Who cast the Tsar's cannon? Tsar Cannon: history of creation, description, legends

The poet Alexander Roslavlev even ranked the famous monument to Alexander III by Trubetskoy alongside the Tsar Cannon:

Third wild toy

For the Russian serf:

There was a Tsar Bell, a Tsar Cannon,

And now the king...

But, alas, our venerable historians and dissident joke-tellers are wrong all around. Firstly, the Tsar Cannon fired, and secondly, this weapon is not a cannon at all.

But I'll start from the beginning. The Tsar Cannon was cast by the famous Russian master Andrei Chokhov (until 1917 he was listed as Chekhov) on the orders of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. A giant cannon weighing 2,400 pounds (39,312 kg) was cast in 1586 at the Moscow Cannon Yard. The length of the Tsar Cannon is 5345 mm, the outer diameter of the barrel is 1210 mm, and the diameter of the thickening at the muzzle is 1350 mm.

Currently, the Tsar Cannon is on a decorative cast-iron carriage, and next to it lie decorative cast-iron cannonballs, which were cast in 1834 in St. Petersburg at the Berda iron foundry. It is clear that it is physically impossible to either shoot from this cast-iron carriage or use cast-iron cannonballs - the Tsar Cannon will be smashed to smithereens! Documents about the testing of the Tsar Cannon or its use in combat conditions have not been preserved, which gave rise to lengthy disputes about its purpose. Most historians and military men in the 19th and early 20th centuries believed that the Tsar Cannon was a shotgun, that is, a weapon designed to fire shot, which in the 16th-17th centuries. /bm9icg===>ekah consisted of small stones. A minority of experts generally exclude the possibility of combat use of the gun, believing that it was made specifically to frighten foreigners, especially ambassadors Crimean Tatars. Let us remember that in 1571 Khan Devlet Giray burned Moscow.

In the 18th - early 20th centuries, the Tsar Cannon was called a shotgun in all official documents. And only the Bolsheviks in the 1930s decided to increase its rank for propaganda purposes and began to call it a cannon.

The secret of the Tsar Cannon was revealed only in 1980, when a large truck crane removed it from its carriage and placed it on a huge trailer. Then the powerful KrAZ transported the Tsar Cannon to Serpukhov, where the cannon was repaired at the military unit No. 42708 plant. At the same time, a number of specialists from the Artillery Academy named after. Dzerzhinsky examined and measured it. For some reason the report was not published, but from the surviving draft materials it becomes clear that the Tsar Cannon... was not a cannon!

The highlight of the gun is its channel. At a distance of 3190 mm, it has the shape of a cone, the initial diameter of which is 900 mm and the final diameter is 825 mm. Then comes the charging chamber with a reverse taper - with an initial diameter of 447 mm and a final diameter (at the breech) of 467 mm. The length of the chamber is 1730 mm, and the bottom is flat.

So this is a classic bombard!

Bombards first appeared at the end of the 14th century. The name "bombard" comes from Latin words bombus (thunder sound) and arder (to burn). The first bombards were made of iron and had screw-mounted chambers. For example, in 1382, in the city of Ghent (Belgium), the “Mad Margaret” bombard was made, named in memory of the Countess of Flanders Margaret the Cruel. The caliber of the bombard is 559 mm, the barrel length is 7.75 calibers (klb), and the bore length is 5 klb. The weight of the gun is 11 tons. “Mad Margarita” fired stone cannonballs weighing 320 kg. The bombarda consists of two layers: the inner one, consisting of longitudinal strips welded together, and the outer one, made of 41 iron hoops welded together and with the inner layer. A separate screw chamber consists of one layer of disks welded together and is equipped with sockets into which a lever was inserted when screwing it in and out.

Loading and aiming large bombards took about a day. Therefore, during the siege of the city of Pisa in 1370, every time the besiegers prepared to fire a shot, the besieged went to the opposite end of the city. The besiegers, taking advantage of this, rushed to attack.

The bombard's charge was no more than 10% of the core's weight. There were no trunnions or carriages. The guns were laid on wooden blocks and frames, and piles were driven in behind or brick walls were erected for support. Initially, the elevation angle did not change. In the 15th century, primitive lifting mechanisms began to be used and bombards were cast from copper.

Please note that the Tsar Cannon does not have trunnions, with the help of which the gun is given an elevation angle. In addition, it has an absolutely smooth rear section of the breech, with which it, like other bombards, rested against a stone wall or frame.

Defender of the Dardanelles

By the middle of the 15th century, the most powerful siege artillery was… Turkish Sultan. Thus, during the siege of Constantinople in 1453, the Hungarian foundry maker Urban cast the Turks a copper bombard with a caliber of 24 inches (610 mm), which fired stone cannonballs weighing about 20 pounds (328 kg). It took 60 bulls and 100 people to transport it to the position. To eliminate the rollback, the Turks built a stone wall behind the gun. The rate of fire of this bombard was 4 shots per day. By the way, the rate of fire of large-caliber Western European bombards was approximately the same. Just before the capture of Constantinople, a 24-inch bombard exploded. At the same time, its designer Urban himself died. The Turks appreciated large-caliber bombards. Already in 1480, during the battles on the island of Rhodes, they used 24-35-inch caliber bombards (610-890 mm). The casting of such giant bombards required, as indicated in ancient documents, 18 days.

It is curious that bombards of the 15th-16th centuries. eks in Turkey were in service until the middle of the 19th century. Thus, on March 1, 1807, during the crossing of the Dardanelles by the English squadron of Admiral Duckworth, a marble core of 25 inches (635 mm) caliber weighing 800 pounds (244 kg) hit the lower deck of the ship Windsor Castle and ignited several caps with gunpowder, as a result there was a terrible explosion. 46 people were killed and wounded. In addition, many sailors jumped overboard in fright and drowned. The Aktiv ship was hit by the same cannonball and punched a huge hole in the side above the waterline. Several people could stick their heads through this hole.

In 1868, over 20 huge bombards still stood on the forts defending the Dardanelles. There is information that during the Dardanelles operation of 1915, the English battleship Agamemnon was hit by a 400-kilogram stone core. Of course, it was unable to penetrate the armor and only amused the team.

Let's compare the Turkish 25-inch (630 mm) copper bombard, cast in 1464, which is currently kept in the museum in Woolwich (London), with our Tsar Cannon. The weight of the Turkish bombard is 19 tons, and the total length is 5232 mm. The outer diameter of the barrel is 894 mm. The length of the cylindrical part of the channel is 2819 mm. Chamber length - 2006 mm. The bottom of the chamber is rounded. The bombard fired stone cannonballs weighing 309 kg, the gunpowder charge weighed 22 kg.

Bombarda once defended the Dardanelles. As you can see, in appearance and in the design of the channel it is very similar to the Tsar Cannon. The main thing and fundamental difference is that the Turkish bombard has a screw-in breech. Apparently, the Tsar Cannon was made based on the model of such bombards.

Tsar Shotgun

So, the Tsar Cannon is a bombard designed to fire stone cannonballs. The weight of the stone core of the Tsar Cannon was about 50 pounds (819 kg), and a cast iron core of this caliber weighs 120 pounds (1.97 tons). As a shotgun, the Tsar Cannon was extremely ineffective. At the cost of the cost, instead, it was possible to produce 20 small shotguns, which would take much less time to load - not a day, but only 1-2 minutes. Let me note that in the official inventory “At the Moscow Arsenal of Artillery” # for 1730 there were 40 copper and 15 cast iron shotguns. Let's pay attention to their calibers: 1500 pounds - 1 (this is the Tsar Cannon), and then follow the calibers: 25 pounds - 2, 22 pounds - 1, 21 pounds - 3, etc. The largest number of shotguns, 11, are in the 2-pound gauge.

And yet she shot

Who and why wrote the Tsar Cannon into shotguns? The fact is that in Russia, all the old guns located in the fortresses, with the exception of mortars, over time were automatically transferred to shotguns, that is, in the event of a siege of the fortress, they had to shoot shot (stone), and later - cast iron grapeshot at the infantry marching for the assault. It was inappropriate to use old guns to fire cannonballs or bombs: what if the barrel would blow apart, and the new guns had much better ballistic data. So the Tsar Cannon was recorded in shotguns, in late XIX- at the beginning of the 20th century, the military forgot about the procedures in smooth-bore fortress artillery, and civilian historians did not know at all and, based on the name “shotgun,” they decided that the Tsar Cannon was to be used exclusively as an anti-assault weapon for firing “stone shot.”

The dispute over whether the Tsar Cannon fired was settled in 1980 by experts from the Academy. Dzerzhinsky. They examined the bore of the gun and, based on a number of signs, including the presence of particles of burnt gunpowder, concluded that the Tsar Cannon had been fired at least once. After the Tsar Cannon was cast and finished at the Cannon Yard, it was dragged to the Spassky Bridge and laid on the ground next to the Peacock cannon.# To move the cannon, ropes were tied to eight brackets on its barrel, and 200 were harnessed to these ropes at the same time horses, and they rolled the cannon, which lay on huge logs - rollers.

Initially, the “Tsar” and “Peacock” guns lay on the ground near the bridge leading to the Spasskaya Tower, and the Kashpirov cannon lay near the Zemsky Prikaz, located where the Historical Museum is now located. In 1626, they were lifted from the ground and installed on log frames tightly packed with earth. These platforms were called roskats. One of them, with the Tsar Cannon and the Peacock, was placed at the Execution Ground, the other, with the Kashpirova cannon, at the Nikolsky Gate. In 1636, the wooden rolls were replaced with stone ones, inside which warehouses and shops selling wine were built.

After the “Narva embarrassment,” when the tsar’s army lost all siege and regimental artillery, Peter I ordered new cannons to be urgently cast. The king decided to obtain the copper necessary for this by melting down bells and old guns. According to the “nominal decree”, it was “ordered to pour the Peacock cannon into cannon and mortar casting, which is on the roskat in China near the Execution Ground; the Kashpirov cannon, which is near the new Money Dvor, where the Zemsky order was located; the Echidna cannon, near the village of Voskresensky; the Krechet cannon with a ten-pound cannonball; "Nightingale" cannon with a 6-pound cannonball, which is in China on the square."

Peter, due to his lack of education, did not spare the most ancient Moscow casting tools and made an exception only for the largest tools. Among them, naturally, was the Tsar Cannon, as well as two mortars cast by Andrei Chokhov, which are currently in the Artillery Museum in St. Petersburg.

The most outstanding gunsmith of this time was the cannon master Andrei Chokhov. In his youth, he was a student of Kashpir Ganusov, a German master who worked at the court of Ivan the Terrible. Among Ganusov’s students, only Andrei Chokhov managed to stand out from the mass of students with his talents. In those days, apprenticeship lasted more than 10 years. Since 1590, Chokhov has already occupied a leading position among Moscow foundries and casts cannons.

Chokhov cast his most famous weapon during the reign of Fyodor Ioannovich, in 1586. This is the famous Tsar Cannon - a 40-ton giant with an almost meter caliber.

It took 200 horses to move it from the Cannon Yard to Red Square. True, the Tsar Cannon received its name not for its unprecedented size, but for the cast image of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich on its barrel. By the way, this is also the first portrait bas-relief in the history of Russian fine art.

The inscription on the barrel of the Tsar Cannon reads:
By the command of the pious and Christ-loving Tsar and Grand Duke Fyodor Ivanovich, the sovereign autocrat of all great Russia under his pious and Christ-loving queen, Grand Duchess Irina.
This cannon was quickly fired in the most famous reigning city of Moscow in the summer of 7094, in the third year of its reign. The cannon was made by cannon littsian Ondrei Chokhov.

Tsar Cannon. Photo 1904

It is known that the Tsar Cannon never fired. However, this is quite a combat weapon, not a decorative one. Its second name was Shotgun, and it was intended for firing stone shot, and not those huge cannonballs that are now located near it. The Tsar Cannon is still ready for battle today - even if you load it now and it falls. Just first you need to remove it from the carriage (otherwise it will tear it off) and dig it into the ground.

In 1588, Andrei Chokhov once again confirmed his reputation as the best artillery master of his time by casting a 100-barreled cannon that fired cannonballs the size of a goose egg. No country in the world had anything like this at that time. For a long time This weapon guarded the Moskvoretsky Gate of Kitay-Gorod.

Your tall ones fighting qualities Russian artillery of the 16th century confirmed this more than once. During Livonian War three of its salvos were enough to bring down the walls of Polotsk, then still Polish-Lithuanian. And during the invasion of the Crimean horde of Kazi-Girey on Moscow in 1591, the fire of Russian artillery instilled such fear in the Tatars that they fled in panic and never again appeared under the walls of the mother throne.

In these and many other glorious victories of Russian weapons, considerable credit goes to Andrei Chokhov, who devoted 60 years of his life to the cannon business.

Andrei Chokhov died in 1629.

Many tools cast by Andrei Chokhov have survived to this day thanks to the historical decree of Peter I, which marked the beginning of the collection and preservation of “memorable” tools.

24 hryvnia (152 mm) siege arquebus "Skoropeya". Bronze, weight 3669 kg. 1590

"Aspid" and decoration detail. 1590

30-pound siege mortar, 1605

Pishchal. 1629 Apparently, this is the last weapon of A. Chokhov

P.S.
Chokhov learned to cast bells when he was already a famous cannon foundry. In 1594, he cast the “Swan” bell, weighing 625 pounds, for the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, and five years later, he also cast the “Godunovsky” bell, weighing 1,850 pounds, for the Lavra (the bell was broken in 1930).

« Swan»

In 1600, Chokhov cast a bell weighing 2,450 pounds for the Moscow Kremlin. He died in one of the fires of the early 17th century. Now on a pedestal in the Kremlin there is a bell cast by Mikhail Motorin. In addition to this bell, Andrei Chokhov cast several more bells for the Moscow Kremlin. Three of them have survived: a small bell without a name (88 cm high), the “Deaf” bell (100 poods), cast by him together with Ignatius Maximov in 1621.

"Deaf"

and “Reut” (1200 pounds,) 1622.

"Reut"

Chokhov's "autograph" on "Reut"

“Reut” is located on the Assumption Belfry, the other two Chokhov bells are on Ivan the Great.

7.1. The Tsar Cannon and other old cannons in the Moscow Kremlin

Let us now turn to the famous Tsar Cannon, standing in the Moscow Kremlin, fig. 7.1–7.3. The 40-ton cannon was made by Russian craftsman Andrei Mokhov during the reign of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. This is indicated by the inscription on the top of its vent, Fig. 7.4. Caliber of the Tsar Cannon - 890, fig. 7.5.

Rice. 7.1. Tsar cannon, cast by Andrei Chokhov in the 16th century. Today it stands in the Moscow Kremlin. Taken from, p. 33.

Rice. 7.2. Tsar Cannon. Photo from 2003.

Rice. 7.3. Tsar Cannon. Photo from 2003.

Rice. 7.4. The 40-ton Tsar cannon was cast by master Andrei Chokhov during the reign of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich. This is indicated by the inscription on the top of its vent. Photo from 2003.

Rice. 7.5. Caliber Tsar Cannon - 890. Photo from 2003.

N.V. Gordeev, author interesting book“Tsar Cannon” reports: “The first guns appeared in Russia in the 14th century,” p. 7. The compiler and author of the book “The Moscow Kremlin in Antiquity and Now,” S. Bartenev, wrote: “The walls and archers of the Kremlin in the 16th century... were furnished with fortress artillery of the most diverse composition, among which were cast iron, iron and copper guns, ranging from the most small, firing small bullets... and ending with guns of 6 - 8-pound caliber (2400 g and 3200 g), placed one on each floor of the tower. In addition, on the ground below lay HUGE MONSTERS, GIANT BOMBARDS,” vol. 1, p. 40. Quote. by , p. 8.

Some preserved ancient Russian cannons of the 16th–18th centuries can be seen today near the building of the Kremlin Arsenal, fig. 7.6. It turns out that the Russian army of the 16th–17th centuries was armed with large TROJAN GUN. That is, the cannons on which the kings of “ancient” TROY were depicted. One of these large cannons, made by the famous 16th century master Andrei Chokhov, is very interesting. N.V. Gordeev reports: “In 1590, a cannon called “TROILUS” was made, i.e. “TROJAN KING”. The cannon barrel is cast from bronze... On the breech of the barrel there is an inscription: “By the grace of God, by the command of the Tsar and Grand Duke Fyodor Ivanovich of All Russia, this arquebus “TROIL” was made in the summer of 7098 (1590). Made by Andrey Chokhov." In the center of the tower is a figure of the TROJAN KING with a banner in his left hand and a sword in his right... The barrel caliber is 195 mm, the weight of the gun is 7 thousand kg. The total length of the barrel is 4350 mm", p. 22. In Fig. 7.7 shows a detail of this cannon “with the image of the TROJAN KING”, p. 21. Let us recall that Troilus is the name of one of the most famous Trojan kings, p. 230. He was the son of the no less famous Trojan king Priam, who ruled the “most ancient” Troy during the era of the Trojan War.

Rice. 7.6. The Arsenal building in Moscow Krem, near the Trinity Tower. Ancient cannons - Russian and foreign - are displayed along its wall. Moreover, for some reason Russian guns are placed in places where access to outsiders is prohibited. You can freely consider only foreign guns located closer to the Trinity Tower. An ignorant visitor may even get the impression that the “best” guns worthy of being displayed in the Kremlin are foreign-made. Perhaps this was done on purpose. Photo from 2003.

Rice. 7.7. Large Moscow cannon "Troilus", cast in the 16th century. “Detail with the image of the TROJAN KING. Gun "Troilus". Master Andrei Chokhov”, p. 21. Taken from, p. 21.

There are several such TROJAN cannons preserved in Moscow. Here's another similar big one cannon XVII century, also called "TROILUS". N.V. Gordeev writes: “The “Troilus” cannon was cast from copper in 1685. The barrel bore is smooth... On the breech of the barrel there is a cast inscription: “By the grace of God, by the command of the great sovereigns of the tsars and grand dukes Ivan Alekseevich, Peter Alekseevich, all great and small and white Russia of the autocrats was cast this squeal is called TROILUS, ON WHICH THE squeal at the treasury is depicted the TROJAN KING...” The torel is flat, with a cast relief image of a figure sitting on a throne. On the sides of the figure there is an inscription: “TROILUS arquebus.” Caliber 187 mm, weight 6438 kg, total length 3500 mm. The cannon stands on a decorative cast-iron carriage at the southern façade of the Arsenal, on the left side of the entrance arch,” p. 29. A detail of this large Troilus cannon, cast by master Yakov Dubina, is shown in Fig. 7.8.

Rice. 7.8. Another large Moscow cannon "Troilus", cast in the 17th century. “Detail with the image of the TROJAN KING. Gun "Troilus". Master Yakov Dubina. 1685" , With. 28. Taken from, p. 28.

Within the framework of Scaligerian-Romanov history, all this looks extremely strange. On the one hand, Russian foundry masters of the 16th–17th centuries, who cast large Russian cannons, naturally depicted the great Moscow tsars on the cannons. For example, on the famous Tsar Cannon, cast by Andrei Chokhov in 1586, “on the right side of the barrel there is a cast image of a galloping horseman. This is a portrait of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, in whose presence the cannon was cast. Above the image is the inscription: By the grace of God, Tsar and Grand Duke Fyodor Ivanovich, Sovereign and Autocrat of all Great Russia,” p. 14.

On the other hand, other large Russian cannons depict, and DIRECTLY name, the supposedly “ancient” Trojan kings who reigned in distant Troy supposedly about THREE THOUSAND YEARS AGO. As historians assure us today.

In the 16th century, a large cannon called “ACHILLES” was cast in Rus', p. 20. Today she is in St. Petersburg. Once again we see a Russian cannon with an “antique” name. Let us note that according to our research, the presence of the name ACHILLES on old Russian cannons is quite understandable and natural.

We have given only three examples of Russian-“antique” cannons, which we took from a very small book. We do not know how many similar guns were cast and what percentage of them have survived.

Our reconstruction explains this picture well. Most likely, Russian cannon masters, even in the 17th century, not to mention the 16th century, knew well or remembered that Istanbul was ruled by an Ottoman-Ataman sultan, an ally of Rus'-Horde. Therefore, on some of the huge Russian-Horde guns we see images of the Russian Horde king-khans of the 16th century. And on others - their Ottoman allies - the Ataman Sultans. As we showed in the book “Empire,” the Russian-Horde and Ottoman-Ataman troops fought together in that era, side by side. Being troops of two components a single Great = “Mongol” Empire. Although in the 17th century, after the collapse of the Empire, Rus'-Horde and Ottomania = Atamania were no longer as closely connected as before, but the memory of the recent unity was, as we see, quite strong. In the 17th century, already under the first Romanovs, TROJAN cannons were still being cast in Rus'.

Let's give another example. In Fig. 7.9 and fig. 7.10 shows a large Russian cannon called "New PERS", p. 36. A “Persian” is depicted wearing a turban. On the smooth breech of the cannon there is an inscription cast: “By the permission of God, by the grace of the great sovereigns and kings and the great princes John Alekseevich Peter Alekseevich... this arquebus, called “NOVI PERS”, was cast in the reigning city of Moscow in the summer of 7194 (1686) ...”, p. 33. The caliber of the gun is 180 mm, weight 5800 kg, total length 4 meters 90 cm. Along the edge of the turret there is an inscription: “The arquech named PERS of the summer of 7194...”, p. 33. In 1969, the Persian gun stood at the southern façade of the Arsenal, to the left of the entrance arch, p. 33.

Rice. 7.9. A large Moscow cannon called the “New Persian”, cast in the 17th century. Master Martyan Osipov. 1685 Taken from, p. 36.

Rice. 7.10. General view of the New Persian gun. Taken from, p. 34.

As we have repeatedly written in our books on chronology, in the old chronicles PERSIA (P-RUSSIA), apparently, was often called White Rus'. It is known that Russian Cossacks used to wear turbans. Therefore, “Persian in a turban” in that era could mean “White-Russian Cossack in a turban.” The image of which on a Russian cannon is more than natural. Let us note that previously White Russia was called not only Belarus in the modern sense, but much larger areas of Russia. In particular, the city of Moscow is located on the lands of old White Rus',,.

By the way, it is possible that before the “New Persian” there was another Russian cannon called simply “PERS”. The “new Persian” gun could have been named after the famous old gun with the same name. By adding the word "new".

Experts in the history of cannons note that the giant Russian cannons of the 16th century era clearly show the leading role of the Russian army at that time. The Tsar Cannon (16th century, caliber 890) that has survived to this day was perhaps one of the largest of its time, but it turns out there were other huge Russian cannons quite comparable in size. And there were a lot of them. Professor M.I. Falkovsky in his book “Moscow and the History of Technology” writes that “by its type, the Tsar Cannon is a mortar... In the 16th century, of course, there was no caliber 890 in ANY COUNTRY. BUT THE RELATIVE SIZES OF THE TSAR CANnon DO NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM OTHER MORTARS EVEN OF THE 17th-18th CENTURIES.” Quote by , p. 14.

“A lot of large cannons were made by other masters of cannon casting... BEFORE CHOKHOV’S TSAR-CANNON, HUGE GUNS WERE KNOWN IN MOSCOW, WHICH ALSO BEARED THIS NAME... So, in 1488, master Pavel Debosis cast a cannon that was called the Tsar-Cannon. In 1554, a cast iron cannon with a caliber of 650 mm was cast in Moscow (recall that the caliber of the Tsar Cannon was 890 mm - Auto.) and weighing 1200 pounds, and in 1555 - a cast iron cannon with a caliber of 600 mm, weighing 1020 pounds. The fact that there were other huge guns in Moscow is evidenced not only by written sources, but also by plans and drawings of Moscow and the Moscow Kremlin, drawn up in the 16th–17th centuries, and sketches by travelers and members of foreign embassies. The plans of the Moscow Kremlin of the 16th century show that the cannons were located at the main passage gates of the Kremlin - Spassky and Nikolsky, as well as on Red Square. These guns have not survived,” p. 18.

So, it turns out, there were enough guns or mortars comparable in caliber to the Tsar Cannon in the Russian army of that era.

By the way, the Tsar Cannon was designed to FIRE WITH BAPPOINTS, NOT CALLS. This is a mortar. So the four huge cores lying in front of her in the Kremlin today, stacked in a pyramid, have nothing to do with her. According to N.V. Gordeev, “these are DECORATIVE cast iron garnets, hollow inside. The thickness of their walls is 9 cm.” , With. 17–18.

“In ancient times, the Tsar Cannon was also called the “Russian Shotgun”, since it was designed to fire “shot,” i.e., BAPshot. The Tsar Cannon did not have to participate in hostilities (as historians believe today - Auto.), however, there is no doubt that it was cast precisely as a military weapon, and not for purely decorative purposes... M.I. Falkovsky believes that, expecting the invasion of the Tatars and building NEW fortifications, Muscovites would hardly have started manufacturing a “fake” cannon weighing 2,400 pounds. A number of other authors adhere to the same conclusion,” p. 16. Isn’t the opinion instilled in us today by historians - that the Tsar Cannon was a “sham” and was cast only as a royal whim, to satisfy “Moscow vanity” - part of the propaganda campaign of the Romanov historical school? The purpose of which was and is to consign history to oblivion Great Empire. After all, evidence of a completely different kind has been preserved about Russian cannons. For example, the following.

“Andrei Chokhov cast many guns. Thus, guns with his name took part in all the campaigns of Ivan the Terrible, and in particular to Livonia. Under Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, the famous master cast the Tsar Cannon and a WHOLE RANGE OF OTHER HUGE GUNS, including an interesting mortar with the name False Dmitry (!? - Auth.). ALL CHOKHOV’S GUNS ARE CHARACTERIZED BY COLOSSAL SIZES, EXCELLENT FINISH AND EXCELLENT WORK QUALITY,” p. 13.

“At this time (in the 16th century - Auto.) a number of guns were cast. So, for example, in 1588, Chokhov cast a 100-GUN ARM from copper, i.e., a weapon consisting of a HUNDRED TRUNKS. The caliber of each barrel is 50 mm. The casting of this arquebus was, of course, the second miracle of foundry art after the Tsar Cannon,” p. 18.

“In the 40s and 50s of our century, many round stone cores with a diameter of 15 to 30, and in some cases up to 60–70 cm, were collected on the walls and towers of the Kremlin and on the site of the old fortress ditches. Colossal size nuclei...", p. 5–6.

In Fig. 7.11 we present an ancient miniature from a Russian chronicle of the supposedly 16th century, which depicts the defense of Moscow allegedly in 1451. On the city wall you can clearly see a large mortar cannon, comparable in size to the giant Tsar Cannon of the 16th century known to us today. In Fig. 7.12 shows an ancient miniature depicting a huge cannon cast in Moscow by Pavlin Fryazin in 1488, p. 64. So, as we see, even according to the Scaligerian-Miller history, the Russian artillery of the 15th century was very impressive. In Fig. 7.13 shows the “average value artillery piece XVI century", book. 2, p. 158. In Fig. Figure 7.14 shows an image of medium-sized Russian guns of the 17th century.

Rice. 7.11. Huge Russian-Horde cannons of the 15th century. A miniature of a chronicle, supposedly from the 16th century, depicting the defense of Moscow supposedly in 1451. Taken from, p. 73.

Rice. 7.12. “A gun cast in Moscow by Pavlin Fryazin. 1488. Miniature of the chronicle of the 16th century.” , With. 64.

Rice. 7.13. Ancient engraving. 16th century cannon. It is considered medium in size. Taken from, book. 2, p. 158.

Rice. 7.14. Engraving "Russian artillery before the parade in the 17th century." These guns are relatively small. Taken from, book. 2. p. 585.

In Fig. 7.15 shows images of ancient field guns and mortars that were in service Zaporozhye Cossacks. The large mortar is shown at the top right. So such large weapons for firing grapeshot were installed not only on the walls of cities, but were also used on the battlefields.

In Fig. 7.16 shows a plan of the Kremlin Cannon Yard. The plan was drawn up at the end of the 17th century, p. 144.

Rice. 7.15. “Zaporozhye guns and mortars”, insert between the villages. 240–241. On the right is a large field mortar for firing buckshot.

Rice. 7.16. Plan of the Cannon Yard in the Kremlin. End of the 17th century. Taken from, p. 144.

It turns out that the huge Tsar Cannon mortar standing in the Kremlin today is noticeably inferior in size to other combat mortars that were in service with the Russian army of the 16th century. Historians report: “The report of Juan of Persia to King Philip III about his stay in Russia in 1599–1600 says that “ big square“(Red Square) “is lined with cannons so huge that two people could enter each of them to clean it.” Two years later, the secretary of the Austrian embassy, ​​Georg Tectander von der Jabel, wrote about these same guns in his report: “In the square, at the gates of the castle (Kremlin - O.I.), there are two huge cannons IN WHICH CAN EASILY FIT A MAN.” A Pole, Samuil Maskevich, who was in Moscow in 1610, says that in Kitai-Gorod he “saw a gun that was loaded with a hundred bullets and fired the same number of shots. It’s so high,” continues Maskevich, “that it would be up to my shoulder, and its bullets are the size of a goose egg.” This gun stands opposite the gate leading to the Living Bridge (this bridge led from Zamoskvorechye to the Frolovsky Gate of the Kremlin. - O.I.)“... Maskevich says that “in the middle of the market” (Red Square) he saw a mortar so large that THREE PEOPLE CAME INTO IT and played cards there... It is known that on Red Square since 1555 there were two huge guns: Kashpirova cannon, cast in 1554 by master Kashpir Ganusov, Chokhov’s teacher (weight 19,300 kg, length - 4.48 m, core weight - 320 kg), and “Peacock”, cast in 1555 by Stepan Petrov (weight - 16,320 kg). These guns were also aimed at the area of ​​​​the Living Bridge leading to Zamoskvorechye... In 1627, three giant guns were placed on special wooden “stubs” or “rolls”, covered with earth,” p. 114–116. It is clear why these giant mortar guns were installed opposite the bridges leading to the Kremlin. In the event of an attack, guns that had been sighted in advance could sweep away with grapeshot enemies trying to break through the bridges. The large volume of grapeshot ejected when fired from guns of this size made it possible to hit not only bridges, but also cover huge areas around the Kremlin.

Today it is still difficult to restore true story cannon business in Rus' before the 17th century. It must be assumed that after the Romanovs came to power and, as a result, the very fact of the existence of the Great = “Mongolian” Empire was forgotten, most of the Russian-Horde cannons were recast and melted down. They did the same with the huge Horde bells, see below. Something similar - a deliberate descent into oblivion - happened with the history of the Russian-Horde fleet. After all, they convince us today that before Peter I, Russia “virtually did not have a fleet.” But, apparently, THERE WERE SO MANY GUNS IN THE Rus' HORDE that, despite all the Romanov meltdowns, some remained. And today we can still at least partially imagine what the Russian-Horde and Ottoman = Ataman army of the 15th–16th centuries was. The remains of its monstrous combat cannon park standing today in the Moscow Kremlin clearly show that this army was strong.

In Fig. 7.17 shows a miniature from the ancient French book “Les Quinze Joies de mariage” supposedly from 1485, ill. 207.

The miniature is not described in any way in words in the book itself. A modern historian reports that “the military scene... is not accompanied here by any specific textual commentary, it conveys only the atmosphere...”, p. 170. The picture shows a large army on the march, with heavy cannons. All warriors are clad in iron from head to toe. The coats of arms are clearly visible on the military equipment and on the banner - black double-headed imperial eagles on a red field. As we are now beginning to understand, these are most likely the troops of Rus'-Horde and Ottomania = Atamania, who entered Europe during the conquest of the “Promised Land”.

In Fig. 7.18 and fig. 7.19 we present photographs of a medieval cannon exhibited today at the German National Museum in Nuremberg (Germanisches Nationalmuseum). This is the largest of several antique cannons on display in this museum. Its internal thin metal trunk is enclosed inside a thick log, which, in turn, is covered on the outside with iron hoops for strength. Perhaps Ottoman and Horde craftsmen specifically used such technology TO LIGHTEN field guns in order to make them more convenient for quick transportation on the march and for maneuvering. Similar light guns were used previously in the Russian army. They were called squeaks.

Rice. 7.18. Medieval cannon, exhibited at the German National Museum of Nuremberg. Photo taken by A.T. Fomenko in June 2000.

Rice. 7.19. Front view of a German gun National Museum(Nuremberg). The wooden trunk surrounding the inner metal one is bound on the outside with hoops for strength. Probably, field guns were made lighter in this way. Photo from 2000.