The Schneider CA1 (originally named the Schneider CA) was the first French tank. It was inspired by the need to overcome the stalemate of trench warfare which prevailed during most of the Great War, specifically to open passages for the infantry through German barbed wire and then to suppress enemy machine gun nests. Four hundred Schneider CA1 tanks were manufactured by SOMUA (a subsidiary of Schneider located in a suburb of Paris ), between September 1916 and August 1918. The Schneider CA1 tanks were widely used in combat beginning in April 1917 and until the end of September 1918, less than 2 months before the Armistice of November 11, 1918.
Read more about Schneider CA1: Designation, Description, Production, Improvements, Operational History, Later Designs: The Schneider CA2, CA3 and CA4, After The First World War