584 The Lombard Carcass

 Fun Fact #584

The Lombard Carcass

As with all Weapons, time marches on to eventually leave it behind. No weapon has experienced this more than The Lombard cannon, and yet the last recorded use of one during wartime was in the 1970s (just over 50 years ago). So what kept them around for so long? THe answer was “The Carcass Shell”. These weapons were simple small cavities drilled into solid shot, and then filled with flammable materials, Pitch, Rosin, and Turpentine. The idea was the toxic gas would flush out opponents which is a large part of Lombards continued finding  use until the 1970s. They saw the most use oddly enough in World War 1 and there is some evidence that the Chinese forces in Tibet have recently begun using them in newer items such as “The Mortar” and even one case of a howitzer using Carcass shells.

The shot gets its name from the rings which are used to construct the bombs giving an odd look to it almost like a ribcage.

Hand Drawing of a Carcass Shot

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