15 cm MRK L/22

15 cm MRK L/22 Kurze 15 cm Kanone in Halbrahmen-Lafette 91182---0015.jpg 300px German Empire yes yes yes Germany Krupp 1877 Krupp 1877 ? 3,500 kg 3,270 mm 149.1 mmVon Müller 1879 288 1 shot / minute Schott 1899 873 474 m/s armor: 2,000 mVon Müller 1879 264, 289 soft targets: 5,000 mVon Müller 1879 264, 289 The 15 cm Mantel Ring Kanone L/22 was a 15 cm 22 caliber long Krupp Mantel Ring Kanone (MRK). It was a rifled breech loader built-up gun with a Krupp cylindroprismatic sliding breech. It was designed as a Mantel Ring Kanone version of the 15 cm RK L/22. Context The 15 cm Mantel Kanone L/22 thumb|Hooped vs jacketed and hooped By the mid-1870s, the German Navy had several models of 15 cm guns. The oldest that was still effective, was the 15 cm MK L/22. 'MK' stands for Mantel Kanone. It was basically a c/64 massive cast steel gun which had been changed in 1873.Von Müller 1879 96 There were two types of massive 15 cm rifled cast steel breechloaders: the army's gezogener Gussstahl 24pfdr. c/64 and the gezogener Gussstahl 24 pfdr. der Marine, 61 Zentner.Armee Verordnungsblatt 1871 195 The 1873 changes consisted of drawing in an inner tube to make the gun suitable for the projectiles and charges of the short 15 cm RK, and to change the twist rate to 65 calibers and use a simple breech instead of the Doppelkeil Verschluss.Von Müller 1879 96 As the inner tube was pre-pressured by the rest of the barrel, known as de Mantel or in English 'jacket', this led to a stronger gun barrel. Hence the name Mantel Kanone. Ring Kanone and Mantel Ring Kanone The 15 cm RK L/22 was more modern. RK stands for Ring Kanone, which means that the main barrel was pre-pressured by Ringe, known as hoops in English.Von Müller 1879 259 The Mantel Ring Kanone (MRK) construction combined Mantel and Ringe, and was therefore known in English as jacketed and hooped. Compared to the RK construction, the MRK construction increased the maximum explosive gas pressure that the barrel could withstand by about 25%.Manual 1880 49 Development Krupp made its first Mantel Ring Kanone in 1875.Von Müller 1879 259 In Summer 1877, the German Admiralty then ordered a short 15 cm Mantel Ring Kanone at Krupp.Von Müller 1879 264 The order was a peculiar one. Unlike contemporary guns, it was to be short and have a relatively low charge of 6.5 kg. This had to result in a velocity comparable to that of the aptirte 15 cm RK (the adapted 15 cm RK L/22) with 7.75 kg charge. Otherwise, the dimensions should be that of the older 15 cm MK L/22.Von Müller 1879 264 The 15 cm MK L/22 weighed 3,200 kg including breech block.Schiffs und Küsten 1876 36 Its total length was 3,257 mm, shorter than the 3,270 mm of the Ring Kanone, but still L/22.Schiffs und Küsten 1876 19 (Von Müller's overview of gun barrels has a 'kurzes 15 cm Mantel Ring Rohr' of 3,270 mm length, and a shorter '15 cm Mantel Ring Rohr' of 3,257 mm length.Von Müller 1879 288 The latter is obviously the 3,257 mm long '15 cm Mantel Rohr'. With the weight of 3,200 kg in mind, the sense of the Admiralty's order becomes clear. It wanted a gun of the same power as the 15 cm RK L/22, but more suitable to the cramped conditions on board smaller vessels. Indeed, when the guns were tested alongside each other, it proved that with their recommended full charge, they could use the same ballistic table.Von Müller 1879 264 Another measure to save weight and space was the simultaneous development of the Halbrahmen Lafette (half-slide carriage).Von Holleben 1885 67 Characteristics Barrel According to Müller, the 'kurzes 15 cm Mantel Ring Rohr' was 3,270 mm long. It had a caliber of 149.1 mm in the lands and 152.2 mm in the grooves. As usual for the navy guns of the time, it had 36 parallel grooves with a moderate twist length of 45 calibers. Contrary to the above, the weight was listed as 3,500 kg. Von Müller stated that it was still under construction, making the weight a bit uncertain.Von Müller 1879 288 Other, later sources have the same data.Abmessungen 1886 Notizen, 11 However, as there was also a later model of the gun see below, it is not certain that the weight also applied to the earlier gun. Projectiles The 15 cm MRK L/22 fired two projectiles. The Hartguss Granate C/76 was 2.5 calibers long and weighed 34.5 kg. It was fired with a charge of 6.5 kg of PP C/68 gunpowder at a velocity of 446 m/s. It also fired the regular Granate C/76. This was also 2.5 calibers long, but weighed 29.5 kg. It was also fired with a charge of 6.5 kg of PP C/68 gunpowder and attained a velocity of 474 m/s.Abmessungen 1886 Notizen, 17Marineverordnungsblatt 1885 28 These velocities were indeed the same as those of the 15 cm Ring Kanone or Mantel Kanone with copper driving bands firing the same projectiles with a charge of 7.75 kg of PP C/68. The results of these guns were significantly better than those of the older navy guns that used lead driving bands.Abmessungen 1886 Notizen, 17 Carriages The only carriage that was mentioned specifically as meant for the 15 cm MRK L/22 was the '15 cm Halbrahmenlafette C/77 für kurze Ring- und Mantel-Ringkanonen. This carriage weighed 1,909 kg, had a firing height of 860 mm, and could elevate to 14 degrees and decline to 4.5 degrees.Abmessungen 1886 Notizen, 14 A later model A specific mention of a later model of the 15 cm MRK L/22 might shed some light on the weight of the early model. At the 1880 Gewerbe-Ausstellung zu Düsseldorf, Krupp exhibited a 15 cm MRK L/22 on Halbrahmenlafette which was quite different from the 1877 model.Düsseldorf 1880 388 This was a Krupp gun, not a German army or navy gun. Its exhibition did not mean that the German armed forces had bought it. The 1880 Düsseldorf gun weighed 3,500 kg, was 3,270 mm long, and had a caliber of 149.1 mm. It had 24 grooves. The gun was mounted on a Halbrahmenlafette of 1,860 kg. The cariage allowed 14 degrees eolevation and 4.5 degrees declination.Düsseldorf 1880 388 The data of this Düsseldorf gun are interesting, because they mention the gun firing with 8 kg of gunpowder. This is kind of logical for a gun of the same dimensions as the 15 cm RK L/22. It also fired heavier projectiles. These were: A 38.5 kg steel grenade A hardened iron grenade of 39 kg A regular cast iron grenade of 31.5 kg.Düsseldorf 1880 388 Use In 1885, the 15 cm MRK L/22 was renamed to simply 15 cm Kanone L/22, abbreviated 15 cm K. L/22 Marineverordnungsblatt 1885 2 The Arcona frigate 1 Vineta 1863 6 got 17 15 cm Mantel Ring Kanonen in 1879.Vineta 1898 99 Notes 2 References 1886 Mitteilungen über Gegenstände des Artillerie- und Geniewesens Äussere Abmessungen und Gewichte der Deutschen Schiffs- und Küstengeschütze R. von Waldheim, Wien 10–19 https://books.google.com/books?id=M8ysUav4O2AC Abmessungen 1886 1871 Armee Verordnungsblatt Kaliber Bezeichnung der Geschutze nach der Metermas Kriegs Ministerium, Berlin 194–197 https://books.google.com/books?id=RxRcAAAAcAAJ Armee Verordnungsblatt 1871 https://books.google.com/books?id=uyOupCMcAfoC Militär-Zeitung Die Krupp'sche Ausstellung auf der Gewerbe-Ausstellung zu Düsseldorf 14 December 1862 Düsseldorf 1880 Von Holleben 1885 Jahrbücher für die deutsche Armee und Marine LV Die drei Hauptentwicklungs-Stadien der Deutschen Marine_artillerie Richard Welhilmi, Berlin 59–77 https://books.google.com/books?id=jcwVAAAAYAAJ 1875 Entwicklung der Kanonen-Fabrikation in der Gussstahl-Fabrik von Friedrich Krupp in Essen Fried.-Krupp-Aktiengesellschaft https://books.google.com/books?id=WMaOjs-cd8AC Krupp AG 1875 1880 Manual of Gunnery for Her Majesty's Fleet Admiralty https://books.google.com/books?id=dVFHAAAAYAAJ Manual 1880 1885 Marineverordnungsblatt Zusammenstellung der in der Marine-Artllerie vorhandenen gezogenen und glatten Geschüssrohre in Bezug auf Bennenung un Schreibweise Kaiserlichen Admiralität, Berlin 39–44 https://books.google.com/books?id=fmWGQUsHPzcC Marineverordnungsblatt 1885 Von Müller Hermann 1879 Die Entwickelung der preußischen Küsten- und Schiffs-Artillerie von 1860-1878 Robert Oppenheim, Berlin https://books.google.com/books?id=bxrezKOhiq4C 1876 Die Schiffs- und Küstengeschütze der deutschen Marine Mittler und Sohn, Berlin https://books.google.com/books?id=XfNoAAAAcAAJ Schiffs und Küsten 1876 Schott J. 1899 v. Löbell's Jahresberichte über die Veränderungen und Fortschritte im Militürwesen Uebersicht über die Erfindungen und Entdeckungen auf militär-technischem und -chemischem Gebiete. 1874-98 869–890 https://books.google.com/books?id=zjwcAAAAMAAJ 1898 Vom Fels zum Meer Die alte und die neue Vineta Union Deutsche Verlags Gesellschaft 98–99 https://books.google.com/books?id=wze6fFyHwk8C Vineta 1898 Category:Naval guns of Germany Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1870s Category:Krupp naval guns