British and Foreign Arms & Armour

by Charles Henry Ashdown

CHAPTER XIX

THE INTRODUCTION OF GUNPOWDER AND ITS INFLUENCE UPON ARMOUR

PLATE XXXVII*

Double Breech-loading Cannon, in Bronze, used in Spain from the end of the Fifteenth Century.

A. F. Calvert

The invention of gunpowder and its use in propelling missiles from tubes was the signal for the abolition of armour, as we have indicated, though the struggle for supremacy between the two lasted for considerably more than a century. The Eastern nations are generally credited with the discovery of the properties of a mixture of saltpetre, carbon, and sulphur so far as their use in fireworks is concerned, but it was undoubtedly to the Western nations that the knowledge and application of the propelling nature of the mixture were due. The first authentic account of its use for military purposes must be ascribed to the seventh century, when, under the name of Greek fire, it was used at the defence of Constantinople by the Byzantine emperors against the invading Saracens. The true Greek fire, however, is supposed to have contained more ingredients than the three which constitute gunpowder proper, viz. resin and naphtha, the latter being in excess, and this mixture appears to have been so inflammable and so difficult to extinguish that the terror excited by its use was out of all proportion to the destruction that it wrought. It was propelled from balistæ, projected from tubes, and carried by means of arrows which bore tow steeped in the composition, while its use in a besieged town to pour down upon assailants was probably the most efficacious. Its composition was for a long time kept secret, but the knowledge gradually spread, and during the later mediæval period its use was not unknown in England ([Fig. 337]). Gunpowder proper was used for the first time in the Spanish wars with the Moors in the twelfth century by both combatants; and the secret of its composition was discovered by Roger Bacon in the thirteenth century, probably from the translation of manuscripts. Schwartz, a German Frank, perfected it about a century later, and its first use in England occurred in the wars against the Scots by Edward III. in 1327, when the cannon were denominated “crakeys,” a diminutive from “crake,” the first name of the composition, which may be a corruption of “grec.” At the siege of Cambrai in 1339 cannon were in use, and they are specifically mentioned by Froissart. After that time their use became general, and in 1346 many were in operation at the battle of Creçy, the gunpowder being imported from abroad until the reign of Elizabeth, when English powder-mills were established in the country. The word artillery had been in use to denote projectile-throwing weapons anterior to the use of gunpowder, and became eventually the term by which the larger kind of firearms was designated. The construction of the first cannon was, as might be inferred, of the rudest possible description. Pieces or bars of iron were arranged longitudinally so as to form a rough tube, around which iron hoops were placed to hold them together. The powder and ball were in a separate case, open at one end to allow of the exit of the ball; this case was inserted in one end of the tube and secured by a stirrup arrangement pivoting upon two projections on either side of the tube, which fell over the open end and prevented the case from being blown out when the discharge occurred. The powder was fired by the insertion of a red-hot wire. The cannon was fixed down to a piece of timber which rested upon a similar piece: at the breech end of the cannon the two planks were hinged together, and by the insertion of wedges in the front between the timbers the piece could be elevated. Other contrivances almost as crude as that described were introduced in order to overcome the difficulties of taking aim. The projectiles were at first made of stone, and subsequently of lead or iron, or stone coated with lead. It must not be supposed that the introduction of such weapons created the profound consternation which a few contemporary writers have led us to suppose; the general impression produced was, in fact, one of contemptuous indifference, and it was only after many improvements had been effected that cannon began to be taken seriously. The earliest were only used in sieges, as the transport of such cumbrous pieces was nearly an impossibility, and when they were subsequently adopted for use in the field it was but seldom they were used after the first discharge. During the fifteenth century fresh developments took place; trunnions were invented, whereby the recoil was transferred directly to the carriage; the weapon was cast in one piece which tapered towards the muzzle, and many improvements in loading and discharging were made. Bombards were introduced, being short pieces with a large bore which were fired at a considerable elevation and discharged balls of stone to a small distance; they were the prototypes of our modern mortars and howitzers. One of the earliest examples of mediæval ordnance preserved in this country may be seen at the Rotunda, Woolwich ([Plate XL.], p. [366]). It is known as the Creçy Bombard, and may possibly date back to the time of Edward III. It is said to have been found in the moat of Bodiham Castle, Sussex, and is known to have been in Battle Abbey for many years. Its interior is of cast iron, one of the earliest known specimens of the metal in that form, and iron hoops have been shrunk upon this inner core. The chamber in the smaller portion of the breech will hold about three or four pounds of powder; the stone shot discharged weighed about a hundred and sixty pounds and was fifteen inches in diameter. The carriage is modern. The cannonier wears a capacious salade and is defended by a hauberk of mail and a thick leather apron; he is discharging the bombard with a hot iron and protects his face with his hand from the inferior powder blown off the touch-hole by the explosion.