Incredible bravery of WWI tank crew who survived 72 hours being bombarded by both Germans and their own side

The crew of the Fray Bentos were trapped after their tank fell on its side

They were attacked constantly by German machine guns and explosives

Even British guns tried to destroy the tank to keep it from enemy hands

But all but one of the men miraculously escaped the deadly situation



Trapped in their overturned tank, just metres from the German trenches, Captain Donald Richardson and his crew already faced an impossible situation.

But, after three days of attack from their enemies, the brave men in charge of the Mark IV tank were plunged into even greater danger when their British allies started bombarding them as well, to destroy the tank before the Germans could get it.

Astonishingly, though, all but one of the soldiers survived the impossible odds, armed with just pistols and a single rifle, managing to escape the death trap to become the First World War's most decorated tank crew.

War machine: The crew was stuck inside the early tanks, which helped turn the tide of the First World War by smashing through enemy fortifications (file photo)

Impression: This sketch illustrates the overwhelming odds faced by the Fray Bentos crew

The heroes aboard the tank nicknamed Fray Bentos made scattered headlines months after the struggle in July 1917, but their story then languished untold for decades.

But it has now been revealed by family historians at findmypast.co.uk, who dredged up records of the heroic struggle.

They were able to uncover Captain Donald Richardson, Second Lieutenant George Hill and the rest of their crew had rushed towards the enemy lines when their tank got stuck in a bomb crater and fell on its side.

The fall rendered the tank's on-board guns useless, and the injured men were trapped inside while the tank's metal armour endured constant assault from machine guns, sniper rifles, grenades, heavy artillery and even dynamite.

High technology: The early tanks, seen here advancing, were powerful but unreliable

In one particularly deadly moment, a German soldier managed to climb on the overturned tank and drop a grenade inside, but a crew member managed to hurl it back out before it exploded.



The men survived by sharing their meagre rations and drinking water from the tank's radiator. They were also faced with extremes of temperature ranging from 30 degrees Celsius in the day to below freezing point at night.

Decorated: The battle was described in the Nottingham Post in 1918

After their first night under fire, a flare sent up by British forces showed the men that they were surrounded by German soldiers, eager to take over the stranded tank.

Realising they had little chance of survival if they stayed inside, the men managed to make their escape by crawling through the mud one-by-one to make it back to their own lines.

A report on the battle from the Nottingham Evening Post in January 1918 said: 'For three days and nights, Captain Richardson along with another officer and the crew, continued to hold the enemy at bay.

'They were heavily sniped, and the Germans actually got on top of the tank, but could not get inside, nor did the bringing up of a machine gun subdue the defenders, one of whom was killed and all the rest wounded.'

Debra Chatfield, a family historian from findmypast.co.uk said: “At this point in the First World War, tank technology and warfare was incredibly new.

'Captain Richardson and Second Lieutenant Hill led a charge of eight tanks and theirs was the only one that survived attack by German artillery.

'It is astonishing that they managed to survive the initial attack, let alone 72 hours of attacks from German troops, especially when you consider that they only had basic weapons to defend themselves.

'The tank crew became the most decorated of the whole First World War, and it would seem, rightly so.

Crippled: The Fray Bentos had been turned on its side, so could not use the tank's on-board weaponry (file photo)

Victory: Tanks took pride of place in parades to celebrate the end of the war, including this 1919 procession down Whitehall

'There’s a story waiting to be told in every family, and old newspapers are a great way of unearthing them.'

T he Fray Bentos crew was awarded two Military Crosses, two Distinguished Conduct Medals, and four Military Medals – the most awarded to one tank crew during any action of the war.