WI: Islamic world gets gunpowder three centuries early?

Here are a few facts:

  • Islam had made significant progress in China by time of the Song Dynasty (which began in 960)
  • Gunpowder was first developed by the Chinese in the 9th Century
  • Gunpowder was first developed by Muslims in the 13th century
So what if (for example) a Chinese alchemist who understands how to create gunpowder converted to Islam and made his Hajj to Mecca, but for some reason never returned home, eventually sharing gunpowder with the locals? How much could the Islamic world push this advantage in military technology? Is there something that would prevent knowledge of gunpowder from spreading to the middle east prematurely?
 
The first use of gunpowder was in rockets. It is only when you get cannon do you start going places. The first known cannon are 13th century and had three functions:
1) Siege warfare
2) Novelty value in battles
3) Development into handguns

On the first, you are going to get a revolution in military engineering akin to that in Europe in the Renaissance, ie low thick walls across cities and castles not the high not-so-think ones. The reason for construction of latter is that they are difficult to scale and the weight of the height provides good protection against the inaccuracy of stone throwers used to breach them. The weight though works against breaching by cannon because a) cannon can put the ball in the same place every time and b) the higher the wall the greater the collapse and the larger the breach.

On the second no great significance. To go from bombard to cannon as we know them you need to put in place all the developments that the French had by the end of the 15th century. Other than the casting of them which will need practice nothing is particulary complicated so Islamic forces could have real cannon in time for the First Crusade.

On the third, to profit from handguns Islam warriors are going to have to change their mind set as Europeans did. Fighters who see skill in bow and sword as manly and those use guns as women are not candidates for mass use of firearms. The Europeans changed from the knight to the musket because they were more pragmatic and flatten any enemy who were not. Offer them handguns and some of them will take 'em.

If Islam get serious gunpowder earlier then so will the Europeans, if not in time for 1066 and the First Crusade then soon after.
 
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