Matilda tank

The Tank, Infantry, Mk II, Matilda II (A12) (sometimes referred to as Senior Matilda or Matilda II) was a British tank of World War II. In a somewhat unorthodox move, it shared the same name as the Tank, Infantry, Mk I (A11). The name Matilda itself comes from a cartoon duck. Matilda is also an old Teutonic female name meaning ‘mighty battle maid’, when the (A11) was removed from service the (A12) name of Matilda II was dropped, and it was then known as just the Matilda.

Development history

The Tank, Infantry, Mk II was designed at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich and built by Vulcan Foundry, as an improvement on the Mk I which was a two man tank with only machine guns for armament. The Senior Matilda weighed 27 metric tons, more than twice as much as its predecessor, and was armed with a QF 2-pounder tank gun in a three-man turret. Like other infantry tanks it was heavily armoured; the armour thickness at the front reached 7.8 cm, much more than most contemporaries. The weight of the armour, together with the relatively weak twin-engine power unit (adapted from a bus) and troublesome suspension severely limited the speed of the vehicle. For example, in the deserts of North Africa the Matilda could average only about 9.5 km/h. This was not thought to be a problem because the Matilda was specifically designed in accordance with the British doctrine of Infantry tanks, that is, slow-moving, heavily-armored vehicles designed to provide support to Infantry. Under this thinking, a speed equal to the walking speed of a man was considered sufficient. Only combat would prove that the doctrine was flawed. The heavy armor of the Matilda's cast turret became legendary; for a time in 1940-41 the Matilda earned the nickname "Queen of the Desert".

Production history

The first Matilda was produced in 1937 but only two were in service when war broke out in September 1939. Some 2,987 tanks were produced by Fowler, Ruston & Hornsby, and later London, Midland and Scottish Railway, Harland and Wolff and the North British Locomotive Company. Production was stopped in August 1943.

Variants

Matilda I (Infantry Tank Mk II)

- First production model.

Matilda II (Infantry Tank Mk IIA)

Vickers machine gun replaced by Besa MG.

Matilda III (Infantry Tank Mk IIA*)

New Leyland diesel engine.

Matilda III CS (for Close Support)

Variant with 3 inch (75 mm) howitzer.

Matilda IV (Infantry Tank Mk IIA**)

With improved engines.

Matilda V

Improved gear box and gear shift.

Baron I, II, III, IIIA

Matilda chassis with mine flail.

Matilda Scorpion I / II

Matilda chassis with mine flail.

Matilda II CDL / Matilda V CDL (Canal Defence Light)

The normal turret was replaced by a cylindrical one containing a searchlight (projected through a vertical slit) and a BESA machine gun.

Australian variants:

Matilda Frog (25)

Flamethrower tank.

Murray and Murray FT

Flamethrower tank.

Matilda Hedgehog

A naval Hedgehog (7 barrel spigot mortar) was mounted on the rear hull of Matilda.

Combat History

The Matilda was first used in combat by the 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiments in France in 1940. Due to the thickness of its armour, it was largely immune to the guns of the German tanks in France. In some desperation, the famous 88 mm anti-aircraft guns were pressed into the anti-tank role as the only effective counter.

In the early days of the conflict in the African Front, the Matilda again proved highly effective against the Italian and German tanks, although vulnerable again to the larger calibre anti-tank guns. Its 2-pounder gun was comparable to other tank guns in the 37 to 45 mm range. However, in the rapid manoeuvre warfare practiced by the Afrika Korps the tank's low speed and unreliable steering mechanism became major problems. Another problem was the lack of high-explosive capability (the appropriate shell existed but was not issued).

As the German army received new tanks with more powerful guns, the Matilda proved less and less effective. Due to the small size of its turret ring, it could not be up-gunned sufficiently. The tank was also somewhat expensive to produce. Vickers proposed an alternative, the Valentine tank, which had the same gun, a similar level of armor protection, but on a faster and cheaper chassis. With the arrival of the Valentine, American Lee/Grant and Sherman tanks, the Matilda was phased out by the British Army. By the time of the battle of El Alamein few Matildas were still in service.

Over 1000 Matildas were sent to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Matildas saw action as early as the Battle of Moscow and became fairly common during 1942, especially on the southern fronts closest to the Persian supply route. Unsurprisingly, the tank was found to be too slow and unreliable. Crews often complained that snow and dirt were accumulating behind the "skirt" panels, clogging the suspension. The slow speed and heavy armor made them comparable to the Red Army's Kliment Voroshilov heavy tanks, but the Matilda had nowhere near the firepower of the KV. Most Soviet Matildas were expended during 1942, but a few served on as late as 1944.

In the Pacific, however, Japanese forces were lacking in heavy anti-tank guns and the Matilda remained in service with several Australian regiments in the Australian 4th Armoured Brigade, in the South West Pacific Area. They first saw active service in Huon Peninsula campaign in October 1943. Matilda II tanks remained in action until the last day of the war in the Wewak, Bougainville and Borneo campaigns, which made the Matilda the only British tank to remain in service throughout the entire war.

Reference

David Fletcher, Peter Sarson - Matilda Infantry Tank 1938-45, 1994 Osprey Publishing (New Vanguard 8), ISBN 1855324571.

External links

Medium tanks | World War II British tanks