Research groups, which united rocket enthusiasts. Of the 1930s, the Soviet government sanctioned the creation of several ( 82)ĮNTHUSIASM TO PROFESSION: Rocket research at GIRD The new weapons to compete with artillery. Missiles and developing new types of solid rocket fuel, which would allow Researchers at GDL worked tirelessly on perfecting military In line with this strategy, on March 1, 1921, the authoritiesĬreated GDL, a laboratory for research in rocketry, to be led by Nikolai Soviet government spared no effort, in equipping the Red Army with new New leaders of Soviet Russia conducted a ruthless policy of turning anĪgrarian peasant society into an industrial power. IDEAS TO PRACTICE: Rocket research at GDLġ917, the Bolshevik revolution spurred profound changes in Russia. It took centuries to perfect these ancient THE FIRE: Rocketry in Russia before the 20th centuryīefore Tsiolkovskiy, Russian artillery engineers fascinated with missiles The son of a leading British artillery specialist William Congreve took on the effort to improve upon the Indian designs and organize production of rockets at the Woolwich arsenal near London. The exotic weapon looked impressive enough to the British military to initiate its own rocket research. In India, Mysorean princes began using battlefield rockets in the 18th century. THE FIRST GOLDEN AGE: The Congreve missiles Indisputable is the invention of gun powder in China which paved the way to fire-arms and to the first known solid-propellant rockets, likely in the early 13th century. Please contact Anatoly Zak.įollowing wheel and bow and arrows, the first rockets originated too deep in history to mark their exact birth date or name their creators. Author of this page will appreciate comments, corrections and imagery related to the subject.