The Military System of the Marathas, with a Brief Account of Their Maritime Activities c8.51

c8.51

Colonel Wilks gives the following description of an Indian rocket: ‘This Indian instrument receives its projectile force from the same composition which is used in the rockets of ordinary fireworks; the cylinder which contains it is of iron, and sometimes gunpowder, at its extremity, causes it to explode when it has reached its object, a straight sword blade is also not unfrequently fixed to the rocket; an attached bamboo or reed steadies its flight; the rocket men are trained to give them an elevation proportioned to the varying dimensions of the cylinder, and the distance of the object to be struck. As those projected to any distance describe a parabola of considerable height, a single rocket is easily avoided, but when the flight is numerous, the attempt would be useless and their momentum is always sufficient to destroy a man or horse. Such was the ancient Indian instrument, so inferior to the Congreve rocket of modern European warfare.’¹