developed by John A. Dahlgren in 1846, with advantages over Paixhans guns: Russia The Russian Navy was the first to use the guns extensively in combat. At the Battle of Sinop in 1853, Russian ships attacked and annihilated a Turkish fleet with their Paixhans explosive shell guns. The shells penetrated deep inside the wooden planking of Turkish ships, exploding and igniting the hulls. The defeat was instrumental in convincing the naval powers of the shell's efficacy, and hastened the development of the ironclad to counter it. Notes Naval guns of France American Civil War artillery