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Nock Volley Gun
The Nock gun was a seven-barrelled flintlock smoothbore firearm used by the Royal Navy during the early stages of the Napoleonic Wars. It is a type of volley gun adapted for ship-to-ship fighting, but was limited in its use because of the powerful recoil and eventually discontinued. Its bizarre appearance and operation has led to it being portrayed in modern fictional works, notably in ''The Alamo'' feature film, and the '' Richard Sharpe'' series of novels by Bernard Cornwell. History and design The weapon was invented by British engineer James Wilson in 1779, and named after Henry Nock, the London-based armaments manufacturer contracted to build the gun. The Board of Ordnance rejected it for army use but adopted it for naval use in the role of being fired from the tops of Royal Navy warships. Theoretically, the simultaneous discharge of seven barrels would have devastating effect on the tightly packed groups of enemy sailors. The volley gun consisted of seven barrels welded ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charleston Museum
The Charleston Museum is a museum located in the Wraggborough neighborhood in Charleston, South Carolina. It is one of the oldest museums in the United States. Its highly regarded collection includes historic artifacts, natural history, decorative arts and two historic Charleston houses. It replaces the Old Charleston Museum that burned down due to unknown causes. History The Charleston Museum is among the oldest museums in the United States, other museums in this category include the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts and the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. The Charleston Museum was founded in 1773 and opened to the public in 1824. In 1920, when the museum hired Laura Bragg as its director, she became the first woman to direct a publicly-funded art museum in America.Allen, Louise Anderson. ''A Bluestocking in Charleston: The Life and Career of Laura Bragg''. University of South Carolina Press, 2001. The museum's present building was completed in 198 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Board Of Ordnance
The Board of Ordnance was a British government body. Established in the Tudor period, it had its headquarters in the Tower of London. Its primary responsibilities were 'to act as custodian of the lands, depots and forts required for the defence of the realm and its overseas possessions, and as the supplier of munitions and equipment to both the Army and the Navy'. The Board also maintained and directed the Artillery and Engineer corps, which it founded in the 18th century. By the 19th century, the Board of Ordnance was second in size only to HM Treasury among government departments. The Board lasted until 1855, at which point (tarnished by poor performance in supplying the Army in Crimea) it was disbanded. Origins of the Board The introduction of gunpowder to Europe led to innovations in offensive weapons, such as cannon, and defences, such as fortifications. From the 1320s a member of the Royal Household, the 'Keeper of the Privy Wardrobe in the Tower of London', became increas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jim Bowie
James Bowie ( ) ( – March 6, 1836) was a 19th-century American pioneer, slave smuggler and trader, and soldier who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He was among the Americans who died at the Battle of the Alamo. Stories of him as a fighter and frontiersman, both real and fictitious, have made him a legendary figure in Texas history and a folk hero of American culture. Bowie was born in Kentucky. He spent most of his life in Louisiana, where he was raised and where he later worked as a land speculator. His rise to fame began in 1827 on reports of the Sandbar Fight near present-day Vidalia, Louisiana. What began as a duel between two other men deteriorated into a mêlée in which Bowie, having been shot and stabbed, killed the sheriff of Rapides Parish with a large knife. This, and other stories of Bowie's prowess with a knife, led to the widespread popularity of the Bowie knife. Bowie enlarged his reputation during the Texas Revolution. After moving to Te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Widmark
Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, '' Kiss of Death'' (1947), for which he also won the Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. Early in his career, Widmark was typecast in similar villainous or anti-hero roles in films noir, but he later branched out into more heroic leading and supporting roles in Westerns, mainstream dramas, and horror films among others. For his contributions to the motion picture industry, Widmark has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6800 Hollywood Boulevard. In 2002, he was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Early life Widmark was born December 26, 1914, in Sunrise Township, Minnesota, the son of Ethel Mae ( ''née'' Barr) and Carl Henry Widmark. His father was of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curtius Museum
The Curtius Museum (''Musée Curtius'') is a museum of archaeology and decorative arts, located on the bank of the river Meuse in Liège, Belgium, classified as a ''Major Heritage'' of Wallonia. It was built sometime between 1597 and 1610 as a private mansion for Jean Curtius, industrialist and munitions supplier to the Spanish army. With its alternating layers of red brick and natural stone, and its cross-mullioned windows, the building typifies the regional style known as the Mosan (or Meuse) Renaissance. After a 50 million euro redevelopment, the museum reopened as the Grand Curtius (''Le Grand Curtius'') in March 2009, now housing the merged collections of four former museums: the ''museum of archeology'', the ''museum of weaponry'', the ''museum of decorative arts'', and the ''museum of religious art and Mosan art''. Highlights in the collections include treasures of Mosan art such as a twelfth-century gilded reliquary triptych, formerly in the church of Sainte-Croix, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Thornton (sportsman)
Thomas Thornton (1751/2–1823) was an English sportsman, known for his assiduity in hunting and other outdoor pursuits, and in betting. Early life He was the son of William Thornton of Yorkshire, Member of Parliament for , 1747–54 and 1758–61; his mother Mary was the daughter of John Myster of Epsom. Born in London, he was sent to Charterhouse School, and matriculated at Glasgow University in 1766. He entered Trinity College, Cambridge in 1771. Succeeding to his father's estate, Thornton became a keen sportsman, and revived falconry. He was appointed colonel of his father's old regiment, the 2nd West Yorks Militia, but resigned in 1795. In 1786 he undertook a sporting tour in the Scottish highlands. He chartered the sloop ''Falcon'', and partly by sea and partly by land travelled through the northern and western highlands, dividing his time between hunting, shooting, angling, and hawking. In 1789 Thornton bought Allerton Park from Frederick, Duke of York. He renamed it T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Armouries Museum
The Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, is a national museum which displays the National Collection of Arms and Armour. It is part of the Royal Armouries family of museums, with other sites at the Royal Armouries' traditional home in the Tower of London, and the National Collection of Artillery at Fort Nelson, Hampshire. The Frazier History Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, USA also previously housed a collection of artifacts on loan from the Royal Armouries. The Royal Armouries is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The Royal Armouries Museum is a £42.5 million purpose-built museum located in Leeds Dock that opened in 1996. Its collection was previously on display or in storage at the Tower of London where the Royal Armouries still maintains a presence and displays in the White Tower. As at all UK National Museums, entry is free, though certain extra attractions are charged for. Construction T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Firearms Museum
The NRA National Firearms Museum is a museum located at the NRA Headquarters Building in Fairfax County, Virginia. Approximated 2,500 guns are displayed in 15,000 square feet. The NRA National Firearms Museum is operated by the Museums Division of the National Rifle Association of America (NRA), with partial funding provided by the NRA Foundation, a 501(c)3 corporation. It was established in 1935 at the old NRA Headquarters in Washington DC, and moved to its current location in 1998. The museum's exhibits cover seven centuries of firearms development and history. The main museum galleries are organized chronologically. Exhibits include firearms used for competition shooting, hunting, personal defense, recreational shooting, and police work. Also on display are military arms used by the United States, its allies and enemies in major conflicts from the American Revolution through Desert Storm. Each gallery is evocative of a period of time in American history, including a stockade for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sail
A sail is a tensile structure—which is made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles. Sails may be made from a combination of woven materials—including canvas or polyester cloth, laminated membranes or bonded filaments—usually in a three- or four-sided shape. A sail provides propulsive force via a combination of lift and drag, depending on its angle of attack—its angle with respect to the apparent wind. Apparent wind is the air velocity experienced on the moving craft and is the combined effect of the true wind velocity with the velocity of the sailing craft. Angle of attack is often constrained by the sailing craft's orientation to the wind or point of sail. On points of sail where it is possible to align the leading edge of the sail with the apparent wind, the sail may act as an airfoil, generating propulsive force as air p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rigging
Rigging comprises the system of ropes, cables and chains, which support a sailing ship or sail boat's masts—''standing rigging'', including shrouds and stays—and which adjust the position of the vessel's sails and spars to which they are attached—the ''running rigging'', including halyards, braces, sheets and vangs. Etymology According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition "rigging" derives from Anglo-Saxon ''wrigan'' or ''wringing'', "to clothe". The same source points out that "rigging" a sailing vessel refers to putting all the components in place to allow it to function, including the masts, spars, sails and the rigging. Types of rigging Rigging is divided into two classes, ''standing'', which supports the mast (and bowsprit), and ''running'', which controls the orientation of the sails and their degree of reefing. Configurations differ for each type of rigging, between ''fore-and-aft rigged'' vessels and ''square-rigged'' vessels. Standing Standin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Recoil
Recoil (often called knockback, kickback or simply kick) is the rearward thrust generated when a gun is being discharged. In technical terms, the recoil is a result of conservation of momentum, as according to Newton's third law the force required to accelerate something will evoke an equal but opposite reactional force, which means the forward momentum gained by the projectile and exhaust gases (ejectae) will be mathematically balanced out by an equal and opposite momentum exerted back upon the gun. In hand-held small arms, the recoil momentum will be eventually transferred to the ground, but will do so through the body of the shooter hence resulting in a noticeable impulse commonly referred to as a "kick". In heavier mounted guns, such as heavy machine guns or artillery pieces, recoil momentum is transferred to the Earth's surface through the platform on which the weapon is mounted. In order to bring the rearward moving gun to a halt, the momentum acquired by the gun is di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rifle
A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with both hands and braced firmly against the shooter's shoulder via a buttstock for stability during shooting. Rifles are used extensively in warfare, law enforcement, hunting, shooting sports, and crime. The term was originally ''rifled gun'', with the verb ''rifle'' referring to the early modern machining process of creating groovings with cutting tools. By the 20th century, the weapon had become so common that the modern noun ''rifle'' is now often used for any long-shaped handheld ranged weapon designed for well-aimed discharge activated by a trigger (e.g., personnel halting and stimulation response rifle, which is actually a laser dazzler). Like all typical firearms, a rifle's projectile (bullet) is propelled by the contained def ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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