Bow Gun Gunboat Hämeenma

This Obukhov 105 mm semi-automatic cannon is on display in the outdoor area of the Forum Marinum in Turku. The cannon comes from the gunboat Hämeenma, where it was mounted on the deck. The cannon had a range of over 18 km and could fire between 10 and 15 shells per minute.

The Hämeenma was originally built for the Russian Navy under the name Pingvin. Later, in German service, it became the Wulf, and after it was transferred to Finland in 1920, it was renamed Hämeenma. During the Second World War, the calibre was increased from 102 to 105 mm, and the cannon proved its worth when the Hämeenma served as an escort ship for convoys in the Gulf of Bothnia. After the Second World War, the Hämeenma was still used as a trawler in the Baltic Sea until it was scrapped in 1953.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar
• Photos: Anne Bolijn