Tsar Cannon. The huge Tsar Cannon of the Little Tsar In which war did the Tsar Cannon take part?

The famous Tsar Cannon in the Kremlin, one of the most visited attractions in the Moscow Kremlin, can be seen today on the western side of Ivanovskaya Square. Each of the tourists arriving in Moscow must include in their visit an inspection of the grandiose weapon of the 16th century. A brief history of the Tsar Cannon for both children and adults is given in our article.

Cast in gigantic proportions from high-quality bronze, the cannon is even listed in the Guinness World Records. And this is not without reason. Here are just its most basic parameters:

• length - more than 5 m.,
• the outer diameter of the trunk reaches 134 cm,
• caliber - 890 mm,
• the product weighs about 40 tons.

When and why was it created?

Photo 1. The Tsar Cannon is one of the main attractions of the Kremlin

History and little-known facts about the Tsar Cannon in the Kremlin

In 1586, an alarming message was brought to the city of Moscow: the Crimean Khan with his large army was marching on the capital. To repel the invasion, by decree of the then reigning Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich, in the Moscow Cannon Yard, Russian foundry worker Andrei Chokhov cast a huge artillery gun, which was intended to fire stone grapeshot.

Since the gun was originally intended for the defense of the Kremlin, it was installed on a hill above the bank of the Moscow River - on Red Square, not far from the famous Lobnoye Mesto and the Spasskaya Tower.

However, the Crimean Khan never approached the walls of the Mother See of the Capital, and therefore Muscovites were never able to find out how powerfully this weapon, nicknamed the Tsar Cannon for its size, fired.

Later, during the reign of Peter I, the gun was moved to the Kremlin territory with the help of special rollers: first to the courtyard of the Arsenal under construction, and then to its main gate. There it was mounted on a wooden carriage, which, along with the carriages of other guns, burned down in a fire in 1812.

In 1835, at the Berda shipyard in St. Petersburg, according to the drawings of the military engineer Witte (some sources mention Academician Alexander Pavlovich Bryulov as the author of the sketch), a more durable cast-iron carriage for the grandiose gun was made.

In 1843, the Tsar Cannon was removed from the Arsenal gates, where it had been located all this time, and installed next to the old building of the Armory Chamber. There it stood until 1960, when, as part of the construction of the Kremlin Palace of Congresses, the gun was again moved, this time to Ivanovskaya Square, where it remains to this day.

So, we have briefly described the history of the cannon, and now we will continue our story for more curious children and adults.

Description of the legendary Tsar Cannon

As mentioned above, the gun carriage is made using cast iron and performs purely decorative functions. The body of the gun itself is cast from bronze. Next to the carriage there are cast iron cores, which are also a decorative element.

On the right side of the gun there is an image of the autocrat Fyodor Ivanovich sitting on a war horse. The prince's head is crowned with a royal crown, and in his hands is one of the symbols of Russian power - a scepter. An inscription explaining the image is poured nearby.

One of the hypotheses for the appearance of the name “Tsar Cannon” is precisely the image of the king who ruled at the time of the creation of this formidable artillery weapon, who is immortalized on the plane of the cannon. True, there is another name found in Russian documents different eras, is a “Russian shotgun”. The fact is that this was the designation for guns intended for firing shotguns (in other words, buckshot).

The left side of the gun is decorated with an inscription immortalizing its creator and which reads “litz Ondrej Czokhov.”

The plane of the barrel itself, among other things, is decorated with an original ornament.

Separately, I would like to highlight the carriage itself, which is decorated in such a way as to clearly highlight the high status of the artillery piece. Its main component is the image of a lion - a formidable and strong king of animals. The symbolic representation of a lion fighting a mythical serpent can also be seen in the intricacy of ornamental plants on the plane of the carriage.

I would like to add that to move the cannon located in the Moscow Kremlin, 200 draft horses were simultaneously harnessed.

Despite the impressiveness of the gun, some experts agree that it was not made for shooting, but solely to intimidate the enemy, in this particular case, the troops of the Crimean Khan advancing on the capital. ABOUT technical side guns and will be discussed further, from which we will find out whether this is a prop or a truly formidable artillery weapon.

Let us immediately note that the cast iron cores placed in a pyramid near the gun carriage are just decoration, hollow inside. If they are made real, then the stone core will weigh about 819 kilograms, and the cast iron core will weigh about 2 tons.

Further, according to experts, the carriage itself is not technically suitable for firing from such a powerful weapon, and the heavy cast-iron cannonballs themselves would not be physically suitable - the barrel of the Tsar Cannon would simply be torn apart during the shot. There is no evidence of its combat use in history.

But it cannot be that in those distant times, before the threat of an attack on Moscow, an artillery gun would have been created just to “show off.” Let's try to figure this out!

Let's start with the fact that until the 20th century, military experts and historians still designated the current “Tsar Cannon” as a shotgun, i.e. designed for shooting buckshot, which was replaced in those distant times by ordinary small stones. The current name was established only in 1930, when the authorities decided to improve the status of the weapon for propaganda purposes. Which ones? Probably, based on the fact that a great country should have all the grandest things in the world. It’s like the joke from Soviet times that the USSR had “the largest radio components in the world.”

But let’s not slander and continue, especially since the veil of secrecy over the gun was nevertheless lifted, and this happened during the planned restoration work carried out in 1980.

The gun was removed from the carriage and sent to one of the military factories in the city of Serpukhov, where its restoration was carried out. Along with the usual work in this case, military specialists from the Moscow Artillery Academy carried out measurements of the Tsar Cannon, although the main report has not yet been made public. True, draft drawings have been preserved, which emphasize that this gun is not a gun at all in its actual designation.

So, in order. The diameter of the barrel bore, from which the cannon is loaded with cannonballs, is 90 centimeters, and towards the very end of the warhead it decreases to 82 centimeters. The depth of this cone is about 32 centimeters. Next comes the flat-bottomed charging chamber, 173 centimeters deep, with a diameter of 44.7 centimeters at the beginning, increasing to 46.7 centimeters at the end.

These data allow us to classify the weapon as a bombard, which means that it was quite possible to fire stone cannonballs from it. Name this one artillery installation You can’t use a gun, because one of the main conditions is not met: the barrel length must be at least 40 calibers. Right we're talking about about four in total. As for using the weapon as a shotgun that fires buckshot, based on the existing characteristics, this would be very ineffective.

The bombards themselves belong to the class of battering guns designed to destroy fortress walls. In most cases, they didn’t even make a carriage for them, because... part of the trunk was simply buried in the ground. The gun crew was located in trenches built next to the bombardment, because barrels often burst when fired. The rate of fire left much to be desired and rarely reached 6 shots... per day.

At research work Particles of gunpowder were found in the Tsar Cannon canal. The only question is, was it a test shot or did they manage to use the weapon against the enemy? The latter is most likely impossible. This can also be confirmed by the fact that no longitudinal scratches were found on the walls of the barrel, which should have been left either by the cannonball or by stone shrapnel.

The myth of the weapon and the impostor Tsar False Dmitry

And yet she shot!? A myth that has survived to this day says that the only shot was fired by the ashes of the temporary Russian Tsar False Dmitry.

After exposure, he tried to escape from Moscow, but stumbled upon a combat patrol and was brutally killed. The body was interred twice, and twice it again appeared on the surface: first at the almshouse, then in the graveyard. Rumors spread that even the earth did not want to accept him, after which it was decided to cremate the body and fire the ashes from a cannon, turning the gun towards the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (present-day Poland), where he was from.

This is the story of the Tsar Cannon in brief - the largest weapon of its era.

Today, smaller copies of the Kremlin gun are installed in Donetsk, Perm and Yoshkar-Ola. However, neither in parameters nor in characteristics do they even come close to the Moscow giant.

The Tsar Cannon, standing in the Kremlin as a monument to the foundry art of Russian craftsmen, is one of the most popular attractions in Moscow. The stories are only known brief information about the original purpose of the huge weapon, symbolizing the power of Russia. Today the cannon is a museum exhibit of artillery pieces from the 16th - 19th centuries.

Today the Tsar Cannon is listed as famous monument Russian weapons and the skill of gunsmiths. This amazing weapon is among the popular remarkable places capital, in the Kremlin, on Ivanovskaya Square, near the church and bell tower since 1960.

Tsar Cannon

History of attractions for children in grades 1-2

By order of the sovereign, the master of the Cannon Yard, in Moscow, Andrei Chokhov cast the Tsar Cannon in 1586, surpassing in size all existing ones. They placed it on the ground near the Execution Ground to cover the Spassky Gate. After 40 years, it was installed on a manufactured log frame filled with earth. After another 10 years, they replaced it with a stone roll.

The image of the king with a scepter on the weapon allowed some historians to suggest the name of the weapon. Like, in honor of Fyodor Ivanovich, who was ruling at that time and issued a decree to make a cannon. Another part of the researchers is convinced that she was given the name solely because of her size.

Gun dimensions:

The parameters are impressive even for our time. Using such a weapon on campaigns required a lot of labor and effort. When delivering the gun from the cannon yard to the installation site, many people and 200 horses were involved.

Reasons for casting the Tsar Cannon

After the reign of Ivan the Terrible, who annexed Siberia, Astrakhan and the lands of Lithuania to Russia, which opened access to the Baltic Sea. The state has significantly increased the number of enemy countries, with which by the end of the 16th century. signed dubious peace treaties that resembled a respite.

During the reign of Ivan IV the Terrible, the Muscovite kingdom waged wars with the Crimean Khanate and European countries:

• Denmark;
• Sweden;
• Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

After the reign of a strong tsar, his weak son Fyodor Ivanovich, nicknamed the Blessed, did not appear to the people as a defender of the fatherland. Moreover, Russia, which was at war with the Crimean Khanate, was often subjected to Tatar raids.

Muscovites feared for their lives and acquired property, especially after the attack of Khan Devlet Giray, which ended with the burning of the outskirts of the capital. Then the king issued a decree to create weapons, terrifying on the enemy and instilling reassurance in his subjects.

Manufacturing

By decree of the Tsar, a cannon for hanging buckshot was made at the Moscow Cannon Yard, which was superior in caliber to all others.
The idea of ​​creation came from Boris Godunov, who was the brother-in-law of the Tsar and had significant power in the state. They poured it in the oven high technology melting, for those times, which made it possible to heat up tens of tons of metal and cast a weapon of similar size.

Rearrangements

The Tsar Cannon (history briefly tells about its rearrangements) moved around the Kremlin with the participation of large quantity people and 200 horses that pulled it, rolling it over logs. The second time, in this way, it was rearranged in the 18th century, in connection with the construction of the Arsenal in the Kremlin and the installation of a cannon in its courtyard with other guns.

During Patriotic War with the French, in 1812. Napoleon, retreating from Moscow, ordered the Arsenal to be blown up. As a result, the guns of most of the Arsenal were damaged and the gun carriages were burned. The Arsenal was restored in 1817, and the Tsar Cannon was placed at the gate. Two years have passed. The architect Henri Montferrand had the idea to erect a memorial composition dedicated to the historical victory of Russia in the War of 1812.

The project implied the location of the Tsar Cannon and another large-caliber weapon, the Unicorn, near the entrance to the Arsenal.

They were to be installed on wooden carriages painted in green color, with black wrought iron decorations. The approved project was not implemented.

The idea to install a cannon at the main gate of the Arsenal was realized in 1835. By that time, a cast iron carriage, decorated with bas-reliefs to match the barrel, and painted in bronze color, was ready in St. Petersburg. Along with it, 4 cores were added to the composition, weighing 1970 kg each. The gun remained in this form until today.

Eight years later, in 1843, the cannon was moved to the Armory. Where it stood until 1960, when the building in which the barracks were then located was demolished to free up the territory for the construction of the Palace of Congresses. The gun was then installed on the north side of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower, where it stands now.

Tsar Cannon today

Now it is exhibited as a memorial composition of Russian artillery and foundry, symbolizing the power of the state and strong army.

Experts recognized the Tsar Cannon as the largest caliber weapon of the Middle Ages, so it was included in the Guinness Book of Records. Where she held the championship until graduation in the 19th and early 20th centuries. 914mm caliber weapons.

The trunk is decorated

The barrel is decorated with elegant ornaments, giving the Russian shotgun artistic value. In the front, muzzle part on the right, Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich is depicted wearing a crown, on a horse, with a scepter. At the top is an inscription containing a complete listing of the king's titles.

On the middle part, on the right, is the order to create a cannon, where the name of the queen, Grand Duchess Irina, is mentioned. On the left is information about the place of manufacture and the date indicated in the Old Slavonic style, from the creation of the world, “….year 7094...”, with the name of the foundry worker.

What does the Tsar Cannon look like?

If at first the trunk lay on the ground, then it was placed on a carriage, creating a memorable composition, with cannonballs and a tablet containing brief information about the cannon, its mass, each core and carriage. All exhibits fit perfectly together, although they were made in different time and other masters. The gun carriage with the cannonballs for the barrel was made almost 250 years later.

The decorations of the barrel are combined with relief images of the carriage, emphasizing the status of the gun. A particularly large lion head, in the front center, just below the trunk. And among a strikingly beautiful pattern in the form of intertwined plants, a lion is depicted slaying a snake. In front of the guns are four cannonballs, laid out in a pyramid.

Design features

The weapon, according to the conclusion of the historian, A.N. The lobina, according to the type of barrel, is a bombard. This type of weapon allows us to classify the ratio of caliber to barrel length as 3.4. For a classic gun, the length should correspond to 40 calibers or more. However, it was also different from the traditional bombard.

Distinctive features:

The data is typical for powerful siege artillery weapons. However, transporting it on hikes, given its weight and size, is very problematic, without cranes and tractors.

To fire a shot, shotguns of this size took a whole day to load. Using a weapon with such characteristics for defensive purposes was most appropriate. In this case, they did not need to be transported anywhere.

Whether the cannon was made for defense, as a full-fledged weapon or as a decorative commemorative item, researchers argue. They are interested in whether it is possible to fire a shot. The cannonballs standing by the cannon certainly cannot be used as a projectile. A charge of gunpowder would rupture the barrel using such a core.

The idea to make a shotgun of this size could have originated with Ivan the Terrible. A well-known customer, other huge guns, slightly smaller in size and caliber, but military, used in campaigns.

In those days, success in capturing cities depended on the presence in the arsenal of weapons of similar caliber, with the help of which they broke down walls. But I didn’t have time to implement it due to death. So Boris Godunov, being close to Ivan IV (the Terrible), put forward the idea of ​​the deceased tsar.

The Tsar Cannon, which has historical value, pride and business card countries, shortly before the 1980 Olympics, they decided to restore it. While restoring it, the experts conducted an examination, after which they briefly commented that the weapon was made for mounted fire with small cannonballs (buckshot). But for some reason they did not find the pilot hole, putting an end to the dispute between groups of scientists about the purpose of the weapon.

According to the conclusion of the expert commission, the weapon was made according to the standards Artillery weapons, like a combat weapon, but it is impossible to fire a shot due to the lack of a hole for installing a fuse.

The Mystery of the Tsar Cannon

The lack of documented evidence of the gun's participation in combat or test firing led to lengthy debate. Military and historical researchers XIX, early XX centuries, it was mainly considered a military weapon.

Some excluded combat use, suggesting that it was originally made with the intention of impressing foreigners.

Other researchers believe that the Tsar Cannon fired at least once. This can be evidenced by the master's mark inside the barrel, which was allowed to be placed only after a test salvo. Their opponents refute the possibility of a shot by the remains of bronze in the barrel chamber, which do not remain there after shooting. Reinforcing the position with the obvious conclusion, the absence of a fuse hole.

The Tsar Cannon (history briefly describes the events affecting the operation of the gun, so few facts about the monument have been preserved today) after production it was installed as a defensive weapon against Crimean Tatars. And, according to historical events, there are known facts of the use of guns in battles, in particular bombards, with a slightly inferior caliber.

The table provides brief data on other large-caliber combat bombards:

Despite the fact that they were cast even earlier, almost 100 years ago. If so, then the Russian shotgun could have fired, but it didn’t have to.

In favor of the fact that the cannon was made as a military weapon, and not as a prop, is indicated by the fact that when the Tatar army approached in 1591, it was brought to combat readiness, along with all the capital's artillery. Having established the defense of the main Kremlin gates.

The Legend of the Tsar Cannon

The Tsar Cannon (history briefly mentions it in the legend of False Dmitry) shot the ashes of the impostor towards the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, where he was born. False Dmitry and his exposure - historical facts, distorted by speculation in folk legends.

According to legend, after exposure, False Dmitry sought to escape from Russia, but on the way he met people’s militias who brutally killed him. But the body, a day after the funeral, was found near the shelter.

They decided to bury him in such a way that he would not come out again, but this action did not bring any results, he was discovered again in another cemetery. They thought that the Russian land did not accept this, so they burned the corpse, and the collected ashes were mixed with gunpowder and sent back where they came from, fired from a cannon.

The legend traces the attitude of the people towards the legendary weapon. During times of unrest and anarchy, the murdered impostor was buried in the ground, but he reappeared among the living. The common people decided that their land was rejecting them and the mission to drive the troublemaker out of our lands was decided to be entrusted to the Tsar Cannon, the defender of the Russian people.

Tsar Cannon and its copies

Two exact copies of the Kremlin original were made at the Izhevsk arms plant in 2001. One was solemnly presented to the city of Donetsk, and the second was placed near the entrance to the plant.

Donetsk received a copy of the original gun as a gift from the Moscow administration, in response to the gift of a copy of Mertsalov's Palm to Moscow. They installed the delivered gift near the Donetsk City Council, in the direction directly from the building, symbolically protecting it.

Copies, in general view identical to the original, made of cast iron, with trunks 6 cm shorter, which was carried out by order of the museum management. The weight of the barrel was 44 tons, the carriage - 20 tons.

If 2 guns manufactured in Izhevsk are completely identical to the original, then those in Yoshkar-Ola are not an exact copy. It is 2 times smaller, cast from steel and part of the relief pattern is changed or missing. The cannon was manufactured at the Zvenigovsky shipyard, completely suitable for firing, so a cannonball was installed in the barrel.

How to get there

The Tsar Cannon is located in Moscow, on Ivanovskaya Square, in the Kremlin. If you take the metro, we find one of the stations close to the Kremlin - “Alexandrovsky Garden”. Through the pedestrian crossing, it is easier to get to the ticket office to purchase tickets for a tour of the Kremlin.

You can walk a short distance from the station, going to the Kremlin through the Trinity Tower. From the tower, heading towards the historical relic of Russian artillery art, walk past the Palace of Congresses to the Tsar Cannon, located on the western side of Ivanovo Square.

Article format: Mila Friedan

Video about the Tsar Cannon

About the Tsar Cannon:

This powerful weapon, located on Ivanovskaya Square, is a monument to Russian artillery. The largest in caliber in the world, it has become a monument to foundry.

From the history of the Tsar Cannon in Moscow

The Tsar Cannon in Moscow was cast at the Cannon Yard in 1586 during the reign of Tsar Fyodor Ivanovich by Russian master Andrei Chokhov. A weapon was created for the defense of the Kremlin and therefore was installed on a log flooring (roll) on Red Square near Lobnoye Mesto. They brought it here on 200 horses, dragging the gun over logs. To move it, there are four brackets on each side of the trunk for attaching ropes. Later, the wooden beams on which the gun stood were replaced with stone ones. As the Pole Samuil Matskevich wrote, “In the Russian capital lies a huge weapon. So big that Polish soldiers hide inside it from the rain...” Later the gun was located in different places of the Kremlin. And when the Kremlin Palace of Congresses was built, it was moved to Ivanovskaya Square to the Cathedral of the Twelve Apostles. Although it is believed that this formidable weapon was intended for the defense of the Kremlin, many researchers believe that it was unlikely to cope with this task. Such weapons are used only for destroying walls.

Description of the Tsar Cannon in Moscow

Now the powerful weapon is on a decorative cast-iron carriage, and next to it lie hollow decorative cast-iron cannonballs weighing 1.97 tons, cast in 1835 (the gun cannot fire such cannonballs). The gun is cast from bronze, the carriage is cast iron. At the vent on the right side is depicted Fyodor Ivanovich on horseback wearing a crown and with a scepter in his hand. Above the image is the inscription: “By the grace of God, King, Grand Duke Fyodor Ivanovich, Sovereign Autocrat of All Great Russia." According to one version, thanks to the image of Fyodor Ivanovich, the Tsar Cannon got its name. According to another version, it is called that way because large sizes. The gun was also called the “Russian Shotgun”, since it was designed to fire “shot” (buckshot).

The length of the gun is 5.34 m, the outer diameter of the barrel is 120 cm. The caliber is 890 mm. Weight - 39.31 tons. On the left side there is an inscription: “The cannon was made by cannon litts Ondrei Chokhov.” Some experts believe that the great weapon never fired, but was made in order to frighten foreigners, including the ambassadors of the Crimean Tatars. Examination of the gun in 1980 at the Artillery Academy named after. Dzerzhinsky showed that the Tsar Cannon is a bombard and is designed to fire stone cannonballs. The weight of the stone core was about 819 kg, and a cast iron core of this caliber weighs 1970 kg. An examination of the gun bore showed the presence of gunpowder particles. This means that the famous gun was fired at least once.

Copies of the Tsar Cannon

In the spring of 2001, by order of the Moscow government, a copy of the famous cast iron gun was made in Udmurtia. Its weight was 42 tons, the weight of the core was 1.2 tons. The diameter of the barrel was 890 mm. This copy was donated to the Ukrainian city of Donetsk.

In 2007, a copy of the gun for Yoshkar-Ola was cast at the Butyakovsky shipyard. It is installed next to the Art Gallery.

In the museum of military equipment under open air JSC "Motovilikha Plants" presents the Perm Tsar Cannon. This is the world's largest cast iron cannon. The gun was manufactured in 1868 by order of the Navy Ministry and is a combat weapon. During its testing, 314 shots of cannonballs and bombs were fired with a range of up to 1.2 km. The gun was intended for Kronstadt to defend St. Petersburg from the sea.

Many, even in childhood, heard about the famous giant weapon in the Moscow Kremlin, but its greatness when viewed “in life” is impressive. And although the largest in size and weight is the German howitzer “Dora” with a caliber of 800 mm and a weight of 1350 tons, the Tsar Cannon in Moscow is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest caliber weapon.

On January 7, 1598, the servant of God Fedor Ioanovich, Grand Duke of Moscow and Tsar of All Rus', died in the Moscow Kremlin. During the reign of the last of the direct Rurikovichs significant events quite a bit happened. The cities were founded: Samara, Saratov, Tsaritsyn (Volgograd), Voronezh, Arkhangelsk, Tobolsk, Surgut - new frontiers of the actively growing Russian State were established.

The next Russian-Swedish war was completed and Russia, as a result of which, returned access to the Baltic Sea along the Koporye-Yam line... Quite a few worthy deeds are being accomplished, but this is not what Tsar Fedor is remembered for... The main memory of him still stands on Ivanovo Square of the Moscow Kremlin, and his name to her - Tsar Cannon!

Story

Not much time has passed since the death of Ivan the Terrible, the dust raised by the hooves of the guardsmen’s horses has not yet settled, and in Moscow the largest artillery piece in the world was created, which remains so to this day. Maybe not in size, but definitely in terms of the caliber of the barrel.

In 1586, by order of the highest order, work began on the creation of a grandiose cannon. Historians are still struggling with the reason for such an unusual step, but most of tends to believe that the weapon was created to produce an external effect on foreign ambassadors. Like, look what we are capable of. Let's eat so hard it won't seem enough!

More seriously, the cannon was intended to testify to the growth of the power of the Russian State, both industrial and military. And, of course, she exalted the ruling Sovereign! (and Fyodor Ioanovich, according to contemporaries, was very unprepossessing physically and had a meek disposition).

The production was led by foundry master Andrei Chokhov.

Andrei Chokhov (1545 - 1629) - famous Russian foundry worker, creator of a large number of cannons and church bells. One of the surviving examples of the uniqueness of creativity is Chokhov’s siege arquebuses. The students continued and developed the traditions of the master (in particular, Alexey Nikiforov).

The casting work was carried out at the Moscow Cannon Yard (now the Lubyanka Square area) for several months. The main material for production was bronze. In terms of production technology, the weapon fully complied with the standards accepted at that time. Only more...much more!

The finished super-weapon was dragged with the help of two hundred horses to the Kremlin’s Red Square for demonstration to the sovereign. The barrel of the cannon was skillfully decorated with the image of Fyodor Ioannovich wearing all the royal regalia and riding a horse. In addition, the patterns run along the entire circumference of the trunk in the form of a ligature. Whether the giant cannon fired during the demonstration - no evidence has survived, and, given the meek disposition of Tsar Fedor, most likely not.

On the trunk there is also a dedication to Tsarina Irina Fedorovna Godunova (the wife of Tsar Fedor) and a mention of the fact that the monster was made by the “litz Chokhov”.
According to one version, due to the presence of the image of the Tsar, the cannon was named “Tsar Cannon”.

According to the second version, the name is associated primarily with the size of the work of cannon masters and foundries medieval Rus'.
Another name for the gun was “Shotgun”, since it was intended for firing small projectiles - “shot” (stone or metal uncalibrated buckshot).

Having admired it enough, the cannon was hoisted onto a wooden frame (carriage) and placed on combat duty near the walls of the Kremlin (opposite the modern GUM). There she stood for almost a century! Once they tried to use the gun against the attacking Tatars of Khan Kazy - Girey, but they did not dare to approach effective shooting distance and the shot was missed.

Subsequently, already under Pyotr Alekeseevich Romanov in 1706, having gathered their strength, the cannon was dragged into the courtyard of the Kremlin Arsenal. AND for a long time the whole country admired the skill of the gunsmiths and were amazed at the size, and also demonstrated it to overseas guests.

In 1835, a new cast-iron carriage was cast for the cannon (designed by Academician A.P. Bryullov) and decorative cannonballs weighing approximately 2 tons each. They then rolled it to the Armory, where other samples of guns were put on display.

In the 60s of the 20th century, the Tsar Cannon was finally installed in the place where it still stands today, near the bell tower of Ivan the Great. Or not quite that, since already in the 70s the gun was sent for restoration to Serpukhov, where it was equipped with a new decorative carriage and returned to its place in 1980.

Features of the device and application

If we talk about the Tsar Cannon in the language of gunsmiths, then it is, first of all, a military weapon, such as a bombard, intended for firing along a flat or mounted trajectory. The charge was a small “shot” with a total weight of up to 800 kilograms. It does not have an ignition hole, although there is a platform for it. The shot could only be fired when the fuse was fired from the side of the barrel; for this, an ignition cord was inserted into the powder chamber from the side of the muzzle.

Total weight artillery dinosaur is about 39 tons 312 kg, barrel length is 5 meters 34 centimeters, barrel caliber is 890 millimeters.

There are several opinions as to whether the Tsar Cannon fired for its own sake. centuries-old history. When carrying out restoration work in Serpukhov, experts from the Artillery Academy named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky concluded that the cannon was fired at least once.

The historian L.N. Gumilev there is a mention that the ashes of False Dmitry I were scattered by a shot from legendary weapon.

However, there are supporters and versions that the cannon was never fired. Intact traces of casting inside the barrel are indicated as evidence.

About records

The Tsar Cannon occupies an honorable place among the world record holders in the Guinness Book as a weapon of the largest caliber (890mm).

The Tsar Cannon Family

In 2001, in the city of gunsmiths Izhevsk, by order of the Government Russian Federation two copies of the symbol of artillery valor were made with almost exact adherence to the basic parameters. One copy was solemnly presented to the Ukrainian city of Donetsk, where it was installed near the city hall building.

The second replica adorns the territory of the Izhstal OJSC plant in Izhevsk.

In Yoshkar-Ola, on Obolensky-Nogotkov Square, there is a relatively small copy (weight - 12 tons). Also, the design of the gun does not correspond to the original; a number of patterns on the barrel are missing, others have been changed, and the decorative cores are also significantly smaller than the original ones. The cannon was suitable for firing, so the barrel was caulked with a special cannonball.

But the most interesting “Tsar Cannon” is located in the open-air museum of the Motovilikha Plant in the city of Perm. A real combat ship mortar, created in 1868 for the defense of St. Petersburg from the forts of Kronstadt.

The weight of the gun with carriage is 144 (!) tons, caliber 508 mm.

Having successfully passed artillery tests, the gun never entered combat duty - during tests and demonstrations in 1873 in Vienna, it became technically obsolete after Krupp created a bolt for loading guns from the breech. By decree of Tsar Alexander II, the cannon was preserved as a museum exhibit.

Conclusion

Why exactly was the Tsar Cannon created in our time? special significance does not have. The main thing is that it is an eloquent symbol of the centuries-old military and industrial power of Russia, a bronze embodiment of the fighting spirit of the Russian people!

Video

On Ivanovskaya Square of the Moscow Kremlin there are two unique monument Russian foundry art. One of them, the world's largest bell, is described. But in addition to the huge bell that has never rung, we also have the world’s largest medieval (I emphasize MEDIEVAL) cannon that has never fired.

It is called the Tsar Cannon not because of its size, but because of the image on the barrel of Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, by whose order it was created.


Tsar Fedor is depicted as a horseman with a scepter in his hand on the right (facing the Tsar Bell) side of the barrel near the muzzle of the cannon. In addition, the following inscriptions were cast on both sides of the trunk - on the current northern side of the trunk, facing the building of the residence of the President of Russia: “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.”


Inscription on opposite side The barrel facing the Tsar Bell reads: “This cannon was poured out in the most famous royal city of Moscow in the summer of 7094 in the third year of its state. The cannon was made by cannon litts Ondrei Chokhov.”

The year 7094 comes as a surprise to many. The fact is that in the 16th century chronology in Russia was carried out from the “Creation of the World”. The more familiar chronology from the Nativity of Christ was introduced by Peter I only at the end of the 17th century.

The Tsar Bell was cast by the famous master Andrei Chokhov. Seven of his works have survived - four artillery pieces and three bells. Two cannons are located in Sweden, one in St. Petersburg.

The Tsar Cannon itself is a bronze barrel covered with the patina of time. Its dimensions are colossal: the weight of the gun is 40 tons (2400 pounds), the barrel length is 5 m 34 cm, the caliber is 890 mm. The cannon is mounted on a late decorative carriage, cast from cast iron in 1835 at the Berda factory in St. Petersburg.


At the same time, 4 decorative cores were cast. The decorative carriage was made according to the drawings of the architect Alexander Pavlovich Bryullov, brother of the famous painter Karl Bryullov.




The carriage was cast using the drawings of Pieter Jan de Witte. The weight of the carriage is 15 tons, each of the 4 decorative cores weighs 1 ton.


This information is taken from a book about the Moscow Kremlin, written by employees of the museum-reserve. And at the gun carriage, on the south side, there is a sign about this.


I mention this due to the fact that for some reason in Internet sources there appears a figure of 1.97 tons that was taken from nowhere.

Of course, the Tsar Cannon cannot and should not have fired such heavy cannonballs. In ancient documents the cannon is often called the “Russian Shotgun”. The Tsar Cannon was designed to fire with shot, in other words, with buckshot.


The Moscow Tsar Cannon is truly the largest medieval weapon in the world. The famous “Mad Greta” or “Big Red Devil” from Ghent, created at the beginning of the 15th century, weighs only 16.4 tons, its caliber is almost half that of the Tsar Cannon and is 640 mm, but the barrel is slightly longer: 5 m 50 cm .


The name “Mad Greta” comes from Flemish folklore. The heroine of the same name led the female army to plunder... hell! The second name is associated with the historical red color of the gun.

No less famous is the Scottish cannon nicknamed “Mons Meg”. Its dimensions are significantly smaller than our Tsar Cannon. “Mons Meg” weighs only 6.6 tons, its length is 4 m 60 cm, and its caliber is 520 mm. “Mons Meg” was made in 1449 in Mons in what is now Belgium, and then presented as a gift to the King of Scotland. The cannon is installed in Edinburgh Castle and serves as one of the symbols of Scotland.


There are many mysteries associated with the Moscow Tsar Cannon. It is well known that initially the cannon did not have a carriage and stood on a special wooden machine opposite the Spassky Gate of the Kremlin not far from Lobnoye Mesto. It is believed that the Tsar Cannon never fired. During the restoration of the 19th century, the remains of a casting mold, which was made from special sifted earth, were found in its trunk. At the first shot, these remains would inevitably burn out. However, specialists from the Military Engineering Academy named after. Dzerzhinsky, who examined the cannon during the restoration of 1977-80, claimed that at least one shot was fired from the Tsar Cannon.

It is not known for sure, but is it a cannon? The fact is that, based on the design of the barrel, it can be classified as a mortar - a mounted combat weapon. Some call the Tsar Cannon a bombard, like “Mad Greta” and “Mons Meg.” But to the term “bombard”, i.e. medieval weapon should generally be treated with great care.

Despite its colossal size, the Tsar Cannon changed its location several times. In the 18th century it was moved to the courtyard of the Arsenal, then placed at its main gate. In 1835, the Tsar Cannon was installed on the already familiar decorative carriage, fake cannonballs were laid out and placed opposite the Arsenal near the old Armory building. (not preserved). In 1958, on the initiative of N. Khrushchev, construction began in the Kremlin of the Kremlin Palace of Congresses - the current State Kremlin Palace. The old Armory was demolished, and the Tsar Cannon was moved to its current location on Ivanovskaya Square.
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