Cannons on 16th century galleons
A galleon’s effectivness lay in its battery of guns. This plate shows the range of artillery carried by English and Spanish galleons. in: Spanish Galleon vs. English Galleon 1550- 1605, by Mark Lardas
To the left is a race- built English galleon displaying its typical broadside guns. All are mounted on four-wheel truck carriages:
Culverin: A long- range, ship killing, brass muzzleloader. Culverins fired an 18 pdr. shot.
Demi- culverin: Another lone range, brass muzzleloader, firing an 8 pdr. shot.
Minion: A lighter gun that fired a 5 ¼ pdr. shot capable of penetrating the bulwarks of the upper deck and the castles.
To the right is the larger and loftier Spanish galleon mounting guns on four decks. Spanish muzzleloaders of the 16th century were typically mounted on two- wheel field carriages, while breechloaders were on sledge carriages frequently with two wheels allowing respositioning.
A. Demi- cannon: A brass muzzleloader that threw a 32 pdr. shot. The range of the demi- cannon was shorter that a culverin due to the demi- cannon barrel’s shorter lenght. The shot also had a slower muzzle velocity.
B. Iron breechloading bombard: Obsolescent by the time of the Armada campaign, Spain still used them due the shortages of newer brass breechloaders. It typically fired stone shot.
C. Saker: A short- range, brass muzzleloader, firing a 6 pdr. shot. Probably cast in England, it was smuggled to Spain.
D. Verso: A breechloading iron gun on a swivel mount set in the bulwark. Man killing pieces, versos fired 4 oz.to 1 pdr. of solid lead, stone or iron shot, occasionally scrap iron.
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