The Great General Cannon of the Ming Dynasty

Bombard-type Great General Cannon (bottom right) and its various sub-types. Illustration taken from 'Si Zhen San Guan Zhi (《四鎮三關志》)'. 

The Great General Cannon, known in Chinese as Da Jiang Jun Pao (大將軍砲), stood as one of the Ming Dynasty’s most powerful indigenously developed artillery pieces. The name encompassed a class of heavy cannons that evolved over the dynasty's course, with several distinct types emerging as a result of both improvements to and evolution of the original design, and the introduction of new designs that gained popularity and adopted the same name.

The principal variants that emerged under this name are examined in the sections below:

1. Cast Bronze Great General Cannon (Bombard Type)

(Early to mid-Ming Dynasty — up to around 1584)

The bombard-type Great General Cannon was representative of the early and original variant of indigenous muzzle-loading cannon. It was typically made from cast bronze, though occasionally from cast iron, and featured a roughly bottle-shaped profile.

A cast-bronze bombard, probably a "Shorty General", preserved in Xuzhou Museum.

The cannon featured a nearly untapered profile and lacked a flared muzzle, with several reinforcing rings cast integrally along its length to strengthen the barrel against the pressures of firing, and optional lugs for lifting rings similarly cast as part of the barrel for easier handling and positioning. At the rear, a bulbous section served as an enlarged powder chamber. At the base was a flat, flared foot, which enabled the cannon to stand vertically for cleaning and reloading — a standard practice for Chinese muzzle-loaders, which were handled upright rather than horizontally.

A rare cast-iron version of the bombard-type Great General Cannon, preserved at Dingzhou Ancient City. Source

The bombard-type Great General Cannons were graded hierarchically using a typical numerical system: the largest and heaviest cannon was designated Da Jiang Jun (大將軍, lit. 'Great General'), followed by Er Jiang Jun (二將軍, lit. 'Secondary General') or Sai Jiang Jun (賽將軍, lit. 'Near-matching General'), then San Jiang Jun (三將軍, lit. 'Tertiary General') or Ai Jiang Jun (矮將軍, lit. 'Shorty General'), reflecting descending tiers of length, weight, calibre, and firepower within the class.

A cast-iron "Shorty General" bombard, preserved at Dingzhou Ancient City. Source

Regrettably, most surviving cast bronze bombard-type Great General Cannons are small to medium sized, whereas ironically a handful of large-sized cast iron examples have survived despite iron being rarer in this form. This difference likely stems from bronze being more valuable and more easily re-smelted or recycled than iron. Based on surviving examples, bombard-type Great General Cannons range from 50 cm to 180 cm in length, 35 kg to 600 kg in weight, and 6 cm to 25 cm in bore size, although written records mention some as long as 7 chi 2 cun (roughly 230 cm). Nevertheless, from the surviving cast-iron specimens, lengths around 170 cm and bore sizes around 20 cm appear typical for full-sized bombard-type Great General Cannons.

1.1 Wu Di Da Jiang Jun (無敵大將軍)

(Around 1560 — early seventeenth century)

The Wu Di Da Jiang Jun (無敵大將軍, lit. 'Invincible Great General') and its slightly smaller-bore naval/Southern China variant, the Wu Di Shen Fei Pao (無敵神飛砲, lit. 'Invincible Divine Flying Cannon'), represented a significant evolution from the original bombard-type Great General Cannon. These breech-loading designs drew direct inspiration from the Fo Lang Ji (佛朗機) guns — Portuguese-style breech-loaders that had spread from Europe to China in the early 16th century. Designed by the renowned Ming commander Qi Ji Guang (戚繼光), the Wu Di Da Jiang Jun retained much of the original barrel profile but replaced the bulbous powder chamber with an open breech to accept detachable, mug-shaped loading chambers, sacrificing some raw firepower in exchange for markedly easier handling and a substantially higher rate of fire. These chambers were typically forged from wrought iron and fitted with reinforcing hoops for added strength.

Since upright reloading was no longer necessary, the flared foot of the original bombard-type Great General Cannon was removed or, in some cases, replaced with an additional lug for lifting ring similar to those sometimes fitted on other parts of the barrel.

A Wu Di Da Jiang Jun, from 'Lian Bing Shi Ji (《練兵實紀》)'.

To date, no surviving Ming cannon has been definitively identified as a Wu Di Da Jiang Jun, even though numerous breech-loading cannons from the period — including some exceedingly heavy pieces — have survived. As a result, its precise dimensions, bore size, and shot weight remain largely unknown. Written records, however, give an approximate barrel weight of roughly 1,000 jin (about 597 kg), a chamber weight of roughly 50–150 jin (about 30–90 kg), and a powder charge of 4–6 jin of gunpowder (about 2.4–3.6 kg) per shot, indicating that it was scaled to match the heaviest class of bombard-type Great General Cannons. Unlike the earlier muzzle-loading bombard-types, the Wu Di Da Jiang Jun typically fired hundreds of iron pellets as its primary ammunition, propelled with the aid of a wooden sabot; for naval combat, it could also employ a mixed load of a single stone cannonball combined with a reduced amount of iron pellets.

2. Forged Wrought Iron Great General Cannon

(Around 1584 — end of the Ming Dynasty)

Designed by military innovator Ye Meng Xiong (葉夢熊) around 1584, the wrought-iron Great General Cannon, also called Da Shen Pao (大神砲, lit. 'Great Divine Cannon') and Ye Gong Shen Chong (葉公神銃, lit. 'Lord Ye's Divine Gun'), was created by redesigning the wrought-iron loading chamber of the earlier Wu Di Da Jiang Jun into a single, full-length standalone cannon, adapting existing expertise in forging wrought-iron guns such as the Hu Dun Pao (虎蹲砲) to a significantly heavier artillery piece.

Wrought-iron type Great General Cannon displayed atop the Great Wall at Juyongguan Pass.

Constructed entirely from wrought iron, this type of Great General Cannon featured a nearly untapered profile and lacked a flared muzzle, though a reinforcing hoop protecting the muzzle created the subtle appearance of one. Its barrel was girded along its length by a series of forged wrought-iron hoops that could optionally incorporate trunnions, lifting rings, or simple iron sights — replacing the integrally cast reinforcing rings of earlier bombard-type designs — while the breech featured a distinctive abacus-bead-shaped enlargement that formed a reinforced powder chamber. The cannon retained its characteristic flared foot — now made slightly taller — to facilitate stable upright reloading, although it was now also designed for mounting on a gun carriage and could be loaded horizontally.

3D render of a wrought-iron type Great General Cannon mounted on a Ming-style gun carriage. From 《中国古代兵器大百科》.

Cannons of this type were graded hierarchically using characters from the Thousand Character Classic and the Yijing: the largest and most powerful was designated Tian Zi Hao Da Jiang Jun (天字號大將軍), followed in descending order of size, calibre, and firepower by Di Zi Hao Da Jiang Jun (地字號大將軍) and Xuan Zi Hao Da Jiang Jun (玄字號大將軍). A fourth grade, called Ren Zi Hao Da Jiang Jun (仁字號大將軍), also existed, which was seemingly comparable to Tian Zi Hao Da Jiang Jun. Far more examples of this type have survived than of the earlier bombard-type, making it the most representative variant of the Great General Cannon. Most surviving specimens measure between 110 cm and 195 cm in length, with bore diameters ranging from 8 cm to 14.5 cm and weights from 88.5 kg to 300 kg — though written records indicate that some reached as much as 600 kg. Many surviving examples are around 140–145 cm long, with bore diameters typically in the 11–12 cm range.

The wrought-iron Great General Cannon represented a revolution in indigenous Chinese artillery technology. Unlike Western wrought-iron guns, which were typically constructed using thin longitudinal iron staves bound together by shrunk-on hoops, Chinese wrought-iron cannons employed a fundamentally different forging method: multiple curved iron plates (either two or four per layer) were forge-welded together over a solid cylindrical mandrel to form an initial tube segment, with the seams slightly overlapped rather than butted edge-to-edge for added strength and better weld integrity. Additional layers of curved plates were then applied — seams carefully offset between successive layers — until the barrel reached the desired wall thickness. Multiple shorter tubes produced in this manner were subsequently forge-welded end-to-end to achieve the full desired barrel length, after which the assembled barrel was carefully cold-worked and ground to refine the bore, smooth the interior surface, and ensure uniformity, before reinforcing hoops were added.

Left: Boxted Bombard with visible inner stave seams. Right: A Great General Cannon preserved in Korea, brazenly arrogated as a Korean invention.

Compared to the Western hoop-and-stave method — which suffered from bore inconsistencies due to stave misalignment, long continuous longitudinal seams prone to splitting under pressure, risk of hoop failure over time, and uneven stress distribution that could cause sudden catastrophic bursting—the Chinese layered-plate approach produced a more monolithic, uniform, and resilient barrel with superior resistance to hoop stress and reduced risk of longitudinal failure, while also cutting down on overall weight compared to equivalent cast bronze or cast iron guns. Despite being called a “wrought-iron” gun, the metal used in forging the barrel of the Great General Cannon can actually be considered low-carbon steel; only the reinforcing hoops were true wrought iron. This enabled the wrought-iron Great General Cannon to deliver exceptional power for its weight: typical examples (with bore diameters around 11–12 cm) could be loaded with 1.2–1.5 kg of gunpowder per shot, propelling cannonballs weighing as much as 5 kg (roughly 11 pounder), although it was more typically loaded with a bore-matching lead or iron cannonball plus smaller grapeshot and lead/iron pellets to increase the total projectile weight, combining the penetrating power of the solid ball with the wider anti-personnel spread of the scatter load. In fact, it was later discovered that the cannon was so overbuilt that its reinforcing hoops weren't even needed and had become dead weight, leading to the development of a hoopless version called the Wei Yuan Pao (威遠砲).

2.1 Long-barrelled Great General Cannon

(Probably around 1620 — end of the Ming Dynasty)

For most of the Ming period, heavier Chinese artillery typically functioned as a superheavy regimental gun: lightweight and mobile, offering firepower comparable to a full-sized field piece, yet relatively short-barrelled and short-ranged. These cannons were deployed when the enemy breached the overlapping fields of fire from matchlocks, handgonnes, and lighter anti-personnel pieces, or served as a devastating close-range counter-charge weapon against advancing forces.

By the 17th century, however, the arrival of long-barrelled Hong Yi Pao (紅夷砲) — European-style muzzle-loading smoothbore culverins (many of which also bore the title “Great General Cannon” but were not recognised as a distinct class under that name) — combined with the growing military threat posed by the rising Jurchen/Manchu forces, brought about a renewed emphasis on accurate long-range fire. This change was mirrored in native wrought-iron cannons, which increasingly adopted length-to-bore ratios approaching those of European designs. Regrettably, the Ming Dynasty fell before this evolution of wrought-iron cannons could fully mature, and as a result there were only a few surviving pieces of these later designs.

A late Ming period long-barrelled wrought iron cannon preserved at Shanxi Province Art Museum.

The long-barrelled wrought-iron cannon preserved at the Shanxi Province Art Museum (pictured above) is one of the few surviving pieces from the late Ming period. It measures 260 cm in length, with a barrel diameter of 20 cm and a bore of 9.5 cm, giving a bore-to-length ratio of approximately 27:1. It has an untapered low-carbon steel barrel reinforced with seven wrought-iron hoops, lacks the abacus-bead-shaped powder chamber found on earlier wrought-iron Great General Cannons, and has a flat wrought iron rear cap instead of the flared foot. The cannon is uninscribed, so its exact forging date and location are unknown. Due to this (and lacking some characterising features), it is uncertain whether it is truly a Great General Cannon or another type of Ming wrought-iron cannon, although it certainly has the firepower to match and a longer range than a standard wrought-iron Great General Cannon, and is treated as one by researchers.

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Guo Chu San Yan Qiang (國初三眼鎗) and Guo Chu Shuang Tou Qiang (國初雙頭鎗)

Note: The content of this blog post was originally taken from my other articles. However, I decided to write a separate article for cleaner navigation, tidier organization, and easier reading and digestion.

Guo Chu Shuang Tou Qiang (left) and Guo Chu San Yan Qiang (centre), from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

The Guo Chu San Yan Qiang (國初三眼鎗, lit. 'Founding-era three-eyed spear') and the Guo Chu Shuang Tou Qiang (國初雙頭鎗, lit. 'Founding-era double-headed spear') were two elusive firearms mentioned by the mysterious old Daoist priest whom the Ming firearm specialist Zhao Shi Zhen (趙士楨) met in front of the Gongde Temple (功德寺). 

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Zhao Shi Zhen's handgonnes

Note: The content of this blog post was originally taken from my other articles. However, I decided to write a separate article for cleaner navigation, tidier organization, and easier reading and digestion.

Although originally an advocate of universal adoption of matchlock firearms, Ming Dynasty firearm specialist and inventor Zhao Shi Zhen (趙士楨) later reconsidered his views after a chance meeting and and conversation with a mysterious Daoist priest in front of the Gongde Temple (功德寺) while on a fowling trip on Kunming Lake. Thereafter, he adopted a more nuanced position and began to seriously explore various advantages that traditional Chinese handgonnes had to offer, and to refine and improve them.

Ma Shang San Yan Chong (馬上三眼銃, lit. 'Horseback three-eyed gun')

Drawing of a Ma Shang San Yan Chong (highlighted), from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

Known in full as the Xin Gai Ma Bu Xiang Yi San Yan Qiang (新改馬步相宜三眼鎗, lit. 'Newly modified three-eyed spear suitable on foot and on horseback'), this weapon was Zhao Shi Zhen's improved design of the classic San Yan Chong (三眼銃), which he developed just as the classic San Yan Chong began to see widespread adoption by the Ming military.

The biggest improvement made by Zhao Shi Zhen was replacing the original barrel of the San Yan Chong—which was typically made from three cast iron barrels forge-welded/cast together, making it top heavy and prone to overheating—with his own design, which used three separate longer barrels forged in the same way as matchlock gun barrels (i.e., rolled from skelp or iron strips and hammer-welded along a seam for a stronger, more uniform tube, double-layered for better integrity, plus individual screw-in breech plugs), all mounted on a grooved wooden bedding. This arrangement reduced the weapon's overall weight for easier handling, improved balance through the lighter construction, and allowed for easier maintenance and replacement of individual barrels.

Various components of the Xin Gai Ma Bu Xiang Yi San Yan Qiang, from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

Zhao Shi Zhen also mounted a tanged blade and disc guard to the butt of the weapon, transforming the Ma Shang San Yan Chong into a versatile hybrid firearm. The tanged blade allowed the user to wield the weapon as a close-quarters polearm for thrusting and slashing after discharging the barrels, with the barrels themselves serving as a counterweight for better balance. Meanwhile, the heavy clustered barrels themselves could serve as an improvised bludgeon for blunt strikes, providing a fallback option where reloading wasn't feasible.

Furthermore, Zhao Shi Zhen tailored the weapon into two variants to accommodate different combat roles. The infantry version featured a longer overall length of approximately 5 chi 5 cun, while the cavalry version was shorter, measuring around 4 chi 4 cun.

Xian Chong (鍁銃, spade gun) and Jue Chong (镢銃, hoe gun)

Highlighted Xian Chong (above) and Jue Chong (below), from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

Zhao Shi Zhen further adapted the Ma Shang San Yang Chong by replacing its tanged blade with spade- or hoe-shaped heads in specialized variants, known as Xian Chong and Jue Chong respectively. Both variants retained the firearm's volley capability while while serving as practical tools for frontier engineering.

San Shen Tang (三神鎲, lit. 'Three divine Tangpa')

Drawing of a San Shen Tang and its detachable matchlock trigger, from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

The San Shen Tang can be considered to represent Zhao Shi Zhen's further refinement of the Ma Shang San Yan Chong, as it went beyond merely accommodating different combat roles for infantry and cavalry to also adapt to the habits of soldiers from both southern and northern China.

The primary modification made by Zhao Shi Zhen was the incorporation of a detachable matchlock trigger mechanism—likely borrowed from the Xun Lei Chong (迅雷銃)— which enabled the weapon to be braced and aimed like a matchlock gun by soldiers already familiar with such firearms, particularly those from southern China (although its accuracy still fell somewhat short of that of a true matchlock's), while retaining the flexibility to be used like a traditional handgonne by soldiers unfamiliar with matchlocks, particularly those from northern China. A second key modification was the replacement of the tanged blade of Ma Shang San Yan Chong with the head of a pronged Tang Pa (鎲鈀), which was far more versatile on a shorter polearm than a simple spearhead.

Top: A soldier aiming a trigger-attached San Shen Tang. Bottom: A soldier using a Ma Shang San Yan Chong on horseback. From 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

In a sense, the San Shen Tang can be considered a simpler and more practical successor of the Xun Lei Chong.

Bu Xia Yi Hu Chong (步下翼虎銃)

Bottom and side view of Bu Xia Yi Hu Chong, from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'.

The Bu Xia Yi Hu Chong was a very unusual double-barrelled handgonne configured like a tonfa or arm shield.

Click here for more information about this handgonne.

Huo Dan Tong (火彈筒, lit. 'Fire bullet tube')

Drawing of a Huo Dan Tong (highlighted), from 'Shen Qi Pu (《神器譜》)'

The Huo Dan Tong was a hand-mortar-style flare gun and one of the earliest of its kind in the world, predating the Very pistol by nearly three centuries and being predated only by the flare launcher of the Xun Lei Chong (迅雷銃), which was also designed by Zhao Shi Zhen.

Click here for more information about this flare gun.

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