‘Soundscape’ for fireworks display
TANKS ARE as relevant in current warfare as they were 100 years ago at the Battle of Cambrai, an Army commander has claimed.
During the First World War 476 British tanks spectacularly broke through enemy lines in Cambrai, north-eastern France, during a major offensive which began on November 20, 1917.
Although this was not the first time tanks had been used in battle, the attack, which ended on December 6 that year, marked the first time they had been deployed in significant numbers. The Royal Tank Regiment yesterday marched down Whitehall before passing the Cenotaph, where a service was held.
Commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Simon Ridgway said that over the decades there has always been “lots of talk” about the end of the tank.
“I think at every stage someone has suggested that something is going to come and replace the tank on the battlefield – that has proven to not necessarily be the case,” he said.
“The key reason for that is we continue to adapt to meet the challenges that we face, and I think the utility of tanks and armour today has been recognised by lots of different people and armies.
“And we continue to invest in the tank forces in this army, and I think they are as relevant today as they were 100 years ago.”
The Battle of Cambrai was also widely recognised as the first time UK and US soldiers fought and died together in conflict, as US Army engineers were attached to support the British attack.
Catching the Germans by surprise, the offensive was initially successful – breaching what the British called the ‘Hindenburg Line’, it created a solution to the deadlock of trench warfare. As a result, more ground was gained in the first three hours of fighting than the British had gained in three months at the Battle of Passchendaele.
But the Germans counter-attacked, and eventually the offensive was halted. The battle came at a cost of 44,000 British and Commonwealth and 41,000 German casualties.
Based in Tidworth, Wiltshire, the Royal Tank Regiment is the oldest unit of its kind in the world, and since the end of the Second World War it has been deployed to every major conflict. The regiment started out as a top-secret band of trades from all walks of life, who were brought together in the Tank Corps to break the stalemate of trench warfare during the First World War.
Lt Col Ridgway said the anniversary of Cambrai is “hugely important” to the Royal Tank Regiment, with the centenary being “particularly poignant” this year.
Saying that they will be thinking about the “sacrifice made by the people who pioneered the first use of tanks”, he said challenges they faced were “hugely different” to those they face now.
“What they did is they overcame those challenges through adapting to the circumstance they found themselves in, and using a piece of equipment that had not been tested or proven,” Lt Col Ridgway said.
“And they had the confidence and the courage to use it, and ultimately and arguably, changed the course of the war. That gives us real confidence in the future for us and our relevance to the Army today – so long as we continue to adapt to the circumstances we are in.”
The fireworks display at Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations will be choreographed to a score written for the occasion for the first time, organisers have announced.
Event producer Underbelly has commissioned Niteworks, a band from Skye, and composer and sound designer Dan Jones to create a “soundscape” for the midnight fireworks show.