BL 14in (356mm) Gun Mk.III railway gun

In 1916, the British Army considered the need to have railway guns of wider range than the 12in (305mm) in service. At that time, the Elswick company was finishing the construction of several “BL 14in (356mm) Gun Mk.III” type naval guns for the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Fuso class battleships, but the last two guns were not delivered and were offered to the War Office that accepted them immediately. Specific carriages were manufactured by Elswick and the guns were ready for action in 1918. Curiously in one of the pieces the breech opened to the left, because it was to be installed in a naval twin turret and each piece mounted the breech so that open towards the outer wall of the turret. Two complete guns were built and named as “HM Gun Boche-Buster” and “HM Gun Scene-Shifter”, and were the last railway guns built by the British. The carriages of both pieces remained in service until the WWII, mounting a new 460mm howitzer and a 13.5 inches gun respectively, but the 356mm barrels were decommissioned and declared obsoletes in 1926. This railway guns were of such quality that they were not surpassed until the arrival of the new German railway guns of the 30s and 40s.

BL 14in Mk.III railway gun gallery and more info