Model Military International – September 2019

6 Model Military International - September 2019

Think Tank - Mk.IV Walk Around

Gary Edmundson takes

us for a walk around the

Mk. IV British WWI tank on

display at Flesquières, 10km

southwest of Cambrai

T

he Mk.IV was a British tank of the

First World War. Introduced in

1917, it benefited from significant

developments of the Mark I

tank, the intervening designs being small

batches used for training.

The main improvements were in

armour, the re-siting of the fuel tank and

ease of transport. A total of 1,220 Mk.IV

were built: 420 “Males”, 595 “Females”

and 205 Tank Tenders (unarmed vehicles

used to carry supplies), which made it the

most numerous British tank of the war.

The Mk.IV was first used in mid 1917 at

the Battle of Messines Ridge.

It remained in British service until

the end of the war, and a small number

served briefly with other combatants

afterwards.* ■

John Ham 2019

MK.IV WALK AROUND

* Text adapted from Wikipedia.

In April 2018, my wife Marianne and brother Tony

visited the tank museum that had only just opened

in Flesquières, 10km southwest of Cambrai.

Deborah is the main feature in the small gallery, which was still being completed at the time of our visit.