Artillery:
Artillery refers to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons. These engines comprise specialised devices which use some form of stored energy to operate. Originally designed to breach fortifications they have evolved from nearly static installations intended to reduce a single obstacle to highly mobile weapons of great flexibility in which now reposes the greater portion of a modern army’s offensive capabilities.

Cannon:
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellants to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees, depending on their intended use on the battlefield. The word cannon is derived from several languages, in which the original definition can usually be translated as tube, cane, or reed. In modern times, cannon has fallen out of common usage, usually replaced by “guns” or “artillery”, if not a more specific term, such as “mortar” or “howitzer”. First used in China, cannon were among the earliest forms of gunpowder artillery. The first hand cannon appeared during the 1260 Battle of Ain Jalut between the Mamluks and Mongols in the Middle East.

Limber:
The limber was a two-wheeled carriage that carried an ammunition chest pulled by the men. It was connected directly to a gun or a caisson. In either case, the combination provided the equivalent of a four-wheeled vehicle, which distributed the load over two axles but was easier to maneuver on rough terrain than a four-wheeled wagon.

Field Gun:
A field gun is an artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march and when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances. This was as opposed to siege cannon or mortars which were too large to be moved quickly, and would be used only in a prolonged siege.

Gunpowder:
Gunpowder, also called black powder, is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate and was the first chemical explosive. Gunpowder can be made just using potassium nitrate and charcoal, but without the sulfur, the powder is not as strong. It burns rapidly, producing a volume of hot gas made up of carbon dioxide, water, and nitrogen, and a solid residue of potassium sulfide. Because of its burning properties and the amount of heat and gas volume that it generates, gunpowder has been widely used as a propellant in firearms and as a pyrotechnic composition in fireworks. The term gunpowder also refers broadly to any propellant powder.

Gunpowder Magazine:
A gunpowder magazine is a magazine (building) designed to store the explosive gunpowder in wooden barrels for safety. Most magazines were tended to be in remote and secure locations. Gunpowder magazines still survive at the Royal Gunpowder Factory, Waltham Abbey, including its Grand Magazine, first constructed in 1804; and rebuilt in 1867-8.

Sulfur-free Gunpowder:
4 KNO3 + C7H8O → 3 K2CO3 + 4 CO2 + 2 H2O + 3 N2

… Pounder:
From about the middle of the 17th century until the middle of the 19th century, measurement of the bore of large gunpowder weapons was usually expressed as the weight of its iron shot in pounds. Therefore artillery was classified into standard categories, with 3 pounders (pdr.), 4 pdr., 6 pdr., 8 pdr., 9 pdr, 12 pdr, 18 pdr., 24 pdr. and 32 pdr. being the most common sizes encountered; although larger and smaller sizes existed such as 42 and 68.