Henry Shrapnel
Born: 3 Jun 1761;
Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire
Died:
13
Mar 1842; Southampton, Hampshire
Henry Scrope Shrapnel was an English soldier and inventor of the
anti-personnel weapon known by his name - the Shrapnel artillery shell
- designed to explode, widely spreading its content of small lead
musket balls to injure enemy soldiers. Exploded fragments from the
metal casing of modern artillery, bombs or mines are still known as shrapnel.
He invented a percussion lock for small arms (patented 1834) and
other improvements in fuses, ammunition and small arms. He also
prepared important artillery range tables and originated the brass
tangent slide to improve the sighting of guns. Incorporating his idea
of the parabolic chamber, howitzers and mortars were operated more
efficiently.
Shrapnel was the youngest son in the family of nine children of
clothier Zachariah and Lydia Shrapnel. He was
raised at the Midway Manor House in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire. A
month after his 18th birthday, he began a life-long military career
with the Royal Artillery, serving in various places around he world.
Within a year of being commissioned, he was stationed
at Newfoundland (1780-84) in the fort protecting St. John's harbour.
Upon his return to England, a first lieutenant in his early twenties,
Shrapnel started working on an explosive shell designed to be more
devastating to enemy infantry than the solid cannon ball or cannister
rounds then in use. His idea was to use a hollow spherical shell
carrying numerous small metal balls, equipped with a fuse and bursting
charge of gunpowder. If properly adjusted, the fuse length determined
that the shell would explode over the enemy in midair to scatter
the shot over a wide area. For years Shrapnel devoted
his free time to solving the design problems with the fuse and
perfecting his invention, and eventually he got it to
work dependably. This design work and testing was carried out at his
own expense, which would amount to several thousand pounds as he
continued his experiments over twenty-eight years to refine his shell.
Previously, artillery had used a canister - a tin container filled with
iron balls but no internal explosive. When fired,
the container burst open at the muzzle, and the balls could cause heavy
casualties up to a range of 300 metres. At longer ranges, the common
shell was used - a hollow cast iron spheres filled with gunpowder - but
these fragmented poorly. Shapnel's combination of a fuse, explosive
charge and shot inside the shell increased the effective range of case
to about 1100 metres.
By 1799, he had seen action in Gibralter, the West Indies and the Low
Countries of Europe, achieved the rank of Captain, and presented the
results of now fifteen years of intemittent design work to the Board of
Ordnance.
The army adopted Shrapnel's shell in 1803, which was used successfully
on the battlefield the following year when Surinam was captured from
the Dutch, who promptly surrendered when subjected to the devastating
rounds. By now, Shrapnel was first assistant inspector of artillery at
Woolwich, where he expanded his research work to other aspects of
ordnance.
After the effective use of the Shrapnel shell in the battle
against the occupying French troops at Vimeiro,
Portugal (21 Aug 1808), General Arthur Wellesley wanted the weapon's
design kept secret. Although
he regretted depriving the inventor of his due recognition, he
suggested the
...
ingenuity and the science which he has proved he
possesses by the
great perfection to which he has brought this invention ...
should in
itself be sufficient reward. (Dictionary
of National Biography)
Shapnel shells were widely employed in various other military
operations during the following years, including the British victory by
Wellington over Napoleon at Waterloo (1815). Yet, he was never
effectively recompensed for his own expenditures. In fact, when he
asked the Board of Ordinance in Sep 1813, he was told there were no
funds available for a merit reward. However, the following year, the
government granted him a modest pension in addition to his service pay.
On 29 Jul 1825, Shrapnel retired from active service, 46 years after he
joined the Royal Artillery as a cadet. He continued his contributions
with further work as an experimenter and inventor. When he patented a
percussion lock for small arms (1834), he was over 70 years old.
A promotion to lieutenant-general on 10 Jan 1837 was followed by a
visit as the guest of William IV who praised his accomplishments.
Although the king's private secretary wrote a few months later
concerning making Shrapnel a baron, the king died shortly thereafter,
and the baronetcy was never conferred.
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The design
principles Shrapnel originated were used for over a century,
including shells
manufactured for World War I. They were superceded by the Second World
War, with high explosive shell having casings designed to fragment
themselves so effectively such that additional shot was
not needed.
LINKS:
Shrapnel shell construction
