15 cm sFH 13

Heavy field howitzer

15 cm schwere Feldhaubitze 13

Type| Heavy field howitzer
Place of origin| German Empire
Service history
In service| 1913–1945
Used by|

* German Empire
* Ottoman Empire
* Belgium
* Netherlands
* Latvia
* Nazi Germany
* Romania

Wars|

* World War I
* World War II

Production history
Designer| Krupp
Designed| 1913
Manufacturer| Krupp, Rheinmetall, Spandau
Produced| 1913–1918
No. built| 3,409
Variants| kurz sFH 13
lg. sFH13
lg. sFH13/02
Specifications
Mass| 2,250 kg (4,960 lbs)
Length| 2.54 m (8 ft 4 in)
Barrel length| 2.096 m (6 ft 11 in) L/17

* * *

Shell| 149.1 x 112. 5 mmR[1] separate-loading, cased charge (7 charges)
Shell weight| 42 kilograms (93 lb) (HE)
Caliber| 149.1 mm (5.89 in)
Breech| horizontal sliding-block
Recoil| hydro-spring variable recoil
Carriage| box trail
Elevation| −4° to +45°
Traverse| 5°
Rate of fire| 3 rpm
Muzzle velocity| 377 m/s (1,240 ft/s)
Effective firing range| 8,900 m (9,700 yd)

The 15 cm schwere Feldhaubitze 13 (15 cm sFH 13), was a heavy field howitzer used by Germany in World War I and the beginning of World War II.

## History

[edit]

The gun was a development of the previous standard howitzer, the 15 cm sFH 02. Improvements included a longer barrel resulting in better range and a gun shield to protect the crew. Variants were: the original "kurz" (L/14 – 14 calibre short barrel version), the lg. sFH13 with a longer barrel; with minor modifications to simplify wartime manufacture of the lg. sFH weapons. Initially there were serious issues of weak recoil spring mechanisms that would break, and gun barrel explosions. The problems were solved with the upgrades.[2] A sub variant of the sFH 13 was the lg. 15 cm sFH 13/02 which combined the long barrel with the carriage of the earlier sFH 02 when those guns became obsolete. The sFH 13/02 gun shield wasn't hinged at the top and it only used a hydro-spring recoil system. Approximately 1,000 conversions were completed and their performance was the same with only a 40 kg difference in weight.[3][4]

The British referred to these guns and their shells as "five point nines" or "five-nines" as the internal diameter of the barrel was 5.9 inches (150 mm). The ability of these guns to deliver mobile heavy firepower close to the frontline gave the Germans a major firepower advantage on the Western Front early in World War I, as the French and British lacked an equivalent.[citation needed] It was not until late 1915 that the British began to deploy their own 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer.

About 3,500 of these guns were produced from 1913 to 1918.[5] They continued to serve in the Reichswehr and then the Wehrmacht in the interwar period as the standard heavy howitzer until the introduction of 15 cm sFH 18 in the 1930s. They were then shifted to reserve and training units, as well as to coastal artillery. Guns turned over to Belgium and the Netherlands as reparations after World War I were taken into Wehrmacht service after the conquest of the Low Countries as the 15 cm sFH 409(b) and 15 cm sFH 406(h) respectively.[6]

Romania captured 12 pieces from the German Army during World War I, putting them into service during the interwar years and in reserve during World War II[7]

In the course of World War II about 94 of these howitzers were mounted on Lorraine 37L tractors to create self-propelled guns, designated 15 cm sFH13/1 (Sf) auf Geschützwagen Lorraine Schlepper (f).

## See also

[edit]

* 15 cm sFH 02 : German predecessor

### Weapons of comparable role, performance and era

[edit]

* 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer \- British equivalent
* Canon de 155 C modèle 1917 Schneider \- French equivalent
* Obice da 149/12 \- Italian version of the sFH13 produced under license

## In literature

[edit]

* Siegfried Sassoon expressed the British respect for the "five-nine" in his World War I poem Counter-Attack
* Timothy Findley mentions "5.9s" in his book The Wars
* Wilfred Owen mentions being shelled by "Five-Nines" in his poem Dulce et Decorum est
* Robert Graves, in Good-Bye to All That, says "five-nines [were] called 'Jack Johnsons' because of their black smoke"[8] in reference to "the boxer Jack (John Arthur) Johnson (1878–1946), the first black American world heavyweight champion (1908–1915)."[9]

## Citations

[edit]

1. ^ "15 cm sFH 13 / Krupp 15 cm schwere Feldhaubitze 13 / 149.1 mm / 149/13 Italiano / ECRA-ECDV 150 113 CBC". municion.org (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2022-09-13. Retrieved 2020-12-01.
2. ^ Kempf, Peter (2003-11-02). "Kit Review Schneider 155mm Howitzer m/10". Archived from the original on 2012-02-18. Retrieved 2012-03-06.
3. ^ Fleischer, Wolfgang (February 2015). German artillery: 1914-1918. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military. p. 29\. ISBN 9781473823983. OCLC 893163385.
4. ^ "Lovett Artillery - 15cm. lang schwere Feldhaubitze 1913/02". www.lovettartillery.com. Archived from the original on 2018-11-10. Retrieved 2018-11-10.
5. ^ Roger Lee, The Battle of Fromelles 1916 (Australian Army Campaign Series), Big Sky Publishing 2012
6. ^ Chamberlain, Peter; Gander, Terry (1975). Heavy artillery. New York: Arco. p. 23\. ISBN 0668038985. OCLC 2143869.
7. ^ Stroea, Adrian; Băjenaru, Gheorghe (2010). Artileria româna în date si imagini [Romanian artillery in data and images] (in Romanian). Editura Centrului Tehnic-Editorial al Armatei. p. 79\. ISBN 978-606-524-080-3.
8. ^ Graves, Robert (1929). Goodbye to All That (1960 ed.). London: Penguin. p. 130.
9. ^ Paul Hinckley. "Battlefield Colloquialisms of the Great War (WW1)". Archived from the original on 2014-12-21. Retrieved 2015-01-02.

## Sources

[edit]

* Engelmann, Joachim and Scheibert, Horst. Deutsche Artillerie 1934–1945: Eine Dokumentation in Text, Skizzen und Bildern: Ausrüstung, Gliederung, Ausbildung, Führung, Einsatz. Limburg/Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke, 1974
* Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15090-3
* Hogg, Ian V. German Artillery of World War Two. 2nd corrected edition. Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997 ISBN 1-85367-480-X

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 15 cm sFH 13.

* Ralph Lovett, 15 cm. schwere Feld Haubitze 1913
* Ralph Lovett, 15 cm. lang schwere Feldhaubitze 1913/02
* Ralph Lovett, Development of German Heavy Artillery
* List and pictures of WW1 surviving 15 cm sFH 13 and 15 cm sFH 13 lang howitzers

* v
* t
* e

German artillery of World War I

Infantry and
mountain guns|

* 5.7 cm Maxim-Nordenfelt
* 6 cm S-Bts K L/21
* 7.5 cm GebirgsKanone 13
* 7.5 cm Gebirgskanone L/13 C/80
* Ehrhardt 7.5 cm Model 1904
* 7.62 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/16.5
* 7.7 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/20
* 7.7 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/27
* 10.5 cm Gebirgshaubitze L/12

Mortars|

* Granatenwerfer 16
* 7.58 cm leMW
* 9.15 cm leichtes Minenwerfer System Lanz
* 17 cm mMW
* 24 cm schwere FlügelMinenWerfer Albrecht
* 24 cm schwere Flügelminenwerfer IKO
* 24 cm schwerer LadungsWerfer Ehrhardt
* 25 cm sMW
* Albrecht mortar

Field, medium
and heavy guns|

* 5.3 cm Fahrpanzer
* Krupp 7.5 cm Model 1903
* 7.7 cm FK 16
* 7.7 cm FK 96
* 7.7 cm FK 96 n.A.
* 7.7 cm KiH
* 8 cm Kanone C/73
* 8 cm Kanone C/80
* 9 cm Kanone C/73
* 9 cm Kanone C/79
* 10.5 cm FH 98/09
* 10.5 cm leFH 16
* 10 cm K 04
* 10 cm K 14
* 10 cm K 17
* 12 cm Kanone C/80
* 13.5 cm K 09
* 15 cm Kanone 16
* 15 cm L/40 Feldkanone i.R.
* 15 cm Ring Kanone C/72
* 15 cm Ring Kanone C/92
* 15 cm Ring Kanone L/30
* 15 cm sFH 02
* 15 cm sFH 13
* 15 cm sFH 93
* 17 cm SK L/40 i.R.L.

Superheavy and
siege artillery|

* 21 cm Haubitze M1891
* 21 cm Mörser 10
* 21 cm Mörser 16
* 21 cm Mörser 99
* 21 cm Paris Gun
* 21 cm Versuchmörser 06
* 28 cm Haubitze L/12
* 28 cm Haubitze L/14 i.R.
* 38 cm Langer Max
* 42 cm Big Bertha
* 42 cm Gamma howitzer

Railroad artillery|

* 15 cm SK "Nathan"
* 17 cm SK L/40 "Samuel"
* 21 cm SK "Peter Adalbert"
* 24 cm SK L/30 "Theodor Otto"
* 24 cm SK L/40 "Theodor Karl"
* 28 cm K L/40 "Kurfürst"
* 28 cm SK L/40 "Bruno"
* 38 cm SK L/45 "Max"

Anti-aircraft artillery|

* 3.7 cm Maxim Flak M14
* 3.7 cm SockelFlak L/14.5
* 7.62 cm FlaK L/30
* 7.7 cm FlaK L/35
* 7.7 cm Leichte Kraftwagengeschütze M1914
* 8.8 cm Flak 16
* Flaming onion

Anti-tank guns|

* 3.7 cm TAK 1918
* MG 18 TuF

Tank guns|

* 5.7 cm Maxim-Nordenfelt

* v
* t
* e

German artillery of World War II

Tank guns|

* 2 cm KwK 30
* 3.7 cm KwK 36
* 3,7 cm KwK 34(t)
* 3.7 cm KwK 38(t)
* 5 cm KwK 38
* 5 cm KwK 39
* 7.5 cm KwK 37
* 7.5 cm KwK 40
* 7.5 cm KwK 42
* 8.8 cm KwK 36
* 8.8 cm KwK 43
* 12.8 cm KwK 44

Anti-tank guns|

* 2.8 cm sPzB 41
* 3.7 cm Pak 36
* 4.2 cm Pak 41
* 4.7 cm Pak 38(t)
* 4.7 cm Pak 181(f)
* 5 cm Pak 38
* 7.5 cm Pak 97/38
* 7.5 cm Pak 39
* 7.5 cm Pak 40
* 7.5 cm Pak 41
* 7.5 cm Pak 42
* 7.62 cm Pak 36(r)
* 8 cm PAW 600
* 8.8 cm Pak 43
* 10 cm PAW 1000
* 12.8 cm Pak 44

Infantry and mountain guns|

* 7.5 cm leIG 18
* 7.5 cm IG 37
* 7.5 cm IG 42
* 7.5 cm GebH 34
* 7.5 cm GebG 36
* 10.5 cm GebH 40
* 15 cm sIG 33

Recoilless guns|

* 7.5 cm LG 40
* 10.5 cm LG 40
* 10.5 cm LG 42

Mortars|

* 5 cm leGrW 36
* 8 cm GrW 34
* kz 8 cm GrW 42
* Reihenwerfer

Heavy mortars|

* 10 cm NbW 35
* 10 cm NbW 40
* 12 cm GrW 42
* 20 cm leLdgW
* 21 cm GrW 69
* 38 cm schwerer Ladungswerfer

Rocket artillery|

* 7.3 cm Föhn-Gerät
* 7.3 cm Propagandawerfer 41
* 8 cm Raketen-Vielfachwerfer
* 8.8 cm Raketenwerfer 43
* 15 cm Do-Gerät
* 15 cm NbW 41
* 21 cm NbW 42
* 28/32 cm NbW 41
* 30 cm NbW 42
* 30 cm Raketenwerfer 56
* Wurfrahmen 40

Field, medium and heavy guns|

* 7.5 cm FK 16 nA
* 7.5 cm FK 18
* 7.5 cm FK 38
* 7.5 cm FK 7M85
* 10 cm K 17
* 10 cm sK 18
* 10.5 cm leFH 16
* 10.5 cm leFH 18
* 10.5 cm leFH 18M
* 10.5 cm leFH 18/40
* 10.5 cm sK 18/40
* 15 cm sFH 13
* 15 cm sFH 18
* 15 cm sFH 36
* 15 cm K 16
* 15 cm K 18
* 15 cm K 39
* 15 cm SK C/28
* 17 cm K 18
* 21 cm Mrs 16
* 21 cm Mrs 18

Superheavy and siege artillery|

* 21 cm K 38
* 21 cm K 39
* 24 cm H 39
* 24 cm K (t)
* 24 cm Kanone L/46
* 24 cm K 3
* 28 cm H L/12
* 35.5 cm Haubitze M1
* 42 cm Gamma Mörser
* Karl-Gerät
* 80 cm K (E) Gustav

Railroad artillery|

* 15 cm K (E)
* 17 cm K (E)
* 20.3 cm K (E)
* 21 cm K 12 (E)
* 24 cm Th K (E)
* 24 cm ThBr K (E)
* 28 cm kzBr K (E)
* 28 cm lgBr K (E)
* 28 cm sBr K (E)
* 28 cm Br NK (E)
* 28 cm K 5 (E)
* 38 cm Siegfried K (E)
* 80 cm K (E) Gustav

Naval artillery|

* 8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun
* 8.8 cm SK C/30 naval gun
* 8.8 cm SK C/32 naval gun
* 8.8 cm SK C/35 naval gun
* 10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun
* 12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun
* 15 cm SK L/45
* 15 cm SK C/25
* 15 cm SK C/28
* 15 cm TbtsK C/36 naval gun
* 20.3 cm SK C/34 naval gun
* 28 cm SK L/40 gun
* 28 cm SK C/28 naval gun
* 28 cm SK C/34 naval gun
* 38 cm SK C/34 naval gun
* 40.6 cm SK C/34 gun

Anti-aircraft guns|

* 2 cm Flak 30/38/Flakvierling
* 2 cm Gebirgsflak 38
* 3 cm MK 303 Flak
* 3.7 cm Flak 18/36/37
* 3.7 cm SK C/30
* 3.7 cm Flak M42
* 3.7 cm Flak 43
* 5 cm Flak 41
* 8.8 cm Flak 18/36/37/41
* 10.5 cm Flak 38
* 12.8 cm Flak 40

Demolition charges|

* Stielgranate 41
* Stielgranate 42

Authority control databases: National |

* Germany

|

*[No.]: Number
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template