V-3 cannon

50°51′15″N 1°45′30″E / 50.85417°N 1.75833°E / 50.85417; 1.75833

Hochdruckpumpe
("high-pressure-pump")
The prototype V-3 cannon at Laatzig, Germany (now Zalesie, Poland) in 1942.
TypeLarge-caliber artillery
Place of originGermany
Service history
In service1944–1945
Used byGermany
WarsWorld War II
Production history
ManufacturerKrupp
Specifications
Length130 m (430 ft)

Shell140 kilograms (310 lb)
Caliber150 millimetres (5.9 in)
Elevationfixed
Traversefixed
Rate of fire0.2 rpm (projected)
Muzzle velocity1,500 metres per second (4,900 ft/s)
Maximum firing range165 km (103 miles)

The V-3 (German: Vergeltungswaffe 3, lit.'Vengeance Weapon 3') was a German World War II large-caliber gun working on the multi-charge principle whereby secondary propellant charges are fired to add velocity to a projectile. Two full-size guns were built in the underground Fortress of Mimoyecques in northern France and permanently aimed at London, but they were rendered unusable by Allied bombing raids before completion. Two smaller guns were used to bombard Luxembourg from December 1944 to February 1945.

The V-3 was also known as the Hochdruckpumpe ("High Pressure Pump", HDP for short), which was a code name intended to hide the real purpose of the project. It was also known as Fleißiges Lieschen ("Busy Lizzie").