So, how long have kites been around for?
Kites have been around for at least 2000 years, but because they are so fragile they are not the kind of thing an archaeologist might dig out of the ground. We have to rely on traditions, legends and drawings to document the history of kites.
It is certain that kites have their roots in Asia. Some evidence even suggests that kites were flown in China as long ago as 1000 BC. China had all the necessary raw materials to construct kites – silk for the sails and strong, fine silk for strong and bamboo for the frame. From China kites spread across Asia, including Japan and Malaysia, and west, through India, Arabia as far as North Africa. Kites were not flown in Europe until much later in history.
Military kites
One of the first use people found for kites were in war, and stories of kites in war make up some of the earliest stories about kites. In 637 CE, Kim Yu-Sin, a Korean general rallied his troops to defeat rebels by lifting a burning ball on a kite.
During the Japanese invasions of Korea in the late 16th century, Admiral Yi commanded his fleet of ships by flying kites with specific markings that would direct his boats where he wanted them to go.
Kites were used in modern warfare as late as the 20th century, lifting lookouts high above boats and submarines to look over the horizon, and getting communications antenna airborne.
Benjamin Franklin
In June 1792 American inventor Franklin carried out his famous experiment with his son using a kite. By attaching metal to the end of his kite and flying it in a storm it was struck by lightening, showing that lightening was actually electricity. This led to the invention of the lightening rod, which are placed on top of high buildings to stop lightening striking the building itself.
You should never fly your kite in a storm. It was a miracle that Franklin and his son were not killed when lightening struck his kite!
The Wright Brothers to Michael Fish
Kites have a tradition in science beyond Franklin’s attempts to electrocute himself and his child. Kites were the logical precursor to flying machines, and were used by the Wright Brothers in America when they were inventing the first ever plane. They flew a glider as a kite in their experiments in 1901. They have often been used to lift measuring equipment high into the air, including for the weather forecast.
A kite was used to lift a radio antenna into the air by Marconi in the first ever transatlantic transmission.
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