Birth of a Big Gun (1908) | BFI Archive

The manufacture of a new weapon in the pre-WWI naval arms race. Subscribe: A new weapon is launched in the pre-WWI naval arms race. This striking film illustrates the processes in the casting and manufacture of a 12-inch, 50-calibre naval gun - the kind of gun that would be used on battleships between 1914 and 1918. It was filmed in early 1908 at the factory of Armstrong Whitworth & Co., based in Newcastle-on-Tyne. The scale of the operation from 85,000 kilos of molten steel to the massive form of the finished gun is nicely filmed to showcase its impressiveness. Watch more on the BFI Player: Follow us on Twitter: Like us on Facebook: Follow us on Google : britishfilminstitute/