The ladle was given some prominence
in contemporary literature. At its simplest it
was like an elongated grocer's scoop,
constructed of sheet copper or an alloy, bent
round a former and fitted to a stave. The use
of non-ferrous metals minimised the
possibility of a spark being struck during
loading. The capacity of the ladle was usually
calculated in terms of volume, using the shot
diameter as a unit of measure. If the ladle were
not to be uncomfortably large, the load was
divided by two and the ladle used twice to
charge the gun. This technique meant that a
powder barrel had to be kept close at hand
during firing. The use of a 'budge' barrel, with a
leather cover and drawstring, or other method
of closure, helped to prevent fire reaching its
contents (figure 1).
(2)
During the late sixteenth and early
seventeenth centuries many ladies were
supplied to forces by the Ordnance Office at
the Tower. Very often materials such as
copper plate were furnished by merchants, for
example Edward Fawconer, Richard Cockyn
(or Cockaine), Robert Evelyn or Nicholas
Blaque, and the pieces were finished and
staved by Ordnance employees, contractors
or London Pikemakers (Figure 2).
(3)
The many difficulties of loading with
the ladle are readily apparent. In the heat of
battle, the measures obtained are not likely to
have been any more exact than numbers of
heaped spoonfuls. Henry Hexam helpfully
suggested a 'little jog (to the ladle) that the
surplus may fall down again into the barrell'.
Thomas Smith favoured a brisk tap with a
ruler. (4)
Another drawback was the slowness
of the method. Using the ladle two or more
times took longer and, of course, a whole
barrel of powder had to be moved about.
Lastly, and most importantly, ladle loading
was highly dangerous. Loose powder could
fall to the ground or onto a wooden deck and
be ignited by flash embers, dust could rise
from the powder, and additionally, the
gunner's burning match was a danger both to
the ladle and to the barrel of powder. The
matchlocks; of the infantry and enemy action
could double the problem. Walking back and
forth with an open powder barrel cannot have
been pleasant at the best of times, but in
action it was tantamount to suicide. On a ship
it is very difficult to see how this method could have worked at all.
William Bourne summed up the difficulties of the ladle in his 'Shooting in great
ordnance'.
Spilt powder could result in the 'spoyling of men' and, in short, there was no worse lading or charging of Ordnance than with a ladell'.
(5)
It would therefore seem obvious that
the use of cartridges - sewn or glued bags of
paper, linen or canvas - was a highly practical
solution (Figure 3). Contemporary manuals
seem remarkably consistent on this point. As
Peter Whitehorne observed:
(6)
This sort of advice was repeated
frequently during the next century and most
authorities agreed that the cartridge was the
best method of loading, particularly in action.
Instructions
Every manual gave instructions for the
making of cartridges. Amongst the most
important English examples were Bourne's
'Art of shooting in great ordnance', 1587,
Lucar's version of 'Tartaglia', 1558, Thomas
Smith's 'Art of gunnery, 1600 and William
Eldred's 'Gunners glasse', 1646 (Figure 4).
Nathaniel Nye in his 'Art of gunnery'
described the making of cartridges in the
following terms:
(7)
Paper cartridges could be made in a
similar fashion, but in this case the former
was first smeared with tallow to prevent
sticking and the scams were glued.
(8)
Parallel examples for cartridge
manufacture can be found in every major
European language. Diego Ufano's celebrated
'Trato de Artilleria' clearly illustrates the
point. The original edition, in Spanish, was
published in Brussels in 1613. Here the reader
was informed of the making of 'el cartucho'
and how handy a way this was to charge
ordnance. In the French edition of 1621, the
cartridge translates to 'patron' and 'sachets', In
the German editions these became 'Secklein
oder patronen'. In Norton's 'The Gunner', the
diagrams by De Bry for the continental
editions of Ufano were pirated and put
straight into an English text - noted as 'cartridges'.
(9)
The Italians similarly were not left out as
many of their texts also mention cartridges.
The best example was perhaps Luigi Collado's
'Pratica nianuale'.
(10)
All of this goes to show that the
making of cartridges was common knowledge.
Proof that they were actually used on a
regular basis is more difficult to establish,
although some archaeological evidence, such as
the presence of reamers aboard the 'Mary
Rose' makes this seem likely.
(11)
It is noticeable, however, that
cartridges were not a central issue store. In
England, prior to the Civil War, it was not
usual to find cartridges sent from the
Ordnance Office at the Towers to ships and
garrisons in the same way as guns and barrels
of powder. Furthermore, there is evidence to
suppose that it was the duty of individual
gunners to make up their own cartridges, as
Eldred says ,at spare times ... in garrisons or
other places'.
This was similarly true of ship's
gunners, as is suggested by Richard Hawkins
in his 'Observations', where he relates the loss
of his ship 'Dainty' in action with the
Spaniards. He blames the master gunner,
(12)
This may be exaggerated, but clearly
cartridges were the norm and it was the
gunner's duty to make them.
Best Evidence
The best evidence that cartridges were
used as a matter of course is in the supply of
materials for their construction, and in
'remains', or lists of stores returned after
voyages. We have many excellent examples of
the provision of cartridge-making materials to
the ships of the Elizabethan navy. When the
'Hoape' was fitted out in 1572, cartridge
formers featured in its stores. In 1572 the lists
for the 'Swallow' mentioned not only formers,
but 'canvas for cartouches xx elles' and three
reams of ,royal paper'. In 1597 Richard Ascue,
purser of the 'Warspite', delivered 57 yards of
canvas to the master gunner William Bull at a
cost of 71s 3d. We can trace many similar
deliveries, explicitly for cartridge-making
purposes. (13)
In the 'Book of the Remaynes' taken in 1595 and 1596 for returning Royal Navy vessels, every ship has been provided with cartridgemaking materials, most of which had been
expanded by the time the fleet returned. (14)
The records are yet more specific for
the early Stuart navy. The fleet which went to
Cadiz in 1625, set out with formers, canvas,
Paper Royal, glue and thread amongst the
gunnery stores. When the ship returned the
clerks of the Ordnance were able to enumerate
the finished cartridges aboard. In the fleet of
1639, the minutely detailed account shows
that the cartridges were made up early in the
voyage, and that much powder was wasted in
the process especially if the cartridges were
emptied again at a later stage. However, it is
possible that a certain percentage was
accepted as a perk of the job.
(15)
We have similar information on land
garrisons, if not so complete or organised.
Cartridge -making equipment was sometimes
supplied and gunners sometimes petitioned
for more. This was the case in 1629, when one
of the gunners at Dover wrote to Lord Zouch,
Warden of the Cinque ports, requesting a
multitude of supplies including - 'Royall
Paper to make carthridges withall'.
(16)
Even if the Ordnance Office did not
actually supply the finished cartridge, it
certainly provided materials and the
inventories Suggest there was usually quite a
lot in store. In 1559 stocktaking revealed 125
years of canvas for cartridges and ten reams of
Paper Royal. The 1635 list shows not only
materials, but over 600 formers. Every
inventory of the sixteenth and seventeenth
century shows some provision for cartridge
manufacture.
(17)
Evidence relating to field armies also
reveals plenty of cartridge making material
In 1620-1 an expedition was planned to go to
the aid of the Elector Palatine. Equipment
included 'canvas for cartouches 1000 elles at
6d the ell' - no less than three quarters of a
mile of cartridge- making canvas. In 1627 an
expedition to the Isle dc Rhe took with it at
least five hundred yards of canvas and two
tons of cartridge paper. We should not
imagine that these stores were intended for
any other purposes, for there were plentiful
supplies of writing paper and canvas sandbags
over and above the provisions for cartridges.
(18)
During the Civil War cartridges were
carried along with the field guns. The Scottish
gunner and theorist Thomas Binning suggested
a universal scale of issue of 24 cartridges per
gun, of which half were to be filled and ready
for use at all times. A number of entries in
Roys 'Royalist Ordnance Papers' suggest this
was the sort of high standard which they
wanted to attain.
(19)
The case of the New Model Army is
particularly interesting, as this body was
provided not only with cartridge- making
materials but, unusually, with finished
cartridges as well as with cartridges cut out of
cloth but not sewn. This may give us a date at
which cartridges began to be considered an
issue item, rather than something which it was
the duty of individual gunners to make up. No
doubt this was made possible by the greater
standardisation of armament in the New
Model Army, in which field pieces of 31b and
61b were normal. In earlier times, when guns
were much more individually styled, it was
not worthwhile considering the cartridge as an
issue store, because so many different types
were required.
One of the largest orders for finished
cartridges was contracted on 10 January 1646
with Nathaniel Hunifreys and Richard
Bradley for 1,000, at ten pence a pecce ...
ready money'. It was highly unusual that
ready money be either asked for, or given, on
a government contract and this may be a
measure of the importance placed on the
supply of cartridges.
(20)
Such strong evidence can only suggest
that the cartridge was the normal method of
loading used from the early sixteenth century
onwards. The ladle in the manuals and in
archaeological finds requires sonic
reinterpretation. Two possible explanations
may reasonably be put forward.
First, it was an added security. If the
cartridges were insufficient in number, or
damp, or lost, the gunner could have resorted
to the ladle for loose powder as an emergency
measure. It is even possible that the ladle
could have been used for the quick insertion of
the cartridge. Second, in ceremonial or
practice firing, speed was not important. It
was the quality of the show that mattered. In
such circumstances few gunners would have
bothered with the expense of a cartridge. We
have therefore the highly-choreographed
descriptions of the use of the ladle - handled as Eldred said like 'an artist'.
(1)
See for example 0 F G Hogg, 'English Artillery' Woolwich, 1963, p.45; H W 1, Hime, 'Gunpowder and Ammunition', London, 1904, p.235.
Norton's "Gunner" (circa 1628) Illustrations.
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Despite the amount of interest in early
modern artillery, particularly that aroused by
nautical archaeology, there are many areas of
gunnery technique which have yet to receive
detailed examination. Loading is perhaps the
most vital of these. Several authorities have
assumed that the process of loading was
necessarily slow, usually being carried out
with the use of the ladle.
(1)
'The ladell shall have some tyme more
powder, and sometyme less powder, by a
good quantitye, and especially if that hee
clothe it hastely as in time of service it
alwayes requireth haste.'
'For the more speedie shooting of
ordinance, the iuste charge in pouder of everye
peece may aforhand be prepared in a
readinesse and put in bagges of linnen or in
great papers made for the same purpose,
which in a sodaine may be chapt into the
mouth of a peece with the holler thereof
thrust after, as farre as they will goe, and then
thrusting a long wyer into the touchehole with
some pouder so soone as it is leveled, it may
incontinent be shot of: which maner of
charging is done most quikely and a great deale
sooner than any other wave, and when haste
requires very needfull.'
'take canvas, such as the powder will
not creep thorow, and let it be in breadth ...
just three diameters of the peece ... and for
the length you will find it by the filling of
them, these being sewed together upon a
mould; which must be a very little lesse than
the diameter of the bore, and about 4
diameters long.'
'For bearing me ever in hand, that he
had five hundred cartreges in a readinesse,
within one hours fight we were forced to
occupie three persons, only in making and
filling cartreges, and of five hundreth Elles of
canvas and other cloth given him for that
purpose, at sundry times, not one yard was
to be found.'
NOTES
(2) See R Norton, 'The Gunner', London, 1628, pp. 42-3, and folding plates.
(3) Public Record Office, War Office papers 54/3; 6; 7; 8; 9; 11.
(4)H Hexam, 'The Principles of the Art Militarie',
The Hague, 1640, Part III, pl.3; Thomas Smith, 'The Art of Gunnery', London, 1600, p.8 1.
(5)W Bourne, 'The Art of Shooting in Great Ordnance', London, 1587, pp.30-1.
(6) P Whitehorne, 'Certain Wayes for the Ordering of Souldiers in Battelray', London, 1573, p.33v.
(7) W Nye, 'The Art of Gunnery', London, 1647,
p.42.
(8)See Roberts, 'Compleate Cannoniere', London,
1639, p.29.
(9) D Ufano, 'Trato de Artilleria', Brussels, 1613,
p.306; 'Artillerie C'est a Dire' Zutphen, 1621; 'Archeley', Frankfurt, 1614.
(10) L Collaclo, 'Pratica Manuale Di Arteglieria', Venice, 1586.
(11) The "reamer" or priming iron was a sharp spike or wire to clear the touch hole and pierce the skin of the cartridge.
(12) 'The Observations of Sir Richard Hawkins Knight, in his 'Voiage to the South Sea Anno Dom 1593', London, 1622, p. 127. An "Ell" was a unit of meaure equalling 1.25 yards in English usage. (A Scottish "Ell" was 37.2 in; the Flemish "Ell" 27 in.)
(13) British Library Additional NIS 5752 f36; PRO WO 52/2. "Paper Roval" probably meant initially any large sheet. In the printing trade it was later 25 in. by 20 in. The term is known to have been in use from the late fifteenth century.
(14) National Maritime Museum NIS CAD C/I; ADL/H/14; PLA/PI 1; PRO WO 55/1627.
(15) PRO WO 49/110; 55/1601.
(16) British Library Egerton MS 2584, t362.
(17) PRO WO 55/1672; 55/1690; State Papers 12/6 etc. See also H L. Blackmore, 'The Armouries of the Tower of London'. Vol I Ordnance, London, 1976, pp. 251-389.
(18) British Library Harleian NIS 5109. Royal Artillery
Institution MD 979 "Inventory of the Equipment of the Artillery Embarked", 1627.
(19) I. Roy, 'The Royalist Ordnance Papers',
Oxfordshire Record Society, 2 Vols 1964 and 1976, passim. T Binning, 'Light to the Art of
Gunnery', Edinburgh 1676, p. 109.
(20) Museum of London MS 46-78/709. See also G I Mungeam,
"Contracts for the Supply of Equipment to the New Model" 'Journal of the Arms and Armour Society', Vol VI, part 3, 1967.
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