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The elevating screw was invented in 1578, but not until 1760 was it adopted to any extent. Even then the Navy turned it down; they said it was too slow, and persisted with the quoin or wedge until the 19th century. To be fair, manufacture was difficult because the screw-cutting lathe had not been invented, and was not to appear for another 200 years.
Screws were usually designed to elevate the gun, say one degree, with a single turn, and were a great success in field artillery. Like the Navy Garrison Gunners retained the quoin until quite late in the 19th century. |
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WL Ruffell Issue 88 December 1995 |
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