The great art of artillery

Full title: "Artis Magnae Artilleriae, pars prima."

Casimir Siemienowicz (~1600–1651) was a graduate from Vilnius University, military officer in the army of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and artillery engineer. In his book The Great Art of Artillery, he provided the theory and blueprints for creating multistage rockets and rocket artillery for the first time in history. The first part of the work was published in Amsterdam in 1650. Siemienowicz introduced a plan for the second part in the preface, but his death prevented him from writing it. The book became popular all over Europe. It was used as textbook for preparing artillery specialists for over a hundred years. In 1651, it was translated into French, in 1676 into German, and in 1729 into English. It was also translated into Dutch, Danish, and Polish. The book contains over 200 examples and diagrams drawn by the author. The frontispiece of the book is also created by the author.