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Song Dynasty Gunpowder Weapons

Type Object Region China Time 1044–1050

In the mid-Northern Song, gunpowder moved from alchemy and fireworks into warfare;…

Timeline

  1. 1044Bianjing · KaifengZeng Gongliang and others, by imperial command, compiled the Wujing Zongyao; volumes 11–12 of the first part systematically record the ratios of saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal and the formulas and manufacturing processes for various fire bombs, fire arrows and thunderclap fire bombs—one of the earliest surviving official gunpowder formula texts in the world.
  2. c. 1045–1050Yanzhou (Song-Xia border) · Yan'anSong forces defending and sortying from frontier forts in the northwest were equipped with incendiary firearms—fire arrows burning enemy watchtowers, smoke balls laying smoke screens—used as auxiliary means alongside bows, crossbows and ballistae, showing gunpowder weapons had entered the combat system.

Sources