Who Invented Cannons

An article by Peter Pierce    Comments Off on Who Invented Cannons

Cannons are basically weapons which launch a projectile with the help of gunpowder. However the first cannon known in history did not use gunpowder and was made by Ctesibius of Alexandria using compressed air. His work got destroyed in history and was later again discovered by Philo of Byzantium. Initially long pieces of paper and bamboo were used for barrels, later replaced by metals.

The noted first use of gunpowder happened in the year 1132. However, the most historic known cannon belongs to 1282 and was found in Manchuria. A Chinese poet Xian Zhang had written the first description of cannon in his poem The Iron Cannon Affair. The use of cannons in various wars and invasions can be found in the history of many countries like China, Japan and Korea.

The war of Ain Jalut between the Mamluks and Mongols, it was known for using a form of explosive gunpowder. Much later the Mughal Empire developed many forms of cannons generation after generation. Fathullah Shirazi who worked for the great emperor Akbar is credited for developing the Volley Gun. In the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth century, the use of cannons and its further developments happened very fast as wars increased during this period.