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CRIMEAN CANNONS - WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

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Tower House
Tadworth
Surrey
Great Britain
KT20 5QY


The Russian Gun in an English local park was not an isolated memorial to the men who died fighting for their country in the Crimean War in the mid 19th century. There were a large number of similar cannon distributed throughout the British Isles and world wide. At Sebastopol a substantial ordnance depot was captured that held a large quantity of obsolete and damaged guns. These supplemented those actually captured in active service. The whole totalled some 4000 items of ordnance. Russian artillery fell into 4 general categories at the time, ship, fortress or garrison (krepostnaya), siege and field. The Sebastopol cannon were mainly siege guns.

After the fall of Sebastopol an inventory of the captured stores was made over 10 days in the latter part of September 1855. The extent of the spoil captured by the allies was almost incredible, notwithstanding all that the Russians had expended or destroyed. The cannon of various sizes numbered 3,839, 128 of which were of brass, the rest iron; a great number had been thrown into the harbour to avoid their being taken. Round shot, 407,314; shell, 101,755; canister cases, 24,080; gunpowder, 525,000 lb.; ball cartridges, 670,000 rounds; and other articles too numerous to mention. The spoil was divided between the allies according to value and manpower in the Crimea. The cannon however were divided equally between the French and the English. According to Sydney historians, Britain received 1165 guns however Dun Laoghaire historians give a figure of 964. At the time cannon were valued for distribution as follows: brass - eleven pence per pound and iron - halfpence per pound. Sources: The History of the War with Russia, (c.1856) Tyrell H. Vol. II, Chap. XIV. P.305; Pictorial History of the Crimea War (1856) G.D. p.492/3.



Above: The Fall of Sebastopol 9th September 1855. Result: A Decisive Allied Victory

Probably used as ships ballast for returning troop and supply ships, cannon were then donated to towns far and wide. This was intended as a public relations exercise demonstrating the success of the war against such stupendous odds. Many of the Russian guns were distributed to countries that had contributed to the war effort at the time. Twenty were sent to Canada and are to be found in major cities there. Others have gone to the furthermost reaches of the British Empire. The Cannon were actually of little value as ordnance because of the developments in rifled barrels and cylindrical loads. Many were melted down for further appropriate use such as the alleged minting of the Victoria Cross award. Actually Chinese guns were apparently used for this; a fact realized some time after the award was being bestowed. Many Crimean Cannon have survived the intervening years including the world wars and this database gives details of those that we have been able to trace.

Click to discover the marine Store Dealer
Click the cannon right to discover where some of the cannon balls ended up.


By bringing together information about the provenance of this ordnance, it provides a far more comprehensive picture of the origins and outcome of this amazing scenario. In many instances historians have already done excellent work in researching their local cannon and we have used this information where it is available, giving credit where the source is known. Should any credits or reports have been inadvertently missed please let us know and we will add to the updated editions of this database. Click left to discover the Florence Nightingale trail


Click left to discover the Florence Nightingale trail.


Email: cannon@thespas.co.uk (click here to send an email)


Website: Click Here

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION



TO GO TO THE INDEX OF CRIMEAN CANNONS LOCATED:
OUTSIDE THE BRITISH ISLES click website above.
IN THE BRITISH ISLES see below.

The Crimean Cannon INDEX OF LOCATIONS. Click on the coloured cannon balls below for further details of a specific location.


Key:

# = original gun in situ, ~ = replacement in situ, $ = scrapped or lost.


Click for details Armagh #
Click for details Aberdeen $$
Click for details Abingdon $$?
Click for details Ashburton, Devon (not Crimean Cannon)
Click for details Ashton-under-Lyne $$
Click for details Bamburgh
Click for details Banff Scotland #
Click for details Bath $$
Click for details Belfast $$
Click for details Berkswell Warwicks #
Click for details Berwick #
Click for details Birkenhead $$#
Click for details Birr #
Click for details Blackburn $$
Click for details Boston Lincs.$$
Click for details Braddan I.O.M.#
Click for details Bradford $$
Click for details Bridgenorth $
Click for details Bridgwater ~
Click for details Brighton $$
Click for details Bristol $$
Click for details Burnley $$
Click for details Caernarfon #
Click for details Carlisle ????
Click for details Cambridge $
Click for details Canterbury ?
Click for details Cardiff $
Click for details Cardigan #
Click for details Carlow, Ireland #
Click for details Carmarthen, Wales $
Click for details Chelmsford #
Click for details Cheltenham $
Click for details Chester $$
Click for details Chobham ~
Click for details Cobh Ireland #
Click for details Congleton $
Click for details Cork City $#
Click for details Coventry $$
Click for details Cricklade $$
Click for details Darlington #
Click for details Dartmouth #
Click for details Darwen ?
Click for details Derby $$
Click for details Devizes $
Click for details Dublin ######
Click for details Dudley ##
Click for details Dumbarton $?
Click for details Dumfries #
Click for details Dunfermline $
Click for details Dun Laoghaire Ireland #
Click for details Durham $
Click for details Edinburgh $
Click for details Elgin, Scotland $
Click for details Ely #
Click for details Ennis Ireland #
Click for details Eton #
Click for details Evesham #
Click for details Flint Castle $
Click for details Galway $$
Click for details Glasgow $#
Click for details Grantham $
Click for details Great Yarmouth $$
Click for details Guernsey, St Peter Port ##
Click for details Halifax $$
Click for details Harrogate$
Click for details Hartlepool #
Click for details Hastings $
Click for details Hereford ~
Click for details Huntingdon ~
Click for details Knaresborough $
Click for details Lancaster ??
Click for details Leamington Spa $
Click for details Leicester ##
Click for details Leominster $
Click for details Lewes #
Click for details Lichfield $
Click for details Limerick Ireland ##
Click for details Linlithgow $
Click for details Lisburn #
Click for details London #
Click for details Londonderry #
Click for details Longton Staffs $
Click for details Lowestoft #
Click for details Ludlow #
Click for details Lymington $
Click for details Maidstone #
Click for details Malmesbury $$$
Click for details Malton Yorks $
Click for details Margate $
Click for details Middlesbrough #
Click for details Monmouth #
Click for details Naas, Curragh, Porthlaoise, Ireland #
Click for details Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffs.#
Click for details Newry #
Click for details Nottingham ##
Click for details Oldham $$
Click for details Perth $$$$?
Click for details Plymouth ###
Click for details Pontefract $$
Click for details Portsmouth #####$
Click for details Preston ~~
Click for details Reading $
Click for details Retford # and Beckingham ~
Click for details Richmond $
Click for details Ripon $
Click for details Rochester #
Click for details Rothesay, Isle of Bute $
Click for details Salford, Manchester $$
Click for details Salisbury $
Click for details Sandhurst ###
Click for details Scarborough ~
Click for details Seaham $
Click for details Shaftesbury $
Click for details Sheffield $$
Click for details Southampton $$$
Click for details Southport $
Click for details Southsea $$
Click for details South Shields ~~
Click for details Southwold X
Click for details Stockport ~~
Click for details Stockton $
Click for details Stoke on Trent ?
Click for details Sunderland ~~
Click for details Swansea ?
Click for details Taunton $
Click for details Tiverton $
Click for details Tralee, Ireland ##
Click for details Trim #
Click for details Walsall $$
Click for details Warrington $$
Click for details Waterford Ireland ##
Click for details Welling #
Click for details Wells $
Click for details Westbury $
Click for details Whitby $
Click for details Winchester $
Click for details Wolverhampton $
Click for details Woolwich $
Click for details Wootton Bassett $
Click for details Wrexham $$
Click for details York $$










REGION

Channel Islands, England - Central, England - Northern, England - Southern, Ireland, Scotland, Wales

THE FEATURES PRESENT

Crimean Cannon Location, past or present

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