Char D'Assault St. Chamond

The Char D Assault St. Chamond was the forerunner to the modern day self-propelled gun systems.

Figuring in as the forerunner to the modern day self-propelled gun, the St. Chamond was of a French design and saw combat through most of World War 1. The system was plodding and heavy, never really able to traverse typical battlefield terrain, but nevertheless could field a powerful main gun in the form of the 1897 75mm model.

Requiring a crew of nine personnel to man and operate the machine, the St. Chamond was the brainchild design of one Colonel Rimailho. Classified as a "tank" these systems were actually more designed in the form of what we would term an "assault gun", or a predecessor to the modern day self-propelled versions so common after World War Two. The 75mm served as the primary armament to the St. Chamond and an additional 4 x Hotchkiss 8mm (.315 inch) machine guns were used as secondary defensive weapons.

The St. Chamond was designed and engineered long and low, another detriment to the already crippled design as the system would have a hard go at it when managing anything more than level terrain - often becoming stuck where today's battle tanks could easily tread. Additionally, the short tread length coupled with the long hull design made the system difficult to handle. The heavy electric transmission that operated with the gasoline engine added considerable weight. As such, the system, though enjoying some usefulness throughout the war, was eventually relegated to supplementary roles by war's end - though it would serve throughout the war's entirety. By then, more effective battlefield systems were being fielded by all sides, making the St. Chamond design a vintage attempt. Most would end up as supply carriers as a result of these glaring deficiencies.