The Canon-obusier (literally "Shell-gun cannon", "gun-howitzer") was a type of cannon developed by France in the 1850s. The canon-obusier was a smoothbore cannon using either explosive shells, solid shot, or canister, and was therefore a vast improvement over previous cannon firing only solid and canister shot, such as the Gribeauval system.
The very first canon-obusiers were naval shell guns, invented in 1823 by Henri-Joseph Paixhans and introduced in the French Navy in 1842.[1] This invention was related to the origin of the development of the Dahlgren shell gun in the United States in 1849.
The French Army introduced the canon-obusier de 12 in 1853. The US version of this type of canon-obusier, commonly called the "12-pounder Napoleon Model 1857", was one of the most-used cannon in the American Civil War.[2][3] Over 1,100 of these "Napoleons" were manufactured by the Union, and 600 by the Confederacy.[4]
The canon-obusier de 12 followed rifled cannon of the Treuille de Beaulieu system which had been introduced in 1858.[5]
The term "Canon-obusier" remained in use after World War I to designate various gun howitzers of the French Army.
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