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Berthold der Schwarze
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Berthold der Schwarze discovering gunpowder, illustration from Le Petit Journal, c. 1901.
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Berthold der Schwarze discovering gunpowder, illustration from Le Petit Journal, c. 1901.
Berthold der Schwarze discovering gunpowder, illustration from Le Petit Journal, c. 1901.

Berthold der Schwarze

German monk and alchemist
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Also known as: Berthold Schwarz
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Also called:
Berthold Schwarz
Flourished:
14th century
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Berthold der Schwarze (flourished 14th century) was a German monk and alchemist who, probably among others, discovered gunpowder (c. 1313). The only evidence consists of entries of dubious authenticity in the town records of Ghent (now in Belgium). Little is known of his life, though he appears to have been a cathedral canon in Konstanz about 1300 and a teacher at the University of Paris during the 1330s. He is sometimes credited with being the first European to cast bronze cannon.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Encyclopaedia Britannica.