The Tank Museum

The Tank Museum at Bovington in Dorset is one of the most spectacular military museums in the world, holding the largest collection of tanks and armoured fighting vehicles on the planet. With over 300 vehicles on display spanning more than a century of armoured warfare, from the earliest experimental tanks of the First World War to the most advanced fighting vehicles of the present day, the museum offers an unrivalled journey through the history of mechanised combat.

The museum occupies the site of the Royal Armoured Corps base at Bovington Camp, where the British Army has trained tank crews since the First World War. The connection between the living military base and the museum gives the collection an authenticity and continuing relevance that few other institutions can match. Visitors can trace the full arc of tank development from the revolutionary Mark I of 1916, which changed the nature of warfare forever, through the iconic machines of the Second World War to the Challenger 2s that represent Britain's current armoured capability.

The collections are housed in a series of vast halls, each dedicated to different periods and aspects of tank history. The First World War Hall contains the world's only surviving example of a German A7V tank, while the Tiger Collection brings together working examples of Germany's most feared Second World War heavy tanks. The Tank Story gallery uses immersive displays, film, and personal testimony to humanise the history of armoured warfare and explore the experience of the men and women who fought in and around tanks.

Beyond the vehicles themselves, the museum holds extensive collections of uniforms, equipment, documents, photographs, and personal effects that tell the stories of the individuals who served in armoured units across the world's conflicts. The archive and library are major research resources for military historians.

The museum offers a full day's entertainment and education for visitors of all ages, with regular live events including tank driving demonstrations, Tiger Day, and Tankfest — the world's largest outdoor tank show, which attracts visitors from across the globe each summer.