A7V: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

The A7V is a tank introduced towards by Germany] in the end of World War I in 1918. The name is likely derived from the "Allgemeines Kriegsdepartment 7 Abteilung Verkehrswesen" (General War Department 7, Department For Transportation), although some theorize that Hauptmann Vollmer gave the V to the name. In German the tank was called "Sturmpanzer-Kraftwagen".

The tank itself had 20mm steel armor at the sides and 30mm at the front. The top speed was about 15km/h at roads and 5km/h in the field. It was powered by two 4 cylinder engines with 100PS each. The tank was 7.35 meters long and 3.06 meters wide. Due to different configurations on the top of the tank, the height varied between 2.70 and 3 meters high.

The A7V was armed with six 7.9mm machine guns and a 5.7cm cannon. The crew normally consisted of to 18 people.

The first tank on tank fight in history took place on 24 April 1918 occurred when three A7V tanks incidentally met three Mark IV (tank)s near Villers-Bretonneux. The A7V tanks won the battle, due to the superior armor and speed of the A7V.

It is generally believed that the A7V was introduced too late in the war to have a significant effect. However, the A7V was superior to allied tanks of that era.

An original A7V can be found in the Queensland Museum in Brisbane, Australia.