BL 8-inch howitzer Mk VII
The BL 8-inch Howitzer Mk VII was a British howitzer of the First World War .
history
Britain entered World War I with very few heavy and super-heavy guns . Since the machine tools to build 8-inch howitzers were available, the production of these guns was given top priority. Although the gun had noticeable flaws, it was used until World War II . At this point, however, the caliber was reduced to 182.9 mm.
disadvantage
Although the gun served quite successfully, it had one significant disadvantage: the box mount was extremely heavy and the barrel return system was not fully developed. Therefore earth ramps had to be built behind the wheels to absorb the recoil of the gun. If these ramps were not set up correctly, the gun would roll over the ramp after the shot and simply tip over.
Technical specifications
- Caliber: 8 inches
- Weight: 8890 kg
- Muzzle velocity: 457 m / sec
- Elevation range: 0 ° to + 45 °
- Projectile / projectile weight: highly explosive / 91 kg
- Maximum range: 11,250 m
literature
- Ian Hogg : 20th Century Artillery . Gondrom Verlag, Bindlach 2001, ISBN 3-8112-1878-6 .
