FRENCH FIELD ARTILLERY (1-ST HALF OF THE XVII CENTURY)

French artillery entered the 17th century weakened, seeming to be only a poor successor to its great predecessor at the beginning of the Italian wars (1494-1559). This not the most cheerful condition of the French artillery resulted from the general weakening of France due to religious wars (1562-1598) and the weakening of the monarch's position. One of the few pluses was the fact that in 1572 a fairly successful attempt was made to unify the French artillery party. During the reign of Henry IV and Louis XIII with the help of Cardinal Richelieu, this picture began to change, but still the artillerymen did not create permanent units, and were appointed in the ranks only for a specific campaign. Hundreds of cannons were not used in the field as in the Napoleonic Wars, but rather a dozen, rarely several dozen. For example, in the battle of Lens in 1648, which was victorious for France, the French artillery consisted of only 18 guns! Significant changes, as in the entire army, took place during the reign of Louis XIV, who ruled alone in the years 1661-1715. Above all, there was a clear effort to unify gun weights and the following guns were introduced: 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-, 24 and 32-pounders. Units that could be called batteries in the strength of 4 to 10 guns also began to be formed. The 1.5 and 3-pounder cannons also began to be put into service with battalions and infantry regiments. It is worth adding that special schools educating cadres for French artillery units were established then in Douai, Metz and Strasbourg.French artillery entered the 17th century weakened, seeming to be only a poor successor to its great predecessor at the beginning of the Italian wars (1494-1559). This not the most cheerful condition of the French artillery resulted from the general weakening of France due to religious wars (1562-1598) and the weakening of the monarch's position. One of the few pluses was the fact that in 1572 a fairly successful attempt was made to unify the French artillery party. During the reign of Henry IV and Louis XIII with the help of Cardinal Richelieu, this picture began to change, but still the artillerymen did not create permanent units, and were appointed in the ranks only for a specific campaign. Hundreds of cannons were not used in the field as in the Napoleonic Wars, but rather a dozen, rarely several dozen. For example, in the battle of Lens in 1648, which was victorious for France, the French artillery consisted of only 18 guns! Significant changes, as in the entire army, took place during the reign of Louis XIV, who ruled alone in the years 1661-1715. Above all, there was a clear effort to unify gun weights and the following guns were introduced: 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-, 24 and 32-pounders. Units that could be called batteries in the strength of 4 to 10 guns also began to be formed. The 1.5 and 3-pounder cannons also began to be put into service with battalions and infantry regiments. It is worth adding that special schools educating cadres for French artillery units were established then in Douai, Metz and Strasbourg.French artillery entered the 17th century weakened, seeming to be only a poor successor to its great predecessor at the beginning of the Italian wars (1494-1559). This not the most cheerful condition of the French artillery resulted from the general weakening of France due to religious wars (1562-1598) and the weakening of the monarch's position. One of the few pluses was the fact that in 1572 a fairly successful attempt was made to unify the French artillery party. During the reign of Henry IV and Louis XIII with the help of Cardinal Richelieu, this picture began to change, but still the artillerymen did not create permanent units, and were appointed in the ranks only for a specific campaign. Hundreds of cannons were not used in the field as in the Napoleonic Wars, but rather a dozen, rarely several dozen. For example, in the battle of Lens in 1648, which was victorious for France, the French artillery consisted of only 18 guns! Significant changes, as in the entire army, took place during the reign of Louis XIV, who ruled alone in the years 1661-1715. Above all, there was a clear effort to unify gun weights and the following guns were introduced: 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-, 24 and 32-pounders. Units that could be called batteries in the strength of 4 to 10 guns also began to be formed. The 1.5 and 3-pounder cannons also began to be put into service with battalions and infantry regiments. It is worth adding that special schools educating cadres for French artillery units were established then in Douai, Metz and Strasbourg.French artillery entered the 17th century weakened, seeming to be only a poor successor to its great predecessor at the beginning of the Italian wars (1494-1559). This not the most cheerful condition of the French artillery resulted from the general weakening of France due to religious wars (1562-1598) and the weakening of the monarch's position. One of the few pluses was the fact that in 1572 a fairly successful attempt was made to unify the French artillery party. During the reign of Henry IV and Louis XIII with the help of Cardinal Richelieu, this picture began to change, but still the artillerymen did not create permanent units, and were appointed in the ranks only for a specific campaign. Hundreds of cannons were not used in the field as in the Napoleonic Wars, but rather a dozen, rarely several dozen. For example, in the battle of Lens in 1648, which was victorious for France, the French artillery consisted of only 18 guns! Significant changes, as in the entire army, took place during the reign of Louis XIV, who ruled alone in the years 1661-1715. Above all, there was a clear effort to unify gun weights and the following guns were introduced: 4-, 8-, 12-, 16-, 24 and 32-pounders. Units that could be called batteries in the strength of 4 to 10 guns also began to be formed. The 1.5 and 3-pounder cannons also began to be put into service with battalions and infantry regiments. It is worth adding that special schools educating cadres for French artillery units were established then in Douai, Metz and Strasbourg.