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An M4 Sherman tank in Italy in 1943 during WWII.

A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; usually their main armament is mounted in a turret. They are a mainstay of modern 20th and 21st century ground forces and a key part of combined arms combat.

Modern tanks are versatile mobile land weapons platforms whose main armament is a large-caliber tank gun mounted in a rotating gun turret, supplemented by machine guns or other ranged weapons such as anti-tank guided missiles or rocket launchers. They have heavy vehicle armour which provides protection for the crew, the vehicle's munition storage, fuel tank and propulsion systems. The use of tracks rather than wheels provides improved operational mobility which allows the tank to overcome rugged terrain and adverse conditions such as mud and ice/snow better than wheeled vehicles, and thus be more flexibly positioned at advantageous locations on the battlefield. These features enable the tank to perform well in a variety of intense combat situations, simultaneously both offensively (with direct fire from their powerful main gun) and defensively (as fire support and defilade for friendly troops due to the near invulnerability to common infantry small arms and good resistance against most heavier weapons), all while maintaining the mobility needed to exploit changing tactical situations. Fully integrating tanks into modern military forces spawned a new era of combat: armoured warfare.

Until the arrival of the main battle tank, tanks were typically categorized either by weight class (light, medium, heavy or superheavy tanks) or doctrinal purpose (breakthrough-, cavalry-, infantry-, cruiser-, or reconnaissance tanks). Some being larger and very heavily armoured and with large guns, while others are smaller, lightly armoured, and equipped with a smaller caliber and lighter gun. These smaller tanks move over terrain with speed and agility and can perform a reconnaissance role in addition to engaging enemy targets. The smaller, faster tank would not normally engage in battle with a larger, heavily armoured tank, except during a surprise flanking manoeuvre. (Full article...)-

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U.S. Army M1A2 Abrams with production TUSK explosive reactive armor package installed

The M1 Abrams is a third-generation American main battle tank designed by Chrysler Defense (now General Dynamics Land Systems) and named for General Creighton Abrams. Conceived for modern armored ground warfare and now one of the heaviest tanks in service at nearly 68 short tons (almost 62 metric tons), it introduced several innovative features, including a multifuel turbine engine, sophisticated Chobham composite armor, a computer fire control system, separate ammunition storage in a blow-out compartment, and NBC protection for crew safety. Initial models of the M1 were armed with a licensed-produced 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 gun, while later variants feature a licensed Rheinmetall 120 mm L/44.

The M1 Abrams was developed from the failure of the MBT-70 project to replace the obsolescent M60 tank. There are three main operational Abrams versions, the M1, M1A1, and M1A2, with each new iteration seeing improvements in armament, protection, and electronics. Extensive improvements have been implemented to the latest formerly designated M1A2 System Enhancement Package version 3 or SEPv3 and M1A2 SEPv4, respectively versions such as improved composite armor, better optics, digital systems and ammunition. The Abrams was due to be replaced by the Future Combat Systems XM1202 but due to its cancellation, the U.S. military has opted to continue maintaining and operating the M1 series for the foreseeable future by upgrading with improved optics, armor and firepower. (Full article...)

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The Battle of Medina Ridge was a tank battle fought on the 27 February 1991, during the Gulf War, between the U.S. 1st Armored Division and the 2nd Brigade of the Iraqi Republican Guard Medina Luminous Division outside Basra, Iraq. The U.S. 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division was also a major contributor, by leading the attack. Iraq's Adnan Motorized Division was also a participant. Medina Ridge is the name American troops gave to a low rise, approximately seven miles (11 km) long.

The battle, which was waged over approximately two hours, was considered by some sources the largest tank battle of the war. It took place west of Phase Line Kiwi, east of Phase Line Smash, and north of Phase Line Grape. Phase lines are map references occurring every few kilometers used to measure progress of an offensive operation. (Full article...)

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Operation Epsom Battle of Arras (1917) Battle of Moscow Battle of Verrières Ridge Battle of Khafji Operation Uranus Operation Tractable Third Battle of Kharkov Battle of Smolensk (1943) Yom Kippur War Battle of Gembloux (1940) Battle of Hannut Battle of Asal Uttar Battle of 73 Easting Battle of Norfolk Battle of Villers-Bocage Operation Bøllebank Battle of Baguio (1945) Battle of Phillora

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Image 1An M10 tank destroyer in action near Saint-Lô, France, June/July 1944
Image 2The Char 2C, also known as the FCM 2C, is a French heavy tank, later also seen as a super-heavy tank,^[1] developed during World War I but not deployed until after the war. It was, in physical dimensions, the largest operational tank ever made.
Image 3Map of the South Ossetia war, in which a considerable number of Georgia T-72's and assorted Russian armor were used.
Image 4A front view of the sole surviving A7V (Mephisto) on display at the Australian War Memorial
Image 5Diagram of a tank based on the M1 Abrams. Diagram showing the major parts of a modern main battle tank, including the turret, glacis plate and main gun.
Image 6A 3rd Marine Division – U.S. Marine Corps flame tank in action near Da Nang, Vietnam. The U.S. Army no longer had flamethrower tanks but the Marine Corps sent several to Vietnam. January 1966.
Image 7A M3 Lee. The Medium Tank M3 was an American tank used during World War II. In Britain the tank was called "General Lee" named after General Robert E. Lee, and its modified version built to British specification, with a new turret, was called "General Grant" named after General Ulysses S. Grant.
Image 8The PT-76 is a Soviet amphibious light tank that was introduced in the early 1950s and soon became the standard reconnaissance tank of the Soviet Army and the other Warsaw Pact armed forces.
Image 9The Flying Elephant was a proposed super-heavy tank, planned but never built by the British during World War I. Pictured is a 1/48 scale model of the Flying Elephant Design B at The Tank Museum, U.K.
Image 10U.S. Army soldiers on Bougainville (one of the Solomon Islands) in World War II. Japanese forces tried infiltrating the U.S. lines at night; at dawn, the U.S. soldiers would clear them out. In this picture, infantrymen are advancing in the cover of an M4 Sherman tank.

General images

The following are images from various tank-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1US M1 Abrams tanks from the 3rd Armored Division along the Line of Departure. (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 2Karrar MBT (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 3Arjun-Mk.1 (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 4Pakistan main battle tank Al-Khalid MBT on display in November 2012. (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 5The Tsar Tank (from History of the tank)
Image 6The electric Aubriot-Gabet "Fortress", mounted on a tractor chassis, 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 7An Asad Babil abandoned after facing the final US thrust into Baghdad (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 8A M1A1 Abrams in the Taunus Mountains north of Frankfurt during Exercise Ready Crucible in February 2005. (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 9Russian T-80BV at the Victory Day Parade 2005 (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 10An American M1 Abrams tank destroyed in Baghdad (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 11Leonardo da Vinci sketch of his armored fighting vehicle (from History of the tank)
Image 12The K-2 Black Panther model on display (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 13Japanese Type 90 tank (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 14Soviet T-35, a five-turreted heavy tank of the 1930s (from History of the tank)
Image 15Russian Vezdekhod tank prototype, 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 16Char Renault FT, Les Invalides (from History of the tank)
Image 17Russian Chyorny Oryol or Black Eagle features (from History of the tank)
Image 18A Frot-Laffly landship was tested on 28 March 1915 in France. (from History of the tank)
Image 19Killen-Strait tractor fitted with a Delaunay-Belleville armoured car body, shortly after the 30 June 1915 experiments (from History of the tank)
Image 20The No1 Lincoln Machine, with lengthened Bullock tracks and Creeping Grip tractor suspension, September 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 21Russian T-80U (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 22Final caterpillar test, on 21 February 1916, before the mass order of the Schneider CA1 tank on 25 February (from History of the tank)
Image 23A British Mark I tank in action on 26 September 1916 (moving left to right). Photo by Ernest Brooks. (from History of the tank)
Image 24Tritton Trench-Crosser, May 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 25The Souain tank prototype crossing a trench at Souain on 9 December 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 26British Challenger 2 Tank of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards (Squadron D). (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 27A Waffen-SS Tiger I tank in France (from History of the tank)
Image 281904 illustration of H.G. Wells' December 1903 The Land Ironclads, showing huge ironclad land vessels, equipped with pedrail wheels (from History of the tank)
Image 29Italian Ariete main battle tank of the Italian Army (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 30Vickers Medium Mark Is on a manoeuvre somewhere in England, 1930 (from History of the tank)
Image 31The U.S. M551 Sheridan was an air-mobile light tank with a 152 mm gun/missile launcher (from History of the tank)
Image 32Arjun-Mk.1A (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 33A Holt tractor in the Vosges in early 1915 serving as an artillery tractor for a French army De Bange 155 mm cannon (from History of the tank)
Image 34Chinese Type 99 tank (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 35US Army recognition poster of T-54/55 series tanks (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 36Leopard 2A4 of the Austrian Army (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 37Merkava IIID Baz fires – the Baz Fire-control system increases the Merkava's ability to hit targets at longer ranges and with pin-point accuracy. (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 38An A7V tank at Roye on 21 March 1918 (from History of the tank)
Image 39JGSDF Type10 Tank of the 1st Armored Training Unit (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 40A Leclerc Main Battle Tank on manoeuvres. (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 41The Boirault machine used a huge rotating frame around a motorized center, early 1915 (from History of the tank)
Image 42Leopard 2A5 of the German Army (Heer) (from Tanks of the post–Cold War era)
Image 43Little Willie design, December 1915 (from History of the tank)