The falconet was a light cannon developed in the late 15th century that fired a smaller shot than the similar falcon. During the Middle Ages guns were decorated with engravings of animals, such as reptiles, birds or mythical beasts depending on their size. For example, a culverin would often feature snakes, as the handles on the early cannons were often decorated to resemble serpents. The falconet fired small yet lethal shot of similar weight and size to a bird of prey, and so was decorated with a falcon. Similarly, the musket was associated with the sparrowhawk.[1]
Replica falconet aboard the replica tall ship Half Moon
Its barrel was approximately 4 feet (1.2 m) long, had a calibre of 2 inches (5 cm)[2] and weighed 180 to 440 pounds (80 to 200 kg). The falconet used 0.5 pounds (225 g) of black powder to fire a 1 pound (450 g) round shot at a maximum range of approximately 5,000 feet (1,500 m).[3][4] They could also be used to fire grapeshot.
The falconet resembled an oversized matchlockmusket with two wheels attached to improve mobility.[5] In 1620s Germany a breechloading version was invented, seeing action in the Thirty Years War.[6] Many falconets were in use during the English Civil War[4] as they were lighter and cheaper than the culverins, sakers and minions. During times of unrest, they were used by the nobility to defend their grand houses.[7]
Though developed for use on land, the falconet gained naval prominence during the 17th century for the defense of light vessels; for example, on small boats for boarding maneuvers.
A barrel of a swivel gun falconete (ca. 1476-1525). Material: Iron. Caliber: 65 mm.
Falconet in the Peasants War Museum Muehlhausen.
Wrought iron falconet, 17th century.
Breech-loading falconet in the Navy Museum of Lisbon, Portugal. Bronze. Reign of Sebastian I (1557-1578). Found in 1985 in the shipwreck of Portuguese carrack Santiago on the shallows of Judia, Indian Ocean.
Bronze falconet. Diameter: 11.2 cm (4 7/16 in.); Overall: 162.2 cm (63 7/8 in.); Bore: 4.7 cm (1 7/8 in.).
Falconet (1526); kartouwe (1617); kartouwe (1635); culverin (1681); rifle-barrelled cannon (1730); exhibition in the Spandau Citadel.
Breech-loading wrought iron falconet, 15th-16th century A.D.
^. Archived from the original on 2008-07-24. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
External linksEdit
Picture of a 17th century falconet
October 07, 2023
falconet, cannon, other, uses, falconet, disambiguation, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, falconet, c. For other uses see Falconet disambiguation This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Falconet cannon news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message The falconet was a light cannon developed in the late 15th century that fired a smaller shot than the similar falcon During the Middle Ages guns were decorated with engravings of animals such as reptiles birds or mythical beasts depending on their size For example a culverin would often feature snakes as the handles on the early cannons were often decorated to resemble serpents The falconet fired small yet lethal shot of similar weight and size to a bird of prey and so was decorated with a falcon Similarly the musket was associated with the sparrowhawk 1 Replica falconet aboard the replica tall ship Half MoonIts barrel was approximately 4 feet 1 2 m long had a calibre of 2 inches 5 cm 2 and weighed 180 to 440 pounds 80 to 200 kg The falconet used 0 5 pounds 225 g of black powder to fire a 1 pound 450 g round shot at a maximum range of approximately 5 000 feet 1 500 m 3 4 They could also be used to fire grapeshot The falconet resembled an oversized matchlock musket with two wheels attached to improve mobility 5 In 1620s Germany a breechloading version was invented seeing action in the Thirty Years War 6 Many falconets were in use during the English Civil War 4 as they were lighter and cheaper than the culverins sakers and minions During times of unrest they were used by the nobility to defend their grand houses 7 Though developed for use on land the falconet gained naval prominence during the 17th century for the defense of light vessels for example on small boats for boarding maneuvers Contents 1 Gallery 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksGallery Edit nbsp A barrel of a swivel gun falconete ca 1476 1525 Material Iron Caliber 65 mm nbsp Falconet in the Peasants War Museum Muehlhausen nbsp Wrought iron falconet 17th century nbsp Breech loading falconet in the Navy Museum of Lisbon Portugal Bronze Reign of Sebastian I 1557 1578 Found in 1985 in the shipwreck of Portuguese carrack Santiago on the shallows of Judia Indian Ocean nbsp Bronze falconet Diameter 11 2 cm 4 7 16 in Overall 162 2 cm 63 7 8 in Bore 4 7 cm 1 7 8 in nbsp Falconet 1526 kartouwe 1617 kartouwe 1635 culverin 1681 rifle barrelled cannon 1730 exhibition in the Spandau Citadel nbsp Breech loading wrought iron falconet 15th 16th century A D See also EditLela Southeast Asian equivalent of falconet Culverin History of gunpowderReferences Edit History of the Scots Greys Regimental art com Archived from the original on 2015 04 17 Retrieved 2017 08 09 Falconet Archived from the original on 2008 05 04 Retrieved 2008 08 26 Artillery through the ages Nps gov Archived from the original on 2007 07 05 Retrieved 2017 08 09 a b Littlewoodham Littlewoodham org uk Retrieved 2017 08 09 Photographic image JPG Farm1 static flickr com Retrieved 2017 08 09 1 dead link Stephen Wood Research and Consultancy in Military History Archived from the original on 2008 07 24 Retrieved 2008 08 26 External links EditArtillery through the ages Picture of a 17th century falconet Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Falconet cannon amp oldid 1149942477, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
