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The CLB 75 Tank
The CLB 75 is not what it seems. The photograph above was taken during a
California
National Guard exercise which was widely publicised but the tank featured at its centre is little more than a tractor encased in stamped sheet metal.
Developed by the C.L. Best Tractor Company of San Francisco, the CLB 75 is based on the chassis of a CLB 75hp ‘Tracklayer’/’Autotractor’. It had a sheet metal outer-skin and a rounded turret. It’s an eye-catching design, like something straight out of an H.G.Wells novel.
A C.L. Best Autotractor, the basis of the CLB 75 (source)
The tank has a set of tracks and a front steering wheel. The CLB 75 appears to be bristling with a pair of cannons and at least two machine guns in the turret. The CLB 75 was what is often described as a ‘parade tank’, an impractical tank designed as a showpiece for parades at home rather than in the field on the frontline. Similar parade tanks were built on Holt and Caterpillar tractors. This particular example even features in Pathe newsreel where it’s described as a ‘land dreadnought’ and shown in mock attacks mounted during National Guard exercises.
In reality during the First World War the US developed or produced three actual tanks: the M1917 Light Tank - based on the French Renault FT, the Ford M1918 3-Ton Tank and the MKVIII ‘International’ heavy tank. While none of those saw action during the war they were more practical, actual armoured fighting vehicles than the parade tanks like the CLB 75.
This photograph shows troops from the US Army’s Tank Corps (National Army), not to be confused with the Tank Corps of the American Expeditionary Force, in France. The US arm of the Tank Corps was based at Camp Colt near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The photograph was taken in June 1917, and shows troops learning how to use the various guns mounted in Allied light and heavy tanks.
From foreground to background we have a 37mm canon (the French Canon d'Infanterie de 37 modèle 1916 TRP) which was mounted in the FT light tank, a Hotchkiss Mle 1914, mounted in most French tanks, next is an M1917 Marlin Rockwell tank machine gun (which had an improved gas system designed by
Carl Swebilius) which was planned to be mounted in US-built tanks. Next to the Marlin is the gun it evolved from, the Colt-Browning M1895, (likely present for comparison purposes) and finally is a Lewis Gun, mounted in several types of British heavy tanks.
Interestingly, there is no Hotchkiss M1909 Benét–Mercié present, which at the time was in the US inventory and was also in use by the British as the Hotchkiss Mark I/I* Portative and was used in a number of British tanks including the Medium Whippet MkI. The US entered the war with no tanks of its own and the Tank Corps in the US was without tanks of its own for much of the war, while the AEF’s Tank Corps used a mixture of British and French tanks and did see action in Autumn 1918.
During World War One massive railway guns were used to reach deep behind enemy lines and attack enemy infrastructure with both sides using the massive artillery pieces. In this Armourer’s Bench video I take a look at some archival footage of America’s massive railway guns ranging from 10 to 16 inches.
I found this amazing archival footage while doing some research in the US National Archives’ online catalogue. So thought I’d put together this short video showcasing some of these massive guns in action.
These amazing photographs of a 12 inch coastal defence battery in action show troops learning how to operate the massive 12 inch M1895 coastal defence gun. Taken in 1918 at the Fort Monroe Coastal Artillery School in Virginia (except for the first photograph which was taken at Key West Naval Station). Guns like these remained relevant throughout the first half of the 20th century and even during World War Two the US was building coastal gun emplacements.
The M1895 was the US’ primary coastal defence gun at the turn of the 20th century. They were in service from 1895, through both World Wars, to 1945. Manned by the US Army’s Coast Artillery Corps they protected seaports and strategic positions along the US coastline and aboard at American bases in the
Philippine Islands.
Here’s some newsreel footage of some 12 inch guns in action in 1943:
The guns has a barrel nearly 37 feet (12m) long and could throw a ~1,000lb (450kg) shell up to 30,000 yards (27km). Initially mounted on disappearing carriages (as seen in the photographs above) in coastal forts and some were later mounted on railway carriages during World War One. The gun’s weighted nearly 60 tons and were designed and built at the Watervliet Arsenal in New York. Bethlehem Steel designed and built the M1895′s disappearing carriages.
In these photographs we can see the gun in its various states with it appearing over the parapet and ready to fire, then it being fired before it recoiled back into the casement where its crew could reload it with some protection. Once loaded it would be raised up again, aimed and fired. It could fire up to twice a minute with a well trained crew.
This week’s TAB video is a short one from my first trip to the range with a Remington M1917. Basically just getting a feel for the rifle and seeing how the zero was. We’ll have a more in-depth look at this rifle in the future, along with some videos on the M1917’s British predecessors. There’s a short accompanying blog here.
Full-length episode next week, which I think will be the 50th major Armourer’s Bench episode! Thanks for watching.
I came across a pair of sketches of US tanks and infantry in action by Captain George Harding. George Matthews Harding was a painter and illustrator who acted as an official US war artist during World War One. Harding had previously been a writer and illustrator with The Saturday Evening Post and Harper’s Monthly.
The first sketch depicts a platoon of FT light tanks, armed with Hotchkiss machine guns, advancing near between Avocourt and Montfaucon, during the Battle of St. Mihiel. The sketch was submitted in September 1918, while the second shows troops following up another FT, armed with a 37mm cannon, during an attack near Esseu. The second sketch is undated.
The sketches are beautifully dynamic with crisp, accurate, detail in the foreground and an ethereal conveyance of the atmosphere of battle in the background. Harding was one of eight war artists sent with the American Expeditionary Force. During World War Two, he commissioned with the USMC and again acted as a war artist. He died in 1959, aged 77.
While searching for footage of the Ford M1918 Light Tank I came across some amazing video of Ford employees attempting to turn over a M1918 which had somehow flipped over.
Which begs the question, how many men does it take to flip a tank?
Check out my full video and article on the Ford M1918 Light Tank,here.
In April 1919, a US-built M1917 light tank, climbed Pikes Peak in Colorado. At the time the road up to Pikes Peak was said to be the ‘World’s Highest Motor Drive’. In terms of publicity having the tank make it up the mountain would have been quite a feat.
The purpose of the stunt was to encourage American’s to purchase ‘Victory Liberty’ War Bonds in an effort to pay of the US’ national debt accrued by the war. This was the fifth, and final, round of Liberty Bond sales, began in mid-April 1919, and aimed to sell $4.5 billion of government bonds.
We can see that on the front of the tank the words ‘Pike’s Peak or bust’ have been painted in white – this is a reference to a phrase coined by prospector’s during the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush of the 1860s. The woman seen in the photograph above, smashing a bottle of local mineral spring
water over the bow of the tank, is Mrs W.H.R. Stote, the chairwoman of Colorado
Springs’ Victory Liberty loan committee.
A Pathe Newsreel featuring some footage of the tank’s ascent (source)
The tank was driven by
Corporal Howard Brewer and tended by a crew of mechanics and support vehicles. The road which climbed the 14,115 feet tall mountain was unsurfaced and had only been completed in 1916. The tank’s ascent began on April 14 and incredibly over the next two days the tank climbed to 11,440 feet, 13 miles along the road and through several deep snow drifts before a track plate snapped. After repairs the tank and support convoy pressed on – but the tank never made it to the summit. Not because of mechanical failure but unbelievably because it was needed to appear in other Colorado towns as part of the victory loan drive.
While the tank may not have reached the very top of the mountain, it undoubtedly broke the elevation record for tanks and set an impressive new bench mark possibly as high as 12,000 feet.
Last week while doing some research with the US National Archive’s online catalogue I came across some amazing contemporary footage of the Ford M1918 and I decided to put this short documentary together. In the video I talk about the development, history and fate of America’s first tank.
The 3-Ton Ford M1918 Light Tank was the first tank to be entirely designed and built by the United States. A light and nimble armoured vehicle armed with a 30 calibre machine gun and powered by a pair of Ford Model T engines!
While the Imperial German Army’s T-Gewehr is relatively well know, it’s short-lived British counterpart is almost unknown. The Godsal Anti-Tank rifle, developed in 1918, represents an answer to a problem Britain did not yet face.
The name Philip Thomas Godsal is more frequently associated with another unusual firearm - the Godsal bullpup rifle developed in the early 1900s. Major Godsal was a British army officer, who joined the 52nd Light Infantry in 1869, eventually leaving the army in 1880. He became a well-known and respected rifle marksman winning a number of prestigious shooting competitions.
By 1918, it appears that working with Webley & Scott, who had also built his earlier bullpup prototypes, Godsal developed a bolt action rifle chambered in a large .5 inch calibre, perhaps as a response to the German T-Gewehr. At the time the rifle was being developed Godsal would have been around 68. It is unclear if the development of the rifle was a project requested or sanctioned by the British government or if it was a private commercial venture to be offered to the military when complete.
This rifle in particular is marked ‘1′ on its receiver and proof marked near its trunion with ‘.600/ 500′ referring to the British .600/500in round used in the early .5-inch aircraft Vickers machine guns before the switch to
12.7x81mm. The version of the round used with the Godsal used a bullet with a soft lead core.
The action seen in the photographs of the rifle held by the Royal Armouries’ collection bears a strong resemblance to an action patented by Godsal, in the US and UK, in 1914. It would seem that Godsal was able to scale up this action for use in a rifle chambered in a much larger cartridge.
The action appears to be a development of the one developed for use with his earlier bullpup rifles. In the anti-tank rifle the pistol grip and trigger have been moved back to a more conventional position and the anti tank rifle does not have a magazine and is likely a single shot weapon, much like its German counterpart. The prototype has a rather thin looking pistol grip made from a machined metal piece that extends from beneath the action, making up the the trigger guard and then projecting back down the wrist of the stock. This was no doubt to strengthen the wooden stock. The pistol grip itself has wooden panels held in place by a pair of screws. The buttstock looks to have a half inch thick butt pad, possible made from rubber, to aid with recoil.
The rifle’s sights are marked from 2 to 20, probably indicating a graduated range of up to 2,000 yards. The weapon has an exposed, dovetailed front sight.
Interestingly, the early .55 Boys Anti-Tank rifles, developed in the 1930s and eventually adopted by the British Army, had an almost identical muzzlebreak to the Godsal rifle.
The prototype appears to have a very large extractor on top of the bolt, held in place in a dovetail. Simpler but somewhat similar to that seen in the 1914 patent. Additionally corresponding to the patent is the location of what looks to be a safety catch on the right, top, side of the receiver. There are also signs that changes have been made to the prototype during development such as a scallop cut in the stock and receiver on the left, an exposed, empty slot and a number of holes drilled into the receiver. There is no sign of any wooden handguards being attached to the rifle and it likely used a bipod or a rest for testing.
It is likely that development of Godsal’s came to a halt when the First World War ended. With little money available for military research and development and no urgent need for an anti-tank rifle the project was probably shelved in early 1919. Godsal’s anti-tank rifle certainly intriguing and deserves to have its story investigated further. Godsal died in 1925, aged 75.
At about 2 am next morning in the dark the Germans tried to bomb us out of the two trenches leading from us to them (old communication trenches). The artillery on both sides opened rapid fire, the din was awful. The Germans then used liquid fire but fortunately failed to get any into the trenches. Our men were dropping in all directions, and I am grieved to say the following officers were killed - Aston, Hulton-Sams, Challoner, Birch and the Doctor (McCallum). The only thing that will comfort you (and which does comfort those of us who survive) is that our men were glorious and, even though the Durhams fell back on our left, they held their ground. We were in this woeful position all the following day - the 31st - and were crumped from three directions all the time. We had no food or water for forty-eight hours.
One incident I must tell you. When they used some liquid fire some of C Company (whose officers and NCOs were all knocked out) broke from about 30 yards of front and fell back (small blame to them). The machine-gunners (under Sergeant Silver) who were just in the rear, yelled to them that if they did not go back to the line they would open fire on them and that the 6th Cornwall’s were going to “bloody well stick it”. So the few men of C Company re-occupied their line of trench.
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An account of a German flamethrower (liquid fire) attack on the 6th Battalion, the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry on the 30th-31st July 1915 near Zouave Woods in the Hooge sector, near Ypres.
A later photo of a German Kleinflammenwerfer in action in 1917 (source)
The account comes from a latter from the battalion’s adjutant, Lieutenant Blagrove (who was subsequently killed in action on 12th August 1915), to his commanding officer, Colonel T.R. Stokoe. The flamethrowers must have been terrifying weapons to men trapped defending trenches with little room to move.
Hey guys, here’s my latest TAB video, this week I’m taking a look at the British 2in Trench Mortar. The British Army entered the First World War with no light mortars. As the stalemate of trench warfare set in and the effectiveness of German Minenwerfers became clear it was decided that trench mortars of various sizes would be needed.
Nicknamed ‘plum pudding’ or ‘toffee apple’ mortars after their projectile’s characteristic shape, the 2 inch Medium Mortar or 2 inch Trench Howitzer, was one of Britain’s first effective light trench mortar, introduced in 1915.
I think this might be the only video around to take a look at a 2in Trench Mortar, which is cool! You can find the full accompanying blog about the plumb pudding mortar over on the Armourer’s Bench’s site, here.
Hey guys, here’s my latest TAB video, this week I’m taking a look at the British 2in Trench Mortar. The British Army entered the First World War with no light mortars. As the stalemate of trench warfare set in and the effectiveness of German Minenwerfers became clear it was decided that trench mortars of various sizes would be needed.
Nicknamed ‘plum pudding’ or ‘toffee apple’ mortars after their projectile’s characteristic shape, the 2 inch Medium Mortar or 2 inch Trench Howitzer, was one of Britain’s first effective light trench mortar, introduced in 1915.
I think this might be the only video around to take a look at a 2in Trench Mortar, which is cool! You can find the full accompanying blog about the plumb pudding mortar over on the Armourer’s Bench’s site, here.
Introduced in early 1917, the Newton 6-inch Mortar replaced the earlier British 2-inch ‘toffee apple’ Trench Mortar. It fired a 52lb or 24kg high explosive shell. It was used by both the British Empire and the US.
Like the 2-inch Trench Mortar it replaced the Newton was manned by men of the Royal Field Artillery and formed part of a divisions artillery. They were deployed close to the frontline and were often used to support attacks or destroy enemy wire.
Canadian troops operating a Newton 6-inch Mortar, c. Nov 1918 (source)
The mortar was designed by Captain H. Newton in 1916, and was produced in both Britain and the US. Over 2,500 were produced before the end of the war. It had an effective range of up to 1,400 yards and a well trained crew could fire up to 8 rounds per minute.
The bomb used Amatol, Ammonal or Sabulite explosive and was detonated, not by an ignition system like the 2-inch mortar, but by a blank .303 cartridge included in the base of the mortar bomb. It was propelled by a variable cordite charge. After the war the Newton was subsequently declared obsolete with the lighter Stokes 3-inch mortar remaining in service during the inter-war period.
The Adventures of Springfield M1903 Serial Number #1
I recently had the chance to co co-wrote an with researcher Andrew Stolinski of the Archival Research Group. We traced the history of the first Springfield M1903 (serial number #1) ever built. Normally the first of a new rifle made would have spent its life in a museum but it somehow M1903 #1 was different.
Somehow it made it into the hands of a US soldier who took it all the way to France in 1918! In the article we follow the rifle’s journey using documentary sources including enrollment documents, morning reports, shipping manifests and Ordnance Department memos.