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Assuming internal combustion engines and cars develop similar to OTL, would you say that the development of tanks is inevitable? Say, even without a static war such as World War One, could armored cars eventually develop into tracked machines of war?

The reason I ask is because in the TL I've written - linked in my signature - the world fights a semi-fluid 'Great War' (1900-1904) in which neither tanks nor planes take off (no pun intended). This is partly due to the fact that it is earlier in the 20th century so cars and such are less advanced but still exist. Armored cars also exist but I decided to not include tanks. However, I imagine that in the TL's postwar world, researchers will come to the conclusion that tracked, armored vehicles with guns will be useful tools of war. Thus, the development of the tank, despite a semi-fluid war, is inevitable.

Is that a reasonable assumption? Or do many people here think that warfare could have gone into the 20th century without heavy armor?
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