The 13- and
18-pounders themselves were a composite of an Armstrong wire-wound gun
(barrel and breech) mated to a Vickers recoil system, and sighting and
elevation gear made in the Royal Ordnance factories. Both guns fired
shrapnel and high explosive rounds. The lack of a wire cutting capability
was a concern, as the fuzes in use at the time lacked an instantaneous
action, resulting in the round burying itself in the earth before
exploding. The blast and fragments would be projected into the air, with
minimal damage to objects along the surface. The problem was solved with
the introduction of the No. 106 instantaneous fuze at Vimy Ridge in 1917.
The 18-pounder
entered service on the coat tails of political controversy. Trials of the
first four batteries of guns to be completed were carried out in 1903, and
these showed both the new pieces to be satisfactory. But before the
British Equipment Committee made its final recommendation to adopt the
13-pounder for the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) and the heavier gun for
field artillery, problems arose in the House. One member suggested that
the 18-pounder was not sufficiently superior in performance to the lighter
weapon to justify the expense of producing two different equipments where
one might do. The indecision that resulted, ended only when the Prime
Minister, Mr. Balfour, cast the deciding vote in favour of retaining the
18-pounder. His choice would be amply vindicated in the First World War
when almost 100 million rounds of 18-pounder ammunition were fired in
comparison with 1.5 million 13-pounder rounds. Both types of gun would be
used by Canada’s artillery in the First World War.1
