21 cm GrW 69

21 cm Granatenwerfer 69
A GrW 69 at the U.S. Army Field Artillery Museum, Ft. Sill, OK
Type	Mortar
Place of origin	Nazi Germany
Service history
In service	1944–45
Used by	Nazi Germany
Wars	Second World War
Production history
Designer	Skoda
Manufacturer	Skoda
Produced	1944–45
Number built	200
Specifications
Weight	2,800 kg (6,173 lbs)
Barrel length	3 metres (9 ft 10 in)
Caliber	210.9 mm (8.30 in)
Elevation	40° to 70°
Traverse	60°
Muzzle velocity	285 m/s (935 ft/s) light bomb 247 m/s (810 ft/s) heavy bomb
Effective firing range	5,190 m (5,676 yds) heavy bomb
Maximum firing range	6,300 m (6,890 yds) light bomb

The 21 cm Granatenwerfer 69 (Literally, "grenade thrower") was a mortar used by Germany during World War II. This weapon may also be known as the GR 19 and B 19 or by its nickname "Elefant".^[1]

The prototype was built by Skoda as the 22 cm sGrW B 14, but was redesigned to 21 cm at OKH's request to use existing ammunition. In firing position, the wheels rested in shoes that rested on a semicircular rail track. The baseplate was attached to the mount by a ball joint to allow for traverse without reseating the baseplate. Elevation was obtained by rack and pinion on the upright legs. The firing mechanism was built into the breech ring and was of the continuous pull type. It was designed to be towed as a complete unit, the baseplate riding above the tube.

It fired a light bomb of 85 kilograms (187 lb) and a heavy bomb of 110 kilograms (240 lb).

Notes

1. http://forum.panzer-archiv.de/viewtopic.php?t=8031

Sources

• Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15090-3