Bellifortis
Well-Known Member
Hallo,
while reading a 1905 german technical magazine I found an article about the history of hand grenades. The author there stated, that against the common belief that the Japs at Port Arthur were the first to introduce the hand-grenade into modern(HE) warfare, it were the british in the 1880s in the Sudan that used Terracotta or Bledgewood grenades, segmented inside and filled with a small charge of guncotton. For night use the grenades were additionally filled with 3 Magnesium stars. These grenades were ignited with a friction tube and had an adjustable timing. Their weight was 4-6 ounces. I checked the nice thesis "Muse of Fire" and Bonnex'es publications and photos, but nowhere could I find a picture or even mentioning of these hand-grenades. Can anyone shed any light on this seemingly forgotten historical technical aspect.
Greetings,
Bellifortis.
while reading a 1905 german technical magazine I found an article about the history of hand grenades. The author there stated, that against the common belief that the Japs at Port Arthur were the first to introduce the hand-grenade into modern(HE) warfare, it were the british in the 1880s in the Sudan that used Terracotta or Bledgewood grenades, segmented inside and filled with a small charge of guncotton. For night use the grenades were additionally filled with 3 Magnesium stars. These grenades were ignited with a friction tube and had an adjustable timing. Their weight was 4-6 ounces. I checked the nice thesis "Muse of Fire" and Bonnex'es publications and photos, but nowhere could I find a picture or even mentioning of these hand-grenades. Can anyone shed any light on this seemingly forgotten historical technical aspect.
Greetings,
Bellifortis.