“The small cannon was fashioned by Chinese artisans who benefited from working in a tradition of gunpowder weaponry that was already at least 400 years old. Some time just before the rise of China’s Song Dynasty (A.D. 960–1279), alchemists in search of new medicines found that, by combining nitrates such as saltpeter with sulfur and charcoal, they could create a chemical explosive. The Chinese word for gunpowder means “fire medicine,” but Song Dynasty officials were soon using the compound to construct simple explosives such as fire arrows and, in time, bombs. “People often think Europeans were the first to understand the military implications of gunpowder,” says Emory University historian Tonio Andrade. “But the Chinese understood gunpowder’s potential very early on.” By A.D. 1150, Song soldiers were using bamboo and wood proto-guns known as fire lances that were
essentially flamethrowers.”
Yeah, I am aware that the chinese firearms were hardly practical, I just misunderstood your post. I thought you were implying that no gunpowder weapons had been invented prior to 1280, which was not true. I completely agree that the Islamic world was pretty far ahead of the Christians in the 1200’s and 1300’s.
Yes exactly. What I meant is, the rocket was the first explosive weapon in the world; prior to that, Chinese gunpowder was only fire and propelling.
Arab empires, and later Turkish ones, were partly way ahead of Europe (except Byzantines!) from 800 to 1400… But I believe it’s complicated, even wrong, to talk about “Islam” and “Christians” as Civs; because Abbasids themselves showed you could have ethnic tolerance and peace, and Ottomans expanded religious tolerance and acceptance even more. It was a multiethnic, multireligious Empire.
The Ottoman (Turkish) Empire wasn’t the greatest, longest-lasting dynasty in all history - longer than China’s Song, Ming and Tang all together, lasting until World War I - only because of world-changing tech and war mastery, which declined in late centuries… it was the revolutionary TOLERANCE, coexistance, acceptance and respect of different religions and peoples that allowed this multiethnic, multireligious Empire to be a pioneer project of hope for Humankind.
The ugly cancer of NATIONALISM only came later, from Europe… to cause World Wars, death, suffering, genocide and hell.
Yes “technically” but most of this time “Japan” was not even a unified entity, plus it was never actually invaded (single attempt failed at sea). Ottomans had 20, 30 opponent nations at same time, yet lasted longer than Song, Ming & Tang all together…
No, wrong. Song China was mostly divided, it was not a single dynasty. Plus, Northern Song & Southern Song are completely different dynasties, in many aspects (only Northern Song was a proper dynasty of China); Tang dynasty also had a long interregnum which was a fundamental break.
Therefore, your calculation is wrong. The Ottoman dynasty is unparalleled in world History. Yamato can never be compared as it’s essentially different, and Ottomans are actually longer-lasting, uninterrupted and solid, than the three big Chinese dynasties all together (obs. Yuan and Qing are not Chinese).
There are 289 years in the Tang Dynasty, 315 years in the Song Dynasty and 310 years in the Ming Dynasty. The total is 914 years. The Ottoman Empire is only 624 years, but it is also an empire with a long time. The longest Dynasty in China is the Zhou Dynasty, with 789 years. There is a question, why did Western Europe become strong after the industrial revolution, and the Ottoman empire so close to Europe could not enjoy the results, fell behind and stagnated? Was Ottoman as arrogant as the Qing Dynasty, despised other countries and made itself closed?
A constantinople campaign, to see Ottomans attacking an almost empty city, struggling to breach the walls, because their tech of cannons were not enough advanced at this time, and byzantines fixed breaches faster than the damages happened. And finally , after almost abandoning the siege, found an old breach to exploit
The Chinese believe that the yuan and Qing Dynasties are Chinese dynasties, and the Mongols and Manchurians are now integrated into Chinese society. Yuan did not belong to the Mongolian Empire, because the Yuan Dynasty was established by Kublai Khan. At that time, the Mongolian Empire had been divided. Yuan was independent. It was only a Chinese dynasty established by the Mongols. The Mongolian Empire could not defeat the Song Dynasty until the Mongolian Empire was divided.
