PIC OF THE WEEK: Mark I Female Tank of E Battalion, Second Battle of Gaza 1917.

PIC OF THE WEEK: Mark I Female Tank of E Battalion, Second Battle of Gaza 1917.We are so used to seeing tanks of the First World War up to their sposnons in mud or slogging their way through the shell holes in No Mans Land, so to see a tank surrounded by palm trees may seem odd to some - but for 8 tanks of E Battalion it was sand not mud that they had to battle through.On account of the assistance rendered to the British Infantry by tanks during the Battle of the Somme, eight Mark I & II tanks, 22 officers and 226 men were sent from Bovington to the Middle East, to join the Egyptian Expeditionary Force who were intending to move North into Palestine against Turkish Forces. Tanks arrived in March just in time to help with the attack on Gaza on the 17^th April. All eight tanks took part in the attack, but sadly too much was expected of these old machines which were expected to accomplish in the desert what two complete battalions of tanks would have achieved in France. When the attack commenced two tanks were attached to the 53^rd Division and four tanks to the 52^nd Division. None of these machines saw any action on the first day, as the Turks fell back to their reserve positions. The two remaining tanks allotted to the 54^th Division saw action with one soon taking a direct hit which destroyed it, while the other machine cleared a stretch of Turkish trenches.Despite small successes being gained the tanks suffered from direct artillery fire and many were surprised to see that most of the Turks did not flee when they first saw the tanks of E Battalion, instead they stood their ground and used their artillery with devastating consequences. The leading tank of the advance broke a track and was soon out of action, another slipped into a gully when the sides of the bank unexpectedly collapsed, whilst another 3 took direct hits. In spite of the fact that the battle was unsuccessful E Battalion’s time in the desert showed the need for tanks to adapt to their surroundings. Individual tanks were modified by using palm trees to improve protection, and improvised steel shields were welded to the cab to deflect sand away from inside, although it was found that nothing could be done to combat the sand which got in everywhere. It was also found that the sand was much more abrasive and damaging on the tanks than the mud of Flanders.

Very interesting!

Bear in mind, by that time the German forces on the Western Front had pretty much got the measure of tanks, and would have passed the information on thier allies. Also the vehicles were not the up armoured versions, mechanically improved versions by then in use in the West. Considering the heat exhaustion and carbon monoxide problems, not to mention the noise and mechanical unrelaibity of the early vehicle, it was a miracle any operated at all let alone fought! The crews must have been superhuman.

Just think of the problems modern vehicles have operating in such a dusty climate, and then consider that the crews would have had no idea, and the General Staff no real tactics to use them in any effective manner. Hat's off to very gallant men.

Here are three excellent Library of Congress images showing the very tanks you mention.... allbeit post destruction after the battle in Palestine.

They are LARGE MB photo's which can be downloaded via the links.

Very detailed.

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/mpc2004005604/PP/

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/mpc2004005603/PP/

DesertBlooms88

Looks like the natives have stripped it of all easily removable parts!

Looks like the natives have stripped it of all easily removable parts!

Either the locals or maybe the Brits managed to do a salvage on them.

The images are very detailed if you download them. A rare opportunity to have a good look over a WW1 British tank at the actual time.

DesertBlooms88