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 shells, balls or canisters, and was therefore a vast improvement over previous cannon firing metal balls, such as the Gribeauval system.
The very first canon-obusiers were naval shell guns, invented in 1823 by Paixhans and introduced in the French Navy in 1842.[1] This invention was at the origin of the development of the Dahlgren gun in the United States in 1849.
The French Army introduced the canon-obusier de 12 in 1853. This type of the canon-obusier, commonly called the "12-pounder Napoleon Model 1857", was the primary cannon used in the American Civil War.[2][3] Over 1,100 such Napoleons were manufactured by the North, and 600 by the South.[4]
The canon-obusier de 12 was following rifled cannons which had been introduced by Treuille de Beaulieu system in 1858.[5]
The term "Canon-obusier" remained in use beyond World War I to designate various gun howitzers of the French Army.
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