The first artillery identified as howitzers developed in the late 16th century as a medium-trajectory weapon between that of the flat trajectory (direct fire) of cannon and the high trajectory (indirect fire) of mortars.

Who invented the howitzer gun?

It was invented in the 1780s by Royal Artillery officer Henry Shrapnel, whose name became synonymous with fragmented shell shot. In the early 1860s U.S. Army Captain Thomas J. Rodman developed the gun that would become the high point of smoothbore, muzzle-loading artillery.

What is the difference between a cannon and a howitzer?

Cannon became the general term for large ordnance. A gun was a cannon designed to fire in a flat trajectory, a howitzer was a shorter piece designed to throw exploding shells in an arcing trajectory, and a mortar was a very short piece for firing at elevations of more than 45°.