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British ships firing on kegs thought to be full of gunpowder.

The Battle of the Kegs

British ships firing on kegs thought to be full of gunpowder.

Distinguished Roman, plotted to assassinate Caeser.

Brutus, Marcus Junius

Distinguished Roman, plotted to assassinate Caeser.

"Burning of the gunpowder Creek Railroad Bridge, on the Philadelphia and Baltimore Railroad, by the Maryland Secessionists." —Leslie, 1896

Creek Railroad Bridge

"Burning of the gunpowder Creek Railroad Bridge, on the Philadelphia and Baltimore Railroad, by the…

"Cutting the levees near the state line of Louisiana and Arkansas, twenty miles above Lake Providence, by order of General Grant. War calls upon men imperatively to do many things which seem most inhuman, and only justified on the ground of being a choice of evils. Our sketch represents one of those painful acts, the cutting of the levees, near the State line of Louisiana and Arkansas. The scene our artist has sketched is about twenty miles above Lake Providence, which is now connected with the Mississippi by a canal dug by the Federal troops, under General McPherson's command, whose headquarters was on the shore of this beautiful lake. Mr. Lovie said, in his letter to us: 'The soil is very tough, and will not wash away. The levees consequently have to be blown up with gunpowder. The soil is then loosened with spades. On the spot which I sketch, about half a mile has been removed and the water covers the ground to the depth of ten feet, and steamboats now run in to Bayou Macon.'"— Frank Leslie, 1896

Cutting Levees

"Cutting the levees near the state line of Louisiana and Arkansas, twenty miles above Lake Providence,…

"Bridge over Sleepy Hollow Creek. Ichabod, according to Irving, in the <em>Legend</em>, returning from a late evening tarry with Katrina Van Tassel, on his lean steed Gunpowder, was chased by a huge horseman, without a head, from the Andre tree to the bridge. 'He saw the walls of the church dimly gleaming under the trees beyond. He recollected the place where Brom Bones' ghostly competitor had disappeared. "If I can reach that bridge," thought Ichabod, "I am safe." Just then he heard the black steed panting and blowing close behind him; he even fancied that he felt his hot breath. Another compulsive kick in the ribs, and old Gunpowder sprang upon the bridge; he thundered over the resounding planks; he gained the opposite side; and now Ichabod cast a look behind, to see if his pursuer should vanish, according to rule, in a flash of fire and brimstone. Just then he saw the goblin rising in his stirrups, and in the very act of hurling his head at him. Ichabod endeavored to dodge the horrible missile, but too late; it encountered his cranium with a terrible crash; he was tumbled headlong into the dust, and Gunpowder, the black steed, and the goblin rider, passed like a whirlwind.' A shattered pumpkin was found on the road the next day, but Ichabod had gone to parts unknown. Brom Bones, his rival, soon afterward let the pretty Katrina to the altar. The good country people always maintained that Ichabod was spirited away by the <em>headless horseman</em>, who was the ghost of a Hessian soldier, whose body, deprived of its caput by a cannon-ball, ws sleeping in the church-yard near."&mdash;Lossing, 1851

Sleepy Hollow

"Bridge over Sleepy Hollow Creek. Ichabod, according to Irving, in the Legend, returning from…

"The Death of Caesar. Naturaly such extraordinary success made him enemies, and though the city seemed in the main to be contented with his rule, it was easy for his ill-wishers to play on the passions of the people by pointing out that he had aimed at the complete overthrow of the constitution and the establishment of a tyranny. It was said that he intended to assume the title of king. Several times a crown was publicly offered to him and he refused it; but his refusal was thought to proceed merely from his perception of the displeasure of the people. A plot was formed against him, and the Ides (15th day) of March, 44 B.C., was fixed upon for his assassination. The rumors of the intended murder got abroad and Caesar was warned of the plot, but he took no notice of these warnings. On the appointed day he was surrounded in the Senate by the conspirators and killed. Among the assassins was one of whom Caesar had always regarded as his especial friend. This was Brutus, and it is said that Caesar, when he recognized him among his assailants, ceased to offer resistance, and exclaiming, 'Thou too, Brutus!' allowed himself to be slain."&mdash;Colby, 1899

Caesar's Death

"The Death of Caesar. Naturaly such extraordinary success made him enemies, and though the city seemed…

"Torpedo Boats are small vessels built for speed and fitted with tubes for firing torpedoes by either compressed air or gunpowder. They can be used on the surface or submerged to do their work unseen beneath the water. A, storage batteries; C, bulkheads; E, vertical tubes, with horizontal propellers; G, rudders; H, horizontal fin; M, electric motor; R, water tanks; P, weight to be dropped in an emergency. "&mdash;(Charles Leonard-Stuart, 1911)

Electric Torpedo Boat

"Torpedo Boats are small vessels built for speed and fitted with tubes for firing torpedoes by either…

"One of the most extraordinary events in the history of England is that commonly known by the name of the gunpowder Treason and plot; in which case the king and parliament of England had a narrow escape, by a singular accident, from a diabolical scheme of destruction. This plot was the work of a small number of fanatical Roman Catholics, who undertook to wreak their revenge on James the First and his government for not showing indulgence to their religion." &mdash; Goodrich, 1844

Guy Fawkes and his associates

"One of the most extraordinary events in the history of England is that commonly known by the name of…

"A sectional elevation of incorporating mill, showing one runner and ploughs (p, p); C, curb of bed; M, machinery in tank, underground; D, drenching apparatus; l, lever-board, or shutter; t, tank; f, f, floor line." &mdash; Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Gunpowder Mill

"A sectional elevation of incorporating mill, showing one runner and ploughs (p, p); C, curb of bed;…

"A sectional elevation of incorporating mill, showing one runner and ploughs (p, p); C, curb of bed; M, machinery in tank, underground; D, drenching apparatus; l, lever-board, or shutter; t, tank; f, f, floor line." &mdash; Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Gunpowder Mill

"A sectional elevation of incorporating mill, showing one runner and ploughs (p, p); C, curb of bed;…

"Breaking-down Machine. H, hopper; B, endless band; R, rollers; M, boxes to receive meal." &mdash; Encyclopedia Britannica, 1893

Gunpowder Mill

"Breaking-down Machine. H, hopper; B, endless band; R, rollers; M, boxes to receive meal." — Encyclopedia…

"Amoung the larger kinds of military weapons in use before the invention of gunpowder. The balista, the catapulta, the scorpion, and the onger, propelled large and heav missiles, chiefly through the reaction of a tightly-twisted rope of hemp, flax, catgut, sinew, or hair; or else by a violent movement of levers." &mdash; Chambers' Encyclopedia, 1875

Ballista

"Amoung the larger kinds of military weapons in use before the invention of gunpowder. The balista,…

The King's trial (on charges of high treason and "other high crimes") began on January 2, but Charles refused to enter a plea, claiming that no court had jurisdiction over a monarch. He believed that his own authority to rule had been given to him by God when he was crowned and anointed, and that the power wielded by those trying him was simply that which grew out of a barrel of gunpowder. The court, by contrast, proposed that no man is above the law.

Death of Charles I

The King's trial (on charges of high treason and "other high crimes") began on January 2, but Charles…

"Vault beneath the House of Lords associated with the Gunpowder Plot." -Foster, 1921

Gunpowder Plot

"Vault beneath the House of Lords associated with the Gunpowder Plot." -Foster, 1921

Rochester Castle stands on the east bank of the River Medway, in Rochester, Kent. It is one of the best-preserved castles of its kind in the UK. There has been a castle on this site since Roman times (c <small>AD</small>43), though it is the keep of 1127 and the Norman castle which can be seen today. With the invention of gunpowder other types of defense became more appropriate, and the military center of the Medway Towns moved to Chatham.

Rochester Castle

Rochester Castle stands on the east bank of the River Medway, in Rochester, Kent. It is one of the best-preserved…

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, or the Powder Treason, as it was known at the time, was a failed assassination attempt by a group of provincial English Catholics against King James I of England and VI of Scotland. The plot intended to kill the king, his family, and most of the Protestant aristocracy in a single attack by blowing up the Houses of Parliament during the State Opening on 5 November 1605. The conspirators had also planned to abduct the royal children, not present in Parliament, and incite a popular revolt in the Midlands.

Gunpowder Conspirators' House, Lambeth

The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, or the Powder Treason, as it was known at the time, was a failed assassination…

"Argent, a battering ram proper. BATTERING RAM. An instrument used for battering down walls before gunpowder was known in Europe: it is frequently borne as a charge in a coat of arms." -Hall, 1862

Battering Ram

"Argent, a battering ram proper. BATTERING RAM. An instrument used for battering down walls before gunpowder…

This plant belongs to the Liliaceae, native t Asia.

Garden Tulip

This plant belongs to the Liliaceae, native t Asia.

This plant gives off a strong fragrance, commonly used in medicine.

Garden Heliotrope

This plant gives off a strong fragrance, commonly used in medicine.

Flower which is cultivated in a garden.

Garden Verbena

Flower which is cultivated in a garden.

"The romans had no knowledge of gunpowder, siege cannon, or field guns; but the place of modern artillery was supplied by what in general were called tormenta. These were powerful engines for hurling missiles, the propelling force being furnished by the twisting of rope, sinews, or hair. They were used in siege operations rather than in ordinary battle."

Tormenta Within a Fortified Camp

"The romans had no knowledge of gunpowder, siege cannon, or field guns; but the place of modern artillery…

"We see here a towering cliff belonging to a mountainous range which rises like a wall, or barrier, between the neighboring portions of the same country. The inhabitants desire very much to have a free communication with each other, but there is a mountain barrier which it is extremely difficult to get over, or around; they, therefore, determine to go through it. The human will brings to its aid the powerful elements of fire and water. Gunpowder and the steam-engine work wonders - they force a way through the solid rock. The iron railway is made, and the traveler, instead of toiling through long tedious hours over a mountain pathway, in a few moments, while in an easy chair, finds himself on the other side."—Barber, 1857

Where there is a Will, there is a Way

"We see here a towering cliff belonging to a mountainous range which rises like a wall, or barrier,…