Chapter 22 conclusion

Ancient Chinese weapons originated earlier and evolved from production tools in the late Neolithic Age. They have gone through various development stages such as stone weapons, bronze weapons, steel weapons, and firearms, with a long history of more than 5,000 years.In the past 5,000 years, there have emerged such as Mo Di, Gong Shuban, Pu Yuan, Qimu Huaiwen, Feng Jisheng, Tang Fu, Shipu, Chen Gui, Yisi Mayin, Jiao Yu, Weng Wanda, Zeng Mi, Zhao Shizhen, Xu Guangqi , Li Zhizao, Zhang Tao, Sun Yuanhua, Bi Maokang, Jiao Xu, Dai Zi and other outstanding weapon developers and military technicians, they not only have their own strengths, but also can be good at using the latest achievements in production and science and technology in their respective times , Such as bronze alloy smelting technology, steelmaking technology, gunpowder preparation technology, etc., have created various weapons with novel structures, different shapes, complete categories, and diverse uses, which are used in various forms of land and water warfare.These weapons are not only inherited from the past, but also constantly innovated, so that the weapons will develop to a new level according to the needs of the war, so that the ancient Chinese weapons will be in the leading position in the world in a long historical period.The invention of gunpowder and the creation of firearms created an era in which firearms and cold weapons were used together in the history of human warfare.

So far, in the history of the development of ancient weapons, there is no weapon that can spread so widely and have such a profound impact like the gunpowder invented by China and the firearms invented by China.This influence is not only manifested in revolutionizing the world's military technology and opening up a broad road for the birth and development of modern guns, but also in the transformation of European society and the rise of modern science, as well as the civilization and progress of human society. , played a huge role in promoting.Marx and Engels made incisive expositions on this issue and spoke highly of it.Marx believed that the spread of China's three major inventions of gunpowder, printing and compass to the west was the three major forecasts of the coming of European bourgeois society.Engels said: "From the beginning, firearms were the weapons of the city and the new monarchy relying on the city against the feudal aristocracy. The stone walls of the noble castles that had been impregnable before could not withstand the cannons of the citizens; the bullets of the citizens pierced the knights. The armor of the nobles. The rule of the nobility and the noble cavalry wearing armor will perish." (Engels: "Anti-Dühring Theory: Three Violence Theory (Continued)") Francis Bacon, a modern British thinker, praised these three inventions in China, which have changed China. The face and state of things in the world as a whole.Fuller, the founder of the theory of mechanized warfare, believed that the gunpowder invented by China not only gave life to the Renaissance, but also blew up the order of the Middle Ages. In May 1982, Professor Emeritus Kiyoshi Yabuuchi of Tokyo Metropolitan University pointed out that the western spread of the four great inventions of China, including gunpowder, was before the Renaissance movement. Without the westward spread of the four great inventions of China, there would be no European Renaissance movement. And without the Renaissance, there would be no modernization of Europe, which the Europeans themselves admit.

Weapon developers and generals in ancient China not only created all kinds of cold weapons and firearms according to the needs of actual combat, but also summarized and improved the experience of manufacturing and using weapons, and wrote them into weapon monographs and various books including weapons. kind of treatise.Among them, there are "Kaogongji", which is the earliest record of weapon manufacturing specifications and the proportion of copper and tin in bronze weapons, "Mozi Beicheng Gate" which specializes in the study of attacking and defending equipment, and "Zeng Gongliang" and "Ding Du". "Wu Jing Zong Yao", which published three gunpowder formulas and primary firearms for the first time, Zheng Ruozeng's "Chi Hai Tu Bian" which specifically discussed coastal defense and water warfare weapons, and Qi Jiguang's "Ji Xiao Xin Shu" and "Ji Xiao Xin Shu" which trained soldiers to use various weapons The Real Records of Military Training includes He Liangchen's "Array Records", Tang Shunzhi's "Wu Bian", Wang Minghe's "Access to the Altar", He Rubin's "Bing Lu", which discusses the techniques and tactics of using weapons. And used Zhao Shizhen's "Sacred Artifacts", Sun Yuanhua's "Western Magic Machine", Jiao Xu's "Fire Attack", and "Wu Bei Zhi" which is a collection of ancient Chinese weapons.These military books are as colorful as a forest of history. They are the crystallization of the wisdom of the Chinese nation in weapon development in the past 5,000 years, and they have become a precious heritage in the treasure house of human weapon technology history.

There are also those outstanding commanders and generals, such as Jiang Ziya, Wu Zixu, Wei Sheng, Li Bao, Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Di, Yu Qian, Yuan Chonghuan, Zheng Chenggong, etc., they successfully used various weapons on the battlefield filled with swords, swords, shadows and gunpowder to create Many well-known battles have been praised by military strategists of all dynasties. Their dedication to the development of Chinese weapon technology and the consolidation and development of the unity of the Chinese nation is a model for our patriotic education.