[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by kronckew

i read an account of the battle of agincourt, and some of the history leading up to it recently. a synopsis follows:

the french were besieging Soissons, an english defended city nominally under the rule of a french faction, the burgundians, that sided with the english, defended by some english archers, and some mercenary gunners. it described them placing a gun in a tower overlooking the french camp.

meanwhile the french were getting off a rapid fire from their siege cannon, a whopping three rounds per day, they had to wait for the wet clay and straw mix wadding to dry before they could fire.

anyhow, the english cannon, described as made from forged and welded bars of iron re-enforced by hoops of iron, was apparently in a fairly rusted and pitted condition, having been stored in the basement without much care. it was 'twice as long as a bow-stave' and 'hooped like an ale pot', resting on a wooden carriage.

they mentioned it was tapered (much like the illustration) because the stone balls were of inconsistent diameter, the taper allowing the ball to get to a place where it fit, assisted by the wadding of soft loam. the gunners loaded the wadding, they waited the requisite time for the wadding to dry out before the stone ball was inserted, and wedged it in place with small wooden wedges to keep the stone ball from falling out if the rear was elevated & to ensure it was held tight against the wadding and powder charge.

the gonne was considered a demon due to it's sulphurous breath on firing, so a priest was brought up to it to bless it with holy water and, to ensure no devilry ensued, he stayed. the senior gunner then primed the cannon with a stripped goose quill filled with powder, fired the cannon with a long taper, it promptly blew up, killing the crew and the priest. the city fell when one of the english lords sold out to the french and opened the gates.

Hi Wayne,

Your great source quote does deserve being cited and repeated here - thank you so much! It's worth reading twice.
I, as Fernando, saved it to my records!

May I add that the Battle of Agincourt took place in the Hundred Years War, on St. Crispin's Day, Friday 25 Oct. 1415, so this source perfectly corresponds to the period artwork of 1411 that I posted.

Best,
Michael