BL 12-inch railway howitzer
The British Ordnance BL 12 inch howitzer on truck, railway, a type of railway gun, was developed following the success of the 9.2-inch siege howitzer. It was similar but unrelated to the 12-inch siege howitzers Mk II and IV.
Also recorded as 12in Railway Howitzer Mk 5
BL 12-inch railway howitzer
David McLellan · This photograph Q 8464 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums. · Public domain
- Field
- railway gun and rifled breech loader.
- Region
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
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Documentary summary
The British Ordnance BL 12 inch howitzer on truck, railway, a type of railway gun, was developed following the success of the 9.2-inch siege howitzer. It was similar but unrelated to the 12-inch siege howitzers Mk II and IV.
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wikidata · Q2645775 · wikipedia · BL 12-inch railway howitzer
In this article
Mark I
Mark I
Mk I was introduced from March 1916. It is identified by its short barrel and recuperator above the barrel.
Mark III
Mark III
The longer-barrelled Mk III soon followed, with a heavier breech to balance the gun. It retained the recuperator above the barrel.
Mark V
Mark V
Mk V, dating from July 1917, moved the recoil buffer and recuperator into a single housing below the barrel, which was common for all new British artillery developed during World War I. It also had a lighter breech with the gun balanced by the redesigned recoil system and altered gun positioning on the cradle. Mk V also relocated the loading platform from the railway wagon to the revolving gun mounting, which now allowed 120° of traverse, and by overhanging the opposite side provided crew access when the gun fired to the side (90° traverse) and also helped to balance it.
Combat service
Combat service
All 3 versions served on the Western Front in World War I, usually in 2-gun batteries, operated by the Royal Garrison Artillery. Mk III and MK V were deployed for the home defence of Great Britain in World War II.
THE BRITISH ARMY IN THE UNITED KINGDOM 1939-45 12-inch railway howitzer Mk III of 14th Super Heavy Battery, Royal Artillery, at Wareham, Dorset.
Photographer: Malindine (Mr) War Office official photographer · This photograph H 7568 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums (collection no. 4700-37)
Soissons, France. A twelve inch shell being fired from one of the British Army heavy guns north of the town.
John Warwick Brooke · This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.
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.Mk I = Mark 1, Mk III = Mark 3, Mk V = Mark 5. Britain used Roman numerals to denote Marks (i.e. models) of ordnance until after World War II. Hence this article covers the first, third and fifth models of British 12-inch howitzers. Mks II and IV were the unrelated BL 12-inch siege howitzer.
- 2.Hogg & Thurston 1972, page 179, 183, 187
- 3.Hogg & Thurston 1972, page 186
Bibliography printed in the source article · 3
- Dale Clarke, British Artillery 1914-1919. Heavy Artillery. Osprey Publishing, Oxford UK, 2005
- I.V. Hogg & L.F. Thurston, British Artillery Weapons & Ammunition 1914–1918. London: Ian Allan, 1972.
- Harry W Miller, United States Army Ordnance Department, Railway Artillery: A Report on the Characteristics, Scope of Utility, Etc., of Railway Artillery, Volume II, Pages 136-145. Washington : Government Print Office, 1921
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.
Elsewhere in Militaria
6,095 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- BL 12 inch Mk X gunTerminology
- BL 12 inch Mk XI – XII gunTerminology
- BL 12 inch railway gunTerminology
- BL 12-inch howitzerTerminology
- BL 13.5 inch Mk I – IV gunTerminology
- BL 13.5 inch Mk V gunTerminology
- BL 13.5 inch Mk VI gunTerminology
- BL 14 inch Mk VII gunTerminology
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