It is believed that the Chinese invented gunpowder (known as black powder today) during the Tang Dynasty (9th century CE). Gunpowder was the first explosive/propellant, although incendiary materials like “Greek fire” go back to at least 400 BCE. It would appear as if the substance made its way to the Western world fairly quickly, mostly helped along by the Mongol conquests of the 13th century.
The potential for destruction that the substance promised was soon apparent. Paintings and drawings have been found that depict the use of primitive artillery used in Italy as early as 1320, and “hand cannons” during the latter half of the 14th century. However, it is probable that the substance was used for warlike purposes long before that. Effective artillery was a reality by the 15th century, and firearms dominated the battlefields of Europe by the 17th century. The end of the Eastern Roman Empire was helped along in 1453 by the first “supergun” when Constantinople was sacked by the Ottoman emperor Mehmet II, aided by a massive cannon that reduced the walls of the great city to rubble prior to the final conquest.
The first ignition method was by
