The news agencies (Wala!)
Edward III (1327-1377). His armies used gunpowder with great destructive potential
Direct link to this page: https://www.hayadan.org.il/midagespowder.html
The gunpowder used by the warriors in the Middle Ages had a potential for destruction no less than the one used today. This was announced yesterday (Wednesday) by Robert Smith, from the British Royal Armory.
A mixture of coal, sulfur and saltpeter (bird excrement) was used by Edward III's army when his armies marched across France in the 14th century. The power of this mixture is equal, the scientists said, to the explosive power of the modern version of gunpowder.
"We're still a bit stunned by the quality of medieval gunpowder," Smith told the annual meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. He added that this conclusion was discovered by chance, when he and his colleagues conducted an experiment with restored medieval pistols. In the experiment, the researchers used modern gunpowder, then compared it to its predecessor from 700 years ago.
Encouraged by the discovery, the scientists intend to deepen the experiment, and use a less pure mixture of materials, more similar to what medieval people could have produced. This is how they hope to accurately simulate the explosion caused by the fire fight at that time.
The history buff
https://www.hayadan.org.il/BuildaGate4/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~~~633062090~~~159&SiteName=hayadan
