Dear all,
Let me add a point to the discussion about the use of the Arty with and without stock during WWI.
We have to clarify that there is a big difference between the use of the Arty done by the Artillery and machine gun soldiers and the one done by the Sturmtruppen – infantry elite unit.
When we speak about Artillery and Machine gun units, the LP08 is used as a replacement of a standard carbine, to protect the soldiers busy with the machine gun, the mortar and the artillery weapon.
When on 23 October 1916, General Ludendorff ordered all German armies in the west to form a battalion of Sturmtruppen a new era started.
The Sturmtruppen are an infantry elite unit that invented modern infantry tactics. They use a combination of weapons. A specific gun is now considered as an element in an array of mutually complementary weapons. We have also to recall that the introduction of the TM08 is actually for the infantry troops (Sturmtruppen) mainly on the west front.
The use of the arty + TM08 done by the Sturmtruppen is completely different from the one done by the Artillery soldiers.
When “cleaning” the French trenches they don’t need precision (Arty + Stock) but they need a big “volume of fire” (Arty + TM, without stock - it can only disturb in a close combat).
I have in my collection of pictures several Sturmtruppen with Arty and two or three TM08 in the belt (without TM holster in addition – it is faster carry the TM directly in the belt). The TM08 where used and then left “on the field”, this is why it is so common to find TM08 in the Verdun and Somme trenches.
The Sturmtruppen were allowed to “personalize” the uniform. Men who has served with the Strumtruppen when back to the original unit, returned with a different uniform and different tactical ideas.
To sum up, the LP08 is a really “flexible” gun that can be used in different operational scenarios with or without stock; this is why I like so much this gun.
Have fun,
Mauro
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