Speaker Details for 2017

Next Meeting - Monday, 30th October

Speaker - Cristina Cox

Topic - The 17th (Armoured Car) Battalion, Tank Corps

 

(image: a 1918-pattern Austin. Courtesy of Landships II)

 

Synopsis:

The origin of armoured cars as a platform of war came from the Admiralty. The static nature of the war prevented them from having a larger role on the Western Front and the majority of them were deployed in other theatres. By 1918, the war would follow a more mechanised nature allowing the expansion of the Tank Corps. The constraints on production enabled the drafting, into the Tank Corps, of 16 armoured cars originally intended for Russia. The cars commanded by Lt.Col. E J Carter were established as the 17th Battalion with their area of action being the Western Front.

The Battalion engaged in several operations, having small localised successes which have been overshadowed by the traditional branches of the Army. The story of a small force of armoured cars is an example of the British Army’s ability to learn and adapt to the circumstances which are held in front of them.

About the speaker:

Born and bred in Spain, Cristina fell in love with the Great War following one visit to The Somme. Ever since that visit her obsession and enthusiasm grew, and she went on to graduate with an MA in Great War Studies from Birmingham University.  Cristina joined the WFA in 2015.

Cristina has a particular interest in the Tank Corps, especially the comparatively small achievements of the 17th Armoured Car Battalion, which engaged during the last year of the War.

As a result of her Spanish background she is currently involved in archival research regarding the Catalan active participation with the French Army in the First World War.

 

 

Venue opens at 7:00 p.m. and the meeting commences at 7:30 p.m.

 

The 2017 Branch Speaker Programme

Date Speaker Topic
January 30th Jim Walton A General's Son
February 27th David Humberston "Not Missing, But Here!" - The Men of the Menin Gate Memorial
March 27th Dr Jim Beach Lord Gorrel and Army Education on the Western Front
April 24th Dr John Sutton        World War 1 Medical Services
May 22nd Dave Dunham Sniping in the Great War
June 26th Keith Jackson

Take Only Photographs, Leave Only Memories: A visit to the Salonika Front
July 31st

Adam Prime

 India's Great War
August 23rd Nigel Atter The 8th Lincolns at the Battle of Loos
September 25th  Greg Drozdz Togo Bolesworth - The Best Soldier in The Leicestershire Regiment

October 30th 

Cristina Cox

The 17th (Armoured Car) Battalion, Tank Corps
November 27th Harry Richards Room 40 and German Intrigues in Morocco
December 18th John Overton

Tiger Jack's Tale

(TBC = To Be Confirmed)

Note:

Our meetings and speakers are sometimes subject to last minute changes for a variety of reasons, so please check back regularly for updates and/or changes.

 

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