Post by simon darkshade on Jul 30, 2018 9:11:56 GMT
International Tank Development Part 3: China, Sweden, Poland, Canada and Australia
The Empire of China operates one of the largest tank forces in the world today, but it is one that grew out of humble and eclectic beginnings. It was the civil strife and destruction of the Chinese Front in the Great War that first saw armoured vehicles employed on the mainland of Asia in the form of British and Japanese tanks used to support Manchu loyalists forces against the German-backed rebels. These were joined by 84 surplus Whippet light tanks in 1919 as the Imperial Chinese Army scoured out the last vestiges of rebel support in Szechuan and Yunan. The two battalions of Whippets comprised the entire Chinese armoured force for the majority of the 1920s, seeing hard service in the tough border campaigns against Mongolia and Tartary. They were augmented by the purchase of 120 Carden Lloyd tankettes in 1927, most of which were destroyed in the early stages of conflict against Japan in 1936 at the Battle of Shanghai.
Domestic tank production began in 1929 with the 10t Zhanche light tank, based on an earlier British design and named after the war chariots of Ancient China. It was only produced in limited numbers given the developing nature of Chinese industry, but a total of 94 were built by 1935. The Zhanche was lightly armed, carrying only a pair of 7.92mm machine guns, but were remarkably fast for the time, being capable of reaching a top speed of 52km/hour. Armour was light, but speed and a low profile were seen as compensating to some degree for this deficiency. A solid vehicle for the time, the Zhanche pushed the limits of Chinese construction capacity and provided valuable operational and technical lessons. No tanks survived the brutal attrition of the decade-long Sino-Japanese War save for a single prototype currently on display in Chungking.
China was the recipient of considerable military aid from the Soviet Union, the United States and Britain and the majority of the tanks used by the Imperial Chinese Army in the Second World War came from these three sources. 2493 Shermans, 1549 Stuarts, 864 Grants, 525 Crusaders, 682 Valiants, 326 T-26s and 1778 T-34s were delivered between 1940 and 1945, with the Sherman and T-34 serving as the backbone of the Chinese Armoured Corps in the immediate postwar period. A further 3967 T-34s were supplied by the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1950 as part of the comparatively short-lived Sino-Soviet Alliance. The second major source of Chinese tanks after the Second World War was from captured Japanese vehicles, which also provided the basis for the curious Gongchen tanks, a copy of the Type 4 Chi To medium tank equipped with a Soviet 76.2mm gun. These were never intended as a long term solution for China’s armoured needs, but the 573 Gongchens produced between 1949 and 1951 provided an effective bridge between previous manufacturing and the new generation of Chinese-designed tanks.
1950 saw the outbreak of the Korean War and eventual Chinese intervention against the Allied United Nations Command. T-34s and newer T-54s were used in the offensives of 1951 and 1952, the former being swiftly outclassed by British Centurions and American Pattons, whilst the latter would maintain an edge until the final years of the war. Ongoing tensions and the eventual fraying of ties between the Soviet Union and Imperial China meant that proposed production of a Chinese version of the T-54 was aborted in the early 1950s in favour of a more costly and difficult solution. The Gongchens were employed by a single tank regiment that was decimated in the Allied counterstroke of 1952. China’s war was mainly one of infantry and artillery without the full scope for armoured operations, but a consistent force level of over 1000 tanks was maintained in each of the three army groups that held the front in Korea.
The Korean conflict and a general desire for industrial and military modernisation provided considerable impetus for the long contemplated design and manufacture of a family of modern indigenous Chinese armoured vehicles. Work had begun on the process in 1948, but the requirements of postwar recovery and rebuilding had been a fundamental limitation. They were to be named after the great dragons of China, national symbols of strength and power to serve as rallying points for the grand reawakening, an auspicious step that bought the approval of the notoriously reactionary aristocracy, many of whom glorified in their draconic blood; the views of the dragon populace were rather more circumspect. Former Imperial Chancellor Fu Manchu, well known as an aficionado of ingenious machines and dabbler in infernal devices, took a particular interest in the prospect of China’s first real tanks and provided much political support and funding for the project through the hard-pressed final years of the Korean War. Production would begin in a series of new subterranean plants far inland from current industrial areas in the apparently secure fastness of Inner Mongolia and Kokonur. Only the vital quest for the atomic bomb attracted more importance in China than the Four Dragons Program.
The first to enter service was the 25t Yu-Lung (Green Dragon) light tank in 1954, quickly proving to be a fast and well-armoured vehicle capable of hard-hitting fire from its potent 90mm gun; an estimated 4569 have been built by the end of 1960. The Ch'ing-Lung (Azure Dragon) medium tank is the best known of China’s new tanks, appearing in many propaganda newsreels and military parades. Weighing 40 tons, it is protected by the equivalent of upwards of 230mm of armour, has a top speed of 50km/hour and sports a unique 110mm gun. Whilst it is slightly behind the developmental level of Western main battle tanks, the Ch’ing-Lung is fielded in substantial numbers (8937 being built from 1956) and is considered an agile and finely balanced tank. The 60t Huang-Lung (Yellow Dragon) heavy tank equips the Imperial Guard and specialist battalions attached to armoured and mechanised corps and is one of the most powerful weapons in its class currently in production; the Chinese military apparently does not share the Western view on the obsolescence of the heavy tank as a distinct type. Armed with a 130mm gun and two machine guns, 1276 have been built since mid 1957. The newest Chinese tank is similarly something of an anomaly in the age of the Chieftain and M-60 - the Hong-Lung (Red Dragon) superheavy tank. At 80t, it is the heaviest vehicle built by any great power since the Second World War and the long range firepower of its 152mm gun does not appear to be justified by the tactical limitations of its low speed and sheer bulk and production over the last two years has been decidedly slow, totaling 124 tanks.
China’s heavy industrial miracle of the last decade has seen many results, but the successful development and production of its own tanks stands as one of the most noteworthy. Coal, iron and steel production levels have already exceeded those of France and Austria-Hungary and the shipyards and aircraft plants of China hum with constant activity. The Middle Kingdom remains something of a secretive enigma behind the Great Wall and the Imperial Chinese Army is the largest land army in the world today with over 5.2 million men under arms. It has made a great leap forward in the incorporation of armoured forces since the Chinese defeat in the Korean War and is a major factor in the future of the Orient.
Chief among the realms of Scandinavia, the Kingdom of Sweden entered the 20th century as a burgeoning middle power, ranking just behind the Great Powers of Europe in industrial output and boasting of some of the world’s largest and best supplies of iron ore. The Swedish Army had a fearsome reputation as a well-trained and bountifully equipped field force, yet the rapid pace of developments in the first decade of the century began to leave it behind as the machine gun and modern artillery revolutionized the battlefield. Sweden began the process of development of armoured forces in the aftermath of the First World War, as the Russian Revolution to the east and the unrest wracking Central Europe threatened the policy of neutrality and general peace that had held since the Crimean War. Parts for 12 German Leichte Kampfwagen were secretly purchased, ostensibly as boiler parts and agricultural machinery, modified and assembled as the Stridsvagn m/21 light tank. Armed with a 6.5mm machine gun, these would serve throughout the 1920s and early 1930s as the first tanks of the Swedish Army, alongside a veritable panoply of armoured cars.
As war clouds gathered over Europe from the mid-1930s, the modernization of the Swedish Armed Forces gathered pace and orders were placed with Landsverk AB for a new light tank, the L-10, or Stridsvagn m/32. It had begun development in 1932 and was ready for full scale production by late 1935. Weighing 12t, it was armed with a Bofors 40mm anti-tank gun, protected by 12-25mm of armour and capable of reaching a top speed of 55km/hour, making it extremely competitive with foreign vehicles of the same generation. 282 were produced for the Swedish Army between 1936 and 1940, with a further 93 being exported to Finland, Norway and Yugoslavia. Although it never saw action in Swedish service except against the constant menace of troll and orc raids from the northern mountains, it was popular with Finnish troops in the Winter War for its excellent cross-country performance and rugged suspension.
Succeeding the L-10 was the best Swedish light tank of the 1930s and 1940s, the Stridsvagn m/38, better known to a wider audience as the L-24. This 18t light tank began development on the eve of war in 1938 and was rushed into service in late 1940 after a Herculean effort by designers and manufacturers alike. It was armed with a new 57mm gun and protected by up to 40mm of sloped armour on the turret. Speed and mobility were its key attributes and it was capable of reaching up to 67km/hour on roads in the latter half of the war. 624 were built between 1941 and 1945, serving in the armies of Sweden, Norway and Finland with aplomb; it was able to hold its own against German Panzer IIIs and Leopards in Operation Rädda Danmark after Sweden and Finland entered the war on the Allied side in August 1944. One achieved the unique feat of singlehandedly downing a Nazi dragon over Copenhagen with specially forged mageshot and it is preserved in the Livrustkammeren in the Royal Palace in Stockholm. Postwar, it would continue production and be exported to eight countries, earning a reputation as a tough and economical vehicle.
Sweden had looked abroad in the late 1930s for the best means of rapidly augmenting its tank force and the Austro-Hungarian Panzerkampfwagen 36 was regarded as close to ideal for Swedish requirements. After lengthy negotiations through the initial stages of the war, permission was granted by Austrian and German authorities for the licenced production of the Panzer 36 by Scania-Vabis as the Stridsvagn m/41. 394 would be built between 1942 and 1944, many of which were converted to assault guns in 1944 and 1945. They saw limited action in the liberation of Denmark, being attached to infantry regiments in independent armoured companies. The remaining vehicles were rebuilt as interim armoured personnel carriers in the early 1950s, designated as the Pbv 300.
The Swedish Army’s most important tank of the Second World War was the Stridsvagn m/40 medium tank, a 25t vehicle that could compete with any other vehicle in its class throughout the war due to its robust all-round qualities. It was exceptionally fast, with a top speed of 54km/hour, well protected by up to 70mm of sloped turret armour and armed with the devastatingly powerful Bofors 75mm/52 gun. Production was given the highest priority during the crisis of wartime and the impressive total of 1268 vehicles were built between 1941 and 1945 by Landsverk, Volvo, Scania and Hagglunds, reaching a monthly high of 42 tanks in June 1944. It proved to be superior to the larger Panzer IV in the Danish and Northern German campaigns due to its low profile and excellent maneuverability and would continue in frontline Swedish service until 1957, seeing action with the Scandinavian Brigade in the Korean War. A further 768 Stridsvagn m/40s were built for export and to replace war losses between 1945 and 1948, many of which remain on active duty with the Finnish and Danish armies.
The onset of the Cold War was a particularly alarming development for Sweden, given the proximity of the Soviet Union and the optimal means of equipping the Swedish Army with modern armoured vehicles and weaponry was a subject of considerable debate as the bitter new world took shape. The logistical challenges of maintaining a force of several different obsolescent types made the acquisition of new tanks an urgent necessity. By 1948, the decision was reached to adopt a trifold approach to the challenge of armoured modernization. Firstly, Centurion tanks would be acquired from Britain with a view towards eventual licenced production. Secondly, the chassis of the older Strv m/40s would be converted into interim upgraded medium tanks armed with American 90mm guns. Finally, development of a Swedish heavy tank would be initiated to counterbalance the large numbers of Soviet heavy tanks and assault guns.
The first delivery of Centurions came in 1950, followed by the beginning of Swedish production of the Stridsvagn 100 the next year. 682 were supplied from Britain in three separate batches and no fewer than 1774 were built by a consortium of Landsverk, Volvo, Bofors and Scania between 1951 and 1958. It remains as the frontline main battle tank of the Swedish Army and a number of earlier models have been transferred to Norway and Finland under the auspices of the Scandinavian Defence Union. The Stridsvagn 74 entered service in 1953, equipped with modified engines and transmission in addition to new tracks, upgraded armour protection and the American guns. A total of 525 would be converted between 1953 and 1959 and the type is expected to remain in second line support service through to the end of the 1970s. The Stridsvagn 120 or the Gustav Adolf tank was Sweden’s solution to the looming Soviet armoured threat and began production in 1955. Weighing 69t and bearing a distant resemblance to the Conqueror, the 152mm armed Gustav Adolf bears some of the strongest conventional tank armour ever fielded, with the equivalent of over 360mm of frontal protection on the glacis and upwards of 400mm on the heavily sloped turret. It has a creditable road speed of 46km/hour and is fitted with a well-regarded arcane fire control system forged by the finest ballistic alchemists of the Scandian Dwarves. 462 Gustav Adolfs currently serve with the Swedish Army, primarily in the northern based frontline armoured divisions.
Poland returned to the family of independent nations after the defeat of Germany and the fall of their former Tsarist Russian overlords and seemed to have put the woe of the last century behind it in the 1920s. It fell to the armies of the Kingdom of Poland to save Europe from the seemingly inexorable tide of the Bolshevik Red Army with their decisive victory at the Battle of Warsaw, cementing their restored status as a genuine Eastern European power. British and French tanks had played a role in turning aside the final despairing throes of the Soviet offensive and 45 Mark IVs, 60 Whippets and 80 FT-17s provided the backbone of Polish armour for the rest of the decade. Far reaching plans were drawn up for the design and construction of Poland’s own tanks, but the industrial challenges were as considerable as the perceived priority was minimal. 200 Carden-Lloyd tankettes were ordered in 1928, but this did little to stimulate domestic development; 57 modified vehicles were assembled in Warsaw between 1929 and 1931 to much fanfare, but even then they were regarded as, at best, a temporary solution to Poland’s requirements. The final project for a 7t light tank died a quiet death by committee in early 1930, as the far more pressing concerns of the global economic collapse dominated the discourse of the Polish body politic.
The economic shackles of the Great Depression were cast aside as the young Poles went from strength to strength thanks to the Four Year Plans of their wise leader, the famed Marshal Pilsudski. This permitted the expansion and development of the Polish Army in response to the rapid remilitarization of Nazi Germany and Fascist Austria-Hungary. The re-equipment of all three of Poland’s armoured brigades with modern vehicles was one of the first orders of business, resulting in the development of the 12TP. Based on a Vickers design for a 12t export light tank, the 12TP was armed with a 37mm gun and protected by up to 25mm of armour. A reliable 180hp diesel engine gave it the relatively high top speed of 58km/hour and it was regarded as a well-armed and versatile tank that also served as the basis for the C12P artillery tractor and several other support vehicles. 579 were produced between 1935 and 1939 by the state-owned heavy industrial corporation, Państwowe Zakłady Inżynierii (PZInż) at plants in Krakow, Radom and Warsaw. It was followed by the highly capable 20TP medium tank, a 22t vehicle powered by a 400hp engine and equipped with a 75mm main gun and three 7.92mm machine guns. Protection was heavy for an interwar tank with a maximum of 65mm and it was a considerably maneuverable vehicle thanks to its broad tracks. Production began in July 1938 and only 244 were completed by the beginning of the German invasion the following September. A number of larger tanks were under development in 1939, including a 35t medium tank that would theoretically be the equal of any its German or Soviet counterparts, but none progressed beyond the point of paper design studies before the outbreak of the Second World War.
The Battle of Poland saw the tanks of the Polish Army badly outnumbered on the ground by their German and Austro-Hungarian opponents and harried from the air by the ubiquitous Stuka dive bombers. Poland’s famed cavalry inflicted several sharp defeats against German infantry and harried their advance, but, despite certain misconceptions, never conducted a sword and lance charge against Panzers in 1939. The 12TPs and 20TPs fought hard and well against overwhelming opposition in a number of initial battles, but were worn down by Nazi guns and sorcery. The earlier light tanks and tankettes were less successful, being able to offer little resistance against the larger and better-protected Panzer Is, IIs and IIIs that made up the majority of the German invasion force.
After the end of resistance in the Polish homeland on October 3rd, its armed forces continued the struggle against Hitlerism from France and then the British Isles. The First and Second Polish Armies fielded a total of four armoured divisions between 1940 and 1945, all equipped with British Crusader and Churchill tanks. Across Western and Central Europe the tanks of Free Poland smashed back the Axis, spearheading the victories of Normandy and Monte Cassino and following the winged hussars through the gates of Vienna and to the very Reichstag itself. They would continue to operate the Crusader until 1948, when it was replaced as the frontline tank of the Free Polish Army by the Centurion, which in turn will be replaced by the Chieftain by 1965. Communist Poland built up its military might around the People’s Army of Poland, Soviet-armed troops who took part in the Red Army’s offensive of 1944/45. In the postwar period, their armoured forces would be equipped with T-34/85s, IS-2s and ISU-152s. Production of a localized variant of the T-54 medium tank began in 1956, but it is not considered as significantly different from the Russian version at this time.
Tank production in the Dominions of the British Empire was primarily concentrated on licenced manufacturing of British types such as the Cavalier, Valiant and Crusader, but in the cases of Canada and Australia, two local medium tank designs, the Grizzly and the Sentinel were built in significant numbers. They both originated from the particular circumstances of 1940, which saw the British Empire standing essentially alone against Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy and production priorities focused upon the European and North African theatres of operations. The requirements of local defence of North America and Australasia and outfitting the growing Australian and Canadian armoured forces would therefore partly fall upon domestic production.
The Grizzly tank was based on a modified American Sherman design fitted with a 17pdr main armament. It would primarily serve in the home defence role, although it did equip a number of Canadian and New Avalon armoured units in the Western Desert in 1942. It performed exceptionally in combat against a range of enemy tanks due to the formidable power of its main gun and more than adequately against enemy troop concentrations and strongpoints. The Grizzly had something of a higher profile than comparable British tanks and lacked in armour compared to newer Shermans and Crusaders. It was phased out of frontline use from 1943 as the earlier Panzer IIIs and IVs were replaced by Panthers; it would have something of an extended service life in the Iberian Campaign, where its particular flaws were less exposed due to the vagaries of terrain. Production peaked in July 1942 and totaled 1798 before gradually declining as more Crusaders and Lend-Lease Shermans became available. Perhaps the most notable role of the Grizzly was as postwar military aid from Canada to various nations across Europe, South America, Africa and Asia.
In Australia, design work on a 29t medium tank began in August 1940 based on observation of American and British designs. The subsequent vehicle married many of the best features of both the Crusader and the Sherman tanks and was powered by an adapted Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine. Production began in December 1941 at Sydney’s Chullora Tank Assembly Plant, which was later joined by new facilities in Melbourne and Adelaide. A total of 529 were built between 1942 and 1945 and it remained in service with CMF armoured formations until 1954. Heavily protected by upwards of 3.5” of frontal hull and turret armour, it also carried either a 17pdr gun or a 25pdr gun-howitzer, a Vickers heavy machine gun and a pair of .303” machine guns. The Sentinel’s top speed of 36mph made it one of the fastest tanks of the first half of the war, but it was to be in infantry support operations in the South West Pacific that it would earn its greatest fame. In New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and the Dutch East Indies, the main role of the Sentinel was the destruction of Japanese strongpoints and the support of infantry advances by Australian troops through their main armament and machine guns. Several variants were built in limited numbers, including a self-propelled 6” heavy mortar and a specialized chemical warfare tank for the delivery of poison gas.
Australia and Canada, like the other members of the Commonwealth, would employ the Super Crusader and Centurion in the postwar period in Malaya, Korea, the Middle East and beyond. The experience in designing and manufacturing the Grizzly and Sentinel set both nations in good stead for peacetime production of the Centurion, which soon became the ‘universal tank’ of the British Empire. The distribution of tank production has continued, with South Africa, India and New Avalon all now adding their capacity to what is already one of the most substantial cooperative industrial engagements in the world.
The Empire of China operates one of the largest tank forces in the world today, but it is one that grew out of humble and eclectic beginnings. It was the civil strife and destruction of the Chinese Front in the Great War that first saw armoured vehicles employed on the mainland of Asia in the form of British and Japanese tanks used to support Manchu loyalists forces against the German-backed rebels. These were joined by 84 surplus Whippet light tanks in 1919 as the Imperial Chinese Army scoured out the last vestiges of rebel support in Szechuan and Yunan. The two battalions of Whippets comprised the entire Chinese armoured force for the majority of the 1920s, seeing hard service in the tough border campaigns against Mongolia and Tartary. They were augmented by the purchase of 120 Carden Lloyd tankettes in 1927, most of which were destroyed in the early stages of conflict against Japan in 1936 at the Battle of Shanghai.
Domestic tank production began in 1929 with the 10t Zhanche light tank, based on an earlier British design and named after the war chariots of Ancient China. It was only produced in limited numbers given the developing nature of Chinese industry, but a total of 94 were built by 1935. The Zhanche was lightly armed, carrying only a pair of 7.92mm machine guns, but were remarkably fast for the time, being capable of reaching a top speed of 52km/hour. Armour was light, but speed and a low profile were seen as compensating to some degree for this deficiency. A solid vehicle for the time, the Zhanche pushed the limits of Chinese construction capacity and provided valuable operational and technical lessons. No tanks survived the brutal attrition of the decade-long Sino-Japanese War save for a single prototype currently on display in Chungking.
China was the recipient of considerable military aid from the Soviet Union, the United States and Britain and the majority of the tanks used by the Imperial Chinese Army in the Second World War came from these three sources. 2493 Shermans, 1549 Stuarts, 864 Grants, 525 Crusaders, 682 Valiants, 326 T-26s and 1778 T-34s were delivered between 1940 and 1945, with the Sherman and T-34 serving as the backbone of the Chinese Armoured Corps in the immediate postwar period. A further 3967 T-34s were supplied by the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1950 as part of the comparatively short-lived Sino-Soviet Alliance. The second major source of Chinese tanks after the Second World War was from captured Japanese vehicles, which also provided the basis for the curious Gongchen tanks, a copy of the Type 4 Chi To medium tank equipped with a Soviet 76.2mm gun. These were never intended as a long term solution for China’s armoured needs, but the 573 Gongchens produced between 1949 and 1951 provided an effective bridge between previous manufacturing and the new generation of Chinese-designed tanks.
1950 saw the outbreak of the Korean War and eventual Chinese intervention against the Allied United Nations Command. T-34s and newer T-54s were used in the offensives of 1951 and 1952, the former being swiftly outclassed by British Centurions and American Pattons, whilst the latter would maintain an edge until the final years of the war. Ongoing tensions and the eventual fraying of ties between the Soviet Union and Imperial China meant that proposed production of a Chinese version of the T-54 was aborted in the early 1950s in favour of a more costly and difficult solution. The Gongchens were employed by a single tank regiment that was decimated in the Allied counterstroke of 1952. China’s war was mainly one of infantry and artillery without the full scope for armoured operations, but a consistent force level of over 1000 tanks was maintained in each of the three army groups that held the front in Korea.
The Korean conflict and a general desire for industrial and military modernisation provided considerable impetus for the long contemplated design and manufacture of a family of modern indigenous Chinese armoured vehicles. Work had begun on the process in 1948, but the requirements of postwar recovery and rebuilding had been a fundamental limitation. They were to be named after the great dragons of China, national symbols of strength and power to serve as rallying points for the grand reawakening, an auspicious step that bought the approval of the notoriously reactionary aristocracy, many of whom glorified in their draconic blood; the views of the dragon populace were rather more circumspect. Former Imperial Chancellor Fu Manchu, well known as an aficionado of ingenious machines and dabbler in infernal devices, took a particular interest in the prospect of China’s first real tanks and provided much political support and funding for the project through the hard-pressed final years of the Korean War. Production would begin in a series of new subterranean plants far inland from current industrial areas in the apparently secure fastness of Inner Mongolia and Kokonur. Only the vital quest for the atomic bomb attracted more importance in China than the Four Dragons Program.
The first to enter service was the 25t Yu-Lung (Green Dragon) light tank in 1954, quickly proving to be a fast and well-armoured vehicle capable of hard-hitting fire from its potent 90mm gun; an estimated 4569 have been built by the end of 1960. The Ch'ing-Lung (Azure Dragon) medium tank is the best known of China’s new tanks, appearing in many propaganda newsreels and military parades. Weighing 40 tons, it is protected by the equivalent of upwards of 230mm of armour, has a top speed of 50km/hour and sports a unique 110mm gun. Whilst it is slightly behind the developmental level of Western main battle tanks, the Ch’ing-Lung is fielded in substantial numbers (8937 being built from 1956) and is considered an agile and finely balanced tank. The 60t Huang-Lung (Yellow Dragon) heavy tank equips the Imperial Guard and specialist battalions attached to armoured and mechanised corps and is one of the most powerful weapons in its class currently in production; the Chinese military apparently does not share the Western view on the obsolescence of the heavy tank as a distinct type. Armed with a 130mm gun and two machine guns, 1276 have been built since mid 1957. The newest Chinese tank is similarly something of an anomaly in the age of the Chieftain and M-60 - the Hong-Lung (Red Dragon) superheavy tank. At 80t, it is the heaviest vehicle built by any great power since the Second World War and the long range firepower of its 152mm gun does not appear to be justified by the tactical limitations of its low speed and sheer bulk and production over the last two years has been decidedly slow, totaling 124 tanks.
China’s heavy industrial miracle of the last decade has seen many results, but the successful development and production of its own tanks stands as one of the most noteworthy. Coal, iron and steel production levels have already exceeded those of France and Austria-Hungary and the shipyards and aircraft plants of China hum with constant activity. The Middle Kingdom remains something of a secretive enigma behind the Great Wall and the Imperial Chinese Army is the largest land army in the world today with over 5.2 million men under arms. It has made a great leap forward in the incorporation of armoured forces since the Chinese defeat in the Korean War and is a major factor in the future of the Orient.
Chief among the realms of Scandinavia, the Kingdom of Sweden entered the 20th century as a burgeoning middle power, ranking just behind the Great Powers of Europe in industrial output and boasting of some of the world’s largest and best supplies of iron ore. The Swedish Army had a fearsome reputation as a well-trained and bountifully equipped field force, yet the rapid pace of developments in the first decade of the century began to leave it behind as the machine gun and modern artillery revolutionized the battlefield. Sweden began the process of development of armoured forces in the aftermath of the First World War, as the Russian Revolution to the east and the unrest wracking Central Europe threatened the policy of neutrality and general peace that had held since the Crimean War. Parts for 12 German Leichte Kampfwagen were secretly purchased, ostensibly as boiler parts and agricultural machinery, modified and assembled as the Stridsvagn m/21 light tank. Armed with a 6.5mm machine gun, these would serve throughout the 1920s and early 1930s as the first tanks of the Swedish Army, alongside a veritable panoply of armoured cars.
As war clouds gathered over Europe from the mid-1930s, the modernization of the Swedish Armed Forces gathered pace and orders were placed with Landsverk AB for a new light tank, the L-10, or Stridsvagn m/32. It had begun development in 1932 and was ready for full scale production by late 1935. Weighing 12t, it was armed with a Bofors 40mm anti-tank gun, protected by 12-25mm of armour and capable of reaching a top speed of 55km/hour, making it extremely competitive with foreign vehicles of the same generation. 282 were produced for the Swedish Army between 1936 and 1940, with a further 93 being exported to Finland, Norway and Yugoslavia. Although it never saw action in Swedish service except against the constant menace of troll and orc raids from the northern mountains, it was popular with Finnish troops in the Winter War for its excellent cross-country performance and rugged suspension.
Succeeding the L-10 was the best Swedish light tank of the 1930s and 1940s, the Stridsvagn m/38, better known to a wider audience as the L-24. This 18t light tank began development on the eve of war in 1938 and was rushed into service in late 1940 after a Herculean effort by designers and manufacturers alike. It was armed with a new 57mm gun and protected by up to 40mm of sloped armour on the turret. Speed and mobility were its key attributes and it was capable of reaching up to 67km/hour on roads in the latter half of the war. 624 were built between 1941 and 1945, serving in the armies of Sweden, Norway and Finland with aplomb; it was able to hold its own against German Panzer IIIs and Leopards in Operation Rädda Danmark after Sweden and Finland entered the war on the Allied side in August 1944. One achieved the unique feat of singlehandedly downing a Nazi dragon over Copenhagen with specially forged mageshot and it is preserved in the Livrustkammeren in the Royal Palace in Stockholm. Postwar, it would continue production and be exported to eight countries, earning a reputation as a tough and economical vehicle.
Sweden had looked abroad in the late 1930s for the best means of rapidly augmenting its tank force and the Austro-Hungarian Panzerkampfwagen 36 was regarded as close to ideal for Swedish requirements. After lengthy negotiations through the initial stages of the war, permission was granted by Austrian and German authorities for the licenced production of the Panzer 36 by Scania-Vabis as the Stridsvagn m/41. 394 would be built between 1942 and 1944, many of which were converted to assault guns in 1944 and 1945. They saw limited action in the liberation of Denmark, being attached to infantry regiments in independent armoured companies. The remaining vehicles were rebuilt as interim armoured personnel carriers in the early 1950s, designated as the Pbv 300.
The Swedish Army’s most important tank of the Second World War was the Stridsvagn m/40 medium tank, a 25t vehicle that could compete with any other vehicle in its class throughout the war due to its robust all-round qualities. It was exceptionally fast, with a top speed of 54km/hour, well protected by up to 70mm of sloped turret armour and armed with the devastatingly powerful Bofors 75mm/52 gun. Production was given the highest priority during the crisis of wartime and the impressive total of 1268 vehicles were built between 1941 and 1945 by Landsverk, Volvo, Scania and Hagglunds, reaching a monthly high of 42 tanks in June 1944. It proved to be superior to the larger Panzer IV in the Danish and Northern German campaigns due to its low profile and excellent maneuverability and would continue in frontline Swedish service until 1957, seeing action with the Scandinavian Brigade in the Korean War. A further 768 Stridsvagn m/40s were built for export and to replace war losses between 1945 and 1948, many of which remain on active duty with the Finnish and Danish armies.
The onset of the Cold War was a particularly alarming development for Sweden, given the proximity of the Soviet Union and the optimal means of equipping the Swedish Army with modern armoured vehicles and weaponry was a subject of considerable debate as the bitter new world took shape. The logistical challenges of maintaining a force of several different obsolescent types made the acquisition of new tanks an urgent necessity. By 1948, the decision was reached to adopt a trifold approach to the challenge of armoured modernization. Firstly, Centurion tanks would be acquired from Britain with a view towards eventual licenced production. Secondly, the chassis of the older Strv m/40s would be converted into interim upgraded medium tanks armed with American 90mm guns. Finally, development of a Swedish heavy tank would be initiated to counterbalance the large numbers of Soviet heavy tanks and assault guns.
The first delivery of Centurions came in 1950, followed by the beginning of Swedish production of the Stridsvagn 100 the next year. 682 were supplied from Britain in three separate batches and no fewer than 1774 were built by a consortium of Landsverk, Volvo, Bofors and Scania between 1951 and 1958. It remains as the frontline main battle tank of the Swedish Army and a number of earlier models have been transferred to Norway and Finland under the auspices of the Scandinavian Defence Union. The Stridsvagn 74 entered service in 1953, equipped with modified engines and transmission in addition to new tracks, upgraded armour protection and the American guns. A total of 525 would be converted between 1953 and 1959 and the type is expected to remain in second line support service through to the end of the 1970s. The Stridsvagn 120 or the Gustav Adolf tank was Sweden’s solution to the looming Soviet armoured threat and began production in 1955. Weighing 69t and bearing a distant resemblance to the Conqueror, the 152mm armed Gustav Adolf bears some of the strongest conventional tank armour ever fielded, with the equivalent of over 360mm of frontal protection on the glacis and upwards of 400mm on the heavily sloped turret. It has a creditable road speed of 46km/hour and is fitted with a well-regarded arcane fire control system forged by the finest ballistic alchemists of the Scandian Dwarves. 462 Gustav Adolfs currently serve with the Swedish Army, primarily in the northern based frontline armoured divisions.
Poland returned to the family of independent nations after the defeat of Germany and the fall of their former Tsarist Russian overlords and seemed to have put the woe of the last century behind it in the 1920s. It fell to the armies of the Kingdom of Poland to save Europe from the seemingly inexorable tide of the Bolshevik Red Army with their decisive victory at the Battle of Warsaw, cementing their restored status as a genuine Eastern European power. British and French tanks had played a role in turning aside the final despairing throes of the Soviet offensive and 45 Mark IVs, 60 Whippets and 80 FT-17s provided the backbone of Polish armour for the rest of the decade. Far reaching plans were drawn up for the design and construction of Poland’s own tanks, but the industrial challenges were as considerable as the perceived priority was minimal. 200 Carden-Lloyd tankettes were ordered in 1928, but this did little to stimulate domestic development; 57 modified vehicles were assembled in Warsaw between 1929 and 1931 to much fanfare, but even then they were regarded as, at best, a temporary solution to Poland’s requirements. The final project for a 7t light tank died a quiet death by committee in early 1930, as the far more pressing concerns of the global economic collapse dominated the discourse of the Polish body politic.
The economic shackles of the Great Depression were cast aside as the young Poles went from strength to strength thanks to the Four Year Plans of their wise leader, the famed Marshal Pilsudski. This permitted the expansion and development of the Polish Army in response to the rapid remilitarization of Nazi Germany and Fascist Austria-Hungary. The re-equipment of all three of Poland’s armoured brigades with modern vehicles was one of the first orders of business, resulting in the development of the 12TP. Based on a Vickers design for a 12t export light tank, the 12TP was armed with a 37mm gun and protected by up to 25mm of armour. A reliable 180hp diesel engine gave it the relatively high top speed of 58km/hour and it was regarded as a well-armed and versatile tank that also served as the basis for the C12P artillery tractor and several other support vehicles. 579 were produced between 1935 and 1939 by the state-owned heavy industrial corporation, Państwowe Zakłady Inżynierii (PZInż) at plants in Krakow, Radom and Warsaw. It was followed by the highly capable 20TP medium tank, a 22t vehicle powered by a 400hp engine and equipped with a 75mm main gun and three 7.92mm machine guns. Protection was heavy for an interwar tank with a maximum of 65mm and it was a considerably maneuverable vehicle thanks to its broad tracks. Production began in July 1938 and only 244 were completed by the beginning of the German invasion the following September. A number of larger tanks were under development in 1939, including a 35t medium tank that would theoretically be the equal of any its German or Soviet counterparts, but none progressed beyond the point of paper design studies before the outbreak of the Second World War.
The Battle of Poland saw the tanks of the Polish Army badly outnumbered on the ground by their German and Austro-Hungarian opponents and harried from the air by the ubiquitous Stuka dive bombers. Poland’s famed cavalry inflicted several sharp defeats against German infantry and harried their advance, but, despite certain misconceptions, never conducted a sword and lance charge against Panzers in 1939. The 12TPs and 20TPs fought hard and well against overwhelming opposition in a number of initial battles, but were worn down by Nazi guns and sorcery. The earlier light tanks and tankettes were less successful, being able to offer little resistance against the larger and better-protected Panzer Is, IIs and IIIs that made up the majority of the German invasion force.
After the end of resistance in the Polish homeland on October 3rd, its armed forces continued the struggle against Hitlerism from France and then the British Isles. The First and Second Polish Armies fielded a total of four armoured divisions between 1940 and 1945, all equipped with British Crusader and Churchill tanks. Across Western and Central Europe the tanks of Free Poland smashed back the Axis, spearheading the victories of Normandy and Monte Cassino and following the winged hussars through the gates of Vienna and to the very Reichstag itself. They would continue to operate the Crusader until 1948, when it was replaced as the frontline tank of the Free Polish Army by the Centurion, which in turn will be replaced by the Chieftain by 1965. Communist Poland built up its military might around the People’s Army of Poland, Soviet-armed troops who took part in the Red Army’s offensive of 1944/45. In the postwar period, their armoured forces would be equipped with T-34/85s, IS-2s and ISU-152s. Production of a localized variant of the T-54 medium tank began in 1956, but it is not considered as significantly different from the Russian version at this time.
Tank production in the Dominions of the British Empire was primarily concentrated on licenced manufacturing of British types such as the Cavalier, Valiant and Crusader, but in the cases of Canada and Australia, two local medium tank designs, the Grizzly and the Sentinel were built in significant numbers. They both originated from the particular circumstances of 1940, which saw the British Empire standing essentially alone against Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy and production priorities focused upon the European and North African theatres of operations. The requirements of local defence of North America and Australasia and outfitting the growing Australian and Canadian armoured forces would therefore partly fall upon domestic production.
The Grizzly tank was based on a modified American Sherman design fitted with a 17pdr main armament. It would primarily serve in the home defence role, although it did equip a number of Canadian and New Avalon armoured units in the Western Desert in 1942. It performed exceptionally in combat against a range of enemy tanks due to the formidable power of its main gun and more than adequately against enemy troop concentrations and strongpoints. The Grizzly had something of a higher profile than comparable British tanks and lacked in armour compared to newer Shermans and Crusaders. It was phased out of frontline use from 1943 as the earlier Panzer IIIs and IVs were replaced by Panthers; it would have something of an extended service life in the Iberian Campaign, where its particular flaws were less exposed due to the vagaries of terrain. Production peaked in July 1942 and totaled 1798 before gradually declining as more Crusaders and Lend-Lease Shermans became available. Perhaps the most notable role of the Grizzly was as postwar military aid from Canada to various nations across Europe, South America, Africa and Asia.
In Australia, design work on a 29t medium tank began in August 1940 based on observation of American and British designs. The subsequent vehicle married many of the best features of both the Crusader and the Sherman tanks and was powered by an adapted Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine. Production began in December 1941 at Sydney’s Chullora Tank Assembly Plant, which was later joined by new facilities in Melbourne and Adelaide. A total of 529 were built between 1942 and 1945 and it remained in service with CMF armoured formations until 1954. Heavily protected by upwards of 3.5” of frontal hull and turret armour, it also carried either a 17pdr gun or a 25pdr gun-howitzer, a Vickers heavy machine gun and a pair of .303” machine guns. The Sentinel’s top speed of 36mph made it one of the fastest tanks of the first half of the war, but it was to be in infantry support operations in the South West Pacific that it would earn its greatest fame. In New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and the Dutch East Indies, the main role of the Sentinel was the destruction of Japanese strongpoints and the support of infantry advances by Australian troops through their main armament and machine guns. Several variants were built in limited numbers, including a self-propelled 6” heavy mortar and a specialized chemical warfare tank for the delivery of poison gas.
Australia and Canada, like the other members of the Commonwealth, would employ the Super Crusader and Centurion in the postwar period in Malaya, Korea, the Middle East and beyond. The experience in designing and manufacturing the Grizzly and Sentinel set both nations in good stead for peacetime production of the Centurion, which soon became the ‘universal tank’ of the British Empire. The distribution of tank production has continued, with South Africa, India and New Avalon all now adding their capacity to what is already one of the most substantial cooperative industrial engagements in the world.
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