A medium-sized cannon or artillery piece that is smaller and less powerful than a full bombard but still substantial.
From 'demi-' plus 'bombard,' which comes from Medieval Latin 'bombarda,' possibly from the sound bombs make. The term developed as military technology became more specialized with weapons of various sizes.
Medieval armies classified cannons by size using 'demi-' because having precise weapon names was crucial for coordinating battle strategies—a demibombard was light enough to move but powerful enough to matter!
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