Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Rumfustion (talk | contribs) at 16:49, 4 April 2010 (→Naval Uses of Gunpowder and Rum). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Gunpowder Rum" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Gunpowder Rum refers to a practice of mixing black gunpowder with rum before use or consumption. This habit was most prevalent in the 18th and early 19th centuries. There were a variety of reasons for the rise of this habit, some of them practical, others the result of socio-political factors.

Naval Uses of Gunpowder and Rum

The most commonly known example of this practice is the one associated with the testing of the proof of alcohol rations (usually rum) issued to sailors in the navy. The definition of 'over-proof' was reached by the following test: if an equal measure of gunpowder and an equal measure of liquor were mixed and then could be set alight the liquor was 'proven' to be 'over-proof' (around 50% alc./vol. and above). If the same test was applied and the mixture failed to light it was proof of too high a water content, thus the liquor was deemed 'under-proof'.
What this piece of naval folklore supposes is a certain amount of distrust between the sailors and the ration-dispensing officers aboard ship (a form of 'class war' before such theories were formulated), and also that complaint about the strength of one's ration was possible (the world's navies at this time were not known for their tolerance of dissent - for example the heavy punishment meted out to the rebels of 'The Floating Republic'). Also the gunpowder of the period was not of consistent quality having varying burn-rates depending on the ingredients used, making this test something of a 'rule of thumb'.
What this anecdote probably reflects is certain shipboard practices in which rum was vital component in the running of the ship, specifically a war ship.
Adding a measure of rum to a barrel of drinking water would extend it's life span considerably. Adding a measure of gunpowder on top of that would also extend it's shelf-life due to the sulfur component.
Meanwhile having an effective way to gauge the burn rate of the gunpowder aboard ship would be of vital importance aboard a 'ship of the line'. Put a too fast burning gunpowder into a cannon and it may explode before the ball is expelled. Having a range of alcohols aboard ship of known strengths would allow a master gunner to test which gunpowder suited which size cannon before putting it to the test in battle.
Another use of rum and gunpowder when mixed together would be to create a fuse that would resist going out during battle. Often during sea battles with exchanges of fire a lot of sea water is blown up and over the gun deck, saturating most everything. A fuse (composed either of twine or cloth) could be saturated with rum and gunpowder in a way that would make it impervious to seawater.
Another common problem aboard fighting ships could be dealt with using rum.
Combustion converts less than half the mass of black powder to gas. The rest ends up as a thick layer of soot inside the barrel. In addition to being a nuisance, the residue from burnt black powder is hygroscopic and an anhydrous caustic substance. When moisture from the air is absorbed, the potassium oxide or sodium oxide turns into hydroxide, which will corrode wrought iron or steel gun barrels. Black powder arms must be well cleaned both inside and out to remove the residue. Rum could be used to clean away this corrosive residue without making the cannon or firearm too damp to use immediately.

Use and Reasons for Gunpowder in Beverages

Another reason for mixing rum into liquor (or vice versa) was touched on above. Sulfur is one of the three components of black gunpowder, and it, and its derivatives, are natural preservatives still in use today (for instance in wine-making, fruit preserves, and liqueur-making). Mixing a weak mixture of gunpowder, rum and water with some of a ship's supplies would make them last longer. Another by product of mixing gunpowder into liquids is the clarifying action of the charcoal component of gunpowder. Charcoal is a natural filtering agent and will cause impurities and other particles to drop from a liquid, often improving the flavor along the way. Raw, over-proof rum,for example, could, in this manner, be made more palatable.
Another reason for the mixing of gunpowder and rum (or other beverages) may be accidental. It was common practice to reuse barrels that had previously contained another product. Gunpowder kegs (usually limited to the smaller sizes for safety reasons, such as Firkin) may often have seen second service as storage for liquor thereby giving the gunpowder flavor. Another famous example of this reuse of barrels would be the story associated with the early years of bourbon manufacture. Barrels that had originally been used to store fish were charred to remove the fish taint. The whiskey that was then shipped in these barrels was found to be that much more mellow in flavor.

Other Examples of Gunpowder and Rum in combination

In Voodoo culture a pledge can be sealed by drinking a combination of rum, gunpowder, human blood, and soil from a freshly dug grave.

During the heyday of smuggling (from about the middle of the 18th century and into the middle of the 19th century), gunpowder and rum often traveled in the same container. Efforts to avoid excise duty being paid often involved concealing taxable goods within otherwise legitimate cargoes. For instance a barrel may have false partitions inside holding contraband so that an inspecting customs man could dip into a seemingly innocent barrel and find nothing but the stated contents, even though half the barrel contained something else.
It seems a fair supposition that for a period of time that something else was black gunpowder side by side with a cargo of rum.
During the American War of Independence it was found that the English made gunpowder had a better burn rate than the American variety and thereby become more desirable to the rebels. The English as a consequence banned its export from England to the Americas except for the use of its own troops. A healthy black market quickly developed around this product. Around the same time Britain was shipping raw sugar from its Caribbean colonies to the homeland. Here the sugar would be distilled into rum before being distributed world-wide, bringing in much needed coin to fund Britain's various wars of the time.
One can easily imagine a consignment of English rum arriving somewhere in the Americas (having cleared the English blockade) a number of 'special' barrels being distributed to agents for the rebels who would pay well to receive gunpowder that would throw projectiles harder and further than the local mix could achieve. And probably after those weeks aboard ship some of that gunpowder flavor would have infused into the rum.

Famous Users of Gunpowder Rum

The most famous mythical consumers of Gunpowder Rum would have to be Blackbeard the Pirate. He is sometimes depicted with his pigtails on fire like the fuses of a gun, and with a powder keg under one arm and a drawn cutlass in the other.

Modern Examples of Gunpowder Rum

Only one example of rum mixed with gunpowder exists today. It is produced in New Zealand under the name Man O'War Gunpowder Rum, and claims to follow an 18th century recipe.