The Churchill Tank

[MAGNA]

Although it was an ungainly looking vehicle the Churchill became Britains most important tank of the Second World War. Produced in numbers second only to the Valentine, the Churchill was used for a wide variety of tasks.

Originally designated as the A20, the Churchill was the last of the infantry tank line which included the Matilda. The first prototypes were to be capable of breaching the Siegfieid line and the specification was first drawn up in 1939. 60mm frontal armour with a speed of 10 miles per hour was required, together with the capacity for different types of armament such as a 2lber gun or 95mm howitzer (3.7"). By mid 1940 the first gunless protoype was running with unsatisfactory performance du eto the engine and gearbox.

Vauxhall Motors Ltd. were asked to design a new engine and transmission. By this stage the specification was upgraded to become A22 in which the new twin six cylinder Bedford engine and Merrit Brown gearbox were incorporated. By July 1940 the requirement had become urgent and the next prototype was being tested by the end of 1940, a remarkable effort. By June 1941 the first fourteen vehicles had been produced, again with several problems due to the exceptionally quick development time. It was justified at the time though as any tanks were seen to be better than none at all.

The Merrit-Brown gearbox was linked to a controlled differential steering system which allowed the tank to turn even in neutral when stationary, an unusual system but one which allowed the Churchill to cover most ground conditions quite well compared to other tanks.

The suspension was different to other British types having a large number of ten inch roadwheels mounted on trailing arms with coil springs. These had to be oiled fairly often but were otherwise easy to maintain.

Four types of track ranging from cast iron to manganese were used on the Churchill with varying results. Dieppe showed up weaknesses in the track system with many breaking down early.

The original tank had a 2lber in the turret with a 3" howitzer mounted in the hull and 1 7.92mm Besa MG in the turret. Another model known as the MK IVA replaced the hull 3" with another MG.

In June 1941 names were officially adopted for British tanks and the Mark IV and IVA became the Churchill I and II.

By the end of the war, 5640 Churchills had been produced with 2000 being types I and II.

CHURCHILL III and IV.
The III was mechanically the same as the I and II but with a welded turret and 6lber gun as well as different ammunition stowage. I's and II's were reworked to the specification of the III as time went on. By Dieppe most of the 30 Churchills sent were III's. The sea wall at Dieppe proved to be an insurmountable obstacle to most which led to other special Churchill variants in time for D-day (keep reading, we're nearly there).

The Churchill IV was produced as well with the difference being a cast turret.

Churchill V and VI.

The V was a CS (close support) version with a 95mm howitzer, otherwise the same as the IV. The VI was again the same as a IV but with a British built 75mm instead of the 6lber for better HE performance.

Churchill VII.

This was a major redesign of the tank which dispensed with the frame and bolted armour, instead using the armour plate itself to form the hull. Armour was also significantly increased to 152mm frontal (6"), making the Churchill a lot harder to kill, especially for 75mm weapons and at longer ranges, even the Tiger I and Flak 36.

Circular side doors changed the outward appearance somewhat and the driver's vision port was no longer the rectangular variety. A commanders vision cupola was also added soon after production started. The armament consisted of one 75mm gun with two Besa MG.

A close support version, again with a 95mm howitzer became the Churchill VIII.

The changes made these later models one ton heavier than the earlier ones plus they had a heavier suspension system with and a lower ratio gearbox which reduced the top speed from 16 to 13 miles per hour.

The VII was very reliable and very tough. With the lessons learned from Dieppe variants of the Churchill were made for beach landings and river crossings, as well as strongpoint smashing.

The Churchill ARK, AVRE, Crocodile, and carpet layer are examples of Engineer vehicles used.

A further development became known as the Black Prince. This was a wider hulled machine armed with a 17lber. The use of the Archer and Firefly to mount the 17lber meant the Black Prince was not needed.

churchill_tank.jpg
An early model in training

Churchill_tank_hierarchy.png
Hierarchy of models

800px-Churchill_mk1_cfb_borden_2.jpg

This looks like a Churchill I

churchill-mkIIcs.jpg
A Churchill II CS with 95mm howitzer

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Churchill engine.jpg
The powerplant

churchill trans.jpg
Transmission showing the steering brake system on either side

churchill tracks.jpg
front view tracks.jpg
Two views of the cast tracks

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Churchill_IV.jpg
A Churchill IV

Churchill_VII.jpg
The much improved VII

churchill bridgelayer.jpg
A Churchill bridge layer

635px-AVRE-Bobbin.jpg
A Bobbin or carpet layer. The carpet allowed wheeled vehicles to move across soft ground where they would otherwise have been bogged.

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633px-Armoured_Ramp_Carrier_03.jpg

642px-Armoured_Ramp_Carrier.jpg

Armoured_Ramp_Carrier_02.jpg

Views of the Armoured Ramp Carrier or ARK. Simple enough. Drive the tank into the obstacle to be crossed. Other vehicles drive over the top.

648px-Passing_through_Lion_sur_Mer.jpg
An AVRE Churchill in Lion Sur Mere 1944

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642px-Churchill_Crocodile_02.jpg

Churchill_Crocodile_01.jpg

Churchill_Crocodile_03.jpg

crocodile rrear.jpg

Heartily disliked by German troops, the Crocodile flamethrower could hit targets up to 100 metres away. The trailer carried a jelly like substance which went through to the flamethrower attachment at the front of the vehicle.

[MAGNA]

ARV.jpg
Churchill ARV

Churchill_AVRE_Petard.jpg
Churchill AVRE turret showing the Petard demolition mortar. AVRE Churchills were converted IV's rather than using the newer VII

Churchill_Kangaroo_tank.jpg
A Churchill RAM infantry carrier.

Churchill_VII_AVRE_With_Fascine.jpg
Churchill AVRE with fascine for filling gaps across trenches and the like.

[MAGNA]

petard ammo.jpg
The ammunition for the Petard mortar. Devastating for concrete pillboxes and other strong points, but took a lot of nerve to use. It required driving to within 75 yards of the target and then firing. A miss meant reloading - even worse - climb out onto the FRONT of the hull and shove another one of these beasties down the chute. Climb back into the tank and try again.

LCT.jpg
A Churchill comes in for a beach landing.

Churchill_MKV.jpg
A Mark V with 95mm howitzer

Black_Prince_tank.jpg
The Black Prince showing the widened hull and 17lber. When you look at this and the Comet together it is easy to see what the design base was for the Centurion.

[MAGNA]

Black_Prince_tank_side_view.jpg
Another view of the Black Prince

churchill_tank_270.jpg
two completely different models of Churchill. Hard to say which one is the more dangerous though. The older model on the left had poor overhead protection although well curved. The steering mechanism as seen on the left is also bad in soft ground. The older model on the left was also prone to overheating and was always letting off steam or smoke. It also required premium octane fuel in large amounts - the engine was so fussy it could only run on an alcohol based fuel.

[PanzerBob]

Very Nice Magna.

Bob Out

[cyberia]

Awesome thread David.

Lots of work went into this.