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John Browne
|
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Died
| 1651
|
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Nationality
| English
|
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Occupation
| Gunfounder
|
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Known for
| Gunfounder to Charles I
|
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Spouse
| Martha
|
---|
John Browne
was an English merchant, the first holder of the post of King's Gunfounder, which was created in 1615. He was heavily involved in the
Wealden iron industry
, having control of six furnaces in Surrey and Sussex, two in the
Forest of Dean
as well as his own
furnace
between
Brenchley
and
Horsmonden
.
[1]
Biography
[
edit
]
During the reign of
Charles I
, he sold a great number of guns to the former
United Provinces
, the King being a partner in this traffic.
Browne also held a
patent
which gave him a
monopoly
on the casting of pots, pans and firebacks.
[1]
John Browne developed a type of
cannon
known as "The Drake" in the 1620s. This cannon was much lighter than previous cannons firing a similar weight of shot, thus enabling ships to be more heavily armed. One such cannon made by Browne was recovered from the wreck of
HMS
Swan
, a 200 long tons (200 t) Cromwellian warship lost in a storm off the
Isle of Mull
in 1653 whilst attacking
Duart Castle
. This cannon weighed 3cwt, 2qtrs, 23 lbs (415 pounds (188 kg)) and had a 3½" (89mm) muzzle. It fired shot weighing 4 pounds (1.81 kg). HMS
Swan
was the last ship built for Charles I; its guns were all cast in iron. A larger ship,
HMS
Sovereign of the Seas
had 92 Drakes, cast in
bronze
, as well as 10 non-Drakes, also cast in bronze.
[2]
[3]
[4]
In 1642, John Browne was ordered by Parliament to deliver a list of
"grenadoes"
being held at the Stillyard, and he was not to deliver them except with the Order of the House. In 1645, John Browne and his son were ordered by Parliament to be taken into safe custody, and no visitor was allowed to be alone with either of them, because he was suspected of supporting the
Royalist
cause. Browne appears to have been released in December 1645. John Browne died in 1651. In 1677, another John Browne built a boring mill at
Birchden Forge
, Rotherfield.
[5]
[6]
[7]
Browne's wife Martha is commemorated by a cast iron graveslab in
St Margaret's Church
, Horsmonden.
[8]
References
[
edit
]
Sources
[
edit
]
- F C Clark (1947).
Kentish Fire
. Rye, Sussex: Adams & Son.
External links
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]