Mortar (weapon)

• 1. Origins And Early History

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  In 1407, Korean gunsmiths created the first known mortar called the wan'gu. This gourd-shaped weapon appeared during a naval battle in 1413. Choe Hae-san developed this early design to launch explosive projectiles over long distances. The Ming dynasty general Qi Jiguang later recorded similar weapons as hu dun pao cannons between 1528 and 1588. Ottoman forces used seven large mortars during the siege of Constantinople in 1453. An Italian account from 1456 described stone shots flying one mile high at the siege of Belgrade. These early weapons weighed so much they could not be moved easily across terrain. Iron bowls resembling kitchen tools formed the basis for these heavy siege pieces. Baron Menno van Coehoorn invented a transportable version in 1701 that fired exploding shells with lit fuses. British troops deployed mobile mortars against Jacobite rebels at Glen Shiel in 1719.

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• 2. Trench Warfare Evolution

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  World War I demanded new artillery solutions when standard guns failed to clear barbed wire. German forces studied the Siege of Port Arthur from 1904 to 1905 before developing short-barrelled mine-throwers. Sir Wilfred Stokes created his revolutionary mortar design in June 1915. Initial rejection occurred because existing ammunition stocks did not fit the new weapon. David Lloyd George intervened as Minister of Munitions to push production forward. Lieutenant Colonel J.C. Matheson reported directly to Lloyd George about the urgent need. The Stokes mortar could fire up to twenty-five bombs per minute into muddy trenches. A single soldier could carry and operate this lightweight tube weapon on the Western Front. French engineers later improved the design as the Brandt Mle 27 and Brandt Mle 31 models. These modifications became prototypes for all subsequent light mortar systems worldwide. By World War II, the modified Stokes variant reached ranges over two thousand meters while firing thirty rounds per minute.

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• 3. Modern Design And Mechanics

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  A contemporary mortar system contains four distinct components: barrel, base plate, bipod mount, and sight. Gunners drop a round into the smoothbore tube until it hits a fixed firing pin at the bottom. Most modern tubes range between sixty millimeters and one hundred twenty millimeters in caliber. Operators set the barrel angle between forty-five and eighty-five degrees for high arcing trajectories. Some models feature moving firing pins operated by lanyards or trigger mechanisms. Rifled barrels exist but load slower than standard smoothbore versions. Fin-stabilized projectiles fly without rotating like rifle bullets do. Spin-stabilized rounds rotate during flight to maintain stability through rifling engagement. Propellant rings attach to bomb fins to increase range when needed. The L16 eight-one-millimeter mortar fires without augmentation charges for short distances. Soldiers can transport these weapons manually across rough terrain without vehicle assistance. Snow or soft ground creates instability issues that require special bags to counteract recoil.

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• 4. Ammunition Types And Guidance

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  Fin-stabilized bombs carry short rear fins that control flight path without rotation. Spin-stabilized rounds rotate inside rifled barrels using pre-engraved obturator bands. Both types include illumination smoke high explosive and training variants. The XM395 Precision Guided Mortar Munition combines GPS guidance with directional control surfaces. Alliant Techsystems developed this twelve-millimeter guided round for existing mortar bodies. Strix mortar rounds contain infrared imaging sensors to track armored vehicles upon landing. Saab Bofors Dynamics manufactures these Swedish endphase-guided projectiles fired from twelve-millimeter tubes. Israel Military Industries created the GMM 120 known as Patzmi or Morty. Elbit developed another Israeli option called Iron Sting while Russia produces the KM-8 Gran laser-guided version. Fin-stabilized shells carry higher payloads in thinner skins than rifled artillery ammunition. A sixty-millimeter bomb holds approximately the same explosive yield as a one-hundred-fifty-five-millimeter shell. Smoothbore mortars avoid veering errors caused by spin direction during flight.

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• 5. Specialized Variants And Carriers

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  Spigot mortars invert normal tube arrangements by fitting hollow projectile tubes onto solid rods. Belgium accepted the Fly-K silent spigot mortar into French service as the TN-8111 after World War II. Britain deployed petard mortars on Churchill AVRE tanks during World War II operations. Japan used Type ninety-eight mortars to create psychological effects at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Hedgehog launchers mounted twenty-four spigot mortars on ship decks to fire anti-submarine patterns. The Blacker Bombard served as an anti-tank launcher for British forces. Modern gun-mortars combine breech-loading mechanisms with hydraulic recoil systems. Soviet designs like the 2S9 Nona feature short barrels compared to standard guns. AMOS advanced mortar systems use automatic twin-barreled turrets mounted on armored vehicles. Israeli Merkava tanks integrate twelve-millimeter mortars as secondary armament inside their cabins. Russian army operates the 2S4 Tyulpan self-propelled heavy mortar among current largest systems. Mortar carriers range from improvised civilian trucks to modified infantry fighting vehicles like M113s.

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• 6. Improvised Weapons In Conflict

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  Insurgent groups construct homemade mortars using heavy steel piping mounted on frames. Syrian rebels called these weapons hell cannons responsible for thousands of civilian deaths. Tamil Tigers developed Pasilan two-thousand rocket mortars during Sri Lankan civil war operations. Baba mortar rounds contained tar that caused fires upon ground impact in earlier conflicts. These improvised systems fire repurposed gas cylinders filled with explosives or shrapnel. Forward observers correct fire after each round leaves the tube. The Pasilan system resembles Chinese Type eighty-two multi-tube launchers rather than rail-guided Katyusha variants. Warheads weigh one hundred kilograms and contain TNT filling with ranges up to three kilometers. Insurgents conceal attacking styles by avoiding constant muzzle flares typical of artillery. Barrack busters named by the Provisional Irish Republican Army attacked fortified military installations. Modern conflicts show how simple materials create lethal indirect fire capabilities without factory production.

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