The problem for the French Army was they lacked light, portable, simple, and inexpensive firepower that could be brought with them to provide high-angle indirect fire against an entrenched enemy. Unlike the Germans the French lacked portable mortars like the Granatenwerfer 16, 7.58 cm Minenwerfer or 17 cm mittlerer Minenwerfer for the first half of the war. Early in the war, the French scoured their arms depots and museums and the closest equivalent they had to Germany's light mortars were bronze Mortier de 15 cm mle 1838s. They experimented with crossbows, catapults, and slingshots to propel hand grenades with limited success.
