Gunpowder

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gunpowder

When

• 9th century CE
• around A.D. 850,
• Gunpowder remained a monopoly of the Chinese until the 13th century,

What

• Ancient Chinese
  • Gunpowder is a mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate), sulfur, and charcoal.
• modern formula
  • 75% nitrate, 15% charcoal, 10% sulfur

Who

• Chinese monks
• Reigned Sung dynasty

Where

• China

Why

• On accident, they were trying to find a life-extending elixir

Weaponry

• Most dangerous weapons till the atomic bomb
• Almost every weapon
  • Fiery arrows, rifles, cannons, grenades
• 13th century traveled to Europe where it was a deciding factor in many middle age skirmishes
• 1930 cannons were common among the English and French militaries
• 15th-century handguns which were basically minny cannons
  • a new class of soldier—infantry
• The basis for many modern weapons, not the most explosive - modern

Civil uses of gunpowder

• First used for fireworks
• mining
• Landscaping
• Canals, roads, railways

Impact gunpowder became a must in war to the point that if one side didn't have it they would lose as seen in the fight between China and the Mongols also when Europe took over Africa and countless more. Now every country has gunpowder for one of its many uses as gunpowder remains the basis for most of the weapons used today.