LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
| PLATES | ||
|---|---|---|
| BIG WILLIE, MOTHER OR CENTIPEDE, ORIGINAL MARK I TANK | [Frontispiece] | |
| PLATE | FACING PAGE | |
| I. | LITTLE WILLIE AND MARK IV TANK (FEMALE) | [26] |
| II. | GROUND OPERATED OVER BY TANKS DURING THE BATTLE OF MESSINES, SHOWING PRELIMINARY BOMBARDMENT ON JUNE 5, 1917: AND GROUND OPERATED OVER BY TANKS IN AUGUST 1917, DURING THE THIRD BATTLE OF YPRES | [122] |
| III. | MEDIUM MARK “A” TANK (WHIPPET) | [176] |
| IV. | FRENCH SCHNEIDER TANK AND FRENCH ST. CHAMOND TANK | [186] |
| V. | MARK V TANK (MALE) | [204] |
| VI. | FRENCH RENAULT TANK AND GERMAN TANK | [214] |
| VII. | GUN CARRIER AND MARK V STAR TANK (FEMALE) | [220] |
| DIAGRAMS | ||
| 1. | SCOTTISH WAR CART, 1456 | [3] |
| 2. | VALTURIO’S WAR CHARIOT, 1472 | [5] |
| 3. | HOLZSCHUHER’S BATTLE CAR, 1558 | [6] |
| 4. | SIMON STEVIN’S LANDSHIP, 1599 | [7] |
| 5. | THE APPLEGARTH TRACTOR, 1886 | [10] |
| 6 and 6A. | THE BATTER TRACTOR, 1888 | [12] and [13] |
| 7 to 15. | TANK TACTICS | [75] and [77] |
| 16. | GERMAN ARTILLERY TACTICS | [115] |
| MAPS | ||
| I. | THE BATTLE OF ARRAS, APRIL 9, 1917 | [84] |
| II. | THE SECOND BATTLE OF GAZA, APRIL 17, 1917 | [100] |
| III. | THE BATTLE OF MESSINES, JUNE 7, 1917 | [110] |
| IV. | THE THIRD BATTLE OF YPRES, JULY 31, 1917 | [120] |
| V. | THE BATTLE OF CAMBRAI, NOVEMBER 20, 1917 | [146] |
| VI. | THE BATTLE OF SOISSONS, JULY 18, 1918 | [192] |
| VII. | THE BATTLE OF HAMEL, JULY 4, 1918 | [206] |
| VIII. | THE BATTLE OF MOREUIL, JULY 23, 1918 | [208] |
| IX. | THE BATTLE OF AMIENS, AUGUST 8, 1918 | [222] |
| X. | GENERAL MAP | [End of Volume] |
TANKS IN THE GREAT WAR
CHAPTER I
THE ORIGINS OF THE TANK
In war the main problem to solve is—“How to give blows without receiving them”; it has always been so and is likely always to remain so, for battles are two-act tragedies: the first act consisting in hitting and the second in securing oneself against being hit.
If we look back on the 4,000 years of the known history of war, we shall find that its problems are always the same: thus in battle the soldier has to think of four main acts:
(i) How to strike his opponent when at a distance from him;
(ii) How to move forward towards him;
(iii) How to strike him at close quarters;
(iv) How to prevent himself being struck throughout the whole of this engagement.