"At the beginning of the war, there was a stalemate both at sea and on land. There were both strategic reasons and equally important mechanical reasons. Due to the threat of mines and torpedoes, the most powerful fleet also lost its ability to attack. Due to the use of machine guns, the most powerful army

It is also impossible to advance. The warships were sunk by underwater explosions when entering the attack position, and the soldiers were shot down by continuous bullets during the attack. This is the source of the disaster that caused our confusion... The army will be frustrated, and everyone will suffer. This

That is the crux of the problem of war...we must find some way to prevent...soldiers from unnecessarily exposing their chests to machine gun fire...any one of the countless strings of bullets fired by machines can penetrate the human body.

This is a very clear scourge and abhorrent fact that cannot be ignored in the slightest. If we want to fight the war and win the victory, we must overcome it. This solution, which seems to be very simple, has been implemented for many months or even several years.

Over the course of several years, he was scornfully rejected and ignored by many leading figures in the two major military camps.

...To briefly talk about its basic principle, it is... to put a thin steel plate between the human body and the approaching bullet.

This was one of the great secrets of the war of 1915 and the world of 1915. But few believed it at the time. This vital, priceless gift from God lay in the dust for everyone to see, but almost all the important responsible authorities

But it turned a blind eye. Those who saw it—soldiers, sailors, pilots and civilians—were of a different kind, unable to sway orthodoxy. They had to fight a long and thankless struggle to convert the authorities.

, prompting the authorities to take action. They finally succeeded.

...For the Army, this process is even more painful. Ironclad ships and "wrapped ships" or "hard-shelled ships" are the vanguard of the mine-proof fleet, while tanks are the vanguard of the bullet-proof force. Once these two inventions are solved,

Difficulties in application, the more powerful navy and army will be able to regain the offensive power deprived of them due to the development of new equipment. However, when ironclads, "hard-shell ships" and tanks are designed, manufactured and placed on the sea,

Before the attention of the army commanders, their usefulness was mostly neglected. Ironclads - the prototypes of which were undoubtedly very imperfect - were not further developed and were never used as part of the naval attack force. Tanks

They were indistinguishably exposed to the enemy before they were numerous enough to have a decisive effect. Nonetheless, the tanks were retained to function.

…Then we considered armored vehicles. Only later did we think of tanks. In the second week of October 1914, we were at this point in the chain of cause and effect.

...On February 13, 1915, as the sample showed that it met the requirements, I ordered 30 vehicles to be customized. By May 1915, the first of these vehicles with a bridge structure was tested by the War Department. At that time it was rejected.

The reason is that it cannot drive down a 4-foot-high slope, nor can it cross 3-foot-deep water (even by the end of the war, no tank could achieve this result), and it cannot complete other extremely demanding and shocking tasks.

Annoying test. However, before this test, my order for 30 vehicles had been canceled because by that time we had received a better design from a completely different agency. This was the first attempt during the war to build a vehicle that could cross

Thus ended the trench fighting or so-called "tank" effort."

"Memoirs of the First World War" by Winston Churchill

In London in 1915, the war sweeping across Europe entered its second year. In this year, the emergence of trenches, barbed wire, and machine guns plunged the long Western Front, which stretched for thousands of kilometers, into a new war situation - trenches.

If the stalemate of the war is broken, it has become the most important issue before all military experts. The heavy artillery, which once had high hopes, did not exert the power imagined by military experts in trench warfare...

As Lord of the Admiralty, Churchill originally did not need to consider the issue of land warfare. However, for such a "gentleman" who "puts the British Empire first", his thinking has already jumped out of the category of "navy" or "army"

, for him, the most important thing is to win this war for the British Empire.

In order to win the war, Churchill supported the development of any kind of "weapons that could help Britain win the war." For him, he knew that one of the greatest dangers facing Britain at this time was that the Germans might be making or preparing to make them.

All these amazing weapons meant that at any time the British Army might find themselves attacked in entirely new ways. So he suggested that the Army should emulate the Navy's commissions of officers, engineers, and other experts, and

It is located in the War Department to conceive various programs and review various proposals. When recommending the establishment of this committee, he even specifically "overstepped his authority" to reiterate: In most cases, it is impossible to conduct long-term tests in advance. If certain weapons

If the production of these weapons must be delayed until the demand is met, the production of these weapons must be carried out simultaneously with the testing of such weapons. The worst result of this is nothing more than a waste of a small amount of money.

"These short-sighted guys!"

In the Admiralty Building, Churchill looked at Lord Kitchener's reply and said angrily.

Two or three days after Asquith first received his letter, dated January 5, the Prime Minister personally placed it before Lord Kitchener and urged him to conduct an immediate study of what it contained.

Lord Kitchener fully agreed with my plan and handed it over to the Ordnance Office. This treatment effectively ruined the second effort to build a land battleship, and the plan was buried honorably in the archives of the War Office.

In the pile.

It is not known what the final outcome of the letter to the Prime Minister was, nor what measures were taken by the War Office; but the impression during the past few days was that no real progress had been made on his proposals, and that the military authorities were not at all convinced of the construction of that kind of machine.

feasibility and the value of that machine after it is manufactured.

However, in the following time, whenever the great pressure of the Navy Department and government official business provided an opportunity, he always had to consider this matter. Therefore, on the 19th, he sent another memorandum to the Administrator of the Air Force,

He was instructed to conduct some kind of experiment with a steam roller, with the purpose of using the weight of the roller to crush the enemy's trenches. Of course, Churchill had no professional knowledge about machinery, so he could only provide some suggestions, be responsible for raising funds, and give orders to conduct various experiments.

order. Although this particular experiment failed due to mechanical defects, it undoubtedly played an important role. It helped the Armored Corps officers and related experts to reach a consensus, and it provided a basis for the further search for more effective

Solutions provide imagination.

Three completely unrelated efforts were made to produce and operate this "Land Cruiser" vehicle. All of these efforts were ultimately wasted due to mechanical defects or official obstruction. This stalemate is likely to drag on indefinitely.

The French military authorities did not make a request for such weapons for many months; any such proposals made by civilian or other departments were rejected by the War Office. Then the Dardanelles campaign began, and Churchill

Almost all the time he was devoted to the important official duties of the Admiralty.

However, the Duke of Westminster, who commanded the armored car squadron and was himself a central figure in discussions of such topics, invited Churchill to dinner on February 17 with the intention of meeting several officers of the armored car squadron. During the dinner, the topic turned

Off-road armored vehicles, Major Hetherington also belonged to this armored vehicle squadron and was aware of several experiments that had been carried out. He expressed a strong and insightful view on the matter, advocating the construction of an unprecedented land warship....

After returning home from this conversation, Churchill determined that I should immediately give urgent orders to advance in one way or another the project in which I had always had deep faith. I thereupon directed Major Hetherington to submit his plans, which he then devised.

It was a platform mounted on a huge wheel with a diameter of 40 feet. Two days later, Churchill forwarded his plan to the First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord Fisher, urging him to devote a lot of energy and his mechanical ingenuity to the plan.

Implementations.

In addition, on the next day, the 20th, he also summoned Mr. Tennyson-Derncott, Chief Engineer of the Navy, and held a meeting that afternoon. Because Churchill was ill, the meeting was held in his bedroom in the Admiralty.

held there. The outcome of the meeting was the organization, on orders of Churchill, of an Admiralty Land and Ships Committee, chaired by Mr. Tennyson Durncott and reporting directly to him, who urged them to work with the utmost urgency, sparing no effort and resorting to all possible means.

to find solutions to problems.

"When land battleships appear, those short-sighted guys will be stunned!"

The so-called short-sightedness naturally refers to those army generals, in Churchill's view. As has been proved time and time again in British history - the Royal Navy saved Britain. This was true 100 years ago, and it is also true now.

One month later, that is, one month after the establishment of the Land and Ships Committee of the Admiralty, the chairman of the committee, Mr. Tennyson Durncott, once again came to the Office of the Lord of the Admiralty to report to Churchill.

"Your Excellency, the Land and Ship Committee has now developed two types of vehicles!"

"Two kinds?"

Churchill, with a cigar in his mouth, looked at Mr. Durncott in surprise. He did not expect that the speed would be so fast. In his opinion, if he wanted to make progress, he would probably have to wait for a while.

"That's right, Your Excellency Minister, the first one we designed is in the form of an armored car, but what's different from ordinary armored cars is that it uses large steel wheels, which can further enhance the armored car's passing ability. At the same time,

Not only are steel wheels no longer afraid of bullets and fragments, they can also crush barbed wire!"

While Dencott was reporting, Churchill was looking at the drawings on the committee's drawings. This large-wheeled armored car seemed to be good, and the wheels were nearly twice as large as before.

"There is another type that drives on crawlers,"

"track?"

As a mechanical layman, Churchill had never even heard of the word. He looked at another drawing and could vaguely guess what a "track" was.

"Yes, Your Excellency, this is made by us based on tractors made in the United States. American crawler tractors can be driven directly on farmland. I think this kind of crawler should be able to meet the needs of the battlefield! And it should be better than the former.

More effective!"

While making the report, Dencott emphasized again.

"Both of your vehicles are much smaller than Major Hetherington originally envisaged."

He nodded. Although he felt a little surprised, Churchill made his decision immediately.

"Mr. Dencott, the committee needs to estimate the time and cost immediately."

A few days later, after Durncott reported the production time and cost data to Churchill in the form of a memo, he just glanced at the memo and spoke to Chairman Durncott.

"I agree with your suggestion. The committee is now responsible for ordering 18 such vehicles, 6 of which are wheeled and 12 are tracked land battleships. But please keep it secret!"

Later, Churchill specifically emphasized the importance of "confidentiality". After seeing the bureaucracy in London, when making this decision, Churchill took personal responsibility for the expenditure of 70,000 pounds of public funds. He did not let

The willingness of the Navy leadership to share this responsibility with itself...

"Sir, should we inform the War Department?"

Dencott asked tentatively, after all, this is a project that requires the assistance of the Army.

"There is no need at all! You know, those guys in the Army will definitely oppose the Navy's intervention in this field, and the Ordnance Department is very disapproving of such ideas. We don't even need to notify the Ministry of Finance. If we notify the Ministry of Finance,

The Army will find that for us, the most important thing now is to build a land warship as soon as possible. Use facts to prove everything!"

Although what he said was natural, Churchill was very clear about the risks involved.

Spending such a large amount of money on such a risky project, and no high-level experts in the army or navy have affirmed the merits of this project, is a major decision that is no joke. What's more, this matter is entirely his.

Outside the scope of the department. Nor within his authority. If it turns out that the land battleship is completely abortive, unacceptable to the military or cannot be used in war, if he is questioned by a parliamentary committee on this matter, if he is accused of

By misusing public funds on a matter that has nothing to do with him and never seeking expert advice from the relevant military departments on the matter, he will certainly be unable to find an effective defense for himself.

"Your Excellency, if you fail..."

Facing Dencott's concern, Churchill took a deep breath from his cigar, then walked to the window and looked at the young people in military uniforms on the street. When he exhaled the smoke, he uttered some low words in his throat.

"Now, this war has claimed the lives of too many young people. The blood of a generation of young British people is being drained. As a British person, I must win the war for Britain at any cost, even if there are some violations, if

When the time comes, if I need to defend myself, my defense can only be based on the severe war situation and my personal confidence that it is necessary to break the deadlock in order to produce this vehicle."

Although Churchill's words were extremely upright, in the end, when he turned around and looked at Durncott, he added something else.

"But, Mr. Dencott, my defense will only be valid if this vehicle becomes a huge success!"

Then, he looked at Dencott, Britain's top mechanical expert, and said.

"Mr. Durncott, I believe that due to your high authority and superb expertise, this plan cannot be successful. Under your guidance, of course, Sir William Triton and Major Wilson made changes in the design and manufacturing process."

Their contribution. But the basis for my approval of the use of this public fund is your talent and knowledge and your guarantee that any mechanical difficulty you propose can be solved. Mr. Durncott, as long as you say something can be done, I am prepared to undertake it.
To be continued...