Light Tank Mk VII Tetrarch

Tank, Light Mk VII, Tetrarch
Mk VII Light Tank 'Tetrarch'
Type	Light tank
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
Used by	United Kingdom USSR
Wars	Second World War
Production history
Designer	Vickers-Armstrongs
Designed	1938
Manufacturer	Metro Cammell
Produced	1938–1942
No. built	100–177
Variants	Tetrarch I CS, Tetrarch DD
Specifications
Weight	16,800 pounds (7,600 kg)
Length	13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Width	7 ft 7 in (2.31 m)
Height	6 ft 11 in (2.12 m)
Crew	3 (Commander, gunner, driver)
Armour	14 mm maximum
Main armament	QF 2 pounder (40 mm) 50 rounds
Secondary armament	7.92 mm Besa machine gun 2,025 rounds
Engine	Meadows 12-cylinder petrol 165 hp (123 kW)
Suspension	Coil spring
Operational range	140 miles (230 km)
Speed	40 miles per hour (64 km/h), off–road 28 miles per hour (45 km/h)

The Light Tank Mk VII (A17), also known as the Tetrarch, was a British light tank produced by Vickers-Armstrongs in the late 1930s and deployed during the Second World War. The Tetrarch was originally designed as the latest in the line of light tanks built by the company for the British Army. It improved upon its predecessor, the Mk VIB Light Tank, by introducing the extra firepower of a 2-pounder gun. The War Office ordered 70 tanks, an order that eventually increased to 220. Production was delayed by several factors, and as a consequence, only 100 to 177 of the tanks were produced.

The tank's design flaws, combined with the decision by the War Office not to use light tanks in British armoured divisions, ruled out the use of Tetrarchs in the North African Campaign. As a result, the majority of the tanks remained in Britain, although 20 were sent to the USSR as part of the Lend-Lease program. In early 1941, the Royal Armoured Corps formed three squadrons for use in overseas amphibious operations, one of which was equipped with Tetrarchs. In May 1942, a small number of Tetrarchs formed part of the British force which participated in the invasion of Madagascar, and, in June 1942, Tetrarchs were attached to the 1st Airborne Division after it was decided that the design allowed its use as an air-portable light tank to support British airborne forces. The Tetrarchs were transported and landed in specially designed General Aircraft Hamilcar gliders. A lack of gliders prevented their participation in the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943; instead they were attached to the new 6th Airborne Division and became part of the 6th Airborne Armoured Reconnaissance Regiment.