The German experience from World War I showed a large role of mine throwers and mortars in infantry operations. Already at the beginning of the 1920s, designs of new mortars based on lessons learned from the Great War appeared, but they entered production at the beginning of the 1930s. We are talking here primarily about the mortar 8 cm Grenatwerfer 34 , which was the basic mortar of the German infantry during World War II and the less successful 5 cm Leichter Granatwerfer 36. In 1939, however, the heavy Nebelwerfer 35 mortar was introduced into service with infantry units, and in 1942/1943 it was supplemented by 12 cm Granatwerfer 42. German infantry tactics saw mortars as a very important means of supporting attack and defense, which should work closely with machine weapons. It is worth adding that the equipment of the German infantry division mobilized as part of the so-called In the 1st wave, in September 1939, there were 84 light 50 mm mortars (grenade launchers) and 54 81 mm mortars.
The Granatwerfer 42 is a German 120mm mortar from the Second World War. The first prototype of this weapon was created in 1941, and it entered service a year later. The weight of the weapon in combat position was 285 kilograms, with a barrel length of 186.5 centimeters. The range of the weapon did not exceed 6,500 meters. The maximum rate of fire was 8-10 rounds per minute, and the muzzle velocity was 280 m / s. Granatwerfer 42 was created as a weapon of close support to the German infantry, and its implementation into production and service was determined by the experience gained from fighting on the Eastern Front. In general design assumptions, the weapon was modeled on the Soviet PM 38 mortar, which in turn was based on the French Brandt Mle 1938 mortar. The production of this generally successful gun was carried out in Brno, in the then Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia in 1942-1945.