In Their Words

French 75mm Field Gun

The French 75mm gun was the primary artillery piece used by A.E.F forces during World War I. Designed and adopted by the French army in 1898, the French 75 revolutionized artillery design. The weapon featured a hydro-pneumatic recoil mechanism which absorbed the recoil of the weapon’s barrel during the firing sequence. This allowed the weapon to remain in a fixed position, without the need to re-aim after each shot. In combat, this resulted in greater accuracy and the ability of French and American gun crews to place large numbers of rounds quickly and accurately on target. The 75mm gun was extremely versatile and could fire a variety of high explosive, anti-tank, and anti-personnel shells. Lacking an effective artillery piece in quantity upon its entrance into the war in 1917, American forces quickly adopted and trained on the use of the French 75. The French 75 had the distinction of firing the first shot of the war for American forces on October 23, 1917. The French 75 on display at the First Division Museum has been restored and repainted in a period French camouflage theme, with varying shades of yellow, green and black paint. This form of camouflage helped distort and hide the silhouette of the gun during combat.

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