. The Custom of the Castle: From Malory to Macbeth. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1997 1997. pp 131-130
^ ^a ^b Pritchard, Tom, Evans, Jack and Johnson, Sydney (1985). The Old Gunpowder Factory at Glynneath. Merthyr Tydfil: Merthyr Tydfil & District Naturalists' Society.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "The demise of gunpowder". Chapter 4 In: Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Brown, G.I. (1998). The Big Bang: A History of Explosives. Stroud: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2361-X.
^ Ross, Charles. The Custom of the Castle: From Malory to Macbeth. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1997 1997. pp 131-130
^ Title: Crescendo of the Virtuoso: Spectacle, Skill, and Self-Promotion in Paris during the Age of Revolution. Author: Paul Metzner. Published: University of California Press, 1998

References

Ebrey, Patricia Buckley (1999). The Cambridge Illustrated History of China. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-66991-X.
Partington, James Riddick (1998). A History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder. The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5954-9.
Liang, Jieming (2006). Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity. ISBN 981-05-5380-3.

External links

Gun and Gunpowder
The Origins of Gunpowder
Cannons and Gunpowder
History of Science and Technology in Islam
Ulrich Bretschler's Gunpowder Chemistry page
Oare Gunpowder Works, Kent, UK
Royal Gunpowder Mills
Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery and Siege Weapons of Antiquity - An Illustrated History

[1] "gunpowder, n. 1a" The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. Oxford English Dictionary Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50100435.

[2] The New York Times Online Edition: Joseph Needham, China Scholar From Britain, Dies at 94. By SARAH LYALL. Published: March 27, 1995.

[3] The Chemistry of Fireworks By Michael S. Russell Contributor Royal Society of Chemistry. Page number 7. Published 2000. Royal Society of Chemistry. Science. ISBN 0854045988

[4] Lighting lamps in every house and Viashnava temple. The rich have costly illuminations, the poor at least one small lamp. Squibs, crackers and more elaborate fireworks are lighted. - The Hindu Religious Year by Muriel Marion Underhill. Association Press.

[Brenda-2-5] Bhattacharya, Asitesh (2006). "Gunpowder and its Applications in Ancient India". Chapter 2 in: Gunpowder, Explosives and the State: a technological history. Brenda J. Buchanan (Editor). Page number 43. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-5259-9

[6] Balakanda: Ramayana as Literature and Cultural History By Varadaraja V. Raman. ISBN 817154746X. page 129

[7] The Evolution of the Artillery in India: From the Battle of Plassey (1757) to the Revolt of 1857 By Romesh C. Butalia. Published 1998. Allied Publishers. ISBN 8170238722. page 17-19

[8] Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Cambridge University Press. p. 74. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.

[Peng-9] Peng, Yoke Ho. [2000] (2000). Li, Qi and Shu: An Introduction to Science and Civilization in China. Courier Dover Publications. ISBN 0486414450

[Needham-10] Needham, Joseph. Cullen, C. [1976] (1976). Science and Civilisation in China. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521210283

[11] Liang, Jieming (2006). Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity, pp. Appendix C VII

[12] Kelly, Jack (2004). Gunpowder: Alchemy, Bombards, & Pyrotechnics: The History of the Explosive that Changed the World. Basic Books. p. 3. ISBN 0-465-03718-6.

[13] Kelly 2004:4

[14] Gernet, Jacques (1996). A History of Chinese Civilisation. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-49781-7.

[UD-15] University of Denver. Cannons and Gunpowder. Composed by J. B. Calvert.

[16] Brown, G. I. (1998). The Big Bang: A History of Explosives. Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-1878-0.

[17] Gernet 1996

[18] Kelly 2004

[19] "Gunpowder". Encyclopedia Britannica. London. 1771. frier Bacon, our countryman, mentions the compofition in exprefs terms, in his treatife De nullitate magiæ, publifhed at Oxford, in the year 1248.

[20] Kelly 2004:25

[21] Kelly 2004:60–61

[22] Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Vol. 7. Cambridge University Press. p. 345. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.

[23] Needham, Joseph (2004). Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic. Cambridge University Press. p. 345. ISBN 0-521-08732-5.

[24] Kelly 2004:22

[Encarta-25] Fireworks, Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007 © 1997-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

[26] Title: Crescendo of the Virtuoso: Spectacle, Skill, and Self-Promotion in Paris during the Age of Revolution. Author: Paul Metzner. Published: University of California Press, 1998

[27] Frangsmyr, Tore, J. L. Heilbron, and Robin E. Rider, editors The Quantifying Spirit in the Eighteenth Century. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1990 1990. pp 292

[cocroft-1-28] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "Success to the Black Art!". Chapter 1 In: Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.

[29] Ross, Charles. The Custom of the Castle: From Malory to Macbeth. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1997 1997. pp 131-130

[glynneath-30] Pritchard, Tom, Evans, Jack and Johnson, Sydney (1985). The Old Gunpowder Factory at Glynneath. Merthyr Tydfil: Merthyr Tydfil & District Naturalists' Society.

[cocroft-4-31] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "The demise of gunpowder". Chapter 4 In: Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.

[brown-32] Brown, G.I. (1998). The Big Bang: A History of Explosives. Stroud: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2361-X.

[33] Ross, Charles. The Custom of the Castle: From Malory to Macbeth. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1997 1997. pp 131-130

[34] Title: Crescendo of the Virtuoso: Spectacle, Skill, and Self-Promotion in Paris during the Age of Revolution. Author: Paul Metzner. Published: University of California Press, 1998

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@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 '''Gunpowder''', whether '''[[black powder]]''' or '''[[smokeless powder]]''', is a substance that [[Fire|burns]] very rapidly, releasing gases that act as a [[propellant]] in [[firearms]]. Both forms of gunpowder are [[low explosives]]. As it burns, a subsonic [[deflagration]] wave is produced rather than the supersonic [[detonation]] wave which [[Explosive material#High Explosives|high explosives]] produce. As a result, pressures generated inside a gun are sufficient to propel a [[bullet]], but not sufficient to destroy the barrel. At the same time, this makes gunpowder less suitable for shattering rock or fortifications, applications where high explosives are preferred.
-==Origins==
+== History and development ==
 [[Image:Mooko-Suenaga.jpg|thumb|290px|A Mongol bomb thrown against a charging Japanese [[samurai]] during the [[Mongol Invasions of Japan]], [[1281]].]]
@@ Line 9: / Line 10: @@
 The Oxford English Dictionary defines the English word gunpowder as "An explosive mixture of saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal, chiefly used in discharging projectiles from guns and for blasting." <ref>"gunpowder, n. 1a" The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. Oxford English Dictionary Online. Oxford University Press. 4 Apr. 2000 http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50100435.</ref> This article follows the Oxford definition. Biochemists and scientific historians<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE7D8143DF934A15750C0A963958260  The New York Times Online Edition: Joseph Needham, China Scholar From Britain, Dies at 94. By SARAH LYALL. Published: March 27, 1995. ]</ref> like [[Joseph Needham]], however, sometimes use the word ''gunpowder'' to refer not only to the explosive defined thus by the Oxford English Dictionary and so defined by us at the top of this article, but also to previous concoctions of combustible material mixed with [[Potassium_nitrate|saltpeter]].
+===India===
-Historian H.M. Elliot's paper "On the Early Use of Gunpowder in India" suggests that [[saltpetre]], a principal ingredient of gunpowder, was possibly present in the explosives used in the fiery devices mentioned in the [[Ramayana]] and [[Mahabharata]].<ref name=Brenda-2>Bhattacharya, Asitesh (2006). "Gunpowder and its Applications in Ancient India". Chapter 2 in: ''Gunpowder, Explosives and the State: a technological history''. Brenda J. Buchanan (Editor). Page number 43. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-5259-9</ref>
+Early fireworks were developed in [[India]] and [[China]], possibly for display at religious festivals. <ref>The Chemistry of Fireworks By Michael S. Russell Contributor Royal Society of Chemistry. Page number 7. Published 2000. [[Royal Society of Chemistry]]. Science. ISBN 0854045988</ref> Modern ''[[Diwali]]'' rituals pertaining to the ''[[Ramayana]]'' employ fireworks. <ref>Lighting lamps in every house and [[Viashnava]] temple. The rich have costly illuminations, the poor at least one small lamp. Squibs, crackers and more elaborate fireworks are lighted. - The Hindu Religious Year by Muriel Marion Underhill. Association Press. </ref>
+Historian H.M. Elliot's paper "On the Early Use of Gunpowder in India" suggests that saltpetre, a principal ingredient of gunpowder, was possibly present in the explosives used in the fiery devices mentioned in the Ramayana and [[Mahabharata]].<ref name=Brenda-2>Bhattacharya, Asitesh (2006). "Gunpowder and its Applications in Ancient India". Chapter 2 in: ''Gunpowder, Explosives and the State: a technological history''. Brenda J. Buchanan (Editor). Page number 43. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0-7546-5259-9</ref>
 <blockquote>The question as to the knowledge of gunpowder or any similar explosive substance, by the ancient people of India is one of great historical interest. It is clear from their medical works that they were acquainted with the constituents of gunpowder and possessed them in great abundance. Their writings make frequent references to arms of fire and rockets -- which appear to be an Indian invention, though not mentioned by name in [[Sanskrit]] writings. - Professor Wilson (1848), director of the [[Royal Asiatic Society]], quoted in H.M. Elliot.<ref name=Brenda-2/></blockquote>
-Ancient Hindu books refer to the use of ''Vana'' or ''Bana'', apparently incendiaries. Mention is made in the Ramayana of the ''Vana'', possibly the "rocket" of [[Rama]], as a missile.<ref>Military History of British India, 1607-1947 By Harbans Singh Bhatia. Published 1977. Deep & Deep Publications. 256 pages. Page 66</ref> In addition, there are references in ancient Hindu literature to smoke balls, suggesting a knowledge of incendiaries. <ref>Balakanda: Ramayana as Literature and Cultural History By Varadaraja V. Raman. ISBN 817154746X. page 129</ref>
+There are references in ancient Hindu literature to smoke balls, suggesting a knowledge of incendiaries. <ref>Balakanda: Ramayana as Literature and Cultural History By Varadaraja V. Raman. ISBN 817154746X. page 129</ref>
 [[Vishwamitra]], who is represented in the Ramayana as giving different kinds of weapons to Rama, speaks of one as ''[[agni|agneya]]'' and another as ''shikhara.'' Some scholars have interpreted the later as reference to a combustible weapon. Other mentions of fiery weapons have been made in ancient Indian works. In the Mahabharata, there is a mention of a "flying ball emitting the sound of a thunder cloud". <ref>The Evolution of the Artillery in India: From the Battle of Plassey (1757) to the Revolt of 1857 By Romesh C. Butalia. Published 1998. Allied Publishers. ISBN 8170238722. page 17-19</ref>
+===China===
-Early fireworks were developed in [[India]] and [[China]], possibly for display at religious festivals. <ref>The Chemistry of Fireworks By Michael S. Russell Contributor Royal Society of Chemistry. Page number 7. Published 2000. [[Royal Society of Chemistry]]. Science. ISBN 0854045988</ref> Modern ''[[Diwali]]'' rituals pertaining to the ''Ramayana'' employ fireworks. <ref>Lighting lamps in every house and [[Viashnava]] temple. The rich have costly illuminations, the poor at least one small lamp. Squibs, crackers and more elaborate fireworks are lighted. - The Hindu Religious Year by Muriel Marion Underhill. Association Press. </ref>
 Early saltpeter explosives were the first known chemical explosives and propellants.<ref>{{cite book | author= Needham, Joseph  | title=Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2004 | id=ISBN 0-521-08732-5 | pages=74}}</ref> The facilitation of combustion by addition of saltpeter was discovered very early in [[China]]. An early record of saltpeter combustion comes from a Chinese [[Han Dynasty|Han]] era book [[The Kinship of the Three]] compiled in [[142]] [[Anno Domini|A.D.]] by [[Wei Boyang]]<ref name="Peng">Peng, Yoke Ho.  [2000] (2000). Li, Qi and Shu: An Introduction to Science and Civilization in China.  Courier Dover Publications.  ISBN 0486414450</ref><ref name="Needham">Needham, Joseph.  Cullen, C.  [1976] (1976). Science and Civilisation in China.  Cambridge University Press.  ISBN 0521210283</ref>, where he recorded experiments in which a set of ingredients were said to "fly and dance" in a violent reaction.  By [[300]] A.D., Ge Hong, an alchemist of the Jin dynasty conclusively recorded the chemical reactions caused when [[Potassium_nitrate|saltpeter]], [[Cryptomeria|redwood]] and [[charcoal]] were heated together in his book "Book of the Master of the Preservations of Solidarity".<ref>Liang, Jieming (2006). ''Chinese Siege Warfare: Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity'', pp. Appendix C VII</ref>  Another early record of saltpeter mixtures, a Chinese book from ''c''. [[850]] A.D. called "Classified Essentials of the Mysterious Tao of the True Origin of Things," indicates that saltpeter-aided combustion was an unintended byproduct of [[Taoist]] [[Alchemy|alchemical]] efforts to develop an [[Elixir of life|elixir of immortality]]:<ref>{{cite book | author= Kelly, Jack | title=Gunpowder: Alchemy, Bombards, & Pyrotechnics: The History of the Explosive that Changed the World | publisher=Basic Books | year=2004 | id=ISBN 0-465-03718-6 | pages=3}}</ref><blockquote>''Some have heated together [[sulfur]], [[realgar]] and [[Potassium_nitrate|saltpeter]] with [[honey]]; smoke and flames result, so that their hands and faces have been burnt, and even the whole house where they were working burned down.''<ref>Kelly 2004:4</ref></blockquote>The Chinese used saltpeter explosives in warfare in [[904]] A.D., as incendiary projectiles called "flying fires."  The use of saltpeter explosives was soon expanded to explosive grenades hurled from catapults.  The next step was to use these mixtures as propellants. The first such use was recorded in [[1132]] in experiments with [[mortar (weapon)|mortar]]s consisting of bamboo tubes. Mortars with metal tubes (made of iron or bronze) first appeared in the wars (1268-1279) between the [[Mongols]] and the [[Song Dynasty]].<ref>{{cite book | author= Gernet, Jacques | title=A History of Chinese Civilisation | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=1996 | id=ISBN 0-521-49781-7}}</ref>
+===Spread of Gunpowder===
-Saltpeter combustion techniques spread to the Arabs in the 13th century.<ref>Kelly 2004:22 'Around 1240 the Arabs acquired knowledge of saltpeter (“Chinese snow”) from the East, perhaps through India. They also learned about fireworks (“Chinese flowers”) and rockets (“Chinese arrows”).'</ref>
+The dates, places and figures involved in the inventions of gunpowder be determined. Gunpowder is not one substance, but many, of differing properties. Gunpowder depends on the availability of pure nitrates or saltpetre, which does not occur naturally, and is not be found by accident.<ref name=UD/>
 There is no direct record of how black powder itself was invented, or how it came to be known in Europe and Asia. Most scholars believe that saltpeter explosives developed into an early form of black powder in China, and that this technology spread west from China to the [[Middle East]] and then Europe, possibly via the [[Silk Road]].<ref>{{cite book | author=Brown, G. I. | year=1998 | title=The Big Bang: A History of Explosives | publisher=Sutton Publishing | id=ISBN 0-7509-1878-0}}</ref><ref>Gernet 1996</ref><ref>Kelly 2004</ref> Other historians believe that several cultures contributed to the development of gunpowder, as [[J. R. Partington|James Partington]] writes in his ''History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder'':
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 The first Chinese recipe for black powder given by Needham is from 1628, almost four hundred year's after Roger Bacon's book.<ref>{{cite book | author= Needham, Joseph | title=Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic  | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2004 | id=ISBN 0-521-08732-5 | volume=7 | pages=345}}</ref> It comes from a book called the ''Wu Pei Chih'', which lists all the saltpeter explosive recipes from the 1606 ''Ping Lu'', but includes exactly one new mixture, for "lead bullet gunpowder" (''chhien chhung huo yao''), composed of 40 oz. of saltpeter, 6 oz. of sulphur, and 6.8 oz. of charcoal. As Needham observes, "The explosive is used here as a charge of black powder."<ref>{{cite book | author= Needham, Joseph | title=Science and Civilisation in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 7: Military Technology; The Gunpowder Epic | publisher=Cambridge University Press | year=2004 | id=ISBN 0-521-08732-5 | pages=345}}</ref>
+Some scholars hold that around 1240 the [[Arabs]] acquired knowledge of saltpeter from the East, perhaps through India. They also learned about fireworks and rockets.<ref>Kelly 2004:22</ref>
+Chinese sources sometimes represent later, or foreign, inventions as earlier native ones for the greater glory of China, and much caution is advised in accepting these claims. European sources, on the contrary, generally attribute innovations to the East, or to refugees, rather than to native invention. Incidentally, the first [[Roman]] embassy to China reached there by ship in AD 166, and the [[silk]] trade flourished for centuries, so the transmission of western influences to China can hardly be doubted. A Roman legion captured by the [[Parthians]] was sold to a Chinese emperor, and many of the men remained even after they were ransomed, they had become valued as engineers. Some writers have even suggested that gunpowder, in the restricted sense, reached China from the West. The first cannon in China were introduced by [[Jesuits]] in 1520, and the Japanese accounts state [[fireworks]] were introduced to [[Japan]] by the [[Dutch]] around 1600, at the port of [[Sakai]], near [[Osaka]]. Gunpowder could not have been introduced to Europe by the Chinese, because gunpowder did not then exist. However, the Chinese did make a very valuable and ingenious contribution in the form of nitrates.<ref name=UD>[http://www.du.edu/~jcalvert/tech/cannon.htm University of Denver. Cannons and Gunpowder. Composed by J. B. Calvert. ]</ref>
+===Gunpowder in Europe===
+In spite of China's initial progress, [[Europe]] surpassed it in pyrotechnic development in the [[14th century]], about the time the gun was invented. Shot and gunpowder for military purposes were made by skilled military tradesmen, who later were called ''firemakers'', and who also were required to make fireworks for celebrations of victory or peace. During the [[Renaissance]], two European schools of pyrotechnic thought emerged, one in [[Italy]] and the other at [[Nürnberg]], [[Germany]]. The [[Italian]] school of pyrotechnics emphasized elaborate fireworks, and the [[German]] school stressed scientific advancement. Both schools added significantly to further development of pyrotechnics, and by the mid-[[17th century]] fireworks were used for entertainment on an unprecedented scale in Europe, being popular even at resorts and public gardens.<ref name=Encarta>[http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761576898_2/Fireworks.html Fireworks, Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007 © 1997-2007 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.]</ref>
+By 1788, as a result of the reforms for which [[Lavoisier]] was mainly responsible, [[France]] had become self-sufficient in saltpeter, and its gunpowder had become both the best  in  Europe and inexpensive.<ref>Title: Crescendo of the Virtuoso: Spectacle, Skill, and Self-Promotion in Paris during the Age of Revolution.
+Author: Paul Metzner. Published: University of California Press,  1998</ref>
+During the [[18th century]] gunpowder factories became increasingly dependent on mechanical energy.<ref>Frangsmyr, Tore, J. L. Heilbron, and Robin E. Rider, editors The Quantifying Spirit in the Eighteenth Century. Berkeley:  University of California Press,  c1990 1990. pp 292</ref>
+====Gunpowder production in the United Kingdom====
+Gunpowder production in the United kingdom appears to have started in the mid [[13th century]] with the aim of supplying  [[The Crown]].<ref name =cocroft-1>Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "Success to the Black Art!". Chapter 1 In: ''Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture''. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.</ref> Records show that gunpowder has being made, in England, in 1346, at the [[Tower of London]]; a powder house existed at the Tower in 1461; and in 1515 three King's gunpowder makers worked there.<ref name =cocroft-1/> Gunpowder was also being made or stored at other Royal castles, such as [[Portchester Castle]] and [[Edinburgh castle]].
+By the early fourteenth century, according to N.J.G. Pounds's study ''The Medieval Castle in England and Wales,'' many [[English]] had been deserted. Others were crumbling. Their military significance faded except on the borders. Gunpowder made smaller castles useless.<ref>Ross, Charles. The Custom of the Castle: From Malory to Macbeth. Berkeley:  University of California Press,  c1997 1997. pp 131-130</ref>
+[[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]] was short of gunpowder when he invaded France in 1544 and England needed to import gunpowder via the port of [[Antwerp]].<ref name =cocroft-1/>
+The [[English Civil War]], 1642-1645, led to an expansion of the gunpowder industry, with the repeal of the Royal Patent in August 1641.<ref name =cocroft-1/>
+Early guncotton works were used in both England and [[France]]. Gelatinising the product with [[acetone]], and the use of stabilisers discovered in the 1880's rendered it safe. However, Vieille's Poudre B of 1886 was used in the new French leBel rifle.<ref name=UD/>
+=====Decline of gunpowder production=====
+{{sectstub}}
+The introduction of [[Smokeless powder]]s for military purposes lead to a contraction of the gunpowder industry.
+=====Cessation of gunpowder production in the United Kingdom=====
+The Home Office removed gunpowder from its list of '''Permitted Explosives''', shortly afterwards, on [[31 December]] [[1931]], Curtis & Harvey's [[Glynneath]] gunpowder factory at [[Pontneddfechan]], in Wales, closed down; and was demolished by fire in 1932.<ref name = glynneath>Pritchard, Tom, Evans, Jack and Johnson, Sydney (1985). ''The Old Gunpowder Factory at Glynneath''. Merthyr Tydfil: Merthyr Tydfil & District Naturalists' Society.</ref>
+The last remained gunpowder mill at [[Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills|Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey]] was damaged by a German parachute mine in 1941 and it never reopened.<ref name =cocroft-4>Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000). "The demise of gunpowder". Chapter 4 In: ''Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture''. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1085074-718-0.</ref> This was followed by the gunpowder section at the [[Royal Ordnance Factory]], [[ROF Chorley]], the section was closed and demolished at the end of [[World War II]]; and [[Nobel Industries (Scotland)|ICI Nobel]]'s [[Roslin, Midlothian|Roslin]] gunpowder factory which closed in 1954.<ref name =cocroft-4/>
+This left the sole gunpowder factory at ICI Nobel's [[Ardeer, Scotland|Ardeer]] site in Scotland.<ref name =cocroft-4/>
+===Gunpowder in the USA===
+{{sectionstub}}
+Prior to the [[American Revolutionary War|War of Independence]] very little gunpowder had been made in the USA; and, as a British Colony, most had been imported from Britain.<ref name = brown>Brown, G.I. (1998). ''The Big Bang: A History of Explosives''. Stroud: Sutton Publishing. ISBN 0-7509-2361-X.</ref> In October 1777 the British [[Parliament]] banned the importation of gunpowder into America.<ref name = brown/> Gunpowder, however, was secretely obtained from [[France]] and the [[Netherlands]].<ref name = brown/>
+The first domestic supplies of gunpowder were made by [[du Pont|E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company]].<ref name = brown/>
+In the United States, saltpetre was worked in the "nitre caves" of Kentucky at the beginning of the 19th century.<ref name=UD/>
 ==Composition==

Revision as of 18:38, 13 April 2007

History and development

India

China

Spread of Gunpowder

Gunpowder in Europe

Gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Decline of gunpowder production

Cessation of gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Gunpowder in the USA

Composition

Gunpowder in Europe

Gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Decline of gunpowder production

Cessation of gunpowder production in the United Kingdom

Characteristics and use

Notes

References

See also

External links