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76mm Divisional Gun Model 1902 (M1902)

1903 WORLD WAR 1 WORLD WAR 2

History of the 76mm Divisional Gun Model 1902 (M1902)

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Russian Empire adopted two well-known new field guns - the Model 1900 and the Model 1902. The former is Russia's first 76.2mm gun and incorporates a recoil mechanism for accurate repeat firing. Then there was the Model 1902, a divisional field gun that offered more modern elements and better battlefield performance/effectiveness than earlier designs.

The M1902 replaced the M1900 series as the M1900 began to pass to Soviet-backed countries and states. Production of the M1902 guns spanned from 1903 to 1931, and these guns were deployed in the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), World War I (1914-1918), the Russian Revolution (1917) (and subsequent internal disputes) . They were available in various models until World War II (1939-1945).

Like the M1900 before it, the M1902 had a traditional design and layout for its time. It has solid wheels with solid spokes and a solid rear end. The recoil mechanism is also integrated, as are the elevation and lateral fittings.

The height range is -3 to +17 degrees (higher than the M1900 series), and the traverse is +5 degrees left to right from the centerline. It has a rate of fire of up to 12 rounds per minute and a maximum range of 5.28 miles (roughly equivalent to the previous M1900 design). A rectangular mantlet was mounted in front of the breech (with an interrupted helical design), and the piece had a combat weight of 1,095 kg.

When transported, the weapon weighs 2,380 kg and requires long-distance transport using animals or transport vehicles.

After the Russian Revolution, things calmed down a bit, considering modernizing the existing M1900 and M1902 parts. In 1930, when new barrels and new ammunition were introduced, these systems began to be brought into a more practical form of combat.

Both the M1900 and the M1902 were modernized under the new collective designation "Type 02/30" and formed the Soviet Army's main light artillery when it entered World War II.

Thus, this aging weapon was in service during the German invasion of the Soviet Union through Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, during which large stocks of these weapons fell into enemy hands as Germany advanced toward Moscow . The Germans were so eager to strengthen and protect their grips that they renamed these captured systems the 76.2 cm FK 295/1(r) and 76.2 cm FK 295/2(r) - the difference in names being the original shorter runs Length L/30 and newer, longer length L/40. The Germans' use of these weapons played only a minor role, and many were displayed on the famous "Atlantic Wall".

Despite such setbacks, guns retained their form and function throughout the Great War. Its availability was so high that thousands were still in circulation in the postwar years and used by smaller armies that still needed cheap, off-the-shelf field units.

In the decades that followed, many fell into the hands of the Chinese, Koreans, and Vietnamese, and quickly served in the Korean War (1950-1953) and Vietnam War (1955-1975).