
Gunpowder Technology in the Fifteenth Century
A Study, Edition and Translation of the Firework Book
Axel Mueller(Author)
Boydell Press
Published on 16. January 2024
Book
Hardback
388 pages
978-1-78327-731-5 (ISBN)
Description
The first full edition and English translation of the RA I.34 Firework Book.
Produced from the early fifteenth century onwards, Firework Books are, broadly speaking, manuals on how to use gunpowder, witnessing a major development in warfare. Surviving in a corpus of some 65, each text has different content and components, but core elements are present throughout. An important example is a manuscript in the collection of the Royal Armouries (RA I.34), written in Early New High German, and (unlike many other manuscripts) still in what appears to be its original format and binding; it also, unusually, contains a number of illustrations.
This volume provides the first full edition and English translation of the material, with a detailed analysis of its content and context. It positions the Firework Books at a crucial stage in the development of gunpowder artillery, offering an unparalleled insight into fifteenth-century gunpowder technology at a critical juncture of military and technological change at the end of the Middle Ages.
Produced from the early fifteenth century onwards, Firework Books are, broadly speaking, manuals on how to use gunpowder, witnessing a major development in warfare. Surviving in a corpus of some 65, each text has different content and components, but core elements are present throughout. An important example is a manuscript in the collection of the Royal Armouries (RA I.34), written in Early New High German, and (unlike many other manuscripts) still in what appears to be its original format and binding; it also, unusually, contains a number of illustrations.
This volume provides the first full edition and English translation of the material, with a detailed analysis of its content and context. It positions the Firework Books at a crucial stage in the development of gunpowder artillery, offering an unparalleled insight into fifteenth-century gunpowder technology at a critical juncture of military and technological change at the end of the Middle Ages.
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Woodbridge
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Boydell & Brewer Ltd
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
22 b/w illus.
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 25 mm
Weight
746 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78327-731-5 (9781783277315)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Axel Mueller
Gunpowder Technology in the Fifteenth Century
A Study, Edition and Translation of the Firework Book
Book
06/2025
Boydell & Brewer
€40.30
Shipment within 3-4 weeks

Axel Müller
Gunpowder Technology in the Fifteenth Century
A Study, Edition and Translation of the <i>Firework Book</i>
E-Book
01/2024
1st Edition
De Gruyter
€72.99
Available for download
Person
AXEL E. W. MUELLER is Congress Director of the International Medieval Congress and teaches in the Institute for Medieval Studies at the University of Leeds.
Content
Introduction
1. The Firework Book Tradition
2. The Use and Reception of the Firework Book
3. The Leeds Firework Book
4. The Text of Royal Armouries I.34
Editorial Principles
Edition and Translation
5. Analysis of the Text
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
1. The Firework Book Tradition
2. The Use and Reception of the Firework Book
3. The Leeds Firework Book
4. The Text of Royal Armouries I.34
Editorial Principles
Edition and Translation
5. Analysis of the Text
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index