In 1936 the Kiev Manoeuvres took place in the Soviet Union, during the event the foreign military observers witnessed a large display of BT-5 tanks with impressive speed and firepower in the shape of the 45 mm Cannon . At the time the Spanish Civil had just begun and astute observers took note of what was occurring.
Prior to this the General Staff had wanted a cheap tank using commercially available components and as a result the rather impressive Matilda 1 was born with great armour a robust suspension and a very inadequate armament. The vision of the BT-5 saw the Cruiser tank series born and begin to appear from late 1936. For the first time an evaluation using representative targets occurred under the supervision of several soldiers familiar with both the Spanish Civil war currently raging and the use of Mark 1 and 11 tanks in India against tribal fighters. The outcome was scathing. The Cruiser had broken down repeatedly, the 2lb gun was inadequate against infantry or artillery outside of the range of the Vickers 0.303. The Officers did however praise the armour protection they felt the Matilda offered.
With all of the information offered the design of a much improved Matilda was quietly approved. Matilda Mark 11 was chosen as a name to get approval more easily.
A full 3 man turret was specified along with a gun capable of both Anti-tank and High Explosive operations. The 2lb HE shell was inadequate for the purpose and Royal Artillery had been trying to keep the production to themselves. An alternative gun was needed and by a stroke of luck Vickers had both a gun design and a client with many in warehouses. The Gun in question was the QF 3 lb Vickers 47mm L/50 cannon. Nearly 200 had been preserved for future use by the Royal Navy and represented a massive jump on Production.
The General Staff wanted the tank today not tomorrow so off the shelf engines and other components had to be found and used. The second fortuitous decision was the use of a downrated Napier Lion aircraft engine as the powerplant. The intended transmission was the Merrit Brown but it was not ready so the double differential system was used. The exact design was appropriated from the French for unspecified benefits. The problem of speeding production precluded the use of forgings for most of the tank. The simplicity of attaching the Horstman suspension to flat plates decided the suspension as well.
Having reached this point the debate on sloped armour became one of production speed. It was quicker to join two plates to form upper and lower Glacis then to forge the exact shape. With these design decisions the Matilda 11 was born. With a Width of 9 feet 6 inches , a height of 8 feet 2 inches and a length of 20 feet the Matilda 11 was visually much larger then her predecessor. The sloped front hull was 60 mm thick, the side armour was 55mm and so was the back of the hull. The Horstman suspension was exposed and looked rather vulnerable. Turret design was done with input from the Navy and consisted of a vertical plate some 80mm thick with an external 80mm thick mantlet fitted with the high velocity 47 mm. The turret was a fairly ugly affair being a flat sided Hexagon with the remaining 5 plates each being 55mm thick. The commander was to the left with gunner the and the loader was to his right.
The tank was clearly powerful with clean lines and despite the need for extensive welding fairly easy to build. Armour plates arrived in the desired thickness. got cut to shape and attached to the Hull Structure. By mid 1938 the remaining orders for the Matilda 1 had been cancelled and an order for 140 Matilda 11 was placed. With so many components being already available production and integration with the BEF was rapid. In January 1940 the Matilda 11 production had allowed 37 to be delivered to France. All of these had been delivered to 7 RTR and 4 RTR. The combat debut of the Matilda 11 was not glorious it was however a sign of the future. A train carrying four new Matilda 11 along with supplies was caught by a flight of Junkers 87 and in the ensuing bombing the first two Matilda's lost in action died while tied to a railway flatcar.
On the 21 May 1940 the Tank crews of 4RTR and 7RTR began to forge a legend. 45 Matilda 11 and 36 Matilda 1 began to sweep forward and battered into the 5th and 7th panzer divisions. As they advanced the 37mm Anti-Tank guns bounced off their sloped hulls. The 105 mm field howitzers could damage the suspension but not the tank itself. The mobile 88mm Anti-Aircraft guns brought up personally by General Erwin Rommel worked until a series of 47mm HE shells destroyed the battery and ended his career. The day was a complete shock to the British and only an inability to consolidate the ground gained stopped the advance. They had advanced some 16km engaging and destroying all they found. In the shock breakthrough the matilda 11 tanks had lost 2 tanks completely and had suspension damage sufficient to render immobile another 7. In return the 5th and 7th Panzer had fallen back in disarray leaving 73 tanks on the battlefield. The Battle of Arras had stopped the German high command cold. The RAF was mounting air patrols from Calais and a steady supply of men and material was coming in. The Germans seemed content to consolidate the advance and the respite gave the French the reprieve needed to hold firm. A firm defence along the Somme with aggressive attacks by the French in the Calais pocket saw immediate results. The Germans had reached a point of logistical stress at the same time as the Legend of the Matilda was formed. A second Phoney war began as both sides tried to build up sufficient material to go on the offensive.
Prior to this the General Staff had wanted a cheap tank using commercially available components and as a result the rather impressive Matilda 1 was born with great armour a robust suspension and a very inadequate armament. The vision of the BT-5 saw the Cruiser tank series born and begin to appear from late 1936. For the first time an evaluation using representative targets occurred under the supervision of several soldiers familiar with both the Spanish Civil war currently raging and the use of Mark 1 and 11 tanks in India against tribal fighters. The outcome was scathing. The Cruiser had broken down repeatedly, the 2lb gun was inadequate against infantry or artillery outside of the range of the Vickers 0.303. The Officers did however praise the armour protection they felt the Matilda offered.
With all of the information offered the design of a much improved Matilda was quietly approved. Matilda Mark 11 was chosen as a name to get approval more easily.
A full 3 man turret was specified along with a gun capable of both Anti-tank and High Explosive operations. The 2lb HE shell was inadequate for the purpose and Royal Artillery had been trying to keep the production to themselves. An alternative gun was needed and by a stroke of luck Vickers had both a gun design and a client with many in warehouses. The Gun in question was the QF 3 lb Vickers 47mm L/50 cannon. Nearly 200 had been preserved for future use by the Royal Navy and represented a massive jump on Production.
The General Staff wanted the tank today not tomorrow so off the shelf engines and other components had to be found and used. The second fortuitous decision was the use of a downrated Napier Lion aircraft engine as the powerplant. The intended transmission was the Merrit Brown but it was not ready so the double differential system was used. The exact design was appropriated from the French for unspecified benefits. The problem of speeding production precluded the use of forgings for most of the tank. The simplicity of attaching the Horstman suspension to flat plates decided the suspension as well.
Having reached this point the debate on sloped armour became one of production speed. It was quicker to join two plates to form upper and lower Glacis then to forge the exact shape. With these design decisions the Matilda 11 was born. With a Width of 9 feet 6 inches , a height of 8 feet 2 inches and a length of 20 feet the Matilda 11 was visually much larger then her predecessor. The sloped front hull was 60 mm thick, the side armour was 55mm and so was the back of the hull. The Horstman suspension was exposed and looked rather vulnerable. Turret design was done with input from the Navy and consisted of a vertical plate some 80mm thick with an external 80mm thick mantlet fitted with the high velocity 47 mm. The turret was a fairly ugly affair being a flat sided Hexagon with the remaining 5 plates each being 55mm thick. The commander was to the left with gunner the and the loader was to his right.
The tank was clearly powerful with clean lines and despite the need for extensive welding fairly easy to build. Armour plates arrived in the desired thickness. got cut to shape and attached to the Hull Structure. By mid 1938 the remaining orders for the Matilda 1 had been cancelled and an order for 140 Matilda 11 was placed. With so many components being already available production and integration with the BEF was rapid. In January 1940 the Matilda 11 production had allowed 37 to be delivered to France. All of these had been delivered to 7 RTR and 4 RTR. The combat debut of the Matilda 11 was not glorious it was however a sign of the future. A train carrying four new Matilda 11 along with supplies was caught by a flight of Junkers 87 and in the ensuing bombing the first two Matilda's lost in action died while tied to a railway flatcar.
On the 21 May 1940 the Tank crews of 4RTR and 7RTR began to forge a legend. 45 Matilda 11 and 36 Matilda 1 began to sweep forward and battered into the 5th and 7th panzer divisions. As they advanced the 37mm Anti-Tank guns bounced off their sloped hulls. The 105 mm field howitzers could damage the suspension but not the tank itself. The mobile 88mm Anti-Aircraft guns brought up personally by General Erwin Rommel worked until a series of 47mm HE shells destroyed the battery and ended his career. The day was a complete shock to the British and only an inability to consolidate the ground gained stopped the advance. They had advanced some 16km engaging and destroying all they found. In the shock breakthrough the matilda 11 tanks had lost 2 tanks completely and had suspension damage sufficient to render immobile another 7. In return the 5th and 7th Panzer had fallen back in disarray leaving 73 tanks on the battlefield. The Battle of Arras had stopped the German high command cold. The RAF was mounting air patrols from Calais and a steady supply of men and material was coming in. The Germans seemed content to consolidate the advance and the respite gave the French the reprieve needed to hold firm. A firm defence along the Somme with aggressive attacks by the French in the Calais pocket saw immediate results. The Germans had reached a point of logistical stress at the same time as the Legend of the Matilda was formed. A second Phoney war began as both sides tried to build up sufficient material to go on the offensive.
