75 mm 1897 model cannon Face view

The 75 mm 1897 model cannon has an oleo-pneumatic drag, which absorbs the recoil without moving the carriage and brings the tube back to its original position. This way, the gunners (six men and a piece leader) no longer had to re-aim after each fire and the firing tempo was hence significantly increased. It used diverse ammunition, which enabled it to complete various missions: from ball shells and explosives, in 1897 throughout the Great War, incendiary shells, smoke grenades, illuminated shells, armor-piercing shells and toxic shells were added to the ammunitions list (from 1916 to 1918, artillery was the main vector of the gas war).