The Škoda 10 cm vz. 38 was a light howitzer deployed in single gun defensive

casemates A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to antiquity, the term "casemate wall" mea ...

in the

Czechoslovak border fortifications Czechoslovakia built a system of border fortifications as well as some fortified defensive lines inland, from 1935 to 1938 as a defensive countermeasure against the rising threat of Nazi Germany. The objective of the fortifications was to prevent t ...

before

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

History

The Škoda 10 cm vz. 38 was developed and built by

Škoda Škoda means ''pity'' in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto respons ...

at the Pilsen works. Development of the howitzer began in March 1935 after an order was placed by the Czechoslovakian Department of National Defense. The design was based on an existing field howitzer the 10 cm vz. 30. The howitzer was put into production during 1938 and fifteen were completed and deployed in Czech border fortifications then under construction. The howitzers never saw action against the Germans being victims of the September 30th 1938

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Nazi Germany, Germany, the United Kingdom, French Third Republic, France, and Fa ...

which ceded the

Sudetenland The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...

to Germany. After World War II all fifteen howitzers were scrapped. Today two wood and metal mock ups of the howitzers are housed in the museum of artillery at fort Dobrošov near

Náchod Náchod (; german: Nachod) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It is known both as a tourist destination and centre of industry. The town centre with the castle complex is well preserved ...

. The mock ups were acquired in 1973 from the museum of artillery at fort Hanicka and used as props in the filming of

Days of betrayal ''Days of Betrayal'' ( cs, Dny zrady) is a 1973 Czechoslovakian drama film directed by Otakar Vávra. The film was entered into the 8th Moscow International Film Festival where it won a Diploma. It was also selected as the Czechoslovakian entry ...

by director Otakar Vavra.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skoda 10 cm vz. 38 Howitzers Artillery of Czechoslovakia 100 mm artillery