Batterie Pommern, also known as Lange Max, was the world's biggest gun in 1917, during

World War I 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 German gun was of type

38 cm SK L/45 "Max" The 38 cm SK L/45 "Max",In Imperial German Navy gun nomenclature, "SK" (german: Schnelladekanone) denotes that the gun is quick firing, while the L/45 denotes the length of the gun. In this case, the L/45 gun is 45 calibers, meaning that the ...

and had a modified design by Krupp compared to earlier German 38 cm gun types. The modification allowed the gun to shoot from

Koekelare Koekelare (; vls, Kookloare) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Bovekerke, Koekelare proper and Zande. On 1 January 2006 Koekelare had a total population of 8,291. The tota ...

to Dunkirk, which is about 50 km away.

Location

Batterie Pommern is located in

(

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

) in the neighborhood called Leugenboom. It is part of Site Lange Max, next to the

Lange Max Museum The Lange Max Museum (LMM) is devoted to the German 38 cm SK L/45 "Max" gun and the German occupation of Koekelare and the nearby area in World War I. The focus on the German side of the war makes it a unique museum in Belgium. The museum is na ...

. Today, the immense artillery platform can still be visited.

Construction

The 15inch (38 cm) long range gun, protected by armour, was mounted on a steel bridge having a pivot in front. The rear part of the gun travelled along a circular rail-track in a concrete pit of about 70 feet in diameter. The gun was manoeuvred by means of electric motors. On either side were large shelters in reinforced concrete. In front of and below the platform there was an electric generator group. A large shelter of reinforced concrete on the right was probably the Post of Commandment. There was a dummy gun emplacement further on.

History

On 27 June 1917 the gun fired for the first time. Its target was Dunkirk where the first shot was a direct hit. Dunkirk and

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality c ...

were the main targets of the gun. During the Battle of Passchendaele it played a significant role for the Germans. During the

Interbellum In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...

the Pommern battery was one of the most successful attractions in the battlefield tourism in Belgium. It was featured in the

Michelin Guide The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The acquisition or loss of ...

"L'Yser et la côte belge". Famous visitors to the Site Lange Max over time include: *

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, around the Interwar period. * Hirohito, 124th Emperor of Japan * Margaret Hall *

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

, King of the United Kingdom (10 December 1918). * Prince Edward,

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

, future King of the United Kingdom and

Emperor of India Emperor or Empress of India was a title used by British monarchs from 1 May 1876 (with the Royal Titles Act 1876) to 22 June 1948, that was used to signify their rule over British India, as its imperial head of state. Royal Proclamation of 22 ...

(10 December 1918). * Prince George, future King of the United Kingdom and

(10 December 1918). * Raymond Poincaré, French President (9 November 1918).Battlefield tourism on the coast after WWI - VLIZ
/ref> * Prince Leopold, future King of the Belgians (9 November 1918). *

Geert Bourgeois Geert Albert Bourgeois (; born 6 July 1951) is a Belgian politician of the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), which he founded in 2001, who is currently serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2019. He previously served as the Minister-Pr ...

Minister-President of Flanders The Minister-President of Flanders ( nl, Minister-president van Vlaanderen) is the head of the Flemish Government, which is the executive branch of the Flemish Region and Flemish Community.See the communities, regions and language areas of Bel ...

(October 2014). *

Eckart Cuntz Eckart is a German surname, and may refer to: * Anselm Eckart (1721–1809), German Jesuit missionary * Carl Eckart * Dennis E. Eckart (born 1950), American lawyer, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives * Dietrich Eckart (1868–1923) ...

, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany (8 November 2014). * Royal Thai Embassy to Belgium, (17 January 2015). * Bart Tommelein, Vice Minister-President and Flemish Minister for Finance, Budget and Energy in the Bourgeois Government (March 2016). * Sven Gatz, Flemish Minister for Culture, Youth, Media and Brussels in the Bourgeois Government (June 2016).

Image gallery

Image:38cmBttrPommern.jpg, 'Long Max' in

biggest gun of the world in 1917. Image:Lange Max van het Lange Max Museum.png, Long Max (also known as Leugenboom gun) in

. Image:(Vue_aérienne_verticale_de_Leugenboom_en_Belgique)_-_Fonds_Berthelé_-_49Fi1709.jpg, Picture of Battery Pommern (= 'Long Max' gun) in

References

*Raf Seys, Commeine L.: ''Lange Max : het groot kanon van Leugenboom'', Devriendt, Koekelare, 192 p.

External links

* {{coord, 51.1169, N, 2.9823, E, source:wikidata, display=title World War I sites in Belgium Koekelare