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The first tank-versus-tank action, near Villers-Bretonneux, 24th April 1918
The British developed the tank in an attempt to break the deadlock of the Western Front, where the infantry had to fight their way across the mud and shell-holes of no-man's-land to reach the enemy trenches. Tanks were used in action for the very first time in September 1916.
The Germans designed and built a handful of heavy tanks which they called the A7V. Several of these German tanks appeared at Villers-Bretonneux on 24th April 1918, taking prisoners. Near Cachy three A7Vs encountered a forward section of 1st Battalion, Tank Corps, consisting of one male Mark IV (armed with a pair of 6-pounder guns and light machine guns in sponsons on the sides), and two female Mark IVs (armed with two pairs of heavy machine guns). Outgunned, the two female tanks turned and withdrew, coming under enemy fire. The male tank, commanded by 2nd Lieutenant Frank Mitchell MC, threaded its way between the small isolated trenches. He engaged the enemy, scoring three direct hits with his left 6-pounder gun. The nearest German tank was evacuated before Mitchell turned his attention to engage the other two A7Vs.
The Mark IV carried a full crew of eight men, of whom four, including the commander himself, were needed to manage the various driving controls. The other four men worked the guns. The armour plate was only just thick enough to keep out machine-gun, rifle fire and shrapnel but a direct hit from a field gun was almost certain to destroy it completely.
My friend Geoffrey Vesey Holt, when a major in the Royal Tank Regiment, helped me with his detailed research into this action. I have modern photos of the scene, as well as contemporary battlefield maps. Behind a wire entanglement constructed 'apron-fashion', men of the 1st Worcesters line shallow, disjointed trenches, firing with Lewis guns and rifles at the advancing Germans in the mist. The two female Mk IVs are seen on the right, and just discernible through the mist is the church spire at Cachy. The German tanks are crossing the flat ground, which in April 1918 had only a few scattered shell craters.
The picture was commissioned by 1st Royal Tank Regiment.
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Printed image size(s): B2 only (58 x 38 cm)
Price(s): £70
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