Canon 12 de culasse modèle 1884
Canon 12 de culasse modèle 1884 | |
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General Information | |
Military designation: | Canon 12 de culasse modèle 1884 |
Manufacturer country: | France |
Development year: | 1883 |
Start of production: | 1884 |
Weapon Category: | Fortress cannon |
Technical specifications | |
Caliber : |
121.3 mm |
Cadence : | 1 shot / min |
Elevation range: | - 16 ° + 23 ° (mount "de 5" and "de 7") / - 10 ° + 14 ° (mount "de 4") angular degrees |
The Canon 12 de culasse modèle 1884 was a fortress gun of the French artillery and was still in use during the First World War .
commitment
The cannons were specially designed for defense in fortress trenches and were only used here. They stood in the trenches or capons or larynx cases , from where they could effectively keep their trench section under fire.
description
The guns were the bronze barrels of the Canon de 12 mle field guns 1853–1859. The barrels had already been fitted with trains and fields as muzzle loaders in 1859 and were now equipped with a cylindrical crank lock.
The pipes were mounted on iron fortress carriages of the simplest type, of which the models "affut 4 de casemate modèle 1868" and "affut 5 et 7 de casemate modèle 1876" were available. A side straightening area was not originally intended for these cannons, as this was not absolutely necessary for the task at hand. However, there was the option of moving the carriage a little laterally with a bar. Since it was not a pivot tripod, it took a considerable amount of force.
- Further technical information:
- Tube length = 191 cm
- Weight in firing position = 1235 kg (carriage "de 5" and "de 7")
- Weight in firing position = 1140 kg (carriage "de 4")
- Tube weight = 610 kg
- Carriage weight = 625 kg (carriage "de 5" and "de 7")
- Carriage weight = 530 kg (carriage "de 4")
The advantage of the cannon was that it did not have enough power to damage the masonry of the trench walls. The disadvantage was the heavy smoke development and the associated visual impairment in the contested trenches, as well as the unsatisfactory rate of fire. It was replaced by the revolver cannon, but the exchange was not yet completed at the beginning of the First World War - specimens were still found in various forts.
(One gun from Fort de Vaux is now in the Musée de l'Armée in Paris, and another in its original location in Fort d'Uxegney .)
ammunition
There were three types of ammunition available:
- HE grenade
The high-explosive grenade weighed 11.22 kilograms, of which the explosive charge was 500 grams of Mc30 powder. It was not equipped with guide rings, but still according to the old system with lead nubs, with which it was guided in the trains.
- shrapnel
The shrapnel weighed 1.7 kilograms. Inside there was a small explosive charge and 192 bullets.
- Grapeshot
The grapefruit weighed 11.22 kilograms and consisted of a thin sheet metal body with 192 balls.