A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armour-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension systems and lighter composite armour allowed for the design of a tank that had the firepower of a super-heavy tank, the armour protection of a heavy tank, and the mobility of a light tank, in a package with the weight of a medium tank. The first designated MBT was the British Chieftain tank, which during its development in the 1950s was re-designed as an MBT. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the MBT replaced almost all other types of tanks, leaving only some specialist roles to be filled by lighter designs or other types of armoured fighting vehicles.
German Army Leopard 2A5 main battle tanks in 1996
Early model Mark I tank at the Battle of Somme, 1916
Abandoned French Hotchkiss H-39 light cavalry tank, Battle of France, 1940
New Panther tanks being loaded for transport to the Eastern Front
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; their main armament is often mounted within a turret. They are a mainstay of modern 20th and 21st century ground forces and a key part of combined arms combat.
The first tank to engage in battle, the British Mark I tank (pictured in 1916) with the Solomon camouflage scheme
An M4 Sherman in Italy in 1943 during WWII
A Leopard 2A7 in Germany
A Japanese Type 10 firing.