Chapter 18 Section 10 Heavy Artillery

Heavy artillery was developed from light artillery. It was used in a few places in the early Ming Dynasty, and gradually increased in the later period.They are characterized by the use of cannon carriages, increased mobility, and enhanced destructive power.Among them, the more famous ones are the General Pao, Gongrong Pao, Qianzi Lei Pao, Baizi Lianzhu Pao and so on. The general cannon was used in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Wang Minghe said in "Access to the Altar" that this type of cannon was mostly used for border defense.Ye Mengxiong, Shangshu of the Ministry of Industry, pointed out: "The biggest firearm is the general." There are three types of generals, large, medium and small, and they fire seven-jin, five-jin, and three-jin lead bullets.At first, they were mostly fixed and used to guard the pass.Later, it was carried by vehicles for mobile operations.There are many real objects of the General Cannon, and there is still a corroded iron General Cannon on the tower of Shanhaiguan City.

This cannon is mounted on a two-wheeled cannon carriage. There is a carriage dug out of elm and locust wood on the carriage. Iron anchor, when firing, hook the iron anchor on the ground to fix the gun carriage and reduce recoil. The gun barrel is made of copper, one foot and eight inches long, five inches in diameter, and contains six minutes of gunpowder and two to three liters of projectiles.The gun body is hooped on the four-wheeled vehicle with iron hoops, and there is a baffle at the front end of the vehicle to conceal the gun body.When the enemy is approaching, go to the board and shoot, so that the enemy is caught off guard.

The gun tube is made of refined copper, four feet long, and contains one liter of gunpowder. There is a hole in the front, and a bullet nozzle can be installed through the hole. Launched on a solid wooden stand.The tail shaft at the rear of the barrel can adjust the shooting angle and firing range. Since the mid-Ming Dynasty, many heavy artillery pieces have been carried by artillery carriages, thus improving the mobility of the artillery and enhancing the status and role of the artillery in combat.