Congreve not Congrieve. British smooth bore cannon, also sold to other nations, used by France and Holland.
View attachment 1929832
View attachment 1929833
Congreve, Guns (32-, 24-,18- and 6- pounders)
References have been found beginning late in 1778 and continuing in 1780 to Capt. Congreve's light 6-pounder or to 6-pounders "of the new Construction," all 4-1/2 feet in length and weighing more than 5 hundredweight.
?The relatively smooth lines of the carronade also had an influence on external gun design, especially on the Congreve gun?.
Congreve 24 pounders,
Not only was Congreve's gun lighter and shorter than usual, but it was also
constructed on a new principle; it appeared to be a hybrid of a gun and a carronade. It
was much more conical in shape than a conventional gun, since Congreve had
increased the weight of metal at the breech and around the charging cylinder while
he had reduced it in the chase. This redistribution of metal, he argued, gave the gun
a greater "reacting power," that is, it threw the shot farther than would a
conventionally constructed 24-pounder of the same weight. He had arrived at this
conclusion seemingly more by intuition than by any scientific principles, although he
did cite "the generally received fact of the increased effect in reacting upon, and
propelling the charge produced by the thickened breech in fowling pieces and small
arms; which I conceive must apply with equal force to ordnance."
Since this increase of weight toward the breech moved the centre of gravity
farther back, it was possible to cast the trunnions farther to the rear as well. This
allowed the muzzle to project beyond the port of a ship a greater distance than that
of a conventional 24-pounder of 8 feet and within 9 inches of the muzzle face of the
gun of 9-1/2 feet. The shape of the muzzle was similar to that of a carronade which
allowed it to have more traverse without "wooding" against the side of the port.
Also, Congreve got rid of the old breeching loop; in his gun the breeching passed
through the centre of the neck of the cascable "to equalize the shock of the recoil,
and to obviate the blow upon the coin created by the old construction." He also
designed a dispart sight cast on the ring in front of the trunnions which allowed the
gun to be fired at three elevations, point blank, 2-1/2, and 5 degrees.
Congreve's arguments to Hope convinced the Lords Commissioners of the
Admiralty to request the Board of Ordnance to put his theory to the test.
Consequently, on 17 February 1813, the Board placed an order with the Carron
Company for two sets of 24-pounders constructed on Congreve's principle, one set to
be cast with trunnions, the other with a loop like a carronade, They were to be
tested against the standard 24-pounder of 9-1/2 feet and 50 hundredweight and two
new guns, designed by Blomefield on the old construction, of 7-1/2 and 8 feet and 40
and 43 hundredweight respectively. Sometime between 15 and 22 November 1813 the
Board of Ordnance conducted trials of the four guns on Sutton Heath; also, early in
October 1813, Congreve's gun had been tested aboard H.M.S. Eurotas. In February
1814, a lighter version of the gun of 7-1/2 feet weighing 37 hundredweight was
successfully tested aboard H.M.S. Pactolus, The results were so favourable that 300
more Congreve 24-pounders were ordered to be cast. In 1820, Congreve noted that
700 of his guns had been manufactured, some with trunnions in the axis of the piece,
some with trunnions in the lower half of the barrel as usual, and some with loops like
a carronade.95 According to Mould in 1825, these guns were assigned to the "Upper
Deck of first rates, quarter deck and Forecastle of 2nd. rates.
