GUNPOWDER  , an explosive composed of See also:

• SALTPETRE (from the Lat. sal, salt, Petra, a rock)

saltpetre, See also:

• CHARCOAL

charcoal and See also:

• SULPHUR

sulphur . Very few substances have had a greater effect on See also:

• CIVILIZATION

civilization than gunpowder . Its employment altered the whole See also:

• ART

art of See also:

• WAR
• WAR (O. Eng. werre, Fr. guerre, of Teutonic origin; cf. O.H.G. werran, to confound)

war, and its See also:

• INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence gradually and indirectly permeated and affected the whole fabric of society . Its See also:

• DIRECT

direct effect on the arts of See also:

• PEACE
• PEACE, BREACH OF THE

peace was but slight, and had but a limited range, which could not be compared to the See also:

• MODERN

modern extended employment of high See also:

• EXPLOSIVES

explosives for See also:

• BLASTING

blasting in See also:

• MINING

mining and See also:

• ENGINEERING

engineering See also:

• WORK

work . It is probably quite incorrect to speak of the See also:

• DISCOVERY

discovery of gunpowder . From modern researches it seems more likely and more just to think of it as a thing that has See also:

• DEVELOPED

developed, passing through many stages—mainly of improvement, but some undoubtedly See also:

• RETROGRADE (from the Lat. retro, backwards, gradiri, to go)

retrograde . There really is not sufficient solid See also:

• EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence on which to See also:

• PIN (a doublet with " pen " from Lat. pinna, feather, pinnacle, which is said to contain the same root as irirvs, pine tree, and properly to mean a sharp point or end)

pin down its invention to one See also:

• MAN
• MAN, ISLE OF (anc. Mona)

man . As See also:

• LIEUTENANT

Lieutenant-See also:

• COLONEL (derived either from Lat. column, Fr. colonne, column, or Lat. corona, a crown)

Colonel H . W . L . Hime (Gunpowder and See also:

• AMMUNITION

Ammunition, 1904) says, the invention of gunpowder was impossible until the properties of nearly pure saltpetre had become known . The See also:

• HONOUR (Lat. honos or lwnor, honoris; in English the word was spelled with or without the u indifferently until the 17th century, but during the 18th century it became fashion-able to spell the word " honor "; Johnson's and Webster's Dictionaries stereoty

honour, however, has been associated with two names in particular, Berthold Schwartz, a See also:

• GERMAN
• GERMAN, DUTCH AND SCANDINAVIAN

German See also:

• MONK (O.Eng. munuc; this with the Teutonic forms, e.g. Du. monnik, Ger. Witch, and the Romanic, e.g. Fr. moine, Ital. monacho and Span. monje, are from the Lat. monachus, adaptedfrom Gr. µovaXos, one living alone, a solitary; Own, alone)
• MONK (or MONCK), GEORGE
• MONK, JAMES HENRY (1784-1856)
• MONK, MARIA (c. 1817—1850)

monk, and See also:

• FRIAR (from the Lat. (rater, through the Fr. frere)

Friar See also:

• ROGER (d. 1139)
• ROGER (d. 1181)

Roger See also:

• BACON
• BACON (through the O. Fr. bacon, Low Lat. baco, from a Teutonic word cognate with " back," e.g. O. H. Ger. pacho, M. H. Ger. backe, buttock, flitch of bacon)
• BACON, FRANCIS (BARON VERULAM, VISCOUNT ST ALBANS) (1561-1626)
• BACON, JOHN (1740–1799)
• BACON, LEONARD (1802–1881)
• BACON, ROGER (c. 1214-c. 1294)
• BACON, SIR NICHOLAS (1509-1579)

Bacon .

Of the former Oscar Guttmann writes (Monumenta pulveris pyrii, 1904, p . 6): "Berthold Schwartz was generally considered to be the inventor of gunpowder, and only in See also:

• ENGLAND
• ENGLAND, THE CHURCH OF

England has Roger Bacon's claim been upheld, though there are See also:

• ENGLISH

English writers who have pleaded in favour of Schwartz . Most writers are agreed that Schwartz invented the first See also:

• FIRE (in O. Eng. f j'r; the word is common to West German languages, cf. Dutch vuur, Ger. Feuer; the pre-Teutonic form is seen in Sanskrit pu, pavaka, and Gr. irup; the ultimate origin is usually taken to be a root meaning to purify, cf. Lat. purus)

fire-arms, and as nothing was known of an inventor of gunpowder, it was perhaps considered justifiable to give Schwartz the See also:

• CREDIT (Lat. credere, to believe)

credit thereof . There is some See also:

• AMBIGUITY (Fr. ambiguite, med. Lat. ambiguitas, from Lat. ambiguus, doubtful; ambi, both ways, agere, to drive)

ambiguity as to when Schwartz lived . The See also:

• YEAR

year 1354 is sometimes mentioned as the date of his invention of See also:

• POWDER (through O. Fr. puldre, modern poudre, from Lat. pulvis, pulveris, dust)

powder, and this is also to be inferred from an inscription on the See also:

• MONUMENT (Lat. monumentum or monumentum; from monere, to advise, bring to mind, remind; the German equivalent is Denkmal)

monument to him in See also:

• FREIBURG

Freiburg . But considering there can be no doubt as to the .manufacture in England of gunpowder and See also:

• CANNON (a word common to Romance languages, from the Lat. canna, a reed, tube, with the addition of the augmentative termination -on, -one)

cannon in 1344, that we have See also:

• AUTHENTIC (from Gr. aOO 'rns, one who does a thing himself)

authentic See also:

• INFORMATION (from Lat. informare, to give shape or form to, to represent, describe)

information of guns in See also:

• FRANCE
• FRANCE, ANATOLE (1844– )

France in 1338 and in See also:

• FLORENCE
• FLORENCE (Ital. Firenze, Lat. Florentia)

Florence in 1326, and that the See also:

• OXFORD
• OXFORD, EARLS OF
• OXFORD, EDWARD DE VERE, 17TH EARL
• OXFORD, JOHN DE VERE, 13TH EARL OF (1443-1513)
• OXFORD, PROVISIONS OF
• OXFORD, ROBERT DE VERE, 9TH EARL OF (1362-1392)
• OXFORD, ROBERT HARLEY, 1ST

Oxford MS . De officiis regum of 1325 gives an See also:

• ILLUSTRATION

illustration of a See also:

• GUN

gun, Berthold Schwartz must have lived See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long before 1354 to have been the inventor of gunpowder or guns." In See also:

• GERMANY
• GERMANY (Ger. Deutschland)

Germany also there were powder-See also:

• WORKS

works at See also:

• AUGSBURG
• AUGSBURG, CONFESSION OF
• AUGSBURG, WAR OF THE LEAGUE OF

Augsburg in 1340, in See also:

• SPANDAU

Spandau in 1344, and See also:

• LIEGNITZ

Liegnitz in 1348 . Roger Bacon, in his De mirabili potestate artis et naturae (1242), makes the most important communication on the See also:

• HISTORY

history of gunpowder . Reference is made to an explosive mixture as known before his See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time and employed for " diversion, producing a See also:

• NOISE (a word of doubtful origin; O. Fr. nogse or nose; Prov. nausa, which points to Lat. nausea, sickness, as the origin; others take Lat. noxia, harm, as the source)

noise like See also:

• THUNDER

thunder and flashes like See also:

• LIGHTNING

lightning." In one passage Bacon speaks of saltpetre as a violent explosive, but there is no doubt that he knew it was not a self-explosive substance, but only so when mixed with other substances, as appears from the statement in De secretis operibus artis et naturae, printed at See also:

• HAMBURG

Hamburg in 1618, that " from saltpetre and other ingredients we are able to make a fire that shall See also:

• BURN, RICHARD (1709-1785)

burn at any distance we please." A See also:

• GREAT

great See also:

• PART

part of his three chapters, 9, Io, 11, long appeared without meaning until the anagrammatic nature of the sentences was realized . The words of this See also:

• ANAGRAM (Gr. ava, back, and ypa(beiv, to write)

anagram are (See also:

• CHAP

chap . II): " See also:

• ITEM (a Latin adverb meaning " also," " likewise ")

Item ponderis totum 30 sed tamen salis petrae luru vopo vir can utri et sulphuris; et sic facies tonitruum et coruscationem, si scias artificium . Videas tamen utrum loquar aenigmate See also:

• AUT

aut secundum veritatem." Hime, in his See also:

• CHAPTER (a shortened form of chapiter, a word still used in architecture for a capital; derived from O. Fr. chapitre, Lat. capitellum, diminutive of caput, head)

chapter on the origin of gunpowder, discusses these chapters at length, and gives, omitting the anagram, the See also:

• TRANSLATION

translation: " Let the See also:

• TOTAL

total See also:

• WEIGHT

weight of the ingredients be 30, however, of saltpetre .

. . of sulphur; and with such a mixture you will produce a See also:

• BRIGHT, JOHN (1811-188g)
• BRIGHT, SIR CHARLES TILSTON

bright flash and a thundering noise, if you know the See also:

• TRICK

trick . You may find (by actual experiment) whether I am See also:

• WRITING
• WRITING (the verbal noun of " to write," O. Eng. writan, to inscribe)

writing See also:

• RIDDLES (A.S. raedan, to interpret)

riddles to you or the See also:

• PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain truth." The anagram reads, according to Hime, " salis petrae r(ecipe) vii part(es), v nov(ellae) corul(i), v et sulphuris (take seven parts of saltpetre, five of See also:

• YOUNG
• YOUNG, A
• YOUNG, ARTHUR (1741-1820)
• YOUNG, BRIGHAM (1801-1877)
• YOUNG, CHARLES MAYNE (1777–1856)
• YOUNG, EDWARD (1683–1765)
• YOUNG, JAMES (1811-1883)
• YOUNG, THOMAS (1773-1829)

young See also:

• HAZEL (0. Eng. hresell; cf. Ger. Hasel, Swed. and Dan. Kassel, &c.,; Fr. noiselier, coudrier)

hazel-See also:

• WOOD, ANTHONY A2 (1632-1695)
• WOOD, JOHN GEORGE (1827—1889)
• WOOD, MRS HENRY [ELLEN] (1814—1887)
• WOOD, SEARLES VALENTINE (1798—188o)

wood, and five of sulphur) . Hime then goes on to show that Bacon was in See also:

• POSSESSION
• POSSESSION (Lat. possessio, possidere, to possess)

possession of an explosive which was a considerable advance on See also:

• MERE
• MERE, ADALBERT (1838-1909)

mere incendiary compositions . Bacon does not appear to have been aware of the projecting See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power of gunpowder . He knew that it exploded and that perhaps See also:

• PEOPLE

people might be blown up or frightened by it; more cannot be said . The behaviour of small quantities of any explosive is hardly ever indicative of its behaviour in large quantities and especially when under confinement . Hime is of See also:

• OPINION (Lat. opinio, from opinari, to think)

opinion that Bacon blundered upon gunpowder whilst playing with some incendiary See also:

• COMPOSITION
• COMPOSITION (Lat. compositio, from componere, to put together)

composition, such as those mentioned by See also:

• MARCUS

Marcus Graecus and others, in which ' These words were emended by some authors to read luru mope can ubre, the letters of which can be arranged to give pulvere See also:

• CAR (Late Lat. carra)

car. bonum . he employed his comparatively pure saltpetre instead of crude nitrum . It has been suggested that Bacon derived his knowledge of these fiery mixtures from the MS . See also:

• LIBER

Liber ignium, ascribed to Marcus Graecus, in the See also:

• NATIONAL

National Library in See also:

• PARIS
• PARIS (also called ALEXANDROS)
• PARIS, ALEXIS PAULIN (1800-x881)
• PARIS, BRUNO PAULIN GASTON (1839-1903)
• PARIS, FRANCOIS DE (169o-1727)
• PARIS, LOUIS PHILIPPE ALBERT
• PARIS, TREATIES OF (1814-1815)

Paris (See also:

• DUTENS, LOUIS (1730-1812)

Dutens, Enquiry into Origin of Discoveries attributed to Moderns) . Certainly this Marcus Graecus appears to have known of some incendiary composition containing the gunpowder ingredients, but it was not gunpowder . Hime seems to doubt the existence of any such See also:

• PERSON, OFFENCES AGAINST THE

person as Marcus Graecus, as he says: " The Liber ignium was written from first to last in the See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period of See also:

• LITERARY

literary forgeries and pseudographs .

. . and we may reasonably conclude that Marcus Graecus is as unreal as the imaginary See also:

• GREEK
• GREEK, ETRUSCAN AND

Greek See also:

• ORIGINAL

original of the See also:

• TRACT (from Lat. tractare, to treat of a matter, through Provencal tractat and Ital. trattato)

tract which bears his name." Albertus See also:

• MAGNUS, HEINRICH GUSTAV (1802-1870)

Magnus in the De mirabilibus mundi repeats some of the receipts given in Marcus Graecus, and several other writers give receipts for Greek fire, rockets, &c . Dutens gives many passages in his work, above-named, from old authors in support of his view that a composition of the nature of gunpowder was not unknown to the ancients . Hime's elaborate arguments go to show that these compositions could only have been of the incendiary type and not real explosives . His arguments seem to hold See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good as regards not only the Greeks but also the See also:

• ARABS

Arabs, See also:

• HINDUS

Hindus and See also:

• CHINESE, JAPANESE AND

Chinese (see also See also:

• FIREWORKS

FIREWORKS) . There seems no doubt that incendiary compositions, some perhaps containing See also:

• NITRE

nitre, mostly, however, simply combustible substances as sulphur, See also:

• NAPHTHA

naphtha, resins, &c., were employed and projected both for See also:

• DEFENCE
• DEFENCE (Lat. defendere, to defend)

defence and offence, but they were projected or blown by engines and not by themselves . It is quite inconceivable that a real propelling explosive should have been known in the time of See also:

• ALEXANDER
• ALEXANDER (1461-1506)
• ALEXANDER (ALEXANDER OF BATTENBERG) (1857-1893)
• ALEXANDER (ALEXANDER OsxENOVici) (1876-1903)
• ALEXANDER, ARCHIBALD (1772—1851)
• ALEXANDER, FRANCIS (1800—1881)
• ALEXANDER, GEORGE (1858— )
• ALEXANDER, JOHN WHITE (1856- )
• ALEXANDER, JOSEPH ADDISON (18o9—186o)
• ALEXANDER, SIR JAMES EDWARD (1803—1885)
• ALEXANDER, WILLIAM (1824— )
• ALEXANDER, WILLIAM LINDSAY (1808—1884)

Alexander or much later, and not have immediately taken its proper See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place . In a chapter discussing this question of explosives amongst the Hindus, Hime says: " It is needless to enlarge the See also:

• LIST (O.E. lisle, a Teutonic word, cf. Dut. lust, Ger. Leiste, adapted in Ital. lista and Fr. lisle)
• LIST, FRIEDRICH (1789-1846)

list of quotations: incendiaries pursued much the, same course in Upper See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India as in See also:

• GREECE

Greece and See also:

• ARABIA

Arabia." No trustworthy evidence of an explosive in India is to be found until the 21st of See also:

• APRIL

April 1526, the date of the decisive See also:

• BATTLE

battle of See also:

• PANIPAT

Panipat, in which See also:

• IBRAHIM

Ibrahim, See also:

• SULTAN (an Arabic word meaning " victorious " or " a ruler," sultat, dominion)

sultan of See also:

• DELHI, DEHLI

Delhi, was killed and his See also:

• ARMY
• ARMY (from Fr. armee, Lat. armata)

army routed by See also:

• BABER

Baber the See also:

• MOGUL, MOCHAL, or MIGHAL

Mogul, who possessed both great and small fire-arms . As regards also the crusader period (1097–1291), se See also:

• STRANGE, SIR ROBERT (1721-1792)

strange and deadly an See also:

• AGENT (from Lat. agere, to act)

agent of destruction as gunpowder could not possibly have been employed in the See also:

• FIELD (a word common to many West German languages, cf. Ger. Feld, Dutch veld, possibly cognate with O.E. f olde, the earth, and ultimately with root of the Gr. irAaror, broad)
• FIELD, CYRUS WEST (1819-1892)
• FIELD, DAVID DUDLEY (18o5-1894)
• FIELD, EUGENE (1850-1895)
• FIELD, FREDERICK (18o1—1885)
• FIELD, HENRY MARTYN (1822-1907)
• FIELD, JOHN (1782—1837)
• FIELD, MARSHALL (183 1906)
• FIELD, NATHAN (1587—1633)
• FIELD, STEPHEN JOHNSON (1816-1899)
• FIELD, WILLIAM VENTRIS FIELD, BARON (1813-1907)

field without the full know-ledge of both parties, yet no historian, See also:

• CHRISTIAN
• CHRISTIAN, WILLIAM (1608-1663)

Christian or Moslem, alludes to an explosive of any See also:

• KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind, while all of them carefully See also:

• RECORD (Lat. recordari, to recall to mind, from cor, heart or mind)

record the use of incendiaries . The employment of rockets and " wildfire " incendiary composition seems undoubtedly of very old date in India, but the names given to pieces of See also:

• ARTILLERY (the O. Fr. artiller, to equip with engines of war, probably comes from Late Lat. articulum, dim. of ars, art, cf. " engine " from ingenium, or of artus, joint)

artillery under the Mogul conqueror of Hindustan point to a See also:

• EUROPEAN

European, or at least to a See also:

• TURKISH

Turkish origin, and it is quite certain that Europeans were retained in the service of See also:

• AKBAR, AKHBAR

Akbar and See also:

• AURANGZEB (1618-1707)

Aurangzeb . The composition of See also:

• PRESENT

present See also:

• DAY (O. Eng. dreg, Ger. Tag; according to the New English Dictionary, " in no way related to the Lat. dies")
• DAY, JOHN (1574-1640?)
• DAY, THOMAS (1748-1789)

day Chinese gunpowder is almost identical with that employed in See also:

• EUROPE

Europe, so that in all See also:

• PROBABILITY (Lat. probabilis, probable or credible)

probability the knowledge of it was obtained from Western See also:

• SOURCES

sources . In the writings of Bacon there is no mention of guns or the use of powder as a propellant, but merely as an explosive and destructive power . Owing perhaps to this obscurity See also:

• HANGING

hanging over the See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early history of gunpowder, its employment as a propelling agent has been ascribed to the See also:

• MOORS (Lat. Mauri; Gr. Mavpot, dark men)
• MOORS, KABYLES, MZABITES

Moors or See also:

• SARACENS

Saracens .

J . A . See also:

• CONDE
• CONDE, LOUIS DE BOURBON, PRINCE
• CONDE, LOUIS II
• CONDE, PRINCES OF

Conde Wistaria de la dominacion de los Arabes en Espana) states that See also:

• ISMAIL (1830-1895)

Ismail See also:

• BEN (from Old Eng. bennan, within)

Ben Firaz, See also:

• KING
• KING (O. Eng. cyning, abbreviated into cyng, cing; cf. O. H. G. chun- kuning, chun- kunig, M.H.G. kiinic, kiinec, kiinc, Mod. Ger. Konig, O. Norse konungr, kongr, Swed. konung, kung)
• KING [OF OCKHAM], PETER KING, 1ST BARON (1669-1734)
• KING, CHARLES WILLIAM (1818-1888)
• KING, CLARENCE (1842–1901)
• KING, EDWARD (1612–1637)
• KING, EDWARD (1829–1910)
• KING, HENRY (1591-1669)
• KING, RUFUS (1755–1827)
• KING, THOMAS (1730–1805)
• KING, WILLIAM (1650-1729)
• KING, WILLIAM (1663–1712)

king of See also:

• GRANADA
• GRANADA, LUIS DE (1504-1588)

Granada, who in 1325 besieged Boza, had among his See also:

• MACHINES

machines " some that See also:

• CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast globes of fire," but there is not the least evidence that these were guns . The first trustworthy document relative to the use of gun-powder in Europe, a document still in existence, and bearing date See also:

• FEBRUARY

February 11, 1326, gives authority to the See also:

• COUNCIL (Lat. concilium, from cum, together, and the root cal, to call)

council of twelve of Florence and others to appoint persons to superintend the manufacture of cannons of See also:

• BRASS
• BRASS (O. Eng. braes)

brass and See also:

• IRON [symbol Fe, atomic weight 55.85 (0=16)]

iron balls, for the defence of the territory, &c., of the See also:

• REPUBLIC (Lat. respublica, a commonweal or common-wealth)

republic . See also:

• JOHN
• JOHN (1167–1216)
• JOHN (1290-c. 1320)
• JOHN (1296-1346)
• JOHN (1371–1419)
• JOHN (1468-1532)
• JOHN (1801-1873)
• JOHN (Heb. llni')
• JOHN (ZAPOLYA) (1487-1540)
• JOHN, 4TH MARQUESS OF TWEEDDALE (c. 1695-1762)
• JOHN, DON (1545-1578)
• JOHN, DON (1629–1679)
• JOHN, GOSPEL OF ST
• JOHN, or HAYS (1513–1571)
• JOHN, THE APOSTLE
• JOHN, THE EPISTLES OF

John See also:

• BARBOUR, JOHN (? 1316-1395)

Barbour, See also:

• ARCH
• ARCH, JOSEPH (1826– )

arch-See also:

• DEACON (Gr. S&& ovos, minister, servant)

deacon of See also:

• ABERDEEN
• ABERDEEN, GEORGE GORDON, 1ST EARL O (1637-1720)
• ABERDEEN, GEORGE HAMILTON GORDON, 4TH EARL

Aberdeen, writing in 1375, states that cannons (crakys of war) were employed in See also:

• EDWARD

Edward III.'s invasion of See also:

• SCOTLAND
• SCOTLAND, CHURCH OF
• SCOTLAND, EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF

Scotland in 1327 . An See also:

• INDENTURE (through 0. Fr. endenture from a legal Latin term indent-ura, indentare, to cut into teeth, to give a jagged edge, in modurn dentium, like teeth)

indenture first published by See also:

• SIR

Sir N . H . See also:

• NICOLAS
• NICOLAS, SIR NICHOLAS HARRIS (1799–1848)

Nicolas in his History of the Royal See also:

• NAVY

Navy (See also:

• LONDON

London, 1846), and again by Lieutenant-Colonel H . Brackenbury (Proc . R.A . Inst., 1865), stated to be 1338, contains references to small cannon as among the stores of the See also:

• TOWER (Lat. turris; Fr. tour, clocker; Ital. torre; Ger. Thurm)

Tower, and also mentions " un See also:

• PETIT, SIR DINSHAW MANECKJI, BART

petit barrell de gonpoudre le quart' plein." If authentic, this is possibly the first mention of gunpowder as such in England, but some doubts have been thrown upon the date of this MS . From a contemporary document in the National Library in Paris it seems that in the same year (1338) there existed in the marine See also:

• ARSENAL

arsenal at See also:

• ROUEN

Rouen an iron weapon called pot de See also:

• FEU

feu, for propelling bolts, together with some saltpetre and sulphur to make powder for the same .

Preserved in the Record See also:

• OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

Office in London are See also:

• TRUST

trust-worthy accounts from the year 1345 of the See also:

• PURCHASE

purchase of ingredients for making powder, and of the See also:

• SHIPPING

shipping of cannon to France . In 1346 Edward III. appears to have ordered all available saltpetre and sulphur to be bought up for him . In the first year of See also:

• RICHARD
• RICHARD (d. 1184)
• RICHARD, FRANCOIS MARIE BENJAMIN (18,9-1908)
• RICHARD, HENRY (1812-1888)
• RICHARD, ST

Richard II . (1377) See also:

• THOMAS
• THOMAS (c. 1654-1720)
• THOMAS (d. 110o)
• THOMAS, ARTHUR GORING (1850-1892)
• THOMAS, CHARLES LOUIS AMBROISE (1811-1896)
• THOMAS, GEORGE (c. 1756-1802)
• THOMAS, GEORGE HENRY (1816-187o)
• THOMAS, ISAIAH (1749-1831)
• THOMAS, PIERRE (1634-1698)
• THOMAS, SIDNEY GILCHRIST (1850-1885)
• THOMAS, ST
• THOMAS, THEODORE (1835-1905)
• THOMAS, WILLIAM (d. 1554)

Thomas Norbury was ordered to buy, amongst other munitions, sulphur, saltpetre and charcoal, to be sent to the See also:

• CASTLE
• CASTLE (Lat. castellum, a fort, diminutive of castra, a camp; Fr. chateau and chdtel)

castle of See also:

• BREST

Brest . In 1414 See also:

• HENRY
• HENRY (1129-1195)
• HENRY (c. 1108-1139)
• HENRY (c. 1174–1216)
• HENRY (Fr. Henri; Span. Enrique; Ger. Heinrich; Mid. H. Ger. Heinrich and Heimrich; O.H.G. Haimi- or Heimirih, i.e. " prince, or chief of the house," from O.H.G. heim, the Eng. home, and rih, Goth. reiks; compare Lat. rex " king "—" rich," therefore " mig
• HENRY, EDWARD LAMSON (1841– )
• HENRY, JAMES (1798-1876)
• HENRY, JOSEPH (1797-1878)
• HENRY, MATTHEW (1662-1714)
• HENRY, PATRICK (1736–1799)
• HENRY, PRINCE OF BATTENBERG (1858-1896)
• HENRY, ROBERT (1718-1790)
• HENRY, VICTOR (1850– )
• HENRY, WILLIAM (1795-1836)

Henry V. ordered that no gunpowder should be taken out of the See also:

• KINGDOM

kingdom without See also:

• SPECIAL

special See also:

• LICENCE (through the French from Lat. licentia, licere, to be lawful)

licence, and in the same year ordered twenty pipes of See also:

• WILLOW (Salix)

willow charcoal and other articles for the use of the guns . The manufacture of gunpowder seems to have been carried on as a See also:

• CROWN

crown See also:

• MONOPOLY (Gr. govomeXla or govoircaXwv, exclusive sale, from govds, alone, and irwXeiv, to sell)

monopoly about the time of See also:

• ELIZABETH
• ELIZABETH (1533-1603)
• ELIZABETH (1596-1662)
• ELIZABETH (1635–1650)
• ELIZABETH [ AMELIE EUGENIE ] (1837—1898)
• ELIZABETH [1lisabeth Philippine Marie Helene of France] (1764—1794)
• ELIZABETH [PAULINE ELIZABETH OTTILIE LOUISE] (1843– )
• ELIZABETH [PETROVNA] (1709-1762), EMPRESS
• ELIZABETH, SAINT (1207-1231)

Elizabeth, and regulations respecting gunpowder and nitre were made about 1623 (See also:

• JAMES
• JAMES (Gr. 'IlrKw,l3or, the Heb. Ya`akob or Jacob)
• JAMES (JAMES FRANCIS EDWARD STUART) (1688-1766)
• JAMES, 2ND EARL OF DOUGLAS AND MAR(c. 1358–1388)
• JAMES, DAVID (1839-1893)
• JAMES, EPISTLE OF
• JAMES, GEORGE PAYNE RAINSFOP
• JAMES, HENRY (1843— )
• JAMES, JOHN ANGELL (1785-1859)
• JAMES, THOMAS (c. 1573–1629)
• JAMES, WILLIAM (1842–1910)
• JAMES, WILLIAM (d. 1827)

James I.) . Powder-See also:

• MILLS, JOHN (d. 1736)
• MILLS, ROGER QUARLES (1832– )

mills were probably in existence at See also:

• WALTHAM

Waltham See also:

• ABBEY (Lat. abbatia; from Syr. abba, father)
• ABBEY, EDWIN AUSTIN (1852– )

Abbey about the See also:

• MIDDLE

middle or towards the end of the 16th See also:

• CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century . Ingredients and their See also:

• ACTION

Action.—Roger Bacon in his anagram gives the first real See also:

• RECIPE

recipe for gunpowder, viz . (according to Hime, ch. xii.) saltpetre 41.2, charcoal 29.4, sulphur 29.4 . Dr John Arderne of See also:

• NEWARK
• NEWARK (NEWARK-UPON-TRENT)
• NEWARK, DAVID LESLIE, LORD (1601-1682)

Newark, who began to practise about 1350 and was later surgeon to Henry IV., gives a recipe (See also:

• SLOANE, SIR HANS (1660-1753)

Sloane See also:

• MSS

MSS . 335, 795), saltpetre 66.6, charcoal 22.2, sulphur 11.1, " which are to be thoroughly mixed on a See also:

• MARBLE (from Lat. marmor, Gr. pApµapos, shining stone)

marble and then sifted through a See also:

• CLOTH

cloth." This powder is nominally of the same composition as one given in a MS. of Marcus Graecus, but the saltpetre of this See also:

• FORMULA
• FORMULA (Lat. diminutive of forma, shape, pattern, &c., especially used of rules of judicial procedure)

formula by Marcus Graecus was undoubtedly answerable for the difference in behaviour of the two compositions . Roger Bacon had not only refined and obtained pure nitre, but had appreciated the importance of thoroughly mixing the components of the powder .

Most if not all the early powder was a " loose " mixture of the three ingredients, and the most important step in connexion with the development of gunpowder was undoubtedly the introduction of wet mixing or " incorporating." Whenever this was done, the improvement in the product must have been immediately evident . In the See also:

• DAMP

damp or wetted See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state pressure could be applied with See also:

• COMPARATIVE

comparative safety during the mixing . The loose powder mixture came to be called " See also:

• SERPENTINE

serpentine "; after wet mixing it was more or less granulated or corned and was known as " corned "powder . Corned powder seems to have been gradually introduced . It is mentioned in the Fire See also:

• BOOK

Book of See also:

• CONRAD (d. 955)
• CONRAD, JOSEPH (1856– )
• CONRAD, or KONRAD (M. H. Ger. Kuonrdl, i.e. " keen in counsel," Lat. Conradus, It. Corrado, cf. the A.S. Ccenred)

Conrad von Schongau (in 1429), and was used for See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand-guns in England long before 156o . It would seem that corned powder was used for hand-guns or small arms in the 15th century, but cannon were not made strong enough to withstand its See also:

• EXPLOSION

explosion for quite another century (Hime) . • According to the same writer, in the period 1250-1450, when serpentine only was used, one powder could differ from another in the proportions of the ingredients; in the modern period—say 17oo–1886—the powders in use (in each state)differed only as a See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general See also:

• RULE

rule in the See also:

• SIZE

size of the See also:

• GRAIN (derived through the French from Lat. granum, seed, from an Aryan root meaning " to wear down," which also appears in the common Teutonic word " corn ")

grain, whilst during the transition period—1450–1700—they generally differed both in composition and size of grain . Corned or grained powder was adopted in France in 1525, and in 1540 the See also:

• FRENCH
• FRENCH, DANIEL CHESTER (1850– )
• FRENCH, NICHOLAS (1604-1678)

French utilized an observation that large-grained powder was the best for cannon, and restricted the manufacture to three sizes of grain or See also:

• CORN (a common Teutonic word; cf. Lat. granum, seed, grain)
• CORN (fromm Lat. corms, horn)

corn, possibly of the same composition . Early in the 18th century two or three sizes of grain and powder of one composition appear to have become See also:

• COMMON

common . The composition of English powder seems to have settled down to 75 nitre, 15 charcoal, and 10 sulphur, somewhere about the middle of the 18th century . The composition of gunpowders used in different countries at different times is illustrated in the following tables: English Powders (Hime) . 1 1250 .

1350 . 156o . 1647 . 1670 . 1742 . 1781 . Saltpetre . 41.2 66.6 50.0 66.6 71.4 75•o 75.0 Charcoal . 29'4 22'2 33.3 16.6 14.3 12.5 15.0 Sulphur . 29.4 11.1 16.6 16.6 14.3 12.5 10.01 1 This represents the composition of English powder at present, and no doubt it has remained the same for a longer time than We above date indicates . See also:

• FOREIGN

Foreign Powders (Hime) . France .

See also:

• SWEDEN
• SWEDEN [Sverige]
• SWEDEN, NORWAY AND

Sweden . Germany . See also:

• DENMARK
• DENMARK (Danmark)

Denmark . France . Sweden . Germany . 1338 . 1560 . 1595 . 1608 . 1650 . 1697 .

1882 . Saltpetre . 50 66.6 52.2 68.3 75.6 73 78 Charcoal . ? 16.6 26.1 23.2 13.6 17 19 Sulphur 25 16.6 21.7 8.5 10.8 to 31 1 See also:

• BROWN
• BROWN, CHARLES BROCKDEN (1771-181o)
• BROWN, FORD MADOX (1821-1893)
• BROWN, FRANCIS (1849- )
• BROWN, GEORGE (1818-188o)
• BROWN, HENRY KIRKE (1814-1886)
• BROWN, JACOB (1775–1828)
• BROWN, JOHN (1715–1766)
• BROWN, JOHN (1722-1787)
• BROWN, JOHN (1735–1788)
• BROWN, JOHN (1784–1858)
• BROWN, JOHN (1800-1859)
• BROWN, JOHN (1810—1882)
• BROWN, JOHN GEORGE (1831— )
• BROWN, ROBERT (1773-1858)
• BROWN, SAMUEL MORISON (1817—1856)
• BROWN, SIR GEORGE (1790-1865)
• BROWN, SIR JOHN (1816-1896)
• BROWN, SIR WILLIAM, BART
• BROWN, THOMAS (1663-1704)
• BROWN, THOMAS (1778-1820)
• BROWN, THOMAS EDWARD (1830-1897)
• BROWN, WILLIAM LAURENCE (1755–1830)

Brown or coco-powder for large charges in guns . The charcoal is not burnt See also:

• BLACK
• BLACK, ADAM (1784-1874)
• BLACK, JEREMIAH SULLIVAN (1810–1883)
• BLACK, WILLIAM (1841-1898)

black but roasted until brown, and is made from some variety of See also:

• STRAW

straw, not wood . When reasonably pure, none of the ingredients of gunpowder absorbs any material quantity of moisture from the See also:

• ATMOSPHERE (Gr. fir µ6r, vapour; orkaipa, a sphere)

atmosphere, and the nitre only is a soluble substance . It seems extremely probable that for a long period the three substances were simply mixed dry, indeed sometimes kept See also:

• SEPARATE

separate and mixed just before being required; the consequence must have been that, with every care as to weighing out, the proportions of any given quantity would alter on See also:

• CARRIAGE

carriage . Saltpetre is considerably heavier than sulphur or charcoal, and would tend to separate out towards the bottom of the containing See also:

• VESSEL (O. Fr. vaissel, from a rare Lat. vascellum, dim. of vas, vase, urn)

vessel if subjected to jolting or vibration . When pure there can only be one kind of saltpetre or sulphur, because they are chemical individuals, but charcoal is not . Its composition, See also:

• RATE

rate of burning, &c., depend not only on the nature of the woody material from which it is made, but quite as much on the temperature and time of See also:

• HEATING

heating employed in the making . The See also:

• WOODS, LEONARD (1774-1854)
• WOODS, SIR ALBERT (1816-1904)

woods from which it is made contain See also:

• CARBON (symbol C, atomic weight 12)

carbon, See also:

• HYDROGEN [symbol H, atomic weight x-oo8 (0=16)]

hydrogen and See also:

• OXYGEN (symbol 0, atomic weight 16)

oxygen, and the two latter are never thoroughly expelled in charcoal-making . If they were, the resulting substance would be of no use for gun-powder .

1-3% of hydrogen and 8-15% of oxygen generally remain in charcoals suitable for gunpowder . A good See also:

• DEAL

deal of the fieriness and violence of explosion of a gunpowder depends on the mode of burning of the charcoal as well as on the wood from which it is made . Properties of Ingredients.—Charcoal is the See also:

• CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief combustible in powder . It must burn freely, leaving as little ash or See also:

• RESIDUE (through the French, from the Lat. residuum, a remainder, from residere, to remain)

residue as possible; it must be friable, and grind into a non-gritty powder . The sources from which powder charcoal is made are See also:

• DOGWOOD (i.e. wood of the dog-tree; referred by the New English Dictionary to " dog," apparently as indicating inferiority; but by others connected with " (lag," " dagger," and by Prior with A.S. dolt, a brooch-pin)

dogwood (Rhamnus frangula), willow (Salix See also:

• ALBA

alba), and See also:

• ALDER

alder (Betula alnus) . Dogwood is mainly used for small-See also:

• ARM (a common Teutonic word; the Indo-European root is ar, to join or fit; cf. the Lat. armus, shoulder, and the plural word arma, weapons, Gr. apphs, joint, and the reduplicated apapilKSV, to join)

arm powders . Powders made from dogwood charcoal burn more rapidly than those from willow, &c . The wood after cutting is stripped of bark and allowed to See also:

• SEASON (0. Fr. seson, seison, mod. saison, Lat. satio, sowing time, the spring, from serere, to sow; in Late Lat. the word is found with its present meaning, the spring being considered as particularly the season of the year)

season for two or three years . It is then picked to See also:

• UNIFORM

uniform size and charred in cylindrical iron cases or slips, which can be introduced into slightly larger cylinders set in a See also:

• FURNACE

furnace . The slips are provided with openings for the See also:

• ESCAPE (in mid. Eng. eschape or escape, from the O. Fr. eschapper, modern echapper, and escaper, low Lat. escapium, from ex, out of, and cappa, cape, cloak; cf. for the sense development the Gr. iichueoOat, literally to put off one's clothes, hence to sli

escape of gases . The rate of heating as well as the See also:

• ABSOLUTE (Lat. absolvere, to loose, set free)

absolute temperature attained have an effect on the product, a slow rate of heating yielding more charcoal, and a high temperature reducing the hydrogen and oxygen in the final product . When heated for seven See also:

• HOURS, CANONICAL

hours to about 800° C. to 900° C. the remaining hydrogen and oxygen amount to about 2 % and 12 % respectively .

The time of charring is as a rule from 5 to 7 hours . The slips are then removed from the furnace and placed in a larger iron vessel, where they are kept comparatively See also:

• AIR (from an Indo-European root meaning " breathe," " blow ")
• AIR, or ASBEN

air-tight until quite See also:

• COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold . The charcoal is then sorted, and stored for some time before grinding . The charcoal is ground, and the powder sifted on a rotating See also:

• REEL (O.E. hreol, glossed by the Med. Lat. alibrum in .lelfric's Glossary, c. 1o5o; the word is of unknown origin; it does not appear in cognate languages, and Celtic forms such as Gaelic ruidhil are from English)

reel or See also:

• CYLINDER (Gr. KvAwSpos, from KvXivaety, to roll)

cylinder of See also:

• FINE

fine mesh See also:

• COPPER (symbol Cu, atomic weight 63.1, H=1, or 63.6, O = 16)

copper-See also:

• WIRE (A.S. wir, a wire; cf. Swed. vire, to twist, M.H.G. wiere, a gold ornament, Lat. viriae, armlets, ultimately from the root wi, to twist, bind)

wire See also:

• GAUZE

gauze . The sifted powder is again stored for some time before use in closed iron vessels . Sicilian sulphur is most generally employed for gunpowder, and for See also:

• COMPLETE

complete See also:

• PURIFICATION

purification is first distilled and then melted and cast into moulds . It is afterwards ground into a fine powder and sifted as in the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case of the charcoal . See also:

• POTASSIUM [symbol K (from kalium), atomic weight 39.114 0=16)]

Potassium nitrate is eminently suitable as an oxygen-provider, not being deliquescent . Nitrates are continually being produced in See also:

• SURFACE

surface soils, &c., by the oxidation of nitrogenous substances . Nitric and nitrous acids are also produced by electric discharges through the atmosphere, and these are found eventually as nitrates in soils, &c . Nitre is soluble in See also:

• WATER

water, and much more so in hot than in cold . Crude nitre, obtained from soils or other sources, is purified by recrystallization .

The crude material is dissolved almost to saturation in boiling water: on filtering and then cooling this liquor to about 30° C. almost pure nitre crystallizes out, most of the usual impurities still remaining in See also:

• SOLUTION (from Lat. solvere, to loosen, dissolve)

solution . By rapidly cooling and agitating the nitre solution crystals are obtained of sufficient fineness for the manufacture of powder without special grinding . Nitre contains nearly 48 % of oxygen by weight, five-sixths of which is available for See also:

• COMBUSTION (from the Lat. comburere, to burn up)

combustion purposes . Nearly all the gases of the powder explosion are derived from the nitre . The specific gravity of nitre is 2.2: 200 grams will therefore occupy about See also:

• LOO (formerly called " Lanterloo," Fr. lanturlu, the refrain of a popular 17th-century song)

loo cubic centimetres See also:

• VOLUME

volume . This quantity on its decomposition by See also:

• HEAT (0. E. haktu, which like " hot," Old Eng. hat, is from the Teutonic type haita, hit, to be hot; cf. Ger. hitze, heiss; Dutch, hitte, heet, &c.)

heat alone yields 28 grams or '22,400 C.C. of See also:

• NITROGEN [symbol N., atomic weight 14.01, 0=16]

nitrogen, and 8o grams or 56,000 c.c. of oxygen as gases, and 94 grams of potassium See also:

• OXIDE

oxide, a fusible solid which vaporizes at a very high temperature . See also:

• INCORPORATION (from Lat. incorporare, to form into a body)

Incorporation.—The materials are weighed out separately, mixed by passing through a See also:

• SIEVE (O.E. sife, older sibi, cf. Dutch zeef, Ger. Sieb; from the subst. comes O.E. siftan, to sift)

sieve, and then uniformly moistened with a certain quantity of water, whilst on the See also:

• BED
• BED (a common Teutonic word, cf. German Bett, probably connected with the Indo-European root bhodh, seen in the Lat. fodere, to dig; so " a dug-out place " for safe resting, or in the same sense as a garden " bed ")

bed of the incorporating See also:

• MILL
• MILL (O. Eng. mylen, later myln, or miln, adapted from the late Lat. molina, cf. Fr. moulin, from Lat. mola, a mill, molere, to grind; from the same root, mol, is derived " meal;" the word appears in other Teutonic languages, cf. Du. molen, Ger. muhle)
• MILL, JAMES (1773-1836)
• MILL, JOHN (c. 1645–1707)
• MILL, JOHN STUART (1806-1873)

mill . This consists of two heavy iron wheels mounted so as to run in a circular bed . The incorporation requires about four hours . 725 The See also:

• MECHANICAL

mechanical action of rollers on the powder See also:

• PASTE (O. Fr. paste, modern pate, Late Lat. pasta, whence also in Span., Port. and Ital., from Gr. 1r&vrrl or 1raara, barley porridge, or salted pottage, ir&ao'ety, to sprinkle with salt)

paste is a See also:

• DOUBLE
• DOUBLE (from the Mid. Eng. duble, the form which gives the present pronunciation, through the Old Er. duble, from Lat. duplus, twice as much)

double one: not only crushing but mixing by pushing forwards and twisting See also:

• SIDE
• SIDE (mod. Eski Adalia)

side-ways . The pasty See also:

• MASS (O.E. maesse; Fr. messe; Ger. Messe; Ital. messa; from eccl. Lat. missa)
• MASS, IN

mass is deflected so that it repeatedly comes under first one See also:

• ROLLER

roller and then the next by scrapers, set at an See also:

• ANGLE (from the Lat. angulus, a corner, a diminutive, of which the primitive form, angus, does not occur in Latin; cognate are the Lat. angere, to compress into a bend or to strangle, and the Gr. ayKOS, a bend; both connected with the Aryan root ank-, to

angle to the bed, which follow each See also:

• WHEEL (0. Eng. hweol, hweohl, &c., cognate with Icel. hjol, Dan. hiul, the Indo-European root is seen in Sanskrit chakra, Gr. r in Aos, circle, whence " cycle ")
• WHEEL, BREAKING ON THE

wheel . Although the See also:

• CHARGE
• CHARGE (through the Fr. from the Late Lat. carricare, to load in a carrus or wagon; cf. " cargo ")

charge is wet it is possible for it to be fired either by the heat developed by the roller See also:

• FRICTION (from Lat. fricare, to rub)

friction, by See also:

• SPARKS, JARED (1789-1866)

sparks from foreign matters, as bits of See also:

• STONE
• STONE (0. Eng. shin; the word is common to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Stein, Du. steen, Dan. and Swed. sten; the root is also seen in Gr. aria, pebble)
• STONE, CHARLES POMEROY (1824-1887)
• STONE, EDWARD JAMES (1831-1897)
• STONE, FRANK (1800-1859)
• STONE, GEORGE (1708—1764)
• STONE, LUCY [BLACKWELL] (1818-1893)
• STONE, MARCUS (184o— )
• STONE, NICHOLAS (1586-1647)

stone, &c., or possibly by heat generated by oxidation of the materials .

The mills are provided with a drenching apparatus so arranged that in case of oae mill firing it and its neighbours will be drowned by water from a cistern or tank immediately above the mill . The product from the incorporation is termed " mill-cake." After this incorporation in the damp state the ingredients never completely separate on drying, however much shaken, because each particle of nitre is surrounded by a thin layer of water containing nitre in solution in which the particles of charcoal and sulphur are entangled and retained . After due incorporation, powders are pressed to a certain extent whilst still moist . The See also:

• DENSITY (Lat. densus, thick)

density to which a powder is pressed is an important See also:

• MATTER

matter in regard to the rate of burning . The effect of high density is to slow down the initial rate of burning . Less dense powders burn more rapidly from the first and tend to put a great See also:

• STRAIN (through O. Fr. straindre, estraindre, mod. i treindre, from Lat. stringere, to draw tight, related to stress, stretch, string, &c.)

strain on the gun . Fouling is usually less with denser powders; and, as would be expected, such powders See also:

• BEAR
• BEAR, BLACK
• BEAR, BROWN
• BEAR, GRIZZLY
• BEAR, ISABELLINE
• BEAR, WHITE

bear transport better and give less dust than See also:

• LIGHT

light powders . Up to a certain pressure, hardness, density, and size of grain of a powder have an effect on the rate of burning and therefore on pressure . See also:

• GLAZING

Glazing or polishing powder grains, also exerts a slight retarding action on burning and enables the powders to resist atmospheric moisture better . Excess of moisture in gunpowder has a marked effect in reducing the explosiveness . All powders are liable to absorb moisture, the quality and kind of charcoal being the See also:

• MAIN (from the Aryan root which appears in " may " and " might," and Lat. magnus, great)
• MAIN (Lat. Moenus)

main See also:

• DETERMINANT

determinant in this respect ; hard burnt black charcoal is least absorbent . The material employed in brown powders absorbs moisture somewhat readily .

Powder kept in a very damp atmosphere, and especially in a changeable one, spoils rapidly, the saltpetre coming to the surface in solution and then crystallizing out . The pieces also break up owing to the formation of large crystals of nitre in the mass . After the pressing of the incorporated powder into a " See also:

• PRESS (through Fr. presse from Lat. pressare, frequentative of premere, to crush, squeeze, press)

press-cake," it is broken up or granulated by suitable machines, and the resulting grains separated and sorted by sifting through See also:

• SIEVES

sieves of determined sizes of mesh . Some dust is formed in this operation, which is sifted away and again worked up under the rollers (for sizes of grains see fig . 1) . These grains, cubes, &c., are then either polished by rotating in drums alone or with See also:

• GRAPHITE

graphite, which adheres to and coats the surfaces of the grains . This See also:

• PROCESS

process is generally followed with powders intended for small-arms or moderately small See also:

• ORDNANCE (a syncopated form of " ordinance " or " ordonnance," so spelt in this sense since the 17th century)

ordnance . Shaped Powders.—Prisms or prismatic powder are made by breaking up the press-cake into a moderately fine state, whilst still moist, and pressing a certain quantity in a See also:

• MOULD

mould . The moulds generally employed consist of a thick See also:

• PLATE

plate of See also:

• BRONZE

bronze in which are a number of hexagonal perforations . Accurately fitting plungers are so applied to these that one can enter at the See also:

• TOP (cf. Dan. top, Ger. Topf, also meaning pot)

top and the other at the bottom . The See also:

• LOWER

lower plunger being withdrawn to the bottom of the plate the hexagonal hole is charged with the powder and the two plungers set in See also:

• MOTION (Lat. motio, from movere, to move)
• MOTION, LAWS OF

motion, thus compressing the powder between them . After the desired pressure has been applied the top plunger is withdrawn, and the lower one pushed upward to eject the See also:

• PRISM (Gr. rrpivµa, properly a thing sawn, Irpii"ety, to saw)

prism of powder .

The axial perforations in prism powders are made by small bronze rods which pass through the lower plunger and See also:

• FIT

fit into corresponding holes in the upper one . If these prisms are made by a steadily applied pressure a density throughout of about 1.78 may be obtained . Further to regulate the rate of burning so that it shall be slow at first and more rapid as the powder is consumed, another See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form of See also:

• MACHINE
• MACHINE (through Fr. from Lat. form machina of Gr. µnxavil)

machine was devised, the See also:

• CAM (CAO), DIOGO (fl. 1480-1486)

cam press, in which the pressure is applied very rapidly to the powder . It receives in fact one See also:

• BLOW, JOHN (1648-1708)

blow, which compresses the powder to the same dimensions, but the density of the