Pressgang visitors to polish up castle cannons

SIR – English Heritage is worried about sea air corroding its cannons (report, March 2). It could take a leaf from the Royal Navy’s book. At Britannia Royal Naval College cadets under punishment for minor misdemeanours got up early and spent a happy time polishing and thus preserving the cannons ranged around the parade ground.

If English Heritage failed to find enough disobedient visitors to its castles, it could buy some paint and make tompions to plug the muzzles. That seemed to work at sea.

Ted Andrews

Glass, Aberdeenshire SIR – How wonderful to read that two cannons from HMS Royal George, which sank in 1782 just off Portsmouth, have survived at Etal Castle, Northumberland.

The Illustrated London News of October 21 1843 reported that the ornamental bronze plaques at the foot of Nelson’s column in London were cast from cannons lifted from the ship before the wreck was blown up. The timber floating around was collected at the dockyard and sold, being used to make furniture and memorabilia.

Eva E Ewart

Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh