Gunpowder artillery in the Middle Ages

with an inscription dated the 3rd year of the Zhiyuan era (1332) of the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368); it was discovered at the Yunju Temple of Fangshan District, Beijing, China in 1935. The first documented battlefield use of gunpowder artillery took place on 29 January 1132, when Song General Han Shizhong used huochong to capture a city in Fujian. The world's earliest known hand cannon is the Heilongjiang hand cannon dated 1288, which was found in Mongol-held Manchuria. In his 1341 poem, The Iron Cannon Affair, one of the first accounts of the use of gunpowder artillery in China, Xian Zhang wrote that a cannonball fired from an eruptor could "pierce the heart or belly when it strikes a man or horse, and can even transfix several persons at once." ==Use in the Islamic world==

The Arabs acquired knowledge of gunpowder between 1240 and 1280, by which time there were written Arabic recipes for gunpowder, instructions for the purification of saltpeter, and descriptions of gunpowder incendiaries. Ahmad Y. al-Hassan claims that in the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260 against the Mongols, the Mamluks used "the first cannon in history" gunpowder formulae which were almost identical with the ideal composition for explosive gunpowder, which he claims were not known in China or Europe until much later. However, Iqtidar Alam Khan states that it was invading Mongols who introduced gunpowder to the Islamic world and cites Mamluk antagonism towards early riflemen in their infantry as an example of how gunpowder weapons were not always met with open acceptance in the Middle East. Al-Hassan interprets Ibn Khaldun as reporting the use of cannon as siege machines by the Marinid sultan Abu Yaqub Yusuf at the siege of Sijilmasa in 1274. It could fire heavy stone balls a mile, and the sound of its blast could reportedly be heard from a distance of . The two parts were screwed together using levers to facilitate the work. Africa pioneered the use of cannon in Africa during its conquest of Abyssinia. In Africa, the Adal Empire and the Abyssinian Empire both deployed cannons during the Adal-Abyssinian War. The Adalites, led by Ahmed ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi, were the first African power to introduce cannon imported from Arabia and the wider Islamic world. Later on, the Portuguese Empire entered the war, and provided the Abyssinians with cannons, while the Ottoman Empire sent soldiers and cannons to back Adal. The conflict proved, through their use on both sides, the advantage of firearms such as the matchlock musket, cannons, and the arquebus over traditional weapons. ==Use in Europe==

described the first gunpowder in Europe. In Europe, one of the earliest mentions of gunpowder appeared in Roger Bacon's Opus Majus in 1267. It describes a recipe for gunpowder and recognized its military use: In 1250, the Norwegian Konungs skuggsjá mentioned, in its military chapter, the use of "coal and sulphur" as the best weapon for ship-to-ship combat. Italy Probably one of the oldest European firearms was the 1322 bronze vase-shaped gun from Mantua, of which drawings and measurements made in 1786 before it disappeared in 1849. It was 16.4 cm long, weighed about 5 kg and had a caliber of 5.5 cm. The first document that mentions the use of cannons in Italy (and also in Europe) comes from a register of the municipality of Florence dated 1326 and attests, in that year, the purchase by the municipality of iron bullets and cannons. The following year, some cannons are also documented in the castle of Gassino, near Turin and, in 1335, the presence of firearms is also attested in Venice. However, it was only around 1340 that the use of cannons began to become more frequent and they were no longer only used to defend castles and cities, but also to besiege them, as the Visconti did in 1351 during the siege of Conselice, near Bologna. Muslim and Christian Iberia In reference to the siege to Alicante in 1331, the Spanish historian Zurita recorded a "new machine that caused great terror. It threw iron balls with fire." The Spanish historian Juan de Mariana recalled further use of cannons during the Siege of Algeciras (1342-1344): Juan de Mariana also relates that the English Earl of Derby and Earl of Salisbury had both participated in the siege of Algeciras, and they could have conceivably transferred the knowledge about the effectiveness of cannon to England. The Iberian kings at the initial stages enlisted the help of Moorish experts: Britain and France '' from Loshult, Sweden Cannon seem to have been introduced to the Kingdom of England in the 14th century, and are mentioned as being in use against the Scots in 1327. The first metal cannon was the pot-de-fer, first depicted in an illuminated manuscript by Walter de Milamete, of 1327 that was presented to Edward III upon his accession to the English throne. The manuscript shows a four-legged stand supporting a "bulbous bottle", while the gunner stands well back, firing the charge with a red-hot iron bar. This weapon, and others similar, were used by both the French and English during the Hundred Years' War (1337–1453), when cannon saw their first real use on the European battlefield. The cannon of the 14th century were still limited in many respects, as a modern historian summarises: During the 1340s, cannon were still relatively rare, and were only used in small numbers by a few states. "Ribaldis" were first mentioned in the English Privy Wardrobe accounts during preparations for the Battle of Crécy between 1345 and 1346. The Florentine Giovanni Villani agreed that they were destructive on the field, though he also indicated that the guns continued to fire upon French cavalry later in the battle: ==Advances in the Late Middle Ages==

of 1429 (Martial d'Auvergne, 1493) Similar cannon to those used at Crécy appeared also at the Siege of Calais in the same year, and by the 1380s the "ribaudekin" clearly became mounted on wheels. There were still the logistical problems both of transporting and of operating the cannon, and as many three dozen horses and oxen may have been required to move some of the great guns of the period. The culverin was forged of iron and fixed to a wooden stock, and usually placed on a rest for firing. The culverin was also common in 15th century battles, particularly among Burgundian armies. an early form of battering cannon used against walls and towers. These were used both defensively and offensively. Bamburgh Castle, previously thought impregnable, was taken by bombards in 1464. An example of a bombard was found in the moat of Bodiam Castle, and a replica is now kept inside. The master gunner was usually the same person as the caster. Mons Meg, which dates from about the same time, is perhaps the most famous example of a massive bombard. James IV was Scotland's first Renaissance figure, who also had a fascination with cannon, both at land and at sea. By 1502, he was able to invest in a Scottish navy, which was to have a large number of cannon—his flagship, the Great Michael, was launched in 1511, with 36 great guns, 300 lesser pieces and 120 gunners. ==Use in Eastern Europe==

'' in 1382, painting by Vasily Sergeyevich Smirnov. At this time, cannon and throwing-machines co-existed. Russia The first cannon appeared in Russia in the 1370–1380s, although initially their use was confined to sieges and the defence of fortresses. The first mention of cannon in Russian chronicles is of "tyufyaks", small howitzer-type cannon that fired case-shot, used to defend Moscow against Tokhtamysh Khan in 1382. The first destruction of a stone wall by cannon fire in Russia came in 1481. Only a few large bombards were under the Empire's control. The first definite use of artillery in the region was against the Ottoman siege of Constantinople in 1396. These loud Byzantine weapons, possibly operated by the Genoese or "Franks" of Galata, forced the Turks to withdraw. Two such bombards had initially been offered to the Byzantines by the Hungarian artillery expert Urban, which were the pinnacle of gunpowder technology at the time; he boasted that they could reduce "even the walls of Babylon". However, the fact that the Byzantines could not afford it illustrates the financial costs of artillery at the time. These cannon also needed 70 oxen and 10,000 men just to transport them. They were extremely loud, adding to their psychological impact, and Mehmet believed that those who unexpectedly heard it would be struck dumb. The 55-day bombardment of Constantinople left massive destruction, as recounted by the Greek chronicler Kritovoulos: Byzantine counter artillery allowed them to repel any visible Turkish weapons, and the defenders repulsed any attempts to storm any broken points in the walls and hastily repaired any damage. However, the walls could not be adapted for artillery, and towers were not good gun emplacements. There was even worry that the largest Byzantine cannon could cause more damage to their own walls than the Turkish cannon. Gunpowder had also made the formerly devastating Greek fire obsolete, and with the final fall of what had once been the strongest walls in Europe on May 29, "it was the end of an era in more ways than one". ==Cannon at the end of the Middle Ages==

Castle showed adaption to gunpowder. Toward the end of the Middle Ages, the development of cannon made revolutionary changes to siege warfare throughout Europe, with many castles becoming susceptible to artillery fire. The primary aims in castle wall construction were height and thickness, but these became obsolete because they could be damaged by cannonballs. Inevitably, many fortifications previously deemed impregnable proved inadequate in the face of gunpowder. The walls and towers of fortifications had to become lower and wider, and by the 1480s, "Italian tracing" had been developed, which used the corner bastion as the basis of fortifications for centuries to come. To guard against artillery and gunfire, increasing use was made of earthen, brick and stone breastworks and redoubts, such as the geometric fortresses of the 17th century French Marquis de Vauban. Although the obsolescence of castles as fortifications was hastened by the developments of cannon from the 14th century on, many medieval castles still managed to "put up a prolonged resistance" against artillery during the English Civil War of 17th century. ==See also==

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • Mariana, Juan de. Historia general de Espana, 2 volumes, Madrid, 1608, ii, 27; English translation by Captain John Stephens, The General History of Spain, 2 parts, London, 1699, p 2 64 • • Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 5, Part 7. Taipei: Caves Books, Ltd. • • Nossov, Konstantin; Ancient and Medieval Siege Weapons, UK: Spellmount Ltd, 2006. • • Partington, J. R., A History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder, reprint by Johns Hopkins University Press, p. 191 (Latin text of Zurita) • • • Watson, R. Chemical Essays, vol. I, London, 1787, 1999. • ==External links==