Big rail guns used before WWI

MrP

Banned
PoD being pre-1900, you can get pretty much anyone using the things. I'd imagine one could see something in a (reasonably close to OTL) ATL Franco-Prussian or Austro-Prussian War, if you keep the PoDs pretty close to modern times. On the other hand, there's always *China or *Japan, and IIRC the Americans had large siege mortars rail-mounted during the ACW (or so Buster Keaton told me).
 
I would consider the Boer War or the Relief of Peking during the Boxer Rebellion as the only really likely times to see the deployment of railway guns. In these instances they would be naval guns mounted adhoc on flat beds. The problem with anything larger would be the time to build and then deploy the cannon.

I'm not sure how likely the Japanese deployment of such guns would have happened at the siege of Port Arthur.
 
Do the Union's large rail mortars in the ACW count? I'd be inclined to say no, what with them being muzzle loaders. The other posters suggestions regarding the Russo-Japanese, Franco-Prussian, and Boer war along with the relief of Peking seem like good ones.

Frankly, I'm surprised that Germany didn't have a`rail-mounted siege train of some sort ready for the Franco-Prussian War considering the various French border fortresses.


Bill
 
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