Under its mandate to interpret Canadian history to the public, Environment Canada - Parks initiated an extensive study of the technology of British ordnance c1710-1860s to aid in the re-creation of period settings at a number of British military sites in Canada, and to provide a manual for the reconstruction of pieces of artillery, their carriages and platforms. The study covers the production of ordnance, the history of the development and design of various pieces (guns, mortars, howitzers, carronades), their carriages and platforms, and the development of gunpowder, cartridges, fuses, and projectiles.