10.5 cm leFH 18/40
The 10.5 cm leFH 18/40 (German: leichte Feldhaubitze "light field howitzer") was a German light howitzer used in World War II.
Also recorded as 105mm Le FH 18/40
10.5 cm leFH 18/40
Hoepner · Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-675-7927-25A / Hoepner / CC-BY-SA 3.0 · This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) as part of a cooperation project. The German Federal Archive guarantees an authentic representation · CC BY-SA 3.0 de
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- 10.5 cm leFH 18 · howitzer
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The 10.5 cm leFH 18/40 (German: leichte Feldhaubitze "light field howitzer") was a German light howitzer used in World War II.
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10.5 cm leFH 18
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This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv) as part of a cooperation project . The German Federal Archive guarantees an authentic representation
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howitzer
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wikidata · Q711901 · wikipedia · 10.5 cm leFH 18/40
In this article
History
History
The 10.5 cm leFH 18/40 supplemented the 10.5 cm leFH 18 and the 10.5 cm leFH 18M as the standard divisional field howitzer used during the Second World War. It was designed in an effort to lighten the weight of the 105 mm artillery piece and to make it easier to produce. Generally it did not equip independent artillery battalions until after the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943. Some were also exported to Finland, where they were known as 105 H 33-40. The Romanian Army acquired a number of leFH 18/40 in 1943, to make up for the losses in artillery suffered during the Battle of Stalingrad. It again saw action during the Nigerian-Biafran war when Czechoslovakia gifted Biafra some pieces
M18/49
M18/49
After World War II, Czechoslovakia modified the design, replacing the spoked wheels with solid wheels and pneumatic tires intead of solid rubber tires. before pressing it into service under the M18/49 designation. These guns were towed by a Praga V3S 6×6 or a Tatra 111R 6×6 truck and were kept in strategic reserve as late as 1981.
Users
Users
Austria Biafra Bulgaria Czechoslovakia − M18/49, kept in strategic reserve as late 1981 Finland Nazi Germany Romania Yugoslavia
Description
In March 1942 a requirement was issued for a lighter howitzer by the Wehrmacht that must also be ready as soon as possible and capable of rapid production. This requirement was met by mounting the barrel of the leFH 18M on the carriage for a 7.5 cm PaK 40 antitank gun. The new carriage used torsion bars running the full length of the carriage to suspend the wheels. The original wheels of the PaK 40 mounting were too small for use by the howitzer and were replaced by larger pressed-steel wheels with solid rubber tires. The new mounting increased the rate of fire as well as making the howitzer somewhat lighter. The leFH 18/40 shared the different muzzle brakes used by the leFH 18M.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Haubitzen und Mörser
- 2.101. www.quarryhs.co.uk.
- 3.Editura Centrului Tehnic-Editorial al Armatei. Artileria româna în date si imagini. 98. 2010. 978-606-524-080-3.
Bibliography printed in the source article · 4
- Engelmann, Joachim and Scheibert, Horst. Deutsche Artillerie 1934-1945: Eine Dokumentation in Text, Skizzen und Bildern: Ausrüstung, Gliederung, Ausbildung, Führung, Einsatz. Limburg/Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke, 1974
- Foss, Christopher F. Artillery of the world. Charles Scribner's Sons. 1981. 978-0-684-16722-0.
- Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979
- Hogg, Ian V. German Artillery of World War Two. 2nd corrected edition. Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997
References
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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