Tank Corps Memorial, Pozieres

Memorial to the Tank Corps. The obelisque is surrounded by four large cast iron models of WW1 tanks. Whilst here you can also benefit from the Pozières Windwill Memorial and the WW1 Animals Memorial on the other side of the road.

This place on the Somme battlefield was selected as the place for the memorial because it was near this location that tanks first went into action with the British Army as a new, surprise weapon against the German Army in the First World War. A few miles south of this memorial tanks were used at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette (15th - 22nd September 1916). An interesting feature of the memorial is the boundary “fence” around the obelisk. In the application to build the memorial the fence was suggested as a way of keeping cattle away from the plinth of the memorial. The boundary fence consists of ten upright 6 pounder tank gun barrels with tank driving chains mounted across them. Note: This memorial was hit by several 50 cal rounds from a plane in ww2. Australian Memorial.