The 120-pounder Whitworth naval gun was designed by Joseph Whitworth during the 1860s. It was a rifled muzzle loader and used his hexagonal rifled bore design, the principle of which is described in the article on the 70-pounder Whitworth naval gun.
120-pounder Whitworth gun | |
---|---|
Type | Naval gun |
Place of origin | United Kingdom |
Service history | |
In service | 1865– |
Used by | Brazil |
Wars | Paraguayan War |
Production history | |
Designer | Joseph Whitworth |
Manufacturer | Joseph Whitworth |
Produced | 1865?– |
Specifications | |
Mass | 16,660 pounds (7,556.8 kg) |
Length | 144 inches (3.658 m) |
Shell | Solid shot Explosive shell |
Shell weight | 151 pounds (68.5 kg) |
Calibre | 7-inch (178 mm) |
Maximum firing range | about 5,540 yards (5,070 m) |
Filling | Black powder |
Filling weight | 5 pounds (2.3 kg)[1] |
Service
editA number of 120-pounders were bought by the Imperial Brazilian Navy and used to arm some of its ironclads during the Paraguayan War in the late 1860s.[2]
Notes
editReferences
edit- Gratz, George A. (1999). "The Brazilian Imperial Navy Ironclads, 1865–1874". In Preston, Antony (ed.). Warship 1999-2000. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-724-4.
- Alexander Lyman Holley, "A Treatise on Ordnance and Armor" published by D. Van Nostrand, New York, 1865