The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1893-05-26
MEDIEVAL GREAT GUNS
rHx xARvELoUs HEAH
NANOH OF THE MIDDLE Ao10'

marks tho London Standard, even
more than the discipline and ferocity
of the Janissaries, which caused the
Ottoman Army to be thought invino1ble
for two centuries The natural genius
Of the race for war was well displayed
by the readiness with which they
prasped tho Importance OF Bunpowder,
and the methodic way they set aoous
developing its capabilities. We LOOK
ON our own Artillery Company with
the reverence due to age; but 1T IL ai.
most modern compared with the IoPll
service of the Turkish Army, that came
down intact from the Janissary force,
which it preceded. There were regular
batteries at the siege of Constantinople
which did not belong to the Jansiss"ry
organization we may suppose, thcre'
fore, that the Topji ortns OF that time
were composed Of native Mosiems. Inc
amalxamation Of them with the janis
s..ss. .s.sxss- -nnnnr rra4l ise.1srrr'rr srfen8th
wns doubled presently.
Nowher" else in Europe had any
Iower dreamed OF employing such
force for tho management of big guns
alone. Since the gunncrs of tho Janis
sary force were transferred eli masae
to tho Sultan's new army, it is fact,
however curious, that the Turkish
artillery of the present day il the old
cs. military body in tho world. Wo
may wonder how many of its officers
are conscious of the distinction.
Enormous cannon are mentioned Mt
tho siege of Constnutinoplc. Having
been wise enough to see from tho be-
ginning what II great part artillery
must play in warfare, and having
formed body of men to cultivate that
branch, tho Sultans shortly perceived
that the bigger they could mako their
pieces the more effective they would
be. The result startled Europe Mt the
siege of Rhodes, not because il was n
novelty then, but because the story of
that gallant defence sent thrill
through Christcndom. While tho
Kings of Franco and England wcro
priding themselves on popguns, SO to
speak, they heard Tint tho Turks l.:.:!
sixteen grcnt "bombards, each twcn-
ty.two feet long, of which tho least
"osstcd stones, every stone Of lv.
spannGs compass nboutc," rs it is put
hy John Kay, Poet Laureate to our
~. IL lt '''NtINCts
however, that the Topiis were not
equal to the construction of these
great engines. Their merit lay i'll tho
conception and in the readiness to en-
ploy foreigners. furthermore were
there called counyny men in makyngo
of Instruments of warre, that is to say,
bombardcs, gowncs, culverynes, SER
pentines, and such other" They
,v"rA. GeneHsr Sna ,Msighsr Of 'frsiStctb-
cry seems doubtful; anyhow, he was
"dampncd to dcth" after while
whatever that process may have been
exactly.
Tho siege of Rhodes is ono Of ibo
most glorious struggles on record. Int
"o arc concerned only with the great
guns. They did all that could be cx-
r"etcd OF them. So terrific was tho
roar OF the bombardmcnt that tho in
hnhitunts of n town called Rccdc heard
IT, ms We are assured, hundred mil,s
l" the eastward; and the conclusion
was such that "grctc pylcs and postcs
strong and mighty that were stykked
in the grondc bchyndc attic tavlc of
the nfoTesnyde grrtc bomhar,lcs, rave
tnch CRETE and mighty shak wing that
tn" houses of Rhodes othcrwhylcs
thnkcd III such wysc lykc itf hvt
hldho ben an ycarthquakc AS for
tle effect, it wes j;ist such ms We reod
ns ~ H"r-,.~- .,">~... ,n ,",M.." ,,.H"..
1he fortihcatiOns crashed down, whole
streets fell, and the inhabitants had to
live i'll their cellars
Another novelty wns tho use of
bombs. They do not seem to have
been fired from the cannon. Tho
"enginc" which discharged them WINS
sling" But we nrc told that il
threw barrels full of great stones into
AR, which fc!' mron the houses, wreck,
lag th"m entirely viii, great ..mur-
Ger among those within 1t is not
easy I" Sc" why barrels full of stones
"'r" employed instead of solid rocks.
hi"Ss they cNr'Nlcd. The use of bomb,
ais" rcnpp"nrS two hundred wears ni.
t"rwnrds, when Louis XVI. wished I,
punish the Algerian Corsairs. His
fleet could do little; h" was not pre-
pared to land troops. In this pcrpley-
NY young man called Petit Rcnaud.
hitherto peaceful sailor. suggested
The use OF mortars to Colbert. Had
nat great man been n soldier, doubt
less ne would have paid no attention.
being also civilian, however, he gave
Petit Renaud an audience. and
traSpcd the merit of his scheme. In
!uc time Algicrs was laid in ashes
The most extraordinary great guns
'n record, ns we may boldly assert.
n" thos" described BY Brydonc, whose |
rnv"lS in Sicily and Malta won renown
veil deserved towards the end of the
"Ht century. Many facts and stories
!" rrcounts that seem strangely old.
'orld to us, though the date is littlo
'"rc than n hundred years ago. So
randy did the French Revolution
Europe. Malta was full of
onders more or less droll while the
nights held it. But nothing
in"Iled the gun stones, perhaps-.it
hn nc