Johann Schmidlap of

Schorndorf Schorndorf is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located approximately 26 km east of Stuttgart. Its train station is the terminus of the S2 line of the Stuttgart S-Bahn. The town is also sometimes referred to as ' (''The Daimler Tow ...

was a 16th-century Bavarian

fireworks 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 ...

maker and rocket pioneer. He published a book on fireworks, ''Künstliche und rechtschaffene Feuerwerck zum Schimpff'' ("artful and well-made fireworks for entertainment"), printed in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

in 1561 (reprinted 1564, new edition by Katharina Gerlachin in 1590, 1591). He may have been the first to successfully fly staged rockets, although the concept is also discussed in the work of

Conrad Haas Conrad Haas (1509–1576) was an Austrian or Transylvanian Saxon military engineer. He was a pioneer of rocket propulsion. His designs include a three-stage rocket and a manned rocket. Haas was perhaps born in Dornbach (now part of Hernal ...

, which was a direct influence on Schmidlap.Doru Todericiu, 'Raketentechnik im 16. Jahrhundert', ''Technikgeschichte'' 34.2 (1967), 97–114 (107f.)

Look also

Kazimierz Siemienowicz Kazimierz Siemienowicz ( la, Casimirus Siemienowicz, lt, Kazimieras Simonavičius; born 1600 – 1651) was a general of artillery, gunsmith, military engineer, and one of pioneers of rocketry. Born in the Raseiniai region of the Grand Duchy ...

References

{{Authority control Rocket scientists Early spaceflight scientists Early rocketry People from the Duchy of Bavaria