QF 25 pdr The 25-pounder was the major British field gun/howitzer that was introduced into service just before World War II and was the British Army's primary artillery system into the 1950s. Smaller numbers served until 1967 in the training role in England, while many British Commonwealth countries used theirs until about the same time. It was considered by most involved to be the best field artillery piece of the war, combining high rates of fire with a particularily lethal shell in a highly mobile system. While of smaller caliber than contemporary post-war designs, it was only replaced due to NATO standardization, and its users were not particularly enthusiastic about its replacement. Design The design was the result of extended studies looking to replace both the 18 Pounder field gun and the 4.5 inch howitzer, which had been important weapons during the First World War. The basic idea was to build a single weapon with the direct-fire capability of the 18-pounder with the high-angle fire of the howitzer, firing a shell about half way between the two in size, around 3.5"-4" of about 30 pounds. Development during the inter-war period was severely hampered by a lack of money, and it was eventually decided to build a "new" design from 18-pounders converted using new liners and pneumatic road wheels to allow towing. The result was a 3.45" (87.6mm) weapon firing a 25 pound shell. It was mounted on the original 18pdr's single-trail design, which included a circular track under the trail. When used in the direct fire role, the track was dropped to the ground under the wheels, allowing the gunners to quickly turn the weapon in any direction. Whereas earlier designs had used fixed ammunition with the shell and gunpowder in a single round, the new design looked to increase flexibility by providing a variety of different propellant loads. The result were three different "charges", Charge 1, 2 and 3. Rounds would be fitted with the proper charge prior to firing, at which point the gun could be loaded just as quickly as with older single-charge designs. This variety allowed the gun to fire either high-angle or direct at various ranges, without overstressing the system. In order to further increase the flexibility, a smaller intermediate charge was later added to "fill in" the gaps between the three main charges. Ammunition The 25-pounder's main ammunition was the High Explosive (HE) shell, but it could fire smoke shells, star shells, and special projectiles containing propaganda leaflets. In the direct fire role, the 25pdr was also supplied with a limited amount of 20 pound solid armour piercing (AP) rounds, later replaced with a more potent version with a ballistic cap. A shaped charge version was under development in Canada, but the introduction of the 17 Pounder dedicated anti-tank gun ended its development. Service Mark I Known officially as the Ordnance Quick Firing 25-pounder Mark I, or QF 25pdr Mk.I in short, the converted weapons first entered British service in the early 1930s. Often referred to as the 18/25-pdr, the majority of these were lost in the early war campaigns in Norway. Many of these were captured by the Germans, who liked them so much they built up entire artillery units based on them. These units were deployed in Normandy prior to D-Day, leading to somewhat ironic duels between 25pdr units on either side. Mark II The new-build Mark II, many of which were built in Sorel, Quebec, entered service with the Royal Canadian Artillery in 1940. A later addition was the "super" charge to increase the gun's range to 13,400 yards, who's power put extra stresses on the carriage and necessitated the adoption of a muzzle brake to reduce recoil. Guns with this modification were known as the Mark 2/1. The distinctive brake is a well-known feature of the gun that makes it easily recognized. Mark III The Mark III gun modified the receiver to prevent the rounds from slipping back out when loading at high angles. With the muzzle brake they became the Mark III/1, and the Mark IV were identical new-build versions. A Mark 2 Carriage was developed for easier towing, and the Mark 3 Carriage included a hinge to allow the gun to be fired at much higher angles. Neither were very reliable though, and not widely used. With the introduction of dedicated anti-tank guns, the single-trail design was no longer considered important, and the Mark 5 used a split-trail design with a much wider angle of traverse. The Australians developed a "cut down" version on a lighter mounting as the 25 Pounder Short Mark I. After seeing the utility of the M7 Priest, the British introduced the similar Canadian-built Sexton, mounting the 25-pdr on a Ram tank chassis (based on the M3 Lee). The British also developed the Bishop, a similar conversion using the Valentine tank chassis. Normally the gun was towed, with its limber, usually behind a gun tractor called a Quadruped. Even by WWII standards, the 25pdr was at the smaller-end of the scale. Most forces had entered the war with even smaller 75mm designs, but had quickly moved to 105mm and larger weapons. However the 25pdr was nevertheless considered by all to be one of the best artillery pieces in use, and in particular its HE round was particularily deadly. The introduction of NATO standardization led to the replacement of the gun with the 105mm, but many of these proved to be less reliable in combat as a result of trying to make a larger gun of the same weight as the 25pdr. This kept the 25pdr in operation with mountain and airborne units for many years, its replacement generally being mortars as opposed to newer artillery units. 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