Song use gunpowder bombs at Caishi

1161

Defending the Yangtze against a Jin invasion, Song admirals fired thunder-crash bombs - iron-cased gunpowder projectiles launched from trebuchets - that tore through Jurchen paddle-wheel boats. Chinese military texts record it as the first large-scale use of true explosive weapons in warfare. The battle marked the moment when gunpowder crossed from pyrotechnic novelty to decisive military technology, a transformation that would eventually reshape warfare across Eurasia.