In 1938 Vickers was invited to join in the production
programme for the new Matilda II tank, but as the company already had a
production line established to produce a heavy 'Cruiser' tank known as the A10,
it was invited to produce a new infantry tank based upon the A10. Vickers duly
made its plans and its A10-derived infantry tank was ordered into production in
July 1939. Up to that date the army planners had some doubts as to the
effectiveness of the Vickers submissions, resulting mainly in the retention of
a small two-man turret which would limit possible armament increases, but by
mid-1939 war was imminent and tanks were urgently required.
The new Vickers tank, soon known as the Infantry Tank Mk III
Valentine, drew heavily on experience gained with the A10, but was much more
heavily armoured 8-65 mm (0.3- 2.55 in). As many of the A10's troubles had
already been experienced their solutions were built into the Valentine, which
proved to be a relatively trouble- free vehicle. Mass production began rapidly,
and the first Valentine I examples were ready in late 1940. By 1941 the
Valentine was an established type, and many were used as Cruiser tanks to
overcome deficiencies.
The Valentine was undoubtedly one of the most important
British tanks, but the main reason for this was quantity rather than quality.
By early 1944, when production ceased, 8,275 had been made and during one
period in 1943 one quarter of all British tank production was of Valentines,
Valentines were also produced in Canada and by several other concerns in the
United Kingdom apart from Vickers.
There were numerous variants on the Valentine, Gun tanks ran
to 11 different marks with the main armament increasing from a 2-pdr (Valentine
I-VII) via the 6-pdr (Valentine VIII-X) to a 75-mm (2.95-in) gun (Valentine
XI), and there was even a self-propelled gun version mounting a 25-pdr field
gun and known as the Bishop. Special-purpose Valentines ran the whole gamut
from mobile bridges (Valentine Bridgelayer) to Canal Defence Lights (Valentine
CDL) and from observation posts (Valentine OP) to mine-clearing devices
(Valentine Scorpion and Valentine AMRA). The numbers of these variants were
legion, many of them being one-off devices produced for trials or experimental
purposes, typical of which were the early Duplex Drive Valentine vehicles used
to test the DD system. Actually these tanks were so successful that the
Valentine was at one time the standard DD tank. There were also Valentine Flamethrower
tanks, and one attempt was made to produce a special tank killer with a 6-pdr
anti-tank gun behind a shield. That project came to nothing but the Valentine
chassis was later used as the basis for the Archer, an open-topped vehicle with
a 17-pdr gun pointing to the rear. This was used in Europe from 1944 onwards.
The basic Valentine tank was extensively modified throughout
its operational career, but it remained throughout reliable and sturdy. The
Valentine was one of the British army's most important tanks at one point. It
was used by many Allied armies such as that of New Zealand, and many saw action
in Burma. The bulk of the Canadian
output was sent to the Soviet Union, where the type appears to have given good
service. The Valentine did have its drawbacks, but overall its main
contribution was that it was available in quantity at a time when it was most
needed, and not many British tank designs could claim the same.
Specification
Valentine III/IV Crew: 3 Weight: 17690 kg (39,000 lb) Powerplant: one AEC
diesel developing 98 kW(131 bhp) in Mk III or CMC diesel developing 103 kW (
138 bhp) in Mk IV Dimensions: length 5.41 m (17 ft 9 in); width 2.629 m (8 ft
7.5 in); height 2.273 m (7 ft 5.5 in) Performance: maximum speed 24 km/h (15
mph); maximum cross-country speed 12.9 km/h (8 mph); road range 145 km (90
miles); vertical obstacle 0.838 m (2 ft 9 in); fording 0.914 m (3 ft); trench
2,286 m (7 ft 6 in)
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