The 280 mm mortar M1939 (Br-5) (russian: 280-мм мортира образца 1939 года (Бр-5)) was a
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
heavy artillery piece used during
World War II
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 ...
, it was the Red Army's heaviest field piece during the war.
Design
The Br-5 mortar was a calibre towed
mortar with a barrel 14.2
calibres long. The Br-5 mortar shared the same tracked, box trail carriage as the
152 mm gun M1935 (Br-2)
Fifteen or 15 may refer to:
*15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16
*one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015
Music
*Fifteen (band), a punk rock band
Albums
* ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005
* ''15'' (Ani Lorak album) ...
and the
203 mm howitzer M1931 (B-4)
203 mm howitzer M1931 (B-4) (russian: 203-мм гаубица обр. 1931 г. (Б-4), GRAU index 52-G-625) was a 203 mm (8 inch) Soviet high-power heavy howitzer. During the Second World War, it was under the command of the Stavk ...
. The carriage allowed transportation of the weapon over short distances with the speed of , for longer distances the barrel was removed from the carriage and transported separately on a special wheeled cart, the Br-10, a speed of was possible with the barrel removed.
[The artillery department of the Red Army (Главное артиллерийское управление РККА), ''203-mm howitzer 1931 (B-4), 280-mm mortar 1939 (Br-5) and 152-mm gun 1935 (Br-2) service manual (203-мм гаубица обр. 1931 г. (Б-4), 280-мм мортира обр. 1939 г. (Бр-5), 152-мм пушка обр. 1935 г. (Бр-2). Руководство службы.)'', Voenizdat NKO, Moscow, 1942.][Walter S. Dunn Jr., ''The Soviet economy and the Red Army, 1930-1945'', Praeger Publishers, Westport CT, 1995, .]
For transport the
Voroshilovets artillery tractor
The T-24 was a Soviet medium tank built in 1931. Only twenty four were built, and none saw combat. This was the first tank produced at the KhPZ factory in Kharkov, which was later responsible for the very successful BT series, T-34 and T-54 S ...
was used to haul the Br-5 gun carriage, whilst the less powerful
Komintern artillery tractor
The T-24 was a Soviet medium tank built in 1931. Only twenty four were built, and none saw combat. This was the first tank produced at the KhPZ factory in Kharkov, which was later responsible for the very successful BT series, T-34 and T-54 S ...
was employed to pull the Br-10 cart and barrel.
[
]
Development
By the 1930s the Red Army's siege artillery consisted of obsolete stocks of 280 mm Schneider M1914/15's (25 pieces) and 305 mm howitzer M1915
Type 1915 305 mm howitzer (russian: 305-мм гаубица образца 1915 года) was a Russian heavy howitzer that saw service during World War I and II. Originally intended for Naval use, it was later purchased by the Army at a co ...
's (31 pieces), both inherited from the Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...
. The aging guns and their insufficient numbers (the M1914/15 at less than half of what was mandated in the 1941 mobilization plans, 66 pieces) meant that new models were required, including 280mm-caliber ones. The calibre was chosen as 280mm because of the available stocks of 280 mm Schneider M1914/15 ammunition. With the development the 203 mm B-4 already approved for service, and the design work for the 152 mm Br-2 underway, it was decided to adopt the very same carriage for the new siege mortar, creating a "triplex", simplifying production and operation.[A.B. Shirokorad (А. Б. Широкорад), ''Encyclopaedia of Russian Artillery (Энциклопедия отечественной артиллерии)'', Харвест, Мн., 2000, .]
Both the Bolshevik factory
Obukhov State Plant (also known Obukhovski Plant, russian: Государственный Обуховский Завод, Gosudarstvennyy Obukhovskiy Zavod) is a major Russian metallurgy and heavy machine-building plant in St. Petersburg, Russia ...
of Leningrad and the Barrikady factory
Titan-Barrikady (russian: Титан-Баррикады) is a military-industrial company based in Volgograd, Russia. It was formed in 1914, after the merger between the Barrikady Production Association and the Titan Design Bureau. It is a subsid ...
of Stalingrad were tasked to submit competing designs, the Bolshevik design by Kurpchatnikov being named the B-33, the Barrikady design by Ilya Ivanov the Br-5.
The B-33 had its barrel built in 1935, and was sent for factory testing on February 1, 1936. The B-33 featured a fastened barrel, casing and breech, as well as a piston bolt from the Schneider mortar. The barrel was mounted directly atop the carriage without any counterweight balancing, as a loaded breech would suffice in balancing the weight. The B-33, having completed factory testing, was sent to field tests on April 17, 1936, which completed successfully. The B-33 was subsequently recommended to have its identified defects fixed before being sent to military tests.
The Br-5 went to factory testing in December, 1936, and field tests in April, 1937, which it failed. However, despite the B-33 showing better shell grouping, higher rate of fire and smaller dimensions, the Br-5 was accepted into service as the 280 mm mortar model 1939, with the first order for production being issued ''before'' field tests ended. The reason why the Br-5 was chosen instead of the B-33 was unknown, but may have emerged from the voluntarist nature[ of the Br-5. The prototype B-33 was sent to Barrikady for studying in March 1939.
]
Production
The first order for eight pieces was placed with the Barrikady factory in May 1937, although this was subsequently reduced to two in recognition of the immaturity of the system. Development of the system continued throughout 1938 and in 1939 the first 20 pieces were produced, with an additional 25 pieces following in 1940.[Walter S. Dunn Jr., ''Stalin’s keys to victory: the rebirth of the Red Army in WWII'', Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg PA, 2007, .]
Service
In Red Army service the Br-5 mortars were intended for the destruction of particularly strong concrete, reinforced concrete or armoured structures.[
The Br-5 mortar's combat debut occurred in Finland during the ]Winter War
The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...
in November 1939. Four Br-5 mortars were deployed to Finland with the 40th Separate Artillery Battalion, where they were used to destroy heavily armoured bunkers and pillboxes during the battles along the Mannerheim Line. Br-5 mortars fired a total of 414 shells during the Winter War, the extraordinary defences faced can be seen in the assault on Pillbox #0031, which fell only after 116 Br-5 mortar shells as well as 1,043 203 mm B-4 howitzer shells were fired at it from point blank range. Pillbox #0011 continued to resist after a combined 203 mm and 280 mm onslaught of 1,322 shells were fired at it.[Victor Suvorov, ''The chief culprit: Stalin’s grand design to start World War II'', Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, 2008, .]
Information about the employment of the Br-5 mortar during the Great Patriotic War
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sout ...
is scarce; their deployment was heavily classified as it was generally indicative of a major attack. In service they were organised into howitzer battalions of six mortars, each battalion consisting of three batteries each with two mortars. Between 1941 and 1945 the Red Army had eight such battalions, armed with both the Br-5 and the old 280 mm Schneider M1914/15. Nine pieces were lost in the fighting of 1941.[''Artillery supply in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 (Артиллерийское снабжение в Великой Отечественной войне 1941-45 гг)'', GAU Publishing House, Moscow-Tula, 1977.]
Reference has been made to the use of the Br-5 mortar by the 1st Belorussian Front
The 1st Belorussian Front (Russian: Пéрвый Белорусский фронт, ''Perviy Belorusskiy front'', also romanized " Byelorussian") was a major formation of the Soviet Army during World War II, being equivalent to a Western army ...
in the Battle of Poznań in January and February 1945. It was employed during the storming of Küstrin in March and the Battle of Königsberg
The Battle of Königsberg, also known as the Königsberg offensive, was one of the last operations of the East Prussian offensive during World War II. In four days of urban warfare, Soviet forces of the 1st Baltic Front and the 3rd Belorussia ...
in April and it was the heaviest field artillery piece used by the Red Army during the Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II.
After the Vistula– ...
.[Nik Cornish, ''Hitler versus Stalin: the eastern front 1943-1944, Kursk to Bagration'', Pen & Sword Military, Barnsley, 2017, .][A.V. Isaev (А.В. Исаев), ''Berlin on the 45th: battle in the den of the beast (Берлин 45-го. Сражение в логове зверя)'', Yauza Eksmo, Moscow, 2007.]
Like with the 152 mm gun M1935 (Br-2) and the 203 mm howitzer M1931 (B-4), the biggest drawback with the Br-5 mortar was the carriage. Intended to provide improved mobility, the tracked carriage was much too heavy and proved to be quite cumbersome, actually reducing mobility. Additionally the separate transportation of the barrel greatly increased the time taken to bring the weapon into action – it took between 45 minutes to two hours depending on the weather to bring to category combat from the travelling configuration. Further, the limited traverse of the ordnance on the mount, 8 degrees, could result in significant time delays, as it took at least 25 minutes to manoeuvre the weapon beyond the 8 degrees.[
After World War II the Br-5 was to remain in Soviet service until the 1970s. In 1955 the Br-5 (along with the B-4 and Br-2) was modernised with a new wheeled carriage that greatly increased mobility, could transport the weapon in one piece and which allowed the weapons to be towed at up to , these upgraded pieces were designated Br-5M.][
]
Ammunition
The Br-5 fired bag charge ammunition with three natures of high-explosive and one of anti-concrete. The high-explosive shells were all remaining pre-revolution stocks of 280 mm Schneider M1914/15 ammunition, whilst the anti-concrete was created for the Br-5.[David R. Jones, ''Soviet armed forces review annual - Vol 11'', Academic International Press, 1986.]
The Br-5 mortar offered little improvement in ballistic performance over the 280 mm Schneider M1914/15.[
]
Surviving examples
A Br-5 mortar on the original tracked carriage is kept at the in Saint Petersburg.
References
{{SovArtyGPW
Artillery of the Soviet Union
280 mm artillery
World War II mortars of the Soviet Union
Military equipment introduced in the 1930s