The Škoda 149 mm K series was a line of heavy

howitzer The howitzer () is an artillery weapon that falls between a cannon (or field gun) and a mortar. It is capable of both low angle fire like a field gun and high angle fire like a mortar, given the distinction between low and high angle fire break ...

designs used by Germany, Turkey, Romania,

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

, and

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Description

The K-series howitzers were modern designs for their time, with a powerful 149.1 mm calibre barrel mounted on a heavy field carriage designed for motorized transport. The K1 model was slightly longer and could be disassembled for horse carrying as well. The K4 model was more modern and used pneumatic wheels as opposed to the K1's solid rubber rims. Both howitzers used spade plates that had to be pounded into the ground to anchor the weapon in place.

History

The K series was an entirely new design by the

Škoda Works The Škoda Works (, ) was one of the largest European industrial conglomerates of the 20th century. In 1859, Czech engineer Emil Škoda bought a foundry and machine factory in Plzeň, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary that had been established ten ye ...

company of Czechoslovakia. The original K1 model was in production by 1933, and was a successful export weapon, with sales to Turkey, Romania, and Yugoslavia. However, the Czechoslovak Army was not a buyer, but desired modifications to the weapon before any purchase. The newer weapon was titled the K4 and was accepted by the Czechoslovak Army as its standard heavy howitzer intended to replace the large variety of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

era pieces still on inventory. In Czech service it received the designation 15 cm hrubá houfnice vzor 37 and had just begun production when

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

capitulated to Germany in 1939. The Germans continued production for service in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

as the 15 cm schwere Feldhaubitze 37(t) or sFH 37(t). The weapon was widely used, particularly on the Eastern Front, and some had been supplied to Axis-allied powers such as

. Yugoslav K1 guns captured by Germany were given the designation sFH 402(j). Romania purchased a total of 180 pieces between 1936 and 1939, designated as M34. Romania was not able to produce the whole piece by itself, but its Astra Works did manage to produce the

gun barrel A gun barrel is a crucial part of gun-type weapons such as small arms, small firearms, artillery pieces, and air guns. It is the straight shooting tube, usually made of rigid high-strength metal, through which a contained rapid expansion of high ...

. Gun barrels of 150 mm were produced by Astra during the war for the replacement of damaged/worn-out barrels.Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995, ''Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945'', p. 29

Gallery

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-163-0319-01A, Griechenland, Artilleriestellung auf freiem Feld.jpg, A battery of 15 cm sFH 37(t) in German service, Greece, 1941 File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-163-0319-07A, Griechenland, Artilleriestellung auf freiem Feld.jpg, 15 cm sFH 37(t) in German service, Greece, 1941 File:Kütahya-Zafertepe Şehitliği.jpg, A Turkish howitzer File:K4howitzerFerdinandMuseum.jpg, K1 howitzer (with postwar pneumatic wheels) in traveling position

Notes

References

* Chamberlain, Peter & Gander, Terry. ''Heavy Artillery''. New York: Arco, 1975 * 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 * Bishop, Chris (General Editor). ''The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II.'' New York: Barnes £ Noble Books, 1998 {{DEFAULTSORT:Skoda K series World War II field artillery Artillery of Czechoslovakia Field artillery of Germany 150 mm artillery World War II artillery of Germany World War II howitzers Military equipment introduced in the 1930s