Lesson plan

A7V

The Sturmpanzerwagen A7V was a heavy tank introduced by Germany in 1918 during World War I. One hundred chassis were ordered in early 1917, ten to be finished as fighting vehicles with armoured bodies, and the remainder as Überlandwagen cargo carriers. The number to be armoured was later increased to 20. They were used in action from March to October 1918, and were the only tanks produced by Germany in World War I to be used in combat, as well as being the first operational German tank. Although various German armoured vehicle proposals were shown a modest amount of support early in the war, enthusiasm among German high command was low and they were given little funding and attention. The sudden appearance of the British Mark series of tanks causing panic amongst the German infantry led this to be reconsidered however, and development on the German tank program began.

Back to article

Article summary

The Sturmpanzerwagen A7V was a heavy tank introduced by Germany in 1918 during World War I. One hundred chassis were ordered in early 1917, ten to be finished as fighting vehicles with armoured bodies, and the remainder as Überlandwagen cargo carriers. The number to be armoured was later increased to 20. They were used in action from March to October 1918, and were the only tanks produced by Germany in World War I to be used in combat, as well as being the first operational German tank. Although various German armoured vehicle proposals were shown a modest amount of support early in the war, enthusiasm among German high command was low and they were given little funding and attention. The sudden appearance of the British Mark series of tanks causing panic amongst the German infantry led this to be reconsidered however, and development on the German tank program began.

Key claims

  1. date of foundation: 1917-09-20 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the date of foundation is "1917-09-20". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  4. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

No sources recorded.

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.