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The Tank Museum (previously the Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of
armoured fighting vehicles An armoured fighting vehicle (British English) or armored fighting vehicle (American English) (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by vehicle armour, armour, generally combining operational mobility with Offensive (military), offensive a ...
at
Bovington Camp Bovington Camp () is a British Army military base in Dorset, South West England. Together with Lulworth Camp it forms part of Bovington Garrison. The garrison is home to The Armour Centre and contains two barracks complexes and two forest and ...
in
Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
,
South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it is one of four regions that altogether make up Southern England. South West England con ...
. It is about north of the village of
Wool Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have some properties similar to animal w ...
and west of the major port of
Poole Poole () is a coastal town and seaport on the south coast of England in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area in Dorset, England. The town is east of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east ...
. The collection traces the
history of the tank The history of the tank includes all vehicles intended to advance under enemy fire while remaining protected. Beginning The principle of armored warfare can be compared with attempts to protect soldiers from enemy projectiles that existed sin ...
with almost 300 vehicles on display. It includes
Tiger 131 Tiger 131 is a Nazi Germany, German Tiger I heavy tank captured by the British Army in Tunisia during World War II. Preserved at The Tank Museum in Bovington in Dorset, England, it is currently the only operational Tiger I in the world. German ...
, the only working example of a German
Tiger I The Tiger I () was a Nazi Germany, German heavy tank of World War II that began operational duty in 1942 in North African Campaign, Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent German heavy tank battalion, heavy tank battalions. It g ...
tank, and a British First World War
Mark I Mark I or Mark 1 often refers to the first version of a weapon or military vehicle, and is sometimes used in a similar fashion in civilian product development. In some instances, the Arabic numeral "1" is substituted for the Roman numeral "I". " ...
, the world's oldest surviving combat tank. It is the museum of the
Royal Tank Regiment The Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) is the oldest tank unit in the world, being formed by the British Army in 1916 during the World War I, First World War. Today, it is an Armoured warfare, armoured regiment equipped with Challenger 2 main battle tanks ...
and the
Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the armoured arm of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 and the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle. It includes most of the Ar ...
and is a
registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...
.


History

The writer
Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. He was born in British Raj, British India, which inspired much ...
visited Bovington in 1923 and, after viewing the damaged tanks that had been salvaged at the end of the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, recommended that a museum be set up. A shed was established to house the collection but was not opened to the general public until 1947. George Forty, who was appointed director of the museum in 1982, expanded and modernized the collection. He retired in 1993 after which he was appointed an
OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
. David Fletcher, who had been a historian at the museum since 1982, retired in 2012 and was also appointed an MBE "for his services to the history of armoured warfare". The museum established its own YouTube channel in January 2010. Early episodes were largely one-take affairs of museum staff talking about specific tanks in the collection and their role in history, with notable series led by Fletcher called "Tank Chats." The channel has more
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
subscribers than famous museums such as the
Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...
, and the
Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...
; and has gained over 100 million views across its videos by April 2023, the first museum channel to hit such a milestone. In December 2023 the museum hosted a long distance footrace involving multiple laps around the museum. During the
Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...
the tank museum was able to provide blueprints and track samples of Soviet equipment allowing Cook Defence Systems to manufacture track for use by Ukraine.


Exhibition halls


World War I Hall (Tank Men)

As well as containing the majority of the museum's World War I tanks the hall tells the story of the men who crewed the first tanks between 1916 and 1918. *Featured tanks:
Mark I tank British heavy tanks were a series of related armoured fighting vehicles developed by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, UK during the First World War. The Mark I was the world's first tank, a tracked, armed, and armoured vehicle, ...
, IV, V (one of the few World War I tanks still in working order), IX & Mark VIII "Liberty" tanks.


Inter War Hall (War Horse to Horsepower)

This hall explores the rise of the tank and the role of the cavalry on the Western Front. *Featured vehicles: Vickers A1E1 Independent, Peerless armoured car & Vickers Light tank, Mark II.


World War II Hall

This hall displays the largest section, with military vehicles from most nations involved in that conflict. *Featured vehicles:
Panzer I The Panzer I was a light tank produced by Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Its name is short for ( German for " armored fighting vehicle mark I"), abbreviated as . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was '' Sd.Kfz. 101 ...
, III, IV, Stug III,
Tiger II The Tiger II was a Nazi Germany, German heavy tank of the World War II, Second World War. The final official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' Tiger ''Ausf''. B, often shortened to Tiger B.Jentz and Doyle 1993, p. 16. The ordnance inve ...
, Jagdpanzer 38(t),
Jagdpanther The (German: "hunting Panther"), Sd.Kfz. 173, was a tank destroyer (, a self-propelled anti-tank gun) built by Germany during World War II. The combined the 8.8 cm Pak 43 anti-tank gun, similar to the main gun of the Tiger II, with the armor ...
,
Jagdtiger The ''Jagdtiger'' ("Hunting Tiger"; officially designated ''Panzerjäger Tiger Ausf. B'') is a German casemate-type heavy tank destroyer (''Jagdpanzer'') of World War II. It was built upon the slightly lengthened chassis of a Tiger II. Its ordn ...
, Sd.Kfz. 251, Somua S35, Comet I, Matilda Mk I, A38 Valiant, Ram Cruiser Mk II,
M24 Chaffee The M24 Chaffee (officially light tank M24) was an American light tank used during the later part of World War II; it was also used in post–World War II conflicts including the Korean War, and by the French in the Algerian War, War in Algeri ...
,
M4 Sherman The M4 Sherman, officially medium tank, M4, was the medium tank most widely used by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. I ...
, 17pdr SP Achilles,
M48 Patton The M48 Patton is an American first-generation main battle tank (MBT) introduced in February 1952, being designated as the 90mm Gun M48, armored, full-tracked, combat vehicle of the medium-gun tank class. It was designed as a replacement for ...
,
M26 Pershing The M26 Pershing is a heavy tank, later designated as a medium tank, formerly used by the United States Army. It was used in the last months of World War II during the Western Allied invasion of Germany, Invasion of Germany and extensively dur ...
, T17E1 Staghound, Hamilcar glider,
DUKW The DUKW (GMC type nomenclature, colloquially known as Duck) is a six-wheel-drive amphibious modification of the GMC CCKW "deuce-and-a-half" 2½-ton trucks used by the U.S. military during World War II and the Korean War. Designed by a part ...
,
SU-76 The SU-76 ('' Samokhodnaya Ustanovka 76'') was a Soviet light self-propelled gun used during and after World War II. The SU-76 was based on a lengthened version of the T-70 light tank chassis and armed with the ZIS-3 mod. 1942 76-mm divisional ...
,
T-26 The T-26 tank was a Soviet light tank used during many conflicts of the Interwar period and in World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and was one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s until its light ...
,
KV-1 The Kliment Voroshilov (KV; ) tanks are a series of Soviet heavy tanks named after the Soviet defence commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov who operated with the Red Army during World War II. The KV tanks were known for their heavy armour ...
, L3/33 LF, M13/40,
Tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...
,
Black Prince Edward of Woodstock (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), known as the Black Prince, was the eldest son and heir apparent of King Edward III of England. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, succeeded to the throne instead. Edward n ...
.


Battlegroup Afghanistan

This hall contains the Battlegroup Afghanistan exhibition. The men of the Royal Armoured Corps were involved in some of the fiercest fighting since the Second World War. *Featured tanks: Conqueror,
Chieftain A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of weste ...
, Challenger 1 and
TOG2 The TOG 2, officially known as the Heavy Tank, TOG II, was a British super-heavy tank design produced during the early stages of World War II for a scenario where the battlefields of northern France and Belgium devolved into a morass of mud, tr ...
.


Cold War Hall

Collection of vehicles from the Cold and Gulf War. * Featured Tanks:
Tog II The TOG 2, officially known as the Heavy Tank, TOG II, was a British super-heavy tank design produced during the early stages of World War II for a scenario where the battlefields of northern France and Belgium devolved into a morass of mud, tr ...
,
Chieftain A tribal chief, chieftain, or headman is a leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies There is no definition for "tribe". The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of weste ...
,
Centurion In the Roman army during classical antiquity, a centurion (; , . ; , or ), was a commander, nominally of a century (), a military unit originally consisting of 100 legionaries. The size of the century changed over time; from the 1st century BC ...
.


Tanks For the Memories - Tanks in Popular Culture Exhibition

New for 2023, “Tanks for the Memories: The Tank in Popular Culture”, was created for the 100th anniversary of the Tank Museum. It is an exhibition looking at how the tank has become a cultural icon through the manufacture of multiple toys, games, models, and the production of works of art, books, comics, video games and films. * Featured tanks: Mark IV.


The Tank Story Hall

This hall holds some of the most important tanks and AFVs in history, with a supporting collection housed in a multimedia exhibition. It follows the story of the tank, from its invention in 1915 through the 20th century and into the future: *Featured tanks:
Little Willie Little Willie was a prototype in the development of the British Mark I tank. Constructed in the autumn of 1915 at the behest of the Landship Committee, it was the first completed tank prototype in history. ''Little Willie'' is the oldest surv ...
(the forerunner of British tanks),
Whippet The Whippet is a British breed of dog of sighthound type. It closely resembles the Greyhound and the smaller Italian Greyhound, and is intermediate between them in size. In the nineteenth century it was sometimes called "the poor man's raceh ...
,
Renault FT The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) is a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to h ...
,
Char B1 The Char B1 was a French heavy tank manufactured before World War II. The Char B1 was a specialised break-through vehicle, originally conceived as a self-propelled gun with a 75 mm howitzer in the hull; later a 47 mm gun in a turret ...
,
Panzer II The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of Nazi Germany, German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' II (abbreviated ''Pz.Kpfw. II''). Although the vehicle had originally been designed a ...
,
Tiger 131 Tiger 131 is a Nazi Germany, German Tiger I heavy tank captured by the British Army in Tunisia during World War II. Preserved at The Tank Museum in Bovington in Dorset, England, it is currently the only operational Tiger I in the world. German ...
(a
Tiger I The Tiger I () was a Nazi Germany, German heavy tank of World War II that began operational duty in 1942 in North African Campaign, Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent German heavy tank battalion, heavy tank battalions. It g ...
captured in Tunisia in April 1943 and fully restored to running condition by the workshops at Bovington, this is the only Tiger I left that is capable of running under its own power; it was used in the film '' Fury''),
M3 Grant The M3 Lee, officially Medium Tank, M3, was an American medium tank used during World War II. The turret was produced in two different forms, one for US needs and one modified to British requirements to place the radio next to the commander. I ...
,
T-34 The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank from World War II. When introduced, its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was more powerful than many of its contemporaries, and its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against Anti-tank warfare, ...
, Panther, DD Sherman, Churchill Mk VII,
Sherman Firefly The Sherman Firefly was a medium tank used by the United Kingdom and some armoured formations of other Allies in World War II, Allies in the Second World War. It was based on the US M4 Sherman but was fitted with the more powerful British cal ...
,
M48 Patton The M48 Patton is an American first-generation main battle tank (MBT) introduced in February 1952, being designated as the 90mm Gun M48, armored, full-tracked, combat vehicle of the medium-gun tank class. It was designed as a replacement for ...
,
T-72 The T-72 is a family of Soviet Union, Soviet main battle tanks that entered production in 1973. The T-72 was a development based on the T-64 using thought and design of the previous Object 167M. About 25,000 T-72 tanks have been built, and refu ...
,
T-62 The T-62 is a Soviet main battle tank that was first introduced in 1961. As a further development of the T-55 series, the T-62 retained many similar design elements of its predecessor including low profile and thick turret armour. In contra ...
and
Challenger 2 The FV4034 Challenger 2 (MoD designation "CR2") is a third generation British main battle tank (MBT) in service with the armies of the United Kingdom, Oman, and Ukraine. It was designed by Vickers Defence Systems (now Rheinmetall BAE Systems ...
.


Royal Armoured Corps Memorial Room

The Memorial Room was created in partnership with the
Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the armoured arm of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 and the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle. It includes most of the Ar ...
Memorial Trust and commemorates the sacrifice of almost 13,000 Royal Armoured Corps soldiers who died in service since the Corps was founded in 1939. The Memorial Room houses the Books of Remembrance, a digitised and searchable version of the Roll of Honour, and videos about those who fought in the RAC.


The Vehicle Conservation Centre

The Vehicle Conservation Centre provides cover for more of the collection and puts on view vehicles that had previously not been seen by the public: *Featured tanks: Charioteer, M41 Bulldog, M103,
M60 Patton The M60 is an American List of main battle tanks by generation#Second, second-generation main battle tank (MBT). It was officially standardized as the Tank, Combat, Full Tracked: 105-mm Gun, M60 in March 1959. Although developed from the M48 Pa ...
,
T-54 The T-54 and T-55 tanks are a series of Soviet medium tanks introduced in the years following the Second World War. The first T-54 prototype was completed at Nizhny Tagil by the end of 1945.Steven Zaloga, T-54 and T-55 Main Battle Tanks 1944–2 ...
, Cold War and Iraqi
T-55 The T-54 and T-55 tanks are a series of Soviet medium tanks introduced in the years following the Second World War. The first T-54 prototype was completed at Nizhny Tagil by the end of 1945.Steven Zaloga, T-54 and T-55 Main Battle Tanks 1944–2 ...
s,
BMP-1 The BMP-1 is a Soviet Union, Soviet Amphibious vehicle, amphibious tracked infantry fighting vehicle that has been in service from 1966 to the present. BMP stands for ''Boyevaya Mashina Pyekhoty 1'' (), meaning "infantry fighting vehicle, 1st ...
,
AMX-30 The AMX-30 is a French main battle tank designed by Ateliers de construction d'Issy-les-Moulineaux (AMX, then Nexter, GIAT) and first delivered to the French Army in August 1966. The first five tanks were issued to the 501st ''Régiment de Chars ...
, Type 69, Infanterikanonvagn 91, A33 Excelsior, T14 and
SU-100 The SU-100 ( Russian: самоходная установка-100, СУ-100 romanized: '' Samokhodnaya Ustanovka-''100) is a Soviet tank destroyer armed with the D-10S 100 mm anti-tank gun in a casemate superstructure. It was used extens ...
.


Film

The museum's collection includes
Tiger 131 Tiger 131 is a Nazi Germany, German Tiger I heavy tank captured by the British Army in Tunisia during World War II. Preserved at The Tank Museum in Bovington in Dorset, England, it is currently the only operational Tiger I in the world. German ...
, the only surviving Tiger I tank in operable condition, which appeared in the 2014 film '' Fury'', and the replica
Mark IV tank The Mark IV (pronounced ''Mark four'') was a British tank of the First World War. Introduced in 1917, it benefited from significant developments of the Mark I tank (the intervening designs being small batches used for training). The main improv ...
built for the film ''War Horse''.


See also

;Tank museums * Norfolk Tank Museum - United Kingdom *
Kubinka Tank Museum The Kubinka Tank Museum (Центральный музей бронетанкового вооружения и техники - Tsentral'nyy Muzey Bronetankovogo Vooruzheniya I Tekhniki -Central Museum of Armored Arms and Technology) is a larg ...
– Russia * – France * Military Museum Lešany – Czech Republic * Deutsches Panzermuseum – Germany *
Yad La-Shiryon Yad La-Shiryon (officially: The Armored Corps Memorial Site and Museum at Latrun; ) is Israel's official memorial site for fallen soldiers from the Israeli Armor Corps, armored corps, as well as one of the most diverse tank museums in the world. ...
Latrun, Israel *
Parola Tank Museum Parola Tank Museum, officially Armoured Vehicle Museum (Finnish language, Finnish ''Panssarimuseo'', Swedish language, Swedish ''Pansarmuséet'') is a Museum#military museum, military museum located 110 kilometres north of Helsinki in Parola (Hat ...
– Finland * Australian Armour and Artillery Museum – Australia * Nationaal Militair Museum – Soesterberg, The Netherlands * Ontario Regiment Museum - Ontario, Canada * Royal Tank Museum – Amman, Jordan * American Heritage Museum – Massachusetts, United States ;Other *
U.S. Army Armor and Cavalry Collection The United States Army Armor and Cavalry Collection is a combat vehicle collection owned by the United States Army Armor School, Armor School located at Fort Benning, Georgia. It is one of the largest collections of armored fighting vehicles in ...
- Fort Moore, GA *
United States Army Ordnance Museum The United States Army Ordnance Training Support Facility (formerly known as the U.S. Army Ordnance Training and Heritage Center and U.S. Army Ordnance Museum) artifacts are used to train and educate logistic soldiers. It re-located to Fort Gre ...
- Virginia, US * Polish Army Museum – large collection of Soviet, Western and Polish AFVs * Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles - Nebraska, US *
Base Borden Military Museum Base Borden Military Museum is a military museum located on the grounds of CFB Borden, in Borden, Ontario, Canada. Combining four separate museums, it has numerous items, equipment and vehicles from all eras of Canadian military history, including ...
- Ontario, Canada * National Museum of Military Vehicles - Dubois, WY *
Lists of armoured fighting vehicles This is a list of lists of armoured fighting vehicles. __NOTOC__ By period * List of armoured fighting vehicles of World War I * List of interwar armoured fighting vehicles * List of military vehicles of World War II * List of armoured fighting ...
*
Tank classification Tank classification is a taxonomy of identifying either the intended role or weight class of tanks. The classification by role was used primarily during the developmental stage of the national armoured forces, and referred to the doctrinal an ...


Notes


References


External links

* *
Tank100 blog
commemorating the centenary of the First World War.
Tiger Collection blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tank Museum 1947 establishments in England Museums established in 1947 Military and war museums in England Army museums in England World War I museums in the United Kingdom Museums in Dorset Transport museums in England Tank museums World War II museums in the United Kingdom Charities based in England