When was the grenade first used?

Answer 1

Grenades first were made in the revolutionary period. A grenade then was just a five pound ball filled with gunpowder. On the top was a candle wick. They would light the match and throw. OnlyGrenadiers (Gren-a-dEErs) carried them. They would be specially trained at throwing accuracy.

Answer 2

The first grenades appeared in the Byzantine Empire, not long after the reign of Leo III (717-741). Byzantine soldiers learned that Greek fire, a Byzantine invention of the previous century, could not only be thrown by flamethrowers at the enemy, but also in stone and ceramic jars. Later, glass containers were employed. Byzantine hand grenades with Greek fire in the 10th to 12th centuries are on display in theNational Museum at Athens. The use of Greek fire, or rather variants thereof, spread to Muslim armies in the Near East, from where it reached China by the 10th century.

Some medieval petards were small enough to be employed against enemy troops and be considered as primitive hand grenades.

In China during the Song Dynasty (960-1279AD), weapons known as Zhen Tian Lei were created when Chinese soldiers packed gunpowder into ceramic or metal containers. In 1044, a military book Wujing Zongyao ("Compilation of Military Classics") described various gunpowder recipes in which one can find, according to Joseph Needham, the prototype of the modern hand grenade.

Answer 3

There were a number of grenades used in the US Civil War. There are indications that they were used in the early history of the explosives in China. Basically, a fire cracker is a type of grenade. You light it and throw it at the enemy. Over time it was designed to cause more damage and make them more dangerous.

Answer 4

They were invented when you asked this question. LOL. Just kidding. I have no clue.

Answer 5

Exploding bombs that are thrown have been around for centuries. Both sides of the US Civil War used hand thrown bombs.