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A gunport is an opening in the side of the hull of a ship, above the waterline, which allows the muzzle of artillery pieces mounted on the gun deck to fire outside. The origin of this technology is not precisely known, but can be traced back to the late 15th century, with the appearance of artillery in naval warfare. Ships featuring gunports were said to be pierced, since the ports were cut through the hull after the construction.
Portugal sources attribute the invention to King John II of Portugal (1455–1495),Garcia de Resende, Vida e feitos d' el-rey Dom João Segundo, 1545, lines 8219 to 8220 who decided to arm his with heavy cannons, thus creating the first modern man-of-war. The first experiments with the new weapons were made in Setuvel (modern Setúbal) south of Lisbon around 1490; small ships armed in this way could confront much larger vessels armed with the usual small swivel guns.Garcia de Resende, Vida e feitos d' el-rey Dom João Segundo, 1545, lines 8200 to 8220
Guns had been mounted in ships since the 14th century. By 1386, naval artillery had progressed enough for Jean Froissart to report a large ship "armed with three guns that threw such large quarrels that wherever they fell, they pierced everything and caused great damage". In 1380, during the War of Chioggia, Luciano Doria was killed aboard his ship by an enemy broadside. In 1340, during the Battle of Sluys, several of the French bore guns powerful enough to sink several English ships.. But these guns were mounted in the ship's castles or in swivels, much in the way they were still mounted in the castles of the galleys at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.
The power of a cannon depends on its calibre and its range, which in turn impact its weight. The first artillery pieces used in naval combat, traced back to 1304,. were light enough to be mounted on the forecastle, in line with the tactics of the time, which favoured attacks facing the bow the enemy. However, improvements in guns from the mid-14th century dictated an increase in weight, forcing ships to mount them low on the hull for stability; piercing gunports had therefore grown into a common practice by 1501.
Some historians claim the invention was probably simultaneous in Portugal, Spain, England, France and Holland.Jean Meyer, in . It was made possible by the increased size of ship hulls, which allowed piercing ports high enough that they would not take in seawater; nevertheless, the ports had to close with lids in heavy seas, and making them watertight was a technical challenge at the time.
Gunports were pierced on the side of the hull at equal intervals of 2.4 to 2.7 metres, though some were also pierced at the bow and at the stern of ships, for . Their size was adapted to the calibre of the artillery: for instance a gunport for a 36-pounder long gun was 1.2 metre wide. On ships with several decks, they were never pierced one on top of the other, but in quincunx, as to better distribute the load of the guns and the weaknesses of the hull. They were not mere holes in the hull, but artillery positions that had to withstand the weight of the cannons and the recoil forces of shots; to this end, they featured strong beams and rings to which the complex rigging that held the guns in place were attached. In effect, naval guns mounted behind gunports were more comparable to the guns installed in latter turrets, than to mobile Army field guns.
Georges Fournier describes that in 1643, gunports closed with a top-mounted lid mounted in France, England and Holland, while they closed with side-mounted doors in Spain, and with removable panels in other countries. Some ships built with clinker, such as the Mary Rose, had to be rebuilt with a freeboard to be pierced.
Gunports also provided aeration to the cluttered ships. To this end, it was possible to either open the lid, like when bearing the guns, or to open a smaller door in the lid.
The French term for "scuttling", " sabordage", comes from " sabord" ("gunport"), reflecting their potential for flooding.
On 17 February 1783, the two-decker HMS Argo found herself unable to use her lower battery when two French frigates intercepted her. Similarly, during the action of 13 January 1797, the French 74-gun ship of the line Droits de l'Homme fought the British frigates Indefatigable and Amazon in a sea so heavy that she had to seal her lower battery, leaving her with only 30 18-pounder guns, which effectively reduced her to the fighting qualities of a frigate; the British frigates, with their higher freeboard, remained free to use their full potential, and eventually forced the 74-gun to beach herself, even though they would not have been a match for a ship of the line in normal conditions.
In the 18 and 19th centuries, merchantmen featured gunports, as they were useful to ventilate the ship and lighten the deck, and allowed to arm some merchantmen as warship in case of necessity; for instance, after the Mississippi Company was bankrupt in 1770, all its possessions were transferred to the Crown, and its ships were commissioned in the French Royal Navy. Furthermore, some warships could be armed en flûte, removing guns from some of the gunports to make room for storage and men. This could make it non-trivial to discriminate ships in naval service from those that sailed for commerce. In the action of 4 August 1800, the large East Indiaman passed herself as a 74-gun ship of the line when she chased the much stronger French frigate Médée; after sunset, she perfected the illusion by opening and illuminating all her gunports, whether armed or not; her appearance was so convincing that when she caught up with Médée, the frigate struck as if hopelessly overpowered. Conversely, in several instances, frigates attacked what they believed to be merchantmen, only to find themselves unexpectedly confronted with warships; for instance, this mistake caused the capture of the frigate Forte by HMS Sibylle on 2 March 1799.
Around 1810, the French built several 74-gun ships in Venice harbour, which was deep enough to launch the ships, but too shallow to allow their departure. To reduce their draught, the ships were equipped with flotation tanks that supported them with beams inserted into their gunports. This system, called " chameau" ("camel"), was used by two ships: Rivoli and Mont Saint-Bernard. Access number 27 CN 42 at the Naval museum of Toulon.
The philosophy of the gunport survived for a time with the central battery ship and the of the secondary batteries of pre-dreadnought and dreadnought battleships, which were intended to repulse torpedo boats.
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