Artillery, Carriage Moncrieff — engraving

'ARTILLERY. MONCRIEFF GUN CARRIAGE'.

Captain Moncrief's carriage is the invention of Captain Moncrief of the English service.
Moncrief proposed a special device thanks to which the gun does not roll back when fired, as with conventional carriages, but descends behind the parapet and remains in this position until the next shot.
Moncrief's carriage consists of three parts: a machine that directly supports the gun itself, elevators that make up the middle large part of the carriage, and the platform itself. The platform rotates around a kingpin placed in the center using rollers located at the ends. In addition to these three main parts of the carriage, there is also a counterweight placed between the elevators. Its weight is calculated in such a way that it balances the load of the gun itself. During a shot, the gun goes down due to gas pressure, and the counterweight rises up. In the lowered position, the gun with elevators is held for loading using special devices. When the gun is already loaded, the elevators tend to take their previous position, and the gun rises. To control the movement of the gun, only one gunner is required. Moncrief's carriage has many advantages over others, one of the main ones is that the servants and guns are hidden from the enemy's eyes and reduces the cost of constructing coastal fortifications, allowing guns to be installed behind an earthen rampart instead of an iron one.

From 'The National Encyclopaedia: A Dictionary of Universal Knowledge', by writers of Eminence in Literature, Published by William Mackenzie, London  (1887).

Technique, Material: Steel engraving / Paper
Artist: ,  Engraver: 
Date: London, 1887. 
Size: 24,4 x 15,8 cm.