Huolongjing - Historical Perspective

Historical Perspective

Gunpowder warfare found its birthplace in medieval China, yet its technological and methodical perfection would occur outside of it. Although the inventions and written work of Jiao Yu and the Chinese 'fire–weapons' of his time revolutionized warfare in China, there wasn't an incredible amount of Chinese innovation in gunpowder weapons (i.e. firearms, cannons, etc.) during the 15th century onwards. With no significant enemies to combat, there was no need to advance gunpowder weaponry; this is in stark contrast to the competitive European environment, in which failing to adopt and improve gunpowder technology meant conquest by your neighbors. When the Portuguese arrived in China during the early 16th century, they were mostly not very impressed with Chinese firearms in comparison to their own. With the continual progression of the earliest European arquebus, to the matchlock, to the wheellock, and then the advent of the flintlock musket of the 17th century, they surpassed the level of earlier Chinese innovation. The Chinese of the late Ming Dynasty would even adopt the Ottoman Turkish matchlockman's kneeling position, while purchasing European firearms for their infantry musketeers. Illustrations of Ottoman and European riflemen with detailed illustrations of their weapons appeared in Zhao Shizhen's book Shenqipu of 1598 AD.

Although not perfected until the 19th century with the cartridge of Samuel Johannes Pauly in 1809, Johann Nikolaus von Dreyse's 'Needle Gun' in 1836, and the steel–cast Krupp cannon in the 1850s, the history of the European breech–loading gun spans back to the late 14th century, the earliest models found in Burgundy. Before the improvements by those mentioned above, these early breech loading rifles and cannons were somewhat unsatisfactory due to serious loss of gas when firing, resulting in the decreased force of the propellant. Nevertheless, the 16th century breech–loading model entered China around the time that the Portuguese embassy of Fernão Pires de Andrade came to China in 1517 and was eventually rejected; Portuguese and Chinese ships battled near Tuen Mun in 1521 and the Portuguese were repelled by the Ming Dynasty navy. These hostilities began when the Malacca Sultanate (a tributary vassal loyal to the Ming) was defeated and conquered by the Portuguese under Afonso de Albuquerque in 1511, and in the process slaughtered a large community of Chinese merchants living there. In 1523 the Chinese navy captured two Western ships with Portuguese breech–loading culverins aboard, which the Chinese called a folangji (佛郎機; meaning either a Frank or Frankish culverin). According to the Ming Shi, these cannons were soon presented to the Jiajing Emperor by Wang Hong, and their design was copied in 1529 AD. The Frankish culverin was first illustrated in China in a drawing of a Chinese book published in 1562. However, earlier Ming records indicate that it was actually the War Ministry official He Ru who first acquired these guns in 1522, while copies of them were made by two Westernized Chinese at Beijing, Yang San (Pedro Yang) and Dai Ming. In an even earlier account of Wang Yangming (1472–1529), the philosopher and governor of Jiangxi, he intended to use folangji cannons in suppressing the rebellion of Prince Zhu Chenhao in 1519 AD. In any case, the arrival of the breech loading rifle and cannon into China signified the beginning of continual European influence upon Chinese firearms and artillery. However, in describing different metals used for cannons, it was Song Yingxing who wrote in his encyclopedia of 1637 that both foreign and uniquely native gunpowder weapons were employed: