Armoured Model T

[David]

The Ford Armoured Car (Admiralty Pattern) might never have been born at all had it not been for a series of accidents. In December 1915 Commander Oliver Locker-Lampson's RNAS armoured car squadron sailed for Russia and, while on passage, ran into one of the worst Arctic gales within living memory. In the ships' holds several of the Lanchester armoured cars, which formed the basis of the squadron's equipment, broke loose from their lashings, and caused such damage to themselves and to other vehicles that the whole consignment had to be returned to the United Kingdom for repair, while the personnel disembarked at Alexandrovsk where they spent the winter waiting for an ice-free passage to Archangel, at that stage the only North Russian port with a rail link to the south.
The squadron had been despatched to Russia as a gesture of Allied solidarity under an agreement by which the Tsar's Government paid all expenses and the British provided the cars and crews. However, a Belgian armoured car unit was already operating in Russia, and its employment had caused such difficulties that the Russians decided that they simply did not want a second foreign squadron. The Admiralty acceded to their request for the recall of the British personnel, but under-estimated the abilities of Locker­Lampson himself, a professional politician and personal friend of Winston Churchill, who as a result of some very high level manoeuvering, managed to have the decision reversed.
The problem for the Russian GHQ was how best to employ their unwanted guests. It was decided to send them to the Caucasus Front, where the Russian Army was engaged not only against the Turks, but rebellious Kurdish tribesmen as well. Conditions were very similar to those prevailing on the North West Frontier of India, and it was felt that the British would settle down quickly in such surroundings.
The squadron performed very well in a series of small actions, although the Caucasus provided some of the world's worst going for armoured cars. The Lanchesters' low sumps were constantly being cracked open, the crews being forced to resort to ingenious mixtures to effect repairs, including jam, chewing gum and sticking plaster, and melted bullets poured into the cracks from above. This was far from satisfactory, and the squadron's United Kingdom base at Newport, Monmouthshire, was asked to provide a light armoured car to complement the Lanchester and Seabrook establishment.
The new vehicle was designed by Petty Officer L. Gutteridge, who chose the basic Ford Model T as his starting point, since it had already demonstrated its sturdy cross country abilities in other theatres of war and was, moreover, simple and robust. Gutteridge calculated that even the simple conversion he planned would double the Model T's weight of 10 cwt, and allowed for this by using stronger suspension springs and tie rods on the back axle. The 5 mm armour plate was attached to an angle iron framework which was in turn bolted to the chassis, and consisted of a housing for the engine and radiator, a tall cab for the driver, and an open-topped superstructure at the rear, the suspension being partially protected by wheel discs. The vehicle was armed with a rear-facing water­cooled Maxim machine gun, the crew of which sat behind the driving cab, protected to some extent by the square 9 mm gun shield. Quick release clamps permitted the gun and its tripod to be removed for ground action. A large 10 gallon petrol tank and a patent Stepney Wheel completed the conversion. A total' of nine armoured Model Ts were built by W. G. Allen & Sons of Tipton, of which six are known to have reached the unit in Russia, where they served as Light Recce Sections.
They did not, however, serve in the Caucasus as originally intended. Following the collapse of the Rumanian Army, Locker- Lamp son's squadron had been shipped across the Black Sea and thrown into action in the Dobruja, where the Russians were desperately trying to plug the gap and hold the advancing Bulgarians in check. During a series of hard-fought rearguard actions, in which the cars fired “over the tail”, the British crews earned the admiration of their Russian counterparts, and received a number of Imperial decorations. Most of the action took place along roads, but conditions were frightful, as the autumn rains had set in, and several of the heavier cars bogged down and were lost. On the other hand, the Model Ts, whose quaint appearance had generated much mirth on their arrival, covered themselves in glory, wallowing along through the mud with­out undue difficulty.
The following spring found the squadron in Galicia. By then, the March Revolution had taken place and the Tsar had gone; but the Provisional Government rashly decided to keep Russia in the war, and mounted a spring offensive. The result was disastrous. Large sectors of the front were simply abandoned, and for ten days Locker-Lampson's men held a 25 mile stretch of the line unaided. Once again, the cars inflicted heavy losses, but by the end of this period of constant action, they had almost all been knocked out.
By now Gutteridge had himself arrived in Russia, and was serving at the squadron's rear base at Kursk. He shortened the body of one of the Model Ts and installed a mounting for a Lewis gun, a small consignment of which had recently been delivered from England, thereby reducing the crew to two. It may have been Locker-Lampson's intention to so modify all his armoured Fords, but events decreed otherwise, and almost all seem to have been lost in the spring fighting. Gutteridge used the armour from a wrecked Ford to protect a Fiat lorry, and this hybrid vehicle saw action in support of the Russian 2nd Cavalry Division.
After the October Revolution it was no longer safe for the RNAS squadron to remain in Russia, and they returned home early in 1918. No examples of the armoured Model T have survived, to the best of my knowledge; if any still exist, they are probably in Russia.