Big Willie!

This is coolbert:

"defense is the stronger form of combat" - - Clausewitz.

This observation was made with regard originally to ground warfare, armies pitted against armies in the Napoleonic style.

Defense generally as a rule easier to do, you can accomplish more with less!

From the Second World War [WW2] we have another instance of where this particular observation of Clausewitz is demonstrably seen to be so!

From that web site dealing with the scuttling of the French fleet at Toulon:

"Two of the turrets from the scuttled battleship Provence were later removed and used in a fortification at Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer, guarding the approaches to Toulon. Mounting four 340mm [13 inch] guns, in 1944 this fortification duelled with numerous Allied battleships for over a week before being silenced."

This sounds like "Guns of Navarone" type stuff!

Large bore naval guns taken off a scuttled and sunk battleship and used as coastal artillery. Formidable and difficult targets to eliminate!

 "In World War II, Saint-Mandrier was fortified with two turrets, each mounting a pair of 340mm naval guns taken the French battleship Provence. This fortress controlled the approaches to Toulon, and the range and power of these guns was such that a considerable Allied naval force was required to destroy them . . .The Allies termed the battery 'Big Willie', and dedicated a battleship or heavy cruiser to shelling it every day."

Clausewitz was correct "defense is the stronger form of combat" and "Willie" proves that this is so?

"It was long held as a general rule of thumb, that one shore-based gun equalled three naval guns of the same caliber, due to the steadiness of the coastal gun which allowed for significantly higher accuracy than their sea-mounted counterparts. Land-based guns also benefited in most cases from the additional protection of walls or earth mounds."

It would be interesting to know if those recovered and salvaged guns were removed guns and turret both or merely the guns. That turret [if present] mounted to a concrete emplacement the bulk of which was underground. Perhaps even sections of unused railroad track cut to size and welded to the turret as additional reinforcement!

coolbert.