Exploring Kent's Past

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Monument details

Summary

SWIVEL GUN

Monument Types

• WRECK (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Associated Finds

• Gun (Post Medieval - 1540 AD to 1900 AD)

Full description

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"A few days since, one William Lillyford of Ramsgate, in sweeping with his drag gear near the Goodwin Sands, sithed up a most curious piece of antique ordinance. Its length is about 5 feet, calibre is about 2 inches, and intended to receive a pound ball. It is stepped on a swivel, in the modern way, part of the iron stock of which still remains and was traversed by means of an iron bar of a foot and a half in length behind the breeching. At seven inches below the trunnions the piece swells suddenly to almost double the dimensions of the other parts of the chace. This forms a very large chamber to receive the loading. The upper part of the gun which formed this chamber and what is called in gunnery "the field of the touch hole" was divided at nearly the semi-diameter of the piece, was made to take off occasionally and to fasten on again after loading in a very particular manner. A cross bar passed horizontally through a part of this gap, or covering, which must have been solid close to the base ring. The holes in the sides of the piece which received this bar are square. It had another perpendicular fastening consisting of a bar which being fixed to the underside crossed the chamber and passed through another hole in the bottom of the piece, where it was secured by an iron bolt on the outside when the piece was fired. The arms of Portugal are cast near the muzzel ring, and a little lower is an armillary sphere. On another part is a kind of cypher G F R in capitals. No date or other inscription is to be found. Perhaps more might have been known if the cap, being moveable had not been lost. The ironwork is too deeply corroded that it seems to have been at the bottom of the sea for some centuries. A crust of chalk with shells adheres for the conjectures of antiquarians. Some models of this very curious cannon have already been made." (1) The gun was the subject of a paper in Archaeologia (1779). It was found near the Goodwin Sands by fishermen, "sweeping for anchors in what is called the Gull-stream, being part of the road leading into the Downs". The gun is described as a breech loading swivel-gun with brass barrel, iron handle and swivel and Portugese in origin. A shield containing a cypher of three letters FCR, is interpreted as the initials of Ferdinand, the son of Peter the Cruel, who came to the crown in the year 1368. The cypher is thought to stand for "Ferdinandus Castellae Rex". Detailed measurements and illustrations of the gun are given together with illustrations of the arms, armillary sphere and cypher. (2) A gun similar to this one in a number of respects but larger is held in the collection of the Armouries of the Tower of London. It bears at the muzzle end the arms of Portugal and an armillary sphere, the badge of King Manuel 1, 1495-1521. It is noted in the Catalogue that the gun found on the Goodwin Sands in 1775, "had the same Portugese arms and armillary sphere on the chase with, in addition, the initials CFR (?)." However, the armillary sphere shown in the Catalogue and that depicted in Archaeologia are not of the same design. (3)

<1> Kentish Gazette, 15-APR-1775 to 19-APR-1775, Page Nos. N/a (Bibliographic reference). SKE6364.

<2> Society of Antiquaries of London, Archaeologia: or miscellaneous tracts relating to antiquity Vol 1 (1749)-, VOL V, 1779, Page Nos. 145-59 (Bibliographic reference). SKE6332.

<3> H L Blackmore, 1976, The armouries of the Tower of London, I : Ordnance, Page Nos. 139-140 (Bibliographic reference). SKE6349.

Sources and further reading