English Colonel Sir John Smith summed up the opinion of many officers of the time when he wrote in 1591 that “the bow is a very simple weapon, firearms are very complicated things which get out of order in many ways… a very heavy weapon and tires troops out on the march, a bowman can let off six arrows a minute, a musket can fire one shot in two minutes.” 6 Many officers felt that the use of firearms was immoral and even criminal. Because of this, bows, spears, and pikes remained in use until the early eighteenth century. Muskets were considered too complicated, expensive, and ineffective. The musket was still far from perfect in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, but despite the weapon’s potential many military leaders refused to use them and scoffed at those who did. All of these early firearms were made by hand and would have been expensive custom pieces. The Arquebus was refined further into what became the Matchlock, which incorporated a trigger and spring-loaded action. 5 It is at this point that an industry specifically dedicated to musket production appeared. This model differed little from the hand cannon but did have a crude wooden stock attached to allow aiming, as well as an increased range of 200-300 yards.
An improved version known as the “Arquebus” appeared in France and Spain in the fifteenth century. This proved to be more dangerous to the user than the intended victim and had a range of only a few yards, but they were simple enough for a competent blacksmith 4 to make. A small hole in the rear allowed the gunner to insert a burning match and light the powder. The term “powder and shot” refers to the action of putting black powder, used to propel the ball-known as “shot”-down the barrel. They were comprised of a simple iron tube with no trigger or mechanical action. These first weapons were very crude and neither well-made nor well-designed. The first hand-held firearms were known as “hand-cannons” and were little more than an iron pipe with powder and shot. 3 Cannons were unrefined and required very large amounts of powder. This transition took over 250 years, and firearm technology went through several transformations and much opposition.
Contrary to popular belief, firearms did not instantly replace armor and melee weapons. 2 Impressed by the power of gunpowder, the Europeans began to adopt it themselves. 1 The Ottomans used cannons to take the heavily fortified city of Constantinople in 1453. Europe came to learn the force of powder from the Ottomans, who adopted muskets and cannons under Sultan Murad II. The knowledge of gunpowder eventually spread westward into India and then to the Middle East. In China, gunpowder was used mostly for entertainment, but over time developed some military applications. Gunpowder, or black powder, originated in China sometime between the ninth and eleventh centuries historical estimates vary significantly. For this paper, I have chosen to examine the musket and how the principals of any commodity can be applied to its production techniques throughout the eighteenth and early nineteenth century.
There are numerous examples throughout history to which this could be applied, such as the automobile, clothing, and even food, just to name some. The production of commodities is heavily dependent on manufacturing, means of production, and the people involved in the creation of an item. Muskets, as commodities, were produced in order to allow for European powers to defend and expand. Like any commodity, muskets in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries fulfilled a need.
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