Armáda 3 Renault FT – Francev Vladimír (2019)

On 31 May 1918, half an hour before noon, the Renault FT light tank was used in combat for the first time. Its design features, including a rotating turret with armament and a rear-mounted engine compartment, made it the prototype for all categories of this fighting vehicle as we know them today. On that occasion, 21 of these vehicles attacked along a two-kilometre-wide front north of the village of Chaudun, supporting an assault by the 4th and 7th Regiments of the Moroccan Division against German positions. The African infantrymen, who had never seen such a strange machine, were unable to make use of this support and withdrew to their starting positions, although the German advance in the area came to a halt. The tanks penetrated one and a half kilometres into the front before returning after losing three vehicles. This publication describes the development and deployment of the Renault FT, which became the first tank adopted by the Czechoslovak army. It includes numerous historical and colour photographs, detailed views and colour side profiles. The book is in Czech.