The Tank in World War I1911
Lancelot Edlin De Mole sketched the first Tank and sent it to the British War Office 1913
Lancelot's proposition to the British War Office was denied. 1915 Lancelot resubmitted his plans and was told to create a prototype 1916 The first tanks were used in war by the British in war on August 1st 1917 Lancelot's model was seen 1918 Lancelot's model was sent into battle 1918 First tank-on-tank battle In World War I tanks were just being introduced into warfare. The British were the first to have tanks, and as a result the Germans created their own tank. However, originally the Germans viewed the tanks as useless and created only one model in World War I. The tanks were mainly used to cause fear to infantry as often the infantry would flee before coming within the tanks' range.
A7V Sturmpanzer-KraftwagenThe A7V Sturmpanzer-Kraftwagen was the first tank built by the Germans and the only model used by them in World War I. 25 were actually built, though 100 were ordered. It had the largest crew of any tank containing 18 men, 12 of which maned the firearms in groups of two. This tank also had very poor manuverability, and during its first appereance in 1918 was destroyed in a tank-on-tank battle because it fell off of a cliff.
Tank CrewsIn WWI crews could range from 18 to 6 people in heavy tanks and as few as 2 in light tanks.Though, in WWII the standered crew was four people: a driver, tank commander, gun-loader/radio operator, and a gunner with the driver up front and the others in the fighting compartment. Each would have their own escape hatch. In WWI the crew wore chainmail to protect themselves from flying metal ect., however was rarely used due to how uncomfortable it was while inside the tank. In WWII the armor was improved, though the commander was often in danger as he spent a great deal of time with his head above the tank. Now, crews can live in their tanks for weeks at a time without coming out. It can be sealed off to protect against radiation and gases and has its own air filters and toilet systems similar to that of a submarine. Up until modern day tank crews were primarily male, and even now women are still massivly outnumbered. However, in WWII there are a number of cases of female crews in the Russian Red Army.
Today the poistions of a tank's crew is changing as computers replace gunners with automatic weapon systems and the commander becomes responisible for more information through computers and satalites rather then making commands based off of what he saw when he stuck his head out the roof. Tanks are forever changing, and their crew with them, as they fit the needs of a more advanced society with more advanced weapons and machinery. |
The Inventor of the TankLancelot Eldin De Mole was an engineer and inventor between 1880 and 1950. He was born to William Fredrick De Mole and Emily on May 13, 1880 in Austrailia. In 1887 he and his family moved to Victoria where he attended Grammer school and worked as a draftsman. Before WWI Lancelot worked on mining, survying, and engineering pojects. One of his early inventions includes an automatic telephone. In 1911 he sketched out the tank and sent a proposition to the British War Office which was objected in 1913 (however, few of the actual plans were returned). In 1915 Lancelot resubmitted his plans, but was infomed that a working prototype must be provided before the idea could be taken seriously. In 1916 the first British Tanks reached the fields though they did not follow Lancelot's original plan. In 1917 Lancelot arrived in England with a prototype of his model (NOTE: The prototype was created in 1915 but as Lancelot was unable to reach England until 1917 the working model was not seen by the Britiish until after the designs had been attempted in 1916) and it was sent into France in 1918. Though he was not credited with the invention of the tank at the time, the original idea and first tank came from him as well as the design eventually used in WWI and that was improved upone in WWII.
The Name Tanks were named by the British in World War I. The giant tarpaulins that hid the tanks when they were being built made it appear to be a motorcycle fuel tank. The British claimed that they were inventing a new 'tank' when asked about it.
Did you know . . .-The British Navy Influenced the development of the tank, which is why many parts of the tank relate to that of a boat (hull, hatch, and deck)
-It is beleived that apricots bring bad luck to tanks and AAV's -Although America did produce tanks in World War One, none of those tanks actually made it to Europe. -Chrysler produced 25,000 tanks during World War Two and was the biggest tank factory of its time -In World War II the Black Panthar tank battalion was the first American Armed forces consisting of African-Americans to enter combat -In 1924 the Black Beret was officially put in place of the service peak feild cap as it was not able to be worn within the tanks -Christie developed a high-speed method of cross-country movement for tanks which he was unable to sell in America and he later sold to the Russians and was used in Russian T-34 designs -Around 90,000 tanks were built during World War II in America alone. That is four times as many built by either Britain or Germany -The Duplex Drive tank was created in World War Two and navigated through deep waters using propelers controled by the commander -In World War One commanders of light tanks would communicate thhrough kicking the back of the driver's shoulders -The first tank corps motto was, " Fear Naught" |
The Landship CommitteeThe Landship Committee consisted of engineers from all feilds of military combined to create an armed vehicle, or land ship, in World War One. They were based in Great Britain and tested multiple ideas including the land battle ship, a 100 ft longe armored vehicle with three twin turrets, and the Tritton Trrench Crosser that could create steel bridges and pick them up as it went along. Needless to say, neither of these ideas were ever actualized on anything more than paper and blueprints. However, the Landship Committee did create the Pedrails Lanship which failed due to the tracks. They then created the Killen-Strait which became the first tracked, armored vehicle.
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Tanks in World War IIAs tanks became the name of the game in World War II they became far more advanced then their WWI predessesors and became more and more adaptable for every terrain, be it snow, dessert, forest, or even water. This was very important, especially in Russia where the Germans became stuck due to lack of preperation for the snow and mud. However, the Russians built their tanks around the weather and the T-34 and KV-1 eventually pushed the German tanks back to Berlin.
Tanks have caterpiller tracks. Basicly, these are like giant conveyer belts that allow the tank to move over harsh terrain and barbed wire which was originally necessary to storm trenchs and later necessary to access rugged areas of the world. It wasn't until World War II that desert climates became battlegrounds for tanks and adaptions had to be made quickly to encompass the issues that came with sending metal tanks into hot, sandy deserts. The British quickly exceled in this terrain and the 7th Armoured Division earned the nickname 'Desert Rats' . These desert tanks helped Great Britain with the battles in Northern Africa and proved a major asset. Both America and Britain created tanks that effectively worked in the harsh jungles and humid climates of Japan, adapting flame-tanks to defeat the Japanese tanks and artiellery. Even today tanks are adapting to their surroundings as they continue to be used in the nuclear age becoming radioactive resistant and more advanced along with the other technology of the modern day and age. |