The field artillery is one of the branches major of artillery, it has the role to support and press the troops on the battle field. To fulfill this function, its material must be contrary to other specialities, more mobile and ready to follow mobile operations. This requirement tends to make him adopt lighter and less powerful parts, than for example the Artillerie of seat, or the Artillerie of place.
History
First examples
If the artillery in its beginnings is especially confined with the operations of seat, it happens sometimes that one tries to deploy it at the time of a battle - a famous example being the Bataille of Azincourt in 1415 - but the results are not very convincing. It is impossible to move the guns once the engaged battle, and within sight of the range of the time that as well as possible limits their role to defense. The parts are more unable to provide a constant shooting and generally explode after ten to twelve drawn blows. Their projectiles miss also at the same time precision and of effectiveness. With final, the only withdrawn benefit is the produced moral effect, smoke and the noise.
However the turning of the 16th century the metallurgy and novel methods of construction of the guns allow major progress, which will start to return the use of artillery on the battle field much folk. The first of these innovations is the generalization of the Affût to wheel, which joins soon the directly cast pivots the tube which make it possible at piece-rates to rest directly on the mounting, while remaining directional in site. The gun takes a form which it will keep during several centuries, and gains in the passing a certain mobility. Two other improvements are also introduced at that time, the use moreover into frequent of bronze for manufacture of the parts and the pig iron for the projectile. The tin and copper alloy, in spite of its price, appears a better choice quickly than iron because it allows of a manufacture by moulding and either by forging. The thickness is more regular and the materials less breakable, the guns are then less prone to the bursting of the tubes. The metal projectile, it, do not burst like those out of stone and allow rebounds which are very fatal against the tight formations infantrymen or riders. One of the large precursors of this new artillery is the emperor Maximilien who is moreover one of the first to classify his guns in two main categories, of seat and countryside. In addition, it makes independent its artillerists by gathering them in a specific body.
The progression in the effectiveness on the ground is very fast. So in 1477 the Swiss piquiers seize the thirty Burgundian guns with Nancy, without those having time to draw, less than forty years later to the Bataille of Marignan these same piquiers Swiss are constrained to move back by losing seven thousand as of theirs vis-a-vis sixty French guns. As for that of seat, the field artillery became a major asset of the armies in shift, and many theorists try to rationalize his employment whereas the number of parts increases quickly. There remain nevertheless many practical problems which limit its effectiveness. Technological advances, but especially of organization and doctrines are still necessary.
In 1540, Georges Hastmann develops the feeler scale, a rule out of metal which makes correspond the interior gauge of a gun with the mass of its ball, which removes the need for weighing the projectile and the powder necessary. But the most important progress, is also longest, it is about the reduction and the rationalization of the types and gauges of the pieces of artillery. The evolution is slow but sour, because if the army Charles Quint has more than fifty models of gun in service in the neighborhoods of 1550, the French Army in has nothing any more but seven: the gun, large the couleuvrine, the average couleuvrine, the small couleuvrine, the falcon, the gib and the arquebus with hook. The other European large armies have in the same adopted time of the similar gauges, however only the gauges are fixed, the other characteristics of the guns varying from one part to another, which enormously complicates the maintenance of the parts in shift - a wheel for example not being intercheangeable between two guns of the same gauge. The progès are sensitive nevertheless to the level of the performances of the parts during the 16th century. The range of the projectile tripled passer by of approximately 100 meters to 300, and the lifespan of the tubes to it multiplied by ten. It then becomes possible to draw a hundred from blows without bursting. The artillery remains nevertheless an auxiliary weapon expensive and difficult to implement on the battle field.
Gustave Adolphe
During the War Thirty Year old, in spite of the engagement of the great European nations, the evolution of artillery will be the fact of two powers considered rather as secondaries. The first is the Holland, whose innovations relating to the standardization of artillery will take a long time to make followers in the foreign armies. The linked provinces, reduced the number of gauge to four, 48,24,12 and 6 books, which enable them to as well meet their need on ground and sea. Probably because of small size of the country, it also succeeded in standardizing, the whole of manufacture, including that of the mountings, a flask becomes thus interchangeable between two of the same guns gauges. Their guns are moulded according to precise plans, where precise calculations of the center of gravity made it possible to place the pivots, but also an innovation, the handles which make it possible to raise the gun easily, for example to disunite it of its mounting. To support this kind of operation, the button of cylinder head, hitherto of small size is also increases and made able to support significant efforts.
The other nation which innovates much in the field of field artillery, is the Sweden of Gustave Adolphe. The contribution is there more in the doctrines of employment. The Swedish army of the time set out again its artillery in three branches: the heavy one intended to act at the time of the seats and the static phases of a war, that of countryside which accompanies the troops, and that light regimental which supports them on nearest. The latter is the great innovation of the Swedish king, who allows him to align an artillery more and more effective than his adversaries, it uses small very light guns, which will be called the " leather bouilli" guns; because of their manufacturing process, a copper heart encircled by iron and covered by Leather. These parts of a gauge of four or three books, can be moved by one or two horses, even with arm of man, they use encartouchés balls, which confer to them a phenomenal rate of shooting for the time, eight blows per minute, whereas a good Mousquetaire draws to him only six times. Thereafter, of the guns of four pig iron books will succeed to them but keep their lightness with 625 pounds mounting included/understood. On the battle field, Gustave Adolphe presses his action with his field artillery equipped with parts of six and twelve books, which it places either on line in front of the face of the troops, but in strong batteries in the center or on the wings. This organization enables him to have approximately a gun for three or four hundred men, against for two thousand for example for the imperial ones. With the Battle of Breitenfeld, it thus inflicts losses with imperial the four times higher than his.
The System of Vallière
If the majority of the evolutions of artillery are present at the time of the Thirty Year old war, they nevertheless will take a long time to diffuse itself in all the European armies. In France, it is necessary to await on October 7th 1732, so that a royal decree tries to standardize the guns in service in the army of the king, under the influence of the lieutenant-general of Vallière. For the first time in France, the drawing of the tubes is fixed by precise plan, but that of the mountings, cars and front-axle unit remains free, and them gauges are still numerous: 24,16,12,8 and 4 books. Nevertheless the French artillery forsakes finally the couleuvrines and definitively adopts the gun shorter and thus light, in the same way the mortar S and Perrier S are standardized on two gauges each one. Faster, on the other hand is the formation of an autonomous body artillerists, in 1668 are created four companies of gunners and two of bombers (using mortars of seat), in 1671 appears the regiment of fusiliers of the king, who as his name does not indicate it has the role the guard and the service of royal artillery. In 1676 is born in its turn the regiment from the bombers, and in 1679, the first company the minor ones ratachée with artillery. All these units are gathered within the regiment Royal artillery, in 1693, which has a manpower in 1710 of 697 officers and 5630 soldiers.
The System Gribeauval
The fast shooting
Motorization and mechanization
Organization
Specialities
gun of infantry
artillery with horse
artillery of mountain
pieces of artillery placed on wheels, which can thus be more or less easily moved, contrary to the Artillerie of seat or the Artillerie of place.
One of the most famous field guns of the First World War was the Canon of 75 Model 1897
See also: Canon of 75 Model 1897
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