Download or read book British Battle Tanks written by David Fletcher and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-08-24 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Plagued by unreliable vehicles and poorly thought-out doctrine, the early years of World War II were years of struggle for Britain's tank corps. Relying on tanks built in the late 1930s, and those designed and built with limited resources in the opening years of the war, they battled valiantly against an opponent well versed in the arts of armoured warfare. This book is the second of a multi-volume history of British tanks by renowned British armour expert David Fletcher MBE. It covers the development and use of the Matilda, Crusader, and Valentine tanks that pushed back the Axis in North Africa, the much-improved Churchill that fought with distinction from North Africa to Normandy, and the excellent Cromwell tank of 1944–45. It also looks at Britain's super-heavy tank projects, the TOG1 and TOG2, and the Tortoise heavy assault tank, designed to smash through the toughest of battlefield conditions, but never put into production.
Download or read book British Battle Tanks written by David Fletcher and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-08-25 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A highly illustrated history of the development and operation of the first British tanks, published to coincide with the 100th anniversary of their introduction in World War I. When British soldiers charged across the Somme in September 1916 they were accompanied by a new and astonishing weapon – the tank. After a stuttering start armoured behemoths such as the Mark IV, Mark V and Whippet played a crucial role in bringing World War I to an end. Marking the centenary of their battlefield debut, this comprehensive volume traces the design and development of the famous British invention during World War I and the increasingly tense years of the 1920s and 30s, from the first crude but revolutionary prototype to the ever-more sophisticated designs of later years. Bolstered by historic photographs and stunning illustrations, author David Fletcher brings us the thrilling history behind the early British battle tanks.
Download or read book British Infantry Tanks in World War II written by Dick Taylor and published by Photosniper. This book was released on 2017-03-19 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Before the start of the Second World War, British armored doctrine was in a terrible muddle. Opinion had been divided between the proponents of the tank who saw it as the weapon of break-in, using it as an infantry support weapon, and those who saw it as the weapon of breakout, using it to restore mobility and to destroy the enemy's forces behind the frontline. In many ways it was a division between those who saw the tank solely through the prism of the experience of the First World War, and those who saw it a decisive weapon for the future. Britain was also conscious of the continuing requirements for imperial policing, in which small tanks and armored cars had already proved their worth. As a consequence, it was decided that Britain needed three different classes of tanks: Light tanks for the policing role that could also be used for reconnaissance duties in a general war, fast and lightly armored Cruiser tanks for breakout and exploitation, and heavily armored but slow Infantry tanks for the break-in.
Download or read book British Battle Tanks written by David Fletcher and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-08-23 with total page 625 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The idea of British soldiers using American tanks was not viewed with a great deal of enthusiasm by the British Army. They perceived American tanks as being crudely made, mechanically unsophisticated and impossible to fight in. However, once British crews got used to them and learned to cope with some of their difficulties, such as limited fuel capacity and unfamiliar fighting techniques, they started to see them in a far more positive light, in particular their innate reliability and simplicity of maintenance. This book, the last in a three-part series on British Battle Tanks by armour expert David Fletcher, concentrates on World War II and studies American tanks in British service, some of which were modified in ways peculiar to the British. It shows how the number of these tanks increased to the point that they virtually dominated, as well describing some types, such as the T14 and M26 Pershing, which were supplied but never used in British service.
Download or read book British Battle Tanks written by Simon Dunstan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-01-23 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book, the last in a four-part series on British Battle Tanks covering the whole history of British armoured warfare, concentrates on those vehicles that have served following the end of World War II up to the present day. Starting with the Centurion, the title explores those types that equipped the armoured divisions lined up on the German plains to resist any potential Soviet offensive, as well as in Korea and Suez, including the Chieftain and Conqueror, and modern tanks such as the Challenger 2 which are still in service today. Covering the many variants of these and other tanks in British service as well as their deployments around the world, including in Afghanistan and Iraq, this illustrated volume is a comprehensive guide to the development of British tanks since the Second World War.
Download or read book Death by Design written by Peter Beale and published by History Publishing Group. This book was released on 2009 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: At the outbreak of war in 1939 British tank crews were ill-equipped, under trained and badly led. This book is a much-needed warning to governments and military planners: a nation must always be prepared to defend itself and ensure that its soldiers are equipped with the tools to do so.
Download or read book The Tank War written by Mark Urban and published by Abacus. This book was released on 2014-04-03 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on a wealth of research, from interviews with surviving members to a treasure trove of rarely used archive material, Mark Urban has produced an unflinchingly honest, unsentimental account of the 5th RTR's wartime experiences. Capturing both characters in their crew and exploring the strategy behind their success, 'The Tank War' is not the story of an elite unit, but something more amazing: a regular unit of average men, thrust into war, who pulled together to achieve extraordinary things.
Download or read book British Tanks of World War II written by David Fletcher and published by . This book was released on 2001-10-10 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book German Tanks of World War II written by David Porter and published by Technical Guides. This book was released on 2019-04-04 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From heavy tanks to self-propelled guns, this highly illustrated technical guide introduces all the main types of armored fighting vehicles used by Germany in World War II--organized chronologically and by type. Each of the 120 featured artworks displays authentic markings and color schemes, while the separate models include exhaustive specifications. This is a key reference for military modelers and World War II enthusiasts.
Download or read book Super heavy Tanks of World War II written by Kenneth W Estes and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2014-11-20 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The super-heavy tanks of World War II are heirs to the siege machine tradition – a means of breaking the deadlock of ground combat. As a class of fighting vehicle, they began with the World War I concept of the search for a 'breakthrough' tank, designed to cross enemy lines. It is not surprising that the breakthrough tank projects of the period prior to World War II took place in the armies that suffered the most casualties of the Great War (Russia, France, Germany). All of the principal Axis and Allied nations eventually initiated super-heavy development projects, with increasingly heavy armor and armament. Much as the casualties of World War I prompted the original breakthrough tank developments, as Germany found itself on the defensive, with diminishing operational prospects and an increasingly desperate leadership, so too did its focus turn to the super-heavy tanks that could turn the tide back in their favor.
Download or read book British and American Tanks of World War Two written by Peter Chamberlain and published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. This book was released on 2000-08 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Packed with more than 500 outstanding photographs, drawings, and diagrams, this illustrated history is the best source ever to the development of Allied tanks, gun motor carriages, and special-purpose vehicles in World War II. Not one is missing: more than 2,000 vehicles come with detailed specifications, comparative scale drawings, and appendices dealing with guns, engines, and suspension systems.
Download or read book Tanks of World War II written by Duncan Crow and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An account of the most important tanks in WWII and where they fought. Chronilogical treatment.
Download or read book Allied Tanks of World War II written by David Porter and published by Amber Books. This book was released on 2014-09-18 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Allied Tanks of World War II offers a highly illustrated guide to the main armoured fighting vehicles used by the Western Allies and the Red Army from 1939–1945. This volume includes sample unit structures and orders of battle from company up to corps level, providing context for key campaigns throughout the war, organised chronologically.
Download or read book British Tanks written by Pat Ware and published by Images of War. This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Perhaps the British did not produce the most successful tanks of the Second World War, but they certainly designed an extraordinary range of light, medium and heavy tanks along with many that were adapted for special purposes. This fascinating variety of military machinery is recorded in Pat Ware's photographic history. Using a selection of wartime photographs - supported by some modern photographs of preserved vehicles - the book describes the origins of the tank in Britain during the First World War, looks at British tank development during the inter-war period and contrasts this with advances made elsewhere - in Germany, France, the USA and the Soviet Union. All of the British tanks that saw service during the Second World War are described, among them the cruisers (Crusader, Cromwell, Comet), the infantry tanks (Matilda, Valentine, Churchill) and the US imports (Stuart, Lee/Grant, Sherman). Finally, an extensive section is devoted to the so-called 'funnies' - the tanks developed for crucial tasks like bridge-laying, mine-clearing, flame-throwing and amphibious operation. Pat Ware's photographic survey of these tanks at war is an expert introduction to a key period in the history of British fighting vehicles.
Download or read book The Great Tank Scandal British armour in the Second World War written by David Fletcher and published by . This book was released on 1989 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Mechanised Force written by David Fletcher and published by Stationery Office Books (TSO). This book was released on 1991 with total page 152 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A history of the Tank Corps from 1919 up until the time when, as the Royal Tank Regiment, it went to war again in 1939. The book chronicles the events and innovations of the years between the wars.
Download or read book The Second World War Tank Crisis written by Dick Taylor and published by Pen and Sword Military. This book was released on 2021-06-30 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: British Second World War tanks performed so badly that it is difficult to bring to mind any other British weapon of the period that provokes such a strong sense of failure. Unfortunately, many of the accusations appear to be true – British tanks were in many ways a disgrace. But why was Britain, the country that invented them, consistently unable to field tanks of the required quality or quantity throughout the conflict? This perceived failure has taken on the status of a myth, but, like all myths, it should not be accepted at face value – it should be questioned and analyzed. And that is what Dick Taylor does in this closely researched and absorbing study. He looks at the flaws in British financial policy, tank doctrine, design, production and development before and throughout the war years which often had fatal consequences for the crews who were sent to fight and to be ‘murdered’ in ‘mechanical abortions’. Their direct experience of the shortcomings of these machines is an important element of the story. He also considers how British tanks compared to those of the opposition and contrasts tank production for the army with the production of aircraft for the RAF during the same period. His clear-sighted account goes on to explain how, later in the conflict, British tank design improved to the point where their tanks were in many ways superior to those of the Americans and Germans and how they then produced the Centurion which was one of the best main battle tanks of the post-war era.
