The
carronade is a short
smoothbore,
cast iron cannon, which was used by the
Royal Navy and first produced by the
Carron Company, an
ironworks in
Falkirk,
Scotland,
UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon. While considered very successful early on, carronades eventually disappeared as
rifled naval artillery changed the shape of the shell and led to fewer and fewer close-range engagements.