Cannons from pre-1700s, the 1800s, and 1900-present

• Cannons in general have the form of a truncated cone with an internal cylindrical bore for holding and explosive charge and a projectile. The thickest, strongest, and closed part of the cone is located near the explosive charge. As any explosive charge will dissipate in all directions equally, the thickest portion of the cannon is useful for containing and directing this force.

Pre-1700s cannons:

• The cannons from this time period were referred to as "trebuchets". The word "trebuchet" came from the old french word "Trabucher", meaning "to overturn" or "fall over", and believed to come from the Latin word "trabuchus". 

• The 17th century English ships usually had plenty of demi-cannons. Demi- cannons could fire a 32 pound-solid shot and could weigh up to 3,400 pounds. They were capable of firing these heavy metal balls with such force that they could completely go through more than a meter of solid oak from a distance of 90 m and could dismast even the largest ships at close range. 

 

The carronade was adopted by the Royal Navy in 1779: the lower muzzle velocity of the round shot was intended to create more wooden splinters when hitting the enemies vessel because they were believed to be more deadly than the ball itself. The carronade was much shorter and weighed between a third to a quarter of the equivalent long gun. 

1800s cannons: 

this cannon was used during the battle of
Chancellorsville

• During this period, greater emphasis was placed on the accuracy of long-range gunfire, and less on the weight of a broadside.
• Early in the century, cast iron replaced bronze
• Western cannons during the 9th century became larger, more destructive, more accurate, and could fire at longer range. 

Different cannons that they used: 

• American 3 in wrought-iron, muzzle-loading howitzer, used during the American Civil War, which had an effective range of over 1.1 mi.
• Smoothbore 12-pounder Nepolean, which was renowned for it's sturdiness, reliability, firepower, flexibility, relatively light weight, and range of 1,700 m.
• Great Turkish Bombards were used to battle a British fleet in 1807
• A Dardanelles Gun was used at the siege of Constantinople (17 ton)

1900s-present cannons

Howitzers

• Howitzers, mortars, guns, autocannons, and superguns were different names used for cannons
• During this period, cannons were used mostly for "the application of fire, coordinated with the maneuver of forces to destroy, neutralize, or suppress the enemy."
• World War I greatly increased the demand for howitzers because they fired at a steep angle and were better suited at hitting targets in trenches.

Source