Lend-Lease Sherman tanks
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M4A2 Sherman III | |
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Vertical Volute Spring Suspension (VVSS) | |
Ground clearance | 430 mm (17 in) |
Fuel capacity | 148 US gal (560 L) |
Operational range | 240 km (150 mi) |
Maximum speed | 48 km/h (30 mi/h) brief level |
The United States provided tens of thousands of its
International distribution
This chart shows Lend-Lease shipments to major recipients through 1 September 1945; subsequent transfers between countries within theaters of operations (i.e., from the United Kingdom to Poland or Canada, or the United States to Free France or China) after initial shipment are not included.
Variant | United Kingdom | Soviet Union | Other (Canada, Brazil, Free France) | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|
M4 (75 mm) | 2,096 | 53 (to Brazil) | 2,149 | |
M4 (105 mm) | 593 | 593 | ||
M4A1 (75 mm) | 942 | 4 (to Canada) | 946 | |
M4A1 (76 mm) | 1,330 | 1,330 | ||
M4A2 (75 mm) | 5,041 | 1,990 | 382 (to Free France) | 7,413 |
M4A2 (76 mm) | 5 | 2,073 | 2,078 | |
M4A3 (75 mm) | 7 | 7 | ||
M4A4 (75 mm) | 7,167 | 2 | 274 (to Free France) | 7,443 |
Total | 17,181 | 4,065 | 713 | 21,959 |
British nomenclature
The British received far more M4 medium tanks, 17,181 (roughly 34% of all M4s produced), than any other Allied nation. The British practice of naming American tanks after American Civil War generals was continued, giving it the name Sherman after Union General William Tecumseh Sherman. The US later adopted the name and the practice of naming tanks after generals and initially used the full name "General Sherman"[2]
In the British naming system, the major variants were identified by Mark numbers, the M4 being "Sherman I", the M4A1 "Sherman II" and so on. Letters after the mark number denoted modifications to the base model: "A" for the 76 mm L/55 gun instead of the 75mm, "B" for the
- Sherman I – M4 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Continental R975 9-cylinder radial petrol engine
- Sherman Hybrid I – Sherman I with composite hull (cast front, welded rear)
- Sherman IB – Sherman I with 105 mm M4 L/22.5 howitzer
- Sherman IBY – Sherman IB with HVSS
- Sherman II – M4A1 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Continental R975 radial petrol engine
- Sherman IIA – M4A1(76)W, Sherman II with 76 mm M1 L/55 gun
- Sherman IIAY – M4A1(76)W HVSS, Sherman IIA with HVSS
- Sherman IIA – M4A1(76)W, Sherman II with 76 mm M1 L/55 gun
- Sherman III – M4A2 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and GM6046 twin 6-cylinder diesel engine
- Sherman IIIA – M4A2(76)W, Sherman III with 76 mm M1A2 L/55 gun (unlikely to have been used by UK troops[citation needed])
- Sherman IIIAY – M4A2(76)W HVSS, Sherman IIIA with HVSS (not used operationally by UK troops)
- Sherman IIIA – M4A2(76)W, Sherman III with 76 mm M1A2 L/55 gun (unlikely to have been used by UK troops[citation needed])
- Sherman IV – M4A3 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun (no Sherman IVs used operationally) and Ford GAA V8 petrol engine
- Sherman IVA – M4A3(76)W, Sherman IV with 76 mm M1A2 L/55 gun
- Sherman IVB – M4A3(105), Sherman IV with 105 mm M4 L/22.5 howitzer
- Sherman IVBY – M4A3(105) HVSS, Sherman IVB with HVSS
- Sherman V – M4A4 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Chrysler A57 multibank 30-cylinder "cloverleaf" petrol engine in a longer rear hull with more widely spaced bogies
- Sherman VI – M4A5 (paper designation for Canadian production)
- Sherman VII – M4A6 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun, composite cast/welded hull and Ordnance RD-1820 9-cylinder radial diesel engine. Only 75 M4A6 were built and none are believed to have reached the UK
- Sherman II ARV III – M32B1 TRV (M4A1 Sherman II chassis) recovery vehicle
- Sherman V ARV III – M32B4 TRV (M4A4 Sherman V chassis) recovery vehicle. Extremely rare, almost mythical, vehicle. Production records are sketchy and British use is uncertain, but a photo does exist of an M32B4 in post-war Greek service[citation needed]
Allied variants
Conversions and modifications of the M4 by their foreign users included the
Conversions
A number of Sherman tanks were converted to carry different armament or fill different roles than those for which the tank was originally manufactured. Among these were:
- Tank AA, 20 mm Quad, Skink – Canadian prototype anti-aircraft vehicle with four 20 mm Polsten cannon mounted in a turret on a Grizzly hull (tank made in Canada, not Lend-Leased).[5]
- Sherman Duplex Drive (DD) – British-developed swimming gear fitted to British, Canadian, and US Shermans for the Normandy landings.
- Sherman 17pdr aka "Firefly" – British Sherman I or V re-armed with QF 17 pounder (76.2 mm) anti-tank gun with C added to designation (as in Sherman IC or VC). A few Sherman IIIC are believed to have existed, issued to units equipped with standard Sherman III for mechanical commonality: Aberdeen Proving Ground in the USA has one. Post-war the "Firefly" name is commonly used to refer to these vehicles, but it was not an official name and not commonly used during the war.
- Sherman Tulip – British Sherman with two 3-inch ("60lb") RP-3 rockets on rails added to the turret. Used by the 1st Coldstream Guards at the Rhine in 1945.
- RMASG "Control Tank"[citation needed] – Sherman V tanks allocated to the Royal Marines Armoured Support Group for the D-Day landings were fitted with a dial sight in a protruding square cover on the top right of the turret. This permitted them to be used accurately in the indirect fire role as self-propelled artillery, initially from the decks of landing craft but later also ashore. Direct fire sights were retained. These tanks can be identified in photos by the 360-degree compass bearing markings around the turret.
Combat engineering vehicles
– British developments for Shermans were extensive and included the fascine carrier (used by 79th Armoured Division), "Crib", "Twaby Ark", "Octopus",
- Sherman Bridgelayer –
- "Plymouth" – carrying Bailey bridge
- Sherman AVRE with Small Box Girder bridge
- Sherman CIRD – fitted with "Canadian Indestructible Roller Device" landmine exploder
- Sherman Crab – British Sherman with mine flail, one of a long line of flail devices
Recovery vehicles
- Sherman ARV I and Sherman ARV II – British armoured recovery vehicle conversions of Sherman I, III and V. It was British policy to have ARVs using the same mechanical parts as the gun tanks they supported wherever possible. ARV I was a simple turretless towing vehicle with light jib while ARV II had much more sophisticated recovery and repair equipment, a raised box-like superstructure and heavier jib. It was considered superior to the US M32 ARV, very few of which were used by British units.
- Beach Armoured Recovery Vehicle(BARV) – British conversion of Sherman III with large boat-shaped superstructure that was capable of deep wading near the shore. A simple push/pull ARV that served until replaced by Centurion BARV in the mid-1960s. The diesel-engined Sherman III was considered less likely to be affected by the wet environment than petrol-engined versions.
Artillery
- Sherman Gun Tractor – British field conversion in Italy by removing turrets from M4A2 Sherman III tanks to tow 17 pdr AT gun and carry crew with ammunition. Some of the removed 75mm M3 guns may have been used for the Churchill NA75 field conversions unique to the Italian campaign.
- Sherman Observation Post – an armoured mobile post for controlling artillery. The 75 mm gun was removed (with a dummy barrel fitted outside) to give room for map tables in the turret. Three radio sets were fitted (two Number 19 and a Number 18). Two more – both Number 38 – were carried for portable use outside the tank.[6]
Personnel carriers
- Sherman Kangaroo – Canadian Sherman converted into "Kangaroo" armoured personnel carrier
Flame Tanks
- Sherman Adder – A conversion kit to equip Sherman tanks, used in India on Sherman III and Sherman V
- Sherman Badger – Canada's replacement of its Ram Badger, the Sherman Badger was a turretless M4A2 HVSS Sherman with Wasp IIC flamethrower in place of hull machine gun, developed sometime from 1945 to 1949. The 150 imp gal (680 L) at 250 psi (17 bar) was effective to 125 yd (114 m), with elevation of +30 to −10 degrees and traverse of 30 degrees left and 23 degrees right. This inspired the US T68.[7]
Service history
United Kingdom
The British Empire received 17,184 Sherman tanks from the USA under Lend-Lease, roughly 78% of all American Shermans provided worldwide under this program. This includes Sherman tanks used by all members of the British
Some Shermans in British service were also converted to specialist-type combat engineering vehicles. The Sherman Crab was the main conversion, which was designed to be used for clearing minefields in northwestern Europe and Italy. The Beach Armoured Recovery Vehicle was a waterproofed armoured recovery vehicle produced in small numbers and used only in support of beach-landings to pull drowned tanks and vehicles from the water and to push off stuck or beached landing-craft.
North Africa
The first Shermans to see battle in World War II were M4A1s (Sherman IIs) with the British Eighth Army at the Second Battle of El Alamein in October 1942. The tanks had been supplied in a hurry from the US, which had removed them from their own army units. They were then hastily modified to meet British military requirements and for desert and hot-weather conditions, such as the addition of sandshields over the tracks.[8] Over 250 of these US-supplied Shermans, which were divided among 12 regiments, participated in the battle. They formed the so-called "heavy squadrons" (16 tanks in each) of one brigade in each division of X Corps and some other squadrons of the other units taking part in the battle, with the other heavy squadrons still being equipped with M3 Lee/Grant tanks and light squadrons possessing M3 Stuart light tanks and Crusader cruiser tanks. The British Shermans were able to tackle enemy rearguard units and defending troops by using high-explosive (HE) shells which were fired indirectly at them whilst the German 5 cm Pak 38 anti-tank gun was only effective against the Sherman if it could engage it from the more-vulnerable sides. More of the British armoured units in North Africa were converted to increasingly-larger quantities of Shermans over time from their successful outcome at El Alamein, including the addition of Sherman IIIs (M4A2s) aside from the previous Sherman II, although the infantry tank units retained use of their Churchill tanks.
Italy
The British forces in Italy did not use their standard cruiser tanks (such as the Crusader). Instead, in their place, they used Shermans and turretless and regular gun-tank Stuart tanks to equip their reconnaissance troops. The other tank of the campaign was the Churchill tank (early models carried a 6-pdr tank gun; later models had a 75mm main gun), with such equipped tank units being bolstered with Shermans. In general, the Shermans acted in the infantry support role in difficult (mountainous and hilly) terrain against fixed-type German defences and fortifications. At the end of 1944, 76mm-, 105mm- (howitzer) and 17-pdr-armed Shermans began to be fielded by the British troops as they came up against the German-built and strongly-defended Gothic Line.
Northwest Europe
British and Commonwealth use in Europe was comprehensive. The Sherman replaced the M3 Grant and Lee tanks and the Ram Tank in Canadian service and was in the majority by 1944 – the other main late-war tanks being the Churchill and Cromwell cruiser tank. The Cromwell was used largely in the reconnaissance role. The slower, more heavily armoured Churchills were used in the infantry support Tank Brigades.
The Sherman 17pdr variant was converted mostly from the M4 Sherman I and M4A4 Sherman V, with possibly a few Sherman III, and was used both in Sherman and Cromwell-equipped units to add extra anti-tank capability. The VC was necessary as the intended supplement (the
By the end of the war, 50% of the Shermans in British service were VCs or ICs.[citation needed] With the end of the war, and with superior tanks entering service, the UK returned its Shermans to reduce its Lend-Lease payments. However, the US did not really want the 17pdr conversions returned and many found their way from British stocks into other armies post-war, where they served until the 1960s in many cases (e.g. Argentine Repotenciado upgrade of IC and VC fitted with French 105mm gun and diesel engine).
India
In the Indian Army tradition, formations included British regiments alongside Indian Army units.[nb 1] As well as some Indian units receiving Shermans, the 116th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (converted from the 9th Battalion Gordon Highlanders) part of 255th Brigade was equipped with Shermans. As part of the 255th, they were involved in January and February 1945 in Burma in action near Meiktila and Mandalay. The actions were predominantly in support of infantry with few enemy tanks encountered.[9] After that, they were part of mobile columns that moved to retake Rangoon.
New Zealand
The
Australia
Although the Australian Army received 757 M3 Lee/Grants in 1942, it only received three Sherman tanks. These three tanks were supplied by the UK and were only used for trials purposes. When the Australian Cruiser tank program was cancelled in 1943, after US authorities promised M4 Mediums would be available in any quantity required by Australia. A proposal was made to replace the entire order of 775 Australian Cruiser tanks with 310 Sherman tanks; however, this proposal was not acted on. Early in 1944 Australian Army was requested by War Office to undertake trials of Churchill and Sherman tanks in "New Guinea conditions". Trials were conducted in the jungle terrain of New Guinea using British Churchill Mk IV, Mk V and Mk VII Infantry tanks and American Sherman M4A1 and M4A2 Medium tanks, and included armament tests involving firing 75mm and 95mm main guns on a Japanese style bunker constructed from coconut logs. It was considered by those trials results that the Churchill was preferable to the Sherman for operations in jungle.
Australia's first Sherman, an M4A2, arrived in Australia in 1943 with a further two M4s (sometimes mis-labelled as M4A1s) arriving for tropical trials in New Guinea in 1944. The tanks were manned by crews drawn from the Australian 4th Armoured Brigade. The results of these trials showed that the British Churchill tank was better suited to jungle warfare's low-speed infantry support than the Sherman. As a result, the Australian Government ordered 510 Churchills, of which 51 were delivered before the order was cancelled at the end of the war, and did not order any further Shermans. Following the war, the three trials tanks were placed on display at Australian Army bases and one was later destroyed after being used as a tank target.[11]
Canada
The United States officially did not list Canada as a Lend-Lease recipient, but did create the 1941 Joint Defense Production Committee with Canada so that "each country should provide the other with the defense articles which it is best able to produce" and American Locomotive Company enabled its Canadian subsidiary, the Montreal Locomotive Works, to build M4A1 variants in Canada. Canada received four Shermans under Lend-Lease; the mechanism of this is not fully understood.[12] The MLW built 188 Shermans called the Grizzly I cruiser in Canadian service, which were restricted to training. As there was sufficient production capacity in the US, the MLW investment in Ram and Sherman tank production was turned to building of the Sexton self-propelled guns which used the 25pdr gun-howitzer on M3 or M4 chassis. In European combat, the Canadian Army used American-built Shermans supplied by the UK. These were armed with 75 mm, 105 mm and 17-pounder guns.[13]
China
Chinese forces based in British India received 100 M4A4 Shermans from British stocks and used them to great effect against considerably-inferior Japanese tanks and their infantry in the subsequent offensives, such as in Battle of Northern Burma and Western Yunnan, between 1943 and 1944. After the war, some vehicles remaining in India went to the British, with several others put to use by the Nationalist Chinese (Kuomintang) against Chinese communist (CCP) forces in the Chinese Civil War until the KMT's defeat in 1949.
Soviet Union
The M4A2s used by the Red Army were considered to be much-less prone to blow up due to ammunition detonation than their T-34/76 but had a higher tendency to overturn in road accidents and collisions or because of rough terrain due to their much-higher center of gravity.[14]
Under Lend-Lease, 4,102 M4A2 medium tanks were sent to the Soviet Union. Of these, 2,007 were equipped with the original 75 mm main gun, with 2,095 mounting the more-capable 76 mm tank gun. The total number of Sherman tanks sent to the U.S.S.R. under Lend-Lease represented 18.6% of all Lend-Lease Shermans.[15]
The first 76mm-armed M4A2 diesel-fuel Shermans started to arrive in Soviet Union in the late summer of 1944.
Poland
Poland was not a recipient of Lend-Lease aid directly from the United States, however, Polish forces also used a wide variety of Shermans redirected from Lend-Lease shipments to the British Empire. The
The
Parts of the
France
The first use of Sherman tanks by a French unit appears to have been with 1ère Compagnie Autonome de Chars de Combat (1ère CACC), it was merged with the French Army Corps Reconnaissance Group (GRCA), and was known as the "Free French Flying Column". It was part of the British Eighth Army, and fought from El-Alamein to Tunisia. The tank company was attached to "Force L (Leclerc)" and later became the 1st Company of the newly organized 501ème Régiment de Chars de Combat, 2ème Division Blindée.[19]
In 1943, the
Brazil
Brazil received 53 Sherman tanks under Lend-Lease in 1944, all equipped with the 75 mm gun. These tanks were not used by the
Czechoslovakia
While the
South Africa
South African Shermans were used by the 6th Armoured Division.[citation needed]
See also
- Postwar Sherman tanks
- Hobart's Funnies
- 79th Armoured Division
- Allied technological cooperation during World War II
Endnotes
Notes
- Army of India consisted of both the Indian Army and the British Armyin India between 1903 and 1947.
- ^ With the 10th Mounted Rifle Regiment.
Citations
- ^ Hunnicutt, Richard P. (1976). Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank. Novato: Presidio Press. p. 526.
- ^ Moran, Nicholas (6 June 2015), Myths of American Armor. TankFest Northwest 2015, The Chieftain, 5:04 to 8:00 – via YouTube
- ^ R. P. Hunnicutt, Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank, Presidio Press, Novato, CA, 1994, p. 420-421.
- ^ Zaloga & Grandsen 1984, p. 217.
- ^ "Forgotten Battles: The Weapons: The Skink AA Tank". Archived from the original on 8 January 2008.
- ^ Hunnicutt Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank p 309
- ^ R. P. Hunnicutt, Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank, Presidio Press, Novato, CA, 1994, p. 420-421.
- ^ Sandars 1982, p. 6.
- ^ Sandars p21
- ^ A. H. McLintock, ed. (1966). "WARS – SECOND WORLD WAR – The Army". The Encyclopedia of New Zealand.
- ^ Paul D. Handel Australian Shermans Accessed 30 June 2006.
- ^ "Lend-Lease Shipments: World War II," Section IIIB, Published by Office, Chief of Finance, War Department, 31 December 1946, p. 8.
- ISBN 1-894581-14-8
- ^ Лоза Дмитрий Федорович – Я Помню. Герои Великой Отечественной войны. Участники ВОВ. in Russian.
- ^ Lend-Lease Shipments: World War II, Section IIIB, Published by Office, Chief of Finance, War Department, 31 December 1946, p. 8. Via Hyperwar Foundation
- ]
- ^ "IRemember.ru – Memories of veterans of the Great Patriotic War – Dmitriy Loza". IRemember.ru. Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
- ^ Loza, Dimitri (21 September 2010). "IRemember.ru WW II Memoirs". iremember.ru/en. IRemember. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
- ^ "French Shermans". the.shadock.free.fr.
- Office of the Chief of Military History, Dept. of the Army, (Washington, DC GPO) 1957, p. 244-246.)
- ISBN 978-85-99719-07-7
- ISSN 1210-1427.
Sources
- Zaloga, Steven J.; Grandsen, James (1984). Soviet Tanks and Combat Vehicles of World War Two. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 0-85368-606-8.
- Sandars, John (1982). The Sherman Tank in British service 1942-1945. Vanguard No. 15. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 0-85045-361-5.
- ISBN 978-0-89141-080-5.
- mapleleafup.org
- Tanks!
- "Canada in the Second World War". Archived from the original on 17 June 2006. Retrieved 30 June 2006.
- United States Government Manual (PDF). Office for Emergency Management. Spring 1942. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 August 2002 – via University of Minnesota Library.
- "M4 Sherman" (in Danish). ww2photo.mimerswell.com. Archived from the original on 28 February 2007. Retrieved 24 June 2006.
Further reading
- Loza, Dmitriy (1996). James F. Gebhardt (ed.). Commanding the Red Army's Sherman Tanks: The World War II Memoirs of Hero of the Soviet Union Dmitriy Loza. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0803229204.