BL 6 inch 80 pounder gun
Encyclopedia
The BL 6 inch 80 pounder gun Mk I was the first generation of British 6-inch breechloading
naval gun after it switched from muzzle-loaders in 1880. They were originally designed to use the old gunpowder propellants.
The breech was rotated to the left to lock it, unlike standard British service BL guns made by the Royal Gun Factory which all rotated to the right to lock.
These guns are commonly referred to as "6-in. 81-cwt B.L.R." in contemporaneous publications such as Brassey's Naval Annual
. The official designation in British ordnance manuals was "80-pounder BL" to differentiate it and its ammunition from the later Marks of 6-inch BL guns which fired 100-pound projectiles.
The gun equipped some gunboats of the Australian colonial navies :
Also on armed harbour vessels in Victoria :
Rifled breech loader
A rifled breech loader is an artillery piece which, unlike the smooth-bore cannon and rifled muzzle loader which preceded it, has rifling in the barrel and is loaded from the breech at the rear of the gun....
naval gun after it switched from muzzle-loaders in 1880. They were originally designed to use the old gunpowder propellants.
Mk I 80-pounder
Mk I of 80 cwt (4 tons) as originally built was an Elswick Ordnance design which was weakly made and fired only an 80-pound projectile. It consisted of a steel barrel with wrought-iron coils shrunk over it. A few guns were issued to the Royal Navy but most were replaced by the later versions. Mk I guns remaining in British service were rebuilt with "chase hoops" added around the barrel for strengthening, and the barrel was shortened by 3 inches to keep its centre of gravity at the trunnions. This resulted in the 81 cwt Mk I gun.The breech was rotated to the left to lock it, unlike standard British service BL guns made by the Royal Gun Factory which all rotated to the right to lock.
These guns are commonly referred to as "6-in. 81-cwt B.L.R." in contemporaneous publications such as Brassey's Naval Annual
Brassey's Naval Annual
The Naval Annual was a book that sought to bring together a large amount of information on naval subjects, which had hitherto been obtainable only by consulting numerous publications and chiefly from foreign sources...
. The official designation in British ordnance manuals was "80-pounder BL" to differentiate it and its ammunition from the later Marks of 6-inch BL guns which fired 100-pound projectiles.
80-pounder in Australian colonial service
Australian colonies and New Zealand purchased various 6-inch guns direct from the manufacturers, usually Elswick Ordnance Company, and these versions do not correspond directly with the official "Marks" as adopted by the British government. Specifications of guns purchased by Australian colonies are similar to those of the original British Mk I 80 cwt gun, firing an 80-pound projectile.The gun equipped some gunboats of the Australian colonial navies :
- HMQS PalumaHMQS PalumaHMQS Paluma was a flat-iron gunboat operated by the Queensland Maritime Defence Force and later the Royal Australian Navy...
- HMQS GayundahHMQS GayundahHMQS Gayundah was a flat-iron gunboat operated by the Queensland Maritime Defence Force and later the Royal Australian Navy . She entered service in 1884 and was decommissioned and sold in 1921. She then served as sand and gravel barge for Brisbane Gravel Pty Ltd until 1950, when she was scrapped...
- HMCS ProtectorHMAS Protector (1884)HMCS/HMAS Protector was a large flat-iron gunboat commissioned and purchased by the South Australian government in 1884, for the purpose of defending the local coastline against possible attacks in the aftermath of the ‘Russian scare', of 1870s...
- HMVS VictoriaHMVS Victoria (II)HMVS Victoria was a gunboat that served with the Victorian Naval Forces and Western Australia before being sold into private use.-Design:This class was built to a type D flat-iron gunboat design from builders Armstrong Mitchell and Co....
of 1884 - HMVS AlbertHMVS AlbertHMVS Albert was a gunboat of the Victorian Naval Forces which was requisitioned for service with the Royal Australian Navy during World War I.-Operational history:HMVS Albert was built by Armstrong, Mitchell and Co. of Elswick, United Kingdom...
of 1884
Also on armed harbour vessels in Victoria :
- Gannet : Tug
- Batman : hopper barge / dredge
- Fawkner : hopper barge / dredge
Surviving examples
- A 4-ton 80-pounder gun at Fort Glanville, Adelaide, South Australia
- A 4-ton 80-pounder gun in The Gardens, Bundaberg, Queensland Australia
- A restored gun from HMAS ProtectorHMAS Protector (1884)HMCS/HMAS Protector was a large flat-iron gunboat commissioned and purchased by the South Australian government in 1884, for the purpose of defending the local coastline against possible attacks in the aftermath of the ‘Russian scare', of 1870s...
is outside the Naval Reserve Cadets building in Jenkins Street, Birkenhead, Adelaide