QF 12-pounder 8 cwt | |
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![]() Royal Navy gun and crew, late 1890s | |
Type | Light field gun |
Place of origin | United Kingdom |
Service history | |
Used by | British Empire |
Wars | Second Boer War World War I |
Production history | |
Designed | c. 1894 |
Specifications | |
Barrel length | 84-inch (2.1 m) bore (28 calibres)[1] |
Shell | Separate QF, 12.5 pounds (5.67 kg) Shrapnel, Common Lyddite |
Calibre | 3-inch (76.2 mm) |
Carriage | Wheeled, box trail |
Muzzle velocity | 1,585 feet per second (483 m/s)[2] |
Maximum firing range | 5,100 yards (4,660 m)[2] |
The Ordnance QF 12-pounder 8 cwt was a Royal Navy "landing gun" intended for navy use ashore. "8 cwt" refers to the weight of the gun and breech, approximately 8 cwt = 8 x 112 lb (51 kg) = 896 lb (406 kg). This was how the British often differentiated between guns of the same calibre or weight of shell. This gun had a short barrel and was of relatively low power compared to the 12 pounders of 12 and 18 long cwt (610 and 910 kg), although it fired the same shells.