Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-783-0109-19, Nordafrika, Zugkraftwagen mit Flak (cropped)

An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of tractor unit used to tow

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 si ...

pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be wheeled, tracked, or half-tracked.

Traction

There are two main types of artillery tractors, depending on the type of traction: wheeled and tracked. * Wheeled tractors are usually variations of lorries adapted for military service. * Tracked tractors run on

continuous track Continuous track is a system of vehicle propulsion used in tracked vehicles, running on a continuous band of treads or track plates driven by two or more wheels. The large surface area of the tracks distributes the weight of the vehicle ...

; in some cases are built on a modified

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful ...

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpar ...

with the superstructure replaced with a compartment for the gun crew or

ammunition Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other we ...

. In addition, half-track tractors were used in the

interwar period 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 ...

and in

World War II 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, especially by the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

. This type of tractor was mostly discontinued postwar.

History

World War I

The first artillery tractors were designed prior to the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, often based on agricultural machines such as the

Holt tractor The Holt tractors were a range of continuous track haulers built by the Holt Manufacturing Company from California (U.S.), which was named after Benjamin Holt. Between 1908 and 1913, twenty-seven of the first 100 Holt caterpillar track-type tra ...

. Such vehicles allowed the tactical use of heavier guns to supplement the light horse drawn

field gun A field gun is a field artillery piece. Originally the term referred to smaller guns that could accompany a field army on the march, that when in combat could be moved about the battlefield in response to changing circumstances ( field artill ...

s. "Horseless artillery" available prior to World War I weighed 8 tons, had 70 horsepower and could go 8 mph. For example, in the British Army it allowed the heavy guns of the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (R ...

to be used flexibly on the battlefield.

World War II

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-203-1696-25, Albanien, Raupenschlepper Ost mit Kanone

In World War II the

draft horse A draft horse (US), draught horse (UK) or dray horse (from the Old English ''dragan'' meaning "to draw or haul"; compare Dutch ''dragen'' and German ''tragen'' meaning "to carry" and Danish ''drage'' meaning "to draw" or "to fare"), less oft ...

was still the most common source of motive power in many armies. Most nations were economically and industrially unable to fully motorise their forces. One compromise was to produce general purpose vehicles which could be used in the troop transport, logistics and

prime mover Prime mover may refer to: Philosophy *Unmoved mover, a concept in Aristotle's writings Engineering * Prime mover (engine), motor, a machine that converts various other forms of energy (chemical, electrical, fluid pressure/flow, etc) into energy ...

roles, with heavy artillery tractors to move the heaviest guns. The British Army had fully mechanized prior to war. During the 1920s and 30s it had used the

Vickers Medium Dragon The Vickers Medium Dragon was a fully-tracked British field artillery tractor made by Vickers (later Vickers-Armstrongs), produced in various versions from 1922 to 1937. The Medium Dragon towed a wide range of artillery, from 18-pounder field g ...

and Light Dragon fully-tracked artillery tractors, but they had been mostly replaced with wheeled vehicles, starting with the Morris CDSW. The

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

persisted with specialist artillery tractors – known as "Field Artillery Tractors" (FAT) – such as the Morris "Quad", Canadian Military Pattern (CMP) "Quad" and AEC Matador throughout World War II, rather than adopt a general purpose vehicle. Artillery tractors were different from "General Service" (GS) vehicles by having a compartment for the gun detachment immediately behind the cab and separated from the cargo space containing ammunition and gun stores. German forces used half-tracks as artillery tractors, such as the Sd.Kfz. 7. Half-tracked tractors were not commonly used in this role in other nations. Compared to wheeled vehicles they had better off-road capabilities, but were slower on roads and were more prone to breakdowns. However, for Germany horses remained the most common way of towing artillery throughout the war.

Modern warfare

In modern warfare, towed artillery has given way in part to

self-propelled artillery Self-propelled artillery (also called locomotive artillery) is artillery equipped with its own propulsion system to move toward its firing position. Within the terminology are the self-propelled gun, self-propelled howitzer, self-propelled ...

, it is also common to find auxiliary power units built into the gun carriage to provide limited battlefield mobility. Traditional towed artillery can still be found in units where complexity and weight are liabilities: e.g. airmobile, amphibious and other light units. In such units, where organic transport is usually limited, any available transport can double as artillery tractors in order to reposition guns when needed. For example, engineer vehicles of a different primary purpose such as the U.S. Marines' Light Capacity Rough Terrain Forklift (LCRTF), a versatile telehandler

forklift A forklift (also called lift truck, jitney, hi-lo, fork truck, fork hoist, and forklift truck) is a powered industrial truck used to lift and move materials over short distances. The forklift was developed in the early 20th century by various ...

capable of towing gear from either end.

List of artillery tractors

The following are a few examples of artillery tractors, classified by its traction system and era.

Wheeled

Fiat artillery tractor in Horseless Age v43 n4 1918-02-15 p50

Pre- and First World War

* Thornycroft "steamer" – UK,

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...

* Thornycroft Gun Tractor – UK, World War I * Latil TAR – France, World War I * Renault EG – France, World War I (also used in World War II as a heavy artillery tractor) * Tracteur Panhard-Châtillon – France, World War I

Interwar and Second World War

Thornycroft Hathi The Thornycroft Hathi (Hindi: "elephant") was an early four wheel drive lorry built by Thornycroft in the 1920s. It was used by the British Army as an artillery tractor. Development There was a lack of British-developed four-wheel-drive vehic ...

– UK, 1924; early 4x4 * Krupp Protze – Germany, 1933; towed the 3.7 cm PaK *

Scammell Pioneer The Scammell Pioneer was a British 6×4 tractor unit used in World War II as an artillery tractor, recovery vehicle and tank transporter. Development Designed as a 6×4 off-road vehicle for use in Britain's colonies where sealed roads were s ...

– British, 1937; lorry used for heavy artillery *

Morris C8 The Morris Commercial C8 FAT (Field Artillery Tractor), commonly known as a ''Quad'', is an artillery tractor used by the British and Commonwealth (including Canadian Army) forces during the Second World War. It was used to tow field artillery p ...

– UK, 1938; the "Quad" British tractor; towed the 25-pdr gun, 6-pdr AT gun, and 40-mm Bofors AA gun *

Karrier Karrier was a British marque of motorised municipal appliances and light commercial vehicles and trolley buses manufactured at Karrier Works, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, by Clayton and Co., Huddersfield, Limited. They began making Karrier moto ...

KT4 – UK; for the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which cou ...

* AEC Matador – UK, World War II; lorry used for pulling medium artillery such as the 5.5 inch gun and 3.7 inch AA Gun * Fiat-SPA T.L.37 – Italy, World War II; four-wheel steering tractor for 75/27 Mod.06 and 100/17 mod.14 field guns. * Breda 51 – Italy, 1936; 6x4 truck used for moving equipment/units, pulling artillery. * Breda 52 – Italy, 1938; 6x4 truck with stronger chassis that could also be mounted with Cannone da 90/53 *

Laffly V15 The Laffly V15T was a French light 4WD artillery tractor used during World War II. It was used to tow the 25 mm SA anti-tank gun. A personnel carrier and reconnaissance vehicle based on the same chassis was designated as V15R. The Laffly company ...

T – France, World War II; towed 25 mm AT guns *

Laffly S15 The Laffly S15 was a family of all-terrain military vehicles from French manufacturer Laffly that shared the same six-wheel drive chassis. They were used by French forces during World War II. Variants * The Laffly S15T was a light artillery tra ...

T – France, World War II; towed the French 75 and short 105 mm field guns * Mack NO – USA, World War II; 6x6 truck used to tow the 155mm “Long Tom”

and similar medium artillery pieces * Dodge WC4 & WC22 – USA, World War II; 4x4 truck designed to tow the M3 anti-tank cannon, its crew and ammunition * White Scout Car – USA, 1941; 4x4 utility armored car *

CMP FAT The CMP FAT (Field Artillery Tractor), was a Canadian Military Pattern vehicle manufactured by Ford and Chevrolet. The FAT was an artillery tractor of the British and Commonwealth forces during World War II. Several models were produced by the ...

– Canada, World War II *

Radschlepper Ost ''Radschlepper Ost'', literally "wheeled tractor east", also known as Škoda RSO or Porsche 175, was a German heavy Four-wheel drive military tractor used during World War II. It was designed by Ferdinand Porsche in 1941 and produced by Škod ...

– Germany, 1942

Postwar

* Bedford 4x4 Gun Tractor – UK, introduced in the late 1950s to tow the 25-pdr *

Leyland Martian Leyland may refer to: Places * Leyland, Lancashire, an English town ** Leyland Hundred, an hundred of Lancashire, England * Leyland, Alberta, a community in Canada Companies * Leyland Line, a shipping company Automotive manufacturers * L ...

(FV1103) – UK, Medium Artillery Tractor, 10-ton, 6x6; replaced the Matador in the late 1950s. * Pinzgauer High Mobility All-Terrain Vehicle – UK, 1971 * Land Rover 101 Forward Control – UK, 1972 * Coyote 6x6 TSV – UK, 2009

Half-tracked

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-216-0406-31, Russland-Mitte-Nord, Zugkraftwagen mit Pak

* Unic P107 – France, 1934; towed the French 75 and short 105 mm field guns * SOMUA MCG – France; towed the French long 105 and short 155 mm field guns * Sd.Kfz. 7 – Germany, 1938; 8-ton half track often towed the Flak 36 88 mm *

Sd.Kfz. 9 The Sd.Kfz. 9 (also known as "Famo" ) was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II, and the heaviest half-track vehicle of any type built in quantity in Nazi Germany during the war years. Its main roles were as a prime mover f ...

– Germany, 1938; used for heavy towed guns such as the

24 cm Kanone 3 The 24-cm-Kanone 3 (24 cm K 3) was a German heavy siege gun used in the Second World War by the first battalion of Artillerie-Regiment 84. Four were in service when Germany invaded Poland, assigned to the first two batteries of I./AR 84, an ...

Sd.Kfz. 10 The Sd.Kfz. 10 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug – special motorized vehicle) was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main role was as a prime mover for small towed guns, such as the 2 cm Flak 30, the 7.5 cm leIG, or the 3.7 ...

– Germany, 1938; also basis for the

Sd.Kfz. 250 The Sd.Kfz. 250 (German: ''Sonderkraftfahrzeug'' 250; 'special motor vehicle') was a light armoured half-track, very similar in appearance to the larger Hanomag-designed Sd.Kfz. 251, and built by the DEMAG firm, for use by Nazi Germany in World ...

armored light half-track *

Sd.Kfz. 11 The Sd.Kfz. 11 (''Sonderkraftfahrzeug'' – special motor vehicle) was a German half-track that saw widespread use in World War II. Its main role was as a prime mover for medium towed guns ranging from the 3.7 cm FlaK 43 anti-aircraft gun up ...

– Germany, 1938; 3-ton tractor for medium towed guns, including the 3.7 cm FlaK 43 anti-aircraft gun and the 10.5 cm leFH 18 field howitzer * M2 Half Track Car – USA, 1940 * M3 Half-track – USA, 1940

Tracked, tank chassis

* Dragon, Medium Mark IV – British army, 1928; developed from the Vickers 6-Ton mark E. * T-24 chassis ** Komintern ** Voroshilovets * M2 light tank chassis ** M4 High Speed Tractor – USA, 1943 *

M3 Stuart The M3 Stuart/Light Tank M3, was an American light tank of World War II. An improved version of the tank entered service as the M5 in 1942 to be supplied to British and other Commonwealth forces under lend-lease prior to the entry of the U.S. i ...

chassis ** M5 High Speed Tractor – USA, 1942 *

M3 Lee The M3 Lee, officially Medium Tank, M3, was an American medium tank used during World War II. The turret was produced in two forms, one for US needs and one modified to British requirements to place the radio next to the commander. In British C ...

chassis ** M33 Prime Mover – converted by removing turret and recovery gear from M31 TRV. 109 converted in 1943–44. *

M4 Sherman } The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. It ...

chassis ** M34 Prime Mover – converted by removing recovery gear from M32B1 TRV (M4A1 Sherman tank chassis built as an

Armoured recovery vehicle An armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) is typically a powerful tank or armoured personnel carrier (APC) chassis modified for use during combat for military vehicle recovery (towing) or repair of battle-damaged, stuck, and/or inoperable armoured ...

) and adding air brakes to tow heavy artillery. 24 converted by Chester Tank Depot in 1944. ** M35 Prime Mover – converted by removing turret from M10A1 tank destroyer (M4A3 Sherman tank chassis) and adding air brakes to tow 155 mm and 240 mm artillery. ** Sherman Gun Tower – British field conversion in Italy by removing turrets from old M4A2 Sherman tanks to tow 17 pdr AT gun and carry crew with ammunition ** Wolverine Gun Tower – British M10 (M4A2 chassis) or M10A1 (M4A3 chassis) converted by removing turret, 1944–45 * Crusader II, Gun Tractor Mk I – British army, variant of the Crusader tank * M41 Walker Bulldog chassis ** M8 High Speed Tractor – USA, 1950