The 24-pounder long gun was a heavy calibre piece of artillery mounted on warships of the Age of sail, second only to the 36-pounder long gun. 24-pounders were in service in the navies of France, Spain, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United States.

In the Royal Navy, the 24-pounder was y used on some heavy frigates, which carried 26 guns. Fourth-rate ships carried 22 on their secondary batteries, and third-rates carried 32. First-rates carried thirty-four 24-pounders on their middle deck.

This type of cannon was often removed from Navy ships and used as part of Gibraltar’s coastal and land defences during much of the 18^th and early 19^th Century. By the mid-1850’s the 24-pounders began to be slowly phased out as large calibre guns were employed as part of Gibraltar’s coastal defences.  

Embedded 24-pounder cannon, City Mill Lane.