Kites On
The Winds of War
By M. Robinson
With the
nightly news saturated with reports of war and some exciting records recently uncovered
pertaining to American Civil War kites, I thought it would be appropriate to explore the
use of kites in military applications over the course of history.
For most of the examples below, we have
indisputable proof that certain kites were indeed used for military purposes. Some of the
historical military kites are currently in museums and private homes. Often, there were
official war department photos, communiqués and even operating manuals.
On the other hand, there are also early
stories that have been repeated in kite history books throughout the years, some with
varying versions of how the events transpired. As I tried to trace the source of the
information, I realized I was caught in a loop. Many of the books and authors referenced
each other. This does not mean that the information is incorrect, but only that it has
been flavored over the years a certain amount of conjecture and embellishment. Some day,
when the resource fairy delivers to me time and money, I hope to be able to offer more
concrete evidence, taking these stories out of the realm of myth and placing them
definitively in the kite history context they belong…just like the recent
authentication of the use of kites in the American Civil War (see below).
This is far from an exhaustive compilation
on the subject. Instead, it should be considered more of a sampling, a starting point.
China 202 BC ~ B. Laufer writes in his
book, The Pre-History of Aviation, of a General from the Han Dynasty, who, when his
troops became cornered, devises a method of attaching Aeolian strings to a kite, so when
flown under the cover of darkness over the enemy camp, the sounds emitting from the kites
were thought to be warnings from the gods, petrifying the opposing army and causing them
to flee.
Korea 600 AD ~ The Samguk Sagi,
written in 1145AD recounts how General Gim Yu-Sin (596 – 637 AD) was asked by Queen
Zindong (28th Ruler of the Silla Dynasty) to quell an uprising of rebels. While
the General was pursuing his orders to squelch the rebellion, a shooting star fell. This
was an exceptionally bad omen to both the rebels and Gim Yu-Sin’s troops, causing
heightened anxiety to all. Calm and peace were restored when the General got the notion to
lift a “fireball” (lantern) up into the night sky using a large kite. Thus, he
convinced everyone that the shooting star had returned to the heavens and disaster was
adverted.
China 1232 ~ According to Science and
Civilization in China, J. Needham wrote that in 1232, the Chinese used kites for
psychological warfare. Kites were used to drop leaflets into a compound that held
prisoners. The leaflets incited a riot that led to the prisoners escape.
India 1659 ~ As depicted by Bill Thomas in
The Complete World Of Kites, the kite played an important role in an early
territory battle between the Hindus and Muslims. A young Shah named Shivaji used a kite to
get a line across a chasm near Poona. Under cover of darkness, kite line was replaced by
rope and Shivaji’s men were able to scale the wall of the fortress and overtake the
guards.
Russia 1855 ~ Admiral Sir Arthur Cochrane
devised a method for kite use during the Russian War of 1855. Using twelve-foot kites,
Cochrane towed torpedoes to a target. Even though the trials were very successful, their
practical use was not. Prevailing winds and moving targets proved to be formidable
obstacles.
United States 1863 ~ It is with great
enthusiasm that I am able to report that in January of 2002, definitive proof of regular
kite use in the American Civil War was located. It had been rumored, there were stories,
but there was never any concrete evidence before. This research has just begun; but there
is much to do and there are more questions then answers. What we do know for sure is that
there were kites made near Vicksburg in 1863, and in 1865 they were used for sending
orders over enemy lines trying to entice deserters by offering money for horses and arms.
Official communiqués’ from the Civil War has been located in the War Records Office,
some requesting kite making materials and one that requested, “…10,000 feet of strong kite string be
sent at once…”!
England 1893 ~ Captain B.F.S. Baden-Powell
designed a stack of six large hexagonal kites for the British that were used in the Boer
War in South Africa to lift soldiers into the air to observe the enemy. Captain
Baden-Powell also did a series of tests using kites to carry messages from one ship to
another.
United States 1896 ~ US Army officer
Lieutenant Hugh D. Wise successfully worked out a system to lift a man using Hargrave box
kites. It was planned for use in the Spanish American War for enemy observation, but the
location and deployment of troops was learned by another means. Unfortunately, the
airplane soon made the system obsolete before another opportunity could present itself.
England 1901 ~ Samuel F. Cody patented his
kite system of man lifting and gave a demonstration to the War Office in December of 1901
for use in military applications. The Admiralty allowed trials on warships during 1904
& 1905. The War Office adopted the system in 1906 for Army observation. Cody was given
Officer status with the post of Chief Kite Instructor at Farnborough with orders to design
and manufacture kites and give instructions in their operation.
Russia 1903 ~ Lieutenant Schreiber of the
Imperial Russian Navy was also experimenting with a man lifting system using a Hargrave
double box. His system was abandoned after several fatalities proved it unstable. Captain
Ulyanin of the Russian Army developed a train of double Conyne kites that achieved the
lift they were looking for.
France 1909 ~ Charles Dollfus held a
competition to determine the most suitable man lifting technique to be considered by the
French Military Authorities. Captain Madiot won the contest with a winged box kite system.
Captain Madiot died in an aeroplane accident a year later and the French Army adopted
Captain Saconney’s man lifting system. Saconney’s kite-corps contained a
motorcar, trailer, and a winch that was driven by the car’s engine. The system was
also installed aboard the ship, The Edgar Quintet, in 1911.
Germany 1914 ~ During World War I, Germany
designed a folding box kite system, facilitating their use as man-lifting devices compact
enough to store aboard their submarines. After launching the kite, a basket with its
occupant was hauled up using a man-powered winch.
United States 1915 ~ Samuel Perkins
researched man-carrying kites for observational uses by the U.S. Army during World War I.
He used kites that were nine to twelve feet high in trains of three to six. Perkins work
never passed the trial stage.
England 1940 ~ The British Admiralty
introduced a barrage kite to protect Naval Destroyers. The Hargrave double box kites were
adorned with suspended wires or dangling bombs as a deterrent to aerial enemy attack.
United States 1941 ~ The Barrage Balloon
and Kite School was opened in New York City. Saul’s barrage kites were flown on wire
lines and capable of shearing wings, which was very effective against enemy dive-bombers.
Canisters of explosives were attached to the piano type wire used to fly the kites. At one
time 3,300 of the Saul’s Barrage kites flew from the sterns of Merchant ships
carrying cargo from the United States and Canada to Europe.
Germany 1943 ~ The Focke-Achegelis F.A.
330 was invented by aircraft expert Dr. Henrich Focke. It is a rotating wing or gyroplane
kite that is highly maneuverable and obtains lift from submarine traction. The kite has a
set of rotating blades supporting an observation chair. It could be assembled in seven
minutes, taken apart in less time, and obtained a height of fifty feet.
United States 1943 ~ Commander Paul Garber
of the U. S. Navy developed a target kite that could simulate maneuvers of an airplane to
provide a moving target to enhance the training of aircraft gunners. Garber also used
signal kites to pass important messages from ship to plane. A cable with the package of
papers attached to it, was strung between two kites, the airplane flying overhead would
catch the cable with a long hook.
United States 1943 ~ American Servicemen
had life rafts with special radios for use by shipwrecked crewman or downed aircraft. A
box kite that served as a spotter and radio antenna was designed to work with a
hand-cranked transmitter as a lifesaving rescue device during World War II. This device,
called the Gibson Girl, was in use up to, and including, the Vietnam War. It was
eventually made obsolete by the invention of cell phones.
This partial list of the use of kites in
military applications is merely a starting point. My ultimate goal is to compile a
thorough and accurate chronological kite history timeline for the AKA. It would certainly
be valuable and useful to everyone, especially educators. I ask your help in this task.
Please keep your eyes and notebooks open. Make sure you get those references, and I will
let you know in the near future where you may send your contributions. Thank you!
References:
Books:
Kite Making and Flying, by Harold Ridgeway
KITES an Historical Survey, by Clive Hart
Flying Kites in Fun, Art, and War, by
James Vagenvoord
The Penguin Book of Kites, by David Pelham
The Complete Book of Kites and Kite
Flying, by Will Yolen
The Complete World of Kites, by Bill
Thomas
Kites, by Wayne Hosking
Magazines:
The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine,
Vol. 54, No. 1, May 1897, pg 84; Wise, H. D. , “Experiments With Kites”
Scientific American, Vol. 147, September
1932, pp 212-213; Wise, H. D., “Flying In The Beginning”
Web Sites:
Copyright M Robinson 2002
Reprinted by permission of KITING, The Journal of
the American Kitefliers Association,
Summer 2002, Volume 24, Issue 2