A petard is a small bomb used for blowing up gates and walls when breaching fortifications. It is of French origin and dates back to the 16th century.[1] A typical petard was a conical or rectangular metal device containing 5–6 pounds (2–3 kg) of gunpowder, with a slow match for a fuse.
A petard, from a seventeenth-century manuscript of military designs
A 19th-century British army petard (in center, projecting from the copper circle), mounted on a madrier, with braces
Pétard comes from the Middle Frenchpéter, to fart, from the root pet, expulsion of intestinal gas, derived from the Latinpeditus, past participle of pedere, to break wind. In modern French, a pétard is a firecracker (and it is the basis for the word for firecracker in several other European languages).
Pétardiers were deployed during sieges of castles or fortified cities. The pétard, a rather primitive and exceedingly dangerous explosive device, comprised a brass or iron bell-shaped device filled with gunpowder and affixed to a wooden base called a madrier. This was attached to a wall or gate using hooks and rings, the fuse lit and, if successful, the resulting explosive force, concentrated at the target point, would blow a hole in the obstruction, allowing assault troops to enter.
Shakespeare's phrase "hoist with his own petard"—meaning that one could be lifted (blown) upward by one's own bomb, or in other words, be foiled by one's own plan—has become an idiom that means "to be harmed by one's own plan (to harm someone else)" or "to fall into one's own trap".
Overview
Petards were often placed either inside tunnels under walls or directly upon gates. The petard's shape allowed the concussive pressure of the blast to be applied entirely towards the destruction of the target structure. Depending on design, a petard could be secured by propping it against the wall or gate using beams, as illustrated, or nailing it in place on a madrier (a thick wooden board fixed in advance to the end of the petard).[2]
Churchill AVRE with its 230/29 mm spigot mortar and its 228 mm petard bomb ammunition to the right.[3]
In military use, a petard mortar was a spigot mortar (a weapon that fires explosive projectiles, known as [mortar] bombs, at low velocities, short ranges and parabolic ballistic trajectories) of a 9.1 in (230 mm) bore, known to its crews as the "flying dustbin" due to the characteristics of its projectile, an un-aerodynamic 44 lb (20 kg) charge that could be fired up to 110 yd (100 m). The weapon was carried by the Churchill AVRE tank and was sufficient to breach or demolish many bunkers and earthworks.
In Maltese English, home-made fireworks—a popular and widespread albeit highly dangerous hobby in Malta—are called petards (the word in Maltese, murtal, is related to "mortar"). These petards are detonated by the dozen during feasts dedicated to local patron saints. Maltese petards are made by common people without formal education in chemistry, as an exercise in traditional handiwork.
Appier-Hanzelet, Jean, (1630) "La pyrotechnie de Hanzelet lorrain...", A well illustrated 17th Century artillery book showing several examples of petards in use.
January 06, 2023
petard, other, uses, disambiguation, petard, small, bomb, used, blowing, gates, walls, when, breaching, fortifications, french, origin, dates, back, 16th, century, typical, petard, conical, rectangular, metal, device, containing, pounds, gunpowder, with, slow,. For other uses see Petard disambiguation A petard is a small bomb used for blowing up gates and walls when breaching fortifications It is of French origin and dates back to the 16th century 1 A typical petard was a conical or rectangular metal device containing 5 6 pounds 2 3 kg of gunpowder with a slow match for a fuse A petard from a seventeenth century manuscript of military designs A 19th century British army petard in center projecting from the copper circle mounted on a madrier with braces Contents 1 Etymology 2 Overview 3 Variants 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksEtymology EditPetard comes from the Middle French peter to fart from the root pet expulsion of intestinal gas derived from the Latin peditus past participle of pedere to break wind In modern French a petard is a firecracker and it is the basis for the word for firecracker in several other European languages Petardiers were deployed during sieges of castles or fortified cities The petard a rather primitive and exceedingly dangerous explosive device comprised a brass or iron bell shaped device filled with gunpowder and affixed to a wooden base called a madrier This was attached to a wall or gate using hooks and rings the fuse lit and if successful the resulting explosive force concentrated at the target point would blow a hole in the obstruction allowing assault troops to enter Shakespeare s phrase hoist with his own petard meaning that one could be lifted blown upward by one s own bomb or in other words be foiled by one s own plan has become an idiom that means to be harmed by one s own plan to harm someone else or to fall into one s own trap Overview EditPetards were often placed either inside tunnels under walls or directly upon gates The petard s shape allowed the concussive pressure of the blast to be applied entirely towards the destruction of the target structure Depending on design a petard could be secured by propping it against the wall or gate using beams as illustrated or nailing it in place on a madrier a thick wooden board fixed in advance to the end of the petard 2 Variants EditThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Petard news newspapers books scholar JSTOR January 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message Churchill AVRE with its 230 29 mm spigot mortar and its 228 mm petard bomb ammunition to the right 3 In military use a petard mortar was a spigot mortar a weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as mortar bombs at low velocities short ranges and parabolic ballistic trajectories of a 9 1 in 230 mm bore known to its crews as the flying dustbin due to the characteristics of its projectile an un aerodynamic 44 lb 20 kg charge that could be fired up to 110 yd 100 m The weapon was carried by the Churchill AVRE tank and was sufficient to breach or demolish many bunkers and earthworks In Maltese English home made fireworks a popular and widespread albeit highly dangerous hobby in Malta are called petards the word in Maltese murtal is related to mortar These petards are detonated by the dozen during feasts dedicated to local patron saints Maltese petards are made by common people without formal education in chemistry as an exercise in traditional handiwork See also EditFougasse weapon List of inventors killed by their own invention Shaped chargeReferences Edit Petard Dictionary reference com Stuart Jobs The Worst Jobs in History Season 1 Channel 4 Hosted by Tony Robinson AVRE 230MM FACT CHECKING YouTube Archived from the original on 2022 07 07 user generated source External links Edit Look up petard in Wiktionary the free dictionary Look up hoist with one s own petard in Wiktionary the free dictionary Media related to Petard at Wikimedia Commons Petard Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 21 11th ed 1911 Appier Hanzelet Jean 1630 La pyrotechnie de Hanzelet lorrain A well illustrated 17th Century artillery book showing several examples of petards in use Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Petard amp oldid 1099440750, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
