Cours d'artillerie à l'école centrale de pyrotechnie, 1876

Set of 27 lithographic courses given at the Central School of Pyrotechnics during the year 1875-1876.
The courses were attended by François Mazeau, deputy chief pyrotechnician at the 21st artillery, 12th battery in Angoulème.
The 21st artillery was formed during the siege of Paris in 1870. The war of 1870 marked the defeat of the French artillery, which was surpassed by the much more modern and organized German artillery. The reform of the central school of pyrotechnics moved from Metz to Bourges was one of the first reforms of the French army after this defeat. The French artillery, particularly with the 75 cannon, became one of the most efficient during the First World War.

The first course is devoted to the use of dynamite, invented a few years earlier by Nobel.