Twentieth-Century Artillery: 300 of the World's Greatest Artillery Pieces

by Ian V. Hogg

Future military historians will surely look back upon the 20th century and say, "There was the zenith of artillery." Though it retains its importance on the battlefield, for sheer diversity of type and multiplicity of design, for size, numbers, and tactical influence, the likes of artillery as it stood in 1945 will never again be seen. Beginning with the guns that pounded the trenches in World War I, and the giant calibers of "Big Bertha," "Schalnke Emma," and the Paris gun, go through the century's most important hand-held and anti-tank devices, anti-aircraft guns, and World War II field pieces right up to the latest tactical and strategic missiles.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Military Fiction

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 2, 2000

About the author

Ian V. Hogg enlisted in the Royal Artillery of the British Army in April 1945. During World War II he served in Europe and in eastern Asia. After the war he remained in the military. In the early 1950s, he served in the Korean War. Altogether he served in the military for 27 years. Upon retiring in 1972, he held the appointment of Master Gunner at the Royal Military College of Science, where he taught on the subjects of firearms, artillery, and their ammunition and use. Hogg also had an interest in the subject of fortification and was one of the founding members of the Fortress Study Group in 1975.

His first books were published in the late 1960s while he was still an instructor. After retiring from the military, he pursued the career of military author and historian. He was editor of Jane's Infantry Weapons from 1972 to 1994. He worked with a skilled artist, John Batchelor, to ensure that his books were well illustrated with cutaway diagrams. He contributed articles to a variety of journals, and his books have been translated into a dozen languages .
Hogg has been described by publishing people who worked with him as "an unassuming man, with a gift to pass on [his] knowledge at any level, and often with a dry humour". He was also respected for his professionalism as an author. He was described as "a consummate professional who (unlike most of his peers) usually submitted manuscripts on time, within agreed parameters, and accompanied by all the illustrations."

Hogg was a frequent guest on the History Channel's Tales of the Gun, as well as other military-related television programs.

-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hogg's introductory material (7 pages) is interesting and well-written, but routine. The remainder of the book is one-page-per-weapon format familiar to these types of anthologies. Each weapon has a color image (drawing), a standardized text block entry, and a brief description. Useful to look up the very basics on an item but that's about it. Indexing is useful. All in all a basic and very routine offering in a crowded field.

[John Gentry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why was I obsessed with war and guns as a child? Was it the masculinity, or the wish to direct my anger in a loud manner? Who knows, but if you like guns, war, or big things that can level entire buildings this book is for you. It's purely a reference guide, each page have stats, a drawing, and a small rundown of the weapon in question. I however was less than impressed after a second viewing. Kept for nolstagia purposes only.

[Kym Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid little book which has very handsome colour plates of each piece with a small but well written body of text. The technical information provided is in good detail.

A handy little book for any one interested in the big guns of warfare. The book is what it is, a small bite size reference guide much like the many others found on aircraft, ships, AFVs, etc.

84 %

[Robert Buettner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A average overview of different types of artillery used during the Second World War. In order to cover the breadth of this topic each piece is given only one page and cookie cutter info blocks filled in.