In Flashman at the Charge, Flashman states that he knew a bit about Congreves from my time at Woolwich. But then he goes on to describe its range and accuracy, its weight, structure and maximum range at 55 degrees, details about assembling and adjusting the firing-frame and then directs a band of Ghazi cut-throats in the midst of a night battle on setting up the firing-frame and firing the rockets! Sounds like to me he knew a lot more than a bit.
The rockets used by Flashman were developed for the British Artillery by Sir William Congreve at Woolwich in the early 1800's. In early 1854, Flashman (trying to avoid getting involved in the escalating tensions with Russia) joined the Board of Ordinance. He was assigned to Woolrich laboratory where the Royal Small Arms Factory tested muskets (Flashman at the Charge 1:30).
Sir William Congreve (1772 - 1828), also known as Congreve the Younger, was born to
William Congreve the Elder.
His father was appointed Superintendent of the
Royal Military Repository at Woolrich in 1778 and later became
Comptroller of the Royal Laboratory. Congreve
the Younger developed an early interest in engineering
and assisted his father at Woolrich.
He eventually joined the staff.
In 1799, the Board of Ordinance was interested in the potential use of rockets and requested the Woolrich Laboratory investigate the possibility. Congreve (the Younger) took up the task. By 1809, Congreve had developed a rocket system that was used by the British Army in both North America and Europe between 1810 and 1815.
There are two styles of Congreve rockets based on the method that the stick is attached to the rocket head. Originally the rocket stick was mounted on the side of the rocket head by means of three iron ferules (metal rings or short metal tubes) affixed to the rocket head. To secure the rocket head to the stick, these ferules were compressed into the wooden stick by the use of hammers, pincers, vices or wrenches. Since the stick was not mounted along the same axis as the thrust, the stick created a drag and effected the rocket's flight and hampered its performance. This original rocket was fired from half-pipes or troughs.
In 1815, the rocket head was redesigned to include a vented base plate with a threaded hole at the end of the rocket head. One end of the stick was shod with a metal cap which was screwed into the center of the base plate allowing the stick to be center mounted and eliminating the drag caused by the stick being mounted on the side of the rocket. This allowed the rocket to be fired from full pipes or tubes which improved its accuracy.
In Flashman at the Charge the firing frame is described as an iron fence ... with supports both sides, and half-pipes running from the ground behind to the top of the fence, to take the rockets. Also Flashman states that Kutebar flourished the stick, with the rocket-head secured - up-side down ... Obviously the rockets must have been the original Congreve side-mount rockets since they were fired from half-pipes and it would have been impossible for Kutebar to attach a rocket head upside down to a center-mount stick.
Flashman describes the Congreve rockets as three foot metal cylinders with conical heads ... weighing 32 pounds without its stick with a stick fifteen feet long. This accurately describes the 32 pounder Carcass.
Plate 13 from The Rocket System by Sir William Congreve (published 1814) shows the various Congreve Rockets. Click on the plate to see an enlarged view. One of the medium sized bombardment rockets designed by Congreve was the 32 Pounder Carcass, which has a rocket head approximately three feet in length and requires a 15 foot stick. This 32 Pounder was the smallest rocket used as a carcass in bombardment and the largest armed with either shot or shell for field service. It quickly became the most widely used model. This matches Flashman's description exactly.
Flashman, speaking of the rockets - I swore when I saw that, as I'd feared, they were the old pattern, without fins and needing the fifteen-foot sticks. Sure enough, there were the sticks, in long canvas bundles ...
According to The Rocket System, all rocket sticks for land service were made in parts of convenient length (maximum of 4 feet) for carriage and joined by iron ferules. For sea service they are made in the whole length.
Since Flashman found the sticks in long bundles and does not mention having to assemble them (by using the tools for compressing the iron ferules) it appears that the rockets might have been intended for use by the Royal Navy (or the Royal Marine Artillery). Another possibility is that the sticks were made by the Russians who hadn't thought of how a pack animal or carriage could carry a bundle of sticks 15 feet long! So were they Navy rockets (or at least Navy sticks) or did the Russians provide the sticks?
Another issue is the firing frame. The Navy rockets were not launched from an steel firing-frame. Instead, they were launched from Fire Ships using built-in wooden frames or from smaller vessels using a boat frame which is significantly different from the firing- frame described by Flashman. So either "sea service" sticks were added to the "field service" rockets or a "field service" firing-frame was added to the "sea service" rockets.
And I lectured them about about Congreves - it was remarkable how well I remembered each detail about assembling the firing-frame and half-pipes, and adjusting the range-screws and everything ... Putting up the frame was simple - it's just an iron fence, you see, with supports both sides, and half-pipes running from the ground to he top of the fence, to take the rockets ... "Let's see how we stand." I squinted over the half-pipe, which was at full elevation. "Give us a box beneath the pipe, to lift her. So - steady." I adjusted the ranging-screw, and now the great conical head of the rocket was pointing just over her main-mast.
Another mystery is the firing-frame. Careful review of available material does not turn up a steel firing-frame as described by Flashman. Since it consisted of half-pipes, it must have been designed for use with the pre-1815 side-mount rocket. But the only documented firing-frame was the ladder-like launching apparatus shown below (click on image for a larger image).
The firing-frame for 32 Pounder bombardment rockets consisted of a long ladder with two attached chambers (half-pipes) which allowed
two rockets to be launched before reloading. Two legs were used to elevate the frame.
The range (angle of elevation)
was determined by spreading or closing the legs, based on distances marked in
degrees on a small measuring tape carried by an officer (called the Elevating Line). The frame
was kept upright by using a plumb-line hanging down from the
vertex of the two legs (where the legs meet the ladder). The rocket was ignited using a "lock" mechanism triggered by a long string.
The lock was similar to the flint lock on a contemporary rifle.
To date, I have not found any documentation describing the firing-frame as described by Flashman. It could have been a prototype, but how could the Russians obtain a prototype? Congreve, being the design engineer, must have spun in his grave when Flashman used a box to adjust the elevation of the frame.