The Gun and Corsia of Early Modern Mediterranean Galleys: Design issues and rationales

Abstract

An early modern Mediterranean galley carried its main piece of artillery on a wheelless mount inside the raised centreline gangway (the corsia). The gun mount stood on two well-lubricated rails that sloped downwards from fore to aft. In its firing position, the gun was in the bows and when fired recoil propelled it all the way to the mainmast, where it collided with a stout buffer placed there to prevent damage to the mast. After reloading the gun in that position, the crew hauled it back to the bows. Several tons of bronze and wood travelled more than 10 metres back and forth with every shot. Yet instead of breeching ropes to restrain the motion, galleys had lubricated and tilted rails that expedited it. A functional examination of the fire–load–fire cycle and a technical analysis of the recoil mechanism provide the rationale for this apparently peculiar mode of operation and expose the purposes for the lubrication and slope of the rails.

Keywords:

• Mediterranean
• galley
• cannon
• ordnance
• artillery
• early modern
• design

Notes

¹ These were not gun tackles as used on sailing ships because there were no pulley blocks.

² Marteilhe, Memoires, 436.

³ Ibid., 456–7.

⁴ Furttenbach, Architectura Navalis, 56–7.

⁵ Ibid, 44–7.

⁶ Crescentio, Nautica Mediterranea, 30.

⁷ Steffano de Zuane, L'Architectura Navale, 3v.

⁸ Florio, Queen Anna's Dictionarie.

⁹ Sardi, L'Artiglieria, 129; Pantera, L'Armata Navale, 135

¹⁰ ‘. . . va messo dentro la corsia e dentro aggiustata’. Ibid, 129.

¹¹ Gianni Ridella, ‘Genoese Ordnance’, 43.

¹² Morin, ‘Morphology’, 6.

¹³ If 16 kilograms equalled 50 pounds then a pound was 0.32 kilograms, which corresponds approximately to Neapolitan, Genovese and Milanese pounds (0.321 kilograms, 0.317 kilograms and 0.326 kilograms respectively). Venetian pounds were either heavier (the libbra grossa, 0.477 Kg) or lighter (the libbra sottile, 0.301 kilograms), which means that the Venetians used nonVenetian pounds for the nomenclature of guns and cannonballs.

¹⁴ Cataneo, Avvertimenti, 5; Gentilini, Instruttione de bombardieri, 23; Savorgnano, Arte militare, 262; Ruscelli, Precetti della militia moderna, fo. 39 v.

¹⁵ Da Canal: Della Militia Marittima, 66.

¹⁶ Gianni Ridella: ‘Genoese Ordnance’, 43.

¹⁷ Benton, Ordnance and Gunnery, 387; Simpson, Ordnance and Naval Gunnery, 240. Douglas, Treatise on Naval Gunnery, 593.

¹⁸ Savorgnano, Arte Militare, 262.

¹⁹ Marks, Handbook, 3–26; Kent's Handbook, 7–28; Eshbach, Handbook, 4–52.

²⁰ Crescentio, Nautica Mediterranea, 26.

²¹ Sardi, L'Artiglieria, 130.

²² Furttenbach, Architectura Navalis, 44.

²³ Pantera, L'Armata Navale, 135.

²⁴ Furttenbach, Architectura Navalis, 42.

²⁵ Da Canal, Della Militia Marittima, 61.

²⁶ Diedo, La Battaglia di Lepnato, 31; Caetani; Lettere, 53.

²⁷ Pantera, L'Armata navale, 70.

²⁸ Steffano, L'Architectura navale, 3r.

²⁹ Furttenbach, Architectura Navalis, 16.

³⁰ Da Canal, Della Militia Marittima, 61.

³¹ Marteilhe, Memoires, 456–7; 436.

³² Pantera, L'Armata Navale, 86.

³³ Pantera, Armata Navale, 120, 124.

³⁴ Marteilhe, Memoires, 439–40.

³⁵ Drachio, Visione, 9.

³⁶ Crescentio, Nautica Mediterranea, 22; Furttenbach, Architectura Navalis, 41. The sidewalls of the corsia were so thick because, together with the keel and keelson, they provided the longitudinal strength (resistance to bending) of the entire hull.

³⁷ Pantera, Armata Navale, 215–6.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Joseph Eliav

Joseph Eliav pursued a career in research and development, system engineering and technical management, mostly in the aerospace and defence industry. He completed his PhD in Science, Technology and Society at Bar Ilan University in 2012. He has previously published on the Venetian quinquereme and is currently a post doctoral researcher at the Leon Recanati Institute of Maritime Studies, Haifa University.