Can someone provide me with some more information on what I believe to be a British gun (captured by Germans) : http://www.vuijlsteke.be/blog/2009/02/english_20gun.jpg Thanks in advance! Dirk
Ah yes, that's probably because it was a naval gun.
I got the identification from the Osprey book on British Field Artillery, by Dale Clark. In the book it states 'the QF 4.7-in was a fortress or naval gun, mounted on a field carriage and the result was not entirely satisfactory'.
Apparantly the carriage was too small for the gun, which could only absorb 12 inches of recoil in its cradle (unlike its look-a-like, the 60 pounder), so when it was fired the carriage spade dug in. This meant the gun was inaccurate or took too much time to re-lay.
The book explains that 4 of these guns formed the 111th Battery, RGA, 7th Divisional Artillery, France 1914. The battery was formed after the start of the war. It does not mention any other units equipped with this gun, but the book only deals with RHA, RFA and RGA. It does not mention the fate of the guns either, so maybe you have found something important here.
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Building on UncleanCreature's accurate remarks, the 4.7 in gun had it's genesis as a field gun during the Boar War. ( The brain-child of the Royal Navy's Captain Percy Scott. ) By 1914, significant numbers were with the BEF, and remained in service until gradually replaced (on the Western Front). In as much as they were ungainly & lacked cradle traverse, their battle efficiency is suspect.
