In World War I, which country first developed tanks?

As a mobile and effective combat tool, the tank has played a decisive role in almost all ground battles since it came out, which is beyond doubt. However, who was the first person to invent the tank has always been controversial.

American businessman challenge

Although many people in history had the idea of making armored vehicles similar to modern tanks, people finally attributed the credit for inventing tanks to Ernest Swinton, an Englishman.

19 14 10 in June, the European battlefield was deadlocked in World War I. Lieutenant Colonel Swinton, who is serving in the British Expeditionary Force, proposed that it is necessary to build an armored vehicle that can open the way on the battlefield covered with barbed wire, cross trenches, destroy and suppress machine gun fire, so as to break the dull deadlock on the Western Front.

It is reported that swinton was inspired by a letter from a friend. In his letter, this friend described the American "Holt" agricultural tractor as "an American machine that can crawl like a devil", which led swinton to suggest making a heavy crawler tractor with cannons and machine guns. His suggestion was submitted to the British War Department on October 20th, 65438/KLOC-0. In fact, swinton just wants to assemble the existing machine parts together to assemble a new armored vehicle similar to a tractor.

However, there is another story about the invention of the tank: a tractor manufacturer from a small town in Minnesota, USA, had put forward the idea of making a similar tank device before swinton. It is said that he provided the British with detailed ideas and even blueprints, and the British made the first tank on the basis of his ideas. The American manufacturer was Edwin wheelock, then the general manager of Pioneer Tractor Company in Winona, Minnesota. He claimed that he had been committed to the invention and research of this armored vehicle, which was written two months before Swinton put forward the idea. He also claimed that because he wanted to sell the armored car to the British, he provided his plan to the British, but it was secretly used by the British.

According to wheelock, in August of 19 14, he was trying to win a commercial contract for his tractor company in Calgary, Canada. Whether this contract can be signed depends on whether Britain declares war on Germany. If it declares war, its business negotiations will be terminated. On his way back to Winona, he tried his best to find products that could replace tractors and sell them to Europe. At this time, he came up with the idea of making armored combat vehicles. When he returned to Winona City two days later, his thoughts on this armored fighting vehicle were already in his mind. When he tried to find a customer for his armored fighting vehicle in Canada and failed, wheelock sent a sales representative Francis Lowe to Britain to promote their tractors, hoping to arouse the interest of the British Army in the design of its tracked armored vehicle.

In 1925, Lowe described his experience of that trip in detail: 19 15 In April, when he went to Europe to promote tracked armored vehicles, he took some blueprints of armored vehicles drawn by Mr. wheelock, which cost about 60,000 pounds. He met Colonel Loft holden, director of the Mechanical Transportation Department of the War Department in London. When Colonel holden learned that armored vehicles weighing just over 25 tons could be produced according to these designs, he couldn't wait to say, "Come on! Say it! This is another American invention that can win the war. It can destroy any bridge in Belgium. In addition, you Americans don't know that we drive on the left instead of on the right, which can also block traffic well. " Finally, Colonel holden introduced him to Major Wilson. Wilson took the plan and left a message saying that he would be informed if there was an order. But until the battle of the somme, they never got any news again. It is reported that in the Battle of the Somme, a funny-looking "cheese box" appeared on the battlefield, chasing and constantly running over the bodies of German soldiers.

As for whether Hui Defeng's statement is true or not, there is no way to verify it, because the record of this matter in American history can only show that some newspapers at that time tended to support Hui Defeng's statement. However, wheelock later built a unique skeleton tank for the US Army, which won him at least some credibility.

Huidefeng helped the British?

In fact, before Lowe went to England, the British had been trying to make swinton's suggestion come true. However, they have not been able to solve the problem of armored vehicles crossing roads and trenches. After Lowe's trip to England, the situation changed completely. Relevant people recalled that the design of the British chariot was still under the guidance of the "Landing Ship Committee", and it was not long before I heard that the tracked armored vehicle used for the experiment was obtained from the United States. At the same time, regarding the problems existing in the design, they learned from Mr. William Tritton of Foster Co., Ltd. (which made the first batch of tanks in Britain). At that time, Major Wilson, an experienced engineer, also participated in the work as a special consultant. The design was finally completed and the first tank came out. Is it really wheelock's plan that made Wilson and William Tritton?

Whether Lowe's vivid description of the event process is true or not is unknown. But if it is true, then Lowe may have really provided Major Wilson with plans and blueprints, and these plans and blueprints later helped the British solve the flexibility problem of armored vehicles, thus making Britain build the first tank. Because tractors at that time were all huge iron devices and did not have cross-country ability, it was really credible for a tractor designer to systematically explain the design of turning tank ideas into reality. Later, Major Wilson and Tritton won honors, largely because of these original design specifications. Of course, before the news report of the Battle of the Somme appeared in the United States, Huidefeng did not know the secret of Swinton's proposal and the development of British tanks, because it was strictly kept secret by the British government.

For his own business interests, as well as for the British government's bonus for tank inventors, Huidefeng once again sent his sales representative Luo to Britain. He wanted to find out why the British tanks were exactly the same as the mechanical devices he designed, but his company didn't get any orders. As a result, this trip got nothing. With his efforts, Lao finally met Tritton. Luo recalled, "At first, Tritton thought I was a reporter, so the conversation was casual. But when I asked him if he knew about holden and Wilson, he directly asked me what my real purpose was, and I told him that I wanted to win a prize of 1 10,000 pounds for the United States. And he replied that according to British law, only British inventors can win this invention award. "

So it's Britain