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Kazimierz Siemienowicz (, ; was a Polish–Lithuanian
general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
of
artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
,
gunsmith A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very ...
,
military engineer Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics ...
, and one of pioneers of rocketry. Born in the
Raseiniai Raseiniai (; Samogitian dialect, Samogitian: ''Raseinē'') is a city in Lithuania. It is located on the south eastern foothills of the Samogitians highland, some north from the A1 highway (Lithuania), Kaunas–Klaipėda highway. History Grand ...
region of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...
, he served in the armies of the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...
and of
Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange Frederick Henry (; 29 January 1584 – 14 March 1647) was the sovereign prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from his older half-brother's death on 23 April 1625 until his ...
, the ruler of the
Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...
. No portrait or detailed biography of him has survived and much of his life is a subject of dispute. After contributing his expertise to several battles, Siemienowicz published ''Artis Magnae Artilleriae'' in 1650. This treatise, which discusses
rocket A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
ry and
pyrotechnics Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating fireworks, but also includes safety matches, oxygen candles, Pyrotechnic fastener, explosive bolts (and other fasteners), parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, q ...
, remained a standard work in those fields for two centuries.


Early life


Polish school

The Polish school describes his identity simply as member of the
szlachta The ''szlachta'' (; ; ) were the nobility, noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Depending on the definition, they were either a warrior "caste" or a social ...
(i.e.,
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
in the Commonwealth) from Grand Duchy."Kazimierz Siemienowicz, ubogi szlachcic rodem z Litwy" "Kazimierz Siemienowicz, szlachcic z Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskego" Some sources use the term "Polish,""polski szlachcic Kazimierz Siemienowicz" - others describe him as "Lithuanian".Kazimierz Siemienowicz, „szlachcic litewski" - Those terms should be understood in proper context: "Polish" means "of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth"; "Lithuanian" from the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...
, a federal part of the Commonwealth. Polish historian professor Tadeusz Marian Nowak described Siemienowicz as a Polonized Lithuanian nobleman. Polish historians acknowledge that he used the Ostoja Coat of Arms and that he was an alumnus of the Academy of Vilnius.


Lithuanian school

Lithuanian literature asserts that he was Lithuanian. He was born near
Raseiniai Raseiniai (; Samogitian dialect, Samogitian: ''Raseinē'') is a city in Lithuania. It is located on the south eastern foothills of the Samogitians highland, some north from the A1 highway (Lithuania), Kaunas–Klaipėda highway. History Grand ...
in
Samogitia Samogitia, often known by its Lithuanian language, Lithuanian name ''Žemaitija'' (Samogitian language, Samogitian: ''Žemaitėjė''; see Samogitia#Etymology and alternative names, below for alternative and historical names) is one of the five ...
.Encyclopedia Lituanica. Boston, 1970–1978, Vol. 5 p. 147 The family, who was relatively poor, bore the Ostoja Coat of ArmsTadeusz Nowak "''Kazimierz Siemienowicz, ca. 1600–ca. 1651''", MON Press,
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
1969, p. 182
with military service traditions in the Grand Duchy. Siemenowicz was educated in the Academy of Wilno.


Belarusian school

The Belarusian school asserts that he was born in the vicinity of Dubrowna in the Viciebsk land, to a family of minor Ruthenian princes (''
knyaz A , also , ''knjaz'' or (), is a historical Slavs, Slavic title, used both as a royal and noble title in different times. It is usually translated into English language, English as 'prince', 'king' or 'duke', depending on specific historical c ...
'') of Siemienowicz, who possessed the small tracts of land in that part of the Belarusian
Dnieper The Dnieper or Dnepr ( ), also called Dnipro ( ), is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. Approximately long, with ...
-land (''Падняпроўе'') in the 14th–17th centuries. Some examples of lexicography used by K. Siemienowicz support this interpretation. There are no records of families with the surname Siemienowicz having the right to bear the Ostoja coat of arms and it is possible that Siemienowicz acquired the right to use the image of Ostoja in his book to facilitate its circulation.


Military career

As Siemienowicz wrote, he was fascinated by artillery since childhood, and he studied many sciences to increase his knowledge (mathematics, mechanics, hydraulics, architecture, optics, tactics). In 1632–1634 he took part in the
Smolensk War The Smolensk War (1632–1634) was a conflict fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia. Hostilities began in October 1632 when Russian forces tried to capture the city of Smolensk. Small military engagements produced mix ...
, in the Siege of Belaya under Mikołaj Abramowicz (who in 1640 became the first Lithuanian General of Artillery). It is possible that in 1644 he took part in the Battle of Ochmatów.Reprint of article on Siemienowicz from "Mlody Technik" 07.2001
/ref> He spent some time in the Netherlands, where he was sent by the King
Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania and claimant of the thrones of Monarchy of Sweden, Sweden and List of Russian monarchs, Russia. Born into the House of Vasa as a prince ...
to serve in the army of Duke Frederick Henry of Orange during the war with Spain; he participated in the Siege of Hulst in 1645. In 1646 he returned to Poland when Władysław created the Polish artillery corps and gathered specialists from Europe, planning a war with
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
. He served as an engineering expert in the fields of artillery and rocketry in the royal artillery forces.Tadeusz Nowak "''Kazimierz Siemienowicz, ca. 1600–ca. 1651''", MON Press,
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
1969, p. 183
From 1648 he served as Second in Command of the Polish Royal Artillery. In late 1648 the newly elected king
John II Casimir Vasa John II Casimir Vasa (; ; 22 March 1609 – 16 December 1672) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1648 to his abdication in 1668 as well as a claimant to the throne of Sweden from 1648 to 1660. He was the first son of Sigis ...
, who had no plans for the war with Ottomans, advised him to return to the Netherlands and publish his studies there. There are rumors that in 1649 Siemienowicz became embroiled in a conflict with General of the Artillery Krzysztof Arciszewski over a bureaucratic matter; around 1649 he decided to leave the Commonwealth and work on his book in Amsterdam.


Stance on poison gas

Siemienowicz considered the use of
poison gas Many gases have toxic properties, which are often assessed using the LC50 (median lethal concentration) measure. In the United States, many of these gases have been assigned an NFPA 704 health rating of 4 (may be fatal) or 3 (may cause serious ...
es dishonorable. In his work, he wrote:
"and most of all, they shall not construct any poisoned globes, nor other sorts of pyrobolic inventions, in which he shall introduce no poison whatsoever, besides which, they shall never employ them for the ruin and destruction of men, because the first inventors of our art thought such actions as unjust among themselves as unworthy of a man of heart and a real soldier''.


Use of biowarfare

In a historically early instance of
biowarfare Biological warfare, also known as germ warfare, is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, insects, and fungi with the intent to kill, harm or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war. Bi ...
, Siemienowicz sponsored the firing of artillery containing the saliva of rabid dogs during a 1650 battle. While the success of this experiment is unknown, it demonstrated an educated guess about the disease's communicability that was not confirmed until the 18th century. It was popular in ancient warfare to catapult a deadly disease by using an infected cadaver or its parts to the enemy. One of the most notable examples was Genghis Khan's war against besieged Chinese cities, where he catapulted dead bodies infected with plague into cities.


''Artis Magnae Artilleriae''

In 1650 Siemienowicz published a notable work, '' Artis Magnae Artilleriae pars prima'' (Great Art of Artillery, the First Part). Its name implies a second part, and it is rumored that he wrote its manuscript before his death.Tadeusz Nowak "''Kazimierz Siemienowicz, ca. 1600–ca. 1651''", MON Press,
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
1969, p. 184
It is also rumored that he was killed by members of the
metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the ...
/
gunsmith A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very ...
/
pyrotechnics Pyrotechnics is the science and craft of creating fireworks, but also includes safety matches, oxygen candles, Pyrotechnic fastener, explosive bolts (and other fasteners), parts of automotive airbags, as well as gas-pressure blasting in mining, q ...
guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular territory. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradespeople belonging to a professional association. They so ...
s, who were opposed to him publishing a book about their secrets, and that they hid or destroyed the manuscript of the second part. Guilds aggressively protecting their production secrets was widespread in these times, as we can see from James Stirling having to flee Venice in 1725 for fear of being assassinated after finding out a trade secret of the glassmakers of Venice. Siemienowicz disparaged what he saw as a culture of secrecy based on "canting Alchymists of the times Past...they dealed in nothing but
Smoke Smoke is an aerosol (a suspension of airborne particulates and gases) emitted when a material undergoes combustion or pyrolysis, together with the quantity of air that is entrained or otherwise mixed into the mass. It is commonly an unwante ...
, yet arrogantly took upon them to be Professors of so noble and excellent an art as Chymistry." ''Artis Magnae Artilleriae pars prima'' was first printed in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
in 1650, was translated to French in 1651, German in 1676, English and Dutch in 1729, and Polish in 1963. In the first part of his work he wrote that the second one would contain the "universal pyrotechnic invention, containing all of our current knowledge." According to his short description, this invention was supposed to greatly ease all measurements and calculations. For over two centuries this work was used in Europe as a basic artillery manual /
handbook A handbook is a type of reference work, or other collection of instructions, that is intended to provide ready reference. The term originally applied to a small or portable book containing information useful for its owner, but the ''Oxford Eng ...
. Its pyrotechnic formulations were used for over a century. The book provided the standard designs for creating
rocket A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
s, fireballs, and other pyrotechnic devices. It discussed for the first time the idea of applying a reactive technique to artillery (
rocket artillery Rocket artillery is artillery that uses rockets as the projectile. The use of rocket artillery dates back to medieval China where devices such as fire arrows were used (albeit mostly as a psychological weapon). Fire arrows were also used in mult ...
). It contains a large chapter on
caliber In guns, particularly firearms, but not #As a measurement of length, artillery, where a different definition may apply, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge ( ...
, construction, production and properties of rockets for both military and civil purposes, including
multistage rocket A multistage rocket or step rocket is a launch vehicle that uses two or more rocket ''stages'', each of which contains its own engines and propellant. A ''tandem'' or ''serial'' stage is mounted on top of another stage; a ''parallel'' stage is ...
s, batteries of rockets, and rockets with
delta wing A delta wing is a wing shaped in the form of a triangle. It is named for its similarity in shape to the Greek uppercase letter delta (letter), delta (Δ). Although long studied, the delta wing did not find significant practical applications unti ...
stabilisers (instead of the common guiding rods). It was the first book in the world to systematically present knowledge about the development of multistage rockets and
rocket artillery Rocket artillery is artillery that uses rockets as the projectile. The use of rocket artillery dates back to medieval China where devices such as fire arrows were used (albeit mostly as a psychological weapon). Fire arrows were also used in mult ...
.


See also

*
Vannoccio Biringuccio Vannoccio Biringuccio, sometimes spelled Vannocio Biringuccio (c. 1480 – c. 1539), was an Italian metallurgist. He is best known for his manual on metalworking, ''De la pirotechnia'', published posthumously in 1540. 20th Century translation by ...
(1480–1539), Italian author on metallurgy, gunpowder and glassware production etc. * Conrad Haas (1509–1576), military engineer, wrote a treatise on rocket technology * Johann Schmidlap, 16th-century Bavarian fireworks maker and rocket pioneer * Benjamin Robins, 17th-century English artillery scientist https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Robins *
Leonhard Euler Leonhard Euler ( ; ; ; 15 April 170718 September 1783) was a Swiss polymath who was active as a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, logician, geographer, and engineer. He founded the studies of graph theory and topology and made influential ...
, 18th-century Swiss mathematician who amongst many other things laid the mathematical foundation for classical mechanics by rewriting and hugely extending the work of Benjamin Robins in Euler's seminal book on artillery commissioned by the Prussian King Frederick the Great "Neue Grundsätze der Artillerie" https://www.eisenbibliothek.ch/de/ressources/recent-aquisitions/artillerie.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonhard_Euler *
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky (; rus, Константин Эдуардович Циолковский, p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin ɪdʊˈardəvʲɪtɕ tsɨɐlˈkofskʲɪj, a=Ru-Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.oga; – 19 September 1935) was a Russi ...
(1857–1935), Russian and Soviet rocket scientist and pioneer of the astronautic theory *
Clan of Ostoja The Clan Ostoja (Moscics), Clan of Ostoja (old Polish: ''Ostoya'') was a powerful group of knights and lords in late-medieval Europe. The clan encompassed families in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (including present-day Belarus and Ukraine ...
, group of knights and lords in late-medieval Central and Eastern Europe * Ostoja Coat of Arms


References


External links

* Engraved title page and plate illustrations from a 1650 edition of
Artis Magnae Artilleriae
' (all images freely available for download in a variety of formats from
Science History Institute The Science History Institute is an institution that preserves and promotes understanding of the history of science. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it includes a library, museum, archive, research center and conference center. It was ...
Digital Collections a
digital.sciencehistory.org




{{DEFAULTSORT:Siemienowicz, Kazimierz Generals of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1600s births 1650s deaths 17th-century Lithuanian nobility People from Raseiniai District Municipality Lithuanian scientists Polish scientists Belarusian scientists Polish engineers Lithuanian engineers Belarusian engineers Polish inventors Lithuanian inventors Belarusian inventors Polish military writers Rocket artillery Early rocketry Early spaceflight scientists Rocket scientists Vilnius University alumni Clan of Ostoja