Gunpowder was invented in China during the Tang dynasty in the early 9th century. Chinese alchemists were said to be experimenting with saltpetre in combination with various other chemicals in their quest to create an elixir of life, when they discovered that their mixtures sometimes burst into flames. They called the substance huoyao, meaning “fire medicine.” According to the 10th-century text Zhenyuan miaodao yaolüe, many alchemists burned their hands and faces, and even entire houses were gutted during the preparation of huoyao. By the time of the Song dynasty, this supposed elixir of life had found its way into weapons designed to terminate life.
The earliest of these were fire arrows—arrows tipped with gunpowder incendiaries—and the fire lance, a spear or pole fitted with a tube of gunpowder. Then came true explosives, and warfare was never the same again. These explosive devices had fanciful names such as "ten-thousand fire flying sand magic bomb", "burning heaven fierce fire unstoppable bomb", “heaven shaking thunder bomb” and "thunderclap bomb".
These ceramic grenades dating to the 13th century were found in a Mongolian shipwreck sunk off the Japanese Takashima Island in 1274. The ship was part of the armada of Kublai Khan attempting to conquer Japan. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Thunderclap bombs were first used during the Siege of Kaifeng in 1126. An eyewitness recorded: “At night the thunderclap bombs were used, striking the enemy lines effectively and throwing them into great confusion. Many fled, screaming in fright.”
According to the 11th-century military text Wujing Zongyao, these bombs were made of bamboo, the hollow interior packed with gunpowder and shrapnel in the form of broken porcelain. They were hurled at the enemy with trebuchets. In naval engagements, bombs were sometimes filled with lime, so that when they exploded the lime reacted with water to create a smoky fog that blinded enemy soldiers.
The Jin troops eventually withdrew with a ransom of Song silk and treasure, but they returned several months later armed with their own gunpowder bombs, manufactured by captured Song artisans. Both the Jin and the Song employed these weapons extensively, but this time the Jin prevailed. When they attacked the city’s Xuanhua Gate, their “fire bombs fell like rain, and their arrows were so numerous as to be uncountable.”
Hard casing bombs made of iron first made its appearance in 1221, when Jin forces used them against Song during the siege of Qizhou. The Song commander Zhao Yurong wrote:
The barbaric enemy attacked the Northwest Tower with an unceasing flow of catapult projectiles from thirteen catapults. Each catapult shot was followed by an iron fire bomb, whose sound was like thunder. That day, the city soldiers in facing the catapult shots showed great courage as they maneuvered [our own] catapults, hindered by injuries from the iron fire bombs. Their heads, their eyes, their cheeks were exploded to bits, and only one half [of the face] was left.
Yurong was able to examine the bombs, and he wrote, “In shape they are like gourds, but with a small mouth. They are made with pig iron, about two inches thick, and they cause the city’s walls to shake.”
The Heaven-Shaking Thunder Bomb was a variation of the iron-cased bomb used by the Jin dynasty against the Mongols. The official History of Jin describes the weapon as “an iron vessel filled with gunpowder. When ignited and discharged, it explodes with a crash of thunder that can be heard for a hundred li [thirty miles], burning an expanse of land more than half a mu—a mu being one-sixth of an acre—and the fire can even penetrate iron armour.”
Three centuries later, a Ming official named He Mengchun discovered an old cache of them in the Xi’an area: “When I went on official business to Shaanxi Province, I saw on top of Xi’an’s city walls an old stockpile of iron bombs. They were called ‘Heaven-Shaking Thunder Bombs,’ and they were like an enclosed rice bowl with a hole at the top, just big enough to put your finger in. The troops said they hadn’t been used for a very long time.”
An illustration of fire arrow launchers as depicted in the Wubei Zhi (1621). The launcher is constructed using basketry.
It is possible Mengchun saw the bombs in action, for he wrote: “When the powder goes off, the bomb rips open, and the iron pieces fly in all directions. That is how it is able to kill people and horses from far away.”
Heaven-Shaking Thunder Bombs seem to have first appeared in 1231, when a Jin general used them to destroy a Mongol warship. But it was during the Siege of Kaifeng in 1232 that they saw their most intense use. The Mongols attempted to protect their miners by constructing elaborate screens of thick leather, which shielded the workers as they undermined the city walls. In this way, they managed to reach the base of the walls and began excavating protective niches. In response, Jin defenders tied iron cords to Heaven-Shaking Thunder Bombs and lowered them down the walls to the spots where the miners worked. The leather screens could not withstand the blasts and were torn apart along with the men behind them.
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Gunpowder weapons were also central to the Song dynasty’s 45-year standoff against the Mongols. This was most evident during the siege of the twin fortress cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng, which lasted from 1268 to 1273. For the first three years, the Song managed to bring in food, clothing, and reinforcements by water. But by late 1271, the Mongols had tightened their blockade, and the inhabitants grew desperate. Two men surnamed Zhang resolved to break through and deliver supplies to the cities. With a hundred paddle-wheel boats, they attempted the run, traveling mostly by night, guided by red lanterns that helped them recognize one another in the darkness. But a Mongol commander learned of their plan and laid a trap. As the flotilla approached the cities, they found his “vessels spread out, filling the entire surface of the river, and there was no gap for them to enter.” Thick iron chains stretched across the water.
A 'bone-burning and bruising fire-oil magic bomb' fragmentation bomb as depicted in the Huolongjing (1360-1375). It is composed of a cast iron casing, iron pellets coated in tung oil, urine, sal ammoniac, feces, and scallion juice. In the middle is a gunpowder stick.
According to the official History of Song, the two Zhangs had armed their boats with “fire lances, fire bombs, glowing charcoal, huge axes, and powerful crossbows.” Their flotilla opened fire, and, according to a source from the Mongol side, “bomb-shells were hurled with great noise and loud reports.”
The Zhangs’ soldiers had been told that “this voyage promises only death,” and many indeed perished as they tried to cut through chains, pull up stakes, and hurl bombs. One Mongol source noted that “on their ships they were up to the ankles in blood.” The Zhangs’ vessels eventually reached the city walls, but the supplies failed to save Xiangyang. The city finally surrendered in 1273.
Gunpowder bombs also featured in a more infamous Mongol massacre: the Siege of Changzhou in 1275, the last major battle of the Mongol-Song Wars. The Mongol general Bayan arrived with his army and warned the inhabitants that “if you … resist us … we shall drain your carcasses of blood and use them for pillows.” His warnings were ignored. Bayan’s forces bombarded the town day and night with fire bombs, then stormed the walls and began the slaughter. Perhaps a quarter of a million people were killed.
The Song held out for another four years, often with mortal bravery—sometimes even blowing themselves up to avoid capture. In 1276, a Song garrison defended the city of Jingjiang in Guangxi Province against a much larger Mongol force for three months before the enemy finally stormed the walls. Two hundred and fifty defenders held a redoubt until resistance became hopeless. Then, instead of surrendering, they detonated a huge iron bomb. According to the official History of Song, “the noise was like a tremendous thunderclap, shaking the walls and ground, and the smoke filled up the heavens outside. Many of the troops [outside] were startled to death. When the fire was extinguished they went in to see. There were just ashes, not a trace left.”
Bombs continued to play a central role during the Mongol invasions of Japan and later in Europe. What began as fragile bamboo tubes filled with powder and porcelain shards evolved into iron bombs that shook city walls and terrified armies. From there, the leap to firearms and artillery was inevitable.
Today, the principles remain the same. Modern grenades, artillery shells, aerial bombs, and even precision-guided munitions all descend from these early Chinese inventions. The destructive potential of gunpowder, first unleashed in the fields and fortresses of the Song dynasty, still defines the battlefield.
References:
# Tonio Andrade, “The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History”
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