History, Development, and Use
of the M-1937 (ML-20)
152mm Gun-Howitzer

This section will cover the history, development, and use of the M-1937 gun-howitzer. In this section you will find where the artillery piece has been used, when it was designed, its limitations and abilities, and how the cannon functions.

 

Brief Operational History

The M-1937 gun-howitzer was designed by the F. F. Petrov design bureau in 1937.  It entered service the following year.  It replaced the modernized Czarist era weapons that were still in use by the Red Army.  The gun was much lighter and offered better traverse and elevation than its predecessors.  

The 152mm gun is easily noticed due to its unique muzzle brake which remained even when it was shortened and used on the SU-152 and ISU-152 assault guns.  The carriage of the weapon was the same as the one used on the earlier 122mm M1931/34 howitzer.  It also used a box section, split-trail arrangement and sponge filled rubber tires.  When the cannon was to be moved, its trails would be mounted on a two wheeled limber.  It would them be hitched to a truck.  Its ammunition was of the standard two piece (shell/powder) combination typical of guns of its size.

The weapon would see action during both Winter War and the Great Patriotic War.  The weapon was so widely used during the war that the Perm factory could not make enough to satisfy the Red Army's demands.  Additional factories were sought to make up the shortfall.

The M1937 would form the mainstay of heavy gun batteries throughout the war as they tended to outrange their German counterparts.
Selected Munitions
Type

Designation

Weight

Charge

FRAG-HE

OF-540

43.51kg

TNT
CP

G-545

56 kg

TNT
AP-T

BR-540

48.78 kg

?
Illumination

S-540

  

N/A
Smoke

D-540

  

N/A
HEAT    

?

Chemical

     Sarin/Mustard

In fact, the Germans were so impressed with the gun that they made wide use of it.  It was known in German service as the 15.2cm K 433/1(r).

After the was the artillery system was widely exported to Warsaw Pact and other communist nations where it is known as the ML-20.   The post-war years would also see the wider deployment of mechanized artillery tractors.  The M-1937 would make use of these as it was towed by either the AT-S medium artillery tractor or the AT-T heavy artillery tractor.  It was replaced by the D-20 152mm gun-howitzer which uses a similar, but not interchangeable ammunition.

 

Tactical Use and Limitations

The M-1937 Gun-Howitzer was primarily used as Divisional or Corps level artillery where it was used as an operational support asset.  In keeping with Soviet doctrine of the time, these artillery pieces were seen as 'property' of the divisional commander and would be used almost exclusively to support his force.  Combat coordination with adjacent units was very poor, and only rarely would divisions lend fire support to each other.  This inflexible tactical doctrine was seen as a tremendous limitation to those using the M-1937.

Despite these limitations, there was little wrong with the M-1937.  It was a powerful artillery piece with substantial range.  It could be used in both the direct and indirect fire roles.  The concrete piercing, fragmentation, armor piercing, smoke, HEAT, illumination, and chemical munitions only increased its flexibility in both of those roles.

 

Deployment Chronology

Here you can see what type of artillery the M-1937 gun-howitzer replaced and what artillery system eventually replaced it.  You can find out more about those artillery systems if we have them on the site by clicking on the links below.

The M-1937 replaced... M-1937 Gun-Howitzer The M-1937 was replaced by...
M-1910/34 Gun-Howitzer D-20 Gun-Howitzer

 

Sources Cited

Here are some of the most informative sources that we have used in compiling this information for you.  We hope you can find them as useful as we have.

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