The Grose Bochse (old

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

for ''Große Büchse'', "Big Gun") was a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

large-calibre cannon of the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

. It was cast from June to September 1408 in several pieces and was presumably assembled by a

screw A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...

or plug connection. The cannon was even bigger than the slightly later finished

Faule Grete The Faule Grete ( German for ''Lazy Grete'', alluding to the lack of mobility and slow rate of fire of such super-sized cannon) was a medieval large-calibre cannon of the Teutonic Order. The bronze bombard was cast in 1409 in the cannon foundry ...

and may have reached the dimensions of the largest known

bombard __NOTOC__ Bombard may refer to the act of carrying out a bombardment. It may also refer to: Individuals *Alain Bombard (1924–2005), French biologist, physician and politician; known for crossing the Atlantic on a small boat with no water or food ...

by caliber, the

Pumhart von Steyr The Pumhart von Steyr is a medieval large-calibre cannon from Styria, Austria, and the largest known wrought-iron bombard by caliber. It weighs around 8 tons and has a length of more than 2.5 meters. It was produced in the early 15th century an ...

. Further known large-calibre weapons of the 15th century are the equally cast-bronze

Faule Mette The Faule Mette (German for ''Lazy Mette'', alluding to the gun's rare deployment, difficult mobility, and limited loading and fire rate) or Faule Metze was a medieval large-calibre cannon of the city of Brunswick, Germany. Cast by the gunfound ...

and the wrought-iron

Dulle Griet The Dulle Griet ("Mad Meg", named after the Flemish folklore figure Dull Gret) is a medieval large-calibre gun founded in Gent (Ghent). History Three cannons were founded: one resides now in Edinburgh and is called "Mons Meg", and the last ...

and

Mons Meg Mons Meg is a medieval bombard in the collection of the Royal Armouries, on loan to Historic Scotland and located at Edinburgh Castle in Scotland. It has a barrel diameter of making it one of the largest cannons in the world by calibre. ...

Footnotes

References

* {{Artillery of the Middle Ages Large-calibre artillery Military history of the Teutonic Order Individual cannons