View Full Version : Thurso Castle Cannons
Was watching tv program about Hudson Bay Company and noticed that canons at the Fort Prince of Wales were very similar (if not identical in my memory) to those that were situated at the front of Thurso Castle - is this possible? Any links between Thurso and HUdson Bay Company? I know there are links in Orkney.
John Little
10-Jun-11, 19:49
It's more than possible that they were made by the same company. Many if not most of the guns for the Royal Navy and the army from the mid 18th century onwards were made by the Carron Iron foundry at Falkirk- which was, I believe, one of the biggest ironworks in Europe at the time, and led the industrial revolution in the production of cheap good quality iron. At first their stuff was rubbish but it improved until everybody wanted Carron guns.
The problem with many cast guns was that they were shot through with bubbles in the metal and that the bore of the gun was not straight. As a result they often exploded or fired badly. The Carron works produced guns which were as straight as the technology would allow, did not burst and fired straight. They also specialised in a short range gun you could fill with doorknobs, marbles, nails etc, which could clear a deck in one flash - known as the 'Smasher', or Carronade.
http://bit.ly/mITKdP
This is From Fort Prince of Wales, much as I recall Thurso East or am I wrong?
northener
11-Jun-11, 08:31
Lt Gen Melville proposed the short barreled 8pdr that became the 'Carronade' in 1774.
It had a bore of 8 1/2 in and fired a round of 68lb. First used against the Frogs in 1779. Only a short range, but effective in close combat, by Jan 1791 it was part of the armanent in 491 RN warships.
(from my copy of 'Artillery Through The Ages' by Col. HCB Rogers)
He doesn't go into manufacturing much, but still a worthwhile read.
skimeister
11-Jun-11, 09:04
What ever happened to the canons at Thurso East? I remember the sea wall starting to crumble but the canons still being there at the time.
Apologies for my horrendous typo in the title, of course I am sure there have been many Japanese cameras pointing both at and from Thurso Castle over the years but they are not what I was talking about!
Walter Ego
11-Jun-11, 13:14
Apologies for my horrendous typo in the title, of course I am sure there have been many Japanese cameras pointing both at and from Thurso Castle over the years but they are not what I was talking about!
I thought you meant religious bloke Canons:Razz
Episcopalians/Anglicans may have been around in Thirsa then, not aware there was a RC Church though :-)
Episcopalians/Anglicans may have been around in Thirsa then, not aware there was a RC Church though :-)
There were Catholics in Caithness from the 1200's have a wee read of chapter 4 and see what happened to two of them
http://www.caithness.org/history/historyofcaithness/contentschapters.htm
oldmarine
11-Jun-11, 14:57
There were Catholics in Caithness from the 1200's have a wee read of chapter 4 and see what happened to two of them
http://www.caithness.org/history/historyofcaithness/contentschapters.htm
Golach: Very interesting history on this website. In particular Chapter 12 which I enjoyed reading. Thanks for posting. I have always enjoyed reading about the Sinclairs.
Moderator
11-Jun-11, 18:56
Apologies for my horrendous typo in the title, of course I am sure there have been many Japanese cameras pointing both at and from Thurso Castle over the years but they are not what I was talking about!
Thread title changed to spare you any more blushes. :)
Interesting topic.
northener
11-Jun-11, 20:24
Regarding the manufacture of cannons, JL is right in what he says. Iron cannons had been in production since the C16th, but the casting technology was somewhat dodgy. Brass (bronze, actually, but always referred to in period pieces as 'brass') was easier to cast and better understood. It wasn't until the mid/late C17th that casting practice could produce an iron barrel that was fairly trustworthy.
Early gunners preferred bronze barrels, as they gave a distinctive 'ring' when fired. When the barell was getting to bursting, the note would change slightly. Not something that happened with early iron guns, they just burst with devastating consequences for the gun crew (although it probably cheered up the people at the other end of the battlefield:Razz).
By mid C18th brass cannons had disappeared, in fact it is quite difficult to tell late C18th and early C19th guns apart as they had reached an excellent level of standardisation. It is also very difficult to pin down later iron guns to an individual maker as they were near as dammit supplied to a standard pattern...although this area is getting outside my own area of knowledge on muzzle loading artillery.
HTH.
thirsaloon
13-Jun-11, 13:00
There was five cannons, not sure what happened to all of them, but I believe some were possibly sold. One I believe was quite rare, also recall one lay in the sea for awhile when the break wall gave way.
crashbandicoot1979
13-Jun-11, 14:00
I remember one cannon falling into the sea, and I think (and I could be wrong!) that the 2 that sat in front of the castle ended up going to Fort George.
The Pepsi Challenge
13-Jun-11, 22:02
I have pictures of a snowy-covered Sir John's Square when the canons - or at least two of them - resided there.
I regularly climbed along the barrels of the cannons in the 1950's and there were two distinct types. One ended in a plain, pipe like mouth with two thicknesses in the barrel heavier at the lower end, the others I think had more ornate barrels ending in a ring at the far end. I believe there were 5 at that time and they seemed to be full of stones and shingle. There may also have been dates or numbers on them.
thirsaloon
15-Jun-11, 10:42
I have some photos of them, nothing in detail really, but better than nothing. I climbed on them a lot as well, but in the 70s. I think your right Errogie regarding your discription, thats how I seem to remember them.
Blazing Sporrans
15-Jun-11, 17:57
http://bit.ly/mITKdP
This is From Fort Prince of Wales, much as I recall Thurso East or am I wrong?
The cannon pictured here looks strikingly similar to the two at the front of the Castle of Mey. Were they moved there from Thurso East?
PS - a pet hate of mine when the media refer to water cannons - the plural of cannon is cannon - no extra 's'.
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