programmes

[alecras234]

Hi my name's Ash and im trying to learn about World War one, especially ww1 tanks.   Are there any good Documentaries online about ww1 tanks, especially british tanks.

[Troy Smith]

Ran across this while searching up the Kursk documentary, 

but it is mislabeled, this is an episode called "Tanks - Wonder Weapons Of WWI"

 

 

watched a few fragments, but the Timewatch documentaries were very well made in this era.

 

HTH

[Pete F]

Hi Ash. In terms of documentaries there are many available and I imagine they all have their strengths and weaknesses. However there are two that spring to mind. The first is The Great War. This is from 1964, so is old but still a very worthwhile watch and will give you a good starting point. Just bear in mind that when it was made it was still very much in living memory so some interpretations have since changed. The wikipedia page covering it is here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_War_(TV_series)

 

Secondly and more recently I can recommend Peter Jackson's They Shall Not Grow Old. This does not provide anything like as much in depth information but does convey a strong sense of the conflict though digitally recoloured footage. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/They_Shall_Not_Grow_Old

 

As for tanks I shall have a think about it but in general terms I have found that books are a better source of information for more detailed facts. Osprey produce some readable introductions to the subject. I might be inclined to start there.

[Stef N.]

This was really good too. Guy Martin building a replica, working full sized WW1 Mk IV tank.

 

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/guy-martins-wwi-tank 

 

http://norfolktankmuseum.co.uk/mk-iv-tank-deborah-ii/

[Kingsman]

If you have Netflix there is a 4-episode series on there about the evolution of tanks.  The first part covers WW1 with significant contribution from David Willey, curator of the Tank Museum at Bovington.

 

The Museum also has a YouTube channel where David Fletcher, the renowned AFV historian and former historian of the museum, and David Willey the current Curator have a series of Tank Chats about many of the museum's exhibits.

 

If it is at all possible for you to visit that museum once things are open again I would very much recommend that you do so.  Most days they run a talk about general tank development during WW1, and occasionally another about British heavy tanks.  Most days they also run a talk on trench warfare leading to the birth of the tank.

 

There are 23 surviving WW1 British tanks left in the world, in any condition.  Mks I - V and Medium A.  Of these, Bovington has 7: almost a third of the total.  Including the original prototype Little Willie, the only surviving Mks I and II, a Mk IV, a Mk V, a MkV** and a Medium A (Whippet).  They also have 1 of 3 surviving Mk VIII and the sole surviving Mk IX APC, although these models did not see active service, and a French Renault FT.  Plus a running replica Mk IV and a running replica A7V, although these are not generally on public display.

[Kingsman]

As for books you could consider all or any of the following:

 

British Battle Tanks WW1 - 1939, Osprey, Fletcher (this is a collection of several individual Osprey titles)

French Tanks of WW1, Osprey, Zaloga

A New Excalibur, AJ Smithers

Great War Tank Mk IV, Haynes, Fletcher

Landships: British Tanks in the 1st World War, HMSO, Fletcher

The Landships of Lincoln, R Pullen

 

I always look on Amazon and eBay for used copies before I splash out on new.  With older books used copies are all you will find anyway.

 

General WW1 documentaries you might consider include:

 

The Great War, a BBC series also issued by the Daily Mail

The First World War. An Historical Insight

The Great War - World War I

WWI The Great War

The Great War 1914-1918

Britain At War WWI

World War I in colour

WWI Commemoration

 

There was a reason that tanks came to be developed.  To understand that you need to understand the background.

[alecras234]

Hi thanks for the suggestions.   I'm also searching for books on tanks of ww2,  i've got a book called Tank Hunter which looks at ww1 tanks,  can you suggest a book that looks at ww2 tanks please and is accurate.   Thanks.

 

Ash