The 12-pounder long gun was an intermediary calibre piece of

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

mounted on warships of the

Age of sail The Age of Sail is a period that lasted at the latest from the mid-16th (or mid- 15th) to the mid- 19th centuries, in which the dominance of sailing ships in global trade and warfare culminated, particularly marked by the introduction of naval ...

. They were used as main guns on the most typical

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

s of the early 18th century, on the second deck of

fourth-rate In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...

ships of the line, and on the upper decks or castles of 80-gun and 120-gun ships of the line. Naval 12-pounders were similar to 12-pound Army guns in the

Gribeauval system The Gribeauval system (French: ''système Gribeauval'') was an artillery system introduced by Lieutenant General Jean Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval during the 18th century. This system revolutionized French cannons, with a new production system ...

: the canon lourd de 12 Gribeauval, used as a

siege weapon A siege engine is a device that is designed to break or circumvent heavy castle doors, thick city walls and other fortifications in siege warfare. Some are immobile, constructed in place to attack enemy fortifications from a distance, while other ...

, and the canon de 12 Gribeauval, which was considered a heavy

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the early 20t ...

piece.

Usage

As the 12-pounder calibre was consistent with both the French and the British calibre systems, it was a widespread gun amongst nations between the 17th and the 19th century. From the late 18th century, the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

used the 12-pounder in three capacities: as main gun on early

s under

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

, on standard frigates under

Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reache ...

and on light frigates under

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

; as secondary artillery on 64-gun ships; to arm the castles of 80-gun ships of the line; and to equip the third deck of early

first-rate In the rating system of the British Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a first rate was the designation for the largest ships of the line. Originating in the Jacobean era with the designation of Ships Royal capable of carrying ...

ships. Under Louis XIV, frigates were organised into "first-rank frigates", which were small two-deckers comparable in role to the 60-gun ships of the 19th century, and smaller "second-rank" frigates. The first-rank frigates carried the 12-pounder as main artillery on their lower deck. Later, under Louis XV, the frigate took its modern shape with a single artillery deck complemented by smaller pieces on the castles; new heavy frigates were developed to carry 26 12-pounders, with as

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

of the series. ''Hermione'' was captured by the British in 1757 and was swiftly imitated. A breakthrough towards fielding heavier guns was made in 1772, when the two units of the were built, with 24-pounders intended, but 18-pounders used in practice, and the 12-pounder remained the standard issue on most units. Under

, the heavier 18-pounder frigate became predominant, with over 130 units produced, but the French Navy still had around 70 lighter 12-pounder frigates in commission. On 64-gun two-deckers, the 12-gun was used as secondary artillery, to supplement the 24-pounder main batteries. 28 guns were carried on the top gun-deck. Larger units used the 12-pounder to complement the firepower provided by their main and secondary artillery. On 80-gun ships of the and , they armed the

forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...

and the

poop deck In naval architecture, a poop deck is a deck that forms the roof of a cabin built in the rear, or " aft", part of the superstructure of a ship. The name originates from the French word for stern, ''la poupe'', from Latin ''puppis''. Thus ...

. On capital ships, the 12-pounder was used on the third deck from the reign of Louis XIV, with units like or as typical examples. While the secondary artillery of these 100-gun ships evolved from 18-pounders to 24-pounders, the 12-pounder remained the standard gun on the third deck until 1803, when the ship ''Impérial'' became the first 120-gun to carry 18-pounders on her third battery. In the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, the 12-pounder was used in a similar capacity. The capture of ''Hermione'' in 1757 encouraged the British to imitate her design, yielding the and frigates. The 12-pounder also equipped the castles on razeed ships, where 12 pieces were mounted, and the 22-gun secondary battery of 50-gun

s. Finally, 30 were installed on the third deck of 90-gun

second-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a second-rate was a ship of the line which by the start of the 18th century mounted 90 to 98 guns on three gun decks; earlier 17th-century second rates had fewer guns ...

Sources and references

* Jean Boudriot et Hubert Berti, ''L'Artillerie de mer : marine française 1650-1850'', Paris, éditions Ancre, 1992 () (notice BNF no FRBNF355550752). * Jean Peter, ''L'artillerie et les fonderies de la marine sous Louis XIV'', Paris, Economica, 1995, 213 p. (). {{DEFAULTSORT:12-pounder long gun Naval guns of France 120 mm artillery