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Tank Mk I (Big Willie / Centipede / Mother)

1916 WORLD WAR 1

History of Panzer Mk I (Big Willie/Centipede/Mother)

Britain pioneered armoured warfare during World War I - they produced the world's first practical main battle tank in 1916. Under the British Admiralty and Admiralty Secretary Winston Churchill, early work began on the production of the 1915 limited edition tank evolution land ship HMS Little Willie. Little Willie showed that a more sophisticated tracked armored vehicle design could be used to be effective over a larger range. While Little Willie was essentially a prototype, subsequent designs were being built as early as late September 1916. The design was originally called the "centipede", although the "mother" was later closely associated with the existence of the type.

It is also called "Big Willie" by some due to its relationship to the previous design. In any case, the full title is "His Majesty's Land Ship, Tank Mk I". The word "tank" was used to disguise the true nature of the animal to encourage a non-military role in the design as an industrial water tank.

While Little Willie was designed to span a 5-foot-wide ditch, its design approach failed. His track laying skills are very limited (this is from an agricultural tractor chassis). Plus, with a top speed of just two miles per hour, interior space for machines, people, and weapons is limited at best. The new design features a diamond shape with a pair of long track systems extending the length of the hull. The rails will cross the hull level and descend to the front of the craft, where it will then continue under the land craft itself and repeat its journey.

This way, the vehicle may have a better chance of crossing wider trench openings. The hull is located between the rail system and contains the transmission, engine and fighting compartment.

Readers should be aware of the importance of ditch carts. After months of fighting that began in the summer of 1914, the trench warfare began. The war began with a fluid momentum when German ground forces invaded and occupied Belgium on their way to Paris, France. Only when a successful counterattack brought the advance to a standstill did both sides begin to form trenches to protect their respective areas.

All sides built a vast network of trenches on the Western Front that could be used offensively and defensively or driven out of opponents as needed. As both sides prepare for the long battle ahead, engineers set out to work on weapons that could pass the favor of one opponent to the other.

These projects eventually showed some value in poison gas, flamethrowers, automatic weapons, fighter jets, bombers and - of course - land ships. This landing ship is basically the equivalent of a land-based battleship, hence its name and origins from the British Admiralty.

A specially designed landing ship can be equipped with a variety of weapons, bring its crew into battle in relative safety, and attack the enemy from a distance. Additionally, the heavily armored nature of the vehicles will allow them to break through enemy obstacles such as barbed wire, mounds, shell craters and trenches.

The Mk I tank was designed to traverse trenches approximately 12 feet wide, although 9 feet proved more practical. Its diamond-shaped design inspired several future British main battle tanks to appear during the war, and it itself evolved the concept of armored warfare, like the Little Willie before it.

Weapons would not be mounted on rotating turrets (as proposed in the Little Willie design), but rather on lateral stations, on flanks that protrude from either side of the track. This design quality is very singular in its approach (from a modern point of view), but the reason for the sponsor is its ability to engage enemy forces in the trenches.

Transverse turrets mounted on top of the fuselage would not have a lower height to deal with this threat. Since the primary goal of tanks is to repel enemy forces, the ability to engage them at lower levels is the key to success. Weapons can range from cannons to machine guns, or both. The main armament of the Mk I is the 2 x 57mm (QF 6lb) field gun.

The machine gun is an 8mm Hotchkiss type.

Over time, however, attempts have been made to protect land ships from infantry (via grenades or anti-tank weapons) because the design incorporated natural blind spots in its arc of fire. In this way, the Mk I was split into two final versions - the first being a "male" with a cannon, and the second a "female" with a machine gun. A male will then move along his route, assisted by a female gunship for protection. Working in this way, the Mk Is can advance in rhythm, covering all possible arcs of engagement.

In the end, half of the finished Mk I tanks were male and the remaining 50% were female.

Evaluation of the Mk I prototype began on 16 January 1916. Operational testing took place over the next few weeks, proving the design to be reliable despite its complex inner workings. The engines are far from reliable, which will demonstrate their weakness in tank durability. The fighting compartment had to have experts to manage the delicate nature of the open-air power plant.

Steering is assisted by a two-wheel rudder at the stern, and power is provided by a Daimler 6-cylinder 105 hp engine. The total weight is 28 tons (the female version is one ton lighter). Armor protection from 6mm to 12mm thick.

In February 1916, the British government, understanding the potential value of armoured vehicles in combat, and perhaps partly desperate to end bloody trench warfare, ordered 100 Mk I tanks.

Discovering that armored warfare itself presents many problems never seen in modern warfare. Crew with no experience in shore-based ship operations need to be trained by someone with no military experience. The concept proved too new, and the crew quickly discovered the rather ruthless nature of armored warfare in these new steel beasts.

Since the engine was placed in the center of the fighting compartment without any cover or muffler, the working conditions were very noisy. Besides being a factor (harmful to crew communication), noise can also release toxic fumes for the entire crew.

Since the ventilation inside these steel tanks is already poor, this adds to the rather deadly consequences. The open-air nature of the engine at least allowed unimpeded access to the engine in the event of a breakdown - something that proved common on early tanks.

Another notable design flaw of the early tanks was the lack of suspension, which, as you can imagine, caused many occupants to get injured while driving when you were driving over rough terrain.

The Mk I required a crew of 8, and due to interior noise levels, communication was achieved by hand gestures or body slaps. Communication with external forces is managed by carrier pigeons or runners. A crew of four steers and brakes the tank, while the rest manage gun or engine functions.

WW1 tanks suffered all kinds of lethality. Chief among them were enemy artillery, and tanks offered little protection. Early tanks also had too thin armor to withstand even machine gun attacks, and their designs incorrectly included firing traps. The direct impact of the shells could also send rivets and shrapnel flying through the interior of the vehicle, causing unimaginable carnage to the occupants. There are also no gas defenses, which require workers to wear clumsy masks and protective clothing - already in a cramped, hot and smelly environment.

Using gasoline to fuel the engine, a direct hit could easily start an internal fire and burn the crew alive.

The enemy soon developed its own anti-tank measures in the form of grenade attacks, mines, armor-piercing shells, flamethrower attacks and special anti-tank rifles. Each has its own limitations and benefits, but few can make any difference in stopping the Combined Steel Forces.

Shell attacks were partially repelled by installing a rough mesh system on the hull, the shape of which allowed the shells (which were cylindrical in nature) to roll off approaching tanks. At some key crossroads, the Germans even designed "tank forts", equipped with a pair of field guns and defended by machine guns. Having said that, the trench network can simply be built over a wider area than the Mk I can easily traverse.

Eventually, methods were developed whereby the Germans would "thrown" Allied tanks into predetermined "death zones" through minefields, trenches and artillery fire.

Despite all these dangers, the greatest threat to World War I tanker crews was engine unreliability. The Mk Is proved to be notorious for their field mistakes, and their first engagements were limited success at best. The two-wheel rudder attachment was found to be of little value and was therefore removed from future production as braking on one side of the track and driving on the other was found to be a more efficient method of turning.

Many examples were dropped in shell craters due to pilot error or some design limitation.

The Mk I tank took part in the first tank operation in history in 1916, albeit with limited terrain. In the early operations, the German infantry simply retreated, rather than confronting these steely threats head-on. In any case, the age of tanks has come, and other designs will soon follow. Hundreds of people ended up taking part in massive land operations to end World War I. On September 15, 1916, about 50 Mk I tanks were available as part of the Somme Offensive, although only 32 were in service, 21 of which were actually used in combat.

The goal was to form a 5-mile front with the Germans leading to the town of Fleurs. The tanks moved on, breaking through the barbed wire defenses, over the ditches, and wiping out the village's sturdy defenders with artillery fire.

The value of land ships as combat vehicles - especially in combination with close air support and effective artillery fire - was highlighted. While some Tan Mk Is inevitably gave way to mechanical unreliability and others mired in soft terrain, the land vehicle remained, and the nominal success led to more such orders being ordered over the next few months. product.

Ultimately, it was the British will and foresight to design, develop and produce these landing ships that returned the initiative to the Allies. The Germans reached an armistice in November 1918 that ended in humiliation, setting the stage for World War II.

Thousands of tanks were produced during the war, but ultimately it was the British who paved the way. But if the Germans played the same role, the tide of World War II would undoubtedly change.

About 150 Mk I tanks were produced, many were abandoned due to mechanical failures or lost in battle. Production included an initial order of 100 cars, 25 of which were supplied by the Fosters of Lincoln and the remaining 75 by the Metropolitan Carriage & Wagon Company.

The Mk I Tank Tender has a heavy duty mobile supply vehicle version that sponsors take out of their guns and seal. Likewise, the unarmed Mk I Wireless is a roving command post identified by an antenna mast.