Since no one else has raised their hand, I'll try to answer your inquiry.
Using the acitve Infantry Divisional TOE( 16-18K ) as a starter we find it contained 36 field guns. This interpreted to 4 guns per batterie, three batteries per BTN( or Groupes ) = 12 guns. Three BTN( Groupes ) formed the artillery regiment. Further, each Corps had an artillery regiment( sometimes with an additional batterie ). With two divisions per Corps, gun total was 108 to 120. Of course the Mle 1897 was the primary systeme' of these batteries.
As further trivial information, in August 1914 France mobilized over 2 Million men, fully 10.5% of that total were artillerymen. Truely they believed the Corsican's saying that artillery was the Queen of Battle.
28juni14 wrote:As further trivial information, in August 1914 France mobilized over 2 Million men, fully 10.5% of that total were artillerymen. Truely they believed the Corsican's saying that artillery was the Queen of Battle.
Incredible ... but perhaps they heeded Frederick the Great (variously attributed) "Die Artillerie verleiht dem Würde, was sonst nur eine wilde Keilerei wäre"
(George Finley cartoon "Field Artillery" - his military caricatures are commercially available. I have no connection with them.)
-- Edited by Rectalgia on Monday 28th of January 2013 08:15:51 AM
Does anyone know what was their firing organization? Could for example a battery be assigned to support a specific battalion or would it rather be used in whole groupe?
I cannot offer a source to support this, but I have heard on a documentary that in the French sector of the Somme in 1916, observers went forward with field telephones, accompanying the troops. This allowed the artillery observers to report back the progress of the infantry, so that artillery could offer support in the right places and at the right time - so I would expect that artillery units were assigned to support specific infantry units.
Hopefully someone else will be able to prove or correct this.
