Editing Armour (section)

==== Armoured fighting vehicles ====
{{Main|Armoured fighting vehicle}}

Ancient [[siege engine]]s were usually protected by wooden armour, often covered with wet hides or thin metal to prevent being easily burned.

Medieval [[war wagon]]s were horse-drawn wagons that were similarly armoured.  These contained guns or crossbowmen that could fire through gun-slits.

The first modern [[armoured fighting vehicle]]s were [[armored car (military)|armoured cars]], developed {{circa|1900}}.  These started as ordinary wheeled motor-cars protected by iron shields, typically mounting a machine gun.<ref>Macksey, Kenneth (1980). ''The Guinness Book of Tank Facts and Feats''. Guinness Superlatives Limited, {{ISBN|0-85112-204-3}}.</ref>

During the First World War, the stalemate of [[trench warfare]] during on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] spurred the development of the [[Tanks in World War I|tank]]. It was envisioned as an armoured machine that could advance under fire from enemy rifles and machine guns, and respond with its own heavy guns. It used [[caterpillar track]]s to cross ground broken up by shellfire and trenches.