Bundesarchiv Bild 183-J31396, Berlin, Bau von Panzergräben am Stadtrand

Anti-tank trenches, also called anti-tank ditches, are ditches dug into and around fortified positions to hold up the advance of enemy tanks. Anti-

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...

ditches were first used in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

by Germany in an effort to protect their

trench A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from ero ...

es against the newly developed British and French tanks. An anti-tank ditch has to be wide enough and deep enough to prevent a tank from crossing. Armies have been known to

disguise A disguise can be anything which conceals or changes a person's physical appearance, including a wig, glasses, makeup, fake moustache, costume or other items. Camouflage is a type of disguise for people, animals and objects. Hats, glasses, ch ...

anti-tank ditches to enable the ditch to disable an enemy tank. Anti-tank trenches can be defeated by use of a

fascine A fascine is a rough bundle of brushwood or other material used for strengthening an earthen structure, or making a path across uneven or wet terrain. Typical uses are protecting the banks of streams from erosion, covering marshy ground and so ...

. Anti-tank ditches can also be crossed by use of bridges either laid by armoured vehicles or built over them, they can also be defeated by demolition of each side, using explosives, to make inclines that can be cossed or can be filled in by earth moving equipment. According to the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, there are several methods by which

combat engineer A combat engineer (also called pioneer or sapper) is a type of soldier who performs military engineering tasks in support of land forces combat operations. Combat engineers perform a variety of military engineering, tunnel and mine warfare tas ...

s can dig an anti-tank ditch on the battlefield. Using only hand tools, a

platoon A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may rang ...

of soldiers can dig a triangular-shaped ditch 100 feet long, 12 feet wide and 6 feet deep in seven and a half hours; a trapezoidal-shaped ditch of similar dimensions would take fourteen hours. Equipping the platoon with a 3/4 cubic yard

power shovel A power shovel (also stripping shovel or front shovel or electric mining shovel or electric rope shovel) is a bucket-equipped machine, usually electrically powered, used for digging and loading earth or fragmented rock and for mineral extraction ...

cuts these digging times to four and a half hours and nine hours respectively. Alternatively, a squad of soldiers with a power auger and sufficient demolition charges can blast a ditch 100 yards long, 30 feet wide and 12 feet deep in twelve hours.Engineers' Reference and Logistical Data. (1971). United States. 11-6

References

Anti-tank obstacles {{Mil-stub

See also

References