This allowed for the gun to have a heavier barrel, but still be broken into smaller portions for transport by mule teams.

This was important for a weapon designed to be used in mountainous and rough terrain, or where adequate vehicle and horse transport was not readily available.

The weapon served primarily with the Indian Mountain Artillery in the northwest portion of British Indian territory (on what is now the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan) and participated in British-led military action in that theatre.

Due to its specialised nature the gun was produced in only limited numbers, with just 183 manufactured during the war.

[2] It was superseded at the end of World War I by the QF 3.7-inch mountain howitzer.