![[IMG]](https://i.gyazo.com/31be1df0a4b66815fd95c0b4030b6bd8.jpg)
Pictured: Not great gas mileage.
The Char 2C, built in France by FCM during World War One as the ultimate battleship on land, featured two turrets, four heavy machine guns, and an absolutely imposing presence. It is, even at a glance, a terrifying "steampunk battleship" of the field.
![[IMG]](https://i.gyazo.com/fcc07172aa743984913198f47f28e470.jpg)
The Char 2C seated more than the average minivan though.
Ten such machines were produced, with an alleged 11th partially finished before being scrapped. They were produced too late to become involved in World War One, and were held in the background until France was invaded in 1940.
![[IMG]](https://i.gyazo.com/b50de8845ada956044511bac46cd5853.jpg)
No jokes, just look at how big that thing is!
The machines were of course not designed for the fast, mobile battlefields of World War Two, but rather the ponderous trench warfare of the war prior. The machines were slow, terribly heavy, and relied on extensive support to remain operational for any length of time. The weapons and armor on these vehicles would have made them very difficult opponents for any German tank of the time set against them though as static defenders. The tanks however were relegated to a reserve and propaganda role. As France began to collapse, the tanks were moved towards the south, before they could proceed no longer by rail, and were set to be destroyed. In the end, one was captured by the Nazis, and taken to Berlin as a trophy. After the battle of Berlin, the vehicle was recovered by the Soviet forces occupying the city- until the vehicle vanished in 1948. As with many things in Soviet possession during that time, the paper trail just ends. What happened to the massive tank is a mystery.
![[IMG]](https://i.gyazo.com/8af414e931a9db2b33e982ac84cacff1.jpg)
Kinda puts misplacing your keys into perspective.
Today, at least according to those I spoke with, there is a glimmer of hope that one of these leviathans remains. Outside the city of Poznań, in central Poland, a club has allegedly found the monstrous machine sunken in a swamp. The reason the machine may be in the swamp is a mystery, but with the weight of the machine sitting close to 75 tons, any soft ground would cause it to sink rapidly. Much lighter vehicles were routinely swallowed up on the Eastern front. Whether the vehicle was sunk deliberately or by accident remains a mystery- if this is really the lost Char 2C after all. Giving credence to this story are more and more accounts of treasures being found the same way this machine was allegedly found- via ground penetrating radar. As I don't speak Polish, I haven't any idea how to verify this properly, and though I can't verify the authenticity of the story, it sounds possible- considering all the strange machines and relics they keep pulling out of Europe's swamps. If found, it would be one of the most impressive armored vehicles discovered to date, and one of the most treasured relics of the interwar period. Fingers crossed this one isn't a hoax!
