The French light infantry tank Renault FT-17 (Renault FT M1917) was probably the most revolutionary tank design for its time. It was the first tank to be equipped with armament in a rotating turret, a seminal design that is still used to this day. Even though the prototype was constructed towards the end of WWI in 1917, more than 3,800 vehicles would eventually be produced. After the War, they were exported to many countries, becoming, in many instances, the client nation's first tank type. Most of the tanks were still in service at the outbreak of WWII, although by this time, they were completely obsolete.

Historical Account: "With Patton in France" - The Tank Corps of the American Expeditionary Force was the mechanized unit that engaged in tank warfare in World War I for the United States.

Brigadier General Samuel D. Rockenbach, as the Chief of Tank Corps for the American Expeditionary Forces under Pershing, organized, trained, equipped and then deployed the first American Tank Units to the Western Front of 1918 Europe. An initial plan for 2,000 light Renault FT tanks and 200 heavy British Mark VI tanks was changed to 20 battalions of 77 light tanks each and 10 battalions of 45 heavy tanks each. A total of eight heavy battalions (the 301st to 308th) and 21 light battalions (the 326th to 346th) were raised, but only four (the 301st, 331st, 344th and 345th) saw combat.

Captain George S. Patton, the first officer assigned to the unit, set up a light tank school at Bourg, France, starting on November 10, 1917. In the first half of 1918, the 326th and 327th Tank Battalions were organized at Patton's school, while the 301st Heavy Tank Battalion was raised at Camp Meade, Maryland, USA and transported to the British Tank Schools at Bovington Camp in southern England, for training.

The French-made Renault tank, nicknamed the "Five of Hearts", belonged to the 344th Tank Battalion in the Tank Brigade under Col. George S. Patton, Jr. The full track steel tank with a turret mounted 37-mm gun had a two-man crew and a road speed of approximately 4.5 mph.

The "Five of Hearts supported the 16th Infantry of the 1st Division in the Fleville Sector of the Meuse-Argonne Battle in October 1918. The tank is located at the Fort George G. Meade Museum at Fort Meade, Maryland.