Petards in Fortress Sieges

Abstract

Petards usually remind us of pyro-technical tools of fireworks. It is less known that in the 15th and 16th  centuries explosive devices used in fortress sieges were  called by the same name. This paper gives a short review of  the evolution of the definition of petards during the past  150 years, gives summary of development of the  fortress sieges and of those mines that were applied during  these assaults. The main types of petards and their  technical, structural characteristics are also introduced in  this study. The last chapter describes two Hungarian  examples from the 16th century when petards were  effectively used in attacks against fortresses.