A cannon is a type of heavy artillery weapon. The word cannon is derived from several languages, in which the original definition can usually be translated as tube, cane, or reed.

Since the introduction of gunpowder and cannon, "artillery" has largely meant cannon, and in contemporary usage, usually refers to shell -firing guns, howitzers, and mortars (collectively called barrel artillery, cannon artillery or gun artillery) and rocket artillery.

During the Middle Ages, large and small cannons were developed for siege and field battles. The cannon replaced prior siege weapons such as the trebuchet. After the Middle Ages, most large cannons were abandoned in favor of greater numbers of lighter, more maneuverable field artillery.

2024年12月31日 · Cannon, big gun, howitzer, or mortar, as distinguished from a musket, rifle, or other small arm. Modern cannon are complex mechanisms cast from high-grade steel and machined to exacting tolerances. They characteristically have rifled bores, though some contemporary tank-mounted and field artillery

2016年7月30日 · In the 1840s, there were essentially four different types of artillery and four different classifications. The types were guns, howitzers, mortars, and columbiads. The classifications were seacoast, siege and garrison, field, and mountain.

The cannon used in the Revolution by all armies was the standard smooth-bore muzzle-loading gun which had been little changed in the previous two hundred years and which would serve as the principal artillery weapon of most of the worlds armies for another hundred.

2025年2月9日 · Artillery, in military science, crew-served big guns, howitzers, or mortars having a caliber greater than that of small arms, or infantry weapons. The term is more properly limited to large gun-type weapons using an exploding propellant charge to shoot a projectile along an unpowered trajectory.

Looking at an old-time cannon, most people are sure of just one thing: the shot came out of the front end. For that reason these pages are writ- ten; people are curious about the fascinating weapon that so prodigiously and powerfully lengthened the warrior's arm.

2024年3月29日 · Artillery is a broad category of heavy military weapons designed for long-range firing, while a cannon is a specific type of artillery known for its long barrel and projectile firing capability.

2020年1月28日 · From the old cannons used in the 1700s and 1800s to the modern day howitzers, artillery weapons are designed to launch munitions to ranges far beyond those of military small arms and cause immense devastation.