Hi to one and all,This motto is almost instantly known as that of a innovation in warfare is of course :
“Through mud and blood to the green fields beyond”
Of course it belongs to the British Tank Corp so lets have a small amount of background in WW1:
When the first tanks were produced in 1916, they were manned by members of the Machine Gun Corps (badge here) formed into six companies which were collectively known as the Heavy Branch.
The very first battle involving tanks took place on the Somme. About thirty British Mark 1 tanks attacked German positions between the villages of Flers and Courcelette, on Friday 15 September 1916. The arrival of the tanks on the battlefield signalled the end of trench warfare, which had suffocated both sides in the 1914-18 conflict.
During this action the Press seized on a report from an aircraft crew, which said that "a tank is walking down the main street of Flers with the British Army cheering behind it." This was "D" Company, later the 4th Royal Tank Regiment.These companies were expanded to form battalions and were renamed the Tank Corps in 1917 (this badge)
The first battle between two opposing tanks took place near the village of Cachy on 24 April 1918. The German A7V tank Nixe (Lt Biltz), engaged three British Mark IV tanks, and damaged two, but was knocked out by the third, commanded by 2/Lt Frank Mitchell.
By December 1918 there were 26 battalions, and as well as serving in France, a detachment from the Corps had served under Allenby at Gaza, Palestine in 1917. The Corps saw almost continuous action, winning four VC'sThe crews of course were in the thick of the action in acrid smoke and cordite air suffocating on engine fumes with splinters red hot and lethal from the hits on the outside from shells, filthy dirty , each tank commanded by a very young 2nd Lt ...heroes all.
To honour the initial tanks all ranks wear the shape of the early tank on their badge and also on the right upper arm in cloth.
Beyond the battlefield were the headquarters staffed by officers all providing vital staff work to the commanders above them , staff officers were recognised by their gorget tabs worn on the uniform , they were at times looked down on by the fighting troops as having an "easier" war ...but the pressure of decisions made must have weighed heavily on them no matter what branch they were part of.
The more senior staff officers often had seen action in the Boer War as here:
Various branches wore distinctive armbands often with insignia and letters on them
( 2nd might have been US use )
The figure is based on this picture
The Staff is the subject of this release from Dolman :
Of course there are books about the war and the tanks involvement and don't forget in the UK we have the world famous Tank Museum at the home of the training units at Bovington in Dorset.....well worth a visit amazing displays and a wonderful WW1 section.
Continued in next post
Nap
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