Battle of Cambrai: Royal Tank Regiment marks centenary in London
A FIRST World War tank rolled past the Cenotaph yesterday as the Royal Tank Regiment marked the centenary of the Battle of Cambrai.
A replica WWI Mark IV tank marked the centenary of the Battle of Cambrai
The replica was used in Steven Spielberg's film War Horse and was in London to commemorate the crews of 476 British Mark IV tanks who broke spectacularly through enemy lines in north-eastern France during the major offensive which began on November 20, 1917.
Although this was not the first time tanks had been used, the attack marked the first time they were deployed in significant numbers. Yesterday the Royal Tank Regiment marched down Whitehall in tribute.
Lance Corporal Connah Towers, 23, said: "It is not often you see a World War One tank in the middle of London - it was quite good, especially when I saw the rest of the regiment march past."
The replica Mark IV tank was built for the movie War Horse
It is not often you see a World War One tank in the middle of London
He said the anniversary of Cambrai "means a lot every year" to those who serve in the Royal Tank Regiment - the oldest unit of its kind in the world.
He added: "It is always the best day in the calendar, it makes you feel proud and part of something, and proud of the heritage and the regiment."