Landships II

Hello Gentleman

 I ran across some very interesting information about German Artillery in Africa, I thought I would share it, it's quite long, but interesting.

All the Best

Tim R

PART ONE:

‘Guns in South Africa, 1899-1902’ and ‘Field Artillery of the British Army, 1860-1960’, by the same author, appeared in this Journal, volume 2, numbers 1 to 6.

There are many German guns of World War I in the museums, and beside the war memorials, of South and South West Africa. Not only do they represent many of the types encountered by South African troops during that war; they also illustrate design developments in artillery at the end of the 19th Century, and early 20th Century.

The Germans introduced rifled breech-loading artillery in the l860s. After the Franco-Prussian War came ‘Material C/73’. This was in two versions — the light 7,85 cm equipment for horse artillery, and the heavy 8,8 cm equipment for field artillery. These were normally described as 8 cm and 9 cm respectively.

Having two separate guns for horse and field artillery caused problems in the field, especially in connection with ammunition supply. When, in 1888, improvements in material made a lighter gun possible, the larger 9 cm calibre was adopted for both horse and field; this was the C/73/88. Then came the C/73/91 — the same gun but with an improved barrel of nickel steel.

This was followed by the 7,7 cm C/96. The ‘C’ prefix was not always used; this and later guns becoming ‘Model 96’ etc. This gun incorporated several improvements, notably in the breech mechanism, and a traversing system was included for the first time.

At about this time, a light field howitzer, the 10,5 cm Model 98, was adopted. The Germans had not been keen to introduce a new type of equipment, hoping that they would be able to get by on field guns alone. Developments in other European armies and unsuccessful experiments with field artillery ammunition forced them to take this step.

In the early years of the 20th Century, the Germans discovered that their two major rivals, Britain and France, had left them behind in gun design. France had developed a superior field gun. But it must have been infuriating for the Germans to discover that Britain had bought a large number of guns from Ehrhardt, a German manufacturer, as a stopgap pending the production of their new 13 and 18 pounder guns. The Ehrhardt gun, with its ‘long recoil’, was better than the gun in use with the German army at the time the 7,7 cm C/96. This gun was mounted on a rigid carriage and had a very rudimentary recoil system.

The Germans, therefore, rapidly updated their field artillery and produced the new 7,7 cm Field Gun Model 96 n.A. (‘neuer Art’ — new pattern). The light field howitzer, the 10,5 cm Model 98, was also on a rigid carriage, so this was improved too, and a recoil system incorporated. It became the Model 98/09.

German artillery in 1914 was organized into field artillery and foot artillery branches. The former consisted of the light field guns and howitzers just described, which were organic to infantry and cavalry divisions. The latter designation applied to heavier artillery which normally came under corps or army command.

This foot artillery consisted of about 25% guns and 75% howitzers. These ranged in calibre from 9 cm to 42 cm. The most common calibres were 10 cm, 13 cm and 15 cm. About 5000 of the howitzers were of 15 cm calibre.

In their overseas colonies, the Germans used the latest guns available, as well as obsolete guns which could not be replaced because of the distance from the Fatherland. Of particular interest are the naval guns which were used in the East African campaign. Never intended for land service, the use of these guns typifies the energy and ingenuity of the Germans.

Towards the end of the 19th Century, Krupp produced several 6 cm and 7 cm mountain-guns, although mountain artillery was not part of the German army. Ehrhardt was also active in this field, and his mountain gun illustrates design improvements, notably in its recoil system, which put it ahead of all others when it appeared in 1904.

The guns to be described are listed below. All can be seen in South or South West Africa to-day:

• 3,7 cm AUTOMATIC MACHINE GUN (POM-POM). A reminder of the South African War, 1899-1902, and used in German West.
  
• 7 cm MOUNTAIN GUN MODEL 98. An early version on a rigid carriage.
  
• 7,5 cm MOUNTAIN GUN MODEL 08. Probably the first gun with a variable recoil system.
  
• 8 cm LIGHT FIELD GUN MODEL C/73. The standard horse artillery gun from 1873 to 1888.
  
• 9 cm FIELD GUN MODEL C/73/88. The equipment of both horse and field artillery from 1888. (Note: The identification of this gun is uncertain.)
  
• 7,7 cm FIELD GUN MODEL 96. The forerunner of the standard 1914 field gun.
  
• 7,7 cm FIELD GUN MODEl. 96 n.A. The standard equipment in 1914.
  
• 7,7 cm FIELD GUN MODEL 16. An improved field gun introduced in 1916.
  
• 7,5 cm FIELD GUN MODEL 06/12. Made by Krupp for the Italian Army.
  
• 10,5 cm LIGHT FIELD HOWITZER MODEL 98. The first light field howitzer, obsolete in 1914.
  
• 10,5 cm LIGHT FIELD HOWITZER MODEL 98/09. The standard equipment in 1914.
  
• 15 cm HEAVY FIELD HOWITZER MODEL 93. Used by Reserve Artillery units only in 1914.
  
• 15 em HEAVY FIELD HOWITZER MODEL 02. The standard equipment in 1914.
  
• 8,8 cm NAVAL GUN. Mounted on a temporary carriage, and used in German East.
  
• 10,5 cm NAVAL GUN. The gun of the light Cruiser ‘Konigsberg’.

EDITORS’ NOTE
There are probably other guns of World War I in South Africa. If so, the author would like to hear about them so that this record can be completed.

Note: These details are approximate only and refer to pom-poms not of Krupp manufacture.

Hiram S. Maxim, an American, invented this quick-firing belt-fed gun. It achieved fame in the Boer War where it became known as the pom-pom. The British Army had earlier rejected it, but a number were ordered urgently when the Boer success with it was appreciated.

Later naval versions on deck mountings were produced. At the beginning of World War I modifications were made to allow these guns to be used against aircraft. The British Army also mounted pom-poms on high-angle carriages for the same reason. The Belgian and German armies did likewise.

The German pom-pom was made by Krupp and this is one of those guns. There were four in German West, the name by which South African troops came to know South West Africa. These guns were captured at Windhoek.

Pom-poms were not widely used in the war. As anti-aircraft guns they were soon replaced by guns specifically designed for that purpose.

In the 19th Century, mountain artillery was a feature of some, but not all, European armies. Britain, for example, was active in this field. Mountain guns were prominent in her many campaigns in India. Mountainous countries, such as Austria-Hungary, also had their mountain artillery.

Krupp, therefore, produced mountain guns for sale to interested countries and for use in some of Germany’s overseas colonies. Between 1875 and 1907 there were no less than eight 6 cm and 7 cm Krupp mountain guns.

After 1902, recoil systems were incorporated, but the earlier guns, such as this 7 cm Model 98, were on rigid carriages, but this was one of the last with no recoil system.

China ordered a number of these guns from Krupp in about 1900, but the Boxer Rebellion broke out while manufacture was still in progress. The German government commandeered the guns and equipped two batteries of the German Expeditionary Force for China with them. Later some found their way to German West.

The gun was of steel construction with a horizontal sliding breech block, incorporating a ****ing mechanism similar to the 7,7 cm Field Gun Model 96 n.A.

The trail was in two parts, the rear section being narrow to enable it to slide into the forward section on assembly. Recoil was limited by rope brakes, and a detachable spade could be fitted if required. There was no shield. Laying was by tangent sight. Shrapnel ammunition only was provided.

The gun could be towed by mules in tandem, for which a pair of shafts was provided. Alternatively, it could be stripped down to either three or four mule-pack loads.

In 1914, there were six 7 cm and four 6 cm mountain guns of Krupp manufacture in German West.

Herr Ehrhardt of the ‘Rheinische Metallwáaren und Maschinenfabriek’ of Dusseldorf was another prominent German gun designer at the turn of the century. The first ‘long recoil’ gun of the British Army (15 pr QF) was an Ehrhardt gun.

Although mountain guns were available, there were no mountain artillery units in the pre-war German Army. In 1904, Ehrhardt produced his version — an important gun in the history of gun design.

Guns were now appearing with ‘controlled recoil’ systems. This meant that the amount of recoil was the same whatever the elevation, and this had its disadvantages. It meant that elevation was limited as, at higher angles, the breech would recoil into the ground or the trail. Ehrhardt and others realised that the higher the angle, the less the need for a long recoil, as the gun was more stable in this position. A ‘variable recoil’ was, therefore, the answer — long recoil at low angles of projection, short recoil at high.

This mountain gun was his first so-designed, and it is possible that it was the first field equipment with variable recoil which is a normal feature in modern guns.

There were various versions of this gun. Improvements came in 1906. The model used in German West was produced in 1908.

British mountain guns were ‘pack guns’, designed to be stripped and carried on mules. This gun could also be stripped into five loads. As continental mountain guns were often towed, provision was made for this, and a pair of shafts could be inserted in the ‘Y’ part of the trail when the gun was to be towed. To allow this, the trail extension was folded back.

The folding of the trail had another purpose. A short trail was needed for mobility and towing purposes (and to achieve high elevations), but a long trail was required for stability on firing. It was for this reason that the Ehrhardt 15 pr QF had a telescopic trail. Ehrhardt, therefore, solved several problems by adopting a folding trail for his mountain gun.

The trail had two seats. These were not for the comfort of the detachment. A major factor in the stability of a gun is its weight. These seats enabled the effective weight of the gun to be increased by about 300 lbs, the weight of two men.

A shield is normally fitted between the wheels of a gun. A mountain gun is small so, to be effective, the shield in this case extended outside the wheels and was hinged to allow it to be folded back. As the gun had an effective recoil system, the detachment could remain on the gun when it was fired. The original 1904 version had a shield 3,5 mm thick. This was then reduced to 3 mm. This difference may seem insignificant but it made a difference in weight of 22 lb, important in a pack equipment where every pound counts. There was a penalty — the 3,5 mm shield would keep out a German ‘S’ bullet fired from 350 yds, while the 3 mm shield would only keep out the bullet from 600 yds.

Ehrhardt mountain guns were used mainly in the German colonies. Some went to the Portuguese for use in Angola in 1906; others went to the Dutch for use in the Far East. Then there were these which were used in German West.

This is the light version of the Material C/73 which was introduced for horse artillery after the Franco-Prussian War. As such, it was not intended to have axletree seats but some guns, such as this one, were fitted with seats for field artillery use.

The gun was of steel construction, strengthened by a steel jacket at the breech end. Breech closing was by means of a sliding cylindrical wedge. It was made gas-tight by means of a steel ring in the breech end of the chamber and a steel removable plate on the face of the breech block. This fitted against the expanding steel ring. This was a weak point as irregular wear meant frequent changing.

Ignition was through a channel constructed transversally through the wedge (or breech block), the housing projecting above the breech.

Wheel brakes were used to control recoil but they were not really adequate. Percussion and time fuzes were available, but shrapnel range was short.

There were four of these guns in German West in 1914 but they were not used. The Germans relied mainly on the following artillery equipments in that campaign:

4 x 3,7 cm Pom-poms
12 x 7,5 cm Geb K L/17 M 08
22 x 7,7 cm FK 96
8 x 7,7 cm FK 96 n.A.
4 x 10,5 cm le FH 98

There were also some smaller guns. The 6 cm and 7 cm mountain guns have already been mentioned. In addition there were three 5,7 cm QF guns and three 3,7 cm revolver guns, but no details are known about these.

Tests carried out between 1886 and 1888 showed that the 8,8 cm barrel could be made lighter without affecting performance adversely. This was done by removing metal at the breech block and trunnions. Consequently the entire German field artillery could receive a uniform 8,8 cm gun. Previously field artillery had an 8,8 cm gun but, for mobility, horse artillery had a lighter 7,85 cm gun. These were normally referred to as 9 cm and 8 cm respectively.

Trouble was then experienced with the barrel of the new gun. Tests continued and in 1891 a new barrel of nickel steel was adopted. The improved gun was known as the C/73/9 1. In appearance it was the same as the C/73/88.

The gun illustrated stands outside the Cinderella Prison in Boksburg. It presents a problem. The wheels are not original, and the breech block is missing. Otherwise it is in good condition, but paint covers all the engravings which would help in identification.

Taking advantage of the experience gained in manufacturing guns for the German Army, in 1874 Krupp was able to offer his guns for sale to other countries. The barrels of these export guns differed only in calibre from those of the regular German artillery for example, the 7,85 cm and 8,8 cm calibres became 7,5 cm and 8,7 cm respectively.

The Boksburg gun has a calibre of 8,7 cm. It was probably one of Krupp’s export models, sold possibly to the Orange Free State before the Boer War. There are photographs of similar guns with OFS forces during the war. To complicate matters, however, there are references to old Krupps of 7,5 cm calibre but none to Krupps of this larger calibre.

It is impossible to say anything positive about the carriage. The author believes it may be that of the C/73/88, but has been unable to confirm this point. It is hoped to provide more information about this gun in a later issue of the Journal.

What appears certain is that the gun was not used in either the German West or German East campaigns. It is included here because, as a type, it fills the gap between the 8 cm C/73 and the 7,7 cm FK 96 which follows.

This gun replaced the 9 cm Models C/73/88 and C/73/91 as the field artillery equipment of the German Army at the end of the 19th Century. It is interesting to note that the Krupp 7,5 cm field gun, used by the Boer forces in South Africa, was never the standard field gun of the German Army, although it was an effective weapon and was preferred to the 7,5 cm Creusot.

At about this time the 7,7 cm FK 96 was accepted for German field artillery. It featured some interesting improvements when compared with the 7,5 cm model mentioned above and the earlier 9 cm equipments. It had a two-motion breech mechanism which included ****ing, firing and cartridge case extraction mechanism. The gun could be traversed through 80 independently of the carriage. It had an improved tangent sight, incorporating a clinometer which did not have to be removed on firing. Recoil was limited by a wire rope brake and a trail spade. This had the effect of making the gun ‘stand on its hind legs’ when fired, so the trail spade could not be used unless there was zero traverse, as otherwise the gun would turn over. When not in use, this spade was folded over the trail eye and out of the way.

A shield was not designed for the gun. It is interesting to find, therefore, that the two 7,7 cm FK 96s in Pietersburg in the Northern Transvaal do have shields. It was not normal for a shield to be fitted to a gun with no recoil system or with only a rudimentary system, as in this case. There was little point in providing this protection if the detachment had to stand clear of it when the gun was fired. Possibly Boer War experience convinced the Germans that a shield was necessary for protection even if, at about 135 lbs, it aggravated the mobility problem and made laying more difilcult. The tangent sight method required the layer to sight the gun along the barrel, and this explains why there was such a large cut-away portion in the shield.

The field artillery version in Germany had axletree seats; the horse artillery version had none. The Pietersburg guns, with their shields, obviously had none either.

In 1897 the French adopted their famous ‘75’, a gun which put them well ahead of all European armies. If a European war had broken out soon after the Boer War, it would have found the British Army with the 15 pr Ehrhardt, a stopgap equipment bought from Germany; and the German Army with this gun, obsolete in design. It was fortunate for both the British and the Germans that the war did not start until 1914.

Obsolete the 7,7 cm FK 96 may have been, but nevertheless in colonies, such as German West Africa, it was still in service in 1914, and most of the examples to be found in South Africa to-day were captured in that campaign.