Rockets were once a deadly weapon of war but did you know that high-end rockets were invented by Tipu Sultan, the ruler of Mysore, who died #OnThisDay in 1799 CE? His rockets were so effective, they even left a mark on the American national anthem, the Star Spangled Banner. 1/8
Rockets had been used in #war by the Chinese and Arabs in medieval times but their casings were made of bamboo, wood and cardboard. They were no more than fireworks used in battle to light up the night sky or to frighten enemy horses. 2/8
What made Tipu’s rockets deadly was the use of iron casing, which allowed for greater compression, which created greater thrust and gave them a long range (2.4 km). The Mysorean Rocket was the deadliest missile in the world at the time. 3/8
The technology for Tipu’s rockets was developed by his father, Hyder Ali. Inside the iron casing, gunpowder was packed with shrapnel & the rocket was tipped with steel blades, to tear through the enemy. Launchers, wooden ramps on wheels, could fire a dozen rockets at once. 4/8
Did you know that Tipu's army had a rocket corps of up to 5,000 men? His rockets rained hell on the British during the Anglo-Mysore Wars and dealt them some of their most crushing defeats, such as the Battle of Pollilur (1780). British soldiers called them 'flying plagues'. 5/8
India does not recognise Tipu's contribution to rocket technology, yet he has been honoured by NASA. A painting of Mysorean Rockets being fired by Tipu’s army at the British cavalry hangs the lobby of its Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. 6/8
The British too recognised Tipu’s genius. After the fall of Sriranganapattna (1799), they took his rockets back to England and developed an improved version, the Congreve Rocket, in 1804. It was widely used by them in the Napoleonic Wars and against the Americans. 7/8
Congreve rockets were used by the Americans in their war against the British in the Battle of Ft McHenry in 1812. It was these rockets that created “the rockets' red glare”, a line in the US national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner’, written by Francis Scott Key. 8/8
More on Tipu Sultan and his Mysorean Rocket here:
livehistoryindia.com/story/art-hist…
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