1.
Dazu Rock Carvings
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The Dazu Rock Carvings are a series of Chinese religious sculptures and carvings, dating back as far as the 7th century AD, depicting and influenced by Buddhist, Confucian and Taoist beliefs. Some are in rock-cut cave shrines, in the usual Chinese Buddhist style, listed as a World Heritage Site, the Dazu Rock Carvings are made up of 75 protected sites containing some 50,000 statues, with over 100,000 Chinese characters forming inscriptions and epigraphs. The sites are located in Chongqing Municipality within the steep hillsides throughout Dazu County, the highlights of the rock grotto are found on Mount Baoding and Mount Beishan. They provide outstanding evidence of the synthesis of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. In the 12th century, during the Song dynasty, a Buddhist monk named Zhao Zhifeng began work on the elaborate sculptures, off limits to visitors for many years, the carvings were opened to Chinese travellers in 1961 and foreign visitors in 1980. Until 1975, there was only a path between the town of Dazu and the main cluster of carvings. The isolation helped keep the art unharmed during the massive anti-religious vandalism of the Cultural Revolution
2.
Cannon
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A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellants to launch a projectile, which may or may not be explosive. The word cannon is derived from languages, in which the original definition can usually be translated as tube, cane. The Greeks invented the first type—a steam cannon—designed by Archimedes during the Siege of Syracuse, ctesibius built a steam cannon in Alexandria and in the fifteenth century Leonardo da Vinci designed another, the Architonnerre, based on Archimedes work. The earliest form of artillery was developed in Song China, over time replacing siege engines. In the Middle East, the first use of the cannon is argued to be during the 1260 Battle of Ain Jalut between the Mamluk Sultanate and Mongol Empire. The first cannon in Europe were in use in the Iberian Peninsula by the mid-13th century and it was during this period, the Middle Ages, that cannon became standardised, and more effective in both the anti-infantry and siege roles. After the Middle Ages most large cannon were abandoned in favour of greater numbers of lighter, Cannon also transformed naval warfare in the early modern period, as European navies took advantage of their firepower. In World War I, the majority of fatalities were caused by artillery. Most modern cannon are similar to those used in the Second World War, Cannon was widely known as the earliest form of a gun and artillery, before early firearms were invented. The word has been used to refer to a gun since 1326 in Italy, both Cannons and Cannon are correct and in common usage, with one or the other having preference in different parts of the English-speaking world. Cannons is more common in North America and Australia, while cannon as plural is more common in the United Kingdom, Cannon in general have the form of a truncated cone with an internal cylindrical bore for holding an explosive charge and a projectile. The thickest, strongest, and closed part of the cone is located near the explosive charge, as any explosive charge will dissipate in all directions equally, the thickest portion of the cannon is useful for containing and directing this force. Field artillery cannon in Europe and the Americas were initially made most often of bronze, though later forms were constructed of cast iron and eventually steel. However, cast iron cannon have a tendency to burst without having any previous weakness or wear. The following terms refer to the components or aspects of a classical western cannon as illustrated here. In what follows, the words near, close, and behind will refer to those parts towards the thick, closed end of the piece, and far, front, in front of, and before to the thinner, open end. Bore, The hollow cylinder bored down the centre of the cannon, including the base of the bore or bottom of the bore, the diameter of the bore represents the cannons calibre. Chamber, The cylindrical, conical, or spherical recess at the nearest end of the bottom of the bore into which the gunpowder is packed
3.
History of cannon
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The history of the cannon spans several hundred years. The cannon was invented in China as early as the 12th century and traces its development from the fire lance and they were among the earliest forms of gunpowder artillery, and over time replaced siege engines—among other forms of aging weaponry—on the battlefield. English cannon were first used during the Hundred Years War, at the Battle of Crécy and it was during this period, the Middle Ages, that cannon became standardized, and more effective in both the anti-infantry and siege roles. After the Middle Ages, most large cannon were abandoned, in favor of greater numbers of lighter, in addition, new technologies and tactics were developed, making most defenses obsolete, this led to the construction of star forts, specifically designed to withstand bombardment from artillery. Cannon also transformed naval warfare, the Royal Navy, in particular, as rifling became more commonplace, the accuracy of cannon was significantly improved, and they became deadlier than ever, especially to infantry. In World War I, a majority of all deaths were caused by cannon. Most modern cannon are similar to those used in the Second World War, including autocannon—with the exception of naval guns, prior to the invention of the cannon, projectile weapons existed using compressed air and steam. The invention of the cannon, driven by gunpowder, was first developed in China, like firearms, cannon are a descendant of the fire-lance, a gunpowder-filled tube used as a flamethrower. Shrapnel was sometimes placed in the barrel, so that it would fly out along with the flames, eventually, the paper and bamboo of which fire lance barrels were originally constructed came to be replaced by metal. The earliest known depiction of a firearm is a sculpture from a cave in Sichuan, dating to the 12th century, that portrays a figure carrying a vase-shaped bombard, firing flames and a cannonball. The oldest surviving gun, dated to 1288, has a bore diameter of 2.5 cm. The first documented use of gunpowder artillery took place on 28 January 1132. The worlds earliest surviving hand cannon is the Heilongjiang hand cannon dated 1288, the first known illustration of a cannon is dated to 1326. Joseph Needham suggests that the proto-shells described in the Huolongjing may be among the first of their kind, the Chinese also mounted over 3,000 bronze and iron cast cannon on the Great Wall of China, to defend themselves from the Mongols. The weapon was taken up by both the Mongol conquerors. Chinese soldiers fighting under the Mongols appear to have used hand cannon in Manchurian battles during 1288, Early Chinese artillery had vase-like shapes. This includes the long range awe inspiring cannon dated from 1350, with the development of better metallurgy techniques, later cannons abandoned the vase shape of early Chinese artillery. This change can be seen in the bronze thousand ball thunder cannon, the Red Turban Rebellion saw the application of early, arrow-firing cannon to both siege and naval warfare in the Southern area of conflict
4.
Gunpowder artillery in the Song dynasty
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The earliest developments of the gun barrel and the projectile-fire cannon were found in late Song China. The first art depiction of the Chinese fire lance was from a Buddhist mural painting of Dunhuang, eventually, perishable bamboo was replaced with hollow tubes of cast iron, and so too did the terminology of this new weapon change, from fire-spear to fire-tube. The earliest known depiction of a gun is a sculpture from a cave in Sichuan, dating to 1128, that portrays a figure carrying a vase-shaped bombard, firing flames and a cannonball. However, the oldest existent archaeological discovery of a metal barrel handgun is from the Chinese Heilongjiang excavation, the Chinese also discovered the explosive potential of packing hollowed cannonball shells with gunpowder. Written later by Jiao Yu in his Huolongjing, this recorded an earlier Song-era cast iron cannon known as the flying-cloud thunderclap eruptor. The manuscript stated that, The shells are made of cast iron, as large as a bowl, inside they contain half a pound of magic gunpowder. They are sent flying towards the camp from an eruptor, and when they get there a sound like a thunder-clap is heard. The early Song cannons were at first termed the same way as the Chinese trebuchet catapult and they were all called fire trebuchets because they were used to project fire-weapons like the ball, falcon, and lance. They were the ancestors of the cannon
5.
Gunpowder artillery in the Middle Ages
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Artillery in the Middle Ages primarily consisted of the introduction of the cannon, large tubular firearms designed to fire a heavy projectile over a long distance. Guns, bombs, rockets and cannons were first invented in China during the Han Chinese Song Dynasty and then spread to Europe. English cannons first appeared in 1327, and later saw more use during the Hundred Years War. By the end of the 14th century, the use of cannons was also recorded in Russia, Byzantium, the earliest medieval cannon, the pot-de-fer, had bulbous, vase-like shape, and was used more for psychological effect than for causing physical damage. The later culverin was transitional between the handgun and the cannon, and was used as an anti-personnel weapon. During the 15th century, cannon advanced significantly, so that bombards were effective siege engines, towards the end of the period, the cannon gradually replaced siege engines—among other forms of aging weaponry—on the battlefield. The Middle English word Canon was derived from the Old Italian word cannone, meaning large tube, the Latinised word canon has been used for a gun since 1326 in Italy, and since 1418 in English. The word Bombardum, or bombard, was earliest term used for cannon, the first documented battlefield use of gunpowder artillery took place on 28 January 1132, when Song General Han Shizhong used huochong to capture a city in Fujian. The worlds earliest known hand cannon is the Heilongjiang hand cannon dated 1288, the first known illustration of a cannon is dated to 1326. Al-Hassan interprets Ibn Khaldun as reporting the use of cannon as siege machines by the Marinid sultan Abu Yaqub Yusuf at the siege of Sijilmasa in 1274, super-sized bombards were used by the troops of Mehmed II to capture Constantinople, in 1453. Urban, a Hungarian cannon engineer, is credited with the introduction of cannon from Central Europe to the Ottoman realm. It could fire stone balls a mile, and the sound of their blast could reportedly be heard from a distance of 10 miles. A piece of later date was cast in bronze and made in two parts, the chase and the breech, which, together, weighed 18.4 tonnes. The two parts were screwed together using levers to facilitate the work, in Europe, one of the earliest mentions of gunpowder appeared in Roger Bacons Opus Maior. It describes a recipe for gunpowder and recognized its military use, We can, with saltpeter and other substances, by only using a very small quantity of this material much light can be created accompanied by a horrible fracas. It is possible with it to destroy a town or an army, in order to produce this artificial lightning and thunder it is necessary to take saltpeter, sulfur, and Luru Vopo Vir Can Utriet. In 1250, the Norwegian Konungs skuggsjá mentioned, in its military chapter, the Almohad dynasty of Al-Andalus used Moorish cannon defensively at the sieges of Seville, in 1248, and Niebla, in 1262. In reference to the siege to Alicante in 1331, the Spanish historian Zurita recorded a new machine that caused great terror and it threw iron balls with fire
6.
Naval artillery in the Age of Sail
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By modern standards, these cannon were extremely inefficient, difficult to load, and short ranged. These characteristics, along with the handling and seamanship of the ships that mounted them, firing a naval cannon required a great amount of labour and manpower. The propellant was gunpowder, whose bulk had to be kept in a storage area below deck for safety. Powder boys, typically 10–14 years old, were enlisted to run powder from the armory up to the gun decks of a vessel as required. A wet swab was used to mop out the interior of the barrel, extinguishing any embers from a previous firing which might set off the next charge of gunpowder prematurely. Gunpowder was placed in the barrel, either loose or in a cloth or parchment cartridge pierced by a metal pricker through the touch hole, and followed by a cloth wad, then rammed home with a rammer. Next the shot was rammed in, followed by another wad to prevent the cannonball from rolling out of the if the muzzle was depressed. The gun in its carriage was then run out, men heaved on the gun tackles until the front of the gun carriage was hard up against the ships bulwark, the barrel protruding out of the gun port. This took the majority of the gun crew manpower, as the weight of a cannon in its carriage could total over two tons, and the ship would probably be rolling. The touch hole in the rear of the cannon was primed with finer gunpowder or from a quill pre-filled with priming powder, the earlier method of firing a cannon was to apply a linstock—a wooden staff holding a length of smoldering match at the end—to the touch-hole of the gun. In 1745, the British began using gunlocks, the gunlock, by contrast, was operated by pulling a cord or lanyard. Despite their advantages, gunlocks spread gradually as they could not be retrofitted to older guns, after the introduction of gunlocks, linstocks were retained, but only as a backup means of firing. The linstock slow match or the spark from the flintlock ignited the powder, which in turn set off the main charge. When the gun discharged, the recoil sent it backwards until it was stopped by the breech rope, instead of live fire practice, most captains exercised their crews by running the guns in and out, performing all the steps associated with firing but without the actual discharge. A complete and accurate listing of the types of guns requires analysis both by nation and by time period. The types used by different nations at the time often were very different. The types used by a nation would shift greatly over time, as technology, tactics. Common sizes were 42-pounders, 36-pounders, 32-pounders, 24-pounders, 18-pounders, 12-pounders, 9-pounders, 8-pounders, 6-pounders, french ships used standardized guns of 36-pound, 24-pound, 18-pound, 12-pound, and 8-pound calibers, augmented by carronades and smaller pieces
7.
Field artillery in the American Civil War
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Field artillery in the American Civil War refers to the artillery weapons, equipment, and practices used by the Artillery branch to support the infantry and cavalry forces in the field. It does not include siege artillery, use of artillery in fixed fortifications, nor does it include smaller, specialized artillery classified as small arms. The principal guns widely used in the field are listed in the following table, there were two general types of artillery weapons used during the Civil War, smoothbores and rifles. Smoothbore artillery refers to weapons that are not rifled, at the time of the Civil War, metallurgy and other supporting technologies had just recently evolved to a point allowing the large scale production of rifled field artillery. As such, many weapons were still in use and production even at the end of the war. Smoothbore field artillery of the day fit into two role-based categories, guns and howitzers, further classifications of the weapons were made based on the type of metal used, typically bronze or iron, although some examples of steel were produced. Additionally, the artillery was often identified by the year of design in the Ordnance department references, the smoothbore artillery was also categorized by the bore dimensions, based on the rough weight of the solid shot projectile fired from the weapon. For instance a 12-pounder field gun fired a 12-pound solid shot projectile from its 4. 62-inch diameter bore and it was practice, dating back to the 18th century, to mix gun and howitzers into batteries. Pre-war allocations called for 6-pounder field guns matched with 12-pounder howitzers,9, smooth bore guns were designed to fire solid shot projectiles at high velocity, over low trajectories at targets in the open, although shell and canister were acceptable for use. The barrels of the guns were longer than corresponding howitzers, Field guns were produced in 6-pounder, 9-pounder, and 12-pounder versions. Although some older iron weapons were pressed into service, and the Confederacy produced some new iron field guns, the 6-pounder field gun was well represented by bronze Models of 1835,1838,1839, and 1841 early in the war. Even a few older iron Model of 1819 weapons were pressed into service, several hundred were used by the armies of both sides in 1861. But in practice the limited payload of the projectile was seen as a shortcoming of this weapon, from mid-war on, few 6-pounders saw action in the main field armies. The larger 9- and 12-pounders were less well represented, while the 9-pounder was still listed on Ordnance and Artillery manuals in 1861, very few were ever produced after the War of 1812. 9-pounders were universally gone well before the Mexican war, and only scant references exist to any Civil War use of the weapons, the 12-pounder field gun appeared in a series of models mirroring the 6-pounder, but in far less numbers. At least one Federal battery, the 13th Indiana, took the 12-pounder field gun into service early in the war, the major shortcoming of these heavy field guns was mobility, as they required eight-horse teams as opposed to the six-horse teams of the lighter guns. A small quantity of 12-pounder field guns were rifled early in the war, but these were more experimental weapons, by far the most popular of the smoothbore cannon was the 12-pounder Model of 1857, Light, commonly called Napoleon. The Model 1857 was of lighter weight than the previous 12-pounder guns and it is sometimes called, confusingly, a gun-howitzer and is discussed in more detail separately below
8.
Cannon operation
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Cannon operation required specialised crew and gunners, who were first enlisted by the Spanish in the 14th century. The nature of cannon operation often depended on the size of the cannon, English cannon of the late 14th century became mobile, while the largest cannon required huge crews to transport and operate them. Cannon operation is described by the 1771 Encyclopædia Britannica, each cannon would be manned by two gunners, six soldiers, and four officers of the artillery. The right gunner was to prime the piece and load it with powder, while the gunner would fetch the powder from the magazine. Three soldiers stood on each side of the cannon, to ram and sponge the cannon, the second soldier on the left was charged with providing 50 rounds. Prior to loading, the cannon would be cleaned with a sponge to remove all sparks, filth. The powder was added, followed by a wad of paper or hay, after ramming, the cannon would be aimed with the elevation set using a quadrant and a plummet. At 45 degrees the ball had the utmost range – about ten times the level range. Any angle above the line was called random-shot. The officer of artillery had to ensure the cannon was diligently served, water was available to dip the sponges in and cool the pieces every ten or twelve rounds. In the late 1770s it was said that a 24-pounder could fire 90 to 100 shots a day in Summer, however, French artillery officers managed to have a cannon fire 150 shots daily during siege. A16 or 12 pounder would fire a more, because they were more easily served. The Encyclopædia Britannica mentions some occasions where 200 shots have been fired from these pieces in the space of nine hours, several instruments are used to service a medieval style cannon, as noted in the 1771 Encyclopædia Britannica. The sponge is a staff or rammer with a piece of fleece sheep or lambskin wound about its end, to serve for scouring the cannon when discharged. This cleaning prevents any spark or fire from remaining in the piece, sponges were the most commonly used cannon cleaning instruments. A wad-screw is two points of iron in the shape of a corkscrew, to extract the wad out of the piece, used when the cannon has to be unloaded or dirt must be removed. The lantern or ladle serves to carry the powder into the piece and this lantern must have three calibers and a half in length, and two calibers in breadth, being rounded on the end to load the ordinary pieces. The primer must contain a pound of powder at least, and is used to prime the pieces, a rammer is a round piece of wood, commonly called a box, which serves to drive home the powder and ball to the breech
9.
Rifled breech loader
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The spin imparted by the guns rifling gives projectiles directional stability and increased range. Loading from the rear of the gun leaves the crew exposed to enemy fire, allows smaller gun emplacements or turrets. This was both a safety issue and one of gun performance - all the propellant gas was needed to accelerate the projectile along the barrel. The second problem was speed of operation - how to close the breech before firing, two solutions were developed more or less in parallel, the screw breech block and sliding wedge or sliding block. Hence, unlike with a rifle cartridge, the breech mechanism itself somehow needed to provide obturation. Hence if the block circumference was divided into two sets of threads and gaps, the only needed to be rotated ¼ turn to lock it instead of several turns. The tradeoff was that only ½ the blocks circumference was threaded, until the 19th century, only muzzle-loaders were used. In 1837 Martin von Wahrendorff patented a design for a breech-loader with a cylindrical breech plug secured by a horizontal wedge, independently, Giovanni Cavalli first proposed a breech-loader gun in 1832 to the Sardinian Army, and first tested such a gun in 1845. Advances in metallurgy in the industrial era allowed for the construction of rifled breech-loading guns that could fire at a greater muzzle velocity. Production started in 1855 at the Elswick Ordnance Company and the Royal Arsenal at Woolwich, a degree of obturation was achieved via a cup on the face of the block being forced into a recessed ring on the chamber face. Whatever obturation that was achieved relied on manual labour rather than the power of the guns firing, however, the British Army and Navy preferred to revert to muzzle-loaders until larger high-powered breech-loaders with secure obturation systems that were relatively simple to operate were developed. In the meantime the French persevered with trying to develop breechloaders which combined faster loading than muzzle-loaders, high power, safety, the Lahitolle 95 mm cannon of 1875 with an interrupted screw breech met the first three requirements to a great extent and partially solved the obturation problem. Finally the de Bange system introduced in 1877 solved the problem with an asbestos pad impregnated with grease which expanded and sealed the breech on firing. The de Bange system formed the system for all subsequent screw breeches to the present day. Britain adopted the de Bange breech when it returned to breechloaders in the early 1880s after some experiments with the inferior Armstrong cup obturation system. Loading required the 3 operations in reverse and this was hence termed a three motion block and was slow to operate. While working as a designer for Thorsten Nordenfelt in London. This allowed the block to be unscrewed and swung out in two motions - the two motion interrupted screw breech, bofors continued to use this in medium artillery into the 20th century
10.
Muzzleloader
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A muzzleloader is any firearm into which the projectile and usually the propellant charge is loaded from the muzzle of the gun. This is distinct from the popular modern designs of breech-loading firearms. The term muzzleloader applies to both rifled and smoothbore type muzzleloaders, and may refer to the marksman who specializes in the shooting of such firearms. The firing methods, paraphernalia and mechanism further divide both categories as do caliber, modern mortars use a shell with the propelling charge and primer attached at the base. Both the modern mortar and the mortar were used for high angle fire. However, the fact that the mortar is not loaded in separate steps may make its definition as a muzzleloader a matter of opinion, muzzleloading can apply to anything from cannons to pistols but in modern parlance the term most commonly applies to black powder small arms. It usually, but not always, involves the use of a propellant and projectile. The gunpowder used is typically black powder or black powder substitutes like Pyrodex, typically two types of gunpowder were needed, as the priming powder for the pan was finer than the coarse powder used for the main charge behind the ball. Wadding, is made from felt, paper, cloth or card and has different uses. In smooth bore muskets and most rifles used prior to cartridges being introduced in the late nineteenth century. On most naval cannons, one piece of wadding was used to hold the powder in place, another was used to act as a plug to stop the shot rolling out because of the swaying of the ship. The measuring stage for the charge of gunpowder could be avoided by carrying a number of pre-measured charges in small containers of wood, metal or cloth. These were known by names, including chargers or apostles as 12 were often carried. For most of the time muzzleloaders were in use, a round ball, the shooter would bite off the end of the paper cartridge with his teeth and pour the powder into the barrel followed by the ball encased in the paper wrapping. The projectiles and wads were then pushed down into the breech with a ramrod until they were seated on the propellant charge. Priming powder was carried in a separate priming flask and poured into the priming pan. After the gunpowder and projectile or shot charge were placed in the barrel a ramrod was used to pack everything down at the base of the barrel. Muzzleloading firearms generally use round balls, cylindrical conical projectiles, in some types of rifles firing round ball, a lubricated patch of fabric is wrapped around a ball which is slightly smaller than the barrel diameter
11.
English cannon
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The first usage of cannon in Great Britain was possibly in 1327, when they were used in battle by the English against the Scots. Under the Tudors, the first forts featuring cannon batteries were built, cannon were later used during the English Civil War for both siegework and extensively on the battlefield. Cannon were first used abroad by the English during the Hundred Years War, from the 18th century to the present day, the Royal Regiment of Artillery has formed the artillery of the British Army. The Royal Navy developed the carronade in the 18th century, although they disappeared from use in the 1850s, as with other western cannon of the period, cannon used by the British Army and the Royal Navy became longer ranged and more destructive in the 19th and 20th centuries. English cannon saw its first use during the Hundred Years War, ribaldis were first mentioned in the English Privy Wardrobe accounts during preparations for the Battle of Crécy between 1345 and 1346. These are believed to have shot large arrows and simplistic grapeshot, similar cannon appeared at the Siege of Calais later the same year and by the 1380s, the ribaudekin had become mounted on wheels. Towards the end of the Middle Ages, the development of cannon made revolutionary changes to siege warfare throughout Europe, deal Castle remains one of the most impressive such Device Forts, and was perfectly symmetrical, with a low, circular keep at its centre. Over 200 cannon and gun ports were set within the walls, in addition, its low curved bastions were designed to deflect cannonballs. Cannon were now a part of English warfare. Cannon also saw use in the Tudor navy, the French culverin was adapted for naval use by the English in the late 16th century, and had a significant advantage over the ballista that had previously been used in naval warfare. This cannon was of long barrel and light construction. One of the first ships to be able to fire a full broadside was the English carrack the Mary Rose, built in Portsmouth from 1510–1512. It was one of the earliest purpose-built warships to serve in the English Navy, and her crew consisted of 200 sailors,185 soldiers, with the Age of Discovery, rivalry developed between European colonies and the importance of cannon in naval warfare increased. A fleet review on Elizabeth Is accession in 1559 showed the navy to consist of 39 ships and in 1588, in a running battle lasting over a week, the Armada was scattered and defeated by the English navy. Wilson and sold by George Hurlock, the lower tier of English ships of the line at this time were usually equipped with demi-cannon — a naval gun which fired a 32-pound solid shot. A full cannon fired a 42-pound shot, but these were discontinued by the 18th century as they were seen as too unwieldy. With the establishment of the Thirteen Colonies, cannon saw use in English armies in the North American mainland, however, although the French were outnumbered, their fortifications and artillery were superior to English cannon. The English brass field guns landed on the shore were entirely ineffective against the militiamen in the woods, French victory showed that to take Quebec, the cannon of Old England would have to be brought in
12.
Artillery of Japan
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Artillery in Japan was first used during the Sengoku period in the 16th century, and its use has continued to develop. Due to its proximity with China, Japan had long been familiar with gunpowder, primitive cannons seem to have appeared in Japan around 1270, as simple metal tubes invented in China and called Tetsuhō. They dont seem to have been used however, and cannon usage would only become major after the arrival of the Portuguese in 1543. A few light cannon pieces were used at the Battle of Nagashino in 1575 and they were bronze two-pounders, about 9 feet long, and were delivered to the warlord Oda Nobunaga. Most of the first Japanese guns were provided by the Nanban Portuguese, nineteen bronze cannons of the Dutch ship Liefde, piloted by William Adams were unloaded and according to Spanish accounts later employed at the decisive Battle of Sekigahara on October 21,1600. Quick-firing breech-loading swivel guns, were used and manufactured by Japan. Such guns were in use in Western warships, and mounted at the bow and sterns to devastating effect, afterwards and for about 200 years, weapon development remained at a standstill, and only a minimal amount of antiquated artillery pieces were maintained in coastal areas. Following the Meiji Restoration, Japan would pursue a policy of Rich country, strong army, during the 1877 Satsuma rebellion artillery was widely deployed, and an average of 1,000 artillery shells were fired every day. Makeshift wooden cannons were seen on the rebel side of this conflict. Japanese artillery would then be used effectively during the Sino-Japanese war, the Imperial Japanese Navy enjoyed a spectacular development, allowing for the implementation of ever-larger artillery pieces. The Imperial Navy was the worlds first to mount 356 mm guns,406 mm guns, before and during World War II, Japan deployed a variety of artillery pieces, such as the heavy Type 8915 cm Cannon or the Type 9615 cm Howitzer. ISBN9780674003347, OCLC44090600 Perrin, Noel, giving up the Gun, Japans reversion to the Sword, 1543-1879. Collapse of the Tokugawa Bakufu, 1862-1868 Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press
13.
Korean cannon
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Cannons were first introduced to Korea as early as the Mongol Invasions in 1231-1259, but were not widely used until Choe Mu-seon made Koreas first native gunpowder and gunpowder weapons in the 1370s. These were used by Goryeos army and to great effect by the navy against the Waegu pirates in 1380, by 1410, Korea had 140 ships equipped with gunpowder artillery. Other firearms were used, but were actually hand cannons, and later, arquebuses, Choe Mu-seon made various weapons in his Hwatong Dogam, a gunpowder development laboratory established for him by U of Goryeo. Written records for these come from the Goryeosa, Hwayaksuryunbeop, Hwapobeop. During Taejongs rule, improvements were made, among the people responsible for the developments was Choe Hae-san, the son of the aforementioned Choe Mu-seon. The following is a list some of the cannons of this time period, The cheonja-hwapo heaven or sky. The jija-hwapo earth, with a range of about 620 m with an arrow or dart. The hyeonja-hwapo black, with a range of about 620 m with an arrow or dart. The hwangja-hwapo yellow or gold, with a range of about 620 m. The gaja-hwapo, with a range of about 250–370 m. The se-hwapo slender or small, with a range of about 250 m. This was a very small hand-cannon which functioned as a pistol or a cavalry weapon, written records for cannons of this era come from the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty. This later came to be called the janggun-hwatong general fire tube, the jija-hwapo, with a maximum range of about 990–1120 m with an arrow or dart, and about 740–870 m with four arrows or darts, with equal powder. Later called the il-chongtong first chongtong, the hyeonja-hwapo is not mentioned among the improved cannons. This was later called the i-chongtong second chongtong, the hwangja-hwapo, with a maximum range of about 990 m with an arrow or dart, and about 620 m with four arrows or darts with equal powder. This was later called the sam-chongtong third chongtong, the gaja-hwapo, with a maximum range of about 740 m with an arrow or dart, and about 500 m with four arrows or darts with equal powder. The se-hwapo, with a range of about 740 m with an arrow or dart with equal powder. This gun was about 13.8 cm long and had a bore of about 9 mm and it was later called the se-chongtong
14.
Lantaka
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Lantaka were a type of bronze swivel gun mounted on merchant vessels travelling the waterways of Malay Archipelago. Its use was greatest in precolonial South East Asia especially in Malaysia, the Philippines, the guns were used to defend against pirates demanding tribute for the local chief, or potentate. Although most lantaka weighed under two hundred pounds, and many only a few pounds, the largest ones exceeded a thousand pounds with some weighing over a ton, many of these guns were mounted on swivels and were known as swivel guns. The smaller ones could be mounted almost anywhere including in the rigging, medium-sized cannon were frequently used in reinforced sockets on the vessels rails and were sometimes referred to as rail guns. The heaviest swivel guns were mounted on modified gun carriages to make them more portable, however, there were also double-barreled variants that were used extensively in the Philippines. In Malaysia, these variants are called Meriam Lela and appears to be longer than a typical Lantaka. The local population was unimpressed with the might and power of the heavily armed trading vessels from the VOC Dutch East India Company, de Barros mentions that with the fall of Malacca, Albuquerque captured 3,000 out of 8,000 artillery. Among those,2,000 were made from brass and the rest from iron, all the artillery is of such excellent workmanship that it could not be excelled, even in Portugal. - Commentarios do grande Afonso de Albuquerque, Lisbon 1576, the Dutch and Portuguese quickly learned that they could trade cannon not only for spices and porcelain, but also for safe passage through pirate-infested waters. Local foundries continued to produce guns, using local patterns and designs from other local brass, stylized crocodiles, dolphins, birds and dragons were common motifs. If a native vessel was unarmed, it was regarded by the local populace as improperly equipped. Whether farmers, fishermen or headhunters, the villagers who lived in the longhouses along Borneos rivers lived in fear of being taken by pirates who used both vessel-mounted and hand-held cannons. Villages and tribesmen that were armed with mounted or handheld cannon had an advantage over those who could only rely on bows and arrows, spears, blowguns. Land transportation in 17th and 18th century Java and Borneo was extremely difficult, such events ranged from yellow fever and cholera epidemics to the start or finish of religious holidays such as Ramadan. Distinguished visitors were ushered into longhouses with great ceremony, accompanied by the firing of the longhouses cannon and these cannon were a display of the status and wealth of the extended family that controlled the longhouse. All worked copper, brass and bronze had value and were used as items in early Borneo. Cannon were frequently part of the price demanded by the family of an exceptionally desirable bride or the dowry paid to the groom. Large cannon had the value of being used in both celebratory times and in warfare
15.
Autocannon
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An autocannon or automatic cannon is a large, fully automatic, rapid-fire projectile weapon that fires armour-piercing or explosive shells, as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger calibre than a gun, but are usually smaller than a field gun or other artillery. When used on its own, the word autocannon indicates a single-barrel weapon, when multiple rotating barrels are involved, the word rotary is added, and such a weapon is referred to as a rotary autocannon. As such, ammunition is fed from a belt to reduce reloading or for a faster rate of fire. They can use a variety of ammunition, common shells include high-explosive dual-purpose types, any variety of armour-piercing types, both the US25 mm Bushmaster and the British 30 mm Rarden have relatively slow rates of fire so as not to use ammunition too quickly. The rate of fire of a modern autocannon ranges from 90 rounds per minute, systems with multiple barrels can have rates of fire of over 10,000 rounds per minute. The first modern autocannon was the British QF1 pounder, also known as the pom-pom, during the First World War, autocannons were mostly used in the trenches as an anti-aircraft gun. Attempts to use them in aircraft failed as the severely limited both speed and altitude, thus making successful interception impossible. The more effective QF2 pounder naval gun would be developed during the war to serve as an anti-aircraft, autocannons would serve in a much greater capacity during the Second World War. During the inter-war years, aircraft underwent an evolution and the monoplane, pioneered as far back as the end of 1915, almost replaced wood. The subsequent increase in speed and durability greatly reduced the window of opportunity for defence and this was only reversed with the introduction of computer-controlled systems. The German Panzer II light tank, which was one of the most numerous in German service during the invasion of Poland and the campaign in France, used a 20 mm autocannon as its main armament. Although ineffective against tank armour even during the years of the war. Larger examples, such as the 40 mm Vickers S, were mounted in ground attack aircraft to serve as an anti-tank weapon, Polish 20 mm 38 Fk auto cannon was expensive to produce, but an exception. Unlike the Oerlikon, it was effective against all the tanks fielded in 1939, largely because it was built as an upgrade to the Oerlikon, Hispano—Suiza and it, with great difficulty, proved capable of knocking out even early Panzer IIIs and IVs. Only 55 were produced by the time of the Polish Defensive War, in aircraft, several factors brought about the replacement of rifle-calibre machine guns by autocannons. Early autocannons were heavy and had a rate of fire. Along with the speed, the size of aircraft grew substantially, particularly in the 1930s, so that the weight was less of an issue while the rate of fire, and reliability were greatly improved
16.
Falconet (cannon)
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The falconet or falcon was a light cannon developed in the late 15th century. During the Middle Ages guns were decorated with engravings of reptiles, for example, a culverin would often feature snakes, as the handles on the early cannons were often decorated to resemble serpents. The falconet fired small yet lethal shot of similar weight and size to a bird of prey, similarly, the musket was associated with the sparrowhawk. Its barrel was approximately 4 feet long, had a caliber of 2 inches, the falconet used 0.5 pounds of black powder to fire a 1 pound round shot approximately 5,000 feet. They could also be used to fire grapeshot, the falconet resembled an oversized matchlock musket with two wheels attached to improve mobility. In 1620s Germany a breechloading version was invented, seeing action in the Thirty Years War, many falconets were in use during the English Civil War as they were lighter and cheaper than the culverins, sakers and minions. During times of unrest they were used by the nobility to defend their grand houses, though developed for use on land, the falconet gained naval prominence during the 17th century for the defence of light vessels, for example, on small boats for boarding manoeuvres. They were heavily used in the American Revolutionary War by both the British and the Colonists, artillery through the ages Picture of a 17th century falconet
17.
Minion (cannon)
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The minion was a type of small cannon used during the Tudor period and into the late 17th century. It was of a bore, typically 3-inch, and fired a 5-pound cannonball. It saw action in the English Civil War as a weapon and was known as a Minion Drake. The minion constituted the main armament of the faster and more maneuverable Elizabethan galleons, such as Drakes Golden Hind, the Pilgrim Fathers brought a minion with them on the Mayflower, along with a saker and several smaller cannons. They later installed these in the fortified meeting-house that Myles Standish built to defend the town from the French, minions remained in service as man-of-war quarterdeck guns until 1716 when George I appointed Albert Borgard to redesign the Royal Navys artillery
18.
Saker (cannon)
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The saker was a medium cannon, slightly smaller than a culverin, developed during the early 16th century and often used by the English. It was named after the falcon, a large falconry bird native to the Middle East. A sakers barrel was approximately 9.5 ft long, had a calibre of 3.25 inches and it could fire round shot weighing 5.25 lb approximately 7,400 ft using 4 lb of black powder. The shot was intended to bounce along the ground to cause as much damage as possible, tests performed in France during the 1950s show that a sakers range was over 9,000 ft when fired at a 45-degree angle. Henry VIII amassed a large arsenal of sakers in the early 16th century as he expanded the Royal Navy, henrys foundries used so much bronze that there was a world shortage of tin. According to the inventory in the Anthony Roll, the Mary Rose carried several sakers, though none have found so far. Sakers were heavily used during the English Civil War, especially during sieges and they also saw action in the Jacobite rising and were used by the armies of both William III and James II at the Battle of the Boyne. A French version of the saker is the moyenne, meaning middle sized, venetian merchant ships often carried sakers to defend themselves from pirates, and similar cannons have been found on Spanish Armada wrecks
19.
Demi-culverin
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The demi-culverin was a medium cannon similar to but slightly larger than a saker and smaller than a regular culverin developed in the late 16th century. Barrels of demi-culverins were typically about 11 feet long, had a calibre of 4 inches and it required 6 pounds of black powder to fire an 8-pound round shot. The demi-culverin had a range of 1,800 feet. Demi-culverins were valued by generals for their range, accuracy and effectiveness and they were often used in sieges for wall and building demolition
20.
Culverin
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The culverin was used to bombard targets from a distance. The weapon had a long barrel and a light construction. The culverin fired solid shot projectiles with a high muzzle velocity, producing a relatively long range. Round shot refers to the solid spherical cannonball. The term culverin is derived from the Latin, colubrinus, or of the nature of a snake and it was originally the name of a medieval ancestor of the musket, used in the 15th and 16th centuries. The hand culverin consisted in a smoothbore tube, closed at one end except for a small hole designed to allow ignition of the gunpowder. The tube was held in place by a piece which could be held under the arm. The tube was loaded with gunpowder and lead bullets, the culverin was fired by inserting a burning slow match into the hole. These hand culverins soon evolved into heavier portable culverins, around 40 kg in weight, such culverins were further equipped with back-loading sabots to facilitate reloading, and were often used on ships. Many were immobile due to the heavy weight, there were three types of culverin in use, distinguished by their size, the culverin extraordinary, the ordinary, and the least-sized. There were also smaller versions, including the culverin, 7-pound shot. Overall, the culverin was a significant advance, since it fired a ball of iron and relied on gunpowder for propulsion, the heavy ball meant a relatively stable flight and the gunpowder propulsion meant a fast and long-range. A replica culverin extraordinary has achieved a velocity of 408 m/s. This velocity and mass imply that the cannonball had an energy of roughly 600 kilojoules when leaving the muzzle. The culverin was later replaced by the gun once technology had advanced to the point where cannonballs had become explosive
21.
Demi-cannon
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The demi-cannon was a medium-sized cannon, similar to but slightly larger than a culverin and smaller than a regular 42 lb cannon, developed in the early 17th century. A full cannon fired a 42-pound shot, but these were discontinued in the 18th century as they were seen as too unwieldy, the lower tiers of 17th century English warships were usually equipped with demi-cannons. Ships featuring demi-cannons included HMS Sovereign of the Seas, HMS Resolution and HMS James, the barrels of demi-cannon were typically 11 ft long, had a calibre of 6 inches and could weigh up to 5600 lb. It required 18 lb of powder to fire a 32 lb round shot. The demi-cannon had a range of 1600 ft. These 32-pounders were used during the 18th century on first-rate three-decker ships of the line carried up to 100 guns
22.
Carronade
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A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy and first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s and its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range, anti-ship and anti-crew weapon. The carronade was designed as a naval weapon with a low muzzle velocity for merchant ships. It was produced by the Carron ironworks and was at first sold as a system with the gun, mounting, the standard package of shot per gun was 25 roundshot,15 barshot,15 double-headed shot,10 single grapeshot, and 10 single canister shot. Single meant that the shot weighed the same as the roundshot, while some other canister and grapeshot were also included which weighed one and a half times the roundshot. Its invention is variously ascribed to Lieutenant General Robert Melville in 1759, or to Charles Gascoigne, in its early years, the weapon was sometimes called a mellvinade or a gasconade. The carronade can be seen as the culmination of a development of naval guns reducing the barrel length, the advantages for merchant ships are described in an advertising pamphlet of 1779. Production of both shot and gun by the firm immediately allowed a reduction in the windage, the gap between the bore of the gun and the diameter of the ball. The mounting, attached to the side of the ship on a pivot, the reduced recoil did not alter the alignment of the gun. The smaller gunpowder charge reduced the heating in action. The pamphlet advocated the use of cartridges, which eliminated the need for wadding and worming. Simplifying gunnery for comparatively untrained merchant seamen in both aiming and reloading was part of the rationale for the gun, the replacement of trunnions by a bolt underneath, to connect the gun to the mounting, reduced the width of the carriage enhancing the wide angle of fire. A merchant ship would almost always be running away from its enemy, a carronade weighed a quarter as much and used a quarter to a third of the gunpowder charge as a long gun firing the same cannonball. The reduced charge allowed carronades to have a length and much lighter weight than long guns. Increasing the size of the bore and ball reduces the length of barrel. Long guns were also heavy in comparison to carronades because they were over-specified, being capable of being double-shotted. Carronades also required a smaller gun crew, which was important for merchant ships. Carronades initially became popular on British merchant ships during the American Revolutionary War, a lightweight gun that needed only a small gun crew and was devastating at short range was a weapon well suited to defending merchant ships against French and American privateers
23.
Field gun
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A field gun is an artillery piece. Perhaps the most famous use of the gun in terms of advanced tactics was Napoleons use of very large wheels on the guns that allowed them to be moved quickly even during a battle. As the evolution of artillery continued, almost all guns of any size became capable of being moved at some speed, even the German super-heavy guns in World War II were rail or caterpillar-track mobile. In British use, a gun was anything up to around 4.5 inches in calibre—larger guns were medium. Their largest gun was the 5.5 inch Medium, with a range of about 15, 000\16,000 yards. Since about the start of World War II, the term has been applied to artillery pieces that fire at a relatively low angle. Field guns also lack a specialized purpose, such as anti-tank or coastal artillery, the U. S. Army tried the long-range gun again in the 1960s with the M107175 mm gun. The M107 was used extensively in the Vietnam War and proved effective in artillery duels with the North Vietnamese forces and it was considered a high-maintenance item and was removed from service with U. S. forces after a rash of cracked barrels. Today the gun finds itself in an area that seems to be gone for good, the need for a long-range weapon is filled by rocket artillery, or aircraft. Modern gun-artillery such as the L118 105mm light gun is used to fire support for infantry. Man-packed mortars lack the range or hitting power of gun-artillery, in between is the rifled towed mortar, this weapon is light enough to be towed by a Land Rover, has a range of over 6, 000m and fires a bomb comparable in weight to an artillery shell
24.
Howitzer
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In the taxonomies of artillery pieces used by European armies in the 17th to 20th centuries, the howitzer stood between the gun and the mortar. Howitzers, like other artillery equipment, are organized in groups called batteries. The English word howitzer comes from the Czech word houfnice, from houf, crowd, haufen, sometimes in the compound Gewalthaufen, also designated a pike square formation in German. This is particularly true in the forces of the United States. Because of this practice, the howitzer is used in some armies as a generic term for any kind of artillery piece that is designed to attack targets using indirect fire. Thus, artillery pieces that bear resemblance to howitzers of earlier eras are now described as howitzers. Most other armies in the reserve the word howitzer for guns with barrel lengths 15 to 25 times their caliber. The British had a method of nomenclature. In the 18th century, they adopted projectile weight for guns replacing the old naming system of culverin, saker, mortars had been categorized by calibre in inches in the 17th century and this was inherited by howitzers. The modern howitzers were invented in Sweden towards the end of the 17th century, originally intended for use in siege warfare, they were particularly useful for delivering cast-iron shells filled with gunpowder or incendiary materials into the interior of fortifications. In the middle of the 18th century, a number of European armies began to introduce howitzers that were enough to accompany armies in the field. Though usually fired at the high angles of fire used by contemporary siege howitzers. Rather, as the guns of the day were usually restricted to inert projectiles. Many, for the sake of simplicity and rapidity of fire, the Abus gun was an early form of howitzer in the Ottoman Empire. In 1758 the Russian Empire introduced a type of howitzer, with a conical chamber, called a licorne. The most famous of these gun-howitzers was the Napoleon 12-pounder, a weapon of French design that saw service in the American Civil War. The longest-serving artillery piece of the 19th century was the mountain howitzer, in 1859, the armies of Europe began to rearm field batteries with rifled field guns. These new field pieces used cylindrical projectiles that, while smaller in caliber than the spherical shells of smoothbore field howitzers, moreover, their greater range let them create many of the same effects that previously required the sharply curved trajectories of smoothbore field howitzers
25.
Mortar (weapon)
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A mortar is a device that fires projectiles at low velocities and short ranges. The mortar has traditionally used as a weapon to propel explosive mortar bombs in high-arcing ballistic trajectories. The weapon is typically muzzle-loading with a short, often smooth-bore barrel, Modern mortars are light and easily portable. They can be used for fire support with a variety of ammunition. Mortars have been used for hundreds of years, originally in siege warfare, many historians consider the first mortars to have been used at the 1453 siege of Constantinople by Mehmed the Conqueror. A European account of the 1456 siege of Belgrade by Giovanni da Tagliacozzo said that the Ottoman Turks used seven mortars that fired stone shots one Italian mile high. The time of flight of these was long enough that casualties could be avoided by posting observers to give warning of their trajectories. However, earlier mortars were used in Korea in a 1413 naval battle when Korean gunsmiths developed the Wangu, the earliest version of the Wangu dates back to 1407. Choe Hae-san, the son of Choe Mu-seon, is credited with inventing the first Wangu. Early mortars, such as the Pumhart von Steyr, were large and heavy. Simply made, these weapons were no more than iron bowls reminiscent of the kitchen, an early transportable mortar was invented by Baron Menno van Coehoorn. This mortar fired a shell, which had a fuse lit by the hot gases when fired. This innovation was taken up, necessitating a new form of naval ship. Mortars played a significant role in the Venetian conquest of Morea, an early use of these more mobile mortars as field weapons was by British forces in the suppression of the 1719 Jacobite rising at the Battle of Glen Shiel. High angle trajectory mortars held an advantage over standard field guns in the rough terrain of the West Highlands of Scotland. Coehorn-type mortars of approximately 180 pounds weight were used by both sides during the American Civil War and these answered as coehorns, and shells were successfully thrown from them into the trenches of the enemy. The mortar had fallen out of use by the Napoleonic era. The German Army studied the Siege of Port Arthur, where heavy artillery had been unable to destroy defensive structures like barbed wire, the solution they developed was a short-barrelled rifled muzzle-loading mortar called the Minenwerfer, and was built in three sizes
26.
Bombard (weapon)
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The bombard is a cannon or mortar used in medieval times. This weapon was a caliber, muzzle-loading artillery piece mainly used during sieges to throw stone balls at opponents’ walls. The primary use was to break down the walls of the enemy so the army could get to them, most bombards were made of iron and used gunpowder to launch the projectile through the air. There are many examples of bombards, including Mons Meg, the Dardanelles Gun, larger bombards are sometimes included in the family of superguns. They were used throughout the Middle Ages and the modern period. The weapon provided the name to the Royal Artillery rank of Bombardier, the oldest representation of a bombard can be found in the Chinese town of Ta-tsu. In 1985, Robin Yates was visiting Buddhist cave temples when he saw a sculpture on the wall depicting a demon holding a hand-held bombard, the muzzle seems to have a blast and flames coming from it which some believe is proof of some type of super gun. Yates examined the cave and believed the drawings dated back to the late 12th century, the Vaso shown by Walter de Milamete is usually dated to 1327 and shows a mailed knight firing a brass fire pot. However the armour shown appears anachronistic for 1327 and the image may actually be a copy of a lost 12th century image, England certainly began using cannons in the early 14th century. Inverted keyhole gun loops at Bodiam Castle, Cooling Castle and Westgate Canterbury have all identified as for firing heavy handguns. Initially used as defensive weapons primitive bombards began to be used as weapons in the later 14th century. Henry IV, Henry V, and James II won battles with the use of bombards, Henry V captured Harfleur with bombards in 1415. King Henrys army later came under fire at the Battle of Agincourt. James II destroyed many castles with his one and a half ton cannon named The Lion, the French re-conquest of their kingdom from English control saw the use of considerable French artillery in the siege role. The French in this period preferred to avoid attacking English longbowmen in open battle and relied on siege, the French camp had been laid out by ordnance officer Jean Bureau to maximise the French artillery arm. The Anglo-Gascons were shot to pieces and Talbot was eventually killed, most bombards started with the construction of a wooden core surrounded by iron bars. Then, iron hoops were driven over these bars in order to surround, the whole structure was then welded with a hammer while it was still hot at about 1300 °C. The rings then subsequently cooled and formed over the bars to secure them, the last step was to incinerate the wooden core and to attach a one-piece cast
27.
Basilisk (cannon)
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The basilisk was a very heavy bronze cannon employed during the Middle Ages. The barrel of a basilisk could weigh up to 4,000 lb, on average they were around 10 feet long, though some, like Queen Elizabeths Pocket Pistol, were almost three times that length. The basilisk got its name from the basilisk, a fire-breathing venomous serpent that could cause large-scale destruction. It was thought that the sight of its 160 lb shot would be enough to scare the enemy to death. In 1588 the Spanish Armada was equipped with many basilisks for their invasion of England with the intent of using them to besiege towns loyal to Elizabeth I, many of these guns were lost when the ships were wrecked on their return to Spain. Due to its size, the basilisk fell out of favour of European generals. A late example is the Maltese Gun, built in Holland in 1607 and, like many of its contemporaries, fitted with a replacement carriage during the Napoleonic Wars
28.
Chinese language
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Chinese is a group of related, but in many cases mutually unintelligible, language varieties, forming a branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family. Chinese is spoken by the Han majority and many ethnic groups in China. Nearly 1.2 billion people speak some form of Chinese as their first language, the varieties of Chinese are usually described by native speakers as dialects of a single Chinese language, but linguists note that they are as diverse as a language family. The internal diversity of Chinese has been likened to that of the Romance languages, There are between 7 and 13 main regional groups of Chinese, of which the most spoken by far is Mandarin, followed by Wu, Min, and Yue. Most of these groups are mutually unintelligible, although some, like Xiang and certain Southwest Mandarin dialects, may share common terms, all varieties of Chinese are tonal and analytic. Standard Chinese is a form of spoken Chinese based on the Beijing dialect of Mandarin. It is the language of China and Taiwan, as well as one of four official languages of Singapore. It is one of the six languages of the United Nations. The written form of the language, based on the logograms known as Chinese characters, is shared by literate speakers of otherwise unintelligible dialects. Of the other varieties of Chinese, Cantonese is the spoken language and official in Hong Kong and Macau. It is also influential in Guangdong province and much of Guangxi, dialects of Southern Min, part of the Min group, are widely spoken in southern Fujian, with notable variants also spoken in neighboring Taiwan and in Southeast Asia. Hakka also has a diaspora in Taiwan and southeast Asia. Shanghainese and other Wu varieties are prominent in the lower Yangtze region of eastern China, Chinese can be traced back to a hypothetical Sino-Tibetan proto-language. The first written records appeared over 3,000 years ago during the Shang dynasty, as the language evolved over this period, the various local varieties became mutually unintelligible. In reaction, central governments have sought to promulgate a unified standard. Difficulties have included the great diversity of the languages, the lack of inflection in many of them, in addition, many of the smaller languages are spoken in mountainous areas that are difficult to reach, and are often also sensitive border zones. Without a secure reconstruction of proto-Sino-Tibetan, the structure of the family remains unclear. A top-level branching into Chinese and Tibeto-Burman languages is often assumed, the earliest examples of Chinese are divinatory inscriptions on oracle bones from around 1250 BCE in the late Shang dynasty
29.
Firearm
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A firearm is a portable gun - a barreled weapon that launches one or more projectiles, often driven by the action of an explosive force. The first primitive firearms originated in 13th-century China when the fire lance was combined with projectiles. The technology gradually spread through the rest of East Asia, South Asia, older firearms typically used black powder as a propellant, but modern firearms use smokeless powder or other propellants. Most modern firearms have rifled barrels to impart spin to the projectile for improved flight stability, modern firearms can be described by their caliber or in the case of shotguns their gauge, by the type of action employed together with the usual means of deportment. The word firearms usually is used in a sense restricted to small arms, shooters aim firearms at their targets with hand-eye co-ordination, using either iron sights or optical sights. The accurate range of pistols generally does not exceed 100 yards, while most rifles are accurate to 550 yards using iron sights, some purpose-built sniper rifles are accurate to ranges of more than 2,200 yards. The smallest of all firearms is the handgun, there are three common types of handguns, single-shot pistols, revolvers, and semi-automatic pistols. Revolvers have a number of firing chambers or charge holes in a revolving cylinder, semi-automatic pistols have a single fixed firing chamber machined into the rear of the barrel, and a magazine so they can be used to fire more than one round. Each press of the fires a cartridge, using the energy of the cartridge to activate the mechanism so that the next cartridge may be fired immediately. This is opposed to double-action revolvers which accomplish the end using a mechanical action linked to the trigger pull. Prior to the 19th century, virtually all handguns were single-shot muzzleloaders, with the invention of the revolver in 1818, handguns capable of holding multiple rounds became popular. Certain designs of auto-loading pistol appeared beginning in the 1870s and had largely supplanted revolvers in military applications by the end of World War I. By the end of the 20th century, most handguns carried regularly by military, police and civilians were semi-automatic, both designs are common among civilian gun owners, depending on the owners intention. A long gun is any firearm that is larger than a handgun and is designed to be held. Early long arms, from the Renaissance up to the century, were generally smoothbore firearms that fired one or more ball shot. Most modern long guns are either rifles or shotguns, both are the successors of the musket, diverging from their parent weapon in distinct ways. A rifle is so named for the spiral fluting machined into the surface of its barrel. Shotguns are predominantly smoothbore firearms designed to fire a number of shot, shotguns are also capable of firing single slugs, or specialty rounds such as bean bags, tear gas or breaching rounds
30.
Fire lance
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The fire lance was a gunpowder weapon that appeared in 10th century China during the Jin-Song Wars. It is considered to be a proto-gun, the predecessor of the cannon. Fire lances were relatively short range weapons and were used to give its user an advantage in close quarters combat, the first fire lances consisted of a tube, usually bamboo, containing gunpowder and a slow match, strapped to a spear or other polearm weapon. Once ignited, the tube would ideally eject a stream of flames in the direction of the spearhead. Co-viative projectiles such as pellets or pottery shards were later added to the gunpowder. Upon firing, the gunpowder charge ejected the projectiles along with the flame, metal fire lance barrels appeared around the mid 13th century and these began to be used independently of the lance itself. The independent metal barrel was known as an eruptor, and became the forerunner of the hand cannon, the first fire-lances appeared in the Song dynasty as early as the year 950 and were mentioned in the military text Wujing Zongyao of 1044. They were at this point antipersonnel weapons, in 1163 fire lances were attached to war carts known as at-your-desire-carts used to defend mobile firembomb trebuchets. In the late 1100s shrapnel such as iron pellets and porcelain shards were added to the gunpowder tube. Some fire lances discarded the spearhead altogether and relied solely on their firepower, by 1232 the Jin were also using fire lances, but with improved reusable barrels consisting of durable paper material. Jin soldiers also used them in combat and in one instance. In 1259 a pellet wad that occluded the barrel was recorded to have used as a fire lance projectile. By 1276 fire lances had transitioned to metal barrels, the metal-barreled fire lance began to be used independently of the lance around the mid to late 13th century. These proto-cannons which fired co-viative projectiles, known as eruptors, were the forerunners of the hand cannon, needham, Joseph, Science & Civilisation in China, V,7, The Gunpowder Epic, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-30358-3. Little Bit of Info on the Fire Lance Medieval Chinese Armies, ISBN 1-85532-599-3 Chinese Siege Warfare, Mechanical Artillery & Siege Weapons of Antiquity
31.
Small arms
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In international arms control, small arms include revolvers and pistols, rifles and carbines, assault rifles, submachine guns and light machine guns. Together with light weapons, they comprise the Small Arms and Light Weapons protocol, in the U. S. military, small arms are man portable, individual, and crew-served weapon systems used mainly against personnel and lightly armored or unarmored equipment. However, in regard to management, the U. S. Army says small arms/light weapons are, Handguns, shoulder-fired weapons, light automatic weapons up to. Much of the work to address the illegal arms trade is raised in the United Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms. In 2013, the Small Arms Survey said that of the 875 million small arms distributed globally,650 million — almost 75 percent — are in civilian hands, about 200 million are controlled by armed forces and about 26 million by law enforcement agencies. Gang members hold between 2 and 10 million small arms and armed, non-state actors hold about 1.4 million, together, the small-arms arsenals of non-state actors and gangs account for 0.4 to 1.3 percent of the global total. Arms trafficking Firearms Gun control Small arms trade SALW Dikshif, P. Proliferation of Small Arms and Minor Weapons, Strategic Analysis, Vol.17 May 1994. Gould, C. and Lamb, G. Hide & Seek, Taking Account of Small Arms in Southern Africa, Institute for Security Studies, federation of American Scientists Small Arms Monitoring page Small Arms Survey How Small Arms Work - Training Film on YouTube
32.
Matchlock
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The matchlock was the first mechanism, or lock, invented to facilitate the firing of a hand-held firearm. The classic European matchlock gun held a burning slow match in a clamp at the end of a curved lever known as the serpentine. The flash from the primer travelled through the touch hole igniting the charge of propellant in the gun barrel. On release of the lever or trigger, the spring-loaded serpentine would move in reverse to clear the pan, for obvious safety reasons the match would be removed before reloading of the gun. Both ends of the match were usually kept alight in case one end should be accidentally extinguished. Earlier types had only an S-shaped serpentine pinned to the stock either behind or in front of the flash pan, most matchlock mechanisms mounted the serpentine forward of the flash pan. The serpentine dipped backward, toward the firer, to ignite the priming and this is the reverse of the familiar forward-dipping hammer of the flintlock and later firearms. A later addition to the gun was the rifled barrel and this made the gun much more accurate at longer distances but did have drawbacks, the main one being that it took much longer to reload because the bullet had to be pounded down into the barrel. As the match was often extinguished after its relatively violent collision with the pan, this type fell out of favour with soldiers. An inherent weakness of the matchlock was the necessity of keeping the match constantly lit, the match was steeped in potassium nitrate to keep the match lit for extended periods of time. Being the sole source of ignition for the powder, if the match was not lit when the gun needed to be fired, the mechanism was useless, and this was chiefly a problem in wet weather, when damp match cord was difficult to light and to keep burning. Another drawback was the match itself. At night, the match would glow in the darkness, possibly revealing the carriers position, the distinctive smell of burning match-cord was also a giveaway of a musketeers position. It was also dangerous when soldiers were carelessly handling large quantities of gunpowder with lit matches present. This was one reason why soldiers in charge of transporting and guarding ammunition were amongst the first to be issued self-igniting guns like the wheellock, the matchlock was also uneconomical to keep ready for long periods of time. To maintain a single sentry on guard duty with a matchlock. The matchlock first appeared in Europe, in the mid-15th century, the first dated illustration of a matchlock mechanism dates to 1475 and by the 16th century they were universally used. During this time the latest tactic in using the matchlock was to line up and this volley would be much more effective than single soldiers trying to hit individual targets
33.
Fire making
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Fire making, fire lighting or fire craft is the process of starting a fire artificially. It requires completing the fire triangle, usually by heating tinder above its autoignition temperature, Fire is an essential tool for survival and was important in early human cultural development. Today, its a key component of Scouting and bushcraft, fine tinder is a material that combusts first and in doing so heats other material until it burns. Fine tinder is characterized by its ability to combust from a spark, friction, autognition temperatures of common tinder, Tinder is preserved within a Tinderbox, which today is often a plastic bag. Tinder when formed into a tight bundle can also be used to preserve/carry an ember, often in the form of a cigar and made of compacted tinder materials held within a tinderbox, a smouldering ember could safely be saved inside. Fire occurs naturally as a result of activity, meteorites. Many animals are aware of fire and adapt their behavior to it, plants, too, have adapted to the natural occurrence of fire. Thus, humans encountered and were aware of fire, and later its beneficial uses, natural sources of animal fats and petrochemicals that burn could have been used to keep and maintain fires that started naturally. Fire can be created through friction by rapidly grinding pieces of solid combustable material against each other which are heated, successfully creating fire by friction involves skill, fitness, knowledge, and acceptable environmental conditions. Once hot enough, the ember is introduced to the tinder, more oxygen is added by blowing and this repeated spinning and downward pressure causes black dust to form in the notch of the fireboard, eventually creating a hot, glowing coal. The coal is then carefully placed among dense, fine tinder, the advantage of the hand drill technique is that it requires no rope. The bow drill uses the principle as the hand drill but the spindle is shorter, wider and driven by a bow. Additional downward pressure is generated by the handhold, a pump drill is a variant of the bow drill that uses a coiled rope around a cross-section of wooden stake spin the shaft by pumping up and down a cross-member. The fire plough or fireplow consists of a cut to a dull point. The stake is pressed down hard and rubbed quickly against the groove of the piece in a plowing motion. A split is made down the length of the grooved piece. A fire-saw is a method by which a piece of wood is sawed through a notch in a piece or pieces to generate friction. The tinder may be placed between two slats of wood with the piece or saw drawn over them above the tinder so as to catch a coal
34.
Touch hole
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The vent is the access point through which the propellant charge is ignited. In small arms, the flash from a charge of priming held in the pan is enough to ignite the charge within. In artillery, priming powder, a fuse, squib, or friction igniter is inserted into the hole to ensure ignition of the charge. The powder in the hole was lit either with a slow match. Spiking a gun was a method of disabling a cannon by hammering a barbed steel spike into the touch-hole. If a cannon was in danger of being captured by the enemy, captured guns would be spiked if they could not be hauled away and the guns recapture seemed likely. If a special spike was unavailable, spiking could be done by driving a bayonet into the touch-hole and breaking it off, guns could also be rendered useless by burning their wooden carriages or blowing off their trunnions
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Handgun
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A handgun is a firearm designed to be handheld, in either one or both hands. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a class of firearms from long guns such as rifles. Major handgun subtypes are the revolver and pistol, other subtypes include derringers, the words pistol and handgun have overlapping variations, in meaning. Although handgun use often includes bracing with a hand, the essential distinguishing characteristic of a handgun is its facility for one-handed operation. The word pistol is often synonymous with the word handgun, some handgun experts make a technical distinction that views pistols as a subset of handguns. But UK/Commonwealth usage often does not make this distinction, handheld firearms were first made in China where gunpowder was first developed. By the 14th century, they existed in Europe as well, the first handheld firearms that might better be called pistols were made as early as the 15th century, but their creator is unknown. By the 18th century, the term came to be used often to refer to handheld firearms, previously there had been no such differentiation, and in fact Samuel Colts original patent was for a revolving-breech pistol. There is no equivalent for handgun in the Romance languages. The general types of handguns are listed below in their order of historical appearance, each type can be classified into many sub-types. Some of these types can also be classified using the general distinction between muzzle-loading firearms and breech-loading firearms. Single-shot pistols are the simplest possible form of pistols and are known to have existed in AD1365, the earliest handguns were single-shot, muzzle-loading guns with ignition provided by inserting a smoldering match cord into a touch hole. As such, they were nothing more than miniature cannon. Improvements followed in subsequent centuries, as types of locks were invented. In the matchlock, the separate match cord was affixed to a pivot which could be tripped by a trigger. In the wheellock, an analogous to that used in todays cigarette lighters replaced the smoldering match cord. In the 17th century, the flintlock, which strikes a flint against steel, the flintlock remained the standard method of small arms ignition around two hundred years. In the 19th century, percussion caps were developed, followed shortly by modern integrated-primer cartridges, an example of a single-shot pistol is the flare gun
36.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
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Europe
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Europe is a continent that comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, yet the non-oceanic borders of Europe—a concept dating back to classical antiquity—are arbitrary. Europe covers about 10,180,000 square kilometres, or 2% of the Earths surface, politically, Europe is divided into about fifty sovereign states of which the Russian Federation is the largest and most populous, spanning 39% of the continent and comprising 15% of its population. Europe had a population of about 740 million as of 2015. Further from the sea, seasonal differences are more noticeable than close to the coast, Europe, in particular ancient Greece, was the birthplace of Western civilization. The fall of the Western Roman Empire, during the period, marked the end of ancient history. Renaissance humanism, exploration, art, and science led to the modern era, from the Age of Discovery onwards, Europe played a predominant role in global affairs. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European powers controlled at times the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania. The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century, gave rise to economic, cultural, and social change in Western Europe. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the west and the Warsaw Pact in the east, until the revolutions of 1989 and fall of the Berlin Wall. In 1955, the Council of Europe was formed following a speech by Sir Winston Churchill and it includes all states except for Belarus, Kazakhstan and Vatican City. Further European integration by some states led to the formation of the European Union, the EU originated in Western Europe but has been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The European Anthem is Ode to Joy and states celebrate peace, in classical Greek mythology, Europa is the name of either a Phoenician princess or of a queen of Crete. The name contains the elements εὐρύς, wide, broad and ὤψ eye, broad has been an epithet of Earth herself in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion and the poetry devoted to it. For the second part also the divine attributes of grey-eyed Athena or ox-eyed Hera. The same naming motive according to cartographic convention appears in Greek Ανατολή, Martin Litchfield West stated that phonologically, the match between Europas name and any form of the Semitic word is very poor. Next to these there is also a Proto-Indo-European root *h1regʷos, meaning darkness. Most major world languages use words derived from Eurṓpē or Europa to refer to the continent, in some Turkic languages the originally Persian name Frangistan is used casually in referring to much of Europe, besides official names such as Avrupa or Evropa
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Arquebus
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The arquebus is an early muzzle-loaded firearm that appeared in late 15th century Europe, and was until the 17th century the primary firearm used in European armies. The arquebus was originally a hand cannon with a hook, a matchlock mechanism was added to it around 1475 and it became the first firearm with a trigger. The heavy arquebus, known as the musket, was developed around 1521 to penetrate plate armor, a standardized arquebus, the caliver, was introduced in the early 16th century. The name caliver is derived from the English corruption of calibre, the smoothbore matchlock arquebus is considered the forerunner to the rifle and other long gun firearms. Heavy arquebuses mounted on wagons were called arquebus à croc and these carried a ball of about 3.5 ounces. In the early 16th century, the arquebus had a confusing variety of meanings. Some writers used it to denote any matchlock shoulder gun, referring to light versions as caliver and heavier pieces fired from a fork rest as musket, others treated the arquebus and caliver synonymously, both referring to the lighter, forkless shoulder-fired matchlock. As the 16th century progressed, the term came to be clearly reserved for the lighter forkless weapon. When the wheel lock was introduced, wheel-lock shoulder arms came to be called arquebuses, while lighter, in the mid-17th century, the light flintlock versions came to be called fusils or fuzees. As a low-velocity firearm, the arquebus was used against enemies who were partially or fully protected by steel-plate armor. Plate armor worn upon the torso was standard in European combat from about 1400 until the middle of the 17th century, good suits of plate would usually stop an arquebus ball at long range. It was a practice to proof armor by firing a pistol or arquebus at a new breastplate. The small dent would be circled by engraving to call attention to it, however, at close range, it was possible to pierce even heavy cavalry armor, although penetration is heavily dependent on the power of the arquebus and the quality of the armor. This led to changes in usage, such as the three-quarter plate. The development of volley fire — by the Dutch in Europe, and by the Japanese, just as soon as the first rank has fired, then by the drill they will march to the back. The second rank either marching forward or standing still, will then fire just like the first, after that the third and following ranks will do the same. When the last rank has fired, the first will have reloaded, once volley firing had been developed, the rate of fire and efficiency was greatly increased and the arquebus went from being a support weapon to the primary focus of most early modern armies. The arquebus had a larger bore than its predecessors, until the middle of the 16th century, they were fired by a matchlock mechanism, after which the newer wheellock mechanisms were used instead
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Trigger (firearms)
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A trigger is a mechanism that actuates the firing sequence of a firearm or crossbow, a trigger may also start another mechanism such as a trap or a quick release. A small amount of energy applied to the causes the release of much more energy. In double action firearm designs, the trigger is used to cock the firearm -. Firearms use triggers to initiate the firing of a cartridge in the chamber of the weapon. This is accomplished by actuating a striking device through a combination of spring and kinetic energy operating through a pin to strike. There are two types of striking mechanisms, hammers and strikers. Hammers are spring-tensioned masses of metal that pivot on a pin when released, strikers are, essentially, spring-loaded firing pins that travel on an axis in-line with the cartridge eliminating the need for a separate hammer. The connection between the trigger and the hammer is generally referred to as the sear surface, variable mechanisms will have this surface directly on the trigger and hammer or have separate sears or other connecting parts. There are numerous types of action, where action refers to the mechanism or to the logic of how it is built and they are categorized according to which functions the trigger is to perform. Most modern firearms use the trigger to deactivate passive safeties but this does not change how they are identified, a single-action trigger is the earliest and mechanically simplest of trigger types. Almost all rifles and shotguns use this type of trigger, the term single-action wasnt in use until weapons with double-action triggers were invented, which didnt occur until the mid-19th century, before that, all triggers were single-action. Although these weapons dont require the user to physically cock the hammer, manually cocked hammers lasted a while longer in some break-action shotguns, and in dangerous game rifles, where the hunter didnt want to rely on an unnecessarily complex or fragile weapon. In modern usage, the terms single-action and double-action almost always refer to handguns, while a single-action revolver or semi-automatic must always be cocked prior to firing, most double-action handguns are capable of firing in both single- and double-action modes. Only double-action only weapons are incapable of firing from a cocked hammer. Thereafter, every time a round is fired, the hammer is recocked by the cycling slide, after the first shot, they would fire as single-actions. These double action, or double action, pistols rapidly gained popularity. A double-action/single-action firearm combines the features of both mechanisms, and is called traditional double-action. In simple terms, double-action refers to a gun trigger mechanism that both cocks the hammer and then releases the sear, thus performing two actions, hence double action
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History of gunpowder
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Gunpowder is the first physical explosive and propellant. Before its invention, many incendiary and burning devices had been used, the invention of gunpowder is usually attributed to experimentation in Chinese alchemy by Taoists in the pursuit of immortality, and is popularly listed as one of the Four Great Inventions of China. It was invented during the late Tang dynasty but the earliest record of a written formula appeared in the Song dynasty. It was employed in warfare to some effect from at least the 12th century in such as fire arrows, bombs. While the fire lance was eventually supplanted by the gun, other weapons such as rockets continued to see use in China, Korea, India. Bombs too never ceased to develop and continued to progress into the day as grenades, mines. Gunpowder can also be used for purposes such as fireworks for entertainment. The evolution of guns led to the development of artillery during the 15th century, Firearms came to dominate early modern warfare in Europe by the 17th century. The use of technology also spread throughout the Islamic world and to India, Korea. The so-called Gunpowder Empires of the modern period consisted of the Mughal Empire, Safavid Empire. The use of gunpowder in warfare during the course of the 19th century diminished due to the invention of smokeless powder, Gunpowder is often referred to today as black powder to distinguish it from the propellant used in contemporary firearms. Although it is impossible to know if he was referring to gunpowder. The next possible reference to gunpowder appeared in the year 300 during the Jin dynasty, a Taoist philosopher by the name of Ge Hong wrote down the ingredients of gunpowder in his surviving works, collectively known as the Baopuzi. In 492, Taoist alchemists had noted that saltpeter, one of the most important ingredients in gunpowder, burns with a purple flame and this was probably because some weapons were deemed too onerous or ineffective to deploy. One of the first, if not the first of these weapons was the fire arrow, a later account of this event corroborated with the report and explained that by let fire is meant things like firebombs and fire arrows. Afterwards fire arrows started transitioning to rocket propelled weapons rather than being fired from a bow and these fire arrows were shown to the emperor in 970 when the head of a weapons manufacturing bureau sent Feng Jisheng to demonstrate the gunpowder arrow design, for which he was heavily rewarded. In 1000 a soldier by the name of Tang Fu also demonstrated his own designs of gunpowder arrows, gunpowder pots, and gunpowder caltrops, for which he was richly rewarded as well. One surviving source circa 1023 lists all the working in Kaifeng while another notes that in 1083 the imperial court sent 100,000 gunpowder arrows to one garrison and 250,000 to another
41.
Yuan dynasty
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The Yuan dynasty, officially the Great Yuan, was the empire or ruling dynasty of China established by Kublai Khan, leader of the Mongolian Borjigin clan. His realm was, by point, isolated from the other khanates and controlled most of present-day China and its surrounding areas. Some of the Mongolian Emperors of the Yuan mastered the Chinese language, while others used their native language. The Yuan dynasty is considered both a successor to the Mongol Empire and an imperial Chinese dynasty and it was the khanate ruled by the successors of Möngke Khan after the division of the Mongol Empire. In official Chinese histories, the Yuan dynasty bore the Mandate of Heaven, following the Song dynasty, the dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, yet he placed his grandfather Genghis Khan on the imperial records as the official founder of the dynasty as Taizu. In addition to Emperor of China, Kublai Khan also claimed the title of Great Khan, supreme over the other khanates, the Chagatai, the Golden Horde. As such, the Yuan was also referred to as the Empire of the Great Khan. However, while the claim of supremacy by the Yuan emperors was at times recognized by the khans, their subservience was nominal. In 1271, Kublai Khan imposed the name Great Yuan, establishing the Yuan dynasty, dà Yuán is from the clause 大哉乾元 in the Commentaries on the Classic of Changes section regarding Qián. The counterpart in Mongolian language was Dai Ön Ulus, also rendered as Ikh Yuan Üls or Yekhe Yuan Ulus, in Mongolian, Dai Ön is often used in conjunction with the Yeke Mongghul Ulus, resulting in Dai Ön Yeke Mongghul Ulus, meaning Great Mongol State. Nevertheless, both terms can refer to the khanate within the Mongol Empire directly ruled by Great Khans before the actual establishment of the Yuan dynasty by Kublai Khan in 1271. Genghis Khan united the Mongol and Turkic tribes of the steppes and he and his successors expanded the Mongol empire across Asia. Under the reign of Genghis third son, Ögedei Khan, the Mongols destroyed the weakened Jin dynasty in 1234, Ögedei offered his nephew Kublai a position in Xingzhou, Hebei. Kublai was unable to read Chinese but had several Han Chinese teachers attached to him since his early years by his mother Sorghaghtani and he sought the counsel of Chinese Buddhist and Confucian advisers. Möngke Khan succeeded Ögedeis son, Güyük, as Great Khan in 1251 and he granted his brother Kublai control over Mongol held territories in China. Kublai built schools for Confucian scholars, issued paper money, revived Chinese rituals and he adopted as his capital city Kaiping in Inner Mongolia, later renamed Shangdu. Many Han Chinese and Khitan defected to the Mongols to fight against the Jin, two Han Chinese leaders, Shi Tianze, Liu Heima, and the Khitan Xiao Zhala defected and commanded the 3 Tumens in the Mongol army. Liu Heima and Shi Tianze served Ogödei Khan, Liu Heima and Shi Tianxiang led armies against Western Xia for the Mongols
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Jurchen people
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The Jurchen established the Jin Dynasty, whose empire conquered the Northern Song in 1127, gaining control of most of North China. Jin control over China lasted until their 1234 conquest by the Mongols, the Manchus would later conquer the Ming and establish the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China until their overthrow in 1911. The obscurity of the origin of the Jurchen is reflected in the confusion surrounding their name and it is recorded variously in different languages and different eras. The apparently cognate ethnonyms Sushen and Jizhen are recorded in ancient Chinese geographical works like the Classic of Mountains and Seas, the present name dates back to at least the 10th century, when Balhae was destroyed by the Khitans. It was the source of Fra Mauros Zorça and Marco Polos Ciorcia, vajda considers that the Jurchens name probably derives from the Tungusic words for reindeer people and is cognate with the names of the Orochs of Khabarovsk Province and the Oroks of Sakhalin. In Manchu, this word was often used to describe the serfs—though not slaves—of the free Manchu people. To describe the people who founded the Jin dynasty, they reborrowed the Mongolian name as Jurcit. The initial Khitan form of the name was said to be Lüzhen, at the same time, the Jurchen were interchangeably known as the Nrjo-drik. Aisin Gioro, however, argues that this was a folk etymology. Under the Liao, a distinction was made between the Charted Jurchens who submitted to their rule and the Uncharted Jurchens who lived beyond their frontier. The former were divided into the Jianzhou and Haixi Jurchens and the latter included the Yeren Jurchens, in earlier records, this area was known as the home of the Sushen, the Yilou, the Wuji, and the Mohe or Malgal. Under the Qing and within modern scholarship, some sources stress the continuity between these peoples with the Jurchen but this remains conjectural. The Tungusic Mohe tribes were subjects of the Korean state of Balhae, the Mohe enjoyed eating pork, practiced pig farming extensively, and were mainly sedentary. They used both pig and dog skins for coats and they were predominantly farmers and grew soybean, wheat, millet, and rice in addition to hunting. By the 11th century, the Jurchens had become vassals of the Khitan rulers of the Liao dynasty, the Jin dynasty captured the Northern Song dynastys capital, Bianjing, in 1127. The name of the Jurchens dynasty—the Chinese word for gold—derived from the Gold River in their ancestral homeland, at first, the Jurchen tribesmen were kept in readiness for warfare, but decades of urban and settled life in China eroded their original warlike lifestyle in Manchurian tundra and marshes. Eventually, intermarriage with other groups in China was permitted. The Jin rulers themselves came to follow Confucian norms, by 1215, after losing much territory to the Mongols, the Jurchens moved their capital south from Zhongdu to Kaifeng
43.
Mongols
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The Mongols are an East-Central Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia and Chinas Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. They also live as minorities in other regions of China, as well as in Russia, Mongolian people belonging to the Buryat and Kalmyk subgroups live predominantly in the Russian federal subjects of Buryatia and Kalmykia. The Mongols are bound together by a heritage and ethnic identity. Their indigenous dialects are known as the Mongolian language. The ancestors of the modern-day Mongols are referred to as Proto-Mongols, broadly defined, the term includes the Mongols proper, Buryats, Oirats, the Kalmyk people and the Southern Mongols. The latter comprises the Abaga Mongols, Abaganar, Aohans, Baarins, Gorlos Mongols, Jalaids, Jaruud, Khishigten, Khuuchid, Muumyangan, the designation Mongol briefly appeared in 8th century records of Tang China to describe a tribe of Shiwei. It resurfaced in the late 11th century during the Khitan-ruled Liao dynasty, after the fall of the Liao in 1125, the Khamag Mongols became a leading tribe on the Mongolian Plateau. However, their wars with the Jurchen-ruled Jin dynasty and the Tatar confederation had weakened them, in the thirteenth century, the word Mongol grew into an umbrella term for a large group of Mongolic-speaking tribes united under the rule of Genghis Khan. In various times Mongolic peoples have been equated with the Scythians, the Magog, based on Chinese historical texts the ancestry of the Mongolic peoples can be traced back to the Donghu, a nomadic confederation occupying eastern Mongolia and Manchuria. The identity of the Xiongnu is still debated today, although some scholars maintain that they were proto-Mongols, they were more likely a multi-ethnic group of Mongolic and Turkic tribes. It has been suggested that the language of the Huns was related to the Hünnü, the Donghu are mentioned by Sima Qian as already existing in Inner Mongolia north of Yan in 699–632 BCE along with the Shanrong. Mentions in the Yi Zhou Shu and the Classic of Mountains, the Xianbei chieftain was appointed joint guardian of the ritual torch along with Xiong Yi. These early Xianbei came from the nearby Zhukaigou culture in the Ordos Desert, where maternal DNA corresponds to the Mongol Daur people, the Zhukaigou Xianbei had trade relations with the Shang. In the late 2nd century, the Han dynasty scholar Fu Qian wrote in his commentary Jixie that Shanrong, againm in Inner Mongolia another closely connected core Mongolic Xianbei region was the Upper Xiajiadian culture where the Donghu confederation was centered. After the Donghu were defeated by Xiongnu king Modu Chanyu, the Xianbei, tadun Khan of the Wuhuan was the ancestor of the proto-Mongolic Kumo Xi. The Wuhuan are of the direct Donghu royal line and the New Book of Tang says that in 209 BCE, the Xianbei, however, were of the lateral Donghu line and had a somewhat separate identity, although they shared the same language with the Wuhuan. In 49 CE the Xianbei ruler Bianhe raided and defeated the Xiongnu, killing 2000, the Xianbei reached their peak under Tanshihuai Khan who expanded the vast, but short lived, Xianbei state. Three prominent groups split from the Xianbei state as recorded by the Chinese histories, the Rouran, the Khitan people, besides these three Xianbei groups, there were others such as the Murong, Duan and Tuoba
44.
Nayan (Mongol Prince)
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Nayan was a prince of the Borjigin royal family of the Mongol Empire. He raised a noteworthy and serious rebellion against the Mongolian Khagan, much of what is known of Nayan was recorded by the Venetian traveller Marco Polo. Nayan was a member of a branch of the Mongol royal dynasty. He was either a great-great grandson of Temüge, Genghis Khans youngest full brother, more than one prince named Nayan existed and their identity is confused, the historian Pelliot was of the opinion that the Christian prince Nayan was not a descendant of Belgutai. He gives Nayans father as Ajul, son of Tacar, son of Jibügan, the close male relatives of Genghis Khan were given control of large appanage domains located in Mongolia and neighbouring lands such as Manchuria. Marco Polo describes Nayan as ruling four great provinces, Ciorcia, Cauli, Barscol, located in his domains was a town called Kwang-ning, and because of this Nayan was termed Prince of Kwang-ning. In addition, Nayan was also the foremost leader of the Eastern uluses dominated by the descendants of the brothers of Genghis Khan, Nayan is represented as embodying a traditional Mongol reaction against the increasing sinicisation shown by Kublai Khan and his administration. Nayan adhered to the ancestral nomadic values of the Mongols and was dismayed at Kublais estrangement from these ideals, Nayan conspired with two other descendants of brothers of Genghis Khan, Shiktur and Qadaan, who also held appanages in Eastern Mongolia and Manchuria. He was also in contact with Kublai Khans nephew and inveterate enemy Kaidu, Nayan broke into open rebellion between 14 May and 12 June,1287, and the main battle against Kublai took place around 16 July. Kublai Khan had suspicions, and justifiable fears, of co-operation between Nayan and Kaidu, and sent his leading general Bayan to investigate, one contemporary source relates that Nayan invited Bayan to a feast, but forewarned of a trap, Bayan escaped. Whatever the truth of this incident, Bayan was sent with an army to occupy Karakorum in order to block Kaidu from moving eastward, Kublai himself, despite his advanced age of 72 years, raised another army and rapidly moved against Nayan in Manchuria. The imperial fleet moved great quantities of supplies to the mouth of the Liao River to support the campaign, Nayan was himself encamped on the banks of the same river further inland. Kublai directed his forces from a palanquin mounted on, or drawn by, moving at a rapid pace, and carefully screening his army, Kublai Khans forces surprised Nayan at his encampment. The camp of Nayan was protected by a wagon laager, a field fortification commonly employed by steppe nomads, the khagans army was organised in three divisions, first the Mongols, second the Chinese, and third the Guard and Kipchaks, the latter combined under Kublais direct command. According to Marco Polo, as a Christian, Nayans standard bore the insignia of the cross, the armies faced each other with their great kettle drums beating and horns sounding. The battle began with exchanges of arrows but then developed into one of close-combat with lance, sword, the battle was hard-fought and lasted from morning until mid-day, when Nayans army began to break up. Nayans soldiers started to flee the field, many were cut down, Kublai ordered Nayan to be executed immediately and in secret, in order that no petitions for mercy might arise. Nayan was executed in a manner that avoided the spilling of his blood, he was rolled in a carpet and smothered or thrown up
45.
Western Xia
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The early capital was established at Ningxia. Therefore, its founders and history remained obscure until 20th-century research in the West, the Western Xia occupied the area round the Hexi Corridor, a stretch of the Silk Road, the most important trade route between North China and Central Asia. They made significant achievements in literature, art, music, and architecture, the region was known to the Tanguts and the Tibetans as Minyak. Western Xia is the translation of the states Chinese name. It is derived from its location on the side of the Yellow River, in contrast to the Liao and Jin dynasties on its east. The English term Tangut comes from the Mongolian name for the country, Tangghut, the Tuoba clan of the Xianbei of Tuyuhun founded the Western Xia. After the Tibetans destroyed the Tuyuhun in 670, its famous prince, Tuoba Chici, who controlled the Dangxiang Qiang submitted to the Tang, which bestowed upon him the imperial surname of Li. Towards the end of the Tang, the Tuoba brought troops to suppress the Huang Chao Rebellion on behalf of the Tang court and took control of the Xia State, or Xia Zhou, in northern Shaanxi in 881. After the Tang fell in 907, the Tuoba descendants formally declared resistance against the expanding Northern Song in 982, the foundation of Western Xia goes back to the year 982 under Li Jiqian. However, only in 1038 did the Tangut chieftain Li Yuanhao named himself emperor of Da Xia, the Song court recognised Li Yuanhao as governor but not as emperor, a title it regarded as exclusive to the Song emperor. After Jingzongs death, Yizong became the emperor at the age of two and his mother became the regent and during Yizongs reign, the Liao dynasty launched an invasion of Western Xia, causing Western Xia to submit to the Liao dynasty as a vassal state. After Yizongs death, Huizong was put under house arrest by his mother, the invasion was a failure, and Huizong took back power from his mother. After Chongzong became emperor, his grandmother became regent again and launched invasions of the Liao dynasty, again, both campaigns ended in defeat and Chongzong took direct control of Western Xia. He ended wars with both Liao and Song and focused on domestic reform, in 1115, the Jürchen Jin dynasty was established and the Liao emperor fled to Western Xia in 1123. Chongzong submitted to the Jin demand of the Liao emperor and Western Xia became a state of Jin. Immediately following Renzongs coronation, many natural disasters occurred, yet Renzong worked to stabilize the economy, the kingdom developed a Tangut script to write its own Tibeto-Burman language. Tibetans, Uyghurs, Han Chinese, and Tanguts served as officials in Western Xia, the practice of Tantric Buddhism in Western Xia led to the spread of some sexually related customs. After Renzongs death, Emperor Huanzong of Western Xia came into power, after Genghis Khan unified the northern grasslands of Mongolia, the Xianbei who resided near Mt. Yin self-proclaimed to be White Mongols and joined them
46.
Germanic peoples
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The Germanic peoples are an ethno-linguistic Indo-European group of Northern European origin. They are identified by their use of Germanic languages, which diversified out of Proto-Germanic during the Pre-Roman Iron Age, the term Germanic originated in classical times when groups of tribes living in Lower, Upper, and Greater Germania were referred to using this label by Roman scribes. Tribes referred to as Germanic by Roman authors generally lived to the north, in about 222 BCE, the first use of the Latin term Germani appears in the Fasti Capitolini inscription de Galleis Insvbribvs et Germ. This may simply be referring to Gaul or related people, the term Germani shows up again, allegedly written by Poseidonios, but is merely a quotation inserted by the author Athenaios who wrote much later. Somewhat later, the first surviving detailed discussions of Germani and Germania are those of Julius Caesar, from Caesars perspective, Germania was a geographical area of land on the east bank of the Rhine opposite Gaul, which Caesar left outside direct Roman control. This usage of the word is the origin of the concept of Germanic languages. In other classical authors the concept sometimes included regions of Sarmatia, also, at least in the south there were Celtic peoples still living east of the Rhine and north of the Alps. Caesar, Tacitus and others noted differences of culture which could be found on the east of the Rhine, but the theme of all these cultural references was that this was a wild and dangerous region, less civilised than Gaul, a place that required additional military vigilance. Caesar used the term Germani for a specific tribal grouping in northeastern Belgic Gaul, west of the Rhine. He made clear that he was using the name in the local sense and these are the so-called Germani Cisrhenani, whom Caesar believed to be closely related to the peoples east of the Rhine, and descended from immigrants into Gaul. Caesar described this group of both as Belgic Gauls and as Germani. Gauls are associated with Celtic languages, and the term Germani is associated with Germanic languages, but Caesar did not discuss languages in detail. It has been claimed, for example by Maurits Gysseling, that the names of this region show evidence of an early presence of Germanic languages. The etymology of the word Germani is uncertain, the likeliest theory so far proposed is that it comes from a Gaulish compound of *ger near + *mani men, comparable to Welsh ger near, Old Irish gair neighbor, Irish gar- near, garach neighborly. Another Celtic possibility is that the name meant noisy, cf. Breton/Cornish garm shout, however, here the vowel does not match, nor does the vowel length ). Others have proposed a Germanic etymology *gēr-manni, spear men, cf. Middle Dutch ghere, Old High German Ger, Old Norse geirr. However, the form gēr seems far too advanced phonetically for the 1st century, has a vowel where a short one is expected. The term Germani, therefore, probably applied to a group of tribes in northeastern Gaul who may or may not have spoken a Germanic language
47.
Cividale del Friuli
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Cividale del Friuli is a town and comune in the Province of Udine, part of the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northern Italy. The town 135 metres above sea-level in the foothills of the eastern Alps,15 kilometres by rail from the city of Udine and it is situated on the river Natisone, which forms a picturesque ravine here. Formerly an important regional power, it is today a quiet, Archaeological findings have revealed that the area was first settled by Veneti and Celts. However, in 50 BC, Cividale was founded as a Roman municipium by Julius Caesar with the name ofForum Iulii, not long afterward, its citizens were inscribed in the Roman tribe Scaptia. The municipium was strategically located to defend Roman Italys northeastern frontier, after the destruction of Aquileia and Iulium Carnicum in 452 AD, Forum Iulii became the chief town of the district of Friuli and gave its name to it. In 568 the city was the first major centre occupied by Alboins Lombard invasion of Italy, the city was chosen as first capital of the newly formed Lombard Kingdom, then granted by Alboin to his nephew Gisulf as the capital of a Lombard Duchy of Friuli. After the Lombards were defeated by the Franks, following the last Lombard resistance under Hrodgaud of Friuli Forum Julii changed its name to Civitas Austriae, Charlemagnes Italian City of the East. Under the Carolingian settlement with the Papacy, the patriarchs of Aquileia resided here from 773 to 1031, when returned to Aquileia. This last change of residence was the origin of the antagonism between Cividale and Udine, which was terminated by their surrender to Venice in 1419 and 1420 respectively. When the Patriarchal State of Friuli was founded in 1077, Cividale was chosen as the capital, according to James Burke, a 1331 siege of Cividale was one of the first deployments of what we would now call cannons, in the early form known as a bombard. In 1420 Cividale was annexed to the Republic of Venice, after the Napoleonic Wars Cividale became part of the Lombard-Venetian Kingdom. It was ceded to Kingdom of Italy in 1866, the historical center of the town is dominated by Piazza del Duomo, which is where the National Archaeological Museum of Cividale del Friuli is located. Close by is the Palazzo dei Provveditori Veneti, constructed in 1565, the town is split in two by the Natisone River, which is spanned by the Devils Bridge. The Cathedral was built in the 15th century over a construction built in the 8th century. It is a Venetian Gothic building, finished in the 16th century by architect Pietro Lombardo, the Christian Museum annexed to the Duomo houses outstanding examples of Lombard sculpture. It contains some interesting relics of the art of the 8th century, the cathedral contains an octagonal marble canopy with sculptures in relief, with a font below it belonging to the 8th century, but altered later. The high altar has a silver altar front of 1185. The museum contains various Roman and Lombard antiquities, and works of art in gold, silver, the fine 15th-century Ponte del Diavolo leads to the church of S. Martino, which contains an altar of the 8th century with reliefs executed by order of the Lombard king Ratchis
48.
Joseon
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The Kingdom of Joseon was a Korean kingdom founded by Yi Seonggye that lasted for approximately five centuries, from July 1392 to October 1897. It was officially renamed the Korean Empire in October 1897 and it was founded following the aftermath of the overthrow of Goryeo in what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul, the kingdoms northernmost borders were expanded to the natural boundaries at the Yalu and Tumen Rivers through the subjugation of the Jurchens. Joseon was the last dynasty of Korea and its longest-ruling Confucian dynasty, during its reign, Joseon encouraged the entrenchment of Chinese Confucian ideals and doctrines in Korean society. Neo-Confucianism was installed as the new state ideology. Buddhism was accordingly discouraged and occasionally faced persecutions by the dynasty, Joseon consolidated its effective rule over the territory of current Korea and saw the height of classical Korean culture, trade, science, literature, and technology. After the end of invasions from Manchuria, Joseon experienced a nearly 200-year period of peace, by the late 14th century, the nearly 500-year-old Goryeo established in 918 was tottering, its foundations collapsing from years of war and de facto occupation from the disintegrating Mongol Empire. Following the emergence of the Ming dynasty, the court in Goryeo split into two conflicting factions, the group led by General Yi and the camp led by General Choe. Goryeo claimed to be the successor of the ancient kingdom of Goguryeo, as such, Yi was chosen to lead the attack, however, he revolted and swept back to Gaegyeong and initiated a coup détat, overthrowing King U in favor of his son, Chang of Goryeo. He later killed King U and his son after a failed restoration, in 1392, Yi eliminated Jeong Mong-ju, highly respected leader of a group loyal to Goryeo dynasty, and dethroned King Gongyang, exiling him to Wonju, and before he ascended the throne. The Goryeo Dynasty had come to an end after almost 500 years of rule. After much deliberation, the Taejo Emperor declared the name of the new dynasty to be Joseon, after the ancient Korean state of Gojoseon and he also moved the capital to Hanyang from Kaesong. When the new dynasty was promulgated and officially brought into existence, with Taejos support, Jeong Dojeon kept limiting the royal familys power by prohibiting political involvement of princes and attempting to abolish their private armies. Both sides were aware of each others great animosity and were getting ready to strike first. This incident became known as the First Strife of Princes, one of King Jeongjongs first acts as monarch was to revert the capital to Kaesong, where he is believed to have been considerably more comfortable, away from the toxic power strife. Yet Yi Bangwon retained real power and was soon in conflict with his older brother. Yi Banggan, who yearned for power. In 1400, the tensions between Yi Bangwons faction and Yi Banggans camp escalated into a conflict that came to be known as the Second Strife of Princes
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