Naval Gunnery

A Description and History of the

Fighting Equipment of a

Man-of-War


by
 

Captain H. Garbett, R. N.

This is the 1897 First Edition


 

Front cover and spine

Further images of this book are shown below

 
 
Publisher and place of publication   Dimensions in inches (to the nearest quarter-inch)
London: George Bell and Sons   4¾ inches wide x 7¼ inches tall
     
Edition   Length
1897 First Edition   [xiv] + 360 pages
     
Condition of covers    Internal condition
Original  blind-stamped blue cloth gilt. The covers are rubbed and scuffed with some light surface scratching and a few minor marks on the rear cover. The spine has darkened noticeably with age and is fairly dull. The spine ends and corners are bumped and frayed. There are some indentations along the edges of the boards and a marked forward spine lean.   The end-papers are foxed, browned and discoloured and the bottom corner of the rear end-paper has been torn off (please see the final image below). There is widespread, and occasionally heavy, foxing (particularly heavy in the margins0 and some pages also have grubby marks. There is separation between the inner gatherings with the netting occasionally visible (for example, at page 240, below). The edge of the text block is grubby, dust-stained and heavily foxed with the foxing extending into the margins.
     
Dust-jacket present?   Other comments
No   The spine has darkened though the covers are reasonably bright, with a spine lean and the contents slightly shaken, leaving the main defect the widespread, and occasionally heavy, foxing. Still a fairly presentable example of the First Edition.
     
Illustrations, maps, etc   Contents
Please see below for details. Note that there is one full-page illustration ("6-inch Gun on Vavasseur Broadside Mounting" facing page 142 and shown below) which is not mentioned in the Table of Contents.
 		   Please see below for details
     
Post & shipping information   Payment options
The packed weight is approximately 900 grams.


Full shipping/postage information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing.

   Payment options :
  • UK buyers: cheque (in GBP), debit card, credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal
  • International buyers: credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal

Full payment information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing. 




Naval Gunnery

Contents

 

I. Naval gunnery up to the period of the Russian War
II. The first introduction of rifled guns — the Armstrong breech-loading and other systems
III. The adoption of muzzle-loading rifled guns, their construction, rifling, mounting, etc.
IV. General remarks on breech-loading rifled guns, from their re-introduction in 1879
V. Remarks on the construction of breech-loading guns (continued)
VI. The different natures of breech-loading guns in the Navy, their characteristics, etc
VII. Naval gun-mountings of the present day
VIII. Quick-firing guns
IX. Quick-firing guns (continued)
X. Magazines, shell-rooms, ammunition supply to guns, and loading arrangements
XI. Sights, the director, firing arrangements, and conning tower
XII. Powder and cordite
XIII. Projectiles
XIV. Fuzes
XV. The development of the modern battleship
XVI. The fighting organization of a battleship, and the men who fight the guns
XVII. Concluding remarks


LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.


PLATES.


1. H.M.S. Majestic. Flag-ship of Channel Squadron Frontispiece
2. H.M.S. Victoria firing one of her 111-ton Guns, from an instantaneous photograph
3. Quarter-deck of H.M.S. Royal Sovereign, showing 67 -ton Guns in after Barbette
4. H.M.S. Benbow, showing 111-ton Gun in after Barbette
5. Quarter-deck of H. M. S. Royal Sovereign, looking forward, showing after Barbette and Lower Fighting Top
6. 6-Pounder Quick-firing Gun. No. 1 Laying the Gun
7. 6-inch Quick-firing Gun on Upper Deck Mounting, secured inboard
8. 6-inch Quick-firing Gun on Upper Deck Mounting, Breech Open
9. Company of Bluejackets at Cutlass Drill. "Point"
10. Battalion Drill. Forming Square
11. Field-Gun Drill
12. Cutlass Drill on Quarter-deck of Royal Sovereign. "Slope Swords ''

 


ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT.
 

1. Gun recovered from Wreck of the Mary Rose ; temp. Henry VIII
2. Petrieroe a Braga and the Moscolo
3. 32-Pounder Carronade
4. Hidden's Gun -Lock
5. Brass Tangent Sight
6. 32-Pounder Gun, Working with Reduced Crew of Nine Men. "Elevate"
7. Marked Quoin and Bed
8. 32-Pounder Gun's Crew, Close Up
9. 32-Pounder Gun's Crew. Extreme Train " Right "
10. 32-Pounder Gun's Crew. Extreme Train "Left"
11. 40-Pounder Armstrong Gun
12. Polygroove Rifling of Early Armstrong Guns
13. Vent-Piece
14. 40-Pounder Breech-Screw, Tappet Ring, and Levers
15. Armstrong Barrel-Headed Sights
16. The Shunt Groove
17. The Plain Groove
18. 64-Pounder Gun. Earliest Pattern
19. 64-Pounder Gun. Latest Pattern
20. The Woolwich Groove
21. Maitland Muzzle-loading Groove
22. Section of 80-ton Gun, showing Method of Building Up
23. Breech-piece in Coil and ready for shrinking
24. Trunnion Ring
25. Trunnion Ring and Jacket
26. The Cascable
27. 100-Pounder Smooth-Bore Gun, Mounted on Wooden Carriage and Slide
28. Wooden Slide for Heavy Guns
29. Compressor
30. Iron Carriage and Slide for 7-inch and 9-inch Guns
31. Upper Face of Slide
32. Cross Section of Carriage, showing Elswick Plate Compressor
33. Iron Carnage for 7-inch Gun
34. 18-ton Gun on Scott Broadside Mounting
35. The Bow Compressor, Invented hy Rear- Admiral Scott
36. 25-ton Muzzle-loading Gun, as Mounted in Turret of H.M.S. Glatton
37. The " Cup " Obturator 86
38. The De Bange Pad and Obturator
39. Breech Jacket and Screw
40. 9.2-inch 22-ton Gun
41. The 16-5-inch 111-ton Gun
42. 6-inch Hand-worked Breech Mechanism. Woolwich Design
43. 9-2-inch and 10-inch Hand- worked Breech Mechanism. Woolwich Design
44. Hydraulic Breech Mechanism for 67-ton Guns. End View
45. Hydraulic Breech Mechanism for 67-ton Guns, Section
46. 6-inch Breech-loading Gun on Vavasseur C. P. Mounting
47. Live Roller Ring
48. Turret of H.M.S. Thunderer, showing Mounting of 10-inch Breech-loading Gun
49. Hydraulic Mounting for Turret Gun, showing Recoil and Elevating Presses
50. Maxim Gun on Naval Mounting
51. Maxim Gun
52. Breech Mechanism pf Hotchkiss 3-Pounder Quick-firing Gun
53. 6-Pounder Quick-firing Gun on Elswick Automatic Recoil Mounting
54. 6-inch Elswick Quick-firing Gun, Breech open, ready for Loading
65. Section of 6-inch Quick-firing Wire Gun
56. Electrical and Percussion Firing Gear for Quick-firing Guns
57. 4.7 -inch Quick-firing Gun
58. 6-inch Quick-firing Gun on Centre Pivot Pedestal Mountings
59. Elswick New Breech Mechanism for Quick-firing Ordnance
60. Cylindrical Cartridge Case
61. " A " Cartridge Case
62. Hydraulic Rammer
63. H Speed Sight
64. Fore Sight
65. Side View of Fore Sight
66. " Grenfell " Night Sight
67. Ibid
68. Powders and Cordite
69. Chain and Bar Shot
70. Caffin's Grape Shot
71. Boxer Shrapnel. First Pattern
72. Diaphragm Shrapnel Shell
73. Carcase
74. Ground Light Ball
75. Parachute Light Ball
76. Armstrong 12-pounder Case Shot
77. Armstrong Segment Shell
78. Illustrating Studs for Increasing Twist of Rifling
79. Common Shell, Studless, 10-inch K. M. L.
80. Shrapnel Shell, Studless, 10-inch K. M. L.
81. Palliser Shot, B. L., 12-inch Section
82. Case Shot, B. L., 13-5-inch Section
83. Shrapnel Shell, B. L., 5-inch Section
84. Cartridge, Nordenfelt Quick-firing 6-Pounder
85. Cartridge, S. A. Ball, Martini-Henry
86. Cartridge, S. A. Ball, Magazine Rifle, Cordite
87. 24-Pounder War Rocket
88. Large Mortar Time Fuze
89. 15-Second Wood Time Fuze
90. 15-Second Wood Time Fuze  with Detonator Section
91. Armstrong E. Time Fuze
92. Sensitive Time Fuze, " Middle "
93. Moorsom Percussion Fuze. Section
94. Pettman's G. S. Percussion Fuze
95. R. L. Percussion Fuze
96. Fuze, Direct Action
97. Fuze, Percussion, Small
98. Hotchkiss Base Percussion Fuze
99. Nordenfelt Percussion Base Fuze
100. Armstrong Base Fuze
101. (Medium) Armstrong Time and Concussion Fuze
102. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of H.M.S. Bellerophon
103. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of H.M.S. Alexandra
104. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of H.M.S. Devastation
105. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of H.M.S. Colossus
106. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of " Admiral " class
107. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of H.M.S. Nile and Trafalgar
108. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of Royal Sovereign class
109. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of Majestic class
110. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of French battleships Amiral-Baudin and Formidable
111. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of French battleships of Neptune class
112. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of French battleships of Bouvet class
113. Profile and Deck Plans, showing Disposition of Armour and Guns, of French battleships of Charlemagne class



Naval Gunnery

Preface

 

This work has been written, not for experts, but to give the general public some information on the all-important subject of the armament of our ships of war, which they may not be in a position to obtain conveniently for themselves. There is much that is not original in the book', as it is, from its very nature, a compilation in the main from the standard works and text-books on gunnery, which are not as a rule available for use by the man in the street. My aim has been, therefore, to trace the history of naval gunnery from the date when guns are first mentioned as having been used on board ships down to our own time, and to put into a readable form enough of the heavy matter contained in the standard text-book to give non-professional readers a fair insight into the causes which have brought us from the smooth-bore muzzle-loading 68-pounder, the heaviest gun in existence at the time of the Russian War, to the breech-loading 111-ton guns of the Sans Pareil and Benhow, and from the smooth-bore 32-pounder of the same period to the 6-inch quick-firing gun of to-day; and also to give some idea of how the guns on board men-of-war are now constructed, mounted and worked, and how complex but formidable a fighting machine' is the battleship of the present day, when compared to the wooden ships of the line and frigates of only thirty years ago. Great as have been the changes and improvements in everything connected with naval gunnery during the last thirty years, there is as yet no appearance , of finality; every new ship sees some improvement effected in the mounting or method of working her guns such as the substitution of electrical for hydraulic power in some of our newest ships, so that it is impossible that any book on gunnery can be quite up to date ; I have, however, added as far as possible the accounts of improvements, gathered from the reports of the gun trials of our latest ships, which have appeared in the columns of the “Times” and other sources.

I am greatly indebted to Commander E. Lloyd, R.N., and Mr. Hadcock, for their kind permission to reproduce any plates I wished from their work on “ Artillery, its Progress, and Present Position,” and to avail myself of Information contained in that book; much of the details in regard to the hydraulic and Vavasseur mountings and quick-firing guns have been compiled from that valuable work. My thanks are due also to the Inspector-General of Ordnance for permission to reproduce from the Service Text-books, also to the Maxim and Hotchkiss Companies for the same permission, while I have received much valuable assistance from Captain H. Grenfell, R.H., Commander A. E. A. Grant, R.N., Captain Prinsep, R. A., and Lieutenant P. N. Wright, R.N. The profiles and deck plans of ships in the chapter on “ Battleships ” have been reproduced from the “ Marine Almanach,” permission to do so having been most courteously accorded me by the Austrian Imperial Hydrographical Department at Pola.


The Author.
 



Please note: to avoid opening the book out, with the risk of damaging the spine, some of the pages were slightly raised on the inner edge when being scanned, which has resulted in some blurring to the text and a shadow on the inside edge of the final images. Colour reproduction is shown as accurately as possible but please be aware that some colours are difficult to scan and may result in a slight variation from the colour shown below to the actual colour.

In line with eBay guidelines on picture sizes, some of the illustrations may be shown enlarged for greater detail and clarity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The end-papers are foxed, browned and discoloured and the bottom corner of the rear end-paper has been torn off :



U.K. buyers:

To estimate the “packed weight” each book is first weighed and then an additional amount of 150 grams is added to allow for the packaging material (all books are securely wrapped and posted in a cardboard book-mailer). The weight of the book and packaging is then rounded up to the nearest hundred grams to arrive at the postage figure. I make no charge for packaging materials and do not seek to profit from postage and packaging. Postage can be combined for multiple purchases.

 

Packed weight of this item : approximately 900 grams

 

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International buyers:

To estimate the “packed weight” each book is first weighed and then an additional amount of 150 grams is added to allow for the packaging material (all books are securely wrapped and posted in a cardboard book-mailer). The weight of the book and packaging is then rounded up to the nearest hundred grams to arrive at the shipping figure. I make no charge for packaging materials and do not seek to profit from shipping and handling.

Shipping can usually be combined for multiple purchases (to a maximum of 5 kilograms in any one parcel with the exception of Canada, where the limit is 2 kilograms).

 

Packed weight of this item : approximately 900 grams

 

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