WWI ~ 7.7 x 230mm Fieldkanone 96
The gun combined the barrel of the earlier 7.7 cm FK 96 with a recoil system, a new breech and a new carriage. Existing FK 96s were upgraded over time. The FK 96 n.A. was shorter-ranged, but lighter than the FrenchCanon de 75 modèle 1897 or the British
Ordnance QF 18 pounder gun; the Germans placed a premium on mobility, which served them well during the early stages of World War I. However, once the front had become static, the greater rate of fire of the French gun and the heavier shells fired by the British gun put the Germans at a disadvantage. The Germans remedied this by developing the longer-ranged, but heavier 7.7 cm FK 16.
As with most guns of its era, the FK 96 n.A. had seats for two crewmen mounted on its splinter shield. Guns taken into service by Finland, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia upon independence in 1919 served until replaced during the 1930s.
Ammunition'
Feldgranate 96: a 6.8 kilogram (15 lb) high-explosive shell filled with .19 kg (0.45 lbs) of TNT.
FeldkanoneGeschoss 11: A 6.85 kilogram (15.1 lb) shell combining high explosive and shrapnel functions. It contained 294 10 gram lead bullets and .25 kilograms (0.55 lb) of TNT.
A 6.8 kilogram (15 lb) pure shrapnel shell filled with 300 lead bullets.
An anti-tank shell
A smoke shell
A star shell
A gas shell
It mainly used the K.Z. 11 time fuze or the later L.K.Z. 16 contact fuze.
Colour pic 2 short cases 2-3 from the left
HL headstamp = Haniel Luege Dusseldorf Brass Factory
25 = Inspectors stamp
233 = Lot No.
St = Strengthened case (Stark)
Postcript ~ I measured my 18Pdr case at 292mm the specs for them are 85mm x 295mm R so anything pretty close to that should be correct.