Artillery in Canada: 9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle

9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle

(Note: 9-pounder 8-cwt Muzzleloading Rifles are listed on a separate page on this website.

Halifax, Royal Artillery Park, Nova Scotia

Left trunnion.

Right trunnion.

Rifled Muzzle, Firth Steel 1880.

Royal Carriage Department (R.C.D.), 11872 No. 60, I.

(Author Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt (SS) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-26 (670 lbs), Royal Gun Factory (R-G-F) No. 399, II, 1875) on the left trunnion, blank on the right trunnion, Firths Steel 4320 on the muzzle, Queen Victoria cypher and broad arrow on the barrel.  The gun is mounted on an iron carriage, WD, R.C.D. 11872, No. 60, I, with wood 12-pounder wheels, ca. 1874-1895.  This gun stands facing the Halifax Citadel.  These 9-pounder 6-cwt guns were probably left behind when the British left Halifax in 1905.  All other 9-pounder Muzzleloading Rifles in Canada are 8-cwt.

This gun was a new design in 1874 for the Royal Horse Artillery.  It was longer than the 8-cwt gun but had the same carriage.  9-pounder 6-cwt guns were probably left behind when the British left Halifax in 1905.  9-pounder Muzzleloading Rifles in Canada are generally 8-cwt. It is on a five year loan to the 15th Field Artillery Regiment Museum & Archives in Vancouver from the RCA Museum, Shilo, Manitoba.

Point Pleasant Park, Halifax

(Royce Walker Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-23 (663 lbs), trunnions concealed in concrete, Queen Victoria cypher, mounted on a concrete stand, No. 1 of 2.

(Royce Walker Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (667 lbs), trunnions concealed in concrete, Queen Victoria cypher, mounted on a concrete stand. No. 2 of 2.

1Θ 30 on the barrel below the touchhole. Because of a weakness in the cascabel, the Mk 2 6-cwt gun was modified in 1881 and the cascabel was replaced with an iron or steel one (the type was stamped on the part). The change meant that the modified gun used a different tangent sight to the unmodified Mk 2 gun. The 1º30’ marking on the breech probably indicates which sight to use and/or a correct to be applied to the sight on the modified gun.

Parks Canada records a third 9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle stood in in Point Pleasant Park, with a weight of 5-3-0 (644 lbs). This gun is not present, location unknown.

Bridgewater, Nova Scotia

(Author Photos, 6 Sep 2018)

9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-26 (670 lbs), left trunnion (R-G-F No. 437, II, 1876), right trunnion blank, Firths Steel No. 4482 on the muzzle, mounted on a wood stand in the Veterans Memorial Park.  Flanking the sign for Veterans Memorial Park north position, on the corner of York Street and Victoria Road, No. 1 of 2.

(Author Photos, 6 Sep 2018)

9-pounder 6-cwt Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-26 (670 lbs), left trunnion (RGF No. 452, II, 1876), right trunnion blank.   Mounted on a wood stand flanking the sign for Veterans Memorial Park, south position, on the corner of York Street and Victoria Road, No. 2 of 2.

Shelburne, Nova Scotia

(Suzanne Mahaney Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt Land Service (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (671 lbs), both trunnions are blank. Queen Victoria cypher, broad arrow mark on the barrel. Firths Steel No. 4521 on the muzzle. 1Θ 30 on the barrel below the touchhole. This MLR is mounted on an iron carriage with wood wheels. Royal Carriage Department (R.C.D.) 1873, No. 127 on the trail. This MLR stands beside the war memorial.

Because of a weakness in the cascabel, the Mk 2 6-cwt gun was modified in 1881 and the cascabel was replaced with an iron or steel one (the type was stamped on the part). The change meant that the modified gun used a different tangent sight to the unmodified Mk 2 gun. The 1º30’ marking on the breech probably indicates which sight to use and/or a correct to be applied to the sight on the modified gun.

9-pounder 6-cwt Land Service (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, was a new design in 1874 for the Royal Horse Artillery.  It was longer than the 8-cwt gun but had the same carriage.  9-pounder 6-cwt guns were probably left behind when the British left Halifax in 1905.  The barrel was constructed from cast steel, with the breech area strengthened by shrinking a wrought iron sleeve over it. It used a three-groove rifling system, and the ammunition had studs to fit in the rifling. It could also fire case shot containing 110 musket balls with an effective range of 320 m (350 yd). (Doug Knight)

CFB Shilo, Royal Canadian Artillery Museum, Manitoba/Vancouver, 15th Field Artillery Regiment Museum

(Maxwell J. Toms Photo)

9-pounder 6-cwt Land Service (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (671 lbs), (RGF No. 450, Mk. II, 1876) on left trunnion, Firth Steel No. 4539 on the muzzle, Queen Victoria cypher, broad arrow mark, mounted on an iron carriage with wood wheels.  This gun was a new design in 1874 for the Royal Horse Artillery.  It was longer than the 8-cwt gun but had the same carriage.  It is on a five year loan to the 15th Field Artillery Regiment Museum & Archives in Vancouver from the RCA Museum.

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(Leon Jenson Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt Land Service (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (671 lbs), (RGF No. 450, II, 1876) on the left trunnion, blank on the right trunnion, Queen Victoria cypher,  (1837-1901), broad arrow mark, Firth Steel No. 4539 on the muzzle, mounted on an iron carriage with wood wheels.

Vancouver, Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Museum & Archives

(City of Vancouver Archives Photo, AM1535-: CVA 99-1155.2)

Vancouver Volunteer Regiment Artillery hauling a 9-pounder RML gun through a forest, c1917.

(City of Vancouver Archives Photo, AM1535-: CVA 99-1155.3)

Vancouver Volunteer Regiment Artillery hauling a 9-pounder RML gun at a beach, c1917.

(James Calhoun Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt Land Service (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (670 lbs), (RGF No. 134, II,1874) on the left trunnion, blank on the right trunnion, Vickers Steel, 1874, on the muzzle, broad arrow with Queen Victoria cypher on the barrel. Found buried on the grounds of the PNE in 2025.

(James Calhoun Photos)

9-pounder 6-cwt LandService (L.S.) Muzzleloading Rifle, weight 5-3-27 (670 lbs), (RGF No. 405, II,1875) on the left trunnion, blank on the right trunnion, possibly Vickers or Firths Steel on the muzzle, broad arrow and Queen Victoria cypher on the barrel. Found buried on the grounds of the PNE in 2025.

In theory, the 6-cwt version was for the horse artillery, but Canada officially used only the 8-cwt for everything. The Mk. II entered British service in September 1874. Officially we purchased 80 9-pounder 8-cwt guns, and there were two more in British stores when we took over Halifax in 1905. That report does not mention any 9-pounders taken over at Esquimalt. Because of the physical existence of three 6-cwt guns in Canada based on work by Hal Skaarup, Max Toms, and others, I have always assumed that the two guns from Halifax were 6-cwt guns. Note that the HMCS Rainbow class cruisers originally had a 9-pounder RML for landing parties, but Rainbow apparently came with a 12-pounder. Also, presumably, they would have been the sea service version. There is a 1923 report on the disposal of British guns found “lying around in the dockyard on takeover in 1910”. No 9-pounders are on the list, but it suggests that the handover might not have been up to infamous British Quartermaster standards. The 9-pounders were essentially obsolete by that time and may have been ignored. Based on these First World War photos, these guns were used by the reserves for training during the war. Just about anything was pressed into service. [Based on the photos] I would say that they are not of the type used by the RCA in the late 1800s, and were probably taken over from the British when we took over the defence of Esquimalt in 1905. (Doug Knight)

We found a 105mm German gun from the First World War at the end of March at the PNE/Hastings Park.  All of Vancouver's captured guns that were on display in parks throughout the city were moved to Hastings Park by 1933.  Eventually, at least 5 of 15/16 that were there were cut up for scrap.  The rest were likely pushed into the ravine that used to be there.  We got a call last week and lo and behold, they found more guns, two 9-pounders and a bunch of MG08/15s, not 20 feet from the first one.  We think we might find everything from German 77-mm guns to a 21-cm Mörser 1916 . (James Calhoun, Curator, Seaforth Highlanders of Canada Museum & Archives)

Watson's Corners, Ontario

9-pounder 6-cwt MRL replica mounted on wood and iron wheels. This gun is a firing reproduction made by Tony Walsh for Parks Canada.