EVER HEARD OF THE TANKGEWEHR M1918, THE WORLD'S FIRST ANTI-TANK GUN?

The Mauser Tankgwehr 1918 anti-tank rifle was one of the first of its kind.
Military history is rife with firearms experiments that have been developed quickly out of pure necessity on the battlefield. One of those guns is the slightly obscure Mauser Tankgewehr M1918 or "T-Gewehr" for short. In a way, this massive 5', 7", 35-pound, rifle was sort of the great grandfather for modern anti-material rifles like the Barrett .50 BMG.

In the first World War, Germany was taken by surprise when some of the first-ever tanks began rolling onto the battlefield during the bloody trench warfare. Tank crews were protected by crude armor that was not nearly as effective as what is used today.