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The tank is one of the most devastating and adaptable weapons available to an army’s command. Since their initial conception in the early 1900s and first use by the French and British during World War One, the tank has been a constant and powerful symbol of modern warfare. Throughout the 20th century, it has been one of the most potent tools available for an army to call upon and it has seen intense and devastating action. From the late World War Two mayhem of the Battle of the Bulge — which saw over 3,000 tanks take part in fighting — to the 1981 Battle of Dezful between Iran and Iraq, the tank has played a major part in offensives around the world. Join us as we take a look at the 10 most epic tank battles in military history.
1. The Battle of Cambrai (1917)
Fought in late 1917, this Western Front battle was the first great tank battle in military history and the first great use of combined arms on a large scale, marking a true turning point in the history of warfare. As historian Hew Strachan notes, "the biggest single intellectual shift in making war between 1914 and 1918 was that the combined-arms battle was planned around the capabilities of the guns rather than of the infantry." And by combined, Strachan is referring to the coordinated use of sustained and creeping artillery, infantry, aircraft, and, of course, tanks.
On November 20, 1917 the British attacked at Cambrai with 476 tanks, 378 of them being combat tanks. The horrified Germans were caught completely by surprise as the offensive carved out a 4,000-yard penetration along a six-mile front. It was an unprecedented breakthrough in an otherwise static siege war. The Germans eventually recovered after launching counter-attacks, but the tank-led offensive demonstrated the incredible potential of mobile, mechanized warfare — a lesson that was put to good use just a year later in the final push towards Germany.
2. The Battle of Khalkhin Gol (1939)
The first great tank battle of the Second World War pitted the Soviet Red Army against the Japanese Imperial Army along the Mongolian and Siberian border. Set within the context of the Sino-Japanese War of 1937-1945, Japan claimed that the Khalkhin Gol marked the border between Mongolia and Manchukuo (its name for occupied Manchuria), while the Soviets insisted on a border lying further to the east through Nomonhan (which is why this engagement is sometimes referred to as the Nomonhan Incident). Hostilities ensued in May 1939 when Soviet troops occupied the disputed territory.
Captured Japanese soldiers (photo: Victor A. Tёmyn)
After some initial Japanese success, the Soviets countered with 58,000 troops, nearly 500 tanks, and some 250 aircraft. On the Morning of August 20, General Georgy Zhukov launched a surprise attack after feigning a defensive posture. As the brutal day unfolded, the heat became oppressive, reaching 104 degrees F (40 degrees Celsius), causing machine guns and cannons to jam. The Soviets' T-26s tanks (a precursor to the highly effective T-34s) outmatched the obsolete Japanese tanks, whose guns lacked armour piercing shells. But the Japanese fought desperately, including a dramatic moment in which Lieutenant Sadakaji charged a tank with his samurai sword until he was cut down.
The ensuing Russian encirclement allowed for the complete annihilation of General Komatsubara's force, resulting in 61,000 casualties. The Red Army, by contrast, suffered 7,974 killed and 15,251 wounded. The battle marked the beginning of Zhukov's illustrious military leadership during the war, while demonstrating the importance of deception, and technological and numerical superiority in tank warfare.
3. The Battle of Arras (1940)
Not to be confused with the 1917 Battle of Arras, this Second World War engagement featured the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) against the German Blitzkrieg as it advanced rapidly towards the French coast.
Rommel, pictured at center, mistakenly thought he was being attacked by five infantry divisions during the Battle of Arras. (Bundesarchiv, Bild)
On May 20, 1940 the BEF's Viscount Gort ordered a counterattack, codenamed Frankforce, on the Germans. It involved two infantry battalions amounting to 2,000 men — and just 74 tanks. The BBC describes what happened next:
The infantry battalions were split into two columns for the attack, which took place on 21 May. The right column initially made rapid progress, taking a number of German prisoners, but they soon ran into German infantry and SS, backed by air support, and took heavy losses.
The left column also enjoyed early success before running into opposition from the infantry units of Brigadier Erwin Rommel's 7th Panzer Division.
French cover enabled British troops to withdraw to their former positions that night. Frankforce was over, and the next day the Germans regrouped and continued their advance.
Frankforce took around 400 German prisoners and inflicted a similar number of casualties, as well as destroying a number of tanks. The operation had punched far beyond its weight — the attack was so fierce that 7th Panzer Division believed it had been attacked by five infantry divisions.
Interestingly, some historians believe this ferocious counterattack was what convinced the German generals to declare a halt on May 24 — a short break in the Blitzkrieg that allowed the BEF some added time to evacuate its troops during the Miracle at Dunkirk.
4. The Battle of Brody (1941)
Until Kursk in 1943, this was the largest tank battle of the Second World War and the single largest in history up to that point. It took place in the early days of Operation Barbarossa as German troops advanced rapidly (and relatively easily) along the Eastern Front. But in the triangle formed by the towns of Dubno, Lutsk, and Brody, a confrontation emerged in which 800 Axis tanks were set against 3,500 Russian counterparts.
The battle lasted four grueling days, ending on June 30, 1941 with a resounding German victory and a large-scale Russian retreat. It was during the Battle of Brody, however, that the Germans got their first taste of the Russian T-34s — tanks that were practically impervious to German weapons. But owing to a series of Luftwaffe aerial attacks (which destroyed some 201 Soviet tanks alone) and poor tactical maneuvering, the Germans prevailed. What's more, it's estimated that 50% of Soviet operational losses of armoured vehicles (~2,600 tanks) were on account of logistical shortcomings, supply shortages, and technical issues. Total Russian tanks lost amounted to 800, as compared to 200 German tanks lost.
5. The Second Battle of El Alamein (1942)
This battle marked a turning point in the North African campaign, and the only great tank battle won by the British Commonwealth forces without direct American involvement. But an American presence was most certainly felt in the form of 300 Sherman tanks (for a total of 547 tanks) shipped hastily to Egypt from the United States.
Fought from October 23 to November 1942, it pitted the meticulous and patient General Bernard Montgomery and his forces against those of Erwin Rommel, the crafty Desert Fox. Unfortunately for the Germans, however, Rommel was extremely ill, and he was forced to retreat to a German hospital before the battle broke out. Adding insult to injury, his temporary fill in, General Georg von Stumme, died of a heart attack during the battle. The Germans were also plagued by supply problems, especially fuel shortages. It was a recipe for disaster.
Montgomery's restructured 8th Army launched a two-pronged attack. The first phase, Operation Lightfoot, consisted of a powerful artillery bombardment followed by an infantry attack. During the second phase, the infantry cleared the way for the armoured divisions. Rommel, who returned to duty in desperation, realized all was lost, and cabled Hitler accordingly. Both the British and German armies lost about 500 tanks, but the Allied troops failed to take the initiative after the victory, allowing the Germans sufficient time for retreat.
But the victory was secure, prompting Winston Churchill to declare: "This is not the end, it is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."
