The Board of Ordnance can be characterized as the supplier of artillery services to the Army and Navy. It had many other duties which were not directly relevant to the artillery, but were a fruitful source of bureaucratic dispute in true eighteenth century fashion. The complete list of stores for the forces sent to America under Braddock and printed in Pargellis' Military Affairs in America is an eye opener. The Board provided the guns, ammunition, transport, etc., and, through the Master Gunner, the gunners to serve them.

One measure of this independence is that the artillery wore blue, not red, coats. Its mark was the broad arrow used almost to the present day. The Board made gun barrels in the Royal Brass Foundry and ammunition, etc. at the Laboratory, both at Woolwich, but it also brought in barrels and stores. Most barrels and equipment were stored in the Tower of London until issued.

By the 1750's, the nature of the ordnance had been rationalized, but it is difficult to systematize what was available. There was no system like that of the Austrians. The British artilleryman had a considerable choice of pieces for any particular job, however. First, there were the guns in calibers ranging from 1 1/2 pounds, 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, 32, up to 42-pound shot weight. Within these categories or "natures" there were light, medium, and heavy. They could be cast in "brass" or iron. Furthermore, different designs existed within these categories, and, as pieces did not go out of date quickly, old patterns could be used.

Second, there were the shell-firing weapons: the howitzers and mortars in sizes starting with Coehorn's of 4.6 inch caliber, "Royals" of 5.5 inch, 8 inch, 10 inch, and 13 inch mortar only. These were cast in brass.

Amongst that lot we can identify the most commonly used pieces. Guns attached to the infantry battalions were the most common. By the 1750's, this was the short 6-pounder with a barrel of 4 1/2 feet in length weighing 4 3/4 hundredweight. It could be drawn by 2 horses. There were 34 of these in Germany in 1762. 3-pounders were used as a substitute or in difficult terrain. These could possible be "gallopers" with the trail replaced by shafts for the horse. The standard field gun was the light 12-pounder of 5 feet in length and 9 hundredweight drawn by 5 horses. These guns were quite mobile and could change position during a battle. Other guns encountered were heavy 6-pounders, heavy 12-pounders, and medium 24-pounders, the latter two as part of the siege train. These seem to be the guns of choice and were used in Germany in 1762. Coehorn mortars and howitzers and Royal howitzers were used in the field as well, and the heavier ones were used in sieges.

Sieges required heavier pieces. The classic piece was the 24-pounder, but the iron 12-pounder was common, and the heavier mortars and howitzers were essential parts of the siege train. Many of the sieges carried out by the British were of coastal fortifications, e.g. Louisbourg, Belle-Isle, and Havana, and the Royal Navy was called upon to provide heavy guns and crews from the fleet as well as its practical expertise in all sorts of matters, especially in moving heavy equipment. Naval gun carriages were usually painted a dull red.

The carriages of the pieces were of different kinds according to size and function. Garrison carriages were very similar to naval carriages with short sides and four small wheels called trucks, which on garrison carriages were of cast iron. They were used as the static defenses of forts. In the field, a traveling carriage was used for all types of pieces. Basically consisting of two spoked wheels, an axle tree, and a trail of two shaped planks joined by crosspieces all of wood with metal fittings. The exact size depended on the nature of the piece. Battering pieces had large and long carriages, howitzers, short and thick, and the common field pieces, something in between. The smaller field pieces were elevated by a screw mechanism and had ammunition boxes attached to the axel tree on each side of the trail. Mortars had a distinct carriage consisting of a solid block of wood into which the barrel was set. They were carried in wagons. Another type of carriage was the galloper which had shafts for a horse instead of a trail, but this could only be used for 1 1/2 or 3-pounder barrels, as the shafts could not absorb the recoil or transmit it to the ground like a proper trail could. I don't think they were used in the War.

The crews for these guns varied in number. A 6-pounder would have a crew of 12 or 14 men. The large number was needed to move the gun around as it advanced with its infantry battalion. The drag rope men could be supplied from the infantry battalion, and infantrymen were used to man the guns during sieges. Heavier guns could not be moved except by horse teams, and fewer men were actually needed to serve the gun - around eight, although the gun could be fired with fewer.

One vital piece of equipment was the limber. This turned the gun into a four-wheeled vehicle that was easier to transport. It consisted of a pair of small wheels, an axel tree, and shafts. No ammunition box was carried on it in British service. The biggest and strongest of the draught horses were harnessed into the shafts, and the rest of the team were in tandem in front of it. With a large team, these horses were usually harnessed in pairs, but no pole draught was used. This is why the number of horses in a team is often an odd one. The drivers and teams were not provided by the artillery but by private contractors. Although not under military discipline, their behavior was regulated. They seem to have been provided with clothing by their employers, which served to identify them: e.g., in 1756, a white smock with the letters "GR" in red on the back. 

To accompany the guns was a range of vehicles provided by the Board of Ordnance. A two-wheeled powder cart drawn by three horses was the most common. There was a four-wheeled ammunition wagon with basketwork sides that could carry various items, a mobile forge, and a cart or wagon to carry pontoons as well as more specialist equipment. These vehicles and carriages are described and illustrated in Muller's Treatise of Artillery, which shows a considerable amount of standardization of parts such as wheels. However, these only represented a small part of the vehicles needed by the army, and the rest were made up by hiring and impressing any vehicle or driver that could be got.

All the guns and probably the Ordnance supplied vehicles were painted a bluish gray lead color with ironwork painted black. It is possible that iron barrels were painted a red/black color and brass barrels were kept polished. The carriages were probably marked with their nature, e.g. 12 Pd, the Royal Cipher and crown and a number, e g No 2 In Morier's very interesting painting of the camp at Roermond in 1749. he shows the markings in yellow paint on the gun trails In the same painting he shows another interesting vehicle the kettledrum carriage This elaborate vehicle of red, blue, and gold drawn by six grays carried the kettledrums and accompanied the artillery into the field until 1759. It does not appear to have gone on campaign in the Seven Years War. However, one tradition did survive, and this was the flag gun Usually the most powerful piece in the train, it had fittings for a union flag to be mounted on it on the march and in camp In 1759, a detachment of grenadiers with a 12-pounder flag gun took over guard duties when Quebec surrendered, so the practice was still in use. In the same way, one of the wagons carried the flag of the Board of Ordnance, which was also flown on its hired ships.

Conclusion

Wherever the British army fought during the Seven Years War, the Royal Artillery also went to provide a vital support function that it was now capable of supplying with great efficiency.

References

Duncan, Maj. Francis A History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery Vol 1
McConnell, David British Smoothbore Artillery: A Technological Study
Peterson, Harold L. Roundshot and Rammers
Caruana, Adrian British Artillery Ammunition 1780
Hughes, B. P. Firepower
Whitworth, Res (Ed.) Gunner at Large

The British Royal Regiment of Artillery

Introduction
Organization
Ordnance

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