WW1 Tank Gallery - Battlefrontmodels

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WW1 Tank Gallery

The following Photographs and information have been donated by Battlefrontmodels Customers over the years they range from basic to customised RC tanks and vehicles to heavily modified models. All images and data are copyright to the Members and BFM

Early History

These few archive photo's below show the very beginnings of the first tank developed by the British Army to combat the 'Trench War' stalemate, developed in secret from early track laying horticultural tractor vehicles. To keep them secret they were termed 'Tanks' by the Government for security reasons the manufacturers were told they were 'Water Storage Tanks' hence the name stuck.
Even when the Germans caught on and started to develope there own vehicles they even called them 'Tanks' the word Panzer came later.

They quickly developed from an unreliable box on tracks to a potent killing machine manufactured to do many specialised rolls in the First World War, after 1918 the developement of the tank still moved onto what we have today. The Tank today is still deemed the Queen of the Battlefield if used correctly, being modified to keep up anti tank counter measures and re designed to be smaller, lighter, faster and more armoured with more and more automated systems to account for smaller crews sizes, as this also reduces the size of the tank.

The Soviet tanks of the 70's and 80's were some of the first to reduce crews by adding self loaders, thus reducing height. And the actual physical size of the crews were also taken into consideration no one taller than 5ft -4 ins. and in some cases women crews were trialed anything to make the modern tank less of a target on the battlefield.

This machine quickly developed from an unreliable box on tracks potental to do many specialised rolls in the First World War, after 1918 the developement of the tanks in all countries increased to what we have today.

Many 21st century Tanks are now of a 'Modular Design' take for instance the German Leopard 2A6 this tank makes short work of repair and service in the field, no longer combat engineers have to remove the troubled engine and strip them down under fire by the roadside, but simply remove the whole rear section of the tank in one piece, engine, gearbox, radiators and hydraulics etc. And simply 'plug in' new factory reconditioned unit supplied by a special vehicle and on a special pallet.

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Above: One of the Early MK 1 British R&D Tanks known as 'Little Willy'
Developed by Winston Churchill who was then at the time Lord of the Admiralty, headed the committee to design a vehicle that would be armoured and self track laying to break the trench stalemate

The early British Tank factory near Thetford on the Norfolk Suffolk border of the UK R&D tanks were made under extreme secrecy, (origonally an horticultural tractor factoy) and when moved to the proving grounds a 25 square exclusion zone was posted and all residends were moved out and a 'no go' zone was issued by the Government.

Above: Possibly a MK 2 British Tank with a Soldier standing at front to give a size of scale.

Above: Later MK 3 or 4 British Tanks note the starting resemblance of a more smoother designed vehicle, with less rivets later models were called Male tanks with Side Sponson and Canon and Female tanks with a host of machine guns only for trench clearance purposes.

Early British Mk4 with simple sponson's and ex naval canons fitted.
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Early British Tanks were plagued by constant breakdowns, with crews of up to ten men, in cramped conditions, carbon monoxide fumes from the engines and bad ventilation caused poisoning of the crews, and thin armour to name a few early down sides.

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The idea of the modern tanks was seen by the Levavasseur Project (Above: image left) and the H G Wells (image right) The Land Ironclads Stories from the Strand Magazine in Dec 1903

The Levavasseur Project (Above) basically a simple tractor without a Citadel and Gun at this stage but just to test tracks and engines but in secret.

Other versions (Above) were tried including this steam powered tractor from Hornsby known as the Hornsby crawler tractor made by Richard Hornsby and Son's of Grantham, Lincolnshire UK. who specialised in Farm Machinery before the conflict.

A MK 5 Tank with sloping sponsons are early attempts to stop bullet penetration and reduce dangerous spalding inside by using deflection techniques with the steel armour.
Above also the MK 4 Driving position Left: and Shell bays and Running Gears

Can be seen at the Tank Museum, Bovington.

https://www.tankmuseum.org

ABOVE: A MK II Tank with a higher driving - observation cabin, early signs of a turret perhaps?

Rear of a Trapezoid shaped WW1 tank showing transmission covers,
armoured gearbox etc.

Above: WW1 tanks being secretly loaded onto rail cars ready for the sponsons
and canon's to be fitted at the armaments facility.

WW1 German A7V tanks early attempts at copying the British but even they had problems of breakdowns etc.
Lots of British tanks broke down in combat and the crews had to abandon them so the German army had time to get a good look at these vehicles. Above: Left is Maphisto and Above Right is the German Wotan, Centre is a colour drawing of an A7V.
The Germans never produced many tanks only 16 - 20 were made, but they were dam good at dealing with them, at the end of the war the Allies only had 8 tanks left in useable condition.

Below: Is an archive film based photo of a captured MK 2 British Tank being driven along a Berlin city road to show the people of this early Trophy vehicle.

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Above is a view of an early WW1 US skeleton tank developed for crew training, design problems parked outside a depot about 1915'

Above is a view of an early WW1 a stretched version
of the Mk1 and Mk2's, slightly longer and designed to span ever wider German Trench Ditches, note there are also two normal size tanks parked just behind in the court yard to give scale, somewhere in France.

Above is a French Renault P17 two man Light tank about 1916.
Driver sits at the front and MG operator in the turret behind him.The Americans used these tanks from the get go.

Above is a Renault two man Tank being opearated by the American Army about 1916.

Above is a British 'Whippet' Tank (Rear View) 1918.
Notice how the track layout is starting to develope with drive sprockets,
idlers and bogeys.

Note the primative armoured Machine Gun Citadel at the rear.

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A British MK 1 with Troop Minders in No Mans Land.

Above: British MK 4 Tank 'Hyacinth' of Battalion H Tank Corps stuck in a German Second Line Trench, one mile west of Ribencourton 20th. Nov 1917.

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A Captured Brit Tank being used by German Forces

This British Tank is being used by the Germans quality always wins out.

A British tank fording a trench system somewhere on the Front

United States Army Tank Group being deployed on Flatcars 1917 at Vadelaincourt, France.

A Lone British Tank working it's way through a Barbed Wire Field ''The Devils Rope'' the Tank was developed for two main reasons -

1, To cross and break up Barbed wire for infantry to follow.

2. To cross trench systems under fire, and penetrate the enemy rear lines producing havoc.

Doing trials on the 'America' a Steam driven Tank developed in the USA
in 1918 and developed by the Massachusetts Intitute of Technology (MIT).

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Three types of WW1 French 'Schneider' Tanks

1917 USMC 'Best' manufacture track layer tank.Notice the early signs of a rotating turret and rounded armour to aid enemy shot deflection.

USMC Studabaker Tank - model 1918

Above: Two other USMC Studabaker Tanks - model 1917 - 1918

Above: WW1 Tank with specialised Camo pattern, reminds me of ships dazzle painting technique, a rare colour photo.

Above: Early Tank with Troop Escort being prepared for the Front

Above: Burning Tank in No Mans Land WW1

Above: French Tanks at St. Chamond in Formation

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DID YOU KNOW

Contrary to Popular opinion about the M4 Sherman Tank of WW2 being branded a 'Death Trap' for every Sherman hit and 'Knocked Out' only 1.2 soldiers (out of 5) were killed in them.

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British damaged Tanks on the line being loaded onto flatcars and sent back to the factory for repair, the attrition rate was very high posible action time was only a few days at best, and some historians say that the Tracks only lasted for 10 miles of wear before needing replacements.

Above and Below: Fresh tanks to the Front Amiens.

British Tanks moving into a new sector, seen with captured German soldiers carrying wounded back to British Lines.

A British 6 pounder male Tank hauling itself up a steep slope with the Commander looking out of the top hatch, note the ruinins in the background.

BELOW: is a British Troop Carrier capable of carrying up to 30 Troops into battle.

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DID YOU KNOW

Lancelot Eldin de Mole 'Lance' CBE was an Australian engineer and inventer. He made several approaches to the British authorities in 1912, 1914 and 1916 with plans for a vehicle driven by a type of caterpillar track, believing that they would have a military application.

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"Come Let Me Show You Where The Iron Crosses Grow"

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