| 25 cm schwerer Minenwerfer | |
|---|---|
A sMW a/A at the U.S. Army Field Artillery Museum, Ft. Sill, OK |
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| Type | Heavy trench mortar |
| Place of origin | German Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1910–1918 |
| Used by | German Empire |
| Wars | World War I |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Rheinmetall |
| Designed | 1907–09 |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall |
| Produced | 1910–18 |
| Number built | approx. 1234 |
| Variants | 25 cm sMW n/A |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 768 kg (1,690 lb) |
| Barrel length | a/A: 75 cm (2 ft 6 in) L/3 n/A: 1.25 m (4 ft 1 in) L/5 |
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| Shell | separate-loading, 4 disk charges |
| Caliber | 250 millimetres (9.8 in) |
| Recoil | hydro-spring |
| Carriage | box trail |
| Elevation | +45° to 75° |
| Traverse | 12° |
| Rate of fire | 20 rpm |
| Muzzle velocity | 200 m/s (660 ft/s) |
| Effective range | 540 m (585 yards) |
| Maximum range | 970 m (1,050 yards) |
| Sights | panoramic |
The 25 cm schwerer Minenwerfer (25 cm sMW) was a heavy trench mortar used by Germany in World War I. It was developed for use by engineer troops after the Siege of Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War of 1905 illustrated the usefulness of this class of weapon in destroying bunkers and fortifications otherwise immune to normal artillery. It was a muzzle-loading, rifled mortar that had a standard hydro-spring recoil system. It fired two sizes of shells, 97 kg (210 lb) and 50 kg (110 lb), both of which contained far more explosive filler than ordinary artillery shells of the same caliber because the low muzzle velocity allowed for thinner shell walls and hence more space for filler. Furthermore the low velocity allowed for use of explosives like ammonium nitrate–carbon that were less shock-resistant than TNT, which was in short supply. This caused a large number of premature detonations that make crewing the Minenwerfer riskier than normal artillery pieces.
In 1916 a new version, with a longer barrel, was put into production. It was called the 25 cm sMW n/A (neuer Art) or new pattern while the older model was termed the a/A (alter Art) or old pattern. It is unclear what benefit this change had over the older version.
In action the sMW was emplaced in a pit, after its wheels were removed, not less than 1.5 meters deep to protect it and its crew. Despite the extremely short range, the sMW proved to be very effective as its massive shells were nearly as effective at penetrating fortifications as the largest siege guns in the German inventory, like the 42 cm Dicke Bertha or Big Bertha that weighed over 50 times as much. Consequently its numbers went from 44 in service when the war broke out to some 1,234 in 1918.
Note: The data for this weapon differs between sources and cannot be considered definitive. Data provided has generally been for an a/A mortar as given at the U.S. Army Field Artillery Museum, Ft. Sill, Oklahoma.
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