A brief essay on the development of Spanish artillery in the last decades of the 16th century, taking a cue from two bronze pieces found on the wreck of Nuestra Señora de la Mercedes (original) (raw)
Transformation of military technology in Portugal: the impact of the Iberian Union on artillery
The First World Empire. Portugal, War and Military Revolution, H. Carvalhal, A. Murteira, R. Lee de Jesus (ed.), Routledge, London, 2021
This paper studies how the annexation of Portugal by the Spanish Habsburgs between 1580 and 1640 impacted its military technology, and especially artillery. By focusing on the documentation from the Spanish artillery administration, it highlights the strategic role that Portugal, and especially Lisbon, came to play in the military organisation of the Spanish monarchy. Soon after the annexation, the royal Council of War in Madrid took over the leadership of artillery matters regarding Portugal and integrated it into the wide administrative network of the Habsburg monarchy. By entering the orbit of a state which, according to Parker, was a pioneer actor of the military revolution, Portugal gained new institutional structures and benefitted from a widely transnational circulation of knowledge and experts. The artillery personnel of Portugal soon included seasoned Castilian officers, Italian engineers, as well as gunners and gun-makers coming from the four corners of Europe, while some Portuguese technicians got involved in Spanish imperial dynamics, being sent to Cuba with the mission to create a new gun-foundry. The transfer of technology and knowledge was strengthen by the implementation of artillery lessons taught by Italian and Castilian masters, on the model of the schools of the gunners that the Spanish monarchy opened in other artillery hubs such as Milan, Palermo, Burgos and Seville. Article available in OPENACCESS : https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-edit/10.4324/9780429346965-11/transformation-military-technology-portugal-brice-cossart
EGA: Expresión Gráfica Arquitectónica, 2018
Un estudio profundo de las expresiones arquitectónicas del gótico en los territorios de la Corona de Aragón, tanto españoles como del sur de Francia, sardos, sicilianos o napolitanos, y que voluntariamente se aleje de una lectura basada en los límites nacionales actuales permite descubrir la existencia de unas características estéticas, tipológicas y constructivas, en definitiva, una esencia común a todas ellas que trasciende las diferencias y particularidades locales y que denominamos gótico mediterráneo; más allá de la presencia común en todas las variantes del gótico de unos estilemas formales y decorativos, el gótico mediterráneo tiene una personalidad propia que se extiende, en las zonas mediterráneas de las actuales España, Francia e Italia, unos territorios con unas condiciones climáticas y físicas con grandes similitudes que mantuvieron una estrecha relación política, económica y cultural durante siglos dentro de la estructura de la Corona de Aragón. Estas relaciones se plasman en unas tipologías arquitectónicas, ya sean religiosas, civiles o militares, que se extienden por todo el territorio de la Corona y dotan de un sentido artístico y constructivo unitario a la arquitectura mediterránea de los siglos XIV y XV. An in-depth study of the Gothic architectural expressions in the territories of the Crown of Aragon, whether in Spain, southern France, Sardinia, Sicily or Naples and voluntarily away from a take based on current national borders, allows for the discovery of the existence of a number of aesthetic, typological and constructive characteristics. In short, a common essence to all of them, which transcends the local differences and particularities, called Mediterranean Gothic. Beyond the common presence, in all the variants of the Gothic style, of formal and decorative features, Mediterranean Gothic has a personality of its own that extends throughout the Mediterranean areas of present Spain, France and Italy. These territories share climatic and topographic conditions and maintained a close political, economic and cultural relationship for centuries within the Crown of Aragon. These relationships are embodied by architectural typologies, whether religious, civil or military, that extend throughout the territory of the Crown and provide a unitary artistic and constructive sense to the Mediterranean architecture of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
(XIII) PHILLIPS, Carla - Spanish Shipbuilding in the Late 17th Century
Cuardernos de Estudios Borjanos, vol. L/LI, dir. Manuel Gracia Rivas, Borja, 2008.
Los tratados sobre configuraciones ideales para galeones y otros barcos grandes durante la época de los veleros no necesariamente nos dan mucha información sobre las naves que existían en la realidad. Podemos examinar la inter-acción de teoría y práctica mediante la comprobación de la historia de dos de los últimos galeones construidos para la Corona Española a finales del siglo XVII: el San Joaquín y el San José. Este estudio revela que su diseño y construcción evolucionó a través de una serie de negociaciones durante el transcurso de varios años, que necesitaban tanto informes escritos como reuniones cara-a-cara. Los participantes en las negociaciones incluyeron funcionarios reales, teóricos, constructores de naves, y maestros carpinteros navales. Mediante el estudio de la construcción de estos dos galeones, aprendemos no solamente de las naves, sino también de cómo aquel gobierno funcionaba al final de la época de los Habsburgo.
Early modern wrought-iron artillery macroanalyses of instruments of enforcement
Materials Characterization, 1992
Wrought-iron artillery was introduced to European and Near Eastern armies and navies in the 14th Century. Between ca. A.D. 1350 and 1550, it flourished, and became obsolete. This class of early gunpowder weaponry was relied on extensively throughout this crucial period as one of the prime instruments of political policy enforcement. Detailed studies of the variation, construction, composition, and capabilities of these critical weapons systems have only begun within the last 15 years. Relatively few wrought-iron cannon are known to exist worldwide; of these, the largest single assemblage was discovered at a shipwreck site in the northeastern Caribbean. Macroanalyses of specific examples of these guns and associated projectiles from the Molasses Reef Wreck have produced evidence of their method of manufacture and generated new ideas regarding their development and employment. A brief historical background on the innovation of wrought-iron artillery, and the difficulties encountered in reconciling historical description with present-day observation and wisdom on the subject, are presented. Last, hypothetical construction techniques, utilized in a selected specimen from the Molasses Reef Wreck assemblage, are discussed in detail.
Articles Spanish Naval Ordnance in the Second Industrial Revolution
The period known as the 'Second Industrial Revolution,' roughly from 1859 to 1883, affected the world's navies no less than any other human endeavor. The wooden warship that had held sway from the 16th century gave way to iron hulls and iron armor. Sail power gave way to steam engines. And in the field of ordnance, smooth-bore cannon firing spherical solid shot or explosive shell were superseded by rifled cannon-Great Guns-firing elongated shot and shell to greater ranges with greater accuracy. All of the naval Powers faced the same two problems; which new technologies would be accepted and developed, and what to do with their stocks of cast-iron smoothbore guns. As a 'medium' Power, the choices made by Spain, coupled with a lack of industrialization, led to limited but brilliant successes, but ultimate failure.
Defensive Architecture of the Mediterranean. XV to XVIII Centuries. Vol. 2
In 1489, after the surrender of the coastal towns of Almuñecar and Salobreña during the Granada War (1482-1492), the Catholic Monarchs immediately set about repairing and improving the military defences of the castles situated in both towns. Due to the important efficiency displayed by the pyro-ballistic artil-lery during that war in order to attack and seize the fortresses and towns of the Nasrid Kingdom, the old Andalusi walls were unable to withstand the attacks, therefore the monarchs, together with the captains of their artillery immediately began to adapt the fortifications that had been conquered to make a stand against the new weapons. Basically this led to the construction of artillery barriers based on the experience of those fortresses constructed or adapted during the 15th century in Castile. Particular reference was taken from the important construction of the Castle of la Mota in Medina del Campo. In this article there will be a study of the features of the artillery barriers built in both fortresses.