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Tank
Cruiser tank
Crusader Mark I with auxiliary turret
Type
Tank
Place of origin
United Kingdom
Service history
In service
1937–1945
Used by
British Army
Wars
Second World War
v
t
e
History of the tank
Era
World War I
Interwar
World War II
Cold War
Post–Cold War
Country
Australia
United Kingdom
Cuba
China
Canada
New Zealand
Czechoslovakia
France
Germany
Iran
Iraq
Italy
Israel
Japan
Poland
North Korea
South Korea
Soviet Union
Spain
Sweden
United States
Ukraine
Type
Light tank
Medium tank
Heavy tank
Super-heavy tank
Cruiser tank
Flame tank
Infantry tank
Main battle tank
Tank destroyer
Tankette
Assault gun
Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon
Self-propelled artillery
Self-propelled mortar
Multiple rocket launcher
The cruiser tank (sometimes called cavalry tank or fast tank) was a British tank concept of the interwar period for tanks designed as modernised armoured and mechanised cavalry, as distinguished from infantry tanks. Cruiser tanks were developed after medium tank designs of the 1930s failed to satisfy the Royal Armoured Corps. The cruiser tank concept was conceived by Giffard Le Quesne Martel, who preferred many small light tanks to swarm an opponent, instead of a few expensive and unsatisfactory medium tanks. "Light" cruiser tanks (for example the Cruiser Mk I) carried less armour and were correspondingly faster, whilst "heavy" cruiser tanks (such as the Cruiser Mk II) had more armour and were slightly slower.
The British cruiser tank series started in 1938 with the A9 and A10 cruiser tanks, followed by the A13, A13 Mark II, the A13 Mark III Covenanter in 1940 and the A15 Crusader which entered service in 1941. The Crusader was superseded by the A27 Cromwell in 1944. The A34 Comet, a better-armed development of Cromwell, began to enter service in late 1944. The Centurion tank of 1946 became the "Universal tank" of the United Kingdom, transcending the cruiser and infantry tank roles and becoming one of the first main battle tanks (MBT).
The cruisertank (sometimes called cavalry tank or fast tank) was a British tank concept of the interwar period for tanks designed as modernised armoured...
Crusader, in full "Tank, Cruiser Mk VI, Crusader", also known by its General Staff number A.15, was one of the primary British cruisertanks during the early...
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The Cromwell tank, officially Tank, Cruiser, Mk VIII, Cromwell (A27M), was one of the series of cruisertanks fielded by Britain in the Second World War...
The Tank, Cruiser, Challenger (A30) was a British tank of World War II. It mounted the QF 17-pounder anti-tank gun on a chassis derived from the Cromwell...
definition of roles was between infantry tanks intended to focus on supporting infantry in the assault, and cruisertanks intended for classic cavalry missions...
The infantry tank was superseded by the "Universal Tank" concept which could adequately perform the roles of both infantry and cruisertank, as represented...
between the infantry tank and the cruisertanks had its origins in the First World War division between the first British heavy tanks which supported the...
The AC1 Sentinel was a cruisertank designed in Australia in World War II in response to the war in Europe, and to the threat of Japan expanding the war...
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk I (A9) was a British cruisertank of the interwar period. It was the first cruisertank: a fast tank designed to bypass the main...
Soviet T-35, American Medium Tank M3 (hull mounted and turret gun), French Char B1 (hull mounted howitzer) or British Cruiser Mk I (two ancillary machine...
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk II (A10), was a cruisertank developed alongside the A9 cruisertank, and was intended to be a heavier, infantry tank version of...
maintained cruisertanks that in order to achieve high speed and hence manoeuvrability in the attack carried less armour, and infantry tanks which operating...
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk III, also known by its General Staff specification number A13 Mark I, was a British cruisertank of the Second World War. It was...
light tank roles. Tanks were also classified by roles that were independent of size, such as cavalry tank, cruisertank, fast tank, infantry tank, "assault"...
tanks as the new philosophy of 'Cruisertank' and 'Infantry tank' which defined tanks by role rather than size came into use. There were medium tanks...
The AMX 40 was a proposed French cruisertank. It was intended to replace the SOMUA S35 and S40 tanks. The tank never went beyond design stage after the...
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk VII Cavalier (A24) was an interim design of British cruisertank during the Second World War. It was derived as a follow on from...
A tank destroyer, tank hunter or tank killer is a type of armoured fighting vehicle, predominantly intended for anti-tank duties. They are typically armed...
Assault tank, and eventually the Universal tank expected to replace the Cruiser and Infantry tanks. Neither entered production. Light tanks had mostly...
to weigh more than their other tanks. It's usually separate because they have less firepower with their cruisertanks (comparable to mediums) at the time...
this time, the British Army was satisfied with the Churchill and its cruisertank designs and further production of the T14 was halted. Only two were built;...
While two lines of tanks were still policy, there was interest in a "universal tank chassis" from which infantry tanks, cruisertanks, and other vehicles...
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