The older generation of Russians remembers well the words from the once popular song: "We are peaceful people, but our armored train is standing on a siding." In it, the armored personnel is not just a combat unit, but a symbol of the military power of the state. Is it any wonder that even today this word does not lose popularity, and even one very famous printing house is named after it. The railway armored train is an era in history, and the memory of it is indelible. Where did these wheeled fortresses come from?
First experiences with armored trains
The idea to use a train as a mobile artillery battery appeared in France in 1826, when the news spread around the world about the creation of the first railway in England. But no one took it seriously, and the first armored train went into battle only in 1848, when the Austrian army had to defend its capital from the Hungarians.
However, this experience, although successful, did not continue, and the idea was fully implemented already overseas during the US Civil War (1861-1865). Its initiatorbecame an American general of Russian origin Ivan Vasilyevich Turchaninov, better known by his American name John Basil Turchin.
Having installed guns on the railway platforms and thoroughly armored (covering) them with sandbags, he unexpectedly attacked the positions of the Northern army hostile to him located near the railway tracks. The effect was so overwhelming that the use of artillery platforms became a permanent practice, and later, when the armored train was adopted by many armies of the world, they became an integral part of it.
Further development of a new type of weaponry
In Europe, the idea to sheathe railway cars with armor plates, and to place artillery and machine-gun crews inside, came to the mind of the French engineer Mougin. But the problem was that the narrow-gauge railways of those years were unsuitable for the movement of heavy trains along them, and their use was possible only if there was a specially built gauge, which made the project difficult to implement.
In its usual form, the railway armored train, whose history by that time had already spanned almost half a century, was used in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. The Boers widely used the tactics of guerrilla warfare, suddenly attacking trains with ammunition and food, and thereby disrupting the supply of enemy units. Under these conditions, armored fortresses on wheels turned out to be a very effective means of protecting the communications of the English army. Since thenthe railway armored train, whose weapons were constantly improved, became an indispensable participant in all wars and major military conflicts.
The Highest Decree
In the years before the outbreak of the First World War, almost all European armies were armed with armored trains, and with the outbreak of hostilities, their widespread intensive production began. In 1913, Emperor Nicholas I ordered the start of the production of mobile armored trains on the basis of technical developments carried out by Russian engineers K. B. Krom and M. V. Kolobov. Two years later, at the height of the war, five such trains entered service with the railway units formed by that time, and soon two more were added to them.
Armored trains of the Civil War
It is well known that the railway armored train has become one of the symbols of the Civil War. This is not accidental, since it was during this period that it acquired particular importance in view of the acute struggle for control over the supply routes of the front. Armored and bristling with cannons, the trains were in service with almost all the warring parties. But such intensive use soon made their main shortcomings obvious.
Due to their bulkiness, armored trains were a convenient target for enemy artillery, and with the development of military equipment - for aviation. In addition, their mobility was entirely dependent on the condition of the railway tracks, so that to completely stop the train, it was enough to destroy them in front and behind.composition.
In this regard, each railway armored train, the use of which inevitably provoked the enemy to take such measures, was equipped with a platform with spare rails, sleepers and the necessary fasteners, and the team included railway workers. Curious data have been preserved: the repair crews almost manually managed to restore up to forty meters of track within an hour. Such labor productivity made it possible to resume the movement of the train with minimal delays.
Armored trains in service with the Red Army
In the Red Army, armored trains have found as widespread use as their opponents. At the beginning of hostilities, these were mainly trains left after the First World War, but since they were not enough for the needs of the front, the production of so-called “surrogate” models was started, which were ordinary passenger or freight trains with armor plates hung on them and equipped with tools. The creation of such an armored train did not require additional drawings and took very little time. Only in 1919 was it possible to arrange the production of real combat trains. By the end of the Civil War, the Red Army already had one hundred and twenty units.
At the end of the war, many of them were re-equipped for peaceful purposes, which led to a significant reduction in the rolling stock of railway troops. However, in the thirties, work continued on their release, but already taking into account the changed requirements. In particular, a largeSeparate armored platforms and armored cars, as well as armored tires, became widespread. During the Great Patriotic War, they were often equipped with anti-aircraft guns and machine guns and were intended to protect trains from enemy air attacks.
Components of an armored train
What did the classic railway armored train consist of? The photos presented in the article demonstrate quite powerful designs. First of all, such a train was supplied with a locomotive, the function of which was performed by an armored steam locomotive, and later a diesel locomotive. In addition, the presence of several armored wagons or platforms with weapons placed on them was mandatory. These could be artillery systems reinforced with machine gun crews, and later rocket launchers. Very often, an armored railway train included landing platforms, which housed manpower to transfer it to the area of military operations.
Despite their name, armored trains were not always protected solely by armor. Sometimes armored wagons were used, that is, securing them with tightly packed sandbags and sheet iron. Protective parapets for gun and landing platforms were made in a similar way. During the Second World War, German armored trains also included platforms with tanks, whose task was to support the landing.
Features of armored trains in the forties
At the same time, a specially designed type of armored trains appeared, speciallydesigned to protect important strategic facilities (bridges, factories, weapons depots, etc.) located at a distance from the front line, but within the reach of enemy aircraft. Their feature was in the design, optimized to repel air attacks. They consisted of an armored locomotive and armored platforms with various anti-aircraft weapons. As a rule, there were no armored cars in them.
In the early forties, the Soviet army had a division of armored trains and a battalion armed with armored railcars. With the outbreak of the war, their number increased significantly, and it included railway anti-aircraft batteries, also placed on trains. Their task, as in previous years, was mainly to protect communications and ensure the uninterrupted movement of echelons. It is known that in those years more than two hundred armored trains operated on the railways.
Railway troops in the post-war period
In the post-war years, the importance of armored trains declined due to the rapid development of armored vehicles. Until 1953, they were used mainly in Ukraine, during the hostilities against the UPA, which often carried out attacks on various railway facilities. However, in 1958, the Council of Ministers of the USSR issued a decree to stop the further development of this type of troops, and by the end of the fifties, armored trains were completely withdrawn from service.
Only in the seventies, due to the aggravation of relations with China, it was considered expedient to supplyZabaykalsky and Far Eastern military districts by five armored trains, continuously running along the state border. They were subsequently used to resolve conflicts in Baku (1990) and Nagorno-Karabakh (1987-1988), after which they were sent to a permanent base.
Rocket base on rails
Modern railway armored train bears little resemblance to its predecessors, who earned fame in the years of past wars. Today, this is a train equipped with combat missile systems capable of hitting any intended targets with atomic warheads and changing their location in the shortest possible time.
Despite the fact that this is a fundamentally new technical design, it nevertheless retains its familiar name - an armored train. The train, which is essentially a missile base, due to its mobility makes it difficult to detect even with the help of satellites.
