One of the most simple was the Canon 240 mm Mle 1884 sur affût à échantigolles which was a wooden naval carriage which lacked traverse and recoil mechanisms.

The mle 1884 was also mounted on a number of different barbettes which normally consisted of a large diameter geared steel ring set into a concrete slab behind a parapet.

[2] The recoil system for the mle 1884 consisted of a U-shaped gun cradle which held the trunnioned barrel and a slightly inclined firing platform with hydraulic buffers.

Later some mle 1884's were modified to use a Canet breech to reduce the number of crew needed to service the gun and increase its rate of fire.

[1] Although an older design the need for heavy artillery on the Western Front was so pressing that at least five different mounts were devised for the mle 1884: two static and three railroad.

The new guns were popular due to good barrel wear, long range, and heavy 140 kg (310 lb) shell.

In 1939, twelve guns were mobilized and those captured by the Wehrmacht after the Fall of France were designated Kanone 556(f) and used for coastal defense.