Juche

The first firearms warship of the world was used in August 1380 in the sea-battle off Jinpho against Japanese pirates in the Koryo period. A fierce sea-battle using firearms in Europe was in 1571 when the combined fleet of Venice (Venezia), Genoa (Genova) and Spain defeated the fleet of Turkey.
Weapon technicians such as Choe Mu Son (1326-1395) and the people in the Koryo period built and used the first firearms warship in the world, thus defending reliably safety of the country and nation.
Choe Mu Son, after ceaseless efforts and experiments done for several years, discovered how to make niter, the raw material of gunpowder and, on its basis, succeeded in inventing various kinds of powder weapons. In 1377 the Koryo feudal government established a department charging in manufacturing powder weapons and appointed Choe Mu Son as its chief.
Choe Mu Son and many handicraftsmen mobilized in manufacturing powder weapons made various kinds of powder weapons, gunpowder and cannonballs.
Later the feudal government organized an arm of technical service and equipped warships with powder weapons, thus strengthening military and technical foundations of the Koryo naval forces.
Koryo’s ship building level was very high at that time. Koryo boldly remodeled their structure in order to enhance fighting capacity of the warships that were big, steady and good in sailing. Meanwhile, Koryo discovered a new method to protect powder weapons from moisture of the sea. Thanks to such ceaseless efforts, the rate of their hits was improved and the fighting capacity of the navy was further strengthened.
The sea-battle off Jinpho in 1380 which destroyed more than 500 Japanese warships with firearms was recorded as the first sea battle conducted with firearms warships in the world sea battle history.