Little Willie

50°41′39″N 2°14′35″W / 50.69430°N 2.24317°W / 50.69430; -2.24317

Little Willie
Little Willie at the Tank Museum, Bovington (2006)
TypePrototype tank
Place of originUnited Kingdom
Service history
In serviceN/A
Production history
DesignedJuly 1915
ManufacturerFosters of Lincoln
ProducedAugust–September 1915
No. built1
Specifications
Mass16.5 tonnes (16.2 long tons; 18.2 short tons)
Length19 ft 3 in (5.87 m) 26 ft 6 in (8.08 m) inc. rear steering wheels
Width9 ft 5 in (2.87 m)
Height8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) to top of hull 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m) to top of turret
Crew(Projected) 6

Main
armament
(Projected) Vickers 2-pounder (40 mm) gun
Secondary
armament
(Projected) Various suggestions of Maxim, Hotchkiss, Lewis, or Madsen machine guns
EngineFoster-Daimler Knight sleeve valve petrol
105 hp (78 kW)
Power/weight6 hp/tonne (4.5 kW/tonne)
TransmissionTwo-speed forwards, one reverse
final drive by Renolds chains
SuspensionUnsprung
Maximum speed 2 mph (3.2 km/h)

Little Willie was a prototype in the development of the British Mark I tank. Constructed in the autumn of 1915 at the behest of the Landship Committee, it was the first completed tank prototype in history. Little Willie is the oldest surviving individual tank, and is preserved as one of the most famous pieces in the collection of The Tank Museum, Bovington, England.