Page 201 - (DK) Smithsinian - Military History: The Definitive Visual Guide to the Objects of Warfare

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◀ ROUND SHOT ◀ CHAIN SHOT The chain shot—two or
Date c.1800 Date c.1800 more cannonballs linked by
a chain—could scythe down
Origin UK Origin UK enemy crew on an exposed
Material Iron Material Iron deck. As with other nonround
shot, the range and accuracy NA V AL GUNS
Naval ammunition generally of chain shot was poor.
had three purposes—to
punch holes in the side
of an enemy ship, to bring
down masts and sails, or to ◀ BAR SHOT The bar shot was made by
kill the enemy. An accurate linking two or more shot pieces
and long-range type of Date c.1800 by a fixed bar or extendable
munition, round shot was Origin UK bar sections. It was designed
used for its penetrating Material Iron to hack away at lines and
effect against a ship’s hull. rigging as it flew over the AND KIT
Extendable sections
top of the ship’s deck.
Solid iron
◀ GRAPESHOT Grapeshot consisted of balls
Date c.1800 of metal housed within a tin
or a canvas bag. The container
Origin UK shattered when a gun was fired, ▼ RAMMER The rammer was used to push the
Material Canvas, iron producing a shotgunlike effect Date c.1800 cartridge, wads, and shot down
against an enemy crew. Origin UK the full length of the bore and pack
it into the firing chamber of the gun.
Material Ash
Concave ramming head

▲ SPONGE A damp sheepskin sponge was pushed
Wooden stave
Date c.1800 down the barrel after every shot had
been fired to extinguish residual burning
Damp sheepskin Origin UK embers. Copper nails attached the
sponge for swabbing Material Ash, copper nails, sponge to the head of a wooden stave.
the barrel sheepskin

▶ CAST-IRON Button to help
3-POUNDER in lifting and
Date Late 17th century moving gun
Origin England
1
Length 6 ⁄2ft (2m)
Caliber 3in
Shot 3lb (1.36kg)
Cast-iron guns were much
cheaper to make than bronze
guns and gradually replaced
them during the 17th and 18th
Muzzle centuries. They were cast solid
Barrel and bored out. The rear-chock
carriage lessened recoil when Naval rear-chock
the gun was fired.
carriage

▶ MUZZLE-LOADING This cast-iron muzzle-loading
12-POUNDER naval gun sits on a later
Date 1805 sea-service carriage. In the
Battle of Trafalgar, in 1805,
Origin UK HMS Victory had thirty-four
Weight 1.2 tons (1.1 tonnes) 12-pounders, in addition to
1
Length 9 ⁄2ft (2.95m) twenty-eight 24-pounders,
thirty 32-pounders, and two
Caliber 4.5in
68-pounder carronades. Wheeled carriage
Shot 12lb (5.4kg)
allowed gun to roll
back for recharging