Weaponry: A History What is the most destructive power in history? Is it a rocket torpedo that shoots straight to the surface from a submarine, flies through the air toward an enemy sub, and then dives at its target? Is it the electrically powered machine gun that spews out 110 rounds per second to obliterate its opponent completely? Maybe it’s an intercontinental ballistic missile armed with nuclear warheads, capable of killing hundreds of thousands with a single atomic bomb. Then again, is it the tank with thermal-imaging sight that senses an enemy vehicle’s heat so it can see—and kill—even it total darkness? Actually, it is none of these. One must go all the way back to the beginning of weapons development, when humans first figured out that certain tools made warfare a lot more effective. A person’s arm, for example, could not throw a stone or stick very far, so people devised slings and sharp tips to let their projectiles travel farther, faster and land harder. Iron-tipped spears, javelins and swords came into existence when humans learned to use and shape metals thousands of years ago. Other early warfare devices included bows and arrows, catapults , and with the domestication of the horse, the horse-driven chariot. None of these primitive weapons seem to answer the above question, so skip ahead to the transport of gunpowder from China to Europe in the thirteenth century. With the introduction of gunpowder, the armor of the famed “knights in shining armor” gradually became useless against the penetration of ammunition shot from a harquebus, musket, or cannon . By the fourteenth century, most European armies used gunpowder, rockets and other explosives in warfare. Yet the art of war was revolutionized again by the revolver and the automatic firearm in the nineteenth century. The first major war to use the rapid-fire guns was WWI. New contraptions were needed to protect the soldiers, now huddled in trenches, unable to move, let alone fight. Enter the tank. Infantry could now be on the offensive. Progress in the building of warships led to stronger, more lethal submarines that fired torpedoes from beneath the waves. Torpedo-boat “destroyers” were then created to combat the submarines. Germany’s defeat in WWI led to its development of ballistic missiles, one of the inventions that reformed warfare again. Advances in automatic weapons and aviation were the latest innovations on the battlefront. However, it was the deadliest weapon ever created- the atomic bomb- that decided and ended the war once and for all.
Weapons have been around from the Neanderthals of the post-ice age, to the Taliban in Afghanistan. Rocks became knives, sticks became spears, and bayonets became AK-47’s. The technology from the French and Indian War was revolutionized and manufactured by the newly opened weaponry companies. Colt and Winchester had a new end of the market during the times of conflict in the United States.
As long as there is love, there will be hatred; as long as there is peace, there will be war, and as long as there is a positive side, there is a negative side. During the Second World War, the Nazis were very powerful. Due to the fear of the Nazis, Americans started a project called “The Manhattan Project" in order to build a very deadly weapon that could even blow cities apart. The allied powers were so concerned with Nazi domination, that they never considered the outcomes of creating an atomic bomb which are also positive and negative. The development of the atomic bomb boosted the level of understanding in terms of physics and chemistry of that particular time period.
The rifle and the coveted shotgun, literally brought home the bacon. With sleek models such as the Winchester .44 in 1873, accurate targeting sights increased a hunter’s ability to take down his prey, even from large distances, often exceeding 200 yards. The other weapon of choice, the shotgun, did not boast a straight, clean shot, but had the capacity to tear anything to shreds in a single blast. A short barrel provided the advantage of a wider blast range and easier handling (Trachtman et al 50). In many battles, the shotguns were often preferred for their simplifying features.
World War Warfare was one of the greatest examples of technological advancement and strategic challenge, with the introduction of inventions such as the aircraft and the tank the battlefield transformed from attrition as scene in the early years of the war to decisive by the end of the war.
Many new and improved weapons and artillery were brought out during the war. One example of this introduction of new weapons was the long-range rocket. Also during this time the atomic bomb proved to have a big impact on the war. Along with these new and improved weapons, falls the infamous tanks of World War II (Military History 1). Although some weapons proved to be more important than others, every weapon played an important role in fighting this war. Some of these smaller weapons include pistols and rifles.
“The atomic bomb certainly is the most powerful of all weapons, but it is conclusively powerful and effective only in the hands of the nation which controls the sky” (Johnson 1). Throughout World War II, the war was in pieces. The Germans were almost at world dominance along with their allies, the Italians and Japanese. The Japanese and United States had remained in combat with each other since the bombardment of the Pearl Harbor ("U.S. Drops Atomic Bomb on Japan "1). There was abundant controversy as to whether the United States should have used the atomic bombs or not.
The Met museum said that the most popular used weapons were “spear, sword, axe, and the bow and arrow.” These weapons and tactics of fighting then became the backbone of weapons today, such as guns. Spears, bows and arrows allow knights to fight from a distance, such as hand grenades and guns used in today’s military.
The first war to use significant technological advancement was World War I. Despite the introduction of trench warfare (in which troops dug bases many feet deep into the ground and fought only on the surface), the art of battle would forever be changed. There were many different types of weaponry advancements experienced in World War I. Machine guns were built twice more powerful than in the Civil War, firing up to 600 bullets a minute which was the equivalent of 250 riflemen. Artillery experienced a massive technological progression with the building of several thousands of powerful cannons with shells filled with ...
The next real step in the evolution of the gun came during the Civil War. Rifles were invented that ...
At the time when humans were learning to use spears constructed out of sticks and stones and the
The weaponry during the Elizabethan period was the most advance weaponry known to the world. The most common weapons used were crossbows, longbows, war hammers, spears, early forms of pistol and cannons. With all this weaponry Europeans also needed armor, like chainmail and plate armor. Different types of weapons and the different kinds of armor were a key component to warfare during the Elizabethan period, in Europe.
Introduction The development and usage of the first atomic bombs has caused a change in the military, political, and public functionality of the world today. The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki revolutionized warfare by killing large masses of civilian population with a single strike. The bombs’ effects from the blast, extreme heat, and radiation left an estimated 140,000 people dead. The bombs created a temporary resolution that led to another conflict.
These kinds of weapons were impractical for military use, but attracted many people to the arms race for weapons that could sweep the battlefield. “They had limitations in practice, among them slow re...
When explaining how the warfare of the Middle Ages shaped and changed the way we looked at war and weapons, we must first start in the early Middle Ages. In The Art of Warfare in the Middle Ages, A.D. 378-1515, written by Charles Oman and John Beeler, he states, “between the middle of the fourth and the end of the sixth century lies a period of transition in military history…in war as in all else, the institutions of the ancient world are seen to pass away, and a new order of things develops itself” . As you can see, the warfare of the ancient Romans was passing and the new modernized technology was coming to the forefront.