Ancient Egypt Gunpowder

I thought it was "be there fustest with the mostest". :confused:

And I still hold that cannon are well beyond Egyptian capabilites. The grenade idea, maybe, rockets, even more maybe, but no cannon and definitely no handguns.

Cannon aren't actually that difficult once you figure out the principle. Of course it's a different thing to build a powerful siege gun or a gun that carries over a mile and more - that requires serious metallurgical skill - but a basic antipersonnel cannon is within the capabilities of even fairly basic crafts. The main question is rather whether the Egyptians would digure out the principle and develop on it. Early and Middle Kingdom military could probably use it, but probably wouldn't have the nercessary technology yet. New Kingdom might have less incentive, but greater capability. By the time the late dynasties come, the technological capability would certainly be there or could be developed on an existing base.

Might someone be nuts enough to try to rocket-propel a chariot? I hope not...
 
it would be interesting to see what shrapnel would do to roman legions in tight formation
i agree a simple antipersonel "cannon" or some kind of large shotgun/blunderbuss would eventually be developed, maybe not by the egiptians, but someone would get the picture sooner or later

such a weapon doesnt ewen have to be made of metal
 

Valdemar II

Banned
When I read this WI, I can't help thinking about the Peloponnesian War and the mythical Siege of Troy, both had sieges that lasted for years, it doesn't seem a uncommon term for the Ancient Greeks, I could see the Greek States develop primitive bronze cannons, so they could end sieges faster, of course that would result in stronger Greek landempires, and the only sea empires which would survive was the one on Isles.
 
What about landmines? The Song Chinese used them against the Mongols, I assume they could be developed in Egypt too. Not sure how effective would be against chariots and the like. I could even imagine them being used as a way of safeguarding the tombs of the Pharoahs. Naval mines are also an idea, perhaps they would be used in the Nile during periods of civil warfare and the like. Naval mines in other regions of the world, such as the Aegean, could have interesting effects.

Smoke bombs could be used to make smoke screens that reduce might reduce the effectiveness of archers in some situations.

Eventually, if the Egyptians or others do develop guns, could there be the development of some dual-weapons. I imagine the khopesh being combined with a handgun of some kind, perhaps used mainly by the military elite or used ceremonially. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khopesh

Does the presence of gunpowder mean that the development of sword technology is retarded? Perhaps the most common bladed weapon is eventually the bayonet, and the sword remains a simple weapon before it is rendered obsolete.

Is the development of armour also retarded? By the time that Greek and Roman analogues are around it is possible for gunpowder tech to have advanced enough that soldiers like hoplites and legions are simply impractical.

How would the spread of gunpowder weapons into northern eurasia affect the development of cultures there? My mental image is of something akin to the Maori Musket Wars but with the ancestors of the Celts instead. The centralisation and consolidation pressures that gunpowder warfare summons could lead to many of the migration patterns which define OTL being halted or diverted. Or the northern areas could be decimated in internecine warfare after handguns are introduced by Mediterranean traders, and then easily conquered by centralised empires from the South with more experience with gunpowder warfare.
 
Actually, the Egyptians were in possession of bronze-casting technology as early as the Middle Kingdom. By the New Kingdom, it was quite advanced. I agree that it wouldn't happen as early as the Middle Kingdom, but it could definitely happen before the end of the New Kingdom.

For that matter, some form of hand cannon, cast of bronze, might come about before the big guns, simply because the big guns will take more skill in bronze casting to achieve and a lot more bronze.

What might be the best point for this sort of discovery to take place in during the Middle Kingdom? I have a sudden burst of inspiration, based off a different, ASBish type timeline.

EDIT: HOLY EEPS! I didn't bother looking at the dates for this thread o_0
 
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