European Blast Furnace Ironmaking

Timeline

1. 1441–1445Around Namur and Liège · BelgiumBlast furnaces in the Walloon region were equipped with a forehearth and operated continuously with water-powered blast, rapidly producing large quantities of pig iron; records of cast-iron cannonball casting exist for the County of Namur in 1414, and military demand further expanded capacity in the 1440s.
2. 1446–1450Lombardy iron districts (Bergamo–Brescia) · LombardyThe iron districts of Lombardy in northern Italy produced high-quality steel using manganese-bearing ores and distinctive refining processes, with techniques kept strictly secret; by the mid-15th century, blast furnace ironmaking was widely distributed in England, Switzerland, Sweden, and elsewhere, forming a multi-centered European metallurgical landscape.