unpowder is an explosive powder used in ballistics. Black powder in particular, is an explosive mixture with 75% of nitre, 15% of coal and 10% of sulphur more or less. Gunpowder was the first known explosive. Its formule appeared in the texts written by the English monk Roger Bacon in the 12th century, although it is said to have been discovered by Chinese people, who had been using it for centuries in the making of fireworks. Gunpowder may have been introduced in Europe from the Near East. Niebla contends with other places for being the pioneer in the war use of gunpowder, during the storming of the christian troops of the Reconquest in 1262. The making of gunpowder is documented in England in 1334 and it is also known that Germany had an infrastructure to make it. The use of artillery in the kingdom of Castile was also widespread in the second half of the 14th century. In the late 16th century the making of gunpowder was, in most countries, the exclusive monopoly of the State, which regulated its use in the early 17th century.

At first artillery pieces were made of wrought iron in the manner of a barrel. The bore was literally covered with successive layers of hot steel billets (duelas), then the ensamble was hammered and strengthened with iron flanges. The piece was divided into two parts, the "caņa", the cannon in the strict sense, and the breech, "servidor", which was the strongest part and where the gunpowder was placed,. The breech was socketed to the cannon. Both pieces were fit into a wooden structure, the "cureņa", they were tied to each other, then wedged and, if they luckily did not break out, the device would shoot forwards. As the pieces were made by forge and all the calibres were different, the ammunition, the bolaņos, were worked out of stone to specially suit each piece. Added to this, there were real difficulties in the loading of these pieces; therefore primitive cannons had a very short rate of fire.

It was practically impossible to use these arms in the open country. In fact, the strategic decline of chivalry is related to several circumstances concerning both social and militar transformations. Firearms would deal the last blow to cavalry, although this would happen some time later.

Long bows and crossbows were effective against formations at a distance of four hundred metres, although the bow could throw thirteen darts a minute and the crossbow only two. Knights wore complete armours made of steel, sometimes with even two layers with numerous pieces adequately articulated. They kept on using swords, one of the distinguishing chivalric features even in times of peace, as well as daggers of different kinds. But the offensive arm of chivalry was the lance, which, when it was not used any longer on the battlefield, was transferred to sports: jousts and games, which had a magical moment in the courts of the 15th century.

The alabarda was a terrible weapon; it was characteristic of the swiss army, but later on it would become widely used. It was a mixture of lance and axe, for it had a spearhead and a cutting edge.