The War Correspondent

Above: A British Sherman tank pictured in camouflage colours and marking of a vehicle that served in North western Europe in 1944/45

The US tank is arguably the most impor- Some 7,155 of these vehicles were supplied to the tant tank that served with the Allied forces during the British Army. The supply of tanks from the United Second World War. Without it, in the numbers that States had been initiated in July 1940. Recognising were available and thanks to the huge industrial man- that Great Britain did not have the manufacturing ufacturing capacity of the United States, it was possi- capacity to provide the huge amount of war materi- ble to prosecute a successful war against the Axis al that would be needed to prosecute the war powers. Over 40,000 of these tanks were built with a against the Germans and Italians, a British Purchas- number of variants being introduced, as well the basic ing Board was set-up early in the war. This organisa- chassis being modified for many specialist roles. The tion developed into the British Purchasing Sherman served in large numbers not only with the US Commission and in July 1940 a specific Tank Mission Army but also in armoured units of the Allies. In British arrived in the USA to look at the supply of tanks for service, various types were adopted as they became Britain. The US authorities were resistant to building available. The most numerous variant in British service British designs as that recognised that it was very like- was the Sherman V (US designation M4A4).A total of ly that the USA would soon be embroiled in the war 7,499 M4A4 tanks were produced, built solely at the and its manufacturing capacity needed to be United States government owned Detroit Arsenal in geared up to building tanks for the US army, rather Michigan, run by the Chrysler Corporation. than for a foreign design. Heading the British tank The War Correspondent mission was Michael Dewar, was an industrialist and Chair- man of Birmingham based British Timken Ltd - manufactur- ers of ball roller and tapered-roller bearings. Michael Dewar had served with various ministries during the First World War and had been Director of the National Projec- tile Factories and Assistant Controller of shell manufacture. Before the outbreak of WW2, British Timken Ltd had strong commercial links with the US Timken Company and Michael Dewar was also associated with the Cincinnati Milling Machine Co. Using his experience and contacts he was able set-up the British Tank Mission in Washington, a location nearer to the seat of power in the USA. Thanks to the work of the tank Mission, headed by Michael Dewar US M2 Stuart, M3 Grant and M4 Sherman tanks were sent the North Africa to equip British armoured Units. One of the un- sung heroes of WW2 he died in December 1950. To com- memorate him, his widow gifted a stained glass to their local Church at Little Horwood in Buckinghamshire. , The Above: A Sherman M4A1 on display at the Tank Museum, inscription reads ‘In memory of Michael Bruce Urquhart De- Bovington. It is believed that this the oldest example of a Sherman tank to survive. The tank was named MICHAEL war. Born 5th August 1886, Died 21st December, 1950. One in honour of Michael Dewar, head of the British tank time Sherriff of Hertfordshire. Chief of the British Tank Mission Procurement mission to the United States. to U.S.A. Which produced Sherman tanks for the Battle of El Alamein’.

Below: A picture showing a Sherman production line. This is a very M4A1 early model of the type initially supplied to the British. (US Library of Congress) The War Correspondent

Due to a shortage of air-cooled Continental 9-cylinder radial en- gines the primary power unit of the Sherman, alternative engines were required to ensure the necessary number of tanks were available for service. Various types were introduced – a twin con- figuration 12-cylinder inline General Motors 6046 diesel engine, a Ford GAA V-8 gasoline engine, a 9-cylinder Caterpillar D200 radi- al diesel engine and a massive Chrysler 30-cylinder A-57 multi bank gasoline engine. It was the Chrysler multi-bank engine that was fitted to the British Sherman V tank. This engine comprised of five commercial automobile engines arranged around a com- mon crankcase. The result was a powerful 21-litre engine weigh- ing just over 2 tons that could produce an output of 440hp at 2400 rpm. To enable this huge engine to be fitted, the chassis of the M4A4 Sherman was required to be lengthened by 6 inches. The suspension was also modified and the number of track links increased from 79 to 83. The standard armament of the Sherman was the US 75mm M3 Gun, although the shorter barrel 75mm M2 Gun as fitted to the M3 Grant tank, was fitted to some earlier ver- sions. When initially introduced into British service, this gun provid- ed distinct advantages over the existing guns fitted to British tanks as it could fire both piercing and high explosive am- Sherman 75-MM Gun Ammunition munition from the Sherman’s revolving turret . It could also be One of the key advantages of the Sherman over pre- used for indirect fire. A later British development saw the mount- vious tanks in British service was that It could fire High ing of the powerful Ordnance Q.F., 17-pr Mark IV or Mark VII gun. Explosive ammunition from a turret that had a 360 de- This was the most powerful gun fitted into the Sherman during the gree traverse. This allowed German anti-tank gun war. The M4A4 Sherman was built over the period July 1942 to crews to be directly engaged, Which had not been November 1943 and along with other armoured vehicles sup- possible previously with British tank guns which only plied by the USA, formed a major component of British & Allied fired armour piercing ammunition. Left: Shot Fixed, A.P., M72 w/Tracer. Centre: Projectile, Fixed, A.P.C. armoured regiments. After initially entering service with the 8th Ar- M61A1, W/Fuze, B.D., M66A! And Tracer Right: Shell, my in North Africa and taking part in the Second Battle of El Ala- Fixed, H.E., M48, Supercharge, W/Fuze, P.D. M48A2, mein in October 1942, the Sherman went on to serve in increasing SQ & 0.05-sec. Delay. numbers in the campaigns in Italy, Northern Europe and the Far East.

Main Image: A Sherman pictured from a 1943 dated British maintenance manual. Inset: A British Sherman V Maintenance Manual The War Correspondent

Main Image: An iconic image of a Britsh Sherman with its crew, Pictured in France in 1944. (Wikimedia Commons) The War Correspondent

But bushes don’t have numbers painted on them; and what’s that straight line in front of it? By God it’s a gun, a hell of a great gun, It’s a Tiger!”Captain Stirling’s tank was equipped with a 75mm gun, but the unit also had 17-pdr armed ’s. To attempt to make certain of a kill, he attempted to contact one of his colleagues in a Fire- fly, but was unable to establish contact on the radio. ‘The only thing to do was to have go myself, but a 75 is a The 4th/7th Dragoon Guards were a British armoured unit doubtful starter against a Tiger. Hence my longing Dereck’s equiped with amphibious duplex Drive (DD) Sherman 17-Pounder. However, needs must. The crew were feverish tanks who landed at Gold Beach on D-Day 6th June,1944. with excitement. I got the gunner on to the target, and then The Regiment, part of the 8th Armoured Brigade, ad- with an! ”Are your ready? Go” technique we let fly. Bang! – vanced Inland from the beach through Crepon and The tank rocked slightly and I steadied my glasses just in Creully, then took part in the bitter fighting at Cristot time a spurt of dust in front of the Tiger, but before I could against elements of the 12th SS Panzer Division Hitlerju- give a correction another shot was on the way and another. gend. The regiment then continued its advance via Ver- They were not going to waste time. And as the third shot rères and Lingèvres towards the enemy centre of flew, I saw the tongue of flame lick round the cupola. For a resistance at Tilly-sur- Seulles. Captain John Stirling, Second moment I could not believe my eyes. Then more wildly ex- in command o ‘A’ Squadron, describes one of the actions citedly than I think I have ever been, grabbed the mike around Tilly-sur-Seulles fought with Sherman tanks. once more. “Hullo X-ray 16, I’ve knocked out a Tiger. Its ‘”Driver Halt”. I raised my glasses and scanned the ground brewing up” I babbled wildly, and back came a “Well beyond the crest. Suddenly I tensed. There was something done” that was almost as excited as I was’ on the other side of the hedge about five hundred yards The Sherman did not always fair so well against German ar- away. An indefinable something, that attracted attention mour, but this action proves that when properly handled because it was somehow different. I peered more careful- and able to get off the first shot it was still capable of taking ly. It was a curious brownish colour. Looks like the side of a on a German Tank in the summer of 1944. tank turret. But remember what happened last time you thought you saw a tank. Yes, probably another odd shaped bush.

Main Image: British Sherman tanks pictured in Bayeux in 1944. (Wikimedia Commons) The War Correspondent

Unterscharführer Helmut Stöcker serving with an infantry heavy gun company of the 12.SS-Panzerdivison Hitlerjugend, describes an encounter in Normandy with Sherman tanks of a Canadian armoured regiment during a counter-attack carried out on 7 June 1944 towards the village of Cambes en-Plaine to the North west of Caen. “The attack was to be pushed forward as quickly as possible by the infantry. Because of the short range of the guns, we had to advance with the infantry lines into action without any armour, just with our prime movers. Everything went well until the infantry encoun- tered heavy fire and the attack stalled. We now stood before Cambes on an open plain with our vehicles and guns. Under the assumption that that the infantry would advance further, our platoon pulled ahead towards Cambes. We really had no choice since we would have been wiped out in the next 10 minutes. We reached Cambes and drove into a ravine. Suddenly, there was the sound of tracks in the village. Some 50m in front of us, a Sherman came out of a side road. It stopped at the intersection and spotted us and our guns. The turret of the tank immediately swung towards us and before we knew what was happening the first shell was fired. We saved ourselves by jumping over a locked gate. We found ourselves on a farm. Some of the crews were only about one and a half metres away from the guns when the first shell slammed through the tractors and guns. We were fortunate as it was probably an anti-tank shell and kept going. If it had been an explosive shell, we would have had it.” The Sherman’s were however were vulnerable to German anti-tank weapons. Helmut Stöcker continues his account of the German attack on Cambes: “ Because of the great weight of our supplies, we did not carry armour piercing weapons. Fortunately, Above: A member of the 12th SS Panzer-Division Hitlerjugend a single infantryman of the I./25 (Infantry Regiment 25) happened to be lost and opponents of the Sherman in Normandy during June 1944. joined us at the front. He had one Panzerfaust. After some accurate planning, a Sher- (Wikimedia Commons, Bundesarchive, Bild 146-1977-143-25 ) man was knocked out by this single Panzerfaust. This blocked the main intersection” Inset: Two examples of panzerfaust’s: 100m & 30m types and an original German Panzerfaust Instructional manual A separate German account of this action relates how 3 other Sherman’s were Below: A German infantryman pictured with a Panzerfaust. knocked by Panzerfaust’s. (Wikimedia Commons, Bundesarchive, Bild 1011-710-0371-20 ) The War Correspondent

Sherman Firefly tanks of the Pretoria Regiment somewhere in Italy during

Dutch women and children sitting on a Canadian Sherman Firefly VC of Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) in April

A British Sherman tank belonging to the Eighth Army pictured on the streets of Francofonte, In Sicily during July

The British commander and Indian crew of a Sherman tank of the 9th Royal Deccan Horse, 255th Indian Tank Brigade, pictured on the road to Meiktila in Burma.

Image Credits Top Left: Capt. Jack H. Smith. Canada. Department of National Defence. Library and Archives Canada, PA-138042, Top Right wikimedia Commons, Bottom Left: Wikimedia Commons Soldiers of New Zealand Armoured Regiment, Centre Right: Wikimedia commons, Botton Right: Wikimedia Commons ready to cross the Po River in Italy in The War Correspondent

After the war ended in 1945, thousands of tanks and vehi- redundant tanks that have been used as targets here cles became surplus to requirements. Amongst these re- over the years, have been a variety of what would are dundant vehicles were numbers of British Sherman tanks. now considered historic vehicles. British, American and Some tanks were sold to foreign countries, with many even German Second World War examples have and eventually being scrapped. can still be found on military ranges – including Salisbury Some Sherman Beach Armoured Recovery (BARV) vehi- Plain. cles continued serving with the British Army for training Due to the dangerous nature of military firing ranges, ac- purposes long after the Second World War, these were cess is tightly controlled to these areas, with the land be- eventually replaced in the 1960’s by the BARV. ing utilised solely for military training purposes. As such, In the United Kingdom, It has long been practice for re- these large and often remote areas have remained un- dundant military vehicles to end up as targets on military disturbed, with the status of any targets remaining largely ranges. Referred to as “Hard Targets”they are used as un-publicised or un-known. The military training area on training features, used for target practice or for use in tri- Salisbury Plain is approximately the size of the Isle of Wight als and testing new weapons and equipment. and still contains a number of WW2 tank targets some of Many still had equipment still in place, often still fitted with which are the hulks of Sherman tanks. engines and with fuel left in fuel tanks. Some vehicles are It is not known when these tanks were placed out on the reputed to have been driven out to locations and simply range, but all are Sherman V examples that are know to left, some even coming directly from reserve storage with have been in British Service. They are known to existed on hardly any use. One such military range where a number Salisbury Plain from at least the mid seventies. Accounts of Hard Targets have been required for military training from this time exist since of finding Second World War ra- for many years is Salisbury Plain, in Wiltshire. Amongst the tions in some of the storage bins on these tanks. It is

Below: A Sherman target on Salisbury Plain pictured in June 2015

Main Image: This Sherman has a hull number of 19511 which would give it a USA War Dept number of 3019817 indicating it was built by Chrysler in March 1943. The War Correspondent

believed that approximately 25 Sherman’s were placed on the ranges here. A number have been scrapped, some removed for restoration and parts recovered for use on other restoration projects, particularly by the Tank Museum at Bovington. Other recoveries from ranges have yielded equipment such as gun cleaning kits and periscopes still inside the remains of the ve- hicles. Often when cleaning out a recovered range target, on the floor of the vehicle, spent cartridge cases army buttons and lost tools are uncovered. Near one Sherman target on Salis- bury Plain three Tiger tank track links were dis- covered. These appeared to have been welded to the vehicle for extra armoured protection indi- cating that this vehicle had almost certainly seen active service. These vehicles no doubt will have had interesting histories. Restored examples, serve to remind us of those who served in them, and the surviving range targets still stand to this day as a mute tes- tament to the many who did not return, having made the ultimate sacrifice.

Above Right & Middle: Sherman range targets on Salisbury Plain . The Sherman in the middle picture Has a later style M34A1 gun mantlet Below: Another Sherman target on Salisbury Plain. This tank has the earlier M34 Gun mantlet. The War Correspondent

Above: Most Sherman’s put out as targets seem to have had their engines still in place. All were fitted with the Chrysler Multi-bank Above: The massive 21 llitre Chrysler Multi-bank engine engine As can be seen in this example. Below: Looking in the inside of the turret the gun can clearly be seen in this image. Below: Looking into the driver compartment of one target - the driving controls can be seen still in place.

Main Image: Another Sherman target. This example is pictured in 1994 and has subsequently been removed and has now been restored to running condition. The War Correspondent

Above: A Sherman pictured with an unusual target colour scheme. Targets are usually painted in high visibility colours. This example is minus its turret. References: Peter Chamberlain and Chris Ellis,(1981) British and American tanks of World War II, Arms and Armour Press Dennis Oliver (2006) British Sherman tanks, Concord Publication Co. Fighting With Figures (1995) Central statistical Agency Harold E. Johnson (1972) Tank Data 3Old Greenwich Inc John Stirling, D-Day to VE-Day From My Tank Turret, Private Publication Engine,Petrol,Chrysler,(Multi-bank unit) for Sherman V (M4A4) Workshop Manual (april Above: One of the tank targets has part of 1943) of the applique armour had peeled off as a result of being Hubert Meyer. (1994) The History of the 12. SS-Panzerdivision Hitler Jugend, j.j, Fedorowicz Publishing Inc, Struck by an artillery shell or anti-tank round. Underneath The previous colour scheme - an unusual dark Ackkowledgements: The author gratefully acknowledges Adrian Barrell for his green and earth brown were uncovered along with assitance with images and information for producing this article. the last two numbers of British Army Census number ‘60’.

Main Image Another Sherman minus turret but with hull in relatively intact condition. The War Correspondent

Suffolk based engineer Adrian Barrell owns one of the Sherman tank targets that once resided in Salisbury Plain. Adrian has restored his Sherman tank, which has been restored to an incredibly high standard and is in running condition. Built to M4A4 specification with a serial number 5271, this vehicle was built in September 1942 by Chrysler at the Detroit Tank Arsenal. It was the 467th built out of a total production run of 7499 M4A4’s and issued to the US Army with Registration No. USA W-3057081, it was transferred to the British Army and given a census number of T-146309. Eventually ending up on Salisbury Plain, it was recovered on June 6th 1991. Over subsequent years and after 4500 hours of work, the restoration was finally completed.

Top Right: Adrian's tank pictured on Salisbury Plain in 1991 Centre Right: The Sherman being loaded on to trailer after being recovered. (All images courtesy of Adrian Barrell) Main Image: The Sherman pictured after 4500 hours of restoration Work