Search Results - Schwarz, Berthold 1909-1995

Berthold Schwarz

Berthold Schwarz O.F.M. (sometimes spelled Schwartz), also known as Berthold the Black and der Schwartzer, was a legendary German (or in some accounts Danish or Greek) alchemist of the late 14th century, credited with the invention of gunpowder by 15th- through 19th-century European literature.

The purported period of Schwarz's activity (in the late 14th century) thus falls between the first reports of gunpowder in Europe in the late 13th century and the development of effective applications in artillery in the mid-15th century.

It is unclear whether Schwarz is a historical person. It has been suggested that he was indeed a historical alchemist who developed gunpowder in Germany, but other scholars consider him purely legendary. Provided by Wikipedia