The Weapons: Germany
The Mauser Gewehr 98 was the standard issue longarm to the Kaiser’s army in 1914. The basic model 98 Mauser is still to this day considered to be the gold standard of bolt action systems, and was an excellent weapon for the German infantryman of the Great War. The rifle features distinctive Lange Vizier (or “Roller Coaster”) rear sights, with a minimum setting of 400 meters being the primary drawback to the rifle, forcing the user to compensate at closer ranges. Otherwise, the rifle was proven to be a reliable, easy to use weapon and had been emulated the world over.
Type: Infantry Rifle
Action: Cock on Open Rotating Bolt
Overall Length: 49.2 inches
Weight: 9 pounds
Cartridge: 7.92x57mm
Magazine Capacity: 5 Cartridges
Feed System: Charger Clip
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1898
Kar98AZ
With the adoption of the new spitzer cartridge in 1905 a new patter of carbine was needed to replace the Kar98, which now suffered from excessive muzzle flash and concussion. The result was what was less a carbine and more a short rifle in line with the British SMLE or the American M1903, but with a number of creative lightening features, including shaving down the receiver diameter. The weapon is instantly recognizable from its long stock, protected front sight and protruding underbarrel stacking hook. This was lighter, handier and better sighted than the Gewehr 98, and would indeed serve as the pattern for future development of the platform after the war.
Type: Carbine
Action: Cock on Open Rotating Bolt
Overall Length: 43.3 inches
Weight: 8 pounds
Cartridge: 7.92x57mm
Magazine Capacity: 5 Cartridges
Feed System: Charger Clip
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1905
The Gewehr 88, often known as the “Commission Rifle”, was the first smokeless powder firearm developed by Germany, entering service in 1888 as a direct challenge to the French M1886 Lebel rifle that had rocked the arms world two years prior. Despite improvements over the Lebel, it was an imperfect design, and lasted only ten years as the standard rifle of the Imperial Army before replacement by the Gewehr 98.
Despite this large numbers remained on hand, and most of these had been converted in 1905 to accept the Gewehr 98’s charger clips and new spitzer ammunition, remaining in service as a stopgap. This situation was very much true in East Prussia in 1914, with large numbers of the 8th Army’s men being armed with the older rifles.
Type: Infantry Rifle
Action: Cock on Open Rotating Bolt
Overall Length: 49 inches
Weight: 8.6 pounds
Cartridge: 7.92x57mm
Magazine Capacity: 5 Cartridges
Feed System: Mannlicher Clip*
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1888
*The upgraded 88/05 pattern (as pictured) uses Gewehr 98 charger clips
The carbine variant of the Gewehr 88 had entered service concurrently, and like its brother remained in service, although in this case the carbine remained quite popular. The Kar88 retained the shorter length and compact handling that had been lost with the Kar98AZ, and thus remained popular with German cavalry as well as support troops despite its obsolescence.
Due to the concussion issues mentioned above with the Kar98, Kar88 rifles were never modified to the 1905 standard, although many were converted to take spitzer cartridges in an emergency. The original Mannlicher clip feed system was universally retained, however.
Type: Carbine
Action: Cock on Open Rotating Bolt
Overall Length: 37 inches
Weight: 6.8 pounds
Cartridge: 7.92x57mm
Magazine Capacity: 5 Cartridges
Feed System: Mannlicher Clip
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1888
Luger P08
The P08 Luger, officalls the Pistole Parabellum 1908, was the standard service pistol of the German Imperial Military, and represented a quantum leap over the outdated Reichsrevolver it replaced. It was a reliable autoloading handgun, using a toggle lock system designed very similarly to the knee joint to actuate its system.
Overall the Luger could be counted among the best military sidearms in the world at the time, and its cartridge would endure to become the most popular in the world today.
Type: Automatic Pistol
Action: Toggle Lock
Overall Length: 8.75 inches
Weight: 1.9 pounds
Cartridge: 9x19mm
Magazine Capacity: 8 Cartridges
Feed System: Detachable Magazine
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1908
Reichsrevolver
The German Reichsrevolver had been adopted as an attempt to standardize the handguns in service in the new Empire, but was by 1914 woefully obsolete. Indeed, the weapon was cumbersome and dated even when it entered service, with its single action mechanism poorly complimented with a lack of an ejection rod (requiring the user to carry a separate tool to eject spent cases from the weapon) as well as a large, redundant manual safety.
Despite its replacement, both the M1879 and the slightly more compact M1883 model remained in service with German cavalry as well as the rest of the Army, and the large numbers of reservists in East Prussia meant that a significant quantity of these older weapons remained on the field.
Type: Revolver
Action: Single
Overall Length: 13.6 inches
Weight: 2.9 pounds
Cartridge: 10.6x25mm BP
Magazine Capacity: 6 Cartridges
Feed System: Single Load Cylinder
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1879
MG08
US National Archives
A development of the ubiquitous Maxim Gun, the German MG08 with domestic alterations to the design to reduce weight as well as too improve mobility, most notably with its trademark sled mount. The weapon was issued to various forces, and effectively treated in a similar manner to the field guns then in service.
The German 8th Army mustered almost 400 machine guns, mostly MG08s with a smattering of the older MG01 (unaltered Maxims) mixed in. They faced an almost two to one margin against the Russian guns, with the Northwestern Front counting almost 700 in its arsenal.
Type: Machine Gun
Action: Fully Automatic (450RPM)
Overall Length: 46.3 inches
Weight: 151.2 pounds*
Cartridge: 7.92x57mm
Magazine Capacity: 250 Cartridges
Feed System: Canvas Belt
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1908
*Weight of weapon in ready condition, with mount and full water jacket
FK96NA
The basic field artillery piece of the German Imperial Army was an updated version of a design from the late nineteenth century, featuring an updated recoil system as well as a new, shielded carriage. The weapon was notably lighter than most of its contemporaries, with the loss of accuracy seen as acceptable to a German Army focused on mobile firepower.
A variety of ammunition types were available, most commonly either TNT based explosive projectiles or shrapnel shells. The role of the field gun was one that was threatened by the advent of the machine gun, but in 1914 remained a critical component of any army.
Type: Field Gun
Rate of Fire: 10 rpm (Maximum)
Crew: 5
Range: 5,500 meters
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1905
SFH02
The most common heavy artillery piece in service with the German Army in 1914 was the model 1902, a 150mm piece which was, like the FK96, designed as a mobile artillery piece. The SFH02 was notably more mobile than similar guns in service with the French and Russian Armies, and could be deployed as both a heavy and medium piece as needed.
The mobility or the weapon and its effectiveness in hilly and forested terrain promised to be a great assistance in the fighting for East Prussia.
Type: Howitzer
Rate of Fire: 3 rpm (Maximum)
Crew: 10
Range: 7,450 meters
Country of Origin: German Empire
Year: 1903