Where to get saltpeter in the uk

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The 20 figures depict scenes from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Particularly useful are the images of saltpeter production, which provide a visual aid to complement the textual descriptions. The two diagrams in the appendix also give some indication as to how the saltpeter system worked. Cressy has clearly carried out extensive archival research.

This can be seen from his biography which lists 17 archives and libraries he has consulted. The breadth of research means that he is able to enrich his account with numerous examples.

In the first chapter this takes the form of a discussion of key works, ranging from The Arte of Shooting in Great Ordnaunce by the Elizabethan gunner, William Bourne, to the History of the Making of Salt-Peter by the philosopher, Thomas Henshaw, in the 17th century. The strength of this approach can best be seen by the clash between the saltpetermen, acting as agents of the Crown, and local communities, in chapters three to six.

These examples are fascinating and provide interesting illustrations of the period, particularly when combined with a discussion of the political context. This can be seen with the Oxfordshire saltpetermen, Nicholas Stephens, who in his desperate attempts to meet his quota, outrageously allowed his workers to dig up churches. Cressy is thus able to incorporate the story of saltpeter within the broader social and political history of the period.

This approach is less successful in the last two chapters of the book, particularly chapter seven, where there is a considerable emphasis on statistics. Cressy has also identified further research questions. These include weighing the needs of national security against the rights of the individual, the relationship between science and warfare, and the intellectual consequences of government arms programmes.

Furthermore his work opens up additional avenues of research. What distinguished England from the continent in attitudes and practices towards the production of saltpeter?

Whereas in Germany the management of nitre beds began in the late 14th century, as revealed by Das Feuerwerkbuch Firework Book , these practices were never adopted in England.

Did perceived shortages of saltpeter influence the strategic military aims of early modern rulers? The chapters of the book, with the exception of the first one, have a chronological sequence. Chapter seven, by contrast, covers a substantial period of time — and relies heavily on statistics.

This is particularly the case as the contents of the previous seven chapters are aimed solely at the history of saltpeter in England. However Cressy has made a significant contribution to the existing literature. He has demonstrated the central importance of this commodity to successive English and British monarchs, and the lengths to which they would go to obtain it; often at great social cost.

He has also succeeded in linking the history of saltpeter with military, scientific, political and social events. When the church was "mucked out" in spring then saltpetre could be extracted - I've seen crystalline deposits form on the floor of our own stables in corners where the soiled straw has sat for a while. Wherever possible, timber artefacts should be left underground as conserving them without to means to get them professionally done with PEG is a real headache.

I speak from experience there, having been given a windlass barrel found during modern fluorspar mining Logged Dirty old mines need love too Interestingly, "Calcium Nitrate" as opposed to Potassium Nitrate is also called Saltpeter petre by Wikipedia and that is the stuff we find in caves. Obviously, Wikipedia is an authority on the matter. Ian Logged A door, once opened, may be stepped through in either direction.

Ian Saltpetre is a generic term for several "nitrate salts" As calcium nitrate is very soluble it isn't found in caves that are very wet. I think most British caves fall into the "wet" category so I don't believe any worthwhile deposits occur here. Certainly I am unaware of any extraction from UK caves so I assume our climate precludes it.

Calcium nitrate is also the Saltpetre that was extracted in the US caves. Calcium nitrate is very soluble so is only to be found in dry caves. The calcium nitrate was leached from the cave soil in vats, collected and then taken from the caves to be processed.

The first stage was to concentrate the solution using evaporation, generally using wood fires. The concentrate was then reacted with potash potassium carbonate, from the ashes of the wood fires used in the evaporation process. The calcium would be precipitated as calcium carbonate and would be replaced by the potassium in the solution to make potassium nitrate. The subsequent solution would be further "dried" by evaporation and the saltpetre crystals would remain.

The process is well documented and was primarily used to produce saltpetre for gunpowder, when the main source was denied. During the war between America and the UK , the UK controlled the world's supply of Saltpetre, which was produced in one of our colonies India.

Later during the American Civil War to the North blockaded the Confederates and they had to make their own gunpowder in the same way. Which I guess it is Ian Logged A door, once opened, may be stepped through in either direction. Ian A mystery so far. I found some unusual formations in a small Ohio cave, and asked for input from Carol Hill and Paolo Forte, who disagreed on their potential origins. Hill believed them to have a biological component, originating as moonmilk, Forte said, not necessarily, such formations had been found among "traditional" evaporates.

Until the late-nineteenth century when chemical explosives were developed, the security of early modern and modern states was dependent on having access to saltpeter. Not surprisingly, it proved to be one of the grievances in the years leading up to the mid-seventeenth century British Civil Wars.

The import of huge amounts of saltpeter from India relieved this social and political pressure and Cressy argues played a major role in establishing Britain as a global imperial power in the eighteenth century. By contrast, the ancien regime states of Europe and the government of republican America were vulnerable and had to find alternative sources of this vital resource.