William Tritton

Sir William Ashbee Tritton, JP, (19 June 1875 – 24 September 1946) was a British expert in agricultural machinery, and was directly involved, together with Major Walter Gordon Wilson, in the development of the tank. Early in World War I he was asked to produce tractors for moving heavy howitzers, the result being eventually the first tanks. Early life Tritton was born in Islington, where his father William Birch Tritton (1845, Hythe, Kent – 29 July 1918) and mother Ellen Hannah Ashbee (16 December 1847 – 19 April 1921) lived at 51 Carleton Road. His parents had married on 22 October 1873 in Boughton under Blean, Kent. His brother was Percy Kingsnorth Tritton (1878–1903). He was the son of a London stockbroker, educated at Christ's College, Finchley and King's College London. By 1901 he was living in Altrincham. Career He joined Gwynnes Pumps in 1891. He later became a linotype mechanic and an electrical engineer. In 1906 he joined William Foster & Co. on Waterloo Street in Lincoln, and from 1911 until 1939 he was Managing Director of the company, after which he became Chairman. On 22 July 1915, it was decided on the proposal for the tank – 28 tons, to cross a trench four feet wide.