Pot-de-fer (1326)-
These cannons were made from iron it’s the first metal cannon. Used in the Hundred Years War in France in a raid on Southampton. They were also used in battles Cambrai, and Quesnoy. In french the name means "iron pot”. They were sometimes made with cast bronze. It was basically an iron bottle with a narrow neck. Its ammunition was powder and an iron arrow-like bolt that had iron on it. The middle of the bolt was probably wrapped in leather for a good fit, necessary to enhance the force from the pressure which was a gas that was in the cannon. The cannon were set off through a small-diameter hole, a hot red wire was inserted to set off an explosion and that is what fired the cannon. A bolt, called a garrot, showed from the muzzle. They might have been used against the Scottish by the English. An early French reference to these cannon was pot de fer a traire garros meaning an iron jug for throwing arrows.
January 3,2011
2:25
I love your information and the picture is really cool. I haven't seen anyone with a painting as their picture yet.
ReplyDeleteI like the picture and the information but I would go back and check the grammar/spelling
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