(Lindy): These are British, 18th century, 24-pounder naval guns.
You can tell that they're naval guns, partly because they have small wheels,
which don't get in the way when you're trying to get to the gun from the side,
but which are a bit rubbish on rough terrain,
and partly because they have a loop at the back of the gun.
This was for restraining the recoil of the gun when you had limited room.
Thick rope would attach the gun to the wall in front of the weapon.
*silly voice* "That's not the touch hole"
"I'm French"
(Presenter): It is called the 24-pounder naval gun for one purpose,
It is not because the cannon weighs 24 pounds.
If you think that these cannons weigh 24 pounds I challenge all of you myself
right now to go and try to lift these bloody things.
I can assure you you will not manage.
The cannon actually weighs 2 tons, so that's equivalent to two cars.
(Lindy): The "pounder" refers to the weight of an iron cannonball of that calibre.
This one's a 5 1/2 incher.
(Presenter): We will fire 600 grams of black powder,
which is still quite a bang I can assure you.
(Lindy): They also have here the world's last remaining 8-inch field howitzer.
(Presenter): So for a donation of 10 euro, you will get the only chance in the EU,
as a civillian.
as a civilian that is, to fire a cannon for yourself.
Do we have any brave takers?
*Some people volounteer*
Number one, number two.
(Lindy): So the public came forward,
*shouts in the background* and were steeped in the ways of the British army by being given smart uniforms.
There's always one...
(Gunnery crew): One! Two! Three!
Four!
Seven!
(Lindy): Do you like being in the artillery?
(Mannequin): I got a motto.
(Lindy): Oh yes what's that then?
(Mannequin, a bit depressed): Always merry and bright.
(Lindy) The first tool in the loading sequence is the worm, or wad-screw.
This was twisted to catch any remaining bits of bag, wadding, or charge from the previous firing -
bird's nests or whatever else might be fouling the barrel.
(Gunnery crew): Clear!
(Lindy): Next, the sponge: some fleece on a pole, dipped in water
to make absolutely sure that there's nothing in there that will ignite the charge prematurely.
Safety first
Throughout all this the ventsman hold his thumb
over the touchhole to prevent a throughdraft, which might fan some embers
and cause an explosion during the loading process.
He uses a leather thumb-stall so that he doesn't burn his skin on the hot metal.
Next, a man runs to get the charge of powder, in a silk bag.
And no it would NOT be a good idea to keep these closer to the gun!
A copper, to prevent sparks, pricker puts a hole in the bag.
*Gunnery crew shouting*
Now a quickmatch is being inserted.
Quills filled with gunpowder were sometimes used for this job.
Other media for detonation existed,
such as the flintlock, the percussion primer,
and the friction tube: strike the spark by yanking a roughened wire out of this,
which was filled with antimony sulfide and potassium chlorate.
To light the quickmatch, a slowmatch is used.
He's lighting from a simple lantern: a candle in a box.
A slowmatch was a rope soaked in potassium nitrate, wrapped around a forked stick
called a "linstock".
Now the training of the gunner commences.
It can take years for a recruit to master all the nuances of firing a cannon:
The perfection of posture, the special diet,
the idea of not leaning over the vent,
and... oh he's trained.
Now for the moment, the fearsome detonation
that will strike terror and ironmongery into the enemy.
Any minute now.
Ah! I can't stand the suspense.
I suppose i could use this time to talk about his shorts...
They're a very nice colour.
Very polite.
They're not beige.
Earplugs out, this video can NOT give you
any impression of how loud these things are.
You can see the path of the quickmatch here.
And that's where it landed.
*silly voice* That was rubbish.
You didn't even show them put the ball in.
(Lindy): No that's right we skipped the stage of putting the actual projectile in,
which would be rammed in with wadding of old rope either side of it
to stop it rolling out,
and to make a better gas seal.
Another tool we skipped was this giant loobrush
which would be used every now and again to clean out the buildup of soot and charred wadding
in the barrel after a lot of shooting
*silly voice* It's still rubbish.
You think it's all done by three men?
(Lindy, exasperated): Yes all right! I've been showing you three men doing all the crewing,
but five was more common.
And in the field, once you add in commander, all the men to move the cannon,
fetch and carry things for it, and stand around protecting it, it might be as many as twelve.
A drilled crew could get off one shot every 90 seconds,
or a minute and a half on a bad day.
*silly voice* It's still rubbish.
(Lindy): I suppose it did all look a bit tame and parade-ground,
so, let's see that again, only this time re-edited in:
EXCITORAMA!
[Officer] Load the cannon!
We're going for one more shot!
[NCO] You heard the officer!
[Officer] Hoff! Get to the cannon!
*Tense dramatic music plays over sounds of battle*
It's safe enough. Go!
Get on with it!
Make it quick!
[Scared Gunner] They'll be on us any minute!
[Officer] Where's Drummer Hoff?
[NCO] Hoffy Boy! Over here!
[Officer] Fire it off!
*Outro theme*
Lindybeige!
*Outro theme*