Canon de 155 mm GPF

The canon de 155 mm GPF Mle 1917 was a field gun in service with the French Army from WW1 to the beginning of WW2. It was also used by Nazi Germany during the same armed conflict, after the Wehrmacht invaded France in May 1940. The German officers seized this artillery piece, deploying them on every front of the war. 'GPF' stands for 'Grande Puissance Filloux as it had been designed in 1916 by the French engineer Col. Louis J. Filloux and it entered service in 1917.

At the end of WW1, the French 155 mm GPF was considered to be the best gun of its class in the world. It was a good design of a split-trail, two-wheel carriage, with a powerful gun. The US Army would also acquire the canon de 155 mm GPF right after WW1. Thus, the US M1918 155 mm GPF was manufactured in large numbers, being a copy of the French field gun. The original design was mounted on split trail carriage, with two wooden wheels with spokes. The WW2 version, the gun had pneumatic tires. It fired 43-kg shells to a maximum distance of 19.5 km. The German towed it to battle field with tracked vehicles.

Specifications

Type: heavy field gun

Caliber: 155-mm

Weight: 13 tons

Barrel Length: 5.91 m (28 feet).

Shell: cased fixed ammunition/separate loading.

Breech Type: vertical sliding wedge (screw type in the American version).

Elevation: +0 to +35 degrees

Traverse: 60 degrees

Below, the French 155mm GPF on the two-wheel, split-trail carriage, with the auxialliary two-wheel cart for transportation on the background.

Le canon de 155-mm Filloux in November 1918. It first saw combat action in the Battle of Cambrai in 1917. Notice that the first version had wooden wheels and spokes, with a steel rim around it.

Below, the French GPF on its two-wheel carriage, with the closed trail mounted on the two-wheel cart, being towed by a truck.

The US M1918 GPF at the end of WW1. It was the American variant of the French Filloux.

Below, the canon de 155-mm GPF in June 1940. It was seized by the German troops after the Battle of France, being checked by a German soldier on its defensive position. Notice it still had the WW1 wheels, with the mud shoes on.