Название: Autocannon: A History of Automatic Cannon and their Ammunition
Автор: Anthony G. Williams
Издательство: The Crowood Press Ltd
Год: 2022
Страниц: 384
Язык: английский
Формат: epub (true)
Размер: 50.2 MB

Autocannon is a comprehensive history of the development of automatic cannon and their ammunition from the end of the nineteenth century up to the present day.

Defined as fast-firing high-velocity automatic guns with calibres between 20mm and about 57mm, have been an integral part of the world’s militaries for well over a century. A brief history of their development is given, followed by sections examining the basic principles of gun and ammunition design, including various unconventional systems. Next comes a survey of cartridges in calibre order, from 20mm to 57mm, including not only ammunition that has seen service, but also a wide range of experimental types. Finally there is a survey of the cannon, grouped by nationality, which again includes many experimental models.

The term ‘cannon’ in British use originally referred to large-calibre muzzle-loading artillery. This book is concerned with modern cannon; while there is no agreed single definition, these are commonly regarded as being fast-firing high-velocity automatic guns with calibres (projectile diameters) between 20 mm and about 57 mm.

The precursors of such guns were developed in the late 19th century, in the form of larger versions of hand-cranked multi-barrel machine guns (MGs) like the Gatling and the Nordenfelt, which were made in calibres of up to one inch (25.4 mm) and fired solid projectiles. These were followed by the Hotchkiss cannon revolver with a rotating cluster of five barrels, also hand-cranked but in much larger calibres of 37 mm, 40 mm, 47 mm and 53 mm, which fired hollow shells filled with explosives.

The book includes data on about 200 different cartridges and 400 cannon, and has nearly 500 illustrations. It is the culmination of decades of research, and is unmatched in its coverage of this subject.