The Little Willie Landship became the world's first amored fighting vehicle of any importance. By Staff Writer
The idea of a tracked armored fighting vehicle was put into practical military thought thanks to the ushering of one Winston Churchill in the early rounds of World War One. Having assembled together thinkers for his "Landship Committee" in early 1915, his group undertook the task to generate feasible operational abilities for an armored "bath" type system that could capably carry combat-ready infantrymen into war under the protection of armor and take on enemy machine gun positions equally as well.
Based on designed from peacetime tractors, the idea gained steam in other British circles of thought. As a result, a prototype armored vehicle was rolled out by Fosters of Lincoln in the United Kingdom by 1916. This particular 18-ton system - now dubbed "Little Willie" - was fitted with a turret, was completely armored and tracked, standing just over 10 feet tall. The exterior was basic at best when compared to today's armored fighting machines, sporting a crude riveted exterior, featureless surfaces and a rudimentary tracked system.
Weaponry for the Little Willie consisted of a 2-pdr main gun of the 40mm variety. Additionally, a provision for a .303 caliber Maxim machine gun was also added with the option of mounting additional .303 caliber Lewis machine guns to boot. Crew accommodations ranged from two standard to an additional two or four gunnery personnel. The twin tractor wheel additions at rear were used as a rudder-type appendage, allowing the Little Willie Landship to complete wide turns.
When it was ultimately found through trials that the system could not capably maneuver the trenches encountered throughout World War One warfare, the Willie Landship idea was dispensed with. Nonetheless, the thinking and development information garnered through the Little Willie lived on in future tank designs throughout the war and with it, the word “tank” would forever be associated with the steel battlefield systems that we know of today. The age of the tank had arrived and would propel warfare in a whole new direction by the end of the century.
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Armored Vehicle Quick Profile
Image Courtesy of Dan Alex.
1915
Designation:Little Willie Landship Classification Type:Infantry Fighting Vehicle Contractor:Fosters of Lincoln - UK Country of Origin: United Kingdom Number Built: 1
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