Tanks, The World Encyclopedia of

This fully-updated book is an authoritative directory of tanks and their immediate derivatives, such as tank destroyers and armoured recovery vehicles. It begins with a history of tank design and evolution from its first action at Fler, in Normandy during World War I and its dominance on the battlefields of Europe in World War II to the powerful fighting machines of the 20th and 21st century seen in more recent wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine. There then follows two directories: 1914-1945 and 1946 to the present day. Focusing on some 230 tanks, each entry includes a description and history with a specification panel detailing the tank's crew, weight, dimensions, armament, armour, powerplant and performance. The tanks are wonderfully illustrated with over 650 photographs, many of which are from the famous Tank Museum at Bovington, Dorset, UK, and never previously published in one volume.