THE KOYAL AETILLEEY INSTITUTION. &73 
progress of artillery during the last two centuries, the following tables, 
collected from various sources, are appended:— 
Table 
SHOWING- THE VABIATIONS IN THE WEIGHT OF GUNS AT DIFFEBENT PEBIODS . 1 
Period. 
12-pr. 
9-pr. 
CO 
7-pr. 
6-pr. 
4-pr. 
2-pr. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
France. Francis I. 
... 
17*8 
... 
... 
10-7 
/; Henri II. 
... 
... 
22-3 
... 
... 
... 
13-4 
England. Charles I. 
... 
32 
... 
22-3 
(5|-pr.) 
13-3 
6-2 
(2 i-pr.) 
De Yalliere’s system, 1732. 
28-5 
... 
18*7 
... 
10-2 
Gribeauval’s system, 1760. 
16 
... 
10-7 
... 
... 
6-3 
... 
English S.B. (present time). 
18 
13-5 
... 
... 
6 
... 
... 
Armstrong’s system . 
8-6 
6 
... 
3*25 
... 
... 
The chief cause of the enormous weight of the guns in old times was the 
badness of the powder. In order to give the slow-burning powder time to 
be entirely consumed before the shot left the bore, the guns had to be made 
very long and consequently very heavy. 
Table 
SHOWING THE VAEIATIONS IN THE WEIGHT OF GUN CAEEIAGES AT DIFFEBENT PEBIODS. 
Period. 
12-pr. 
9-pr. 
8-pr. 
7-pr. 
6-pr. 
4-pr. 
France. Henri II. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
cwt. 
17 
cwt. 
cwt. 
De Yalliere’s system, 1732. 
15*7 
... 
13-2 
... 
... 
11*5 
English smooth-bores of the present day... 
13 
12 
... 
... 
10-25 
Armstrong’s rifled guns. . 
12 
12 
- 
... 
6 
It must be remembered that the absolute weight of a gun carriage is by 
no means the total measure of its efficiency, but only one of its elements. 
1 It must be borne in mind that formerly guns of the same calibre often differed very consider¬ 
ably in weight; as at present there are 13 kinds of 32-prs. of different weights and dimensions. 
