The Ordnance QF 25-pounder, or more simply 25-pounder or 25-pdr, was the major British
field gun
A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artille ...
and
howitzer
A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...
during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Its calibre is 3.45-inch (87.6 mm). It was introduced into service just before the war started, combining both high-angle and direct-fire abilities, a relatively high rate of fire, and a reasonably lethal shell in a highly mobile piece. It remained the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
's primary
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
field piece well into the 1960s, with smaller numbers serving in training units until the 1980s. Many
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
countries used theirs in active or reserve service until about the 1970s and ammunition for the weapon is currently being produced by
Pakistan Ordnance Factories
, type = State-owned company
, industry = Firearms, Defense, Machinery
, fate =
, successor =
, founded =
, founder =
, defunct =
, hq_location_city = Wah Cantonment, Punjab
, hq_location_country = Pakistan
, area_served = worldwi ...
. Initial production was slow, but by 1945, over 12,000 had been manufactured. The 25-pounder was probably the most outstanding field artillery piece used by British and Commonwealth forces in the Second World War, being durable, easy to operate and versatile.
Design
The design was the result of extended studies looking to replace the
18-pounder
The Ordnance QF 18-pounder,British military traditionally denoted smaller ordnance by the weight of its standard projectile, in this case approximately or simply 18-pounder gun, was the standard British Empire field gun of the First World War ...
( bore) field gun and the
4.5-inch howitzer (114.3 mm bore), which had been the main field artillery equipments during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The basic idea was to build one weapon with the high velocity of the 18-pounder and the variable propelling charges of the howitzer, firing a shell about halfway between the two in size, around of about .
Development during the inter-war period was severely hampered by a lack of money and it was eventually decided to build a new design from existing 18-pounders by converting barrels but designing a new barrel and carriage for production when funds were available. The result was a weapon firing a shell weighing . It was mounted on late model 18-pounder carriages. One of these used a circular firing platform and this was adopted for the new guns. The firing platform was attached to the gun and when lowered the gun was pulled onto it. This platform transferred most of the recoil forces to the ground, instead of using the spade at the end of the trail, making the gun very stable when firing. It also provided a smooth flat surface for the carriage to rotate on using the road wheels, this enabled the gunners to traverse the carriage quickly in any direction.
![The British Army in the United Kingdom 1939-45 H20971](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/The_British_Army_in_the_United_Kingdom_1939-45_H20971.jpg)
Unlike the 18-pounder, the 25-pounder used howitzer-type variable-charge ammunition. The 25-pounder was separate-loading; the shell was loaded and rammed, then the cartridge in its brass case was loaded and the breech closed. In British terminology, the 25-pounder was called
"quick firing" (QF), originally because the cartridge case provided rapid loading compared with bag charges, and was automatically released when the breech was opened.
The use of separate shell and cartridge allowed the charge to be changed for different ranges. For the Mk 1 Ordnance on an 18-pounder carriage there were three "charges", charges one, two and three, all of which could be used in the common cartridge design. The Mk 2 Ordnance on Mk 1 carriage added a "super" charge in a different cartridge. In 1943 a separately bagged "increment" charge was added; used with the Super it provided higher velocity for anti-tank use. The introduction of the increment to super was only possible following the addition of the
muzzle-brake
A muzzle brake or recoil compensator is a device connected to, or a feature integral to the construction of, the muzzle or barrel of a firearm or cannon that is intended to redirect a portion of propellant gases to counter recoil and unwanted ...
in the previous year. Subsequently, another type of increment was introduced to be added to charges one and two to provide additional combinations for use in high angle fire. However, this fire required a dial sight adaptor, removal of the platform and some excavation of the ground.
In common with all British guns of the period the indirect fire sight was "calibrating". This meant that the range, not elevation angle, was set on the sight. The sight compensated for the difference in the gun's muzzle velocities from standard. The gun was also fitted with a direct-fire telescope for use with armour-piercing shot. It also used "one-man laying" in accordance with normal British practice.
An important part of the gun was the ammunition trailer ("trailer, artillery, No 27"). The gun was hooked to it and the trailer hooked to the tractor for towing. The gun did not need a limber and could be hooked directly to a tractor. The trailer provided the brakes as only a hand-brake was fitted to the gun carriage. The trailer carried ammunition; thirty-two rounds in trays (two rounds per tray) in the trailer protected by two doors. Ammunition was also carried in the gun tractor with the detachment and various gun stores. Some stores, such as sights, were carried cased on the gun. Each section (two guns) had a third tractor that carried ammunition and towed two ammunition trailers.
The gun detachment comprised the following:
No 1 – detachment commander (a sergeant)
No 2 – operated the breech and rammed the shell
No 3 – layer
No 4 – loader
No 5 – ammunition
No 6 – ammunition, normally the "coverer" – second in command and responsible for ammunition preparation and operating the fuze indicator
The official "reduced detachment" was four men.
Production
Many different companies manufactured the guns and component parts in the UK.
Vickers-Armstrongs
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...
in Scotswood,
Baker Perkins
Baker Perkins Ltd is a British engineering company for food processing equipment headquartered in Peterborough, England. Its product portfolio offers different technologies and applications for the bread, biscuit, confectionery, snack, and break ...
in Peterborough and
Weirs
A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
in Glasgow were some of the most significant. The various Royal Ordnance factories produced most of the ordnance components. In Canada, Sorel Industries built complete guns and provided the ordnance for fitting to the
Sexton. Australia also built complete guns, choosing to weld the carriages rather than rivet, as was the practice in the UK and Canada. In all, over 13,000 were made worldwide.
Ammunition
![25 pounder base charges diagrams](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/25_pounder_base_charges_diagrams.jpg)
The 25-pounder fired "separate" or two-part ammunition – the projectile was loaded separately from the propelling charge in its (usually brass) cartridge case with its integral primer. Typically for a quick-firing gun, the cartridge case provided
obturation
In the field of firearms and airguns, obturation denotes necessary barrel blockage or fit by a deformed soft projectile (obturation in general is closing up an opening). A bullet or pellet, made of soft material and often with a concave base, wi ...
.
There were two types of cartridge. The normal cartridge contained three cloth charge bags (coloured red, white and blue). White or blue bags would be removed from the cartridge to give "charge one" or "charge two", leaving all three bags in the cartridge case gave "charge three". The cartridge case was closed at the top with a
leatherboard cup. The second type of cartridge was "super", which provided one charge only. The cup could not be removed from the cartridge case. In 1943, an incremental charge of of cordite ("super-plus") was introduced to raise the muzzle velocity when firing
armour-piercing
Armour-piercing ammunition (AP) is a type of projectile designed to penetrate either body armour or vehicle armour.
From the 1860s to 1950s, a major application of armour-piercing projectiles was to defeat the thick armour carried on many warsh ...
shot with charge super; this required a
muzzle brake
A muzzle brake or recoil compensator is a device connected to, or a feature integral to the construction of, the muzzle or barrel of a firearm or cannon that is intended to redirect a portion of propellant gases to counter recoil and unwanted ...
to be fitted. Adoption of "upper-register" (high-angle) fire needed more charges to improve the range overlap. This led to the development of the "intermediate increment" of 4oz cordite, which was introduced in 1944. The bags were striped red and white to indicate that they should only be used with charges one and two. When one bag was used with charge 1 it provided charge 1/2. When one was added to charge 2 it provided charge 2 1/3, and two bags, charge 2 2/3. This allowed a range of seven different charges instead of four.
![QF 25 pounder Ammunition-001](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/QF_25_pounder_Ammunition-001.jpg)
There were many marks of cartridge, mostly differentiated by propellant type. Double-base propellant (
nitrocellulose
Nitrocellulose (also known as cellulose nitrate, flash paper, flash cotton, guncotton, pyroxylin and flash string, depending on form) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to a mixture of nitric acid and ...
/
nitroglycerine
Nitroglycerin (NG), (alternative spelling of nitroglycerine) also known as trinitroglycerin (TNG), nitro, glyceryl trinitrate (GTN), or 1,2,3-trinitroxypropane, is a dense, colorless, oily, explosive liquid most commonly produced by nitrating ...
) was the UK standard but one mark used US single-base (nitrocellulose only). However, triple-base nitrocellulose/nitroglycerine/
picrite
Picrite basalt or picrobasalt is a variety of high-magnesium olivine basalt that is very rich in the mineral olivine. It is dark with yellow-green olivine phenocrysts (20-50%) and black to dark brown pyroxene, mostly augite.
The olivine-rich p ...
was used throughout the war and eventually replaced all others.
The 25-pounder's main ammunition was the high-explosive (
HE) streamlined shell with a 5/10 CRH
ogive
An ogive ( ) is the roundly tapered end of a two-dimensional or three-dimensional object. Ogive curves and surfaces are used in engineering, architecture and woodworking.
Etymology
The earliest use of the word ''ogive'' is found in the 13th c ...
and
boat tail. The explosive filling varied between 450-900g of TNT (854-1708 kilojoules of
explosive energy). It was also provided with base ejection smoke (white and coloured), star shells, and
chemical shells. Incendiary and coloured flare shells were developed but not introduced into service, and smoke shells were sometimes reloaded with propaganda leaflets or metal foil "
window
A window is an opening in a wall, door, roof, or vehicle that allows the exchange of light and may also allow the passage of sound and sometimes air. Modern windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent materia ...
". The UK did not develop a
WP smoke shell
Elemental phosphorus can exist in several allotropy, allotropes, the most common of which are white and red solids. Solid violet and black allotropes are also known. Gaseous phosphorus exists as diphosphorus and atomic phosphorus.
White phosphoru ...
for the 25-pounder.
For anti-tank use, the 25-pounder was also supplied with a limited amount of
solid armour-piercing (AP) shot, later replaced with a more potent version with a
ballistic cap
Armour-piercing, capped, ballistic capped (APCBC) is a type of configuration for armour-piercing ammunition introduced in the 1930s to improve the armour-piercing capabilities of both naval and anti-tank guns. The configuration consists of an ar ...
(APBC). The AP shot was fired with maximum charge, charge No. 3, super, or super with Super increment depending on the ordnance mark, as muzzle velocity was critical in direct fire for penetration and a flat trajectory.
A
shaped charge
A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to form an explosively formed penetrator (EFP) to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Different types of shaped charges are used for various purposes such as cutting and forming metal, init ...
anti-tank shell was under development in Canada, but the introduction of the three-inch (76.2 mm) calibre
QF 17-pounder
The Ordnance Quick-Firing 17-pounder (or just 17-pdr)Under the British standard ordnance weights and measurements the gun's approximate projectile weight is used to denote different guns of the same calibre. Hence this was a 3-inch gun, of which ...
, an anti-tank gun, in 1944 ended its development. After the Second World War, the UK replaced AP shot with a
HESH shell. Coloured marker shells (dye and PETN) were also developed but not introduced.
The standard fuze was No 117 direct action (DA). No 119 (DA and graze) was also used. Combustion or mechanical time fuzes were used with base ejection shells and mechanical time with graze were used with HE.
Proximity fuze
A proximity fuze (or fuse) is a Fuze (munitions), fuze that detonates an Explosive material, explosive device automatically when the distance to the target becomes smaller than a predetermined value. Proximity fuzes are designed for targets such ...
s were used from the end of 1944 and subsequently replaced by CVT fuzes.
British service
![2-8 Field Regt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/2-8_Field_Regt.jpg)
The 25-pounder was the main field artillery weapon used by
British Commonwealth
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
and colonial infantry and armoured divisions of all types during the Second World War. It was also used by the
RAF Regiment
The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such ta ...
in North Africa. Throughout the war, each British-pattern infantry division was established with 72 25-pounders, in three field artillery regiments. Armoured divisions were eventually standardised with two field artillery regiments, one of which was self-propelled (see below). Before mid-1940, each regiment had two batteries of twelve guns; after that date, regiments changed to batteries of eight guns and added a third battery, a process that was not completed until early 1943. In the late 1950s, the British Army reverted to batteries of six guns. Field artillery regiments had two batteries of 25-pounders and one of
5.5 inch guns.
The early 18- and 25-pounders had been towed in the field by the
Morris CDSW
The Morris CDSW 6x4 was a six-wheeled artillery tractor brought into service in the early to mid-1930s by the British Army to tow its field guns.Ventham, Philip and Fletcher, David (1990) ''Moving the guns: the mechanisation of the Royal Artille ...
or the earlier
Vickers Light Dragon
The Vickers Light Dragon was a fully-tracked British field artillery tractor made by Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd from 1929 to 1935. Designed to tow small-calibre field guns, it complemented Vickers' Medium Dragon tractor, which pulled medium to heavy ...
Mk. III, a tracked vehicle derived from the Vickers VA50 which was also the basis of the Bren or
Universal Carrier
The Universal Carrier, also known as the Bren Gun Carrier and sometimes simply the Bren Carrier from the light machine gun armament, is a common name describing a family of light armoured tracked vehicles built by Vickers-Armstrongs and other ...
. Throughout most of the Second World War, the 25-pounder was normally towed, with its limber, behind a 4×4 field artillery tractor called a
"quad". These were manufactured by Morris, Guy and Karrier in England, and, in greater numbers, as the
Canadian Military Pattern field artillery tractor by Ford and Chevrolet in Canada. In the 1950s, the British Army replaced the various "quads" with a new Bedford three-ton gun tower fitted with a specialist body.
![25pdrgunedincastle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/25pdrgunedincastle.JPG)
In 1941, the British Army improvised a self-propelled 25-pounder named the
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
, on the chassis of the
Valentine tank
The Tank, Infantry, Mk III, Valentine was an infantry tank produced in the United Kingdom during World War II. More than 8,000 of the type were produced in eleven marks, plus various specialised variants, accounting for approximately a quarter ...
. This mount proved unsatisfactory and the Bishops were replaced in 1942 by the American
M7 Priest
The 105 mm Howitzer Motor Carriage M7 was an American self-propelled gun vehicle produced during World War II. It was given the official service name 105 mm Self Propelled Gun, Priest by the British Army, due to the pulpit-like machin ...
, which did not use the 25-Pounder complicating the supply of ammunition in the field. The Priests were replaced in 1944 by the
Sexton, which used the 25-Pounder. The Sexton was designed, and mostly manufactured, in Canada (some two thirds of the ordnance and mountings were imported from the UK due to limited Canadian production capacity) and was the result of mounting a 25-pounder on a
Ram
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* ...
or
Grizzly
The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America.
In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...
tank chassis.
![Bermuda Regiment 25 Pounder Field Gun](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Bermuda_Regiment_25_Pounder_Field_Gun.png)
By Second World War standards, the 25-pounder had a smaller calibre and lower shell-weight than many other field-artillery weapons, although it had longer range than most. (Most forces had entered the war with even smaller designs but had quickly moved to and larger weapons.) It was designed for the British practice of
suppressive (neutralising) fire, not destructive fire that had proved illusory in the early years of the First World War. Nevertheless, the 25-pounder was considered by all to be one of the best artillery pieces in use. The effects caused by the gun (and the speed at which the British artillery control system could respond) in the
North-West Europe Campaign of 1944–1945
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
made many German soldiers believe that the British had secretly deployed an automatic 25-pounder.
In UK service, during the 1960s, most 25-pounders were replaced by the
105mm Abbot SPG, some by the
Oto Melara 105mm pack howitzer, and the remainder by the
105mm L118 light gun. The last British military unit to fire the 25-pounder in its field role (as opposed to ceremonial use) was the Gun Troop of the
Honourable Artillery Company
The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is a reserve regiment in the British Army. Incorporated by royal charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII, it is the oldest regiment in the British Army and is considered the second-oldest military unit in the w ...
on
Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in the south western part of central southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies wi ...
in 1992.
Service with other nations
In addition to Commonwealth and colonial forces, other Second World War users included the free forces of France, Greece, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. The first shot fired by US artillery against the German army in the war was from a 25-pounder of the
34th Infantry Division.
After the Second World War, 25-pounders remained in service with many Commonwealth armies into the 1960s. They were used in Korea by British, Canadian and New Zealand regiments
and in Malaya by British and Australian batteries. They also featured in wars on the Indian sub-continent and in the service of Israeli and other Middle Eastern armies.
Australia
Australia used the 25-pounder extensively, including in WW2, Korea and the Malayan Emergency. They were kept in use by reserve units up until 1970s. Individual guns are now often seen as fixed memorials in memorial parks and Returned Servicemen's clubs. Because of the rough terrain involved in the New Guinea campaign, the heavy nature of the weapon made it difficult to use. The gun was manufactured in Australia, which also made it available for use in Australian developed vehicles, including a light tank,
the Chassis 160, the
Thunderbolt tank
AC3 Thunderbolt (Australian Cruiser III) was a cruiser tank designed and built in Australia in World War II as the successor to the AC1 Sentinel. Like the Sentinel the AC3 featured a one piece cast hull and turret. The AC3 featured a much impro ...
, and the self-propelled gun, the
Yeramba
The Yeramba was an Australian self-propelled howitzer built after the end of the Second World War in the late-1940s. They were produced by mounting the 25 pounder gun-howitzer on an American M3A5 Grant tank hull, and were converted by the Ordna ...
. This led to Australian development of a short barrelled lighter version, which was lighter and more suitable for off-road deployment.
South Africa
The gun was called G1 by the
South African Defence Force
The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...
. It was extensively used in the early stages of the
South African Border War
The South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence, and sometimes denoted in South Africa as the Angolan Bush War, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in Namibia (then South West Africa), Zambia, and Angol ...
, including
Operation Savannah
Operation Savanna (or Operation Savannah) was the first insertion of Special Operations Executive, SOE trained Free French paratroops into German-occupied France during World War II.
This SOE mission, requested by the Air Ministry, was to ambu ...
. The G1 is still used in the ceremonial role.
Rhodesia
The
Rhodesian Army
The Rhodesian Security Forces were the military forces of the Rhodesian government. The Rhodesian Security Forces consisted of a ground force (the Rhodesian Army), the Rhodesian Air Force, the British South Africa Police, and various personnel ...
used the weapon during the
Bush War but by this stage the round could not penetrate enemy bunkers.
Sri Lanka
The Ordnance QF 25 pounder Mark III was added to the
Sri Lankan Army
ta, இலங்கை இராணுவம்
, image = File:Sri Lanka Army Logo.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of the Sri Lanka Army
, start_date ...
inventory in 1985 supplied by
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
at the early stages of the
Sri Lankan civil war and was fielded by the 6th Field Regiment,
Sri Lanka Artillery
The Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA) is the artillery arm of the Sri Lanka Army. It is made up of ten regular regiments and two volunteer regiments. The SLA is headquartered at Panagoda Cantonment, Panagoda.
The emblem of the SLA is modeled after that ...
which was raised in September 1985. It was replaced by
122 mm Type 60 howitzers, but still remains in service with the Ceremonial Saluting Battery of the 6th Field Regiment.
Ireland
In 1949, 48 ex-British-Army Mark III 25-pounders were acquired by the
Irish Defence Forces
The Defence Forces ( ga, Fórsaí Cosanta, officially styled ) derives its origins from the Irish Volunteers. Whilst the Irish for ''Defence Forces'' is , as Ó Cearúil (1999) points out, the Defence Forces are officially styled . is used in ...
and were in service with the
reserves until 2009, having been replaced in the army by the
105 mm Light Gun
The L118 light gun is a 105 mm towed howitzer. It was originally designed and produced in England for the British Army in the 1970s. It has since been widely exported. The L119 and the United States Army's M119 are variants that use a different ...
in 1981. The Irish Army maintains a six-gun ceremonial 25-pounder battery for use on state occasions.
India
![Ordnance QF 25-pounder](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Ordnance_QF_25-pounder.jpg)
The
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
used 25-pounders against
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
during the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...
and the
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the
Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...
and against
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
during the
Sino-Indian War
The Sino-Indian War took place between China and India from October to November 1962, as a major flare-up of the Sino-Indian border dispute. There had been a series of violent border skirmishes between the two countries after the 1959 Tib ...
in 1962.
Jordan
The Jordanian
Arab Legion
The Arab Legion () was the police force, then regular army of the Emirate of Transjordan, a British protectorate, in the early part of the 20th century, and then of independent Jordan, with a final Arabization of its command taking place in 195 ...
deployed eight 25-pounder field guns during the fighting in 1948. Later, the
Royal Jordanian Army
The Royal Jordanian Army (Arabic: القوّات البرية الاردنيّة; ) is the ground force branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF). It draws its origins from units such as the Arab Legion, formed in the British Mandate of Transj ...
deployed several batteries of 25-pounders during the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...
.
Lebanon
The
Lebanese Army
)
, founded = 1 August 1945
, current_form = 1991
, disbanded =
, branches = Lebanese Ground ForcesLebanese Air Force Lebanese Navy
, headquarters = Yarze, Lebanon
, flying_hours =
, websit ...
aligned twenty-one QF Mk III 25-Pounders on its inventory in 1975, with most of them being subsequently seized by the
Tigers Militia
The Tigers militia ( ar, نمور الأحرار, transliterated: ''Numūr'' or ''Al-Noumour''), also known as NLP Tigers ( ar, links=no, نمور الأحرار , ''Numur al-Ahrar'') or PNL "Lionceaux" in French, was the military wing of the ...
and the
Kataeb Regulatory Forces
The Kataeb Regulatory Forces – KRF ( ar, قوى الكتائب النظامية, translit=Quwwāt al-Katāʾib an-Niẓāmiyyah) or Forces Regulatoires des Kataeb (FRK) in French, were the military wing of the right-wing Lebanese Christian Ka ...
(KRF) militia in February 1976 and passed on to its successor, the
Lebanese Forces
The Lebanese Forces ( ar, القوات اللبنانية '')'' is a Lebanese Christian-based political party and former militia during the Lebanese Civil War. It currently holds 19 of the 128 seats in Lebanon's parliament and is therefore th ...
in 1980, who employed them during the
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
.
Luxembourg
![Luxembourg National Day 2004 - 101 cannon shots](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Luxembourg_National_Day_2004_-_101_cannon_shots.jpg)
During World War II, the
Free Luxembourgish Forces fielded four 25-pounders, which were named after the four daughters of
Grand Duchess Charlotte
Charlotte (Charlotte Adelgonde Elisabeth Marie Wilhelmine; 23 January 1896 – 9 July 1985) reigned as List of monarchs of Luxembourg, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 14 January 1919 until her abdication on 12 November 1964.
She acceded to th ...
:
Princesses Elisabeth,
Marie Adelaide,
Marie Gabriele and
Alix
''Alix'', or ''The Adventures of Alix'', is a Franco-Belgian comics series drawn in the ligne claire style by Jacques Martin. The stories revolve around a young Gallo-Roman man named Alix in the late Roman Republic. Although the series is re ...
.
Post-war, the
Luxembourg Army
The Luxembourg Armed Forces (; french: Armée luxembourgeoise) are the national military force of Luxembourg. The army has been a fully volunteer military since 1967. , it has 939 personnel.
The army is under civilian control, with the grand ...
used a number of 25-pounder guns. In 1955–1957, they were rebarrelled to and fitted with new sights. The First Artillery Battalion with 18 guns was placed at the disposal of the 8th Infantry Division of the United States from 1963 to 1967. The last shots fired by the First Luxembourg Artillery Battalion left the tubes on May 31, 1967. Some are maintained for
gun salutes
A 21-gun salute is the most commonly recognized of the customary gun salutes that are performed by the firing of cannons or artillery as a military honor. As naval customs evolved, 21 guns came to be fired for heads of state, or in exceptiona ...
.
Greece and Cyprus
The 25-pounder first entered service with Greek forces in North Africa during WWII. Three (numbered I, II and III) field artillery regiments of 24 pieces each were raised as part of the Greek infantry brigades raised by the Greek government in exile. Their only significant actions were at
El Alamein in 1942 and
Rimini
Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
in 1944. After the end of the Second World War, the 25-pounder served as part of the Greek Army during the
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...
. A total of 125 25-pounder guns were used by the Greek artillery during the civil war of 1946–1949, in various organizational schemes. After the civil war, they were organized into seven independent regiments of 18 guns each. Following Greece's entry into
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
in 1952 and the standardization on American calibres in 1953, the 25-pounders, unlike other models, were not retired but reorganised into 13 battalions of eight guns each, as part of divisional artillery formations. In 1957, the influx of American artillery pieces permitted an increase from 8 to 12 guns per battalion. In 1964, 54 25-pdr guns were handed over from Greece to Cyprus, where they entered service with the
Cyprus National Guard
, name2 = National Guard General Staff
, image = Emblem of the Cypriot National Guard.svg
, image_size = 100px
, caption = Emblem of the National Guard of Cyprus
, image2 = Flag of the ...
organized into four battalions of 12 guns each ( numbered 181, 182, 183 and 185) and one independent battery of six guns (184). They saw action during the
Turkish invasion
The 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, code-named Operation Peace Spring ( tr, Barış Pınarı Harekâtı) by Turkey, was a cross-border military operation conducted by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and the Syrian National Arm ...
of the island in 1974. The 25-pounders remained in Greek Army service until 1992, when they were retired as part of the CFE agreement. The guns of the Cyprus National Guard remain in storage.
New Zealand
![NZ artillery 25 pounder Korea 1951 (AWM HOBJ2238)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/NZ_artillery_25_pounder_Korea_1951_%28AWM_HOBJ2238%29.jpg)
During World War II New Zealand Gunners of 2nd New Zealand division made extensive use of the 25-pr in Greece, North Africa and Italy. The 16th Field Regiment of the Royal New Zealand Artillery, equipped with 25-pounders, was formed to join the United Nations force in the Korean War. The 25-pdr was replaced in first-line units by the
OTO Melara L5 gun. The guns were withdrawn from operational service with
Territorial Force Artillery by 1977. Today, 25-pounders remain in service as ceremonial gun.
Nigeria
The
Nigerian Federal Army used 25-pdr guns during the
Biafran War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...
. The Nigerian Army still fielded them in 2002.
Iraqi Kurdistan
A 2015 news report shows at least one 25-pounder in service with Kurdish
Peshmerga
The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...
forces, employed against
ISIS
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
positions in
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
, Iraq.
South Vietnam
In 1953, the
Vietnamese National Army
The Vietnamese National Army or Vietnam National Army ( vi, Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam, lit=Army of the State of Vietnam, french: Armée Nationale Vietnamienne, lit=Vietnamese National Army) was the State of Vietnam's military force create ...
was equipped with 122 QF 25 pounders.
Variants
Mark I
![25 pounder field gun of 153rd Field Regiment 07-06-1943](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/25_pounder_field_gun_of_153rd_Field_Regiment_07-06-1943.jpg)
Known officially as the "Ordnance, Quick Firing 25-pounder Mark I on Carriage 18-pr Mark IV", or "Ordnance, Quick Firing 25-pounder Mark I on Carriage 18-pr Mark V" and commonly called the "18/25-pounder". The Mark I was a 25-pounder barrel and breech in the modified jacket of an
18-pounder
The Ordnance QF 18-pounder,British military traditionally denoted smaller ordnance by the weight of its standard projectile, in this case approximately or simply 18-pounder gun, was the standard British Empire field gun of the First World War ...
gun, as a 'loose liner'. The jacket provided the interface to the 18-pounder carriage. The earliest versions retained 18-pounder type elevation sights but later ones had Probert pattern calibrating sights on the right side of the saddle. The Mark IV P, carriage was a box trail, Mark V P, was a
split trail
A gun carriage is a frame and mount that supports the gun barrel of an artillery piece, allowing it to be maneuvered and fired. These platforms often had wheels so that the artillery pieces could be moved more easily. Gun carriages are also use ...
. These conversions of the 18-pounder first entered British service in 1937. A few were lost in the
Norwegian campaign and 704 in France, leaving about the same number in UK's global stocks. They served in North Africa (until about late 1941) and India. This mark of 25-pounder was limited to charge 3 due to its 18-pounder carriage.
Mark II
![QF-25-pounder-beyt-hatotchan-2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/QF-25-pounder-beyt-hatotchan-2.jpg)
The Mark II, fitted to the Mark I carriage was the standard gun during the war. They were built in Australia and Canada but mostly in UK. Deliveries (from UK production) started at the beginning of 1940 and first entered service with a Canadian regiment stationed in UK during May 1940. No Ordnance 25-pr Mk 2 on Carriage 25-pr Mark 1 were lost in France. This gun fired all charges, 1 – 3 and Super.
In 1942, a muzzle brake was fitted to the gun to eliminate the instability caused when firing the 20 lb AP shell with Charge Super at direct fire low elevation angles. To preserve the gun's balance on the trunnions, a counterbalance weight was also fitted, just in front of the breech ring. The designation of the modified gun was not changed. Eventually, all guns serving in Europe were so converted.
The Mark II ordnance had six main marks of the barrel:
;Mark I barrel
:Original variant with a loose liner.
[
;Mark II barrel
]
:The standard design, also made in Canada as C Mk II barrel.[
;Mark II/I
:In 1946, a programme was introduced to modify the gun's breech ring by morticing the rear corners. A corresponding modification was made to the rear corners of the breech block. This was to reduce the instances of cracking the ring.
;Mark III barrel
:The Mark III barrel was a Mark II with a modified receiver to prevent the rounds from slipping back out when loading at high angles.][ It was introduced in January 1944.
;Mark III/I
:This was a Mk III gun with the same modification to the ring and block as for the Mk II/I.
;Mark IV barrel
:The Mark IV was identical to the Mark III/I, and featured the modified ring and a paired block from new.
;Mark VI barrel
:The final alteration of the breech ring made in 1964.][
]
Short, Mark I
The 25-pounder Short Mark I, or Baby 25-pr, was an Australian pack gun
Mountain guns are artillery pieces designed for use in mountain warfare and areas where usual wheeled transport is not possible. They are generally capable of being taken apart to make smaller loads for transport by horses, humans, mules, tractor ...
version of the 25-pounder, first produced in 1943. This was a shortened version of the standard 25-pounder, mounted on the ''Carriage 25-pr Light, Mark 1''. Weighing , it was around lighter than the 25-pounder Mark II.
The "Baby" was intended for jungle warfare
Jungle warfare is a term used to cover the special techniques needed for military units to survive and fight in jungle terrain.
It has been the topic of extensive study by military strategists, and was an important part of the planning for bo ...
and was only used by Australian units in the South West Pacific theatre
The South West Pacific theatre, during World War II, was a major theatre of the war between the Allies and the Axis. It included the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies (except for Sumatra), Borneo, Australia and its mandate Territory of ...
. The gun could be towed by a jeep
Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Moto ...
or broken down into 13 sections and transported by air. During the New Guinea campaign
The New Guinea campaign of the Pacific War lasted from January 1942 until the end of the war in August 1945. During the initial phase in early 1942, the Empire of Japan invaded the Australian-administered Mandated Territory of New Guinea (23 Jan ...
the gun was manhandled up steep jungle tracks where trucks could not operate.
Carriages
;Mark I
:The Mark I carriage was the first real 25-pounder carriage. Later in the war, some guns had a double spacer-separated shield to improve protection. It had Probert-pattern calibrating sights, but with the range indicator wrapped into the distinctive cone that rotated against a fixed reader arm.
;Jury axle
:In Burma
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
, artificers of 129 (Lowland) Jungle Field Regiment developed a local modification to use a Jeep axle and wheels to produce a 20-inch narrower axle track
In automobiles (and other wheeled vehicles which have two wheels on an axle), the axle track is the distance between the hub flanges on an axle. Wheel track, track width or simply track refers to the distance between the centerline of two wheels ...
for easier movement along restricted jungle paths, along with some minor modifications to the gun trail; it was called the Jury Axle. Tests in action showed the gun was stable, it was first reported to GHQ India in October 1943. It appears that it was also used without its shield, and the gun could be disassembled for transport in pieces by Jeep. 139th (4th London) Jungle Field Regiment used the modified guns and developed procedures for dismantling them for stowage aboard Douglas C-47 Dakota
The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in ...
transport aircraft.
;Mark II
The Mark II carriage was basically the War Office-approved formalisation of the Jury Axle version of the 25-pounder. Changes included a narrower shield, a new narrower track platform (No 22), and modified Jeep wheels.
;Mark III
The Mark III carriage, also narrow, was a further development of the Mark II carriage to provide joints that enabled the trail to be cranked for "upper register" (high-angle) fire to avoid the need to dig a trail pit, and used with the cranked "dial sight adaptor" previously adopted for high-angle fire. It entered service soon after the war. High-angle fire had been introduced in Italy and used increments to charges 2 and 3 to give the 25-pounder seven charges.
;Mark IV
The British did further work on the Australian-designed short 25-pounder, enabling it to fire charge Super. One or two prototypes were produced and the carriage was officially designated the Mark IV, but never went into production.
Self-propelled 25-pounders
Bishop
The Bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
was a British self-propelled 25-pounder using the Valentine tank
The Tank, Infantry, Mk III, Valentine was an infantry tank produced in the United Kingdom during World War II. More than 8,000 of the type were produced in eleven marks, plus various specialised variants, accounting for approximately a quarter ...
chassis, soon replaced by better designs.
Sexton
The Sexton was a Canadian self-propelled 25-pounder using the Ram
Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to:
Animals
* A male sheep
* Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish
People
* Ram (given name)
* Ram (surname)
* Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director
* RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch
* ...
or Grizzly
The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America.
In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...
tank chassis.
Yeramba
The Yeramba
The Yeramba was an Australian self-propelled howitzer built after the end of the Second World War in the late-1940s. They were produced by mounting the 25 pounder gun-howitzer on an American M3A5 Grant tank hull, and were converted by the Ordna ...
was an Australian self-propelled 25-pounder using the M3 Lee
The M3 Lee, officially Medium Tank, M3, was an American medium tank used during World War II. The turret was produced in two forms, one for US needs and one modified to British requirements to place the radio next to the commander. In British Co ...
tank chassis.
Users
*
* : Used by Belgian Field Battery during WWII; also in Belgian Congo
The Belgian Congo (french: Congo belge, ; nl, Belgisch-Congo) was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960. The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964.
Colo ...
post-WWII
* (also used in military funerals)
*
* : used during WWII
*
* : used by Free French
Free France (french: France Libre) was a political entity that claimed to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic. Led by French general , Free France was established as a government-in-exile ...
and then in Indochina
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
*
*
* Now as ceremonial gun.
* : 144 from Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( nl, Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger; KNIL, ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. The ...
(KNIL).
* Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
[''Rulers of Iraq and Saudi Arabia bury an old feud with big party in Baghdad''. LIFE Magazine: May 27, 1957.]
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
*
*
* : Captured examples and 1943–45 co-belligerent forces
*
*
*
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
* : still in service in 2002
* -50 in service
* (Captured examples) Mk I designated ''8.76 cm Feldkanone 280(e)'', MK II designated ''8.76 cm Feldkanone 281(e)''.
* : Used by Royal Netherlands Motorized Infantry Brigade “Princess Irene”, Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( nl, Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger; KNIL, ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. The ...
(1945–1949), Marines Brigade (1945–1949), Royal Netherlands Army
The Royal Netherlands Army ( nl, Koninklijke Landmacht) is the land branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. Though the Royal Netherlands Army was raised on 9 January 1814, its origins date back to 1572, when the was raised – making the Dutc ...
(1945–1984)
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
*
* : ~40 in 1976
* : Some units inherited from the British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
with several more captured from retreating Indian forces during Operation Grand Slam
Operation Grand Slam was a key military operation of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It refers to a plan drawn up by the Pakistan Army in May 1965 that consisted of an attack on the vital Akhnoor Bridge in Indian-administered Jammu and Kash ...
in 1965.
* : 12 from South Africa
* (Polish Armed Forces in the West
The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. Polish forces were also raised within Soviet territories; thes ...
)
* : Registration – Obus 8,8 cm m/43 (relegated to ceremonial role)
*
*
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
* : 122 in 1953
* (relegated to ceremonial role)
* : 3 displayed during parades in 2016
*
*
* : during Tunisian Campaign
The Tunisian campaign (also known as the Battle of Tunisia) was a series of battles that took place in Tunisia during the North African campaign of the Second World War, between Axis and Allied forces from 17 November 1942 to 13 May 1943. The ...
, Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...
and Pacific War
The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
*
* (1 seen in use by Peshmerga
The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...
forces in Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
)
See also
* British standard ordnance weights and measurements The British standard ordnance weights and measurements for the artillery were established by the Master General of Ordnance in 1764, and these were not altered until 1919, when the metric system was additionally introduced.
This system has largely ...
References
;Notes
;Bibliography
* Various QF 25-pr Range Tables Part 1 1939 – 1967
* Various QF 25-pr UK Gun Drill pamphlets 1939 – 1976
* Various QF 25-pr Handbooks 1940 – 1957
* British and American Artillery of WW2. Ian Hogg.
*
*
External links
Pakistan Ordnance Factories – current producer of 25-pounder ammunition
{{BritishEmpireWeapons
88 mm artillery
Cold War artillery of the United Kingdom
Field artillery of the Cold War
World War II artillery of the United Kingdom
World War II field artillery
Articles containing video clips
Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1940