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The Ming dynasty founder Zhu Yuanzhang, who declared his reign to be the era of Hongwu, or "Great Martiality," made prolific use of gunpowder weapons for his time. Early Ming military codes stipulated that ideally 10 percent of all soldiers should be gunners. By 1380, twelve years after the Ming dynasty's founding, the Ming army boasted around ...
Earliest recorded instance of volley fire with gunpowder weaponry, by the Ming dynasty. The rest of the world catches up quickly and most of Eurasia acquires gunpowder weapons by the second half of the 14th century. Cannon development in Europe progresses rapidly and by 1374, cannons in Europe are able to breach a city wall for the first time.
Earliest known written formula for gunpowder, from the Wujing Zongyao of 1044 AD.. Gunpowder is the first explosive to have been developed. Popularly listed as one of the "Four Great Inventions" of China, it was invented during the late Tang dynasty (9th century) while the earliest recorded chemical formula for gunpowder dates to the Song dynasty (11th century).
Gunpowder was invented in the 9th century by Chinese alchemists searching for an elixir of immortality. [19] By the time the Song dynasty treatise, Wujing Zongyao (武经总要), was written by Zeng Gongliang and Yang Weide in 1044, the various Chinese formulas for gunpowder held levels of nitrate in the range of 27% to 50%. [20]
The next reference to gunpowder occurred in the year 300 during the Jin dynasty (266–420). [19] A Taoist philosopher by the name of Ge Hong wrote down the ingredients of gunpowder in his surviving works, collectively known as the Baopuzi ("The Master Who Embraces Simplicity").
Chuiwan: Chuiwan, a game similar to the Scottish-derived sport of golf, was first mentioned in China by Song dynasty writer Wei Tai (fl. 1050–1100) in his Dongxuan Records (東軒錄); [125] it was popular amongst men and women in the Song dynasty (960–1279) and Yuan dynasty (1279–1368), and it was popular among urban men in the Ming ...
Gunpowder is corned to strengthen the explosive power of land mines in the Ming dynasty. [30] Cannon projectiles transition from stone to iron ammunition in the Ming dynasty. [31] 1371: 18 May: Ming forces capture Wenzhou [32] July: Ming forces capture Hanzhou [33] 3 August: Ming Sheng surrenders Sichuan to the Ming dynasty [34]
After the rise of the Ming dynasty, China began to lose its lead in gunpowder weapons to the west. [173] This became partially evident when the Manchus' began to rely on the Jesuits to run their cannon foundry, [ 2 ] at a time when European powers had assumed the global lead in gunpowder warfare through their Military Revolution .