A cannon is any large tubular firearm designed to fire a heavy projectile over a long distance. They were first used in Europe and China, and were the archetypical form of artillery. Should not be confused with Canon. ... An assortment of modern hand-held firearms using fixed ammunition, including military assault rifles, a sporting shotgun (fourth from bottom), a tactical shotgun (third from bottom), and a sporting rifle (top). ... A projectile is any object sent through space by the application of a force. ... The parts of a cannon described, John Roberts, The Compleat Cannoniere, London 1652. ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ...

Round shot and grapeshot were the early projectiles used in cannon. Different types of cannon balls recovered from the Vasa, sunk in 1628 Round shot is a type of projectile fired from guns or cannons. ... Grapeshot was a kind of anti-personnel ammunition used in cannons. ...

Projectiles fired from cannon

Different types of cannon balls recovered from the Vasa, sunk in 1628

Round shot 

A solid projectile made, in early times, from dressed stone but, by the 17th century, from iron. The most accurate projectile that could be fired by a smooth-bore cannon, used to batter the wooden hulls of opposing ships, forts, or fixed emplacements, and as a long-range anti-personnel weapon.

Chain shot or bar shot 

Two sub-calibre round shot (a good deal smaller than the bore of the barrel) linked by a length of chain or a solid bar, and used to slash through the rigging and sails of an enemy ship so that it could no longer manoeuver. It was inaccurate and only used at close range. Two-headed bullets (angels) were similar but made of two halves of a ball rather than two balls.^[1]

Canister shot 

An anti-personnel projectile which included many small iron round shot or lead musket balls in a metal can, which broke up when fired, scattering the shot throughout the enemy personnel, like a large shotgun.

Shrapnel or spherical case shot 

An iron anti-personnel projectile containing an interior cavity packed with lead or iron round balls around a small bursting charge of just enough force to break open the thin-walled iron projectile. A powder train in a thin iron sleeve led to a time fuse inserted into a holder at the outer edge or the projectile. The fuse was designed to be ignited by flame from the propellant charge. Ideally the case shot fuse would detonate the central bursting charge when the projectile was six to ten feet above the heads of enemy infantry thereby showering them with the iron balls and fragments of the casing. (Invented 1784 by Lt. Henry Shrapnel, Royal Artillery, Great Britain).

Shell 

An explosive anti-material and counter-battery projectile, of iron with a cavity packed with a high explosive bursting charge of powder used to destroy enemy wagons, breastworks, or opposing artillery. Two types of fuzes were used -- impact fuses that detonated the bursting charge by percussion, and time fuse cut to length measured in seconds and ignited by flame from the propellant charge.^[2]

Grapeshot 

An anti-personnel weapon, similar to canister shot, but with the shot being contained in a canvas bag, and generally of a larger calibre. So called because of the resemblance of the clustered shot in the bag to a cluster of grapes on the vine. In one variation of this, the shot was held together by a coiled bar, and was spread by a fused charge in the same way as a shell.

Carcass 

An incendiary/antipersonnel projectile designed to burn fiercely and produce poisonous fumes. It was constructed of an iron frame bound with sack cloth and filled with various ingredients such as pitch, antimony, sulphur, saltpeter, tallow and venetian turpentine. It was ignited by the cannon's propellant charge, bursting on impact with the target and releasing noxious fumes while setting fire to its surroundings. It was effectively an early chemical weapon as well as an incendiary and area denial weapon. The name is possibly a reference to the medieval practice of hurling dead animals from trebuchet as a form of biological warfare^[3], or to the projectile's superficial resemblance to a human carcass.^[4]

Heated (or hot) shot 

A process where a solid iron cannonball is heated red hot in a specially-designed wood- or coal-fired furnace and then is loaded in a muzzle-loading cannon, cushioned by a substantial thickness of wet wads, and is then fired while still red hot, at flammable targets with the intention of setting them on fire. This was a much advocated tactic (and many times a very successful one) for shore based forts defending against attacks by wooden warships. Examples of these small brick furnaces may still be seen at permanently constructed pre-1860 forts in Europe and the United States. The adoption by most navies of iron hulled ships generally made these obsolete. The shot was carried on a specially-designed iron barrow or 2-man litter and, in the era of blackpowder cannon charges contained in cloth bags, occasioned much fanfare and notice as it was conveyed to the cannon muzzle as the red-hot projectile would easily ignite any carelessly handled loose powder. Any reckless or somewhat dangerous individual who seemed to draw trouble to themselves and those around them was referred to as a "Hot Shot", giving rise to the term in common use to this day.

18th century cannon projectiles

Spider Shot

Spider shot is a chain shot, but it has many chains instead of just one. It was not often used, despite its effectiveness against small ships and morale.

Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2592x1944, 1280 KB) selection of cannon balls recovered from the Vasa, sunk in 1628. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (2592x1944, 1280 KB) selection of cannon balls recovered from the Vasa, sunk in 1628. ... Regalskeppet Vasa (also Wasa) is a Swedish 64-gun ship of the line built for King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden of the House of Vasa, between 1626 and 1628. ... This cannon diagram was created by user:Quadell. ... A projectile is any object sent through space by the application of a force. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Blackpowder. ... A touch hole is a small hole, through which the propellent charge of a cannon or muzzleloading gun is ignited. ... In an explosive device, a fuse (or fuze) is the part of the device that causes it to function. ... Different types of cannon balls recovered from the Vasa, sunk in 1628 Round shot is a type of projectile fired from guns or cannons. ... In artillery, chain-shot is a type of ammunition formed of two balls, or half-balls, chained together. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Canister shot was a kind of anti-personnel ammunition used in cannons. ... For Pb as an abbreviation, see PB. General Name, Symbol, Number lead, Pb, 82 Chemical series poor metals Group, Period, Block 14, 6, p Appearance bluish gray Standard atomic weight 207. ... Muskets and bayonets aboard the frigate Grand Turk. ... Balls are objects typically used in games. ... A pump-action, a Remington 870, two semi-automatic action Remington 1100 shotguns, 20 boxes of shotgun shells, a clay trap, and three boxes of clay pigeons. ... It has been suggested that Fragmentation (weaponry) be merged into this article or section. ... Henry Shrapnel (1761 - March 13, 1842) was a British Army officer and inventor Henry Shrapnel was born in Wiltshire, England. ... A shell is a payload-carrying projectile, which, as opposed to a bullet, contains an explosive or other filling, though modern usage includes large solid projectiles previously termed shot (AP, APCR, APCNR, APDS, APFSDS and Proof shot). ... Grapeshot was a kind of anti-personnel ammunition used in cannons. ... Look up Canvas in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Drawing of a carcas shell In artillery, a carcass was a kind of bomb or shell, originally oblong or oval, and later spherical in shape, consisting of an external casing filled with highly flammable matter, and having three to five holes through which the internal flames could blaze outward. ... (Great Britain)A Sack cloth coarse brown cloth made of natural fibre and used to make sacks, or constrain bales of loose produce. ... The pitch drop experiment. ... General Name, Symbol, Number antimony, Sb, 51 Chemical series metalloids Group, Period, Block 15, 5, p Appearance silvery lustrous grey Atomic mass 121. ... For the chemical element see: sulfur. ... R-phrases   S-phrases   Supplementary data page Structure and properties n, εr, etc. ... Tallow is rendered beef or mutton fat, processed from suet. ... For the band, see Turpentine (band). ... Dressing the wounded during a gas attack by Austin O. Spare, 1918. ... Incendiary refers to any fire that has been deliberately set. ... Area denial weapons are used to prevent an adversary from occupying or traversing an area of land. ... Trebuchet at Château des Baux, France. ... For the use of biological agents by terrorists, see bioterrorism. ... A forest fire Fire is a rapid oxidation process that creates light, heat, smoke, and releases energy in varying intensities. ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (4389x759, 1112 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Cannon ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (4389x759, 1112 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Cannon ...

Notes and references