6 inch 30 cwt howitzer

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6 inch 30 cwt Howitzer
A 6 inch 30 cwt howitzer with breech open
Type	medium howitzer
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1896 - 1918
Wars	Second Boer War World War I
Production history
Number built	120
Specifications
Crew	10

Shell	HE (Lyddite) 118.5 lb, later 100 lb (45 kg)
Calibre	6 in (152 mm)
Recoil	hydro spring, 18 inch^[1]
Carriage	wheeled, box trail
Elevation	-10° - 35° (wheeled carriage) 35° - 70° (siege mount)^[1]
Traverse	nil
Muzzle velocity	777 ft/s ^[1]
Effective range	5200 yds (on travelling carriage); 7000 yds (on siege mounting)^[2]

The Ordnance BL 6 inch 30cwt howitzer was a British medium howitzer used in the Second Boer War and early in World War I. The qualifier "30cwt" refers to the weight of the barrel and breech together which weighed 30 hundredweight (cwt) : 30 x 112 lb = 3360 lb. It can be identified by the slightly flared shape of the muzzle and large recuperator springs below the barrel.

1 History
2 Combat use
- 2.1 Second Boer War
- 2.2 World War I
3 Ammunition
4 Operators
5 See also
6 Surviving examples
7 Notes
8 References
9 External links

[edit] History

Introduced 1896, based on an Indian Army design.

Its original round was 120/118.5 lb Lyddite high explosive. In 1901 a lighter 100 lb (45 kg) shell was introduced which increased maximum range to 7000 yards.^[3]

It was phased out and replaced by 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer from late 1915 onwards.

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[edit] Combat use

This gun was designed as a siege howitzer firing a special 118.5 lb (53.8 kg) howitzer round. It was designed to be fired from a static siege platform, with wheels removed, for accurate long-range shooting. When fired mounted on its normal wheeled travelling carriage, which had become standard practice for modern medium artillery, its range and accuracy diminished due to limited elevation and also lack of a modern recoil mechanism.

[edit] Second Boer War

In South Africa, Second Boer War

12 Guns were employed in South Africa in the Second Boer War as part of the British siege train. It was during this campaign that the short range limitation became evident, and shell weight was traded for greater range in 1901 with the introduction of a 100 lb (45 kg) shell which increased range to 7000 yards. No use was found for the siege platform which allowed elevation to 70° : "This capability was designed for distinct siege operation, and in South Africa the need for this did not arise. In this theatre the platform was an encumbrance, and it was discovered that it could be dispensed with".^[4]

[edit] World War I

Gun landing at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli, 1915

When World War I began approximately 80 guns were still available. It was adapted to use the standard 100 lb (45 kg) gun shell, with a slight enlargement of the chamber to produce Mk I*, allowing slightly larger propellant charges^[5]. It served in all theatres, including the Western Front, until replaced by the modern 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer from late 1915. However, Gallipoli was given low priority for modern ordnance and the 6 inch 30 cwt was used by 14th Siege Battery RGA (4 guns), attached to 29th Division, at Helles, and by the Australian 1st Heavy Artillery Battery (2 guns) at Anzac.

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[edit] Ammunition


Cartridge, showing arrangement of cordite rings around central core. One or more rings were removed for shorter ranges.	Star shell	Mk IX Shrapnel shell	No 17 D.A. percussion fuze for lydditte shells	Mk IV T friction tube