Dark and ominous storm clouds gathered overhead,
occasionally blocking out the heat of that afternoon's
August sun in 1346. The Genoese crossbowmen, hired by
King Philip VI of France, trudged toward the town of
Crecy along the Chemin de I'Armee. They had been marching
for fifteen miles since eating the flesh and drinking the
blood of Jesus Christ that morning (Durant 6: 63).
Somewhere, far behind them, along the road from
Abbeville, were their paviseurs (soldiers that held the
large shield or pavis before the bowmen in battle)
(Sumption 528). Trotting behind these 6,000 Italians were
the knights of France and, even further behind, straggled
the disorganized peasant infantry (Packe 159). The
English army of King Edward III lay relaxing (Neillands
99) upon Crecy field, which is raised above the plain and
the Chemin de I'Armee. Suddenly, the heavy skies released
their burden with a violent, but short, thunderstorm
(Seward 64). The experienced Welsh and English archers
quickly removed their strings from their longbows and
kept them dry beneath their helmets (Neillands 100).
Drenched, the Genoese were now staring up at the English
army and into the late afternoon sun slowly sliding
toward the clearing horizon. They cocked their
twenty-pound crossbows by placing them on the ground and,
while holding it with their feet, pulled the string back
with both hands. They then loaded the bow by placing a
heavy, short arrow into the groove of the stock (Jones
119). They moved into the sun toward the waiting enemy,
shouting and yelling insults and curses to help build up
their courage. Then a deafening noise of trumpets and
kettle drums filled the air. They fired their arrows.
Reloaded. Fired again. The rain had gotten into their
machines and slackened their cords. Their volleys fell
short of the English lines (Sumption 528).
Suddenly, out from the blinding sun flew dark clouds of
powerful, thirty-inch arrows, easily penetrating the
Genoese armor. Rapidly, terror spread among the ranks.
These murderous longbows were probably unknown outside
the British Isles. A skillful longbowman could shoot
rapidly enough to keep two arrows in the air
simultaneously (Jones 157) whereas the Genoese crossbow
could only fire four times a minute at best (Seward
55).
Behind the English longbowman were several carts weighted
with mysterious five-foot-long black tubes. Soldiers
loaded them with black powder and ignited them. Huge
claps of the thunderous noise filled the air. Flame
belched from the hollow black tubular eyes as they
hurtled stone and three-inch diameter iron balls upon the
terrified Italians. The noise, flame, and hurtling balls
seemed to the Genoese a diabolical magic (Bishop 382).
They turned and fled. But the French Cavalry had begun
their charge. Those Genoese that survived the English
archers were trampled beneath the onrushing knights
(Packe 159). Twilight was again hastened by a dark deluge
of English arrows filling the sky. Belching flame and
violent explosions terrorized the surviving French
destriers. Fifteen times the French attacked. The battle
raged until midnight (Neillands 103). Gunpowder lit up
the sky, and over half a million arrows darkened it. The
following morning, among the dead, 1,542 French knights
and squires were counted. Hundreds more lay in the
surrounding fields (Sumption 530). No one troubled
counting the infantry, but estimates of the French losses
seem to number ten thousand or more. The English had lost
less than a hundred men (Neillands 104; Seward 67).
In 1346, technology in Europe had not advanced enough to
allow their early cannon to breach any walls
successfully, but gunpowder had entered the battlefields
of Europe and would soon envelop the world like nothing
before or since, save the unharnessing of atomic power.
But where did the mysterious and magical black powder
originate? Who unharnessed its power? Unfortunately, like
so many mysteries in history, the answers have not yet
completely revealed themselves.
The Chinese may well deserve credit for its discovery,
for they seem to have the first documented uses of its
power. According to historian Dun Li, mention of sulphur
and nitrates, two of the materials used to make
gunpowder, appears in written records as early as the Han
Dynasty (202 BC-AD 220). However, the mixture needed
carbon to be explosive. Li supports his case by noting
that the words "fire cannon," "rocket," "missile," and
"fireball" appear time and again in the official Sung
History as well as in at least two other books written
during the same period (80). Li also tells us that in AD
1126 the Sung army used "fire cannon" against invading
Nuchens. These were bamboo tubes filled with gunpowder
that, when fired, threw a flaming missile at the enemy
(377). After this, the Chinese seem to have stopped all
further military uses for gunpowder. Their creativity
with their invention was limited to producing artistic
firecrackers for celebration.
Some historians believe that the Chinese secret of
gunpowder found its way into Arab hands before entering
Europe (Hook 438; Li 377). Historian Joseph Needham
suggests that a Franciscan, William of Rubruck, brought
back some gunpowder from his visit to China, which he in
turn shared with his friend and fellow Franciscan, Roger
Bacon (Gies 206), who describes gunpowder in 1268, in his
writings opus maius (Durant 4: 1010-11).
By 1304, the Arabs had produced a gun in the form of a
bamboo tube reinforced with iron, which sounds remarkably
like the weapon the Chinese used against the invading
Nuchens. "Gunpowder" describes it this way:
"[T]hey charged [the tube] with black
powder to shoot an arrow." Considering the difficulties
associated with travel and the lack of printing, ideas
and technology spread surprisingly fast. Cannons were
used by the Arabs in the siege of Huesca, Spain, in 1324
(Strayer 2: 638). A Florentine document of 1326 describes
the acquisition of metal cannon and iron shot in language
indicating that the items were by then commonplace (Gies
207-08). A pictorial representation of a firearm appears
in the English Milemete Manuscript, dated 1327 (Strayer
12: 566). When the French captured a few English sailing
vessels known as cogs in 1340, six years before the
Battle of Crecy, cannon were taken (Seward 431).
Once cannon were mounted on ships for battle at sea, the
galley and its oars were outmoded and outmaneuvered by
gun-wielding sailing ships. One broadside on the fragile
light galley would inflict enough damage to render it
useless. Although cannon could damage the sails and
rigging of enemy sailing ships, they were particularly
effective when their shot pierced the side of the wooden
vessels, showering the interior of the ship with
splinters that wounded the sailors and soldiers aboard
(Jones 210-11). Maneuverability and fire power would now
and always rule the seas.
It was not until the 1420's that granulation of the black
powder was invented. This made the handling of gunpowder
safer and more reliable. Experimentation with various
recipes improved its power, range, and accuracy (Gies
247). King Charles VII capitalized on this advancement
with the hiring of a brilliant gunnery expert, Jean
Bureau. He and his brother Gaspard were brilliant and
imaginative technicians who used the invention of the
powder mill and the advances in the casting of cannon in
bronze, brass, and iron to the fullest extent of the art
(Durant 6: 87; Seward 256-60). The French now had the
power to push the English out and regain the glory of
France. By 1453 only Calais remained in English hands,
and historian Norman Cantor credits French victories to
advances in weaponry (519).
The Chinese also had a major effect on western Europe
with their invention of the stirrup. This gave the knight
the control he needed to fight while mounted and the
opportunity to use the larger and stronger horse known as
the destrier. The expense of this form of fighting
required compensation that the Middle Ages could only
provide in the form of land, and feudalism was born. When
the Chinese invention of gunpowder exploded on the
European continent, it penetrated the knight's armor and
toppled his castle. The expense of cannon and shot was so
great that it required the centralization of power to
afford its controlling energy. Feudalism crumbled.
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