From Introduction: “And it was a great pity, so it was That villainous saltpeter should be digg’d Out of the bowels of the harmless earth, Which many a good tall fellow had destroyed So cowardly; and, but for the vile guns, He would himself have been a soldier.” - Shakespeare, Henry IV, act I, scene ii. This work is not intended to be THE definitive work on the history and development of firearms. Far too many weapons of importance, large and small, exist for such a claim to be said of a work of this insignificant size. Instead, the following includes enough information to provide the reader with a reasonable road map of the rise of black powder weaponry from its meager, nigh-mythological beginnings to reach its current prevalent and orthodox worldwide acceptance in modern militaries, citizenry, and entertainment media. user comment this Item is a web enhancement for Grim Tales