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Post Info TOPIC: Retrokit News! New 15in howitzer!
Roger Todd


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Retrokit News! New 15in howitzer!
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I was bored and surfing t'internet, when I found great news for all WW1 superheavy artillery fans! Coming soon from Retrokit...


http://www.retrokit.net/53.html


B.L.15in Siege Howitzer, 1915, Kit R72023


This super-heavy weapon was produced by the Coventry Ordnance Works for the Admiralty on Churchill's order. It was, basically, a scaled-up version of the then very successful 9.2in Siege Howitzer. Of the 12 built, at least 10 were sent to France (one was sent to Gallipoli but could not be landed), where they served until the end of the Great War, manned first by the men of the Royal Marine Howitzer Brigade then by the Royal Artillery from 1916. Their rather short range (approx 10km) made them less popular than other heavy weapons, but the effect of their 1,450lbs shells was devastating.  25,332 of those shells were fired throughout WWI. The 15in Siege Howitzer were declared obsolete in 1919.


PHOTOSCOPE TO BE PUBLISHED SHORTLY


Huge photo of the master here:


http://www.retrokit.net/images/DSCN4863.JPG


I was planning to scratchbuild one at some point. Ah well, saves me the trouble...



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Centurion


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 The Germans had Big Bertha, the Austrians Schanke Emma (Fat Emma). Here in Britain the 15 in Howitzer was nick- named 'Granny', sometimes 'Churchill's Granny' (because as 1st lord of the Admiralty he pushed its introduction through) - says something. Its short range gave problems and the army high command were less than enthusiastic (hence it went to the Marines).

-- Edited by Centurion at 00:16, 2006-03-05

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Roger Todd


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I think Schlanke Emma is Slim Emma (thus proving that Germans - okay, Austrians - do have a sense of humour!).


But good point about the British penchant for strangely cosy names (or downright odd - I mean, 'Flying Elephant'?).


I made a similar point some years ago after the last space shuttle disaster. Americans give their shuttles such dramatic, thrusting names like 'Discovery', 'Challenger', 'Endeavour' or 'Enterprise'. In a spoof news story I wrote about a British space shuttle disaster, I had our orbiters given names like 'Slipper', 'Cardigan', 'Pipe' and 'Wensleydale'...



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Centurion


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Roger Todd wrote:

I think Schlanke Emma is Slim Emma (thus proving that Germans - okay, Austrians - do have a sense of humour!). But good point about the British penchant for strangely cosy names (or downright odd - I mean, 'Flying Elephant'?). I made a similar point some years ago after the last space shuttle disaster. Americans give their shuttles such dramatic, thrusting names like 'Discovery', 'Challenger', 'Endeavour' or 'Enterprise'. In a spoof news story I wrote about a British space shuttle disaster, I had our orbiters given names like 'Slipper', 'Cardigan', 'Pipe' and 'Wensleydale'...

But of course they'd have been designed by Wallace (with assistance from Gromit).


Actually Britain seems to have had something of a penchant for giving inappropriate names to weapons - certainly this was the case with some WW1 aircraft - to name a few for for example


Martinsyde Elephant (long range fighter)
Sopwith Snail (fighter)
PV Grain Kitten (shipboard fighter)
PV Eastchurch Kitten (shipboard fighter)
Sopwith Hippo (2 seat fighter)
Sopwith Snark (fighter)
AD Sparrow (fighter)
Avro Spider (fighter)
Bristol Badger (fighter)
Armstrong Whitworth Aramadillo (fighter)
Not to mention:
Sopwith Pup (fighter)
Beardmore Pup (carrier fighter)
Sopwith Camel (fighter)
And after these fierce fighter like titles we get the

Parnel Panther (2 seat shipboard spotter aircraft)


Still they got a few right - the very first Vickers Vampire was a WW1 night fighter prototype and Cuckoo does seem somewhat appropriate for Sopwith's only bomber design to see production


 


 



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Centurion


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Roger Todd wrote:




I (one was sent to Gallipoli but could not be landed),


Given the crudity of the system for getting artillery ashore one is not surprised. I enclose a war artists contemporary illustration of how it was done.



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dard.jpg (84.3 kb)
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Roger Todd


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Centurion wrote:

But of course they'd have been designed by Wallace (with assistance from Gromit). 

Naturellement!


Now, I've head of a few of those aircraft you mentioned, but the Bristol Badger? The Eastchurch Kitten and the Sopwith Snail?!?! Thanks for those, it's fair tickled me!


As for rafting big guns to shore, good grief, you'd have never caught me doing that...



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