A linstock (also called a lintstock) is a staff with a fork at one end to hold a lighted slow match. The name was adapted from the Dutch ''lontstok'', "match stick". Linstocks were used for discharging cannons in the early days 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 sieg ...

; the linstock allowed the gunner to stand farther from the cannon as it was dangerous applying the lighted match to the touch hole at the breech of the gun: not only could the charge flash back, but the recoil of the cannon might send the carriage toward the gunner.

Design

Linstocks had serpentine jaws to grip the slow match and a sharp point at the base to stick in the ground. In emergencies gunners could use the spear blade as a weapon to defend the cannon. Like much early modern military equipment the linstock could have an additional function; 16th century examples had measurements in inches and a protractor engraved on the blade to allow the gun captain to check the angle.

Obsolescence

By the 18th century artillery pieces were being fitted with flintlock firing devices (known as gunlocks), rendering the linstock obsolete though the linstock remained in service in many places where the older form of ignition was used, including America during the

War of Independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which resi ...

and parts of Europe during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It ...

and

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...

gun crews were issued linstocks, which were used when the

flintlock Flintlock is a general term for any firearm that uses a flint-striking ignition mechanism, the first of which appeared in Western Europe in the early 16th century. The term may also apply to a particular form of the mechanism itself, also known ...

and

percussion cap The percussion cap or percussion primer, introduced in the early 1820s, is a type of single-use percussion ignition device for muzzle loader firearm locks enabling them to fire reliably in any weather condition. This crucial invention gave rise ...

-ignited primers failed.

References

{{reflist, 2 Artillery ammunition Artillery components 18th-century weapons American Civil War artillery Articles containing video clips