Cetbang
Cetbang (originally known as bedil, also known as warastra or meriam coak) were cannons produced and used by the Majapahit Empire (1293–1527) and other kingdoms in the Indonesian archipelago.
But after being absorbed into bedil in the Malay language, and in a number of other cultures in the archipelago, that Tamil vocabulary is used to refer to all types of weapons that use gunpowder.
[1]: 94 The arrow-throwing cetbang would have been useful in naval combat, especially as a weapon used against ships (mounted under the bow gun shield or apilan), and also in a siege, because of its projectile ability to explode and as incendiary material.
Just like prangi, this cetbang is a breech-loading swivel gun made of bronze or iron, firing single rounds or scatter shots (a large number of small bullets).
[1]: 97 They are light, mobile cannons, most of them can be carried and shot by one man,[13]: 505 but they are not fired from the shoulder like a bazooka because the high recoil force could break human bones.
[1]: 97 These gun are mounted on swivel yoke (called cagak), the spike is fitted into holes or sockets in the bulwarks of a ship or the ramparts of a fort.
In this age, even to the 17th century, the Nusantaran soldiers fought on a platform called balai (see the picture of a ship below) and perform boarding actions.
[7]: 241 [15]: 162 Cannons were introduced to Majapahit when Kublai Khan's Chinese army under the leadership of Ike Mese sought to invade Java in 1293.
[19]: 106 [20]: 61 Majapahit under Mahapatih (prime minister) Gajah Mada (in office 1331–1364) utilized gunpowder technology obtained from Yuan dynasty for use in the naval fleet.
Kidung Sunda canto 2 stanza 87–95 mentioned that the Sundanese had juru-modya ning bedil besar ing bahitra (aimer/operator of the big cannon on the ships) in the river near Bubat square.
His book, Yingya Shenlan, mentioned that cannons are fired in Javanese marriage ceremonies when the husband was escorting his new wife to the marital home to the sound of gongs, drums, and firecrackers.
[7]: 245 Haiguo Guangji (海国广记) and Shuyu zhouzi lu (殊域周咨錄) recorded that Java is vast and densely populated, and their armored soldiers and hand cannons (火銃—huǒ chòng) dominated the Eastern Seas.
[1]: 94–95 When the Portuguese first came to Malacca, they found a large colony of Javanese merchants under their own headmen; they were manufacturing their own cannon, which is deemed as important as sails in a ship.
[34]: 69 Wan Mohd Dasuki Wan Hasbullah explained several facts about the existence of gunpowder weapons in Malacca and other Malay states before the arrival of the Portuguese:[35]: 97–98 The cannons found in Malacca were of various types: esmeril (1/4 to 1/2-pounder swivel gun,[36] probably refers to cetbang or lantaka), falconet (cast bronze swivel gun larger than the esmeril, 1 to 2-pounder,[36] probably refers to lela), medium saker (long cannon or culverin between a six and a ten-pounder, probably refers to meriam),[37][38]: 385 and bombard (short, fat, and heavy cannon).
The Malay chronicle, Sejarah Melayu, mentioned that in 1509 they do not understand “why bullets killed”, indicating their unfamiliarity with using firearms in battle, if not in ceremony.
[33]: 3 As recorded in Sejarah Melayu:Setelah datang ke Melaka, maka bertemu, ditembaknya dengan meriam.
[39]: 254–255 [18]: 219 Lendas da India by Gaspar Correia and Asia Portuguesa by Manuel de Faria y Sousa confirmed Sejarah Melayu's account.
[40]: 120–121 [41]: 43 The Epic of Hang Tuah narrates a Malaccan expedition to the country of Rum (the Ottoman Empire) to buy bedil (guns) and large meriam (cannons) after their first encounter with the Portuguese in 1509 CE, indicating their shortage of firearms and gunpowder weapons.
[46] Vosmaer (1839) writes that Makassan fishermen sometimes took their small cannon ashore to fortify the stockades they built near their processing camps to defend themselves against hostile Aborigines.
