"Loose Cannon" is a term that dates back to the days of galleons and wooden ship explorations. As early as the 1300s, explorative ships from countries in Europe and other places included cannons mounted on the decks to protect them from pirates and other invaders.
Cannons, as you can imagine, weighed an immense amount because they were Solid cast iron. Their barrels were thick walls of 3 inches or more, they were somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 to 10 ft in length.
As mighty as these old-fashioned defense weapons may seem, their immense bulk and weight were a liability on the ships. There was almost nothing technologically that could perfectly assure that the Cannons would not come loose from their mountings in high seas or a heavy storm.
Picture the idea of a cannon of that magnitude breaking loose from the deck of a Spanish galleon. Cannons were often mounted on wheels so that they could be rolled to different positions.
Estimates of the weight of a cannon from that period of time range from 6,000 pounds
to as much as 38,000 pounds. So if one of these behemoths were to break loose in high seas when the ship is being tossed and thrown by huge waves, there would be nobody on board who could stop it once it begins to roll and the weight and momentum of a rolling cannon generally would break through the wall of a ship wherever it happened to contact.
Thus, the concept of a loose cannon essentially means an out-of-control force that ultimately will do permanent or fatal damage.
I often use this term in my own mind but also out loud with other people periodically. And I know full well what I mean when I say it. I mean that the person I am referring to as a loose cannon is going to be a very destructive force ultimately if not immediately.
I'm guessing you know a loose cannon or two, yourself.
Cannons, as you can imagine, weighed an immense amount because they were Solid cast iron. Their barrels were thick walls of 3 inches or more, they were somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 to 10 ft in length.
As mighty as these old-fashioned defense weapons may seem, their immense bulk and weight were a liability on the ships. There was almost nothing technologically that could perfectly assure that the Cannons would not come loose from their mountings in high seas or a heavy storm.
Picture the idea of a cannon of that magnitude breaking loose from the deck of a Spanish galleon. Cannons were often mounted on wheels so that they could be rolled to different positions.
to as much as 38,000 pounds. So if one of these behemoths were to break loose in high seas when the ship is being tossed and thrown by huge waves, there would be nobody on board who could stop it once it begins to roll and the weight and momentum of a rolling cannon generally would break through the wall of a ship wherever it happened to contact.
Thus, the concept of a loose cannon essentially means an out-of-control force that ultimately will do permanent or fatal damage.
I'm guessing you know a loose cannon or two, yourself.
Comments