World War Ii German Super Heavy Siege Guns

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World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns

Author : Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 49 pages
File Size : 42,5 Mb
Release : 2020-07-23
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472837165

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World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns by Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp Pdf

As the outbreak of World War II approached, Nazi Germany ordered artillery manufacturers Krupp and Rheimetall-Borsig to build several super-heavy siege guns, vital to smash through French and Belgian fortresses that stood in the way of the Blitzkrieg. These 'secret weapons' were much larger than the siege artillery of World War I and included the largest artillery piece of the war, the massive 80cm railway gun 'schwere Gustav' (Heavy Gustav). However, these complex and massive artillery pieces required years to build and test and, as war drew near, the German High Command hastily brought several WWI-era heavy artillery pieces back into service and then purchased, and later confiscated, a large number of Czech Skoda mortars. The new super siege guns began entering service in time for the invasion of Russia, notably participating in the attack on the fortress of Brest-Litovsk. The highpoint for the siege artillery was the siege of Sevastopol in the summer of 1942, which saw the largest concentration of siege guns in the war. Afterwards, when Germany was on the defensive in the second half of 1943, the utility of the guns was greatly diminished, and they were employed in a piecemeal and sporadic fashion on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. In total, the German Army used some 50 siege guns during World War II, far more than the thirty-five it had during World War I. Supported by contemporary photographs and detailed artwork of the guns and their components, this is an essential guide to these guns, exploring their history, development, and deployment in stunning detail.

World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns

Author : Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 49 pages
File Size : 46,5 Mb
Release : 2020-07-23
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472837189

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World War II German Super-Heavy Siege Guns by Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp Pdf

As the outbreak of World War II approached, Nazi Germany ordered artillery manufacturers Krupp and Rheimetall-Borsig to build several super-heavy siege guns, vital to smash through French and Belgian fortresses that stood in the way of the Blitzkrieg. These 'secret weapons' were much larger than the siege artillery of World War I and included the largest artillery piece of the war, the massive 80cm railway gun 'schwere Gustav' (Heavy Gustav). However, these complex and massive artillery pieces required years to build and test and, as war drew near, the German High Command hastily brought several WWI-era heavy artillery pieces back into service and then purchased, and later confiscated, a large number of Czech Skoda mortars. The new super siege guns began entering service in time for the invasion of Russia, notably participating in the attack on the fortress of Brest-Litovsk. The highpoint for the siege artillery was the siege of Sevastopol in the summer of 1942, which saw the largest concentration of siege guns in the war. Afterwards, when Germany was on the defensive in the second half of 1943, the utility of the guns was greatly diminished, and they were employed in a piecemeal and sporadic fashion on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. In total, the German Army used some 50 siege guns during World War II, far more than the thirty-five it had during World War I. Supported by contemporary photographs and detailed artwork of the guns and their components, this is an essential guide to these guns, exploring their history, development, and deployment in stunning detail.

42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I

Author : Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 50 pages
File Size : 54,7 Mb
Release : 2014-01-20
Category : History
ISBN : 9781780960197

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42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I by Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp Pdf

In the early days of World War I, Germany unveiled a new weapon – the mobile 42cm (16.5 inch) M-Gerät howitzer. At the time, it was the largest artillery piece of its kind in the world and a closely guarded secret. When war broke out, two of the howitzers were rushed directly from the factory to Liege where they quickly destroyed two forts and compelled the fortress to surrender. After repeat performances at Namur, Maubeuge and Antwerp, German soldiers christened the howitzers 'Grosse' or 'Dicke Berta' (Fat or Big Bertha) after Bertha von Krupp, owner of the Krupp armament works that built the howitzers. The nickname was soon picked up by German press which triumphed the 42cm howitzers as Wunderwaffe (wonder weapons), and the legend of Big Bertha was born. This book details the design and development of German siege guns before and during World War I. Accompanying the text are many rare, never-before-published photographs of 'Big Bertha' and the other German siege guns. Colour illustrations depict the most important aspects of the German siege artillery.

German Artillery of World War Two

Author : Ian V. Hogg
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 308 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2002
Category : History
ISBN : 185367480X

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German Artillery of World War Two by Ian V. Hogg Pdf

German Artillery of World War Two Hogg Complete details of German artillery used in WWII: infantry, mountain, field, heavy field, heavy, railway, anti-aircraft, anti-tank, coastal, and recoilless artillery. Official name and abbreviation, and any code name, is given for every piece, with a summary of its history and career, followed by extensive tables with technical specs, and details of performance, ammunition, projectiles, and propelling charges.

Railway Guns of World War II

Author : Steven J. Zaloga
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 52 pages
File Size : 45,6 Mb
Release : 2016-02-25
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472810694

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Railway Guns of World War II by Steven J. Zaloga Pdf

World War II marked the zenith of railway gun development. Although many of the railway guns deployed at the start of the conflict were of World War I vintage, Germany's ambitious development programme saw the introduction of a number of new classes, including the world's largest, the 80cm-calibre Schwerer Gustav and Schwerer Dora guns, which weighed in at 1,350 tons and fired a huge 7-ton shell. This book provides an overview of the types of railway guns in service during World War II, with a special focus on the German railway artillery used in France, Italy and on the Eastern Front, and analyzes why railway guns largely disappeared from use following the end of the war.

Railway Guns of World War I

Author : Marc Romanych,Greg Heuer
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 49 pages
File Size : 46,6 Mb
Release : 2017-08-24
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472816412

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Railway Guns of World War I by Marc Romanych,Greg Heuer Pdf

World War I was the Golden Age of the railway gun. Even though at the start of the conflict none of the armies possessed any railway artillery pieces and the very idea was comparatively new, more railway guns were used during this war than in any other conflict. Designed to break the stalemate of trench warfare, the first railway guns were simple, improvised designs made by mounting surplus coastal defence, fortress, and naval guns onto existing commercial railway carriages. As the war dragged on, railway artillery development shifted to longer range guns that could shell targets deep behind enemy lines. This change of role brought much larger and more sophisticated guns often manufactured by mounting long-barrel naval guns to specially-designed railway carriages. This book details the design and development of railway guns during World War I from the very first basic designs to massive purpose built "monster" railway guns. Accompanying the text are many rare, never-before-published, photographs and colour illustrations depicting how these weapons were used during World War I.

Steel Thunder on the Eastern Front

Author : Stackpole Books,Michael Olive
Publisher : Stackpole Books
Page : 192 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2014-11-15
Category : History
ISBN : 9780811749961

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Steel Thunder on the Eastern Front by Stackpole Books,Michael Olive Pdf

Visual history of the artillery used by both sides on the Eastern Front in World War II.

Superguns 1854–1991

Author : Steven J. Zaloga
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 49 pages
File Size : 49,6 Mb
Release : 2018-12-27
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472826091

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Superguns 1854–1991 by Steven J. Zaloga Pdf

Over the last 150 years, gun designers have sought to transform warfare with artillery of superlative range and power, from William Armstrong's 19th-century “monster guns” to the latest research into hypersonic electro-magnetic railguns. Taking a case study approach, Superguns explains the technology and role of the finest monster weapons of each era. It looks at the 1918 “Wilhelm Gun,” designed to shell Paris from behind the German trenches; the World War II “V-3” gun built to bombard London across the Channel; the Cold War atomic cannons of the US and Soviet Union; and the story of Dr Gerald Bull's HARP program and the Iraqi “Supergun” he designed for Saddam Hussein. Illustrated throughout, this is an authoritative history of the greatest and most ambitious artillery pieces of all time.

In Deadly Combat

Author : Gottlob Herbert Bidermann
Publisher : University Press of Kansas
Page : 384 pages
File Size : 48,7 Mb
Release : 2000-06-07
Category : History
ISBN : 9780700611225

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In Deadly Combat by Gottlob Herbert Bidermann Pdf

In the hell that was World War II, the Eastern Front was its heart of fire and ice. Gottlob Herbert Bidermann served in that lethal theater from 1941 to 1945, and his memoir of those years recaptures the sights, sounds, and smells of the war as it vividly portrays an army marching on the road to ruin. A riveting and reflective account by one of the millions of anonymous soldiers who fought and died in that cruel terrain, In Deadly Combat conveys the brutality and horrors of the Eastern Front in detail never before available in English. It offers a ground soldier's perspective on life and death on the front lines, providing revealing new information concerning day-to-day operations and German army life. Wounded five times and awarded numerous decorations for valor, Bidermann saw action in the Crimea and siege of Sebastopol, participated in the vicious battles in the forests south of Leningrad, and ended the war in the Courland Pocket. He shares his impressions of countless Russian POWs seen at the outset of his service, of peasants struggling to survive the hostilities while caught between two ruthless antagonists, and of corpses littering the landscape. He recalls a Christmas gift of gingerbread from home that overcame the stench of battle, an Easter celebrated with a basket of Russian hand grenades for eggs, and his miraculous survival of machine gun fire at close range. In closing he relives the humiliation of surrender to an enemy whom the Germans had once derided and offers a sobering glimpse into life in the Soviet gulags. Bidermann's account debunks the myth of a highly mechanized German army that rolled over weaker opponents with impunity. Despite the vast expanses of territory captured by the Germans during the early months of Operation Barbarossa, the war with Russia remained tenuous and unforgiving. His story commits that living hell to the annals of World War II and broadens our understanding of its most deadly combat zone. Translator Derek Zumbro has rendered Bidermann's memoir into a compelling narrative that retains the author's powerful style. This English-language edition of Bidermann's dynamic story is based upon a privately published memoir entitled Krim-Kurland Mit Der 132 Infanterie Division.The translator has added important events derived from numerous interviews with Bidermann to provide additional context for American readers.

42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I

Author : Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp
Publisher : Osprey Publishing
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 50,9 Mb
Release : 2014-01-21
Category : History
ISBN : 1780960174

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42cm 'Big Bertha' and German Siege Artillery of World War I by Marc Romanych,Martin Rupp Pdf

Big Bertha, Germany's World War I top secret mobile artillery piece, easily destroyed French and Belgian forts, helping set the stage for trench warfare. In the first days of World War I, Germany unveiled a new weapon - the mobile 42cm (16.5 inch) M-Gerät howitzer. At the time, it was the largest artillery piece of its kind in the world and a closely guarded secret. When war broke out, two of the howitzers were rushed directly from the factory to Liege where they quickly destroyed two forts and compelled the fortress to surrender. After repeat performances at Namur, Maubeuge and Antwerp, German soldiers christened the howitzers 'Grosse' or 'Dicke Berta' (Fat or Big Bertha) after Bertha von Krupp, owner of the Krupp armament works that built the howitzers. The nickname was soon picked up by German press which triumphed the 42cm howitzers as Wunderwaffe (wonder weapons), and the legend of Big Bertha was born. To the Allies, the existence of the howitzers came as a complete surprise and the sudden fall of the Belgian fortresses spawned rumors and misinformation, adding to the 42cm howitzer's mythology. In reality, 'Big Bertha" was but the last in a series of large-caliber siege guns designed by the German Army for the purpose of destroying concrete fortifications. It was also only one of two types of 42cm calibre howitzers built for the army by Krupp and only a small part of the siege artillery available to the German Army at the outset of the war. Such were the successes of the German siege guns that both the French and British Armies decided to field their own heavy siege guns and, after the German guns handily destroyed Russian forts during the German offensives in the east in 1915, the French Army abandoned their forts. However, by 1916, as the war settled into a stalemate, the effectiveness of the siege guns diminished until, by war's end, 'Big Bertha' and the other siege guns were themselves outmoded. This book details the design and development of German siege guns before and during World War I, to include four models of 30.5cm mortars, two versions of 28cm howitzers, and two types of 42cm howitzers (including 'Big Bertha'); in total, eight different types of siege guns. Accompanying the text are many rare, never before published, photographs of 'Big Bertha' and the other German siege guns. Colour illustrations depict the most important aspects of the German siege artillery.

Illustrated Record of German Army Equipment 1939-1945 Volume II Artillery (in Two Parts)

Author : , War Office (MI 10)
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 252 pages
File Size : 47,6 Mb
Release : 2004-01-01
Category : Electronic
ISBN : 1843427133

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Illustrated Record of German Army Equipment 1939-1945 Volume II Artillery (in Two Parts) by , War Office (MI 10) Pdf

German artillery has been a subject of study for many years, but it is rare to find the original source material for such studies. These two pamphlets were issued in 1948 and include all known operational German artillery of the Second World War. In the two volumes are no fewer than 198 plates of the guns and their ammunition, and appendices, charts and tables give every detail of the weapons that was available, even to German gunners. The books are introduced with a history of the development of German artillery, and then follow a standard layout. The guns are covered in the following order: (Part 1) antitank artillery, infantry guns, recoilless guns, Field Artillery, Medium Artillery, Heavy and super-Heavy Artillery, (Part 2) light Flak, Medium Flak, Heavy Flak, Coast Defence Artillery and Railway Artillery. Among the guns covered are the 8.8cm antitank guns, 10.5 and 15 cm field guns, the 42cm Gamma Mortar, the four-barreled Flakvierling (so feared by Allied ground attack pilots), 8.8cm Flak guns, the 15 and 24cm heavy Flak designs and the super-heavy Siegfried , Adolf, Bruno and the 80 cm Kanone E. Many books cover this subject, but none to greater detail, nor with the wealth of illustrations that make these books a prime source for all who need information of German artillery in the Second World War.

German Artillery in World War II, 1939-1945

Author : Joachim Engelmann
Publisher : Schiffer Pub Limited
Page : 172 pages
File Size : 44,8 Mb
Release : 1995
Category : History
ISBN : 0887407625

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German Artillery in World War II, 1939-1945 by Joachim Engelmann Pdf

Never before in German military history did the German Artillery possess such variety and magnitude as in the World War II era. From North Cape to Tobruk, Biscay to Lapland, Den Helder to the Caucasus, there were more than 1000 light and about 340 heavy artillery units, as well as the light and heavy field howitzer units, assault gun units, brigades and batteries, observation units, railroad batteries, mountain artillery units, light gun units and launcher regiments. The German Artillery included 655,000 men in 1943, or 22 percent of all the soldiers who went into action. Thirty-nine German gun tipes and forty captured gun types from ten different European countries were utilized by these units. The German Artillery took on special significance in the spring of 1943 when the fighting strength of the exhausted infantry began to decrease and armored vehicles became less and less effective in their battle against overwhelming Soviet power. During this period, the Artillery again and again provided the backbone of the German resistance and defense. This volume of photographs presents a look into the operations, action and everyday life of the German artillery - a frequently over-looked aspect of Wehrmacht history.

Railway Guns

Author : John Goodwin
Publisher :
Page : 123 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2016-08-30
Category : History
ISBN : 9781473854147

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Railway Guns by John Goodwin Pdf

In the nineteenth century the War Office showed little interest in developing large heavy artillery for its land forces, preferring instead to equip its warships with the biggest guns. Private initiatives to mount a gun on a railway truck pulled by a steam engine were demonstrated before military chiefs in the Southern Counties, but not taken up. However, the development of longer-range guns, weighing up to 250 tons, to smash through the massive armies and trench systems on the Western Front in 1916, led to a rethink. The only way to move these monsters about quickly in countryside thick with mud was to mount them on specially built railway trucks towed by locomotives. The railway guns were to be put on little-used country lines where they could fire on beaches, road junctions and harbors. The locations and cooperation given by the independent railway companies is explained, as are the difficulties of using the same lines for war and civilian traffic. The First World War also saw the emergence of large training camps for railway men. When the war ended most railway guns were dismantled and lost in ordnance depots. The Army Council was uncertain about artillery needs in a future war, so training, and development stopped. This book largely concentrates on the realities of the time, the type of gun, the locomotives, artillery targets, locations, and what it was like when firing took place. It is fully illustrated with pictures, maps and plans covering different aspects of railway guns their locomotives and equipment.

World War I Battlefield Artillery Tactics

Author : Dale Clarke
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 66 pages
File Size : 45,6 Mb
Release : 2014-12-20
Category : History
ISBN : 9781782005919

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World War I Battlefield Artillery Tactics by Dale Clarke Pdf

As the First World War bogged down across Europe resulting in the establishment of trench systems, artillery began to grow in military importance. Never before had the use of artillery been so vital, and to this day the ferocity, duration and widespread use of artillery across the trenches of Europe has never been replicated. Featuring specially commissioned full-colour artwork, this groundbreaking study explains and illustrates the enormous advances in the use of artillery that took place between 1914 and 1918, the central part artillery played in World War I and how it was used throughout the war, with particular emphasis on the Western Front.

Super-heavy Tanks of World War II

Author : Kenneth W Estes
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 100 pages
File Size : 45,9 Mb
Release : 2014-11-20
Category : History
ISBN : 9781782003854

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Super-heavy Tanks of World War II by Kenneth W Estes Pdf

The super-heavy tanks of World War II are heirs to the siege machine tradition – a means of breaking the deadlock of ground combat. As a class of fighting vehicle, they began with the World War I concept of the search for a 'breakthrough' tank, designed to cross enemy lines. It is not surprising that the breakthrough tank projects of the period prior to World War II took place in the armies that suffered the most casualties of the Great War (Russia, France, Germany). All of the principal Axis and Allied nations eventually initiated super-heavy development projects, with increasingly heavy armor and armament. Much as the casualties of World War I prompted the original breakthrough tank developments, as Germany found itself on the defensive, with diminishing operational prospects and an increasingly desperate leadership, so too did its focus turn to the super-heavy tanks that could turn the tide back in their favor.