Hotchkiss gun

Hotchkiss arms firm
Industry	Arms manufacturing
Founded	late 1800s
Founder	Benjamin B. Hotchkiss
Products	Artillery pieces, including mountain guns, naval guns, revolving cannons, anti-tank guns

The term Hotchkiss gun encompasses a range of artillery pieces manufactured by the Hotchkiss arms firm from the late 1800s, with the most prominent being the 1.65-inch (42 mm) lightweight mountain gun. Additional variants include naval models in 37 and 47 mm calibers, as well as 3-inch (76 mm) artillery. The 42 mm variant was engineered for high mobility, capable of being mounted on a light carriage or transported by pack animals to provide fire support for cavalry or infantry operating in rugged environments.

1.65-inch gun

Designed as a modern successor to the M1841 mountain howitzer, this gun and its equipment could be packed onto two mules. The U.S. military initially procured these Hotchkiss guns in 1877 for engagement against the Nez Perce tribe, acquiring a total of 56 units over twenty years. These weapons were employed during the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890 and saw combat in the Spanish–American War in Cuba, participating in battles such as Las Guasimas, El Caney, and San Juan Hill.

Hotchkiss revolving cannon

Invented in 1872 by Hotchkiss founder Benjamin B. Hotchkiss (1826–1885), the Hotchkiss revolving cannon was utilized by German forces and others. While it bore resemblance to the Gatling gun, it operated with a single reciprocating bolt instead of separate mechanisms for each barrel. Made from oil-tempered steel and featuring rifled barrels, it combined rapid firing capabilities with sufficient mobility to support cavalry units.

The one-pounder version included five barrels of 37 mm caliber, capable of firing up to 68 rounds per minute with an effective range near . Its magazines held ten rounds each and weighed around 18 pounds (8 kg). Different configurations existed, including naval defense models designed to counter torpedo boats and fortress variants firing shrapnel or canister ammunition. In the early 1890s, U.S. Army field artillery batteries were equipped with five 37 mm Hotchkiss revolving cannons alongside larger breechloading rifles. The naval variant was adopted by countries such as Russia and the United States. Field models were supported by horse-drawn ammunition limbers carrying up to 170 rounds.

A larger Hotchkiss revolver cannon firing three-pound (47 mm) shells with five barrels was also embraced by both U.S. and Russian navies during the 1880s. Differentiating between single-shot guns, revolver cannons, and later Maxim-Nordenfelt rapid-fire weapons aboard warships from 1880 to 1910 is often difficult due to overlapping terminology. The U.S. Army conducted trials of at least one heavy revolving cannon—probably the three-pounder—in the late 1890s to evaluate its combat performance.

Other guns

In addition to these, Hotchkiss manufactured light naval artillery and developed anti-tank guns during the 1930s. Their naval guns, originating in the 1880s, mainly consisted of 3-pounders and 6-pounders, which were extensively used by Britain, Russia, and the United States for close-range protection of major warships against small craft equipped with early locomotive torpedoes. As torpedo technology advanced with longer ranges, these guns lost their primary role but continued serving as armaments on small vessels through World War II. During World War I, British motor gunboats that dominated naval operations on Lake Tanganyika were armed with Hotchkiss 3-pounders. The British Army adopted the Hotchkiss 6-pounder as the main weapon for its earliest tanks. In World War II, early Royal Navy Fairmile D Motor Torpedo Boat units primarily utilized the 6-pounder until it was eventually replaced by more modern weaponry by 1945.

External links

1.65-inch gun

Hotchkiss revolving cannon

Other guns

See also

External links