2 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS OF 
such mantlets not only give no security against cannon shot, but they also, 
as will be shewn below, add in some cases considerably to its destructive 
effects; and until a material can be found which shall combine with manage¬ 
ability the property of stopping small-arm projectiles without breaking up 
itself or breaking the projectile into splinters, when struck by a cannon shot, 
the Committee believe that the use of mantlets for embrasures must be 
confined to exceptional situations. 
3. Hope Mantlets. —These contrivances w T ere brought into notice by 
their employment in the defence of Sebastopol, 1855. The specimens then 
tried weighed from 4 cwt. to 6 cwt., or from 17 lbs. to 27*5 lbs. per square 
foot. The Committee reported on 27th September, 1857, No. 1209, as the 
result of their experiments, that it required five thicknesses of 4*5-inch rope 
to resist a bullet at 50 yards: such a mantlet would be 7*5 inches thick, and 
weighs 27*5 lbs. to the square foot. This report was printed, with the 
sanction of the Secretary of State, in the “ Occasional Papers ” of the Royal 
Artillery Institution, Vol. II. p. 3, with a detail of the experiments; and 
was also circulated extensively in print for the information of naval officers 
and others concerned. 
The Committee have not thought it necessary to enter any further into the 
question. The value and efficiency of rope mantlets is undeniable: their 
cumbrousness is the only obstacle to their more frequent use. The Committee 
have learned from a memo, of the Deputy Inspector General of Fortifications, 
dated 13th October, 1859, that a demand has been made by the Royal 
Artillery at Malta for rope mantlets to be kept in store, and for the means of 
suspension to be applied to the parapets; and they concur in opinion with 
that officer that a pattern should be established, but one shewing the quality 
and mode of manufacture rather than the form, which may vary. 
4. Iron-plate Mantlets. —Experiments at Chatham in 1858 established 
the fact that homogeneous iron 0*25-inch thick will resist rifle bullets at less 
than 50 yds. distance; and since the receipt of Lord Herbert's instructions, 
dated 26th August 1859, the attention of the Committee has been chiefly 
directed to this material, with a view to discovering the minimum thickness 
necessary, and the best quality. In the first instance experiments were made 
with rolled iron plates furnished by Messrs Thorneycroft of Wolverhampton, 
4 ft. by 2 ft. in dimensions, 0*25 in. thick, weight 101b. 14 oz. per square 
foot. One of these resisted rifle bullets fired at 10 yds., but others were 
penetrated at 50 yds.: see Report No. 800. Four plates of the same thick¬ 
ness, but of less dimensions, viz. 2 ft. by 2 ft., fitted with handles for 
convenience of lifting them, and provided with screw or rivet holes, by 
which any number could be combined, were next tried: see the Report above 
quoted. No. 800, 12-5-60. The quality of these plates were not found to 
be uniform; some parts resisted the bullets at 10 yds.; others did not resist, 
and the balls penetrated. 
5. The Committee then obtained permission to try homogeneous iron 
furnished by Messrs Shortridge and Howell of Manchester. Twelve mantlets 
were provided, each 2 ft. by 2 ft., 0*25 in. thick, and weighing 10 lbs. per 
square foot. They were fitted like the last with handles and screw holes. 
