3. Morphologies of gunpowder magazine projects (1715–1798)

Gunpowder magazine projects made by the Spanish military engineers of the eighteenth century are based on previous military architecture treatises. Therefore, most of these ancillary constructions are built bombproof by shielding the roof. A distinction is made between two types of designs: vaults and wooden structures. The latter are protected by elastic components capable of cushioning the impact of a pyroballistic weapon. From a morphological point of view, gunpowder magazines can be classified depending on their protecting enclosures. From a formal point of view, a distinction is made between the following three morphologies:

having been made bombproof or having been constructed underground (whether in

The principal work of reference is Maniere de fortifier selon la methode de Monsieur de Vauban, of Sébastien Le Prestre Vauban (1633–1707), edited by the abbot Du Fay in 1681. The morphology of the gunpowder warehouses with a double enclosure is defined in that treatise, together with the design of its roofing [35]. In the Spanish treatise El Ingeniero Primera Parte, de la Moderna Architectura Militar (1687), by Sebastián Fernández de Medrano (1646–1705), that question is

manmade excavations or in caves) [34].

Military Engineering

Figure 3.

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Tratado de fortificación, ó Arte de construir los edificios militares, y civiles (1769), John Müller.

Gunpowder magazines having a simple construction body, with the outer wall directly exposed to hostile fire. This is the case of the gunpowder magazines built in Zaragoza (1729) [MPD, 39, 041] (Figure 4), Cádiz (1749) [MPD, 56, 029], San Sebastián (1738) [MPD, 27, 092], or Peñíscola (1739) [MPD, 18, 262].

[MPD, 65, 088 and MPD, 65, 092]; secondly, projects where the two spans are separated by pillars and the roof is supported by wooden main beams, such as the gunpowder magazines in Hondarribia (1733) [MPD, 65, 044], Cartagena (1745) [MPD, 18, 257], and Tortosa (1798); and thirdly, projects where the roof is

Scientific Knowledge of Spanish Military Engineers in the Seventeenth Century

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.87060

Figure 6.

35

Figure 5.

Cardona (1718) [MPD, 19, 028].

Málaga (1721) [MPD, 59, 044].

Gunpowder magazines having an outer protection enclosure and a simple enclosure for storing the gunpowder. This is the most common type of magazine in the military treatises. Examples that stand out are the gunpowder magazines in Cardona (1718) [MPD, 19, 028] (Figure 5), San Sebastián (1722) [MPD, 28, 034], Ceuta (1724) [MPD, 39, 083], Málaga (1724) [MPD, 59, 046], and Gerona (1738) [MPD, 01, 018].

Lastly, gunpowder magazines having an outer protection enclosure and a twoelement central construction body (where the inner wall is at ground level and the main magazine is above ground level). This is the case of the gunpowder magazines built in Tortosa (1721) [MPD, 64, 019], Málaga (1721) [MPD, 59, 044] (Figure 6), Barcelona (1726) [MPD, 10, 060], Cádiz (1728) [MPD, 08, 236], or Zaragoza (1729) [MPD, 28, 010].
