Soviet railway artillery

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JTV
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Soviet railway artillery

#1

Post by JTV » 22 Jul 2016, 20:58

I am the moment gathering some info about Soviet railway artillery and maybe some of you might be willing to contribute, since finding good information about the subject seems to be rather difficult to find.

Starting point:
What I could found out is that first Russian railway gun was 152-mm gun installed on railway car already in year 1894, but apparently this did not result much until some 254-mm railway guns being built during late World War 1. The first Soviet purpose-built Soviet railway gun was supposedly TM-8 203-mm railway gun built in 1920's and it was structurally based to World War 1 era 254-mm guns. Six TM-1-14 railway guns equipped with 356-mm gun model 1913 were built after year 1927. This was followed six TM-2-12 railway guns equipped with 305-mm model 1895 built after year 1932 and three TM-3-12 railway guns equipped with 305-mm guns model 1907 built about the same time. After those appeared TM-1-180 (equipped with 180-mm gun that was version of B-1-P naval gun), with no less than 20 railway guns of this time being built in late 1930's. Circa 1939 - 1940 the Soviets still built TG-1 (with 500-mm gun) and TP-1 (which had similar purpose-built train car with 356-mm gun) railway guns. In addition there seem to have been some smaller caliber railway gun batteries (with 100-mm and 130-mm guns?).

List of known Soviet railway artillery batteries in July of 1941: (unit, equipment, location)
- Railway Artillery Battery number 6: 3 x TM-1-14, eastern Baltic States
- Railway Artillery Battery number 7: 3 x TM-2-12, eastern Baltic States (Luga)
- Railway Artillery Battery number 8(?): 3 x TM-2-12, eastern Baltic States (Luga)
- Railway Artillery Battery number 9: 3 x TM-3-12, Hanko/Gangut
- Railway Artillery Battery number 10: 2 x TM-8, eastern Baltic States
- Railway Artillery Battery number 11: 3 x TM-1-14, Estonia
- Railway Artillery Battery number 12: 4 x TM-1-180, Novosibirsk region
- Railway Artillery Battery number 16: 4 x TM-1-180, Novosibirks region
- Railway Artillery Battery number 17: 4 x TM-1-180, Hanko/Gangut
- Railway Artillery Battery number 18: 4 x TM-1-180, Liepaja
- Railway Artillery Battery number 19: 3 x TM-1-180, Leningrad region
(List mostly based to book "Rautatietykit, menneisyyden jättiläiset" ["Railway Guns, Giants of the Past"] by Jyri Paulaharju.

Few questions that are bothering me:
1. How was Soviet railway artillery organized, was it was of coastal artillery (details seem to suggest so) and was it used as single independent artillery batteries? Was it ever used along armored trains or only as separate units?
2. What was the main role for Soviet railway artillery (for example to be used against fortifications, long-range artillery, coastal defense etc) and did that see changes during the war?
3. I was under impression that during Russian Civil War it was quite common for armored trains to also have some heavier guns that were used for artillery bombardment, did they have any effect to designing of first Soviet railway guns?
4. The level of losses suffered by Soviet railway artillery during the war and how many of the batteries remained operational until end of the war?
5. Did the 254-mm railway guns built during World War 1 see actual combat use?
6. Were there design bureaus specialized in railway guns and what factories built them?
7. Did Soviet railway artillery batteries have also anti-aircraft weapons with them? What I have read units of this type were highly vulnerable when it came to air raids.
8. And obviously any improvement to the information above is more than welcome...

kuuskajaskari
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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#2

Post by kuuskajaskari » 21 Jan 2022, 11:31

Hi, I found this old page.
An interesting topic, quite difficult to find information.
Is this book familiar: V.I.Bragin; Gun on Rails. ISBN. 5-91055-002-0.
It is also available in an online version; http://rufort.info/library/bragin/bragin.html
Best regards Jukka


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JTV
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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#3

Post by JTV » 22 Jan 2022, 10:57

Thanks a lot Jukka! I have Enqvist's books, but that source provides a great deal new to me info about subject.

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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#4

Post by lupodimare89 » 22 Jan 2022, 18:43

Greetings, i know very little about this theme, however while researching and making questions over my main topic of interest (naval warfare on the eastern front), i recall to have found at least an interesting episode of shelling coming from Soviet railway artillery in the upper Azov sea, targeting either Taganrog or Mariupol with some target sunk (barge? should track back what i annoted in my files).

I am also quite interested to find about similar episodes (Soviet railway artillery hitting/engaging naval targets)

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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#5

Post by JTV » 24 Jan 2022, 20:46

Thanks lupodimare89, but battles are concerned the geographic area of my interest was pretty much in other end of Eastern Front. :milsmile:

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Pips
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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#6

Post by Pips » 25 Jan 2022, 12:18

A good book to get your hands on is "Armoured Trains: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1825–2016" by Paul Malmassari.

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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#7

Post by JTV » 25 Jan 2022, 20:57

Pips wrote:
25 Jan 2022, 12:18
A good book to get your hands on is "Armoured Trains: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1825–2016" by Paul Malmassari.
Thanks. I have read it, although it was old edition. Malmassari wrote new extended edition few years back and I have been planning to buy it.

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Re: Soviet railway artillery

#8

Post by GregSingh » 26 Jan 2022, 06:17

- Railway Artillery Battery number 16: 4 x TM-1-180, Novosibirks region
I think it should be Novorossiysk. Pls. see table 24 in this chapter: Soviet railway artillery on the eve of the war.

Nice photos of ТМ-1-180

Not sure what's the source, but some interesting info about TM-3-12 is here (in English!):
TM-3-12 railway installation

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