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Published: December 1, 2006
In the line of fire, soldiers face many dangers. From airborne strikes to ground fire, soldiers must be cautious of the hazards around them. One particularly dangerous threat is grenades. Grenades can be thrown, planted in the ground or rocketed from a grenade launcher; in any case, just hope you are not in the vicinity when one goes off.
Historically, grenades have been employed during several wars including Great Britain's Glorious Revolution in 1688, the Crimean war between 1854 and1856 as well as both World Wars. Each war saw a different variation of the grenade. The grenades used during the Glorious Revolution were gun powder-filled metal spheres with slow burning wicks that would explode on impact. This rudimentary form of the grenade had little effect without direct contact, so it was not used after the war.
Soldiers in the Crimea War between Imperial Russia and the Ottoman Empire invented makeshift grenades to fight their enemies while in the trenches. Soldiers would take glass bottles, fill them with gunpowder, nails and other items, light a wick and hurl these grenades into enemy trenches.
World War I saw the introduction of the first fragmentation grenade. Used by the British army, the Mills grenade was created by William Mills in 1915. The design of this grenade is similar to design most people are familiar with; it was created from cast iron and shaped like a pineapple with segmented grooves to aid in grip. A hand lever is attached to a central striker that ignites the grenade and is secured with a pin. Once the pin is removed, the initial delay was set at seven seconds, but later reduced to four when soldiers realized the enemy had more time to react. The grenade was meant to be thrown although was capable of being shot from rifle if certain alterations were made. Although many soldiers were able to throw the grenade up to 30 meters, the segmented grooves caused the grenade to fragment, requiring soldiers to take cover as soon as the grenade was released.
Although grenades were created for military warfare, they have been used for other tactics, such as paintball and to quell riots. Paintball grenades are used in the popular sport paintball in which two teams compete with paint-infused bullets and grenades. A paintball grenade is similar to a normal grenade except that a u-shaped tube filled with paint causes the paint to expel on the opposing side.
Police officers and riot teams employ smoke grenades to enforce order during protests and riots. Smoke grenades are metal canisters filled with different chemical mixtures depending on the intended use of the grenade. Colored smoked grenades are used to signal troop positions or as flares. Screening smoke grenades are used to separate groups, but not harm them. Generally, smoke grenades are used to direct traffic of large groups of people or to protect police officers from unruly mobs. Tear gas grenades are sometimes employed in extreme situations and are filled with hydrochloric acid to render the target incapable.
Whatever their use, grenades are capable of extreme amounts of damage. Practice increased amounts of caution if using grenades, holding the pin too long can end disastrously.
Sources:
Hand Grenade. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 1 December 2006. 1 December 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_grenade
Smoke Grenade. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 26 November 2006. 1 December 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_grenade
Historically, grenades have been employed during several wars including Great Britain's Glorious Revolution in 1688, the Crimean war between 1854 and1856 as well as both World Wars. Each war saw a different variation of the grenade. The grenades used during the Glorious Revolution were gun powder-filled metal spheres with slow burning wicks that would explode on impact. This rudimentary form of the grenade had little effect without direct contact, so it was not used after the war.
Soldiers in the Crimea War between Imperial Russia and the Ottoman Empire invented makeshift grenades to fight their enemies while in the trenches. Soldiers would take glass bottles, fill them with gunpowder, nails and other items, light a wick and hurl these grenades into enemy trenches.
World War I saw the introduction of the first fragmentation grenade. Used by the British army, the Mills grenade was created by William Mills in 1915. The design of this grenade is similar to design most people are familiar with; it was created from cast iron and shaped like a pineapple with segmented grooves to aid in grip. A hand lever is attached to a central striker that ignites the grenade and is secured with a pin. Once the pin is removed, the initial delay was set at seven seconds, but later reduced to four when soldiers realized the enemy had more time to react. The grenade was meant to be thrown although was capable of being shot from rifle if certain alterations were made. Although many soldiers were able to throw the grenade up to 30 meters, the segmented grooves caused the grenade to fragment, requiring soldiers to take cover as soon as the grenade was released.
Although grenades were created for military warfare, they have been used for other tactics, such as paintball and to quell riots. Paintball grenades are used in the popular sport paintball in which two teams compete with paint-infused bullets and grenades. A paintball grenade is similar to a normal grenade except that a u-shaped tube filled with paint causes the paint to expel on the opposing side.
Police officers and riot teams employ smoke grenades to enforce order during protests and riots. Smoke grenades are metal canisters filled with different chemical mixtures depending on the intended use of the grenade. Colored smoked grenades are used to signal troop positions or as flares. Screening smoke grenades are used to separate groups, but not harm them. Generally, smoke grenades are used to direct traffic of large groups of people or to protect police officers from unruly mobs. Tear gas grenades are sometimes employed in extreme situations and are filled with hydrochloric acid to render the target incapable.
Whatever their use, grenades are capable of extreme amounts of damage. Practice increased amounts of caution if using grenades, holding the pin too long can end disastrously.
Sources:
Hand Grenade. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 1 December 2006. 1 December 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_grenade
Smoke Grenade. Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 26 November 2006. 1 December 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_grenade
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