Armoured warfare

Armoured warfare is a primary method used in modern military combat. It involves the coordinated use of armoured fighting vehicles to achieve strategic goals. The core idea is to use these heavy machines to penetrate defensive lines. This is done through rapid movement, or manoeuvre, by concentrated armoured units. Armoured warfare is not just about tanks alone. It requires many different supporting arms to work together. These include infantry fighting vehicles, which carry soldiers, and self-propelled artillery. It also involves combat engineers and various support units.

The concept of armoured warfare emerged to solve a specific problem. During World War I, from 1914 to 1918, the Western Front was stuck in a stalemate. This was known as trench warfare. Soldiers lived in deep, entrenched positions that were very hard to cross. Defensive machine guns made attacking these lines extremely slow and deadly. To break this deadlock, developers created the tank. These vehicles used caterpillar tracks to drive over trenches and barbed wire. They also provided armour protection for the crew against small arms fire.

Early attempts to use tanks saw mixed results. Britain and France began developing these vehicles in 1915. British Mark I tanks first saw action at the Somme on 15 September 1916. The French used the Schneider CA starting on 16 April 1917. Neither of these early uses broke the stalemate of the war. However, things changed during the Battle of Cambrai in late 1917. British tanks successfully broke through the German Hindenburg Line. This success led to massive investment in tank production. By 1918, Britain had produced over 2,500 tanks. France had produced more than 4,400 tanks. In contrast, the German Empire produced only about 20 A7V tanks.

During the interwar period of the 1920s, military thinkers debated how to use armour. Some leaders, like J. F. C. Fuller, envisioned deep strategic penetrations. They imagined using large groups of tanks to paralyze an enemy's command structure. Other thinkers, like B. H. Liddell Hart, helped spread these theories. However, most mainstream military thought remained conservative. They preferred to integrate tanks into existing infantry and cavalry units. This was partly because early tanks were very unreliable. They had poor engines and weak suspension systems. Engineers worked throughout this decade to improve these technical parts.

The 1920s also saw the creation of experimental units. The British formed the Experimental Mechanized Force on 1 May 1927. It was led by Colonel R. J. Collins. This unit included tanks, armoured cars, and even self-propelled Birch guns. It practiced mobile operations on Salisbury Plain. Other nations, including the United States and the Soviet Union, also created experimental forces. They often borrowed designs or ideas from British and French vehicles. This period was essential for testing new armoured tactics.

By the 1930s, the scale of armoured production increased greatly. The Soviet Union underwent a massive industrialisation programme. This allowed them to produce thousands of tanks every year. In fact, the Soviet Union had more tanks than the rest of the world combined. They used the Christie suspension design from American designer John Walter Christie. This helped them build fast tanks in the BT series. Marshal Mikhail Tukhachevsky advocated for a "deep battle" doctrine in the Red Army. Meanwhile, France developed a vast range of specialised vehicles. These included armoured tractors, supply vehicles, and half-tracks.

As political tensions rose, nations organised their armour differently. In 1935, Germany formed three Panzerdivisionen. Most German tanks were eventually grouped into a special branch called the Panzerwaffe. France also created large armoured units, such as Mechanised Corps, in 1934. These corps each contained about 430 tanks. Even with these advancements, many countries could not fully mechanise their entire armies. Most divisions still relied on infantry that did not have motorised transport. Only the Soviet Union equipped an organic tank battalion in every infantry division. This era set the stage for the complex armoured battles of the future.