Korean cannon

Cannons appeared in Korea by the mid 14th century during the Goryeo dynasty and quickly proliferated as naval and fortress-defense weapons.

The Imjin War in the 1590s marked the beginning of a Korean military revolution which saw improvements in cannon design and the introduction and adaptation of foreign-based firearms.

Ch'oe Mu-sŏn, a minor military official, managed to learn the methods of potassium nitrate purification from a visiting Chinese saltpeter merchant.

The small-but-powerful cannons of this era saw extensive use during the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–98), by both the Joseon Army and the Navy.

Written records from this time period come from the Yungwon Pilbi (융원필비) in 1813 and the Hun'guk Shinjo Gun'gi Doseol (훈국신조군기도설) in 1867.

A unique method of loading the Koreans (and the Chinese, to some extent) was that they used a block of wood (gyeongmok) and some paper as a wad.

[11] When the Korea Naval Academy tested one shot out of a cheonja-chongtong, it flew 400 m (1,300 ft) and penetrated 80 cm (31 in) into a granite wall.