QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun
| QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun | |
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| General Information | |
| Military designation: | QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun |
| Manufacturer country: |
 United Kingdom Japan Italy 
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| Developer / Manufacturer: |
Elswick Ordnance Company Vickers Japan Steel Works Canadian Pacific Railway |
| Development year: | 1893 |
| Start of production: | 1893 |
| Model variants: | Mk I, II, V (British) Model 1916, 1917 (Italian) |
| Weapon Category: | cannon |
| Technical specifications | |
| Pipe length: | 3,048 (40 caliber) |
| Caliber : |
3 inch (76.2 mm) |
| Cadence : | 15 rounds / min |
| Elevation range: | angular degrees depending on the mount |
| Side straightening area: | depending on the mount |
The QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun was introduced to the Royal Navy in 1894 and used until the mid-twentieth century. 3 inch (76 mm) caliber naval gun . QF stands for Quick Fire (Schnellfeuergeschütz), 12 pounder for the projectile weight, 12 cwt for the weight of the barrel and breech (to distinguish it from other twelve pounders) and naval gun (ship gun) for the primary purpose (the designation of British guns at the time of Construction was not uniform, guns were named according to the weight of the bullet, the weight of the gun or the caliber).
The cannon was produced by Armstrong Whitworth and Elswick .
As the Type 41 3-inch (76.2 mm) / 40 , the gun was also used on the early battleships and cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy . Colloquially, the cannon was referred to there as a 12-pounder (twelve-pounder) based on its English name .
The weapon continued to be used in Italy and was manufactured under license by Ansaldo .
construction
The cannon was a breech-loader . The gun had a hydraulic barrel brake , which made space-saving installation on warships possible. Depending on the purpose, different mounts were used. With the ammunition used , the propellant charge and grenade were loaded separately. The propellant charge with ignition device was in a brass cartridge and was inserted into the barrel after the grenade . This type of ammunition was called Separate loading QF . This allowed a higher cadence than conventional breechloaders ( BL - breech loading) where bullet, propellant bags and igniting be loaded separately had. Compared to cartridged ammunition (grenade and propellant charge are in one cartridge and are loaded together), the cadence was lower, which made a different ammunition required when the cannon was used as an anti-aircraft gun .
Bullets weighing 5.67 kg (12.5 lb) were used in British services. The propellant charge was ignited electrically through a primer located in the bottom of the cartridge . The necessary voltage was provided by a battery. The electrical ignition device could be replaced by an adapter that allowed mechanical firing.
There were explosive shells used Schrapnellgranaten were also available. Since primarily fast, small and unarmored targets were to be fought, the use of special armor-piercing ammunition was unnecessary or inexpedient.
commitment
The Mk I and II versions were used on numerous British destroyers for defense against submarines and torpedo boats until the First World War .
During the Second World War , the weapon was used on destroyers and armed merchant ships. Special mountings with a possible large tube elevation also allowed it to be used as an on-board anti-aircraft gun.
Second Boer War
The cannon was primarily designed as a ship gun with a high muzzle velocity. The tube was therefore relatively heavy, which made a fixed mount required. The cannon was therefore considered unsuitable for use on land outside fortifications. During the Second Boer War , however, the British Army could not counter the superior artillery of the Boers with equivalent weapons. Together with other guns, 16 copies of the cannon were placed on improvised mobile mounts, which in turn were developed by Captain Percy Scott . The carriage consisted of a massive wooden structure that was placed on the relatively small wheels of the wagons common in South Africa at the time. The range of around 9,100 m enabled the British troops to provide extensive artillery support as the war progressed. These guns were referred to as the long twelves to colloquially distinguish them from the BL 12 pounder 6 cwt and QF 12 pounder 8 cwt , which had a shorter barrel and a smaller range.
The originally used electric firing, which worked satisfactorily under ideal conditions, caused problems in the field and required special maintenance personnel as well as the transport and maintenance of the charged electric batteries under field-like conditions. However, this turned out to be practically impossible, so that, according to reports from the troops, they switched to vent sealing tubes . This is a kind of percussion cap : a tube filled with cordite was inserted into the cartridge or propellant charge from behind. The charge in the tube was detonated by means of a firing pin and again ignited the propellant charge. This type of firing became the standard solution for medium-weight British artillery. Originally developed for guns in which the propellant charge and projectile were charged separately, the 12 pounder required the use of an adapter instead of the original electric ignition device.
Another six guns were diverted from the Japanese battleship Hatsuse under construction in Newcastle upon Tyne . These guns were purchased by Lady Meux , placed on field mounts made by Elswick and transported to South Africa. The guns were handed over to the British commander in South Africa, Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts , and remained his personal property. This procedure was not otherwise common in the British Army. The crews were made up of volunteers. These were Elswick factory workers drafted by the 1st Northumberland Royal Garrison Artillery . The battery came to be known as the Elswick Battery and was used throughout the war.
Coastal defense
Numerous guns of this type were mounted on pivot mounts and used for coastal defense. They were used to defend port facilities and naval bases in the British Isles as well as in the colonies and Dominions . They were used to fight small and fast ships. In 1918 103 (of a total of 383 cannons of all versions built) were used in coastal defense. Their use did not end until the mid-fifties of the twentieth century, but they were already partly replaced by more modern types such as the QF 6 pounder 10 cwt twin guns during the Second World War .
The guns were aimed manually. The gunner stood to the left of the gun and put his arm over a shoulder piece. Lateral straightening was done by shifting the body while the gunner operated the handwheel of the leveling machine with his left hand. The pistol grip for firing was in the soldier's right hand.
Anti-aircraft gun
During the First World War, some cannons were placed on wheeled mounts in order to obtain at least one reasonably mobile anti-aircraft cannon. These guns were designated as QF 12 pounder 12 cwt AA guns and fired cartridged ammunition.
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Japanese Type 41 3-inch (76 mm) naval gun was a direct copy of the QF 12 pounder . The first cannons of this type were imported from Great Britain as Elswick Pattern N and Vickers Mark Z , after which they were manufactured under license at the Japan Steel Works in Japan. These guns were the standard armament for the secondary and tertiary artillery of most Japanese warships built between 1890 and 1920. They were still used until the end of the Second World War.
The official designation as Type 41 is derived from the forty-first anniversary of the reign of Emperor Meiji on December 25, 1908. Later, as part of the transition of the Japanese Navy to the metric system, it was reclassified as a 76 mm cannon. Although it was called an 8 cm cannon at the end of its service life, the original 7.62 cm caliber was retained.
The Type 41 3-inch (76 mm) naval gun fired 5.7 kg (12.5 pound) explosive shells .
Italy
The first guns were acquired by Elswick, later during the First World War they were manufactured under license at Ansaldo based on a design by Armstrong or a modified design as anti-aircraft guns. After the end of the war, the guns were used on smaller units and auxiliary ships. During the Second World War, 730 cannons of this type were still used in Italian air defense. The guns were designated as 76.2 mm / 40 (3 ″) Ansaldo 1916 or 1917 or 3 ″ / 40 (7.62 cm) Armstrong 1916 or 1917, depending on the manufacturer or licensor. In Italy only cartridge ammunition was used for these guns.
literature
- Text Book of Gunnery, 1902. LONDON: PRINTED FOR HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE, BY HARRISON AND SONS, ST. MARTIN'S LANE
- DK Brown: Warrior to Dreadnought: Warship Development 1860-1905 . Book Sales, 2003, ISBN 1-84067-529-2 .
- DK Brown: The Grand Fleet: Warship Design and Development 1906-1922 . Caxton Editions, 2003, p. 208, ISBN 978-1-84067-531-3 .
- Lieutenant CRN Burne RN: With the Naval Brigade in Natal (1899-1900). Edward Arnold, London 1902
- General Sir Martin Farndale: History of the Royal Regiment of Artillery. The Forgotton Fronts and the Home Base, 1914-18 . Royal Artillery Institution, London, 1988, ISBN 1-87011-405-1 .
- Robert (eds.) And Andrew Lambert (eds.) Gardiner: Steam, Steel and Shellfire: The steam warship 1815-1905 - Conway's History of the Ship . Book Sales,, p. 192, ISBN 978-0-78581-413-9 .
- Peter Hodges: The Big Gun: Battleship Main Armament 1860-1945 . United States Naval Institute Press, 1981, ISBN 0870219170 .
- IV and Thurston, LF Hogg: British Artillery Weapons & Ammunition 1914–1918 . Ian Allan, London, 1972, ISBN 0-71100-381-5 .
- Oscar Parkes: British Battleships . Seeley Service & Co, 1957, United States Naval Institute Press, 1990, ISBN 1-55750-075-4 .
- Admiral Percy Scott: Fifty Years in the Royal Navy , 1919
Web links
- Major D Hall, The South African Military History Society. Military History Journal - Vol 4 No 3 June 1978. THE NAVAL GUNS IN NATAL 1899–1902
- Major LA Crook, The South African Military History Society. Military History Journal - Vol 1 No 4 June 1969. "The Elswick Guns"
Individual evidence
- ↑ different designations possible depending on the country of use and the source
- ↑ a b Hogg / Thurston 1972, p. 54
- ^ Hall June 1978
- ↑ Burne 1902, Chapter IX
- ↑ Crook June 1969
- ↑ Farndale 1988, p. 404
- ↑ a b Tony DiGiulian: 3 ″ / 40 (7.62 cm) 41st Year Type . In: NavWeaps.com . Retrieved January 31, 2011.
