Page "Land mine" Paragraph 21

At Augsburg in 1573, a German military engineer by the name of Samuel Zimmermann invented an extremely effective mine known as the fladdermine.

It consisted of a fougasse ( or later, sometimes a shell fougasse, that is, a fougasse loaded not with stones but with early black powder mortar shells, similar to large black powder hand grenades ) activated by a snaphance or flintlock mechanism connected to a tripwire on the surface.

Combining the effects of a tripwire activated bounding fragmentation mine with a cluster bomb, it was devastating to massed attackers but required high maintenance due to the susceptibility of black powder to dampness.

Consequently it was mainly employed in the defenses of major fortifications, in which role it continued to be used until the 1870s.