Summary: Trials of the Mark VIII "Liberty" tank, probably in Britain, late 1918.
Description: The tank is a prototype in natural metal finish, without its fittings and with the sponsons slightly recessed for rail travel; it is flying small US flags. The troops supervising it are American, with British Army and Navy officers watching. The tank fails, after three attempts, to surmount a wooden ramp of 45 degrees. It drives cross-country at the same rate as the US soldier marching beside it. It fails three times to drive up a steep bank. It drives well over the spoil heaps and mud of the factory testing yard, and returns to its shed. (The film is broken at this point by a brief scene of US Mail wagons collecting mail at a freight yard.) The visiting officials pose with the Mark VIII behind them. Close-ups of the guns and forward machine gun mountings being tilted and rotated. The tank again attempts the grassy slope and this time gets over on the second attempt, going on to cross a shallow trench and pushing over a medium-sized tree. The visiting officers inspect the tank. The final shot shows the driver's seat and controls.
Personalities, Units and Organisations: British Army, Royal Tank Corps (regiment/service)
United States Army (regiment/service)
Keywords: armour, British - tank: Tank Mark VIII & [United States] & [R and D] (object name)
31/3(41) (event)
GB, England (?) (geography)
Instruction (concept)
