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before gun powder:
Artillery may be said to have begun when humans devised methods of hurling objects at each other via machine. Trebuchets and catapults were the preferred methods of hurling heavy objects in the pre gunpowder era. They were the forerunners of siege artillery but the destructive power of these early bombards was negligable. It was not until the invention of gunpowder that artillery began to have the possibilities of our present day achievements.
gun powder arrives:
With the advent of gunpowder the catapult and trebuchet were doomed to obsolesence, although they continued in use until at least the 1350's. Siege warfare required a piece large enough to breach fortifications and resulted in the construction of cumbersome heavy siege guns similar to those employed in the siege of Constantinople in 1453. For this campaign, a huge bronze cannon, some 25inches in calibre, weighing 19 tons was contructed. It required a team of 30 wagons and 60 oxen to move it while some 250 labourers preceded it to smooth roads and strengthen bridges. It took two months to move it 150 miles.
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