Sauterelle 1915.jpg
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The ''Arbalète sauterelle type A'', or simply ''Sauterelle'' (French for
grasshopper Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshopp ...
), was a
bomb A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the Exothermic process, exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-t ...
-throwing crossbow used by
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
and British forces on the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
during World War I. It was designed to throw a
hand grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...
in a high trajectory into enemy trenches. It was initially dismissed by the French Army but General Henri Berthelot thought it had practical value. It was lighter and more portable than the Leach Trench Catapult, but less powerful. It weighed and could throw an F1 grenade or Mills bomb . The Sauterelle replaced the Leach Catapult in British service until they were replaced in 1916 by the 2 inch Medium Trench Mortar and Stokes mortar. Please note a wikilink to the article "Bombthrowers" in EB1922 is not available


References

{{WWIFrenchInfWeaponsNav Crossbows Projectile weapons World War I French infantry weapons World War I British infantry weapons Grenade launchers