Before World War I, military tanks were a mere concept.
Leonardo da Vinci made sketches of a human-powered armored vehicle, with canons all around it.
In the short story,The Land Ironclads, first published in 1903, H.G.
Wells machines were the closest anybody came to imagining what a real tank would look like.
But nobody could have envisaged Russian engineer Nikolay Lebedenkos grandiose Tsar Tank.
A replica of Tsar Tank near Moscow.
When World War I broke out in 1914, there was no real tank in existence.
Caterpillar tracks have become the standard for all tanks manufactured to this day.
But Nikolay Lebedenkos Tsar Tank was different.
Each wheel was powered by a 250 horsepower internal combustion engine.
By the summer 1917, Lebedenkos prototype was ready for field trial.
Photo:vikond65.livejournal.com
There were other drawbacks with the design too.
Due to its sheer size, the tank would have been easy target for enemy artillery.
The large front wheels are also visible fragile and could be destroyed with a few volleys.
Eventually, the Russian Army decided that the design was too impractical and the tank was scraped.
A replica of Tsar Tank near Moscow.
