Railway Guns vs. US Army

Although my main hobby is the German Tiger tanks, searching about them I have met some railroad guns in action well into 1945. It seems that the well-known “Anzio Annie” railway gun was not the only weapon of this type used against the US troops. I have also found an “Alsace Alice” and a “Nancy Gun”.

RR Guns - Alsace Alice • Axis History Forum

RR Guns - Nancy Gun / Ghost Gun • Axis History Forum

In the books about the German railroad guns there is not much information about their use in the last months of the war. I am sure that there is more information scattered in books and After Action reports, but to find it is like finding a needle in a haystack. Instead if by chance anyone meets a railroad gun news and post it here, this could be a good way to recover the history of these heavy weapons.

Regards,
Javier

 

Javier, thank you for this post on railroad guns in Alsace-Lorraine. I was not aware they were active there. The 28CM would make more sense than the 380 as the 380 relieved on curves in the track for lateral aiming....or the rather complicated "turntable" which would seem vulnerable given Allied air superiority. The 280 seemed more in use. I was curious how their fall of shot was caluated but one of your links explained that.

I am also curious that allied planes could not damage trestles thus isolating them and indeed that may have eventually have happened. But to counter my own semi-rational thoughts the Germans were very good track repair and were able to move up massive forces preparing for the Bulge.

The number of post-war buildings in these two regions gives subtle evidence to the tremendous about of damaged caused by artillery and bombs and I found the use of railroad guns most interesting even though they do not seem to be a huge cause of destruction. Contemporary WW2 pictures of badly damaged Riquewhir show some extremely good skills of restoration as does Nancy. Hard to tell they were damaged at all. but they are rare.

Gaines

 

And they've a really nice example of one parked in their back yard, down by the river.

 

The railroad guns fit better in WWI. Although they were used against the Maginot Line or for shelling England in the fisrt years of the war, it seem that they were obsolete in 1945. But there were still some at hand and were used until the USAAF chased them.

The crater of a shell from a railway gun:
The Armored Fist: The 712th Tank Battalion in the Second World War
The Armored Fist: The 712th Tank Battalion in the Second World War

Regards,

 

3rd Armored Division History Foundation [ 3d / Third ]
In section World War II, 3AD Photo Collection, Giant Cannon, pictures of railway guns captured by the 3rd Armored Division. Unforunately, In an unkown marshalling yard, one day of March 45.

Regards,