It first saw action in March and proved very useful in covering Allied forces recoiling from the Spring Offensive. In one celebrated incident at Cachy, a single Whippet company wiped out two entire German battalions, killing over men.
Plans to create 5 tank battalions each containing 36 Whippets were abandoned, but it remained a useful asset throughout in and was a major force in the breakthrough at the Battle of Amiens. The only tank to be used in field operations by the Germans, the A7V was developed in Its successes were generally limited to supporting actions, and soon after the war other designs were planned. Germany only deployed 20 tanks during the war, while the Allies deployed thousands — this could be seen as a cause of their failure to defeat the Allies in the Spring offensives, and the subsequent overall defeat.
However, they proved more successful in recapturing Chemin-des-Dames, and in subsequent offensives they filled a marginal but helpful role. Like most WW1 tanks they were handicapped by structural frailty and slow speed.
A light tank, and the first to have a rotating funnel, the FT17 was of revolutionary, influential design. Most tanks today mimic its basic design.
They first saw action in March of and were Germany's only tanks to ever see active service during WW1. It was France's first-ever tank and, like the British Mark 1, was developed to break the stalemate of trench warfare on the Western Front. Designed to break open passages between barbed wire emplacements and tackle machine gun nests, they officially first saw action in Like many other early tanks, they were basically armored boxes and lacked significant internal compartmentalization common in later tanks.
Unlike the Renault FT, they lacked a turret and its main armament, a 75 mm cannon , was mounted on a side sponson. Despite significant setbacks when they were first used in , they would later prove to be pretty effective later in the war.
Designed to support larger and slower heavy tanks, they were relatively nimble and maneuverable. They proved to be very capable fighting machines and saw extensive post-war action in Ireland, North Russia, and Manchuria. The French-built Saint-Chamond is yet another early tank worthy of some attention. Named after a French commune of the same name, it was the second heavy tank developed by them during the war.
Conceived as an early tank destroyer, this "tank" was much bigger than the far more capable Schneider CA. It was, on paper at least, one of the most heavily armed tanks of the war. Around , or so, were built between and Technically not a tank by today's standards, it also proved to be a little underwhelming when it was eventually deployed for battle.
Designed, like other tanks of the period, to help break the stalemate of trench warfare, they proved far more effective in the dying days of WW1 as engagements finally moved out of trenches. They were eventually replaced with British-built heavy tanks after the war. Sometimes referred to as "the heaviest tank of WW1," only two prototypes were ever made.
It weighed around 40, kgs and was crewed by 8 to 10 men. The tank was armed with a massive 65 mm mounted howitzer and ancillary machine guns.
Post-war, the prototypes were sent to Libya to fight guerilla fighters and proved quite capable in combat. And finally, the British Mark IV heavy tank is widely considered to be one of the best tanks on the battlefields of WW1. On September 6, , a prototype tank nicknamed Little Willie rolls off the assembly line in England. Little Willie was far from an overnight success.
It weighed 14 tons, got stuck in trenches and crawled over rough terrain at only two miles per hour. However, improvements were made to the original prototype and tanks eventually transformed military battlefields. The British developed the tank in response to the trench warfare of World War I. In , a British army colonel named Ernest Swinton and William Hankey, secretary of the Committee for Imperial Defence, championed the idea of an armored vehicle with conveyor-belt-like tracks over its wheels that could break through enemy lines and traverse difficult territory.
To keep the project secret from enemies, production workers were reportedly told the vehicles they were building would be used to carry water on the battlefield alternate theories suggest the shells of the new vehicles resembled water tanks. The first tank prototype, Little Willie, was unveiled in September By , this armored vehicle was deemed ready for battle and made its debut at the First Battle of the Somme near Courcelette, France, on September 15 of that year.
Tanks rapidly became an important military weapon. During World War II , they played a prominent role across numerous battlefields. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us!
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