8-pounder short gun

The 8-pounder short gun was a light calibre piece of artillery mounted on French warships of the Age of sail.

They were similar in design to the Canon de 8 Gribeauval.

As the short variant was relatively light, it could be mounted on the upper gun posts of ships of the line, where the timber of the deck was too light to support larger guns, and without jeopardising the stability of the ship.

It was also used on frigates, xebecs and corvettes, as an addition to the larger guns of the main battery (usually 12- or 18-pounders, and sometimes 24-pounders).

Mounted on the sides of the ships, the 8-pounders reinforced the weight of the broadside.

1/4the scale model of an 8-pounder short gun, 1786 pattern, with 1820 pattern mounting. On display at the Musée national de la Marine , Paris.