An M1A1 Main Battle Tank from 2d Tank Battalion crosses the Intracoastal Waterway via bridging provided by Bridge Company, 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2d Force Service Support Group

Tanks in mass culture. Tanks were first developed separately and simultaneously by Great Britain and France as a means to break the deadlock of trench warfare on the Western Front. Their first use in combat was by the British Army in September 1916 during the Battle of the Somme. The name "tank" was adopted by the British during the early stages of their development, as a security measure to conceal their purpose.