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The Mortier de 12 pouces Gribeauval (Gribeauval 12-inch mortar) was a French mortar and part of the Gribeauval system developed by 
The Mortier de 12 pouces used a cylindrical chamber, which, although quite efficient, used to wear easily. It was superseded by the Gomer system using a conical chamber, which was incorporated in Gribeauval's system in 1789.Chartrand, p.11
/ref> Some of the Mortier de 12 pouces were used in coastal defenses, in which case they were fixed on solid metal platforms.
Jean Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval
Lieutenant General Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval (15 September 1715 – 9 May 1789) was a French artillery officer and engineer who revolutionised the French cannon, creating a new production system that allowed for lighter, more uniform g ...
. It was part of the siege artillery. The measurement of the mortar is expressed by the diameter of the ball, using the French ancient system of measurement, in which 1 pouce (1 inch) is worth 2.707 cm.
The Mortier de 12 pouces Gribeauval was used extensively during the wars following the French Revolution, as well as the Napoleonic wars. However, its first major operational use was even earlier, during the American Revolutionary War, in General Rochambeau's French expeditionary corps, from 1780 to late 1782, and especially at Yorktown in 1781.
Gomer system
The Mortier de 12 pouces used a cylindrical chamber, which, although quite efficient, used to wear easily. It was superseded by the Gomer system using a conical chamber, which was incorporated in Gribeauval's system in 1789./ref> Some of the Mortier de 12 pouces were used in coastal defenses, in which case they were fixed on solid metal platforms.
Notes
References
*Chartrand, René 2003 ''Napoleon's guns 1792-1815 (2)'' Osprey PublishingExternal links
{{Gribeauval system Mortars of France 320 mm artillery