by Paul Malmassari

Translated from the French by Roger Branfill-Cook

The military was quick to see the advantages of railways in warfare, whether for the rapid deployment of men or the movement of heavy equipment like artillery. 

From here it was a short step to making the train a potent weapon in its own right a mobile fort or a battleship on rails. 

Armed and armoured, they became the first practical self-propelled war machines, which by the time of the American Civil War were able to make a significant contribution to battlefield success. 

Thereafter, almost every belligerent nation with a railway system made some use of armoured rolling stock, ranging from low-intensity colonial policing to the massive employment of armoured trains during the Russian Civil War. 

And although they were somewhat eclipsed as frontline weapons by the development of the tank and other AFVs, armoured trains retained a role as late as the civil wars in the former republic of Yugoslavia. 

This truly encyclopaedic book covers, country by country, the huge range of fighting equipment that rode the rails over nearly two centuries. While it outlines the place of armoured trains in the evolution of warfare, it concentrates on details of their design through a vast array of photographs and the author's meticulous drawings. Published in French in 1989, this highly regarded work has been completely revised and expanded for this English edition. 

It remains the last word on the subject.

What reviewers wrote about our book:

5 stars: Impressive research, exceptional production, and excellent value for money

If any recent technical military history book deserved the accolade ‘tour de force’, this is it. The work is an updated version of the author’s 1989 book in French Les trains blindés 1826-1989, expertly translated by Roger Branfill-Cook. It is a large format hardback, with 528 pages, all heavily illustrated, and weighs at around 2.5kgs. The photographic content is exceptional, with many images coming from the author’s own collection, as well as archives and private collections worldwide. The production quality by Seaforth Publishing (an imprint of the well-known Pen & Sword) is also excellent – as a former book editor myself, I can well imagine the work involved.

But even more impressive than the physical scale of the book is the breath and depth of Mr Malmassari’s research. He covers armoured trains (and other armoured railcars and rail trolleys) used by over 70 countries and empires, from a French design of 1825 through the American Civil War, colonial wars of the late 19th century, WW1, the interwar period, WW2 and right up the modern era. Each country chapter also includes many references for further reading.

Many readers will be attracted by the long chapters on the best-known users such as the Russians, Germans, French, Spanish, Polish, Japanese and British. Personally, I bought the book because of my particular interest in the interwar period in China, and was pleased to find 16 pages on China and 22 pages on Japan, with many photos I had not seen before. But the coverage of more obscure nations is equally fascinating, from Nicaragua in 1912 via Cuba in the 1950s to Mauritania in the 1970s, to name just a few. Unknown to me, too, was the use of armoured trains in the wars in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, including one Croatian example that included missiles in its armament !

The author also touches on the deeper significance of his topic, perhaps drawing on his long experience as a professional soldier in France and his work with NATO and the UN in Yugoslavia. He notes that “to demonstrate and study armoured trains, over the swathe of battlefields on which they participated, illustrates the industrial history and the economic, social, cultural and political make-up of the nation”. In this context, the appendix with examples of such trains appearing in propaganda, art, films and cartoons is a welcome addition to the book.

All in all, this is a superb tome, which will be of great interest to military and railway historians alike, and which is sure to become the definitive work on the subject. And for a price of around £30, exceptional value for money. Just check your bookshelves can bear the weight !

Graham Thompson. Reviewed on amazon in the United Kingdom on 11 July 2017

5 stars:  Probably the most authoritative work on the subject available.

Originally produced in the author’s native language of French, Armoured Trains: An Illustrated Encyclopaedia 1825–2016, is completely revised and expanded since its earlier publication. This English-language edition is undoubtedly the most authoritative work on the subject ever.

An enormous book of 528 pages, every armoured train ever built features in the well-illustrated pages. We start off with a suitably long introduction that gives a chronological overview of armoured trains. The book is lavishly illustrated with at least three clear black and white photographs on each page. But really good to see are the numerous drawing of the most important locomotives and rolling stock drawn by the author to a constant HO (1/87) scale. This is a real bonus for the military model maker and it comes as no surprise to discover that the author is an accomplished scale modeller.

The book starts in 1825 with early experiments by the military forces around the world that were quick to realise that the embryonic railways would enable the rapid deployment of troops and heavy equipment, such as artillery. Although limited by having to run on fixed rails, these early plans can be seen as the origins of mobile industrial scale warfare. The American Civil War saw the railroads move from a way of quickly deploying troops to a potent weapon that could bring the fight to the enemy using practical self-propelled war machines.

The major European nations quickly picked up on the armoured train as a potent weapon for colonial policing. However, it was the First World War – the first war to be fought on truly industrial scale when the railways became an essential part of the major belligerent’s war making machines. Although not used as fighting machines the railways were used an essential element of logistical support. After the Great War armoured trains were used throughout the world from the Russian revolution to the civil war in China. All of the weapons used in these conflicts feature prominently in chapters that describe the weapons listed by nation.

The Second World War was the pinnacle for the armoured train and the chapter on Germany that starts with the first German armoured train, that was used in the Boxer rebellion in China, is predominantly about the vast variety of armoured trains that the Germans used in the Second World War, first in the Polish campaign in 1939 but mainly on the Eastern Front against the Soviets. The chapter on Russia, the USSR and the Russian federation is almost as long as the German chapter reflecting that the Soviets made as much use of armoured trains as the Germans. After World War II the armoured train concept went into steep decline. Still used in the anti-guerrilla role the armoured train would never again be a dominant force in the inventory of any of the major powers.

The majority of this truly encyclopaedic book covers armoured trains on a country by country basis. A quick glance at the contents reveals that some of the nations listed no longer exist in the form shown. But at the height of their power countries like Austria-Hungary had significant armoured railway trains. But this is not just a book about the major nations. Minor nations like Estonia, the Irish Free State and Portugal have at some time invested in armoured trains. All are here.

Author Paul Malmassari served for many years in the higher echelons of French Armoured Forces. He clearly has a passion for the subject of armoured trains and I read with interest that he has published other books, as this volume looks like a life’s work to me. Mention must also be made of the translation of Roger Branfill-Cook. Far too often books like this translated from a non-English original are spoilt by clumsy phrases, but this is certainly not the case here.

In summary if you have even a passing interest in armoured trains then this is the book for you. It is a fascinating subject and every range of fighting equipment that ran on rails over nearly two centuries is featured here. The level of detail is stunning as is the number and quality of photographs with the added bonus of some high quality drawings provided by the author to a constant scale. Very highly recommended to military model makers, railway enthusiasts and historians of modern warfare.

Tom Tank. Reviewed on amazon in the United Kingdom on 28 March 2019

5 stars:  Not just for railway enthusiasts

Great book of splendour about everything that is related to railroad armored trains. Richly illustrated and great scale drawings complement the

objective text. While it was still said in the first French edition from the late 1980s that the era of armored trains was finally over, the author brings current examples from the Yugoslavia and Caucasus Wars in the completely revised English-language edition, which show that armored trains are still used today will be. Osorno. Reviewed on amazon in Germany on 20 January 2017

5 stars:  Military Compendium

This is a very comprehensive work of military history. Alphabetical by country, with both photos and design drawings. It is an outstanding reference for the historian or modeler. archpriest. Reviewed on amazon in the United States on 20 November 2020

5 stars:  Most comprehensive work on armored vehicles on rails

This is the most exhaustive work on this railway special topic. There have been such trains or vehicles all over the world.

The author has meticulously gathered worldwide information and contributed it to this lexicon.

After an old French edition, the extended edition is now available in English.

In addition to the description, about 1500 illustrations complete this volume. emilcollection. Reviewed on amazon in Germany on 7 February 2017