Karl-Gerät
"Karl-Gerät" (040/041) (German literally "Karl-device"), also known as Mörser Karl, was a World War II German self-propelled siege mortar (Mörser) designed and built by Rheinmetall. Its heaviest munition was a 60 cm (24 in) diameter, 2,170 kg (4,780 lb) shell, and the range for its lightest shell of 1,250 kg (2,760 lb) was just over 10 km (6.2 mi). Each gun had to be accompanied by a crane, a two-piece heavy transport set of railcars, and several modified tanks to carry shells.
| Karl-Gerät 040 | |
|---|---|
600 mm Karl-Gerät "Ziu" firing in Warsaw, August 1944. | |
| Type | Self-propelled siege mortar |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1941–1945 |
| Used by | Wehrmacht |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Rheinmetall |
| Designed | 1937–1940 |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall |
| Produced | 1940–1942 |
| No. built | 7 |
| Variants | Gerät 041 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 124 t (137 short tons) (firing) |
| Length | 11.15 m (36 ft 7 in) |
| Barrel length | 4.2 m (13 ft 9 in) L/7 |
| Width | 3.16 m (10 ft 4 in) |
| Height | 4.38 m (14 ft 4 in) (firing) |
| Crew | 21 (gun commander, driver, assistant driver, 18 gunners) |
| Shell | Separate loading, cased charges |
| Caliber | 600 mm (23.62 in) |
| Breech | Horizontal sliding-wedge |
| Recoil | Hydro-pneumatic |
| Elevation | 55° to 70° |
| Traverse | 8° |
| Rate of fire | 1 round/10 min |
| Engine | Daimler-Benz MB 503 A gasoline or Daimler-Benz MB 507 C diesel 580 hp (590 PS; 430 kW) |
| Power/weight | 4.8 hp/ton |
| Suspension | Torsion-bar |
| Fuel capacity | 1,200 L (260 imp gal; 320 US gal) |
Operational range |
|
| Maximum speed | 6 to 10 km/h (3.7 to 6.2 mph) |
| Karl-Gerät 041 | |
|---|---|
A section of three 54 cm Gerät 041 in the field. The Munitionsschlepper is shown on the right. | |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 126.35 t (139.28 short tons; 124.35 long tons) (firing) |
| Length | 11.37 m (37 ft 4 in) |
| Barrel length | 6.24 m (20 ft 6 in) L/11.55 |
| Width | 3.16 m (10 ft 4 in) |
| Height | 4.38 m (14 ft 4 in) (firing) |
| Caliber | 54 cm (21 in) |
Seven guns were built, six of which saw combat between 1941 and 1945. It was used in attacking the Soviet fortresses of Brest-Litovsk and Sevastopol, bombarded Polish resistance fighters in Warsaw, participated in the Battle of the Bulge, and was used to try to destroy the Ludendorff Bridge during the Battle of Remagen. One Karl-Gerät has survived and the remainder were scrapped after the war.