Harland & Wolff A22 Churchill Tank

The Churchill was the earliest British Heavy Tank. It was a modified version of the A20 which had Side Sponsons, much like the WWI Tanks. However it was realised that this type of warfare wasn't going to be the norm in WW2 and after the Dunkirk evacuation in Spring 1940 the specification was changed to a Central Turret mounted on top of the hull. With Britain now facing possible invasion, the war office issued immediate orders for Churchill production to start. However the 1st prototypes were not ready until early 1941 and the 1st production models didn't arrive until June 1941. Because of the urgent need for the Churchill there wasn't much in the way of testing, so when it actually saw combat in the disastrous Dieppe raid in 1942 it's shortcomings were all too evident. Underpowered, Undergunned & Mechanically unreliable it was nearly cancelled in favour of the newer Cromwell. However a new version, the Mk III, was produced and this was somewhat of an improvement over the earlier Mk I. It saw service in the Desert and then Sicily & Italy proving itself a tough adversary. It had legendary Hill Climbing ability often surprising enemy troops as it crested a ridge line which was thought impossible by Axis forces. In the rough Tunisian terrain in late 1942 & early 1943 it came in to it's own with this tactic. Further improvements were made and the new Mk IV was produced followed closely by the Mk VII. This introduced thicker armour and a 75mm gun. Several earlier Churchills were used as specialised vehicles for the Normandy Landings in June 1944, called "Hobarts Funnies" (See seperate Section on these vehicles). The Churchill again proved itself a worthy opponent during the fighting to retake France and then on in to Germany itself in 1945. It was to remain in the British Army until 1952 when the last examples were withdrawn from use.





Left to Right - Churchill Mk I, Mk IV & Churchill Crocodile with Flame Thrower

 

Designed & built by Harland & Wolff (Belfast), the Churchill was named after the British Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill. He was instrumental in the design and use of the first Tanks in WW1. Because the Churchill retained most of it's original features in later marks it became steadily heavier and thus slower as more Armour & Better Armament was added. Later Marks had 25mm to 152mm Armour Plating although none of this was sloped so it could still be penetrated by concentrated Anti-Tank fire. The original Bedford Twin Six Engine of 350 hp was never upgraded although some unsuccessful experiments were tried after the war with Rolls Royce Merlin Aero Engines.