The British Armoured Regiment
The British Army maintained the distinction between Cruiser and Infantry tanks throughout the war. The former were the normal machine used for offensive operations and charged with the engagement of enemy armour. The latter were perceived as accompanying the infantry and providing them with close support while the Cruiser tanks were pushing deep into enemy territory. The Cruiser equipped Armoured Regiment underwent a constant series of minor revisions during the war, but the overall appearance remained largely unaltered from 1940 onwards. The various Headquarters detachments served the same role as their Infantry equivalents, while additional maintenance support was provided by attached personnel.
The Armoured Regiment, circa 1940 to 1942
Regimental Headquarters (5 Officers, 12 men)
Headquarter Squadron (6 Officers, 122 men)
Squadron HQ (2 Officers, 4 men)
Intercommunication Troop (19 men)
Administrative Troop (4 Officers, 99 men)
Three Armoured Squadrons (7 Officers, 138 men), each comprised of;
Squadron HQ (3 Officers, 94 men)
Four Troops, each comprised of; (1 Officer, 11 men)
Total strength of 580 all ranks (32 Officers, 548 men)
The Armoured Regiment, circa 1942 to 1943
Regimental Headquarters (5 Officers, 36 men)
Headquarter Squadron (7 Officers, 158 men)
Squadron HQ (2 Officers, 4 men)
Reconnaissance Troop (1 Officer, 19 men)
Intercommunication Troop (1 Officer, 17 men)
Administrative Troop (3 Officers, 118 men)
Three Squadrons (8 Officers, 150 men), each comprised of;
Squadron HQ (3 Officers, 95 men)
Five Troops, each comprised of (1 Officer, 11 men)
Total strength of 680 all ranks (36 Officers, 644 men) * subject to increase for Regiments using tanks with 5, 6 or 7 man crews
The Armoured Regiment, circa 1944 to 1945
Regimental Headquarters (5 Officers, 16 men) * increased by 1 man
Headquarter Squadron (8 Officers, 193 men)
Squadron HQ (2 Officers, 4 men) * increased by 1 Officer
Anti-Aircraft Troop (1 Officer, 23 men)
Reconnaissance Troop (1 Officer, 43 men) * decreased by 1 man, increased by 1 Officer
Intercommunication Troop (1 Officer, 17 men)
Administrative Troop (3 Officers, 106 men) * increased by 1 man
Three Armoured Squadrons (8 Officers, 149 men), each comprised of;
Squadron HQ (3 Officers, 22 men) * increased by 1 man
Administrative Troop (57 men)
Five Troops, each comprised of (1 Officer, 14 men)
Total Strength of 692 all ranks (37 Officers, 655 men) * increased to 39 Officers, 660 men by VE Day
The elements of the Regiment
Regimental Headquarters - RHQ deployed four tanks throughout the war and served the same function as the Battalion Headquarters in the Infantry. The staff comprised the Commanding Officer, Second in command, Adjutant, Intelligence Officer and Subaltern. The increase in personnel strength of the 1942 Regiment was due to eight anti-aircraft tanks being added, these vehicles later becoming part of Headquarter Squadron.
Anti-Aircraft Troop - the AA Troop was added during 1942. It initially deployed eight tanks each refitted with a pair of 20 mm anti aircraft guns for local defence. This was reduced to six by 1944. So diminished was the threat of the Luftwaffe that following D-Day many Troops were disbanded and their crews reassigned, yet they still appeared on the official organisation.
Intercommunications Troop - this uniquely British unit provided a sort of 'armoured taxi' service to allow movement around the Regiment under some form of protection other than a tank. Initially with ten cars, later nine, Daimler scout cars were the preferred vehicle, carrying two men and fitting a Bren gun.
Reconnaissance Troop - the first Reconnaissance Troop appears during 1942 and operated nine Universal Carriers, each with just a two man crew. By 1944 it comprised of eleven Stuart Light Tanks, used more in the role of a tracked armoured car as the light tank had long since had its day. The Stuart had a four man crew of commander, gunner, loader and driver, and mounted a 37 mm gun with both coaxial and hull machine guns. Many Stuarts underwent field conversions which saw their turrets removed to lower the vehicles profile, and a .50 cal machine gun fitted, recognising that stealth was more important to survival than firepower. It was perhaps organised as three Sections of three, with a HQ of two. An alternative organisation mentioned in the final WE of the war refers to six scout cars and six light tanks, used 'at the discretion of the theatre commander'.
The Armoured Squadron - the relatively straightforward appearance of the Squadron is quite deceiving. During the course of the war, Armoured Regiments operated roughly twelve different models of tanks! That does not take into account the various marks of each tank, which could include minor engine modifications or completely revised armament.
The Troop of three tanks remained relatively constant during the war and were commanded by a Subaltern, Sergeant and Corporal respectively. Each tank had a basic allowance of four crewmen in 1940, presuming the A13 to be the standard machine. However, with the introduction of the Crusader in 1941-42, the crew could vary from three to five men, depending on the model. Also during 1942 large numbers of US built M3 Grant or Lee tanks, as well as M3 Stuart and M4 Sherman tanks began to arrive. The unmistakeable M3 medium had either a six or seven man crew, with commander and driver, plus two gunners and two loaders to serve the 37 mm turret gun and the 75 mm hull mounted weapon. While widely used in North Africa, it was the M4 Sherman that would go on to see service beyond the desert and throughout Europe with the Armoured Regiments.
A number of tanks were designed during 1942-43 that failed to see service, many with good reason. It was not until the Cromwell in 1943 that a British built machine equipped large numbers of units again. The Cromwell shared the same layout as the Sherman, with a commander, gunner, loader, driver and machine gunner. It mounted a 75 mm main gun, upgraded from the original 6 pdr, with both coaxial and hull machine guns. It was intended that the Cromwell would equip all Armoured Regiments, but in the end only 7th Armoured Division received them on this scale, along with the Armoured Reconnaissance Regiments of Guards and 11th Armoured Divisions.
By 1944 the deficiencies in the 75 mm gun lead the British to modify a number of Sherman tanks to fit their 17 pdr anti-tank gun, which had proved a match for the Tiger. The result was named the Firefly, and became one of the more lethal allied tanks. The conversion meant that the bow machine gunner was removed to help accommodate the bulky ammunition, and also saw a notable change in both Troop and Squadron organisation. The aim was to deploy one Firefly per Troop of three tanks, however production failed to meet the demand of fifteen per Regiment. Seemingly at the behest of Montgomery himself, the Troop was increased to four tanks, one a Firefly, but the number of Troops was dropped from five to four, requiring twelve Fireflies per Regiment instead.
This arrangement initially only applied to the Regiments in the Divisional and Independent Armoured Brigades of 21st Army Group. The Cromwell equipped Armoured Reconnaissance Regiments had none in June 1944, having to wait until August 1944 before they began to receive the Challenger. This was a not entirely successful attempt to marry a lengthened Cromwell chassis with a larger turret mounting a 17 pdr gun, again replacing one 75 mm tank per Troop. In Italy, the four tank Troop was not adopted, and where Fireflies were on hand they were sometimes deployed in their own Troop of three tanks. It can be a confusing picture, especially as more Fireflies arrived and by late 1944 some units were able to deploy two per Troop. Completing the picture, in early 1945 a new British tank appeared in the shape of the Comet. The Comet was the tank the British had needed since late 1943, and they finally got it in time for the Rhine crossings. Better protected, more reliable and mounting an impressive 77 mm gun it saw limited service with 11th Armoured Division before the war ended.
Squadron HQ had its own variations as well. From late 1940 SHQ consisted of four tanks, two normal and two close support versions. The CS tank was armed with a howitzer, a short barrelled weapon designed for delivering smoke or high explosive shells rather than armour piercing. Most British designed tanks had a CS counterpart with a 3.7 in or 95 mm howitzer. Again before D-Day changes were made. Sherman equipped Regiments receiving the Firefly dropped to a three tank SHQ, all armed with the 75 mm gun, with other Sherman Regiments keeping a four tank SHQ, again all 75 mm armed. Cromwell units operating Fireflies lost one 75 mm tank from SHQ, but kept their two CS versions. In Italy it appears Regiments did use the 105 mm armed Sherman in CS tank role, but did not necessarily have enough to go round. The Admin portion of SHQ was eventually split into its own Troop, containing the relief crews for the tanks and usual mess and supply facilities.
Summary
The lot of the British 'Tanker' during World War Two was not a happy one. British tanks were criminally under-armed almost throughout the conflict. The 2 pdr gun persisted in use beyond reason as the Panzers grew increasingly invulnerable to its effect. The 6 pdr had only a short time when it could defeat any German opponent, before the Panther and Tiger arrived. The only answer was the 'chop shop' Firefly, which retained the infamous Sherman trait of flammability - hence its gruesome German nickname of the 'Tommy Cooker'. Until the first soldier slid into the turret of a Comet in late 1944, the British armoured soldier was always outclassed and out-gunned. Even the small number of German Tigers and Panthers available could wreak carnage on a British formation - as witnessed at Villers Bocage in 1944. Only the Infantry tanks could take punishment, but they were never married with the necessary armament until late in the war, and they were too immobile for the thrusting operations envisioned.
Instead, the tank troops were saddled with thinly armoured, averagely armed machines. Reliability improved with each design, but not much else. The cold fact was their commanders knew the limitations. The choice was between producing masses of simply adequate tanks and relying on high industrial output to replace losses, or spending years in development and re-tooling machinery to produce smaller numbers of better tanks. In the end the former won. British, Commonwealth and American crews suffered terrible attrition as a result, as evidenced by the seemingly countless burnt out hulks which lined the road to Berlin.
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British Divisional Organisations
The United States Armored Battalion