Dan Snow's History Hit

The Origins of the Tank

June 15, 2026·51 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

How did century-old 'landships' developed from agricultural tractors evolve into the armoured giants of the modern battlefield? Today, we trace the lineage of the tank, from its origins in the trenches of the First World War to Second World War behemoths and their modern battlefield descendants.For this, we're joined by Mark Urban, historian and writer specialising in defence and foreign affairs. With him, he discusses the all-important question: in an era of drones, missiles and precision strikes, does the tank still have a place on the battlefield?Mark's book is called "Tank: The 10 War Machines That Changed the World and the Remarkable Men Behind Them".Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.We need your help! Let us know what you want from Dan Snow's History Hit by filling in our anonymous survey here: https://forms.gle/PvgayWLkWGjYT4St6Dan Snow's History Hit is now available on YouTube! Check it out at: https://www.youtube.com/@DSHHPodcastSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.You can also email the podcast directly at ds.hh@historyhit.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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