Mountain howitzer model 1841
| Mountain howitzer model 1841 | |
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| General Information | |
| Military designation: | 8 pounder mountain howitzer Ord 1844 |
| Developer / Manufacturer: | France , Switzerland |
| Development year: | 1826 |
| Start of production: | 1841 |
| Number of pieces: | 26th |
| Weapon Category: | Mountain Howitzer |
| Team: | 14th |
| Technical specifications | |
| Overall length: | 1.95 m |
| Caliber : |
120.5 mm |
| Elevation range: | 25 degrees of angle |
The Mountain Howitzer Model 1841 (also called the 8-pounder Mountain Howitzer Ord 1844 ) was the first mountain gun used by the Swiss Army . The weapon was replaced by the 4-pounder mountain cannon Ord 1864 in 1864 .
history
Based on the recommendation of Prince Louis Napoleon Bonaparte , a trained in Thun 1834/35 Bernese artillery captain who decided Diet on June 21, 1840, the installation of two mountain batteries of the mountain cantons Graubünden and Valais . Consists of 114 men, 44 pack animals, 4 guns per battery. The procurement of the first ten guns was carried out by the chief artillery inspector Louis Folz.
Mountain Howitzer Model 1841 (Ord 1844)
Except for details, the Ord 1844 mountain howitzer corresponded to the short 8-pounder howitzer introduced in 1826. Contrary to its designation howitzer , the weapon was only suitable for direct shot. The gun bronze barrel had no rifling. Total tube length 970 mm, core length 740 mm, caliber 120.5 mm. Although the caliber corresponded to that of 12 pounders, the howitzer was called an 8 pounder. Reason: she fired a grenade weighing 3.9 kg, respectively. about 8 pounds. The bore at the rear end (chamber) was tapered from 70 mm to 83 mm to accommodate the black powder propellant charge.
The weapon was used on its wooden wheel mount . Since the tube was placed directly on the mount with a trunnion , it was not possible to correct the lateral direction. It was judged by shifting the tail of the carriage sideways. To adjust the elevation , a screw was attached to the mount that supported the rear end of the tube. The elevation range was minus 10 to plus 25 degrees . Restraint ropes could be used to reduce the return of the gun.
The gun was transported on its wheel carriage by a mule , and a forked drawbar could be attached to the end of the carriage. In difficult terrain it could be dismantled and transported by three pack animals.
Use, ammunition
The Ord 1844 mountain howitzer fired spherical high explosive shells with fire tube fuses and grapeshot with a diameter of 119 mm. The projectile and the propellant charge were connected with a wooden spacer. Max. Range of fire 1120 m. Operational range with grenades up to 700 m, close defense with grapple.
- Propellant charge, 266 g of gun powder No. 5
- Explosive grenade Ord 1945, 3.9 kg, explosive charge 250 g black powder No. 3, detonator, burning time 10 s
- Cartridge Ord 1945, 3.5 kg, 42 iron balls of 64 g each, stored in sawdust.
literature
- Guns of the Swiss Mountain Artillery, Bulletin 3/11, page 3
- Les Bouches à Feu de l'Artillerie Suisse, Author: Lt. Col. Jean de Montet, 1980, Edition du Center d'Histoire, Lausanne.
- Artillery I, artillery guns without mechanical barrel return. Author: Walter Betschmann, Stocker-Schmid Verlag, Dietikon-Zürich, ISBN 3-7276-7009-6
- Artillery III, The way to a uniform artillery system, author: Walter Betschmann, 1984, Verlag Stocker-Schmid, Dietikon-Zürich, ISBN 3-7276-7059-2