The 12 Biggest Breakthroughs in Military Technology

The 12 Biggest Breakthroughs in Military Technology — page 3
2 Gunpowder Explodes on the Scene Gunpowder was invented by the Chinese in the ninth century Alchemists were looking for a way to help people live longer They mixed together saltpeter sulfur and charcoal The result was a powder that exploded For the next 400 years the Chinese used gunpowder to fight their wars They would put tubes of gunpowder on arrows The gunpowder would ignite as it flew toward the enemy This invention was called flying fire In the thirteenth century gunpowder spread to Europe In the fifteenth century gunpowder was used in guns The gunpowder would ignite in the gun barrel The explosion would propel bullets faster and further These bullets could pass through armor Gunpowder was also used in cannons Cannonballs could knock down castle walls Fortifications and armor were no longer good protections Early gunpowder was a black powder It was called a low explosive It worked well but it could be dangerous Black powder is still used for signal flares blanks and fireworks But today almost all ammunition is smokeless powder There are over 100 kinds They have different burning rates Different powders work better in different types of guns 6