The Collaborative International Dictionary
Congreve rocket \Con"greve rock"et\ See congreve and cf. Rocket.
Rocket \Rock"et\, n. [It. rocchetta, fr. rocca a distaff, of German origin. Named from the resemblance in shape to a distaff. See Rock a distaff.]
An artificial firework consisting of a cylindrical case of paper or metal filled with a composition of combustible ingredients, as niter, charcoal, and sulphur, and fastened to a guiding stick. The rocket is projected through the air by the force arising from the expansion of the gases liberated by combustion of the composition. Rockets are used as projectiles for various purposes, for signals, and also for pyrotechnic display.
A blunt lance head used in the joust.
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any flying device propelled by the reactive force of hot gases expelled in the direction opposite its motion. The fuel used to generate the expelled gases in rockets may be solid or liquid; rockets propelled by liquid fuels typically have a combustible fuel (such as hydrogen or kerosene) which is combined inside the rocket engine with an oxidizer, such as liquid oxygen. Single liquid fuels (called monopropellants) are also known. Since rocket engines do not depend on a surrounding fluid medium to generate their thrust, as do airplanes with propellers or jet engines, they may be used for propulsion in the vacuum of space.
Congreve rocket, a powerful form of rocket for use in war, invented by Sir William Congreve. It may be used either in the field or for bombardment; in the former case, it is armed with shells or case shot; in the latter, with a combustible material inclosed in a metallic case, which is inextinguishable when kindled, and scatters its fire on every side.
Wikipedia
The Congreve rocket was a British military weapon designed and developed by Sir William Congreve in 1804, based directly on Mysorean rockets.
The Kingdom of Mysore in India used Mysorean rockets as a weapon against the British in the wars that they fought against the British East India Company. Lieutenant General Thomas Desaguliers, Colonel Commandant of the Royal Artillery in Woolwich, was influenced by the reports about their effectiveness, and he undertook several unsuccessful experiments. Several Mysore rockets were sent to Woolwich for studying and reverse-engineering following the Second, Third, and Fourth Mysore wars. (Congreve's father was now the comptroller of the Royal Arsenal.) Even so, Congreve had to start his project in 1804 with his own funds. The first demonstration of his solid fuel rockets was in September 1805. The rockets were used effectively during the Napoleonic Wars, the War of 1812, and the First Anglo-Burmese War of 1824 – 1826.
Usage examples of "congreve rocket".
D'ye know how much a single Congreve rocket-head weighs, without its stick?
The Congreve rocket is said to have an Eastern origin, Sir William Congreve having observed its destructive effects when employed by the forces under Tippoo Saib in the Mahratta war, on which he adopted and improved the missile, and brought out the invention as his own.
His world had just been turned upside down, but his heart soared wildly like a Congreve rocket.