WWI Technology - Part 5: The Tank Paradox: Why the Wonder Weapon Almost Failed
Key Takeaways The Breakdown Rate: At Cambrai, 179 of 378 tanks were out of action by the end of Day 1—mostly from mechanical failure, not enemy fire. The Learning Curve: Early tank tactics were catastrophically wrong. Tanks were scattered, unsupported, and sent against impossible terrain. The Institutional Resistance: Cavalry officers saw tanks as a threat to their arm. Artillery officers resented sharing resources. Infantry didn't trust machines. The Haig Problem: The Commander-in-Chief swung from skepticism to over-reliance, never quite understanding what tanks could and couldn't do. The Eventual Success: By 1918, combined arms doctrine finally worked—but only after two years of painful learning. The Machine That Would End War In September 1916, a strange new weapon crawled across the churned mud of the Somme. It was slow, loud, and terrifying. Soldiers on both sides had never seen anything like it. ...