RML 9-inch Armstrong Gun

RML 9-inch Armstrong Gun
Big model of gun turret on HNLMS Prins Hendrik, showing RML 9-inch Armstrong Gun.
Type	Naval gun Coast defence gun
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1867
Used by	Royal Netherlands Navy Spanish Navy (Armada Española)
Production history
Manufacturer	Elswick Ordnance Company
Specifications
Mass	12,300 kg^[1]
Length	3.962 m^[2]

Calibre	9-inch (229 mm)
Muzzle velocity	0 feet per second (0 m/s)

The RML 9-inch Armstrong Gun was a rifled muzzle loading gun, used in substantial numbers by the Dutch navy, the Spanish Navy, and other navies. It should not be confused with the RML 9-inch 12-ton gun, used in the British Royal Navy.

Context

The rifled breechloader

The United Kingdom would adhere to smooth bore guns for a rather long time. In 1850 it held trials with existing foreign rifled breechloading guns designed by Wahrendorff and Cavalli. The outcome was that the government thought that the practical advantage of using these on board ships was limited.^[3] Therefore, the United Kingdom primarily adhered to grenade guns and 68 and 32-pounder smooth bore guns. When France started to rifle and reinforce her old cannon, Britain ordered a similar conversion of 300 of its old cannon. This conversion totally failed during the first trials.^[4]

The Armstrong gun

Meanwhile William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong, inventor and owner of a large machine factory, had developed another rifled breechloading gun (RBL), the Armstrong gun. In January 1859 a very successful trial of his 18-pounder version took place. Armstrong then became engineer of rifled ordnance, a new post with a very high salary.^[5] The Armstrong guns would be produced at the Royal Works at Woolwich as well as at the new Elswick Ordnance Company founded in Newcastle on 1 January 1859. The latter was founded with government support.^[6] It was to guarantee the separation of Armstrong's interests as a civil servant and his interests as a machine builder.

For the navy, the Armstrong breechloaders came in 40-pounder, 70-pounder and 110-pounder caliber. In combat and trials, the guns up to and including 40-pounder (4.75 inch) caliber, proved to be very successful after some modifications had been made.^[7] In the 1863 Bombardment of Kagoshima the eight 110-pounder (7 inch) guns involved were also very successful. They were a bit liable to disturbances,^[8] but the problem with the wedge breech was solved to satisfaction.^[9]

In 1864 a comparative test of three types of 70-pounder guns took place. In this test, the Armstrong breechloader could not stand up against newer Rifled Muzzle Loaders (RML) designed by himself and Whitworth. The system of rifling employed in the breechloaders was deemed inferior to the system used in newer muzzle loaders, and was more expensive.^[9] A more fundamental problem was that the breechloading mechanism could not withstand the explosive force required to give heavy projectiles the speed needed to pierce armor. Armstrong would indeed withdraw his breechloader from the competition when it came to armor penetration tests.^[10]

The Woolwich gun

The Royal Navy next returned to muzzle-loading rifled guns. These became known as Woolwich guns. Armstrong had improved the Royal Artillery works at Woolwich to produce his breechloaders, but left office in 1863. The Woolwich Works then started to manufacture RML guns. These used Armstrong's method of manufacturing the gun barrel, and the first attempts to produce a RML also used his shunt principle for rifling. This is why one could carelessly refer to these guns as Armstrong guns, but they were not manufactured by Armstrong's company, which would then be known as Elswick Ordnance Company, part of Armstrong's. In 1865 Woolwich introduced RML's of 7, 8 and 9-inch.^[11] These used a new rifling system called the Woolwich system,^[12] and the guns were thus named Woolwich guns.

The Armstrong RML

While the Royal Navy made its own guns at Woolwich, Armstrong's Elswick Ordnance Company in Newcastle was merged back into the Armstrong company. Elswick also continued to produce heavy guns, but now only for export. One of these was a 9-inch RML, referred to by the Dutch and others as a 23 cm Armstrong gun. Therefore, the Dutch and others referred to an Armstrong gun, meaning that it was manufactured by Armstrong at Elswick. The British could not afford to refer to the gun by the manufacturer's name without using the qualifier 'Muzzle Loading', because in England, an 'Armstrong gun' referred to the Armstrong gun, which denotes a type of gun, not the manufacturer of the gun.

Characteristics

The general characteristics of the 23 cm Armstrong RML, like length and caliber were the same as those of the 9-inch Woolwich gun.

Number of coils

A marked difference between the Armstrong gun and the Woolwich guns was in the number of coils. The Armstrong method of producing the gun, consisted of making a steel barrel, and reinforcing it with wrought iron coils, so it would not burst from the explosive force inside. Of course the area nearest to the explosion needed most reinforcement, and the area near the mouth of the gun the least.

The Armstrong gun retained the original larger number of smaller coils,^[13] which was more expensive to make. On pictures these coils show as humps as the gun gets smaller while it protrudes to the front. See the picture of a 23 cm Armstrong RML on HNLMS Ever. Cf. the picture of the four principal models (marks) of the 9-inch Woolwich gun. Mark I of the Woolwich gun has one coil less than the Armstrong gun. Later models have even less coils, with the number of humps decreasing as the marks get simpler.

Models

In the Dutch Navy, the first four guns differed from later models. These first guns had steel barrels which were 'open' at the rear. These were closed by a separate steel closing piece with a copper backing sheet, which was pressed on to the rear by the large screw breech. All later Dutch models had a steel barrels out of one piece.^[14]

Usage

Dutch Navy

HNLMS Prins Hendrik der Nederlanden was the first significant armored ship of the Dutch Navy, and received the first four guns. There is a huge number of references to the ship having Armstrong guns. The reference that says it had guns "made in Newcastle", shows that these refer to the RML 9-inch Armstrong Gun.^[15] Four smaller ironclads and 10 monitors would also get twin 9-inch Armstrong guns in a single tower. 14 gunboats of the Ever class would get single 9-inch Armstrong guns. The first two of these boats were built by Armstrong Whitworth.

Spanish Navy

In Spain the ironclad Méndez Núñez would get four 9-inch Armstrong guns in a central battery, as did the central battery ironclad Zaragoza. The central battery ironclad Sagunto would get 8. The broadside ironclad Vitoria also got 8.^[16]

Ammunition

Dutch ammunition

The Dutch used three kinds of pointed grenades with the 9 inch Armstrong gun. A normal iron grenade of 68 cm and 105 kg, a hardened grenade of 52 cm and 112 kg, and a steel grenade of 51 cm and 109 kg.^[17] There was also a massive 'pointed bullet' (puntkogel) of 46 cm (sic!) long and 113 kg, which was of course also shaped like a cylinder.^[18] Finally, there were three kinds of shrapnel shot of 68.50 kg.^[19]

Notes

^ Haakman 1872, p. part II, page 21.
^ Haakman 1872, p. part II, page20.
^ Douglas 1851, p. 251.
^ Swart 1869, p. 2nd part 173.
^ Heald 2011, p. 75.
^ Heald 2011, p. 77.
^ Armstrong & Whitworth Committee 1866, p. 17.
^ Armstrong & Whitworth Committee 1866, p. 16.
^ ^a ^b Armstrong & Whitworth Committee 1866, p. 111.
^ Armstrong & Whitworth Committee 1866, p. 87.
^ Owen 1877, p. 92.
^ Owen 1877, p. 91.
^ Brassey 1882, p. 45.
^ Haakman 1872, p. 69.
^ "Rotterdam, 24 Mei". N.R.C. 25 May 1867.
^ Brassey 1888, p. 392.
^ Haakman 1872, p. 118.
^ Haakman 1872, p. 112.
^ Haakman 1872, p. 123.

References

Armstrong & Whitworth Committee (1866), The Report of the Armstrong & Whitworth Committee, Joseph Thomson & Son, Manchester
Brassey, Thomas (1882), The British Navy: Its Strength, Resources, and Administration, vol. II, Longmans, Green and Co.
Brassey, Thomas (1888). The Naval Annual 1887. Portsmouth, England: J. Griffin. OCLC 669097244.
Douglas, Howard (1851), A Treatise on Naval Gunnery, John Murray, London
Haakman, J.H. (1872), Handboek over de zee-artillerie voor konstabels en matrozen-kanonniers (in Dutch), J.C. de Buisonjé, Nieuwediep
Heald, Henrietta (2011), William Armstrong: Magician of the North, McNidder and Grace Limited, ISBN 9780857160355
Owen, J.F. (1877), Treatise on the Construction and Manufacture of Ordnance in the British Service, Clowes and Sons
Swart, Jacob (1869), "VII Iets over het tegenwoordige zware Geschut", Verhandelingen en Berigten Betrekkelijk Het Zeewezen (in Dutch), XXVIII, Wed. G. Hulst van Keulen

v t e British Empire naval weapons of the Victorian era
Smoothbore muzzle-loading cannons	18-pounder 24-pounder 32-pounder 55 cwt 32-pounder gun 68-pounder Somerset cannon
Smoothbore muzzle-loading shell guns	8-inch 10-inch 86 cwt
Mortars	10-inch Blomefield 13-inch Blomefield
Howitzers	12-pounder Millar 24-pounder Millar
Rifled breechloaders (Armstrong)	RBL 9 pounder RBL 20-pounder RBL 40-pounder RBL 7-inch 110-pounder
Rifled muzzle-loaders (Lancaster)	68-pounder Lancaster gun
Rifled muzzle-loaders (converted)	RML 64-pounder 71 cwt
Rifled muzzle-loaders (Woolwich)	RML 9-pounder 8 cwt RML 64-pounder 64 cwt RML 7-inch RML 8-inch RML 9-inch RML 10-inch RML 11-inch RML 12-inch 25-ton RML 12-inch 35-ton RML 12.5-inch RML 16-inch
Breech-loaders (new pattern)	BL 4-inch BL 5-inch BL 6-inch 80-pounder BL 6-inch Mk II – VI BL 8-inch BL 9.2-inch Mk I – VII BL 9.2-inch Mk VIII BL 10-inch BL 12-inch Mk I – VII BL 12-inch Mk VIII BL 13.5-inch BL 16.25-inch
Quick-firing guns	QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss QF 6-pounder Nordenfelt QF 12-pounder 12 cwt Mk I QF 4-inch QF 4.7-inch QF 6-inch
Light weapons	Gatling gun Gardner gun Nordenfelt gun 1-inch Nordenfelt gun
Torpedoes	Whitehead torpedo

British Empire small arms & ordnance of the Victorian era

Sidearms

Muskets and rifles

Artillery

Field Artillery	SBML 9 pounder 13 cwt RBL 9 pounder RBL 12-pounder RBL 20-pounder RML 9-pounder 8 cwt RML 13-pounder 8 cwt RML 16-pounder 12 cwt BL 12-pounder 7 cwt BL 12-pounder 6 cwt QF 12-pounder 8 cwt BL 15-pounder QF 1-pounder pom-pom
Mountain artillery	RML 7-pounder Mountain Gun RML 2.5-inch Mountain Gun
Howitzers, medium, and heavy artillery	RML 6.3-inch howitzer RML 6.6-inch howitzer BL 5-inch howitzer BL 5.4-inch howitzer
Siege & garrison artillery	4.1-inch 'Long Cecil' SBBL 32-pounder SBML 24-pounder SBML 8-inch 65 cwt RBL 40-pounder RBL 7-inch RML 25-pounder 18 cwt RML 40-pounder gun RML 64-pounder 64 cwt gun RML 64-pounder 58 cwt RML 64-pounder 71 cwt gun RML 80-pounder RML 6.6-inch gun RML 8-inch howitzer BL 5-inch gun Mk I – V BL 6-inch 30 cwt howitzer BL 9.45-inch howitzer
Coastal artillery	QF 3-pounder Nordenfelt QF 4.7-inch BL 6-inch Mk III, IV, VI BL 6-inch Mk V RBL 7-inch RML 7-inch RML 8-inch BL 8-inch Mk VII RML 9-inch BL 9.2-inch Mk IV & VI BL 10-inch Mk I BL 12-inch Mk I, VI, VII RML 12.5-inch RML 16-inch RML 17.72-inch

Mortars

13-inch 36 cwt mortar
10-inch 18 cwt mortar
8-inch 9 cwt mortar

War rockets

Congreve 6-pounder
Congreve 12-pounder
Congreve 24-pounder
Boxer
Hales 9-pounder
Hales 24-pounder

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This page was last edited on 6 April 2024, at 15:13

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