| Type 45 240 mm howitzer | |
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Japanese Type 45 240 mm howitzer |
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| Type | Heavy howitzer |
| Place of origin | Empire of Japan |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1912-1945 |
| Used by | Imperial Japanese Army |
| Wars | World War I Sino-Japanese War World War II |
| Production history | |
| Number built | 80 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 38,000 kg (emplaced) |
| Barrel length | 3.892 m (L16.2) |
| Crew | 9 + men |
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| Shell | 240 mm semi-fixed round |
| Caliber | 240 mm |
| Breech | Interrupted screw |
| Elevation | -2 to +65 degrees |
| Traverse | 360 degrees |
| Muzzle velocity | 400 m/s approx |
| Effective range | 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) |
The Type 45 240 mm howitzer ( 四五式二十四糎榴弾砲 Yonjyū-shiki Nijyū-senchi Ryūdanhō) was a siege gun used by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War I and World War II. It was the first such weapon to be entirely designed in Japan.[1]
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The Type 45 was developed after the Russo-Japanese War showed the value of heavy caliber howitzers and mortars when attacking strongly fortified enemy positions. The heavy weapons used by the Japanese Army at the Siege of Port Arthur were 28cm Imperial Japanese army howitzers. The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II </ref> The Type 45 was the first such weapon designed and built entirely in Japan, and entered service in 1912. It was usually deployed as part of coastal artillery batteries.
The Type 45 was an extremely heavy weapon, weighing nearly 38,000 kilograms (84,000 lb) when emplaced. Setup of the weapon required considerable time, and the use of a crane to raise the heavy gun barrel onto the firing platform. The gun was normally used in static positions, either for siege or defense. For transport it could be broken into components, which were divided over a total of ten vehicles
The gun could fire a 440 pounds (200 kg) shell with a muzzle velocity of 1,300 feet per second (400 meters per second) to a range of 11,000 yards (10 km).[2] For reloading, the gun was lowered to the horizontal. The breech was an interrupted screw design.
The Type 45 was first deployed in combat during the Battle of Tsingtao in World War I, where it was effectively used against German defenses. In the Second Sino-Japanese War, there were fewer opportunities to use the Type 45, as Japanese forces rarely had to assault a position so strongly fortified that lesser caliber field artillery could not be used instead.[3] However, with the start of World War II, the Type 45 was deployed in the Battle of Hong Kong against entrenched British landward defenses. It was also used in the Battle of Bataan and Battle of Corregidor in the invasion of the Philippines. Per United States Army records, the Japanese army used 1,047 rounds from their Type 45 240mm howitzers in the Battle of Bataan and another 2,915 rounds at the Battle of Corregidor. [4] In the final stages of the war, the Type 45 was also used in combat in Manchukuo against the invading Soviet Red Army during the Soviet invasion of Manchuria. [5]