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

They were used as shock weapons at the siege of De'an in 1132; metal-barrelled hand cannons followed in the 13th century.

Q 02/05

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

A) Sodium chloride

B) Potassium nitrate (saltpetre)

C) Ammonium sulfate

D) Calcium carbonate

Answer · why

B) Potassium nitrate (saltpetre)

It is classed as a low explosive because it deflagrates, burning at subsonic speed rather than detonating.

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

Before it, a gunner or an assistant had to touch a lit match to the powder by hand.

Q 04/05

A wheellock, developed around 1500, made its spark by spinning a steel wheel against a piece of what?

A) Flint

B) Quartz

C) Steel wool

D) Pyrite

Answer · why

D) Pyrite

It was the first self-igniting firearm and the next big step after the matchlock, though it was expensive and complex.

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.