Krupp appears to have presented German Army with a free siege cannon and the Germans then appear to have ordered another one .
The things sucked up huge amounts of resources both , men and material and railway space .
To move it took 25 wagon loads , to assemble 4000 men and it needed special rail lines to be laid
M
The train, 25 cars long, included gondolas, special flat cars, accessory cars, ammunition cars, and two cranes for emplacing the gun. The probable route taken was through southern Poland to the Ukraine, using the rail links between captured cities. Along the way in the Ukraine the gun was transported on the new German railway built from the Ukraine to the Crimean isthmus.
What if it was never built . What impact would it have had , a difficult one to quantify as the men and material saved could have been used for a variety of tasks.
More interestingly how would it have impacted on the siege of Sevastspol also on the retreat from Stalingrad not evacuating the monstrosity that was Dora would have perhaps saved more troops .
Schwerer Gustav
In February 1942, Heavy Artillery Unit (E) 672 reorganised and went on the march, and Schwerer Gustav began its long ride to Crimea. The train carrying the gun was of 25 cars, a total length of 1.5 kilometres (0.9 mi). The gun reached the Perekop Isthmus in early March 1942, where it was held until early April. The Germans built a special railway spur line to the Simferopol-Sevastopol railway 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north of the target. At the end of the spur, they built four semi-circular tracks especially for the Gustav to traverse. Outer tracks were required for the cranes that assembled Gustav.
The siege of Sevastopol was the gun's first combat test. 4,000 men and five weeks were needed to get the gun in firing position; 500 men were needed to fire it.[7] Installation began in early May, and by the 5th of June the gun was ready to fire.[8] The following targets were engaged:
5 June
Coastal guns at a range of 25,000 m. Eight shells fired.
Fort Stalin. Six shells fired.
6 June
Fort Molotov. Seven shells fired.
"White Cliff" also known as "Ammunition Mountain": an undersea ammunition magazine in Severnaya ("Northern") Bay. The magazine was sited 30 metres under the sea with at least 10 metres of concrete protection. After nine shells were fired, the magazine was ruined and one of the boats in the bay sunk.[9]
7 June
Firing in support of an infantry attack on Südwestspitze, an outlying fortification. Seven shells fired.
11 June
Fort Siberia knocked out of action. Five shells fired.
17 June
Maxim Gorky Fortresses bombarded. Maxim Gorky 1 knocked out of action, Maxim Gorky 2 damaged. Five shells fired.
By the end of the siege on 4 July the city of Sevastopol lay in ruins, and 30,000 tons of artillery ammunition had been fired. Gustav had fired 48 rounds and worn out its original barrel, which had already fired around 250 rounds during testing and development. The gun was fitted with the spare barrel and the original was sent back to Krupp's factory in Essen for relining.[10]
The gun was then dismantled and moved to the northern part of the eastern front, where an attack was planned on Leningrad. The gun was placed 30 km (18.6 mi) from the city near the railway station of Taytsy. The gun was fully operational when the attack was cancelled. The gun then spent the winter of 1942/43 near Leningrad.[11]
Dora
Maxim Gorky I, a fort knocked out of action by five 800 mm shells on 17 June 1942
Model in the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr
Dora was the second gun produced. It was deployed briefly against Stalingrad, where the gun arrived at its emplacement 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to the west of the city sometime in mid-August 1942.[citation needed] It was ready to fire on 13 September. It was withdrawn when Soviet forces threatened to encircle the German forces. When the Germans began their long retreat they took Dora with them.
The things sucked up huge amounts of resources both , men and material and railway space .
To move it took 25 wagon loads , to assemble 4000 men and it needed special rail lines to be laid
M
The train, 25 cars long, included gondolas, special flat cars, accessory cars, ammunition cars, and two cranes for emplacing the gun. The probable route taken was through southern Poland to the Ukraine, using the rail links between captured cities. Along the way in the Ukraine the gun was transported on the new German railway built from the Ukraine to the Crimean isthmus.
What if it was never built . What impact would it have had , a difficult one to quantify as the men and material saved could have been used for a variety of tasks.
More interestingly how would it have impacted on the siege of Sevastspol also on the retreat from Stalingrad not evacuating the monstrosity that was Dora would have perhaps saved more troops .
Schwerer Gustav
In February 1942, Heavy Artillery Unit (E) 672 reorganised and went on the march, and Schwerer Gustav began its long ride to Crimea. The train carrying the gun was of 25 cars, a total length of 1.5 kilometres (0.9 mi). The gun reached the Perekop Isthmus in early March 1942, where it was held until early April. The Germans built a special railway spur line to the Simferopol-Sevastopol railway 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north of the target. At the end of the spur, they built four semi-circular tracks especially for the Gustav to traverse. Outer tracks were required for the cranes that assembled Gustav.
The siege of Sevastopol was the gun's first combat test. 4,000 men and five weeks were needed to get the gun in firing position; 500 men were needed to fire it.[7] Installation began in early May, and by the 5th of June the gun was ready to fire.[8] The following targets were engaged:
5 June
Coastal guns at a range of 25,000 m. Eight shells fired.
Fort Stalin. Six shells fired.
6 June
Fort Molotov. Seven shells fired.
"White Cliff" also known as "Ammunition Mountain": an undersea ammunition magazine in Severnaya ("Northern") Bay. The magazine was sited 30 metres under the sea with at least 10 metres of concrete protection. After nine shells were fired, the magazine was ruined and one of the boats in the bay sunk.[9]
7 June
Firing in support of an infantry attack on Südwestspitze, an outlying fortification. Seven shells fired.
11 June
Fort Siberia knocked out of action. Five shells fired.
17 June
Maxim Gorky Fortresses bombarded. Maxim Gorky 1 knocked out of action, Maxim Gorky 2 damaged. Five shells fired.
By the end of the siege on 4 July the city of Sevastopol lay in ruins, and 30,000 tons of artillery ammunition had been fired. Gustav had fired 48 rounds and worn out its original barrel, which had already fired around 250 rounds during testing and development. The gun was fitted with the spare barrel and the original was sent back to Krupp's factory in Essen for relining.[10]
The gun was then dismantled and moved to the northern part of the eastern front, where an attack was planned on Leningrad. The gun was placed 30 km (18.6 mi) from the city near the railway station of Taytsy. The gun was fully operational when the attack was cancelled. The gun then spent the winter of 1942/43 near Leningrad.[11]
Dora
Maxim Gorky I, a fort knocked out of action by five 800 mm shells on 17 June 1942
Model in the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr
Dora was the second gun produced. It was deployed briefly against Stalingrad, where the gun arrived at its emplacement 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to the west of the city sometime in mid-August 1942.[citation needed] It was ready to fire on 13 September. It was withdrawn when Soviet forces threatened to encircle the German forces. When the Germans began their long retreat they took Dora with them.
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