Description

Škoda guns built at the Pilsen works. Used as secondary weapons on Austria-Hungary's battleships.

The battleship Tegetthoff was ceded after World War I to Italy, where she was scrapped and her guns then used as coastal artillery.

Actual bore diameter was 14.91 cm (5.87").

Gun Characteristics

Designation 15 cm/50 (5.9") G. L/50 K10 Škoda
Ship Class Used On Austria-Hungary: Viribus Unitis class
Italy: Coastal Artillery
Date Of Design 1910
Date In Service 1912
Gun Weight 13,415 lbs. (6,085 kg) without breech
Gun Length oa 295 in (7.500 m)
Bore Length N/A
Rifling Length N/A
Grooves N/A
Lands N/A
Twist N/A
Chamber Volume N/A
Rate Of Fire 6 rounds per minute

Ammunition

Type Separate
Projectile Types and Weights HE: 100 lbs. (45.5 kg)
AP: 100 lbs. (45.5 kg)
Bursting Charge 6.6 lbs. (3.0 kg) TNT
Projectile Length N/A
Propellant Charge 37 lbs. (16.85 kg)
Muzzle Velocity 2,887 fps (880 mps)
Working Pressure 17.4 tons/in2 (2,745 kg/cm2)
Approximate Barrel Life N/A
Ammunition stowage per gun 180 rounds

Range

Range with 100 lbs. (45.5 kg) Shell
Elevation Distance
15 degrees about 16,400 yards (15,000 m)

Armor Penetration

Armor Penetration with 100 lbs. (45.5 kg) AP Shell
Range KC Side Armor Striking Velocity
1,100 yards (1,000 m) 5.7"(145 mm) N/A

This data is from "A Szent István Csatahajó" (The battleship Szent István).

Mount/Turret Data

Designation Single casemate Mounts: Viribus Unitis (12) 1
Weight N/A
Elevation -6 / +15 degrees
Elevation Rate Manual operation, only
Train about +60 / -60 degrees
Train Rate Manual operation, only
Gun recoil N/A
  • ^
    The casemate mounts on these battleships were poorly designed, as they lacked ventilation. If smoke penetrated into them, the guncrews could not function.

Additional Pictures

Sources

"Naval Weapons of World War Two" by John Campbell
"Naval Weapons of World War One" by Norman Friedman
"The Viribus Unitis Class" article in "Warship Volume II" and "A's and A's" comments in "Warship Volume III" both by Friedrich Prasky
"A Szent István Csatahajó" (The battleship Szent István) by Balogh Tamás and Csepregi Oszkár
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Original research by Mihály Krámli, author of "A Használhatatlan Lövegtornony Mítosza: Legenda Vagy Valóság?" [The Myth of the Useless Turret: Legend or Reality?] and "Az Osztrák-Magyar Monarchia Csatahajói: 1904-1914" [Austro-Hungarian Battleships and Battleship Designs: 1904-1914] {Link - Hungarian to complete book in pdf form and Link - English}.
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Special help from Daniel Papp
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Tony DiGiulian's personal data files

Page History

26 September 2007 - Benchmark
05 September 2010 - Added pictures of Batterie Madonna gun
16 April 2021 - Updated to HTML 5 format
09 February 2024 - Added minor details