The Burstyn Motorgeschütz — The Tank That Never Was
Long before tanks rumbled across the battlefields of Europe, one design quietly emerged from the Austro-Hungarian Empire — a machine that could have rewritten the mechanics of warfare before the First World War had even begun. That machine was the Burstyn Motorgeschütz.
Developed on paper in 1911 by Günther Burstyn, this design represents one of the earliest recorded concepts for a tracked armored fighting vehicle. Although it never saw combat, it remains a crucial part of early tank history and is featured prominently as the cover art for Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm in recognition of its innovative legacy.
Origins and Purpose
Burstyn of the Austro-Hungarian Army envisioned a vehicle that could support infantry assaults by overcoming terrain obstacles like trenches, barbed wire, and uneven ground — something traditional cavalry and wheeled vehicles could not manage. His "Motorgeschütz" (motorized gun) was essentially a self-propelled, armored gun carriage built to combine mobility, protection, and firepower.
The goal was to provide direct-fire infantry support, not through speed or mass, but by moving a single cannon across hostile terrain under armored protection.
🧰 Design Overview
Burstyn’s vehicle was intended to be compact and mechanically simple — using existing technology in new ways.
Dimensions: 3.5 m long, 1.87 m wide, 1.9 m tall
Weight: Approx. 8 tons
Armament: One fixed 37 mm cannon, mounted in a semi-rotating turret
Turret Traverse: Only 180 degrees — not a fully rotating turret as seen in later tanks
Armor Thickness: Estimated 8 mm of steel plating
Crew: 3 men — one driver, two gunners and loader.
Mobility: Tracked chassis with four auxiliary stabilizing arms (front, and rear) to help with trench-crossing.
Armament Details
According to Burstyn’s original plans and confirmed by the Tank Encyclopedia, the main armament was a 37 mm quick-firing cannon, placed in a lightly armored housing. While the turret’s traverse was limited to 180 degrees, this still provided reasonable field coverage for its intended support role.
🧨 Was It Supposed to Have a Machine Gun?
Yes — there are notes and marginalia in Burstyn’s sketches that mention the possible inclusion of a machine gun. While this wasn’t part of the primary proposal, later interpretations suggest it may have been planned as a secondary armament, possibly for anti-infantry defense. No confirmed model or mount position was included, but it’s believed it would have been a Schwarzlose MG — standard for Austro-Hungarian forces.
🛑 Why It Was Rejected
Despite the vision and practicality of the Motorgeschütz, both the Austro-Hungarian and German military authorities rejected the concept outright.
Reasons included:
Lack of understanding about the tactical potential of such a vehicle
Peacetime military conservatism
Perceived complexity or lack of necessity
No official military requirement for such technology in 1911–1912
Thus, it remained nothing more than a proposal on paper — one that would only gain historical attention decades later.
📕 In Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm
Though the Burstyn Motorgeschütz never saw action in reality, it features as the symbolic cover vehicle for Trench 1915: Volume 2, chosen for its stark design and its place as a "what could have been" in the evolution of armored warfare. Its inclusion reflects the tension of early WWI — a time when old doctrines clashed with modern war machinery, often too late.
Within the fictional narrative of the Trench series, the experimental vehicle was not lost to history. The elite Kaiserliche Waffenspezialisten (KWS) Battalion—a covert German unit specializing in prototype weaponry—secretly built, tested, and deployed the Burstyn Motorgeschütz to meet specific operational needs. Despite its successful limited use, its existence remained classified and unknown to the wider world, buried beneath layers of wartime secrecy in the universe of Trench 1915.
In other words, the KWS kept the design entirely to itself, never sharing it with Germany’s allies. This decision reflects the author’s commitment to maintaining the broader historical timeline of World War I, while weaving in new strategic elements through the lens of fictional special operations and experimental warfare.
🧾 Final Thoughts
The Burstyn Motorgeschütz remains one of the most important unrealized inventions in early tank development. While later designs — like the British Mark I or French FT-17 — made history, Burstyn’s 1911 prototype showed that the idea of mechanized armor existed well before the trenches even formed.
It wasn’t just a concept. It was a warning — and one the Austro-Hungarian Empire ignored.
Developed on paper in 1911 by Günther Burstyn, this design represents one of the earliest recorded concepts for a tracked armored fighting vehicle. Although it never saw combat, it remains a crucial part of early tank history and is featured prominently as the cover art for Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm in recognition of its innovative legacy.
Origins and Purpose
Burstyn of the Austro-Hungarian Army envisioned a vehicle that could support infantry assaults by overcoming terrain obstacles like trenches, barbed wire, and uneven ground — something traditional cavalry and wheeled vehicles could not manage. His "Motorgeschütz" (motorized gun) was essentially a self-propelled, armored gun carriage built to combine mobility, protection, and firepower.
The goal was to provide direct-fire infantry support, not through speed or mass, but by moving a single cannon across hostile terrain under armored protection.
🧰 Design Overview
Burstyn’s vehicle was intended to be compact and mechanically simple — using existing technology in new ways.
Dimensions: 3.5 m long, 1.87 m wide, 1.9 m tall
Weight: Approx. 8 tons
Armament: One fixed 37 mm cannon, mounted in a semi-rotating turret
Turret Traverse: Only 180 degrees — not a fully rotating turret as seen in later tanks
Armor Thickness: Estimated 8 mm of steel plating
Crew: 3 men — one driver, two gunners and loader.
Mobility: Tracked chassis with four auxiliary stabilizing arms (front, and rear) to help with trench-crossing.
Armament Details
According to Burstyn’s original plans and confirmed by the Tank Encyclopedia, the main armament was a 37 mm quick-firing cannon, placed in a lightly armored housing. While the turret’s traverse was limited to 180 degrees, this still provided reasonable field coverage for its intended support role.
🧨 Was It Supposed to Have a Machine Gun?
Yes — there are notes and marginalia in Burstyn’s sketches that mention the possible inclusion of a machine gun. While this wasn’t part of the primary proposal, later interpretations suggest it may have been planned as a secondary armament, possibly for anti-infantry defense. No confirmed model or mount position was included, but it’s believed it would have been a Schwarzlose MG — standard for Austro-Hungarian forces.
🛑 Why It Was Rejected
Despite the vision and practicality of the Motorgeschütz, both the Austro-Hungarian and German military authorities rejected the concept outright.
Reasons included:
Lack of understanding about the tactical potential of such a vehicle
Peacetime military conservatism
Perceived complexity or lack of necessity
No official military requirement for such technology in 1911–1912
Thus, it remained nothing more than a proposal on paper — one that would only gain historical attention decades later.
📕 In Trench 1915: Volume 2 – Eastern Storm
Though the Burstyn Motorgeschütz never saw action in reality, it features as the symbolic cover vehicle for Trench 1915: Volume 2, chosen for its stark design and its place as a "what could have been" in the evolution of armored warfare. Its inclusion reflects the tension of early WWI — a time when old doctrines clashed with modern war machinery, often too late.
Within the fictional narrative of the Trench series, the experimental vehicle was not lost to history. The elite Kaiserliche Waffenspezialisten (KWS) Battalion—a covert German unit specializing in prototype weaponry—secretly built, tested, and deployed the Burstyn Motorgeschütz to meet specific operational needs. Despite its successful limited use, its existence remained classified and unknown to the wider world, buried beneath layers of wartime secrecy in the universe of Trench 1915.
In other words, the KWS kept the design entirely to itself, never sharing it with Germany’s allies. This decision reflects the author’s commitment to maintaining the broader historical timeline of World War I, while weaving in new strategic elements through the lens of fictional special operations and experimental warfare.
🧾 Final Thoughts
The Burstyn Motorgeschütz remains one of the most important unrealized inventions in early tank development. While later designs — like the British Mark I or French FT-17 — made history, Burstyn’s 1911 prototype showed that the idea of mechanized armor existed well before the trenches even formed.
It wasn’t just a concept. It was a warning — and one the Austro-Hungarian Empire ignored.
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