Q 01/05

The first firearms, bamboo fire lances mounted on spears, originated in which country?

A) China

B) India

C) Persia

D) Turkey

Answer · why

A) China

China: Song dynasty fire lances began as short-range flamethrowers, and once soldiers packed shards and pellets in with the powder and swapped bamboo ...

Q 02/05

Traditional gunpowder is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal and which oxidiser?

A) Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)

B) Potassium nitrate (saltpetre)

C) Ammonium sulfate

D) Calcium carbonate

Answer · why

B) Potassium nitrate (saltpetre)

Potassium nitrate (saltpetre) breaks down in the heat and gives off oxygen, so the sulfur and charcoal can burn inside a sealed barrel with no air; it...

Q 03/05

Which early European firearm was the first to have a trigger?

A) The wheellock pistol

B) The flintlock musket

C) The matchlock arquebus

D) The hand cannon

Answer · why

C) The matchlock arquebus

The matchlock arquebus, from the 15th century, was the first gun with a trigger: a lever dropped a smouldering cord into the priming pan, freeing the ...

Q 04/05

Unlike the later flintlock, the wheellock of about 1500 struck sparks by spinning a steel wheel against which mineral?

A) Quartz

B) Obsidian

C) Magnetite

D) Pyrite

Answer · why

D) Pyrite

Pyrite: a spring-driven wheel ground against a lump of it and showered sparks into the pan, so for the first time a loaded gun needed no burning match...

Q 05/05

Court gunsmith Marin le Bourgeoys developed the true flintlock c. 1610-15 for the king of which country?

A) France

B) England

C) Spain

D) Sweden

Answer · why

A) France

He made one for Louis XIII soon after the king's accession, and the design remained standard for more than two centuries.