Anti-tank rifles

An anti-tank rifle is a rifle designed to penetrate the armor of vehicles, particularly tanks. The usefulness of rifles for this purpose ran from the introduction of tanks in World War I until the Korean War. While medium and heavy tank armor became too thick to be penetrated by rigid projectiles from rifles that could be carried by a single soldier, anti-tank rifles continued to be used against other targets, though recoilless rifles and rocket-propelled grenades such as the bazooka were also introduced for infantry close-layer defense against tanks. Anti-materiel rifles of today, such as the Barrett M82, are a development of the Second World War technology.

The tug of war between armor and projectiles had been developing for a long while among naval vessels, since the advent of the Ironclad. It wasn't until soldiers met armored vehicles that the conflict of infantry firearms and armor began. The introduction of armored cars and tanks resulted in the development of the first anti-tank weapons, among the first of which were high-powered rifles. These had appeared in the 19th century for big-game hunting. The anti-tank rifle followed the same route: a large bullet with a high velocity and the ability to penetrate armor.

The first tanks, beginning with the British Mark I launched against the German trenches in World War I, were nearly impregnable to ordinary rifle fire. Most armored cars were similarly protected, but troops rarely faced armored cars, as they could not navigate the landscape of trench warfare very well. Though tanks and armored cars were vulnerable to artillery, mortars, and grenades, infantry was at a significant disadvantage when facing armored fighting vehicles since they had no effective direct fire weapon, with the exception of the ubiquitous trench mortar, improvised on the spot. In the direct fire mode, this weapon was manhandled by German infantry over the front of a trench wall and fired at low angles by eye at approaching enemy vehicles. Though somewhat effective, these actions were obviously very hazardous to any desperate mortar crew as their exposure could attract enemy fire.

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