Did You See the Whiz Bang in Hopewell Cape?

That's right, smack dab in downtown Hopewell Cape, a real live Whiz Bang and you can see it today. If you don't know what a Whiz Bang is, or have never seen one before then you're in luck, because we have a live one. 

The term "whiz-bang" was used widely by Allied (most often British and Commonwealth) servicemen to describe any form of German field artillery shells, however the 'whiz bang' was originally attributed to the noise made by shells from German 77mm field guns. The guns that fired the shells were subsequently called Whiz Bang guns. (The smaller cannon in Hopewell Cape is a 77mm FK96 or a Whiz Bang!)  In all cases however the name was derived from the fact that shells fired from light or field artillery travelled faster than the speed of sound.

Thus soldiers heard the typical "whizz" noise of a travelling shell before the "bang" issued by the gun itself.  Whiz bangs were consequently much feared since the net result was that defending infantrymen were given virtually no warning of incoming high-velocity artillery fire as they were from enemy howitzers.

Now that's a story worth saving!

The Victory Cannon Campaign is raising funds to restore the two captured World War One cannons situated in the square in Hopewell Cape. These cannons were captured by Canadians during the Great War, and were awarded to the people of Albert County. You can donate online to the Victory Cannon Campaign here, and best of all you'll be sent a tax receipt!  Click Here to Donate!

Do Opposites Attract? A Tale of Two Cannons.

Last week we were happy to announce that the Victory Cannon Campaign sits just shy of $5000.00 and 1/3 of the total needed, and we talked about how the large 110 mm cannon arrived in Hopewell Cape. This week we're going to tell the tale of the smaller 77mm FK96 field cannon.   

Now the information we have on the two cannons couldn't be more opposite, with the 110mm K14 we know almost everything you could wish to know about the capture and history of the cannon. However, it's counterpart the 77mm FK96 field cannon we know almost nothing. In the records on captured war trophies from the Great War there is nothing recorded on a 77mm cannon with the serial number 784, it is recorded in the War Trophies Allocations Record from 1920, but no mention of where or when it was captured is listed. 

What we do know is why this cannon sits in the square in Hopewell Cape. The 77mm FK96 was awarded to the people of Albert County in recognition of the number of men from Albert County who volunteered to fight. Albert County has the distinction of being the county with the most people per capita joining the CEF in all of Canada. A remarkable achievement and a testament to the bravery of the men from AC!

Now that's a story worth saving!

The Victory Cannon Campaign is raising funds to restore the two captured World War One cannons situated in the square in Hopewell Cape. These cannons were captured by Canadians during the Great War, and were awarded to the people of Albert County. You can donate online to the Victory Cannon Campaign here, and best of all you'll be sent a tax receipt!  Click Here to Donate!