Huo Che () or rocket carts () are several types of Chinese

multiple rocket launcher A multiple rocket launcher (MRL) or multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is a type of rocket artillery system that contains multiple launchers which are fixed to a single platform, and shoots its rocket ordnance in a fashion similar to a vo ...

developed for firing multiple

fire arrow Fire arrows were one of the earliest forms of weaponized gunpowder, being used from the 9th century onward. Not to be confused with earlier incendiary arrow projectiles, the fire arrow was a gunpowder weapon which receives its name from the tra ...

s. The name ''Huo Che'' first appears in ''Feng Tian Jing Nan Ji'' (), a historical text covering the Jingnan War (1399 – 1402) of

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

History

The dating of the invention of the first rocket, otherwise known as the gunpowder propelled

, is disputed. The '' History of Song'' attributes the invention to two different people at different times,

Feng Zhisheng Feng may refer to: *Feng (surname), one of several Chinese surnames in Mandarin: **Féng (surname) ( wikt:冯 féng 2nd tone "gallop"), very common Chinese surname **Fèng (surname) ( wikt:鳳 fèng 4th tone "phoenix"), relatively common Chinese fa ...

in 969 and

Tang Fu Tang Fu (唐福) was a Chinese inventor, military engineer, and naval captain who lived during the Song dynasty. Although he did not invent the fire arrow, an early form of gunpowder rocket, he is credited as having invented "a rocket of a new style ...

in 1000. However

Joseph Needham Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham (; 9 December 1900 – 24 March 1995) was a British biochemist, historian of science and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science and technology, i ...

argues that rockets could not have existed before the 12th century, since the gunpowder formulas listed in the

Wujing Zongyao The ''Wujing Zongyao'' (), sometimes rendered in English as the ''Complete Essentials for the Military Classics'', is a Chinese military compendium written from around 1040 to 1044. The book was compiled during the Northern Song dynasty by Z ...

are not suitable as rocket propellant. Rockets may have been used as early as 1232, when reports appeared describing fire arrows and 'iron pots' that could be heard for 5 leagues (25 km, or 15 miles) when they exploded upon impact, causing devastation for a radius of , apparently due to shrapnel. A "flying fire-lance" that had re-usable barrels was also mentioned to have been used by the

Jin dynasty (1115–1234) The Jin dynasty (, ; ) or Jin State (; Jurchen: Anchun Gurun), officially known as the Great Jin (), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed between 1115 and 1234. Its name is sometimes written as Kin, Jurchen Jin, Jinn, or Chin in ...

. Rockets are recorded to have been used by the Song navy in a military exercise dated to 1245. Internal-combustion rocket propulsion is mentioned in a reference to 1264, recording that the 'ground-rat,' a type of

firework Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large number of devices in ...

, had frightened the Empress-Mother Gongsheng at a feast held in her honor by her son the Emperor Lizong. Subsequently, rockets are included in the military treatise '' Huolongjing'', also known as the Fire Drake Manual, written by the Chinese artillery officer

Jiao Yu Jiao Yu () was a Chinese military general, philosopher, and writer of the Yuan dynasty and early Ming dynasty under Zhu Yuanzhang, who founded the dynasty and became known as the Hongwu Emperor. He was entrusted by Zhu as a leading artillery ...

in the mid-14th century. This text mentions the first known

multistage rocket A multistage rocket or step rocket is a launch vehicle that uses two or more rocket ''stages'', each of which contains its own engines and propellant. A ''tandem'' or ''serial'' stage is mounted on top of another stage; a ''parallel'' stage i ...

, the 'fire-dragon issuing from the water' (huo long chu shui), thought to have been used by the Chinese navy.Needham, Volume 5, Part 7, 510. Rocket launchers known as "nest of bees" were ordered by the Ming army in 1380. In 1400, the Ming loyalist Li Jinglong used rocket launchers against the army of Zhu Di (

Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (; pronounced ; 2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), personal name Zhu Di (), was the third Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 1424. Zhu Di was the fourth son of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming dyn ...

). The American historian

Frank H. Winter Frank H. Winter (born 1942) is an American historian and writer. He is the retired Curator of Rocketry of the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, D.C. Winter is also an internationally recognized hist ...

proposed in ''The Proceedings of the Twentieth and Twenty-First History Symposia of the International Academy of Astronautics'' that southern China and the Laotian community rocket festivals might have been key in the subsequent spread of rocketry in the Orient. As multiple rocket launchers, rocket carts were used in the

in the Jingnan War (1399 – 1402) and were carried on the ships of

Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferr ...

(1371 – 1433) during his voyages to India and Africa. Huo Ches were primarily used in a defensive manner for close-range infantry support.

Variants

Huo Che

Fire cart (): A fire arrow engine deployed in Jingnan War, recorded in ''Feng Tian Jing Nan Ji''.

Jiahuo zhanche

Wheelbarrow fire engine (): Multiple rocket launcher supported by a wheelbarrow cart, recorded in '' Wubei Zhi''. The frame of the cart can be attached to variable sizes of rocket pods, including ''Chang She Po Di Jian'' () with 30 rockets per pod, and ''Bai Hu Qi Ben Jian'' () with 100 rockets per pod.

Huojianche

Huojianche (): It's a type of multiple rocket launcher supported by a two-wheeled cart, recorded in ''Si Zhen San Guan Zhi''.

Gallery

File:Wheelbarrow fire engine.jpg, A 'wheelbarrow fire engine' (架火戰車 ''jia huo zhan che'') constructed by joining together four 'long serpent' rocket launchers, two square 'hundred tigers' rocket-arrow launchers, two multiple-bullet emitters, and two spears for close quarter combat. File:Fire arrow rocket launcher.jpg, A 'divine fire arrow shield' (神火箭牌 ''shen huo jian pai''). Depiction of a stationary, defensive, fire arrow rocket launcher from the '' Huolongjing''. File:11th century long serpent fire arrow rocket launcher.jpg, A 'long serpent enemy breaking" fire arrow launcher (長蛇破敵箭 ''Chang She Po Di Jian'') as depicted in the '' Wubei Zhi''. It can be attached to Wheelbarrow fire engine (''Jiahuo zhanche''), or carried with a sling on the back. File:Convocation of eagles chasing hare arrow.png, The 'convocation of eagles chasing hare arrow' from the '' Wubei Zhi''. A double ended rocket arrow pod that carries 30 small poisoned rocket arrows on each end for a total of 60 rocket arrows. It carries a sling for transport.

References

Bibliography

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External links

{{Early firearms Artillery of China Chinese inventions Early firearms Early rocketry Rocket artillery Salvo weapons