Cannon History

Pre-1800s

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumhart_von_Steyr

Pumhart von Steyr

·         The largest known wrought-iron bombard by caliber

·         Produced in the early 15^th Century

·         Weighs about 8 tons

·         On display in the artillery halls located in the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum at Vienna

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mons_Meg

Mons Meg

·         Weighs 15,366 pounds (6,970 kg), is 15 feet (4.6 m) in length, and has a caliber of 20 inches (510 mm). The cost of the gun was £1,536. 2s. Since this supergun was only used in the Kingdom of Scotland the U.S price is unknown. 

·         Its cannon balls weighed about 400 pounds (180 kg) it could only be fired 8-10 times a day due to the tremendous heat generated by the powder charge it required

·         Produced in June 1449

·         The Great Michael has this cannon on board and was known as the ship with the largest cannon based on caliber

 1800-1900

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RML_17.72_inch_gun

RML 17.72 inch gun

·         A rifled muzzle-loading gun made by the Elswick Ordnance Company in the United Kingdom

·         Weighs 103 tons

·         A total of 15 cannons were made

·         Was in service in 1877-1906 and was used by the United Kingdom and Italy

·        Had a maximum distance of 6,600 yards (6,000 m)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mallet%27s_Mortar

Mallet's Mortar

·        Is a British siege mortar built for the Crimean War but wasn’t used

·        Weighs 43 tons

·        Produced in 1857

·        The Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company went bankrupt after purchasing the Mallet’s Mortar

·        The work on the cannon was divided among the three firms as a result

1900s-modern cannons

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_David

Little David                                                          Ammunition

·         Had a 36 inch (914 mm) caliber mortar used for test firing aerial bombs during World War II

·         Used only in the U.S.

·         Is 40 tons without a carriage

·         Was supposed to be used on the Japanese invasion; but Japan surrendered and thus, Little David was never used

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BL_16_inch_Mk_I_naval_gun

BL 16 inch Mk I naval gun

·        a British naval gun introduced in the 1920s and used on the Nelson class battleships

·        Weights 108 tons and has a maximum range of 39,780 yards (36,374 m) 
·     These cannons were designed for the G3 battle cruiser but the designs were cancelled