This article lists British armoured fighting vehicle production during the Second World War. The United Kingdom produced 27,528 tanks and self-propelled guns from July 1939 to May 1945, as well as 26,191 armoured cars and 69,071 armoured personnel carriers (mostly the Universal Carrier).Steven Zaloga. "Armored Champion: The Top Tanks of World War II". Stackpole Books, 15 May 2015. Appendix 4: British and Commonwealth AFV Production.
Tank design and production British tank design focused on pre-war requirements for light, cruiser, and infantry tanks created experimentally by J.F.C. Fuller, Percy Hobart and B.H. Liddell-Hart. Their experiments and doctrine led the way in the development of armoured warfare after the first world war, and also had a major influence on Axis development under Heinz GuderianAchtung Panzer!; Heinz Guderian; 1937 until the outbreak of hostilities. Requirements were raised by Lieutenant General Sir Giffard Le Quesne Martel.Our Armoured Forces;L.T.-General Sir Giffard Le Q. Martel; Faber & Faber Limited;
These types were joined later in the war by requirement for a heavier Assault tank, and eventually the Universal tank expected to replace the Cruiser and Infantry tanks. Neither entered production. Light tanks had mostly been discounted by the start of the war in all roles except airborne (generally replaced with the Carrier). As a result, the majority of British wartime tank production focused on the Cruiser and Infantry types.
Roles and responsibilities Prior to 1936, tank design and production came under the responsibility of the Master General of the Ordnance, who appointed a Director of Mechanisation. The Director of Mechanisation led the Mechanisation Board who represented the various user arms combined to lead the production of tanks and vehicles.
Before the war, the Master General of the Ordnance post (and its holder -General Hugh Elles) had been replaced by Leslie Hore-Belisha, the Secretary of State for War, and Director General of Munitions Production. In 1939 this post was now part of the new Ministry of Supply. As works within the Ministry of Supply scaled up, a new Director General of Tanks and Transport, Peter Bennett, took on the capability of design leadership, and in 1940 added a Controller of Mechanisation (Major-General A.E. Davidson)The Engineer, 5 January 1940 to supervise the Mechanisation Board, working as before.
In May 1940 the War Cabinet had been established, and formed the Tank Board to investigate and resolve tank design and production problems. The Director General of Tanks and Transport was replaced (now Geoffrey Burton) and now led a Director of Armoured Fighting Vehicles (representing the War Office), and separate Director of Design (A.A.M. Durant) and Director of Production. Under Durant's new Directorate of Tank Design a new Department of Tank Design (DTD) was formed to design the tanks.
The DTD was formed rapidly from available technicians, in many cases lacking experience and lacking in production facilities, while a large number of projects based on General Staff requirements were underway. As such, tank design was increasingly reliant on industry experience and capabilities within Vickers, Vauxhall, Leyland Motors, Nuffield, and later Rolls-Royce.
In 1941 the Tank Board was further re-organized to include a Director of Artillery and representatives from the General Staff.
As 1941 progressed, with development of greater horsepower tank engines, greater stresses were placed on many of the tank components. Rolls-Royce, aided by Leyland and Vauxhall, started to become more involved in improving the design of a greater array of tank components, increasing performance and reliability. This saw the transition from work on an improved Crusader tank, the Cavalier tank, to development of the new Cromwell tank. Rolls-Royce created the Rolls-Royce Meteor, and set its pre-war car design team to work in improving tank design to enable its use.
Later in 1941, the DTD was transferred to the Controller General of Research and Development within the Ministry of Supply. This marked a major change in the focus of the design team. At this stage the DTD began to take on a co-ordinating role. It produced specifications and commissioned pilot models for each tank to assess different companies. One competing company would then be appointed the design lead for further development of that tank. This followed a similar pattern to the RAF's Air Ministry Specifications.
In November 1941, W A Robotham, the Chief Engineer of Rolls-Royce's Chassis Division who had been the main proponent of the Cromwell and Meteor works was seconded into the Ministry of Supply to become the Chief Engineer of Tank Design. Robotham started a fresh look at tank design, starting with welded hulls and final delivery of the 6-pounder anti-tank gun. The role was outside of the usual hierarchy, allowing Robotham to co-ordinate efforts between DTD and industry while adding some much needed technical advice to the Tank Board and General Staff.
In 1942, the Chairman of the AFV Division (Viscount Weir) was appointed as the Chief Executive for Tank Design, and became the chairman of the Tank Board. The Tank Board was reorganised to provide equal representation from Ministry of Supply and the War Office, consisting of: War Office Deputy Chief of the Imperial General Staff (Lt. Gen. Ronald Weeks) Assistant Chief of the Imperial General Staff (Major General Daril Watson) Director of Armoured Fighting Vehicles (Major General Alexander W. C. Richardson) Director of Mechanical Engineering (Maj. Gen. Eric Rowcroft) Ministry of Supply Chief Executive for Tank Design, (and chairman) (Viscount Weir) Chairman of the Supply Council (Sir William Rootes) Controller General of Research and Development (Mr. Oliver Lucas), later as "Director-General of Fighting Vehicles (Research and Development)""Tank Board", HC Deb 27 January 1943 vol 386 cc501-2 Chief Engineer of Tank Design (Mr. W A Robotham) Others USA Liaison Colonel G. A. Green, (of W. Averell Harriman's staff). Following the fall of France, US contribution to the war effort became crucial. In early 1942 a Tank Mission was established and sent to the US to exchange information on AFV design, comprising Lucas, Robotham, George Usher (Controller of Tank Production), Weeks and Richardson. The greater manufacturing capacity in the USA resulted in US-made tanks providing the bulk of forces, while US designers, newer to the business of tank design, benefited from British experience.
The Tank Board stayed in similar configuration for the rest of the war, although individuals filling the roles varied. As 1942 progressed, Viscount Weir was replaced by Commander Robert Micklem RN of Vickers as Chief Executive of Tank Design. Archie Boyd replaced George Usher as Controller of Tank Production. Claude Gibb was appointed Director-General of Armoured Fighting Vehicles, although Lucas continued to work under him.
In August 1943, Robotham stepped down as CETD, returning to Rolls-Royce. In 1944 the Directorate of Tank Design returned to designing its own tanks, creating the Centurion tank ready for delivery in late 1945.
Cruiser tanks
At the start of the war, the Cruiser Mk IV was the current model of Cruiser tank based on a second version of the A13 specification.
The Crusader and Covenanter were parallel designs for a cheaper cruiser tank than the A16 design proposed to replace the Cruiser Mark IV. Both designs were ordered in 1939 prior to the start of the war. The first tanks were delivered in 1940. Covenanter never achieved combat readiness, and was used for training in the UK. Crusader was used extensively in North Africa, but suffered from problems with reliability and insufficient numbers were able to be fielded, many returning to workshops for servicing. Works to replace the Crusader continued in Britain, but when its successors were delayed the Crusader was modified to take the 6-pounder gun.
In parallel, Britain started to look at US made tanks to meet the Cruiser requirement, initially requesting the US to build Crusaders. This request was denied as the US tank programme was focussed on producing their own tanks of similar class, the M2 Medium. This fitted the same 37mm weapon as the M3 Light Tank (Stuart) which was already in British service. British experience of the 37mm gun had been underwhelming, and the M2 Medium was turned down. The next version, M3 Medium (later known as Lee/Grant in British service) was already part way through design and had a turret too small for the larger 75mm gun. To meet British requirements, the design was modified to add a larger gun in a side sponson. British needs were then added to the M4 Medium (Sherman) requirements. Both tanks were produced in greater numbers, and Sherman gained the unofficial moniker "heavy cruiser".
The tanks that received the names Cavalier, Centaur and Cromwell were all designs to meet the same requirement for a cruiser tank to replace the Crusader tank. Design work took place in 1941 and 1942, focussed primarily on developments in engine and transmission technologies. The A24 Cavalier and A27L Centaur used the Nuffield Liberty engine while the A27M Cromwell used the more powerful Rolls-Royce Meteor.
When US tanks entered British use, the Cromwell and Centaur design requirement was changed to move from the 6-pounder to 75mm for commonality of ammunition. This reduced the armour penetration. An uprated 75mm High Velocity gun was designed to overcome the issue, but proved too large for the new tanks, placing a renewed focus on the 17-pounder. Cromwell was first used in action with the Normandy landings in June 1944.
The A30 Cruiser Mk VIII Challenger was created as a derivative of Cromwell to meet the needs for a 17-pounder armed cruiser tank, but production was curtailed when a modification to the Sherman, Sherman Firefly, proved easier to produce. This allowed tank production to re-focus on Cromwell and the new Comet design.
A34 Comet improved on Cromwell. It mounted a further upgrade to the High Velocity gun that previously couldn't be fitted to Cromwell, now made capable of firing 17pounder (nominally 77mm) projectiles. It replaced the need for Challenger.
Specification and design of the A41 Centurion began in 1943, also initially mounting the 17-pounder. It entered service just as the war came to an end.
Infantry tanks
At the start of the war, the Matilda I was the current infantry tank, while the Matilda II was in production based on the A12 specification of 1936 and the A12E1 prototype of 1938. This entered service early in 1940. It was supplemented by the Valentine tank, based on Cruiser designs and the Matilda I. The Valentine was a private venture. It did not have a specification number. Design approval was granted just as war broke out in 1939. It was rushed into service to replace losses in the Dunkirk evacuations.
Work on the Churchill infantry tank had begun before the war began, with specification A20. This developed into the A22 specification when France was lost, and frontline requirements changed. A22 had rapid development, with design completed around one month after the specification was released. Tanks began rolling off the production line a year later. The rushed design left a number of faults, and the vehicle was expected to be replaced with the T14 assault tank ordered from (and designed in collaboration with) the US in 1942. Parallel development of the A33 Excelsior heavy assault tank was proposed following the Dieppe raid. Both were cancelled when faults with the Churchill were rectified, and the vehicle proved capable of meeting battlefield requirements.