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Cavalier tank

The Tank, Cruiser, Mk VII Cavalier (A24) was an interim design of British cruiser tank during the Second World War.

Tank, Cruiser, Mk VII Cavalier (A24)
TypeCruiser tank
Place of originUnited Kingdom
Service history
In service1942–1945
Used byUnited Kingdom, Free France
WarsSecond World War
Production history
DesignerNuffield Mechanization & Aero Limited
Designed1941
ManufacturerNuffield Mechanization & Aero Limited
Produced1942
No. built500
Specifications
Mass27 long tons (27 tonnes)
Length20 ft 10 in (6.35 m)
Width9 ft 6 in (2.90 m)
Height8 ft (2.44 m)
Crew5 (Commander, gunner, loader, driver, co-driver)

Armour20–76 mm (0.79–2.99 in)
Main
armament
QF 6 pounder, 64 rounds
Secondary
armament
2 x 7.92 mm Besa machine gun, 4,950 rounds
EngineNuffield Liberty petrol
410 horsepower (310 kW)
Power/weight14.9 hp (11.2 kW) / tonne
SuspensionImproved Christie
Operational
range
165 mi (266 km)
Maximum speed 24 mph (39 km/h)
off-road 14 mph (23 km/h)

It was derived as a follow on from the Nuffield's A15 Crusader tank as it was expected to enter production in 1942. A parallel effort under Leyland Motors and Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company to the same specification resulted in the A27 Cromwell and Centaur tanks which was accepted for service in preference to the Cavalier.

Development edit

Early Development edit

Development of the Cavalier initially started as development of the Cromwell tank. In mid-1940, the British were considering which tank should follow on from the new cruiser tanks then being developed. A specification was drawn up by the Directorate of Tanks and Transport which included the 57 mm QF 6 pounder gun. This led to General Staff specification A23 for a cruiser version of the A22 Churchill tank from Vauxhall, and A24 from Nuffield Mechanization & Aero Limited based upon their Crusader tank design. Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRC&W) also submitted a design based on the Crusader.[1]

The Nuffield design used an uprated -410 hp (310 kW)- Liberty engine which was expected to give a top speed of 24 mph (39 km/h). Armour would be from 63 to 70 mm (2.5 to 2.8 in) at the front, and the 6 pounder gun would be in a turret on a 60-inch (1.5 m) turret ring.

The Tank Board meeting in January 1941 decided that as the tank needed to be in production by early 1942 it should be based upon an existing design to avoid the need for prototypes. Six tanks of the A24 Nuffield design were ordered that month, and the tank was given the name "Cromwell".

Separation from Cromwell edit

Rolls-Royce's design team, working with Leyland's engineers, produced the Meteor engine from their Merlin aero-engine. This gave a higher output than the Liberty for a similar size. Initially intended to be fitted to the A24, the new engine was not acceptable to Nuffield.[2][page needed]

Working with Rolls-Royce and Leyland, BRC&W were able to produce a prototype of their version of the Cromwell design using the Meteor. This spawned a new specification for Cromwell, A27, using a new Leyland transmission. Leyland later had doubts about the Meteor and wanted to manufacture the Liberty instead, splitting the Cromwell programme further into A24, A27L, and A27M (the latter two denoting Liberty and Meteor engines)

The General staff specifications now covered three tanks: A24 "Cromwell I" from Nuffield, A27L (Liberty engine) "Cromwell II" from Leyland and A27M (Meteor engine) "Cromwell III".

To avoid confusion Cromwell I was renamed "Cavalier". The Cromwell II become "Centaur" and the Cromwell III remained as the "Cromwell".[3]

Production and design efforts separated from A27, and Cavalier became a separate tank.

Production edit

At the end of 1941, it was decided production of the Nuffield design would be by Nuffield and Ruston and Hornsby. The schedule had already slipped due to work on other projects and work to fit the 6-pounder to the Crusader tank. The first tank began trials in March 1942. Production versions of the Cromwell delivered first, and provided greater performance than the Cavalier.[2][page needed] Cavalier was judged unsatisfactory and the Nuffield order was reduced to 500 tanks. It never entered front-line service.

Design edit

Internally, the Cavalier was subdivided by bulkheads, which also functioned as structural members. The driver and hull gunner were in the front compartment, the fighting compartment was in the centre. The bulkhead behind the fighting compartment was the firewall from the engine, a Liberty Mark IV, and the final bulkhead separated the engine from the transmission.

Mechanically, the Cavalier was similar to the preceding Crusader tank, using Wilson steering and the Liberty engine. The newer Liberty Mark IV gave more power than the one in the Crusader. The operation of the steering brakes and gear changing remained pneumatic.

Outwardly, the design of Cavalier is very similar to the related Cromwell and Centaur. Cavaliers do not have the upper air intake of Cromwell, which is optional on the Centaur. Cavalier has shorter suspension arms. Cavaliers were built with hull types A and B. Exhaust exits through the hull rear plate using Crusader style angled louvres,[4] where Cromwell and Centaur both exhaust to the vehicle top.

The Cavalier turret was a six sided boxy structure. The mantlet was internal with a large opening in the front of the turret for the gun barrel, the coaxial Besa machine gun and the aperture of the No. 39 telescopic sight. The gun was of the "free elevation" type; the gun was balanced such that it could be readily moved by the gunner. This fitted with British practice of firing on the move.

Service history edit

Those that were built were used in training or auxiliary armoured vehicle roles. At least 12 Cavaliers were provided to France in 1945, and were operated by the 12th Dragoon Regiment of the French 14th Infantry Division.

Variants edit

Cavalier OP
Produced in 1943. The gun was replaced with a dummy barrel freeing up room in the turret and hull for extra radios. It was then used as an artillery observation post.
Cavalier ARV
The turret was removed and an A-frame jib and associated equipment added for use as an armoured recovery vehicle.

Surviving vehicles edit

Only two vehicles are thought to have survived.

  • The Tank Museum, Dorset, England. Cavalier (A24), formerly on Larkhill artillery ranges.[5] which is in a bad condition and in storage (outside) awaiting restoration.[6]
  • – Lance Varga Collection, USA. Cavalier (A24)[5]

References edit

  1. ^ Fletcher, Great Tank Scandal, p. 33.
  2. ^ a b Fletcher & Harley (2006).
  3. ^ Fletcher, Great Tank Scandal, p. 36.
  4. ^ Illustrated Parts List Cavalier 1; Chilwell Ct. No. 62/346
  5. ^ a b (PDF), Surviving Panzers website, 8 July 2021, archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2022
  6. ^ http://preservedtanks.com/Profile.aspx?UniqueID=2039

Sources edit

External links edit

    cavalier, tank, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, article, uses, bare, urls, which, uninformative, vulnerable, link, please, consider, converting, t. This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article uses bare URLs which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting such as reFill documentation and Citation bot documentation August 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article s lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article April 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Tank Cruiser Mk VII Cavalier A24 was an interim design of British cruiser tank during the Second World War Tank Cruiser Mk VII Cavalier A24 TypeCruiser tankPlace of originUnited KingdomService historyIn service1942 1945Used byUnited Kingdom Free FranceWarsSecond World WarProduction historyDesignerNuffield Mechanization amp Aero LimitedDesigned1941ManufacturerNuffield Mechanization amp Aero LimitedProduced1942No built500SpecificationsMass27 long tons 27 tonnes Length20 ft 10 in 6 35 m Width9 ft 6 in 2 90 m Height8 ft 2 44 m Crew5 Commander gunner loader driver co driver Armour20 76 mm 0 79 2 99 in MainarmamentQF 6 pounder 64 roundsSecondaryarmament2 x 7 92 mm Besa machine gun 4 950 roundsEngineNuffield Liberty petrol410 horsepower 310 kW Power weight14 9 hp 11 2 kW tonneSuspensionImproved ChristieOperationalrange165 mi 266 km Maximum speed24 mph 39 km h off road 14 mph 23 km h It was derived as a follow on from the Nuffield s A15 Crusader tank as it was expected to enter production in 1942 A parallel effort under Leyland Motors and Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company to the same specification resulted in the A27 Cromwell and Centaur tanks which was accepted for service in preference to the Cavalier Contents 1 Development 1 1 Early Development 1 2 Separation from Cromwell 2 Production 3 Design 4 Service history 5 Variants 6 Surviving vehicles 7 References 8 Sources 9 External linksDevelopment editEarly Development edit See also Cromwell tank development Development of the Cavalier initially started as development of the Cromwell tank In mid 1940 the British were considering which tank should follow on from the new cruiser tanks then being developed A specification was drawn up by the Directorate of Tanks and Transport which included the 57 mm QF 6 pounder gun This led to General Staff specification A23 for a cruiser version of the A22 Churchill tank from Vauxhall and A24 from Nuffield Mechanization amp Aero Limited based upon their Crusader tank design Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company BRC amp W also submitted a design based on the Crusader 1 The Nuffield design used an uprated 410 hp 310 kW Liberty engine which was expected to give a top speed of 24 mph 39 km h Armour would be from 63 to 70 mm 2 5 to 2 8 in at the front and the 6 pounder gun would be in a turret on a 60 inch 1 5 m turret ring The Tank Board meeting in January 1941 decided that as the tank needed to be in production by early 1942 it should be based upon an existing design to avoid the need for prototypes Six tanks of the A24 Nuffield design were ordered that month and the tank was given the name Cromwell Separation from Cromwell edit Rolls Royce s design team working with Leyland s engineers produced the Meteor engine from their Merlin aero engine This gave a higher output than the Liberty for a similar size Initially intended to be fitted to the A24 the new engine was not acceptable to Nuffield 2 page needed Working with Rolls Royce and Leyland BRC amp W were able to produce a prototype of their version of the Cromwell design using the Meteor This spawned a new specification for Cromwell A27 using a new Leyland transmission Leyland later had doubts about the Meteor and wanted to manufacture the Liberty instead splitting the Cromwell programme further into A24 A27L and A27M the latter two denoting Liberty and Meteor engines The General staff specifications now covered three tanks A24 Cromwell I from Nuffield A27L Liberty engine Cromwell II from Leyland and A27M Meteor engine Cromwell III To avoid confusion Cromwell I was renamed Cavalier The Cromwell II become Centaur and the Cromwell III remained as the Cromwell 3 Production and design efforts separated from A27 and Cavalier became a separate tank Production editAt the end of 1941 it was decided production of the Nuffield design would be by Nuffield and Ruston and Hornsby The schedule had already slipped due to work on other projects and work to fit the 6 pounder to the Crusader tank The first tank began trials in March 1942 Production versions of the Cromwell delivered first and provided greater performance than the Cavalier 2 page needed Cavalier was judged unsatisfactory and the Nuffield order was reduced to 500 tanks It never entered front line service Design editInternally the Cavalier was subdivided by bulkheads which also functioned as structural members The driver and hull gunner were in the front compartment the fighting compartment was in the centre The bulkhead behind the fighting compartment was the firewall from the engine a Liberty Mark IV and the final bulkhead separated the engine from the transmission Mechanically the Cavalier was similar to the preceding Crusader tank using Wilson steering and the Liberty engine The newer Liberty Mark IV gave more power than the one in the Crusader The operation of the steering brakes and gear changing remained pneumatic Outwardly the design of Cavalier is very similar to the related Cromwell and Centaur Cavaliers do not have the upper air intake of Cromwell which is optional on the Centaur Cavalier has shorter suspension arms Cavaliers were built with hull types A and B Exhaust exits through the hull rear plate using Crusader style angled louvres 4 where Cromwell and Centaur both exhaust to the vehicle top The Cavalier turret was a six sided boxy structure The mantlet was internal with a large opening in the front of the turret for the gun barrel the coaxial Besa machine gun and the aperture of the No 39 telescopic sight The gun was of the free elevation type the gun was balanced such that it could be readily moved by the gunner This fitted with British practice of firing on the move Service history editThose that were built were used in training or auxiliary armoured vehicle roles At least 12 Cavaliers were provided to France in 1945 and were operated by the 12th Dragoon Regiment of the French 14th Infantry Division Variants editCavalier OP Produced in 1943 The gun was replaced with a dummy barrel freeing up room in the turret and hull for extra radios It was then used as an artillery observation post Cavalier ARV The turret was removed and an A frame jib and associated equipment added for use as an armoured recovery vehicle Surviving vehicles editOnly two vehicles are thought to have survived The Tank Museum Dorset England Cavalier A24 formerly on Larkhill artillery ranges 5 which is in a bad condition and in storage outside awaiting restoration 6 Lance Varga Collection USA Cavalier A24 5 References edit Fletcher Great Tank Scandal p 33 a b Fletcher amp Harley 2006 Fletcher Great Tank Scandal p 36 Illustrated Parts List Cavalier 1 Chilwell Ct No 62 346 a b Surviving Centaur and Cromwell Tanks PDF Surviving Panzers website 8 July 2021 archived from the original PDF on 3 April 2022 http preservedtanks com Profile aspx UniqueID 2039Sources editFletcher David 1989 The Great Tank Scandal British Armour in the Second World War Part 1 HMSO ISBN 978 0 11 290460 1 Fletcher David Harley Richard C 2006 Cromwell Cruiser tank 1942 50 New Vanguard 104 illustrated by Peter Sarson Oxford Osprey Publishing ISBN 9781841768144 OCLC 56539945 External links editWorld War II Vehicles Portal nbsp United Kingdom Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cavalier tank amp oldid 1217689540, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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