LE GRAND ALBUM DES AUTOMITRAILLEUSES DE LA VICTOIRE

The idea of placing a machine gun on a car chassis is as old as the automobile itself. At the very beginning, around 1900, the words used to designate this assembly are diverse: some speak of “automotive machine gun”, others use the expression “war automobile”. Often they are simple torpedoes equipped with machine gun mounts like the famous Panhard-Genty sent to Morocco at the end of 1907. Others are already authentic armored cars such as the CGV presented to the French army in 1906 .


It was the Great War, which began in August 1914, which gave this new combat vehicle its definitive name, with the word “automitrailleuse” and its derived form “autocanon”. Indeed, from October 1914, various touring chassis proved capable of withstanding the firing of small 37 mm guns supplied by the navy, crews included. Thus was born in France a new, very singular subdivision of arms, with sailors in red pompoms criss-crossing the roads of the front.

Passed more logically to the cavalry in 1916, these new materials, mainly on Peugeot and Renault chassis, will await their hour of glory with each attempt to break the front. In this very illustrated work, no model designed until 1918, series or prototype, is forgotten, each one is treated by granting the first place to the illustration, following a development structured by the rigor of analysis and synthesis. custom of the author.

400 illustrations including 70 in color.