An invention created in ancient China. Presentation on the topic: "Inventions of Ancient China: paper, silk, compass"
Not a single day passes without a huge number of inventions created many millennia ago. We are so busy with everyday affairs that in the bustle we do not think about the fact that this could not exist. Anyone who, at least once, forgot the phone at home, understands how much, dependent on it, the whole daily life of a modern person. What if it didn't exist at all? And what would happen if other things that are common to us were not invented? The lion's share of all the usual household items and gadgets is made in China. Although today most of the goods from China are not their own developments of this country, many centuries ago China brought to the world a huge number of valuable inventions, amazing and unknown to Western civilization.
1. Silk.
Every woman knows what this pleasant material is. He is the personification of luxury and tenderness to this day. Silk is a material made from a silk thread made from the cocoon of a silkworm, the thread has a triangular section, which is why the fabric shimmers beautifully and has an attractive sheen for everyone. Among all the types of fabrics invented in modern times, silk remains the king of the textile industry. Its price is still the highest, and not everyone can afford a thing made of this wonderful material. The reason for the increased cost is the manufacturing technology that is inaccessible to everyone. For thousands of years, the Chinese have managed to keep the manufacturing method a secret. So to create silk, an unprecedented number of cocoons is required. Keeping the secrecy ensured that the producers dominated the market for the sale of silk, as everyone knows about the silk road that connected China and Europe. The demand for silk provided China with the establishment of trade relations and unprecedented economic growth.
2. Alcohol.
The invention of ethanol and isopropyl alcohol, scientists refer to the ninth millennium. This is evidenced by recent archaeological excavations in the province of Henan, where traces of alcohol were found on fragments of pottery. The results obtained finally put an end to the dispute, who, after all, invented alcohol, the Chinese or the Arabs. This invention was prompted by the improvement of vinegar and soy sauce, using the method of fermentation and distillation. So as a result of experiments, alcohol was born.
3. Gunpowder.
This is the oldest invention of China, according to the legends, it appeared as a result of the search by alchemists for the elixir of immortality. It was created by accident, when creating a mixture that prolongs human life, but contrary to the hopes of Chinese alchemists, it turned out to be a deadly weapon that can kill a person in a matter of seconds.
The first composition of gunpowder included saltpeter, charcoal and sulfur. This became known from the book of Zeng Goliang, who spoke about the weapons and military tactics of that time. According to the book, gunpowder was used as an explosive, as well as for flares and fireworks.
4. Paper.
Lai Cun is the name of the creator, the first prototype of paper. According to some sources, Lai Cun lived in 105 BC. and was a eunuch in the court of the Han Dynasty. In those days, the subject for writing were thin strips of bamboo and silk. Paper appeared as a result of a mixture of wood fibers with water, which were pressed against a cloth. Prior to this, people wrote on stones, papyrus and clay tablets, and even tortoise shells were used.
5. Typography.
The invention of paper contributed to an increase in the literacy of the population, which gave impetus to the development of education in general. In connection with the growth of literacy, a need arose for the transmission of longer texts. The ruling strata of the population, to consolidate their decision and identity, used the seal. The creation of seals was a special art. Each seal was created unique and had no analogues of its kind. According to the principle of transferring an image to paper using printing, the Chinese came to book printing. In China, there was no censorship and control over printed publications, so this industry was quite widespread. The first historical references to the printed book date back to the seventh century. During the reign of the Sunn Dynasty, printing spread rapidly. It is known that in the eighth century in the provinces of Zhejian and Fujian there were more than a hundred family publishing houses.
The invention of typography, accompanied by the appearance of typefaces and weaving. "Notes on the Stream of Dreams" is the first work that describes the technological process of making letters from fired clay and producing sets of fonts and seals. The author of the book, the famous statesman and scientist Shen Ko, writes that this innovation belongs to an unknown master.
6. Pasta.
The oldest plate of noodles found in China is over 7,000 years old. It is made from two types of millet grains, the same technology used to make modern Chinese noodles. But until now, various excavations confuse scientists, and make them doubt who should be given primacy. Italians and Arabs are China's main competitors in this matter.
7. Compass.
Travel and military campaigns, maps and sea voyages, all this would be complicated by the determination of the course if there were no such thing as a compass. For the fact that we can get from one point to another, it is worth paying tribute to the inventors of ancient China. The first compass allowed to determine the south direction, the most important part of the world, according to the Chinese. The material from which the first compass was made was a magnet.
8. Seismograph.
One of the most important inventions of ancient China was the first seismograph invented by the imperial astronomer Zhang Heng. The first Seismograph was a vessel with nine dragons depicted on it. Frog figurines with open mouths were made under each dragon. A pendulum hung inside the vessel, which, in the event of an earthquake, would begin to move and inform everyone about the trouble. Thanks to a complex mechanism, it could even show the epicenter of an earthquake.
9. Kite.
The laws of aerodynamics that allow aircraft to take off were already known to some extent to the Chinese. In the fourth century BC, two lovers of philosophy, Gongshu Ban and Mo Di, built a snake that looked like a bird. It seemed to many that it was just a toy, but for mankind it was an advance in the field of science. The first planes and aircraft are due to the experience that the Chinese gave us by flying a kite into the sky.
10. Hang glider.
This modern entertainment device was invented in ancient China. Experimenting with the size of a kite, an apparatus was created capable of lifting and holding a person in the sky. The authorship of this device is unknown.
11. Chinese tea.
Every person on this planet has tasted tea at least once, and many of us drink it every day. Tea has been known in China since the first millennium. There are references to a healing infusion made from tea tree leaves. The invention of the Chinese is a method of brewing and obtaining a tea drink.
12. Umbrella
The birthplace of the folding umbrella, according to some sources, is also located in China. The existence of the umbrella has been known since the 11th century. In China, the umbrella was used to protect high-ranking dignitaries from the sun. So the emperor and his entourage took him on his walks, so the umbrella was a symbol of wealth and luxury.
13. Wheelbarrow.
The Chinese are great builders, the invention of the wheelbarrow helped them in this. A wheelbarrow is an object that facilitates manual transportation of goods, and also allows a person to lift and carry more weight. Invented it in the second century, a general named Yugo Liang. He came up with a basket on one wheel, later his design was supplemented with handles. Initially, the function of the wheelbarrow was defensive and was used in military operations. For centuries, the Chinese kept their invention a secret.
14. Porcelain.
Porcelain is used in everyday life and is considered the best material for making dishes. Porcelain tableware has a beautiful, glossy surface that perfectly complements the design of any kitchen and transforms any dinner. Porcelain has been known since 620 in China. Europeans experimentally obtained porcelain only in 1702. In Italy, France and England, they have been trying to make porcelain for two centuries.
The inventions of Ancient China also include: horoscope, drum, bell, crossbow, violin, gong, wushu martial art, qigong gymnastics, fork, steamer, chopsticks, tofu soy cheese, paper money, varnish, playing cards and more.
The inventions of ancient China were the birthplace of the greatest achievements of civilization that we still use today.
Over thousands of years, China has produced a great stream of inventions, ranging from chopsticks - traditional cutlery and wheelbarrows for transportation, to sophisticated sensors and advanced financial concepts.
But there are four famous inventions in China, traditionally called the Four Inventions of Ancient China.
These are paper, gunpowder, compass and seal.
Paper
The fact that paper was invented in China is known from ancient historical records. It is interesting that the word "paper" in Western European languages is derived from "papyrus" and only in Russian did it inherit the Eastern pronunciation.
Around 2200 BC, the Egyptians in the lower Nile region discovered that papyrus could be shaped for ease of writing on it. Papyrus for writing was cut into thin strips, which were soaked for a long time in water, and then tapped while clamped in a sheet. But it wasn't really the product we know, it was hard to write on and expensive. The product was superior to materials previously used for writing such as bone, wood or stone.
The invention of paper, as we know, came from China in the 2nd century BC. In fact, early paper is very similar to modern paper in terms of concept and technology.
The inventor of paper is traditionally considered to be the Han Dynasty Chinese dignitary Chai Lun who was the head of a royal workshop in 2nd century China. He used various materials to make paper.
However, recent archaeological evidence suggests that paper was in use in China two hundred years earlier. In any case, China was far ahead of the rest of the world.
How was ancient paper made?
Chai Lun made a product based on various fibrous materials, including rope, old fishing nets, rags, bamboo fibers, tree bark, silkworm cocoons. Modern paper is still made from wood pulp. The Chinese used wood ash or lime, lasting up to 35 days. Another important ingredient was birch leaves, from which the slime was used to strengthen the material and give it evenness and smoothness. The softened fibrous material was processed into pulp which was more like porridge, birch leaf extract was added for weight. This "porridge" was then filtered through a sieve, a flat mesh was made of fabric to trap the fibers on the screen, the product was then dried. Paper is still made in this way, mechanizing the whole process.
The invention of ancient paper by the Chinese dignitary Chai Lun was put into mass production in China. This batch production was ideal for an inexpensive, relatively light application product.
This is how the invention of paper happened in the world.
Ancient paper gradually spread from China, reaching Korea in the 3rd century AD. Introduced to Japan in 600 AD, and then moved to Vietnam and India at the beginning of the 6th century. It took 1000 years after the invention of paper in China to reach Europe. The manufacturing technology reached Britain around 1490 when the first known paper mill in England was built. The product reached North and South America in the 16th century, when it became a truly global product.
During the reign of the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) Dynasties in China, many grades of paper were developed, including paper from bamboo, hemp, and mulberry. Rice paper is still used today in Chinese painting and calligraphy because of its smoothness, durability and whiteness.
The only significant difference between computer printer paper and Chinese rice paper is the "filler" to make the paper really smooth.
Seal
The second invention of ancient China that went hand in hand closely was the invention of printing. Reproduction technologies were transmitted by word of mouth and there were very expensive handwritten manuscripts. Not only was it expensive, but it was slow and there is no guarantee that every copy will be the same. Over 2,000 years ago, the Western Han Imperial Dynasty of China (206 BC-25 AD) developed a form of seal. It was a stone, very similar to brass, with a relief for the dissemination of Confucian knowledge and Buddhist sutras. Building on this idea, the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD) developed the practice of carving text on a wooden board, which was then covered with ink and then printed onto a sheet of paper. This technique became known as block printing and was very similar to the concept of printing. This technology produced the first ever book with a confirmed printing date of 868. It was a Buddhist Sutra. It was the invention of printing until almost 600 years before the first printed book in Europe.
During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the technique spread throughout Asia to the Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, and Japan. But although it was a big step forward, this block of printing technology had a serious drawback. One mistake can translate into all products produced because it was unique. In the Song Dynasty (960-1279), a man named Bi Sheng invented the idea of carving individual characters on small, identical square pieces of clay that were hardened in a slow bake. Thus, the world's first typographic flare was made. After printing was completed, individual parts were replaced and used in the future. This new technology spread to Korea, Japan and Vietnam, and then later to Europe. The next major development in the invention of printing actually came from Europe, when Johannes Gutenberg made individual symbols out of metal.
And that was the invention of printing before the advent of the computer age.
Powder
Inventions of ancient China - the discovery of gunpowder. Everything from to modern artillery shells owes its origin to this. The invention of gunpowder began with the search for the elixir of eternal life on behalf of the Emperor of China. Alchemists have discovered that mixtures of certain fuels and ores can, in the right proportions, heat up and produce an explosion. The work of alchemists led to the discovery of gunpowder.
In 1044, a Song Dynasty researcher wrote "a collection of the most important discoveries of military technology", and in this text he wrote down three formulas for gunpowder. Each was based on saltpeter (potassium nitrate), sulfur and charcoal. Modern British scientist Joseph Needham identified them as early formulas for what we now know as the invention of gunpowder. The formula for gunpowder reached the Arab world in the 12th century and Europe in the 14th century.
Ancient scriptures state that gunpowder was first used for entertainment only with fireworks, but was soon put to military use. In fact, the earliest known illustrations of cannon dating from around 1127 were found in China, during the change of rulers from the Northern Song Dynasty to the Southern Song Dynasty. By the end of the Song Dynasty, the Chinese had invented multi-stage rockets.
Thus, the invention of gunpowder can be seen as the idea of a rocket, which laid the foundation for human flight into space. Scientist Joseph Needham also testifies that the idea of an explosion in a self-contained cylinder inspired the internal combustion engine over time.
The invention of gunpowder allowed the Chinese to gain military victories and drive the Mongols back for decades from their borders. But in the end, the Mongols were able to capture the technology of making gunpowder and include gunpowder in their supply. Captured Chinese experts began to work in the Mongol army, and the Mongols began to expand their empire. 
Compass
The invention of the compass belongs to the fourth of the great inventions of ancient China. Although the Chinese did not master the extraction of ore and the production of copper, they used a natural mineral. The natural mineral magnetite attracted iron. The magnetite arrow always pointed north. 
Thus, the inventions of ancient China are among the greatest achievements of mankind used in our time.
The origin of many of today's technologies can be traced back to ancient China. Let's look at some of the inventions of ancient China.
Right from the moment of its appearance, people have been striving to improve the quality of their lives. It started with innovations and innovations that helped them get food and protect themselves. Over time, people have invented many different things, such as clothes, weapons, wheels, gunpowder, ceramics, etc. Thus, human history is littered with numerous inventions and discoveries, most of which are either still in use by mankind or are regarded as precursors to some of today's technology. If we look at such inventions, we can see that Ancient China played a very important role in this, since there are many inventions made in the past by the Chinese. In the following, we will consider only a few ancient inventions of China.
Some ancient inventions of China
While there are many ancient Chinese inventions, the most significant are papermaking, gunpowder, the compass, and printing. These inventions have led to significant changes in human history.
Paper for making and printing
Paper is one of the most widely used and needed materials. Until the second century BC, people used very expensive and not always high-quality writing media, such as bamboo strips, silk scrolls, hardened clay tablets, wooden tablets, etc. Modern paper was first invented in ancient China during the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD). The palace eunuch Cai Lun is believed to have invented the paper making process in 105 CE. Studies show that the Chinese people used paper for packaging and upholstery until the second century BC, but paper as an accessory to writing was used during the Han Dynasty. The discovery of paper led to subsequent discoveries such as paper money (during the Song Dynasty), printing engravings, and ceramic seals of the same type (around the same period).
Gunpowder and fireworks
One of the most important ancient inventions of China is the invention of gunpowder and fireworks. It is believed that gunpowder was discovered by a certain Chinese cook by chance. But this can be argued, some believe that Chinese alchemists discovered gunpowder in the ninth century AD. Gunpowder is believed to have been discovered sometime between 600 and 900 AD. Fireworks were also invented shortly after the discovery of gunpowder. Researchers claim that the origin of fireworks is associated with the period of the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD). Following the invention of gunpowder and fireworks, a number of related discoveries followed, such as the so-called spear of fire, mines, including naval mines, cannon, exploding cannonballs, multi-stage rockets, etc.
Compass
Although the origin of the compass in China can be traced back to the fourth century BC, it was still only a crude form of the compass. There were various forms of the compass that were used in ancient China, but the magnetic device was invented during the Song Dynasty and it was this compass that was used to navigate the sea. The most common was the compass, which had a magnetic needle that floated in the water. There is also evidence that a compass with a hanging magnetic needle was also used during this period.
Other inventions of ancient China
Now you know more about the most important inventions of ancient China. But there are many other inventions made in the past by the Chinese people. Here is some of them. By the time of the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-206 BC), the Chinese had already invented abacus, a calendar, cast iron, bells, made dishes from ceramics and metal, daggers and axes from stone and metal, kites, made drinks by fermentation (predecessors of wine), fork made of bone, lacquer and lacquerware, rice and millet grown and cultivated, drum covered with crocodile skin, noodles, chopsticks, oars, wheelbarrows, seismoscope (for detecting earthquakes), etc. . During the Qin dynasty, the multiplication table, standardized money, tea, ship's rudder, acupuncture, etc. were invented. Important Chinese inventions made after this period were boreholes, dominoes, gas cylinder, balloon, porcelain, painting, games cards, toothbrush, etc.
And where did the Chinese get gunpowder? Gunpowder is a Chinese invention. But if in Europe this Chinese invention was used for war as soon as they learned about it, then in their homeland gunpowder served peaceful entertainment for many centuries. "Fire trees" and "silver flowers" of fireworks delighted the eyes of the participants in both palace celebrations and folk festivals.There are no chronicles about the inventor of gunpowder. But the picture of the invention of the first explosive was recreated by the founder of Russian science, Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov. According to some reports, gunpowder was used in rockets and fireworks as early as the 7th century. BC e.
The Chinese have always been a peace-loving people, they preferred the lights of fireworks to the glow of fires. But the wealth of China has long haunted the rulers and nobility of neighboring nomadic peoples. One invasion followed another, having got rid of some conquerors, the Chinese people found themselves face to face with others, even more formidable. To this it must be added that the Chinese emperors and feudal lords were by no means peaceful. They loved to fight and rob, like all other kings and feudal lords.
Sooner or later, the Chinese had to come up with the idea of using gunpowder for military purposes. To the credit of the Chinese, for the first time they used gunpowder not to attack other peoples, but to protect their native land. According to legend, this was done by the commander Kung Ming, who lived in the 3rd century BC. n. e.
This commander more than once had to fight at the head of his troops against the nomads who invaded China. The forces were unequal, the cavalry hordes of enemies instilled fear in the Chinese warriors.
Kung Ming was one of those commanders who strive to win not by numbers, but by skill. In addition, he was not only a skilled commander, but also a wonderful military man and engineer. He managed to say a new word in military technology.
Let's imagine how it happened. On the plain stands a Chinese city, one of those cities that the nomads have not yet plundered. In order to reach this plain, the enemies of China must pass between two hills. Several Chinese warriors lurked near the aisle. Among them is Kung Ming. What is an ambush? Does not look like it. After all, there are very few Chinese, they do not have any bows or arrows with them.
The nomad cavalry is rapidly approaching the passage. There is nothing to be afraid of: their patrols had long passed the passage and did not meet Chinese troops anywhere. On the outskirts of the passage, the nomads have to slow down their frantic gallop, otherwise you can pass each other. Thousands of warriors were concentrated in a small space. Then Kong Ming issued an order in a low voice. Several Chinese warriors with lit fuses crouched to the ground.
If at that moment clouds of arrows suddenly fell upon the nomads, they would not be at a loss. If, out of nowhere, an avalanche of Chinese cavalry appeared, they would not flinch. But something completely different happened. The nomads who survived this day spoke about it in their native steppes with horror until the end of their lives. None of them doubted that the Chinese sorcerers called on the spirits of the underworld to help them. They all heard a thunder of incredible force, not from a cloudless sky, but from under the ground. It was like an earthquake, too. During an earthquake, the soil shakes, but does not fly up. And then the soil rose into the air, and with it hundreds of armed warriors with their mines took off. The survivors turned back and rushed headlong until their horses began to fall from fatigue.
Kung Ming came out of hiding with his warriors. The reality exceeded his expectations. After all, the enemy was defeated, and the Chinese did not suffer any losses. What was Kung Ming's secret? On the way of the enemy cavalry, he arranged the first minefield in history. In the place where the enemy was sure to pass, the trusted warriors of the Chinese commander buried the “earth thunder”. So called hollow balls filled with gunpowder and pieces of metal. Bamboo pipes, also buried in the ground, led to the mines. And through the tubes ropes covered with sulfur were passed. They were set on fire by order of Kung Ming.
The first minefield in history was at the same time the first military use of gunpowder in history. By the way, what was this gunpowder made of? We do not know this for sure, but in one Chinese book of the 11th century. the following recipe is given: sulfur, saltpeter, charcoal, resin, dry varnish, tung oil, wax. The use in war of a substance very similar in composition to black powder is also described in the famous historical novel Lo Guan-zhong "Three Kingdoms". Lo Kuan-chung lived in the 14th century, but his novel is dedicated to the events of the 3rd century, that is, the century when, according to legend, Kung Ming used gunpowder. While working on his work, Lo Kuan-zhong widely used not only folk tales, but also chronicles of the historian Chen Shou. This lends great credibility to his story.
Gradually, the combat use of gunpowder expanded. A "devouring fire" appeared. They were paper balls coated with resin and wax. They were filled with gunpowder, resin and bullets. During sieges and naval battles, such paper grenades with a lit fuse were thrown at the enemy. The Chinese came up with other types of explosive grenades and bombs, such as bamboo tubes, which, like paper balls, were filled with gunpowder and bullets.
Already around 1000, bombs were fired in China from catapults. Catapults were called throwing weapons, which were manually operated using complex devices. Such tools were used in ancient times, but stones were used as projectiles.
In the 13th century, when China was invaded by the Mongols, the Chinese heroically defended themselves against the formidable enemy for several decades. Gunpowder also participated in the defense of his native country.
More than a hundred years ago, an outstanding Russian Sinologist Iakinf Bichurin translated "The History of the First Four Khans from the House of Chiigisov". This story was compiled by order of the Mongol conquerors of China. The book translated by Bichurin directly says that the only thing that the world conquerors, the Mongols, were afraid of was Chinese gunpowder. When defending their cities and attacking enemy camps, the Chinese often used powder rockets. These rockets were then called "fiery spears". Rockets, as they say in the "History of the first four khans from the house of Chiigisov", were launched "through the ignition of gunpowder." The fiery spears of the Chinese burned everything around them for 10 steps in a circle.
One day, the Chinese, armed with rockets, suddenly burst into the camp of the Mongol commander Temodai. Flight in the Mongol army was not only considered an indelible shame, it was punishable by death. But the warriors of Temodai, hardened in battles, seemed to have forgotten about all this. Under the fire of rockets, they rushed to run. Many of those spared by the fire were killed by the water. The Chinese drove the fugitives into the river, where 3,500 people drowned.
During the siege of the Chinese city of Luoyang, the Mongols themselves used gunpowder, they learned this art from the Chinese. Throwing weapons of the Mongols - "fiery ballistas" - threw iron pots filled with gunpowder into the besieged city. The sound of these pots breaking was like thunder, fiery sparks pierced even iron armor. Where cast-iron pots fell, all living things were destroyed.
Despite this, the Mongols were forced to lift the siege of Luoyang. The Chinese struck the besiegers with the same cast-iron pots that descended from the walls on iron chains. Chinese rockets caused even more damage to the Mongols.
In Western Europe, gunpowder and artillery, like many other inventions of the Chinese, became known through the Arabs. This happened at the end of the 13th and beginning of the 14th centuries, when the Muslims began to use artillery in their wars against the Spaniards. The Arabs knew perfectly well to whom the world owes the invention of gunpowder. They called the saltpeter "Chinese snow" or "Chinese salt" and the rocket "Chinese arrow."
Gunpowder was used not only for predatory wars, not only for the extermination and oppression of weak peoples. In the West, the advent of gunpowder made possible what the most advanced peoples of the East, including the Chinese, could not achieve for so long. Gunpowder made it easier for the peoples of the West to overthrow the yoke of feudalism. To do this, it was necessary first of all to put an end to the self-will and excesses of the feudal lords. The royal power, which relied on the townspeople, these bearers of the new and advanced, took up the curbing of the feudal lords.
The victory of the cities and the rising monarchy over the feudal nobility did not mean the destruction of feudalism. But the thunder of the cannons that hit the knights' castles already foreshadowed the roar of those guns that, several centuries later, crushed the royal palaces. The revolution about which Engels wrote was a truly great revolution. Its significance went far beyond Western Europe. He accelerated the pace of history throughout the world.
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Gunpowder is the only explosive in over 500 years of human history. No scientist in the world can name the exact date of its creation. However, there are currently several main versions of the origin of gunpowder and the time it was received by people:
- before 1500 BC in India. Around the first century BC, the secret of its manufacture came to China and Arabia, and in the sixth century AD - to Byzantium;
- in 300-200 BC in China. In the first century BC, the secret of its manufacture came to India and Arabia, and in the sixth century AD - to Byzantium;
- in 100-300 AD in India and China. In the 6th-8th centuries, the secret of its manufacture came to Byzantium, and after the start of the Mongol conquests in the 12th-13th centuries, to Arabia and Europe.
The date of acquaintance of people with the technology of obtaining saltpeter is also not known, but can be estimated from the following indirect data:
- potassium nitrate (saltpeter) was obtained from places of mass concentration of compost and the remains of dead animals as early as the 4th-3rd centuries BC;
- the drug "ground salt" (saltpeter) is first described in the medical book "Shennong bencajing" dating back to the second century BC;
- the term "Chinese snow" (saltpeter) is found in ancient manuscripts of the Arabs, starting from the first century BC;
- the term "Chinese salt" (saltpeter) is mentioned in Byzantine documents from the sixth century AD.
However, this hardly corresponds to the real date of the discovery of gunpowder. Fireworks and primitive projectiles based on combustible mixtures were known in China and India much earlier, around the 1st century AD.
In 994, the Chinese city of Chu Chang was besieged by an army of up to 100,000 men. The commander of the city's defense used against the besiegers not only catapults with incendiary shells, but also far-flying "fiery arrows". And in 1132, General Chen Gui invented a prototype of the squeaker. His firearm was disposable, a bamboo barrel stuffed with black powder. When it was set on fire, a jet of smoke and flame flew out of the barrel, which was quite effective in close combat and against cavalry.
The first mass use of powder grenades and cannons, throwing stone cannonballs at a distance of up to 600 meters, was recorded by Chinese historians in 1232 during the defense of Kaifeng from Kublai's troops.
Since 1258, descriptions of the fire weapons of the ruler of Delhi are found in ancient Hindu writings, and a hundred years later, artillery became common for Indian armies.
Western Europeans encountered the combat use of combustible mixtures based on saltpeter in battles with the Moors, in Spain, during the "Crusades" (1096-1270).
At the beginning of the 13th century, work began in France on the creation of technologies for the production and use of gunpowder, but soon all these studies were banned by the church, which called gunpowder "the devil's potion." Knowing his secret was reason enough to be burned at the stake.
In 1305, near Ronda, the Arabs used the first firearms against the Spaniards - “modfs”, which fired lead cannonballs the size of a walnut. The tools were forged iron pipes attached to a wooden deck. The new weapon showed such combat effectiveness that it made the Europeans quickly forget the ban of the church. And three years later, during the siege of Gibraltar, the Spanish Christians used guns of their own production.
In 1324, the production of the newest cast copper tools for that time began in the city of Metz. This event is recognized today as the beginning of the official history of the formation of European artillery. For the first time such cannons were used by the German knights in 1331 during the siege of Brescia and Cividelli.
After some time, artillery workshops, combining gunpowder and foundries, appear throughout Europe. In France, cannons began to be cast in 1337, in Italy - in 1345, in Holland - in 1356. Artillery appeared in Poland in 1370, in the Czech Republic - in 1373, in Russia and Lithuania - in 1382, in Sweden - in 1395.
From the middle of the 15th century, hand-held throwing weapons were gradually replaced by firearms, which led to a change in combat tactics and provoked a series of local wars, during which new methods of military operations were “run in”.
In 1453, Sultan Mohammed II, when capturing Constantinople, used siege weapons unknown to him - 8-meter cannons, throwing stone cannonballs weighing up to 500 kg. The weight of the barrels of the largest Turkish bombards, the analogue of which is the Russian Tsar Cannon, reached 100 tons.
Subsequently, artillery completely replaced hand and mechanical throwing weapons, which led to a revision of the foundations of military fortification. All artillery pieces were divided into siege, field, horse and regimental.
The first prototype of the compass is believed to have appeared during the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD) when the Chinese began to use a north-south magnetic iron ore. True, it was not used for navigation, but for divination. In the ancient text "Lunheng", written in the 1st century AD, in chapter 52, the ancient compass is described as follows: "This instrument resembles a spoon, and if it is placed on a plate, then its handle will point to the south."
The description of a magnetic compass for determining the cardinal points was first described in the Chinese manuscript "Wujing Zongyao" 1044. The compass worked on the principle of residual magnetization from heated steel or iron ingots, which were cast in the shape of a fish. The latter were placed in a bowl of water, and as a result of induction and residual magnetization, weak magnetic forces appeared. The manuscript mentions that this device was used as a course indicator paired with a mechanical "chariot that points south."
A more advanced compass design was proposed by the already mentioned Chinese scientist Shen Ko. In his Notes on the Stream of Dreams (1088), he described in detail the magnetic declination, that is, the deviation from the direction to true north, and the device of a magnetic compass with a needle. The use of a compass for navigation was first proposed by Zhu Yu in the book "Table Talk in Ningzhou" (1119).
Compass: history and features of the invention.
Everyone knows that a good compass is designed for orientation in space. It is used by tourists and athletes, researchers and scientists. Like other unique things, this item was invented by the Chinese, namely Hen Fei-tzu, a famous philosopher and traveler. This is a historically recognized fact, but scientists are still arguing about the date of its appearance.
Every schoolchild knows how to use a compass, and earlier this required organizing a whole ritual - laying out elements of iron ore on a flat surface, which exactly lined up in a north-south direction. The compass began to acquire new parts as the need arose to use an unusual device. The inhabitants of ancient China needed to accurately navigate in space. After all, it was through this country that the routes of the Great Silk Road ran, and the Chinese were active participants in extensive trade relations.
The modern magnetic compass in its appearance does not even remotely resemble an ancient invention. Initially, a device for orientation in space was an almost shapeless piece of ore, which was attached to some kind of base. The directions of the cardinal points could be found out by lowering it into the water. This is how the invention was described in the books of the XI century. The price for such a compass was high, so it was available only to high-ranking officials and military leaders. The craving of the Chinese for everything beautiful and rational contributed to the further improvement of the compass. The first compass needles looked like thick needles, were made of iron ore and minerals that had magnetic properties. Similar devices were used by travelers and merchants in the 12th century AD.
In the 14th century, new models of the compass were introduced to the world by the Italian researcher F. Gioia, who put a magnetic pointer on a hairpin perpendicularly attached to the base (a piece of wood). Only in the 16th century the device was placed in a special gimbal, which allowed the compass to work flawlessly even in conditions of rocking on the ship. Currently, anyone can purchase an electronic compass. To remember the Chinese soothsayers with a kind word and, with the help of an accurate device, arrange pieces of furniture according to “Feng Shui”, the love for which, by the way, was instilled in us by the inhabitants of the same country.