Black powder is the oldest type of mixed rocket fuel. It was used in rockets even before it was used in guns. The three main parts of black powder are charcoal, sulphur, and saltpetre (or potassium nitrate). The Chinese were making black powder as early as 1045, which is about 1000 years ago. In the early thirteenth century (about 800 years ago) the Chinese turned black powder into a way to power weapons. Before that it was only used for fun. The first recorded use of rockets as military weapons was in 1232. The Chinese ‘arrows of fire’ were fired from a sort of catapult. The black powder was packed in a closed tube that had a hole in one end for escaping hot gases. The tube was mounted on a long stick so it was more balanced.