Turpinite

Turpinite, also called Turpenite, is a fictional[1][2] war gas allegedly developed by the French chemist Eugène Turpin and deployed against the attacking German army during the first months of World War I.

According to contemporary accounts, Turpinite, delivered by artillery shells, silently and suddenly killed any person within 400 yards (370 m) of impact with its fumes. Survivors of Turpinite barrages reported a strong chemical smell after an attack.[3][4] In reality, this smell was a side effect of the explosives used by the French and British militaries during the war. The widespread, sudden deaths caused by artillery were in many cases caused by concussion, which leaves no mark on the victim.[1][5]

After the war, German scientist Fritz Haber, who pioneered German gas attacks at the Second Battle of Ypres, said German soldiers had reported a strong chemical smell attributed to turpenite. Haber and others investigated, finding the smell was due to incomplete combustion of the picric acid used in British artillery shells. The belief that the French used chemical weapons in 1914 may have contributed to later German use of such weapons.[6]

Bibliography

  • Max Hastings, Catastrophe 1914: Europe Goes to War. London, Knopf Press, Release Date 24 September 2013, ISBN 978-0307597052, 640 pp.

References

  1. ^ a b Marshall, Edward. "Explosives have key to the war," The New York Times. Page 57. July 11, 1915. Retrieved Oct. 7, 2014.
  2. ^ "Turpenite a Myth," Calgary Daily Herald. Feb. 11, 1916. Retrieved Oct. 6, 2014.
  3. ^ "Deadly new gun used by French," Alaska Daily Empire. Page 1. Sept. 26, 1914. Retrieved Oct. 6, 2014.
  4. ^ "Turpenite," The New York Times. Page 10. Oct. 1, 1914. Retrieved Oct. 6, 2014.
  5. ^ "New French shell kills by concussion," The New York Times. April 6, 1915. Retrieved Oct. 7, 2014.
  6. ^ Richter, Donald C. Chemical Soldiers: British Gas Warfare in World War I. University Press of Kansas: 1992. Page 6.

Content Disclaimer

Informasi ini disarikan dari Wikipedia dan disajikan kembali untuk tujuan edukasi. Konten tersedia di bawah lisensi CC BY-SA 3.0. Kami tidak bertanggung jawab atas ketidakakuratan data yang bersumber dari kontribusi publik tersebut.

  1. The information displayed on this website is sourced in part or in whole from Wikipedia and has been adapted for the purpose of restating it. We strive to provide accurate and relevant information, however:
  2. There is no guarantee of absolute accuracy. Wikipedia is an open, collaborative project that can be edited by anyone, so information is subject to change.
  3. It is not intended to constitute professional advice. The content displayed is for informational and educational purposes only. For important decisions (e.g., medical, legal, or financial), please consult a professional.
  4. Content copyright. Wikipedia is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC BY-SA). This means that content may be reused with appropriate attribution and shared under a similar license.
  5. Responsible use. Any risk arising from the use of information from this website is entirely the responsibility of the user.