Historic context :

Very little is known about the history of this piece, which had the widest calibre in the arsenal of the Royal Italian Army. Stemming from the same tendency towards excess as the 340T French trench mortar introduced in 1915, it probably suffered from the same shortcomings, linked to its weight and dimensions, which considerably limited the conditions of its use on the front and considerably lengthened the time it took to put it into action.

The most striking original feature of this 'Bombarda da 400' was the fact that its smooth bore tube could be assembled in three bolted segments, making it adjustable to the range required and easier to transport. Its fire could be adjusted in elevation by means of a toothed wheel, and in azimuth by a curved rack. It fired huge 270 kg fin tailed projectiles !

But the price to pay for this power was the demands made on its positioning: the rectangular chassis of this piece weighing almost 12 tonnes required a concrete base... Despite its obvious operational limitations, there is photographic evidence of this huge gun being used on the Carso-Isontino front in 1917.

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Technical data :

• Complete description : 400 mm trench mortar
• Design year : 1917
• Calibre : 400.00 mm
• Weight in firing position : 11600
• Weight for transportation :
• Tube length in calibres : 0.00
• Grooves : 0 smooth bore
• Projectile weight : 270
• Initial speed :
• Fire rate :
• Range : 1500 m to 4100 m
• Elevation range : unknown
• Direction range : 18 degrees range

• L'Artiglieria Italiana Nella Grande Guerra           Andrea Curami       Alessandro Massignan             Gino Rossato   1998