The Portuguese Independent Heavy Artillery Corps (''Corpo de Artilharia Pesada Indepedente'' in
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
, ''Corps d'artillerie lourde portugais'' in
French), or the CAPI, was a
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
railway
heavy artillery
The formal definition of large-calibre artillery used by the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms (UNROCA) is "guns, howitzers, artillery pieces, combining the characteristics of a gun, howitzer, mortar, or multiple-launch rocket syst ...
unit that operated on the
Western Front, 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 CAPI was created in response to a request from France for artillery support. It was independent from the much larger and better known
Portuguese Expeditionary Corps
The Portuguese Expeditionary Corps (CEP, Portuguese: ''Corpo Expedicionário Português'') was the main military force from Portugal that fought in the Western Front, during World War I. Portuguese neutrality ended in 1916 after the Portuguese ...
, which also fought on the Western Front. The unit operated , 240-mm and 190-mm
railway gun
A railway gun, also called a railroad gun, is a large artillery piece, often surplus naval artillery, mounted on, transported by, and fired from a specially designed railroad car, railway wagon. Many countries have built railway guns, but the ...
s, which were supplied by Britain, and operated under the control of the
French Army
The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed For ...
.
Most of the CAPI's personnel came from the
Portuguese Army
The Portuguese Army ( pt, Exército Português) is the land component of the Armed Forces of Portugal and is also its largest branch. It is charged with the defence of Portugal, in co-operation with other branches of the Armed Forces. With its ...
foot artillery branch, which in Portugal was responsible for manning the heavy guns of the coastal and garrison batteries. Other personnel came from the naval artillery.
Organization
The CAPI was made up of:
* Headquarters and staff;
* Three mixed groups (battalions);
* Depot battery.
Each group consisted of three batteries, one of 320-mm guns, while the other two were equipped with either 190-mm or 240-mm guns.
[
]
See also
* Portugal in World War I
Portugal did not initially form part of the system of alliances involved in World War I and thus remained neutral at the start of the conflict in 1914. But even though Portugal and Germany remained officially at peace for over a year and a half a ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
''Corpo de Artilharia Pesada Independente'', Momentos da História
Army units and formations of Portugal
Corps of World War I
Military units and formations of Portugal in World War I