Meng Huo You

is the name given to

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

in ancient China, which practiced the use of petroleum as an

incendiary weapon Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, th ...

in warfare.

Historical records of petroleum

During the Eastern Han dynasty, the Chinese historian and poet Ban Gu recorded in the geography section of his ''

Book of Han The ''Book of Han'' or ''History of the Former Han'' (Qián Hàn Shū,《前汉书》) is a history of China finished in 111AD, covering the Western, or Former Han dynasty from the first emperor in 206 BCE to the fall of Wang Mang in 23 CE. ...

'' that a flammable liquid substance are found in the Gao Nu County, located in the northeast portion of present-day

Shaanxi Province Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ni ...

. This "flammable liquid" was likely petroleum that had seeped through the ground and was floating above the local waters. Four hundred years later, during the late stages of

Southern and Northern dynasties The Northern and Southern dynasties () was a period of political division in the history of China that lasted from 420 to 589, following the tumultuous era of the Sixteen Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin dynasty. It is sometimes considered as ...

, historian Fan Ye cited in the '' Book of Later Han'' that the collection and exploitation of petroleum had been around for some time: This "stone-lacquer" is likely petroleum. There are similar records from the Jin and Northern Wei dynasties as well. The earliest mention of "rock oil" (石油), the Chinese name for petroleum, is by a book "Grand Peace Records" from the

Northern Song dynasty Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

, and officially designated the current name by Song dynasty polymath scientist Shen Kuo using the description found in his famous book '' Dream Pool Essays''. Due to the chemical characteristics of petroleum that it continues to burn in water, it was widely used by feudal militaries. Some examples include the defense of the city of

Jiuquan Jiuquan, formerly known as Suzhou, is a prefecture-level city in the northwesternmost part of Gansu Province in the People's Republic of China. It is more than wide from east to west, occupying , although its built-up area is mostly located in i ...

in Gansu Province in the year 578 against the invading Göktürk army, in which the defenders used petroleum to ignite and destroy the

siege engine A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while oth ...

s brought in by the invaders.

Practice and proliferation of Meng Huo You

In ancient China, the use of petroleum in warfare was the most effective during the

Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period (), from 907 to 979, was an era of political upheaval and division in 10th-century Imperial China. Five dynastic states quickly succeeded one another in the Central Plain, and more than a dozen conc ...

and the following four major dynasties and powers from

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetit ...

through to Yuan, including the Jin and Liao dynasties. During this time a small dynasty in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

paid tribute to the Chinese emperor with petroleum. Before this time, fire attacks were limited to burning wood or animal fat; using petroleum greatly increased the potency of fire attacks, and the fact that trying to douse the burning petroleum with water will only spread the fire more rapidly made burning oil an ideal weapon for destroying cities filled with wooden structures. Meng Huo You is in many ways similar to the use of Greek fire. The devices used for the Chinese weapons had propelling systems as well. One of the key differences between the two weapons is the use of

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). Th ...

as the ignition in the Chinese design.

Decline

The Chinese continued to use the oil as a way of repelling nomadic invaders from the northwest. However, by the

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peop ...

and Qing dynasties, the newly mature technology of gunpowder had for the most part replaced the use of these short-range flamethrowers, which saw little mention in the historical records of the last dynasties of imperial China.

External links

最早的火焰喷射器--猛火油柜
Chinese military museum's website illustrating the earliest flame throwers. {{Ancient and Dynastic Chinese Military History Flamethrowers Chinese inventions Military history of the Han dynasty Medieval weapons Petroleum Weapons of China