Which Leonardo da Vinci design used sloped armor plates to deflect incoming weapons?

Leonardo da Vinci’s armored vehicle design used sloped armor plates to help deflect incoming weapons.

Leonardo drew the fighting vehicle in 1487, probably while seeking employment from Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan. The design resembles a covered, conical platform mounted on wheels. Its sloping outer shell was intended to protect the crew, while firing ports around the platform would allow weapons to be used from inside.

The vehicle was meant to be moved by people operating cranks connected to gears. Leonardo’s notes and the arrangement of the gears have led historians to discuss whether the design could work exactly as drawn. Some modern interpretations suggest that a reversed gear arrangement would prevent movement, while others regard the problem as an intentional concealment or drawing error.

The machine was never built for Renaissance warfare. It is therefore better understood as a military engineering concept than as a completed tank. Modern tanks use engines, tracks, turrets, and advanced armor, none of which appeared in Leonardo’s original design.