The 7 veld was a later Dutch designation of the

Krupp 7.5 cm Model 1903 The Krupp 7.5 cm Model 1903 was a field gun used by a number of European armies in both World War I and World War II. History Krupp export gun The Model 1903 was manufactured for export by Krupp. It was a "stock gun", meaning that it c ...

field gun.

Purchase

In 1905 the Dutch government purchased an early variant of the Krupp 7.5 cm Model 1903. The Dutch purchased 204 guns and 408 caissons from Krupp and produced another 120 guns under license. These saw service both in

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

and the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

Modernization

During the 1920s, the Dutch studied the lessons learned from 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 ...

which highlighted improvements needed to keep the 7 veld up to date in the years before 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 ...

. The primary improvements needed were increased elevation and longer range. The prohibition on weapons production imposed by the

Versailles Treaty The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...

lead German armament firms to open foreign subsidiaries to conduct business. One of these was Siderius a Dutch subsidiary of

Krupp The Krupp family (see pronunciation), a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, is notable for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG (Friedrich Krup ...

, dedicated primarily to the modernization of Krupp

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 ...

in service with the Dutch Army during the 1920s and 1930s. The most effective of its projects was the Siderius Model 02/04. Gander and Chamberlain claim there were three almost identical versions, the M 02/04, OM 04 and NM 10, but this has not been confirmed. At least 16 were modified for motorized traction, presumably with steel wheels and pneumatic tires, for service with the Light Division. The Germans designated guns they captured after the

Battle of the Netherlands The German invasion of the Netherlands ( nl, Duitse aanval op Nederland), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands ( nl, Slag om Nederland), was a military campaign part of Battle of France, Case Yellow (german: Fall Gelb), the Nazi Ge ...

as the 7.5 cm Feldkanone 243(h). These guns were issued to German occupation units during World War II.

Photo Gallery

File:7-veld 2.JPG, A 7 veld gun with caisson. File:7-veld 1.JPG, A 7 veld gun with caisson and horse team.

Notes

References

* Hogg, Ian ''Twentieth-Century Artillery''. New York: Barnes & Nobles, 2000 * Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. ''Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945''. New York: Doubleday, 1979 {{ISBN, 0-385-15090-3

External links

Dutch guns on War over Holland
Artillery of the Netherlands Field artillery World War II artillery