The ''Skoda houfnice vz 14'' ("Howitzer model 1914") and ''Skoda houfnice vz 14/19'' ("Howitzer model 1914/1919") were 100 mm (3.93-inch) field

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

s made in Czechoslovakia by the Skoda works.

Skoda houfnice vz 14

The ''Skoda houfnice vz 14'' was created in 1914. It was used by the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

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 ...

. Large numbers of the howitzers were acquired by Italy after the break-up of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1918.

Statistics

:Caliber: 100mm :Length of Piece: 1.93 m /19 Calibres or 76 inches:Weight: ? kg. (When Travelling); 1350 kg. (In Action). :Range: 8,400 m :Traverse: 6° :Elevation: -8° to +50° :Weight of Shell: 14 kg.

Other designations

*Called the ''Obice da 100/17 modelo 14'' in Italian service from 1919 to 1943. *Called the

10 cm M. 14 Feldhaubitze The 10 cm M. 14 Feldhaubitze was a dual-purpose field and mountain gun used by Austria-Hungary during World War I. Between the wars it was used by Austria, Italy, and Poland. During World War II it served as the standard medium howitzer of th ...

("100mm Model 1914 Field Howitzer") in Austro-Hungarian service from 1914 to 1918. *Called the ''10cm leichte Feld-Haubitze 315 (Italienische)'' or ''10cm leFH315(i)'' ("100m Light Field Howitzer No.315 (Italian)") in German service during World War Two from 1943 to 1945.

Skoda houfnice vz 14/19

An improved version of the howitzer was created in 1919. The main improvement was a longer barrel offering greater range that which could be mounted in the old howitzer beds. The improved howitzer was sold to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

and

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

before 1938. Some versions had rubber tires so they could be pulled by trucks but most retained wooden spoked wheels so they could be pulled by mule teams. The howitzer was also manufactured in Poland in

Starachowice Starachowice is a city in southeastern Poland (historic Lesser Poland), with 49,513 inhabitants (31.12.2017). Starachowice is situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (since 1999); it was formerly in the Kielce Voivodeship (1975–1998). It ...

as wz.1914/19P howitzer. Germany captured a large number of Skoda houfnices when they conquered Poland and absorbed

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. They later seized additional guns while fighting in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, Hungary, Yugoslavia and Greece. Due to their age, the howitzers were relegated to second line service and incorporated into defensive lines and fortifications after 1942.

Statistics

:Caliber: 100mm :Length of Piece: 2.4 m /24 Calibres or 94.5 inches:Weight: 2025 kg. (When Travelling); 1505 kg. (In Action). :Range: 9970 m :Traverse: 5.5° :Elevation: - 7.5° to + 48° :Weight of Shell: 14 kg.

Other designations

*Called the Obice da 100/22 modello 14/19 in Italian service. In 1941 Germany sold about 350 howitzers as war prizes coming from Czechoslovakia and Poland. *Called the haubica 100 mm wz. 1914/19A or wz. 1914/19P in Poland. *Captured Polish models were designated 10 cm leFH 14/19(p), called the 10 cm leichte Feld-Haubitze 14/19 (Tschechische) or 10 cm leFH 14/19(t) ("100m Light Field Howitzer 14/19 (Czechoslovakian)") in German service during World War Two from 1938 to 1945, Yugoslavian models were designated 10 cm leFH 316(j) and Greek models were designated 10 cm leFH 318(g).

Sources

*Chris Bishop (editor). ''The encyclopedia of weapons of World War II: The comprehensive guide to over 1,500 weapon systems, including small arms, artillery, tanks, ships, submarines and warplanes''. Metrobooks (2002) p. 142. {{Austro-Hungarian artillery of World War I Artillery of Czechoslovakia 100 mm artillery Howitzers World War II artillery of Greece