canonades

Canonades, also known as case shot or canister shot, were a type of ammunition used in cannons and other smoothbore firearms during the 18th and 19th centuries. It consisted of a thin metal cylinder filled with a multitude of small projectiles, such as iron or lead balls, musket balls, or irregular pieces of metal. When fired, the cylinder would rupture, scattering these smaller projectiles in a wide pattern, similar to a shotgun blast. This made canonades particularly effective against massed infantry and cavalry formations at close to medium ranges. The range and spread of the shot depended on the size of the cannon and the contents of the cylinder. While devastating in open-field battles, their effectiveness diminished significantly at longer distances. The development of rifled artillery and more specialized ammunition eventually led to the decline of canonades in military use.