Polish armoured train Danuta from 1939. From the left: artillery wagon, infantry assault wagon, armoured locomotive, artillery wagon.

An armoured train is a train protected with armour. Usually they are equipped with artillery and machine gun railroad cars. Their use was the most common during late 19th and early 20th century. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x255, 52 KB) Pociąg pancerny Danuta. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1024x255, 52 KB) Pociąg pancerny Danuta. ... A typical North American steam train In rail transport, a train consists of rail vehicles that move along guides to transport freight or passengers from one place to another. ... Military vehicles are commonly armoured to withstand the impact of shrapnel, bullets or shells, protecting the soldiers inside from enemy fire. ... Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... A railroad car (or, more briefly, car, not to be confused with railcar), also known as an item of rolling stock, is a vehicle on a railroad (or railway) that is not a locomotive — one that provides another purpose than purely haulage, although some types of car are powered. ...

Design and equipment

A typical Polish artillery car from 1939. Such cars were used in the trains Śmiały and Piłsudczyk.

The railroad cars on an armoured train are designed for many roles. The typical roles include: Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... A railroad car (or, more briefly, car), also known as an item of rolling stock in British parlance, is a vehicle on a railroad or railway that is not a locomotive - one that provides another purpose than purely haulage, although some types of car are powered. ...

• Artillery - fielding mixture of guns and machine guns
• Infantry - designed to carry infantry units, may also mount machine guns.
• Machine gun - dedicated to machine guns
• Anti-air - equipped with anti-air guns
• Command - similar to infantry wagons, but designed to be a train command center
• Anti-tank - equipped with anti-tank guns, usually in a tank turret
• Platform - unarmoured, with purposes ranging from transport of ammunition or vehicles, through track repair or derailing protection to railroad ploughs for railroad destruction.
• Missile transport - both Russia and the US had railway-based ICBMs by the late 1980s; no such systems remain in operation today.

Different types of armour were used to protect from attack by tanks. In addition to various metal plates, cement and sandbags were used in some cases. Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ... A gun is a common name given to a device that fires high-velocity projectiles. ... Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot with small arms in organized military units, though they may be transported to the battlefield by horses, ships, automobiles, skis, or other means. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... American troops man an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft, or air defense, is any method of combating military aircraft from the ground. ... Command has multiple meanings: An order. ... Anti-tank, or simply AT, refers to any method of combating military armored fighting vehicles, notably tanks. ... Corbelled corner turrets at Newark Castle, Port Glasgow. ... Boxes of ammunition clog a warehouse in Baghdad Ammunition is a generic military term meaning (the assembly of) a projectile and its propellant. ... Railroad plough is a railroad car which supports a big plough. ... United States may refer to: Places: United States of America SS United States, the fastest ocean liner ever built. ... For other uses, see Armour (disambiguation). ... In the most general sense of the word, cement is a binder, a substance which sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. ... A sandbag is typically used in flood control, but the exact use can vary. ...

Armoured trains were sometimes escorted by a kind of rail-tank called a draisine. A draisine is a light auxiliary rail vehicle or trolley. ...

History

Austro-Hungarian armoured train from 1915

Armoured trains saw use during the 19th century in the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871), the Boer Wars (1880-81 and 1899-1902), and the First (1914-1918) and Second World Wars (1939-1945). The most intensive use of armoured trains was during the Russian Civil War (1918-1920). There are also reports of a limited use of something like armoured trains -- trains carrying tanks -- in the Second Chechen War (1999-). Armoured Train picture (from Polish Wiki http://pl. ... Armoured Train picture (from Polish Wiki http://pl. ... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants United States of America (Union) Confederate States of America (Confederacy) Commanders Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee Strength 2,200,000 1,064,000 Casualties 110,000 killed in action, 360,000 total dead, 275,200 wounded 93,000 killed in action, 258,000 total... Combatants Second French Empire North German Confederation allied with south German states (later German Empire) Commanders Napoleon III # Otto Von Bismarck Helmuth von Moltke the Elder Strength 400,000[] 1,200,000[] Casualties 150,000 dead or wounded 284,000 captured 350,000 civilian [] 70,000 dead or wounded 200... Boer guerrillas during the Second Boer War There were two Boer wars, one in 1880-81 and the second from October 11, 1899-1902 both between the British and the settlers of Dutch origin (called Boere, Afrikaners or Voortrekkers) in South Africa that put an end to the two independent... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert Henry Asquith Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Combatants Red Army (Bolsheviks) White Army (Monarchists, SRs, Anti-Communists) Green Army (Peasants and Nationalists) Black Army (Anarchists) Commanders Leon Trotsky Mikhail Tukhachevsky Semyon Budyonny Lavr Kornilov, Alexander Kolchak, Anton Denikin, Pyotr Wrangel Alexander Antonov, Nikifor Grigoriev Nestor Makhno Strength 5,427,273 (peak) +1,000,000 Casualties 939,755... Combatants Russian Federation Chechen Republic of Ichkeria Strength At least 93,000 in 1999 10,000 to 20,000 in 1999 (mostly militias) Casualties Unknown, at least 4,600 killed by October 2002[1] Hundreds of civilians. ...

During the Boer War on 15 November 1899, Winston Churchill, then a war-correspondent, was travelling onboard an armoured train when it was ambushed by Boer commandos. Churchill and many of the train's garrison were captured, though many others escaped, including wounded placed on the train's engine. November 15 is the 319th day of the year (320th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 46 days remaining. ... Churchill redirects here. ...

After the First World War the usage of armored trains declined. They were used in China in the twenties, most notably by the warlord Zhang Zongchang, who employed refugee White Russians to man them. Warlord is a term that refers to one who has de facto military control of a subnational area, due to armed forces which are personally obedient to — somewhat circularly — that warlord. ... Zhang Zongchang (pinyin) (Chinese: 張宗昌, WG: Chang Tsung-chang) (1881 – 1932), nicknamed the Dogmeat General, was a Chinese warlord in Shandong in the early 20th century. ...

Poland used armoured trains extensively and successfully during the Invasion of Poland, which in turn prompted Nazi Germany to reintroduce them into its own armies. Combatants Poland Germany, Soviet Union, Slovakia Commanders Edward Rydz-ÅšmigÅ‚y Fedor von Bock (Army Group North), Gerd von Rundstedt (Army Group South), Mikhail Kovalov (Belorussian Front), Semyon Timoshenko (Ukrainian Front), Ferdinand ÄŒatloÅ¡ (Field Army Bernolak) Strength 39 divisions, 16 brigades, 4,300 guns, 880 tanks, 400 aircraft, Total: 950... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ...

Germany used armored trains to a small degree during World War Two, however, they introduced significant designs of versatile and well equipped nature, including railcars which housed anti-aircraft turrets, railcars designed to load and unload tanks, and railcars which had complete armor protection with a large concealed howitzer gun. Germany also had impressive locomotives which were used on such trains and were fully armored.

Fulgencio Batista’s army operated an armored train during the cuban revolution though it was derailed and destroyed during the battle of Santa Clara General Fulgencio Batista y Zaldívar (pronounced ) (January 16, 1901 – August 6, 1973) was the de facto military leader of Cuba from 1933 to 1940, and thus the eminence grise of Cuban politics for that period of time, and the de jure President of Cuba from 1940 to 1944 after... The Cuban Revolution refers to the revolutionary war in Cuba culminating in the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista’s government on January 1, 1959 by the 26th of July Movement and other revolutionary elements in the country. ...

RT-23 in the Saint Petersburg railway museum.

Towards the end of the Cold War, both superpowers began to develop railway-based ICBMs mounted on armoured trains; the Soviets deployed the SS-24 missile in 1987, and the US started to follow suit with the Peacekeeper missile, but budget costs and the changing international situation led to the cancellation of both programs, with all remaining railway-based missiles on both sides finally being deactivated in 2005. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2048 × 3072 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 400 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2048 × 3072 pixel, file size: 1. ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and... For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ... A Minuteman III missile soars after a test launch. ... The SS-24 Scalpel (NATO designation) or RT-23 was an MIRV ICBM that was cold launched, and came in silo and railway car based variants. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A peacekeeper can be a person involved in peacekeeping. ... The rise of Gorbachev Although reform stalled between 1964–1982, the generational shift gave new momentum for reform. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

One armored train that remains in regular use is the private train of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, which the former received as a gift from the Soviet Union. Kim Il-sung (15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was the leader of North Korea from its founding in 1948 until his death, when he was succeeded by his son Kim Jong-il. ... Kim Jong-il (also written as Kim Jong Il) (Korean: ) (born February 16, 1942) is the leader of North Korea, a position he has held since 1994. ...

An armoured train named "Krajina ekspres" (Krajina express) was used during the war in Croatia (part of the Yugoslav succession wars) of the early 90's by the army of Republika Srpska Krajina (self-proclaimed republic of Serbs living within Croatia that sought to remain in Yugoslavia). The train was used successfully as a mobile artillery battery (some AA guns were also mounted) due to lack of danger from the air (Croatia then possessed only a few aircraft - mostly converted ex-crop dusters used as bombers). It was reportedly hit on few occasions with some antitank self-propelled grenades, but the damage was minor, as most of the train was covered with thick sheets of rubber which caused the grenades to explode somewhat too early to do real damage. The train was finally destroyed by its own crew lest it fall into enemy hands during the Croatian offensive "Storm" which overran the Srpska Krajina. The Republic of Serb Krajina (Serbian: Република Српска Крајина, РСК; sometimes also translated Republic of Serbian Krajina) was a self-proclaimed Serbian entity in Croatia during the 1990s. ...

Tactics

The advantage of armoured trains is that they can be quickly moved across great distances (which was especially important in the extremely mobile Russian Civil War). They can also carry a large quantity of supplies (including ammunition and materials for track repairs).

The obvious disadvantage is that they are tied to rail tracks, and destroying tracks immobilizes them.  They are also easy to spot and destroy from the air.  Because of this, armoured trains have virtually disappeared since World War II. Rail tracks. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Armoured train at Bloemfontein, South Africa, circa 1914. It was worked by the South African Engineer Corps, and used against rebels during World War I

Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Bloemfontein at night Bloemfontein (IPA: , Afrikaans and Dutch for fountain of Bloem (bloom) or flower fountain is one of South Africas three capital cities, along with Pretoria and Cape Town. ... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nicholas II Aleksei Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert Henry Asquith Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna Armando Diaz Woodrow...

See also

• List of armoured trains
• Battle of Mokra
• Troop sleeper

This is a list of armoured trains of different countries. ... Combatants Nazi Germany Poland Commanders Georg-Hans Reinhardt Friedrich Kirchner Julian Filipowicz Strength 1st Panzer Division 4th Panzer Division 31st Infantry Division Volhynian Cavalry Brigade 7th Infantry Division Casualties 700 KIA, 300 WIA, 160 tanks and AFVs 100 KIA, 300 WIA, five guns, four AA guns, 300 horses Monument to... In U.S. railroad terminology, a troop sleeper was a rail car which had been converted to serve as something of a mobile barracks for transporting troops distances sufficient to require overnight accomodations. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Armoured trains

• Soviet armoured trains
• Railway Gun Museum
• Russian armoured trains
• photos of the krajina express

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Wikimedia Commons logo by Reid Beels The Wikimedia Commons (also called Commons or Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ...

Quotes

• "Poland had only few armoured trains, but their officers and soldiers were fighting well. Again and again they were emerging from a cover in thick forests, disturbing German lines"

from the history of Wehrmacht: "Wie das Gesetz es befehl"