INTRODUCTION As I wargame exclusively with Russian troops an interest in their equipment is only natural. Also, being a bit of a modeller I was not averse to expending a bit of effort in providing my XII Corps with "authentic" artillery. An investigation of the available market showed that I wasn't going to be able to purchase any guns and hence the research. My brother Pete, while living in London, discovered an excellent source of reliable information and expended a great deal of effort sketching, measuring and photographing for which I'm indeed grateful. (He models Prussians and has the same problem.) These drawings are the results of our combined efforts, and may the wargaming Russophile never again be heard to mutter "But what did they look like". for now at least he can have a good idea. I'm a Weapons Underwater (torpedoes if you like) Petty Officer with 20 years service under my keel. At present I'm aboard HMCS. Ojibwa, which lovely boat is in a long refit. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Under the direction of Count Arakcheev who had been appointed to head the Inspectorate of Artillery in 1802, the arm underwent a considerable reform. One of the important changes that took place was the equipping of the Artillery with modern light-weight weapons designed for mobility. This new equipment was described as the "System of 1805" and originally consisted of the following guns and howitzers: Guns Howitzers 24 pdr gun 40 pdr "Unicorn" howitzer 18 pdr gun 20 pdr "Unicorn" howitzer 12 pdr gun 10 pdr "Unicorn" howitzer 6 pdr gun 3 pdr "Unicorn" howitzer The new weapons were first employed during the Battle of Austerlitz after which action they were adversely commented on by some senior officers. Subsequent investigation uncovered defects in the organization and use of the guns but could find no fault in the weapons themselves The little 3 pdr howitzer was withdrawn after Friedland (1807) and production discontinued. It had been supplied as a battalion piece but with the separating of the artillery from the infantry it no longer had a use, being considered too-light for the new batteries, Some improvements were made after the introduction of the "System" and these are known to have been demonstrated to Fredrick William III of Prussia in 1808. After that date, the design appears to be almost unchanged until 1840s. More Russian Artillery Guns and Howitzers of the System of 1805 Introduction and Historical Background Field Artillery Organization 1811-1813 Odds and Ends Illustrations: Russian Artillery (monstrously slow: 690K) Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 153 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1974 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com