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Period: 100 to 476
Classical Era
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300
Roman Weapons
I believe the Romans were the superior army durin their time period as they had weapons such as the Gladuis, a shortsword designed for stabbing rather than slicing, the Pila was a spear designed for throwing that would bend on impact so that the enemies couldnt pick them up and reuse them, as well as their ability to get stuck in enemy shields and render their shields useless. -
Period: 477 to Dec 31, 1400
Medieval
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555
Saxon Weapons
The Saxons used very basic weapons but were feared warriors when it came to combat. They would use a rounded shield and a spear to fight and wore chain mail armor. The saxon strategy was very easy, just rush the opponent with shear strength or they would use a form of Phalanx. Their phlanx was very effective and they lost only one major battle because their men broke formation. -
Period: Jan 1, 1401 to
Renaissance
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Period: Jan 1, 1492 to
Exploration Era
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Jan 1, 1530
Wheelock invented
The Wheelock was a major step for weaponry as instead of the gun having to be lit by a slow burning match it was ignited by a metal wheel spinning against iron pyrites creating sparks and igniting the black powder. The wheelock allowed for faster shooting times because they no longer had to point and then take a match to the gun to fire. -
Flintlock invented
The flintlock mechanism slowly replaced the wheellock and matchlock. The flintlock was very simple, it was a piece of flint striking a piece of steel to create a spark and ignite the black powder. The flintlock was more effective and had less misfires than the wheellock. The flintlock was what changed guns from that point on. -
Grenades First Used
The first grenades were simply a metal ball with a charge and fuse that would explode when ignited. The British were the first to use these grenades. The picture included on the timeline is not actually the way the first grenades look, but i couldnt find a picture of the first grenades. -
Period: to
Revolutionary Era
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Percussion Cap Invented
The percussion cap was invented by Alexander Forsyth; the percussion cap was made so that it would be placed near the gunpowder charge and when the trigger was pulled it would make the hammer hit the cap that was filled with mercury which would explode and ignite the charge. -
Maxim Gun
Hiram Maxim created one of the first machine guns, and the first sucessful machine gun with his invention of the Maxim gun which was taken into the British army in 1889. The Maxim gun was the first self powered machine gun. The way the gun fired was one of the first recoil firing systems ever used and was way ahead of its time. -
Period: to
World wars
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Nuclear Bombs Introduced
In 1939 Albert Einstein worte a letter to president Franklin D. Roosvelt saying that the Germans were purifying urnaium 235 and trying to create the atomic bomb. Shortly after the Americans began the "Manhattan Project" to create a working nuclear bomb. -
Period: to
Cold War