Prior to WWI, many countries experimented with the idea of combining the combustion engine and armor to add mobility and firepower to the infantry. Primarily envisioned as an infantry support vehicle, this machine would help the infantry move across the battlefield. Machine-guns or canon attached to an armored bed, would give the infantry much needed fire support. WWI made this concept a necessity, as the infantry was now behind trenches, unable to move across no-man’s land due to concentrated machine gun fire. If the infantry did make it to the enemy trench, they were then caught in barbed wire and at the enemy’s mercy. The envisioned armored vehicle would be able to move across the battlefield, break through enemy barbed wire, and cross the trench line. While this was a wonderful concept, one problem remained: how to propel this mass of metal across the muddy fields of no mans' land.

In 1914, a British Colonel, E. D. Swinton pondered this question and came up with a solution: put this armored vehicle on an American Caterpillar Tractor. The tractor’s track would be able to move the vehicle, allow it to climb the trench line, turn, and go forward and backward. The idea was proposed to the British Secretary of War, Lord Kitchner, who refused to build the machine. Swinton then took the proposal to the Navy where the First Lord of the Admiralty, Winston Churchill, agreed that it should be tested.

Two vehicles were built, a “land cruiser” and a “land destroyer.” After much consultation, it was decided that these tanks could be the weapon to break through the enemy lines. The name tank originated as a code word so eavesdropping Germans would not know what was being made. When the first vehicles were shipped to France, their containers were labeled “water tanks.”

By August 1915 the first tank prototype—“Little Willie”— was produced. Unarmed, it weighed eighteen tons, was top heavy and had a low ground clearance. More importantly, it could not cross an eight-foot gap—the width of a trench, which was one of its major requirements. It was soon discarded. The second prototype was called “Big Willie” or “Mother,” which changed from the box shape of “Little Willie,” to the now familiar lozenge-shaped vehicle. By 1916, testing on this armored vehicle was complete and considered so successful that an initial order for one hundred tanks was placed.

Redesignated the Mark I, this model was the first to see action. Although production as slow, fifty were shipped to France. In 1916 during the First Battle of the Somme, on September 15, 1916, the Mark I made its debut. Highly vulnerable to mechanical breakdowns, fourteen tanks never made it to the starting point and as the day progressed most of the tanks were crippled due to mechanical failures, unsuitable ground and artillery fire. While this initial attack was unsuccessful, the potential of the tank was realized.

The British continued to improve tank designs with the Mark II, Mark III and the Mark IV. The Mark III was equipped with thicker armor to counter Germany’s development of armor-piercing bullets. On November 20, 1917, a force of 400 Mark IV’s made the first all tank assault of World War I during the Battle of Cambrai. It was the war’s most successful attack and showed the benefits of massing armored vehicles in a concentrated attack.

Although it had a decisive edge on the battlefield, inside the tank was a living hell. The temperature often rose above ninety degrees, and even hotter in the summer. Engine noise was incredible and all communication was done by hand signals, which were often obscured by smoke and fumes from the open engine compartment. Trying to fire the machine-guns or working the track/gear/brake mechanism was an experience as the crew had to dodge moving engine parts, or lubricating them while the tank was moving. Additionally, protective clothing that tankers wore added to the level of discomfort as heavy helmets, leather caps, goggles and metal face protectors added to the heat, weight and discomfort of the drive. After the ride many crew members complained of disorientation, nausea, fatigue, burns from the hot engine and headaches. When it was all over, it took an average crew forty-eight hours to recover from a six hour drive.

The German response to the Cambrai assault was to develop its own armored program. Soon the massive A7V appeared. The A7V was a monster, weighing 30 tons with a crew of eighteen. By the end of the war, only fifteen had been built. Although other tanks were on the drawing board, material shortages limited the German tank corps to these A7V’s and some captured Mark IV’s. The A7V would be involved in the first tank versus tank battle of the war on April 24, 1918 at Villers-Bretonneux -- a battle in which there was no clear winner. 

 Meanwhile, the British and French continued building new armor. The British “Whippet” (or Medium A) and the French Renault FT-17 were new light tanks. The British  continued building heavy tanks as well, including the Mark V, Mark VI, Mark VII and a joint U.S.-British project on the Mark VIII or “International.” The U.S. accepted an order to build 1,200 Renault FT-17 light tanks, and the Ford Motor Company agreed to develop a two-man light tank for the U.S. Army. Although 15,000 were ordered, only fifteen were built due to the ending of the war.

Compared to other weaponry, the tank was the fastest developing weapon system in warfare. From a non-existent beginning, the tank went from concept to the decisive edge in WWI. In years following, American engineering perfected the tank into what it is today, a high-tech, super mobile and deadly war machine.

A7V tank photo Greg Crockett Collection
All other photos U.S. Army