Like ships in the navy, the ordnance used by the British armed forces was manufactured principally in Britain: about half the gunpowder, most of the small arms, and all of the cannon in private establishments. These munitions were obtained by the board of Ordnance which took orders from the Navy and War Offices and placed them with contractors. Little appreciated during the eighteenth century, the efficiency of the board's technical staff after 1783 ensured the British armed forces had enough ordnance of the best possible quality. Their achievement was the greater because, with the use of coal and steam power, iron founding in Britain underwent a geographical and technological revolution during the third quarter of the century and was virtually a new industry. Scientific knowledge also changed, giving rise to greater knowledge of the combustible properties of gunpowder. But the Ordnance Office was not alone in transforming the state's munitions. Contractors adapted to the greater stringency of ordnance specifications. Pressure from the Navy Board contributed to the introduction of the carronade, while artillery and sea officers, including the navy's gunners, came to appreciate the greater power of the new guns and powder and the challenges of their employment.

The relocation of gun manufacture

The Wealden industry

Before the time of the Seven Years' War, the Ordnance Board contracted for cannon with private gun founders largely found in Kent and Sussex where ironstone was dug out of the Weald.