As soon as the fleet of hot air balloons was seen from Dover, it would be too late. The armada of buoyant red, blue, and gold silk carrying French soldiers would soar over the Channel, leading an invasion of England. This 1803 proposal inspired by the successful use of balloons for reconnaissance was brought before Napoleon during the Napoleonic Wars. But along with his other plans for an invasion, they were never realized.
Skepticism about the use of these vehicles is understandable. They only go as fast as the wind blows, are difficult to steer and are extremely vulnerable targets. As General Duquesnoy of Napoleon's army said, "Who ever heard of balloons in war?"
In fact, balloons and other non-technological aircraft have a long history in warfare. At the turn of the 3rd century, balloons had been used for reconnaissance by the Chinese-who also used kites in war. Kongming lanterns, as they were called, were made with rice paper over a bamboo frame.
Control of the Skies
The first battle won thanks to control of the skies took place at Fleurus during the French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802). The French first deployed L'Entreprenant, a manned hot-air balloon in 1794. It flew above the range of enemy muskets and cannons and from its vantage point, the first aeronautic corps of the French army kept track of enemy troop movement to great advantage. The corps returned to action in various battles, but was never a replacement for using cavalry in reconnaissance, and was later disbanded by Napoleon.
Reconnaissance balloons were also used during the the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Second Boer War (1899-1902). Abraham Lincoln had his own Union Army Balloon Corps. The Confederates also made use of balloons until it ran out of resources to make them. Other countries that experimented with balloons in battle were Russia, Austria, and Germany, which organized a Balloon Corps in 1884.
The 1899 Hague Peace Conference banned "the discharge of any...explosive from balloons," but it didn't stop the Italians in Tripoli (1911-1912) or the Japanese against Russian forces in Manchuria (1904-1905).
Even in one of the bloodiest battles in history, the Battle of the Somme (1916), fought in the summer and autumn of 1916, Britain's Royal Flying Corps (RFC) used observation balloons to identify targets. Months later, they lost the advantage with the introduction of new German aircraft.
Delivering Propaganda
In addition to surveillance, balloons of every kind have been used to transport propaganda. In 1807, Denmark used balloons to drop leaflets over Sweden, hoping to incite Swedes to revolt against their government.
In World War I, Germany used hot-air balloons to send pamphlets into France blaming Russia and England for starting the war. The British returned the favor in World War II by sending balloons carrying propaganda into Germany.
Messages from On High
The airborne observers, or aeronauts, would send information to the ground troops using flag signals, or semaphore, or from lower heights, dropping messages in small bags weighted with sand. From heights of 500 to 3,000 feet, they were able to direct artillery fire and contribute to victory.
At first, reconnaissance balloons were made of fabrics such as silk and filled with hydrogen gas. Many a balloon went up in flames, the observers forced to evacuate by parachute. After World War I, they were filled with the non-flammable helium.
Some were free-flying, but more often than not, they were tethered to the ground by a steel cable and retrieved at the end of a mission. Tethers allowed observers to slide down, and later, telegraph wires to be attached, thereby improving air-to-ground communications.
The First Air Raid
At no time has the unreliability of hot-air balloons to deploy arms been more evident than in 1848 when Venice tried to break away from Austrian rule. The Austrians blockaded the city and put together small balloons that carried an explosive device. At the opportune moment, the bomb would explode on Venetian targets.
A preliminary round of balloons sent on July 12, 1849 failed because of uncooperative winds. A second attempt fared no better. Many of the 2,000 balloons launched exploded in the air or dropped into the sea. A number of them even blew over the Austrian forces and exploded to the sound of Venetians applauding.
A Majestic Ride
Even with the introduction of advanced aeronautics and communications in the 20th century, balloons continued to be used in battle. Many things have changed in the last two and a half centuries, but not balloons.
Today, hot-air balloons are mostly used for sports and recreation. Balloon festivals taking place around the world all through the year, drawing the public to the spectacle of airborne color. They are still a grandiose way of celebrating. Napoleon may not have appreciated their military applications, but he did like them for making a statement. For his coronation, he commissioned a huge hot-air balloon ablaze with a crown of 3,000 lights.
Sources:
Bacon, J.M. The Dominion of the Air: The Story of Aerial Navigation. London: Cassel and Company, 1902.
Dickens, Charles. "War Balloons." All the Year Round. February 1869, pp. 297-299.
Haydon, F. Stansbury. Military Ballooning During the Civil War. Baltimore: JHU Press, 2000.
Haydon, F. Stansbury. Aeronautics in the Union and Confederate Armies. Manchester, NH: Ayer Publishing, 1980.
James, Edwin L. "Germans Attempt to Cajole Our Men." The New York Times. 7 July 1918, p. 2.
Murphy, Justin D. Military Aircraft: Origins to 1918. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2005.
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