12-INCH COASTAL DEFENCE GUN M1895

These amazing photographs of a 12 inch coastal defence battery in action show troops learning how to operate the massive 12 inch M1895 coastal defence gun. Taken in 1918 at the Fort Monroe Coastal Artillery School in Virginia (except for the first photograph which was taken at Key West Naval Station). Guns like these remained relevant throughout the first half of the 20th century and even during World War Two the US was building coastal gun emplacements.

The M1895 was the US’ primary coastal defence gun at the turn of the 20th century. They were in service from 1895, through both World Wars, to 1945. Manned by the US Army’s Coast Artillery Corps they protected seaports and strategic positions along the US coastline and aboard at American bases in the Philippine Islands.

Here’s some newsreel footage of some 12 inch guns in action in 1943:

The guns has a barrel nearly 37 feet (12m) long and could throw a ~1,000lb (450kg) shell up to 30,000 yards (27km). Initially mounted on disappearing carriages (as seen in the photographs above) in coastal forts and some were later mounted on railway carriages during World War One. The gun’s weighted nearly 60 tons and were designed and built at the Watervliet Arsenal in New York. Bethlehem Steel designed and built the M1895′s disappearing carriages.

In these photographs we can see the gun in its various states with it appearing over the parapet and ready to fire, then it being fired before it recoiled back into the casement where its crew could reload it with some protection. Once loaded it would be raised up again, aimed and fired. It could fire up to twice a minute with a well trained crew.