Gunpowder Research Paper

The Chinese revolutionized warfare with the invention of gunpowder.

Aaron A. Hostetter

Wayland Baptist University

Dr. Ronnie Dewitt

October 19th, 2015 Ninth century Chinese alchemists attempted to create an elixir of everlasting life by combining three chemicals which can be found in your favorite supermarket’s garden section today. The resulting formula, (sulfur, carbon, and potassium nitrate), proved to have somewhat opposite properties than what the alchemists intended. They created a weapon the world had not yet experienced. A seed that would lead to the development of all modern weaponry. Prior to gunpowder, ranged weapons were limited to some kind of bow or catapult. There was no way for an army to, frankly, ‘blow stuff up’. The Chinese

By the 13th century, gunpowder was being used extensively by Chinese and Mongol forces. Many credit the Mongol’s invasions of Persia and eastern Europe in the 13th century as the catalyst for which the invention of gunpowder was able to spread so quickly. The Moors used gunpowder cannons during the siege of Seville as early as 1248 A.D. By the 14th century Edward I, the king of England and the 'Hammer of the Scots', used cannons during battles against the ‘Scots’ while taking control of Scotland. During the 100 years war, both the English and the French used cannons against each-other. “We know as early as 1350, a hand cannon was developed that would fire projectiles with the aid of gunpowder. Gunpowder is basically a substance that when ignited through a spark or other means, explodes or basically, more technically burns creating a tremendous amount of gasses and pressure that’s ideal for pushing a projectile down a long tube or a barrel, as they evolved” (Hershberger , "Guns: The Evolution of Firearms"). Although China was the first to create and use gunpowder, it was the Europeans that began to develop and create the sophisticated firearms that propelled the usefulness of gunpowder on the battlefield. “It [gunpowder] took a while for it to travel to the west and find a home in Europe and it was through the introduction of gunpowder to the Europeans that firearms began

With a looming Mongol invasion, the walls were quickly rebuilt stronger than before the earthquakes destroyed them. They were rebuilt seemingly impenetrable and the city’s defenses appeared so formidable, it’s believed the sight of the walls deterred the Mongol invasion of the city altogether. There was a moat and multiple rows of walls. The Golden Horn to the north of the city was protected from unwanted ships by a large metal chain that was drug across from Constantinople to a tower on the other side of the Horn. This chain effectively cut off offending naval attacks. With traditional weapons, taking the city appeared impossible. In 1453, the Ottoman empire laid siege to Constantinople for seven weeks. The Ottoman’s Sultan’s household troops or bodyguards, were an elite group of soldiers called the Janissary Corps. During the siege, Ottoman cannon fire had damaged the defenses enough to allow troops to access the city. The rifle carrying Janissary Corps were the last wave to attack on the final assault. A previously indestructible defense was felled by the advent of gunpowder. “Many ruined sections of the walls today are as they were left after the Ottoman guns had done their damage” (Nicolle,