Queen Elizabeth's Pocket Pistol
Encyclopedia
Utrecht (city)
Utrecht city and municipality is the capital and most populous city of the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, and is the fourth largest city of the Netherlands with a population of 312,634 on 1 Jan 2011.Utrecht's ancient city centre features...
by Jan Tolhuys, before Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
came to the throne. The gun was presented to Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
by Maximiliaan van Egmond
Maximiliaan van Egmond
Maximilian of Egmont was Count of Buren and Leerdam, and Stadtholder of Friesland from 1540 until 1548. He was the son of Floris van Egmont whom he succeeded as count after his father's death in 1539....
, Count of Buren
Buren
Buren is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands. It is also a county; with the Dutch Monarch still holding the title "Count of Buren".- Population centres :...
and Stadtholder
Stadtholder
A Stadtholder A Stadtholder A Stadtholder (Dutch: stadhouder [], "steward" or "lieutenant", literally place holder, holding someones place, possibly a calque of German Statthalter, French lieutenant, or Middle Latin locum tenens...
of Friesland
Friesland
Friesland is a province in the north of the Netherlands and part of the ancient region of Frisia.Until the end of 1996, the province bore Friesland as its official name. In 1997 this Dutch name lost its official status to the Frisian Fryslân...
as a gift for his young daughter Elizabeth.
The cannon measures 24ft in length and fired 4.75 inch calibre cannon balls. The cannon is decorated with engravings of fruit, flowers, grotesque
Grotesque
The word grotesque comes from the same Latin root as "Grotto", meaning a small cave or hollow. The original meaning was restricted to an extravagant style of Ancient Roman decorative art rediscovered and then copied in Rome at the end of the 15th century...
s, and figures symbolizing Liberty, Victory and Fame. There is also a Tudor
Tudor dynasty
The Tudor dynasty or House of Tudor was a European royal house of Welsh origin that ruled the Kingdom of England and its realms, including the Lordship of Ireland, later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1485 until 1603. Its first monarch was Henry Tudor, a descendant through his mother of a legitimised...
coat of arms which includes a verse in Dutch, which translates in English as Break, tear every wall and rampart, Am I called, Across mountain and valley, pierces my ball, By me striken.
Between 1613 and 1622 the gun was used and was found to be capable of firing a 10lb ball a distance of 2000 yards. Before the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
it guarded the cliffs of Dover and propaganda of the time claimed it could fire a 12lb ball seven miles. Some even said its shot could reach France if the gun was properly maintained though this is an exaggeration; tests done in the 1970s with similar basilisks
Basilisk (cannon)
The basilisk was a very heavy bronze cannon employed during the Middle Ages. The barrel of a basilisk could weigh up to 4,000 lb and could have a calibre of up to 5 inches...
have a more realistic range of 1200 yards with a 10lb ball.
In 1644 King Charles I's
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
forces in Cornwall reported capturing from the Earl of Essex
Earl of Essex
Earl of Essex is a title that has been held by several families and individuals. The earldom was first created in the 12th century for Geoffrey II de Mandeville . Upon the death of the third earl in 1189, the title became dormant or extinct...
'49 Peeces of faire Brasse Ordnance (taken then and the day before) among which was the great Basilisco
Basilisk (cannon)
The basilisk was a very heavy bronze cannon employed during the Middle Ages. The barrel of a basilisk could weigh up to 4,000 lb and could have a calibre of up to 5 inches...
of Dover …' . This cannon has since been identified as Queen Elizabeth's Pocket Pistol. Later that year the gun saw action at the siege of Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
where it was recaptured by the Roundheads and used at the Siege of Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
.
The cannon can be seen at Dover Castle
Dover Castle
Dover Castle is a medieval castle in the town of the same name in the English county of Kent. It was founded in the 12th century and has been described as the "Key to England" due to its defensive significance throughout history...
on a replacement carriage made in the 18th century from captured French guns.
A copy of the cannon is displayed in Buren
Buren
Buren is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands. It is also a county; with the Dutch Monarch still holding the title "Count of Buren".- Population centres :...
The Netherlands next to the museum of the Dutch Royal Family. Museum Buren en Oranje (in Dutch).