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Amedium tank is aclassification of tanks, particularly prevalent duringWorld War II, which represented a compromise between the mobility orientedlight tanks and the armour and armament orientedheavy tanks. A medium tank's classification is not actually based on weight, but on tactical usage and intended purpose; for instance the GermanPanzerkampfwagen V Panther medium tank has a mass similar to contemporary Allied heavy tanks. The most widely produced, cost effective and successful tanks of World War II (the GermanPanzer IV, the SovietT-34, and the AmericanM4 Sherman) were all medium tank designs. Many of the medium tank lines became what are calledmain battle tanks in most countries.
The first tanks to carry the name "Medium" appeared in the First World War with the BritishMedium Mark A Whippet. It was smaller, lighter and faster than theBritish heavy tanks of the time and only carried machine guns.
The medium tank doctrine came into use in theinterwar period. Its existence outlasted thesuper-heavy tank and theheavy tank and gradually transitioned into themain battle tank.
Medium tanks of theinterwar period included the BritishVickers Medium Mark II and the Soviet multi-turretedT-28.In the period leading up to World War II, the British stopped using the term Medium for their tanks as the new philosophy of 'Cruiser tank' and 'Infantry tank' which defined tanks by role rather than size came into use.
There were medium tanks that focused on anti-infantry capabilities (such as in World War II: the initial short-barrel gunPanzer IV, and the initial 75 mm gunM4 Sherman), and medium tanks which were more focused on the anti-tank role, mounting high-velocitytank guns. The French cavalry tanks (Chars de Cavalerie) such as theSOMUA S35 focused on speed in addition to power and protection of the other designs. They were similar to what other countries called medium tanks.
When Soviet tank designers were preparing a successor to theBT tank series, they combined its excellent mobility with thick, sloped armour and the unprecedented[citation needed] firepower of a 76.2 mm high-velocity gun. The result was theT-34 medium tank, whose superb capabilities shocked the GermanWehrmacht when it invaded the Soviet Union. The lessons ofBlitzkrieg, first employed by the Germans and eventually adopted by other nations, found their best expression in formations of mutually-supporting medium tanks andmotorised infantry. The traditional view of infantry and cavalry tank roles was rendered obsolete.[citation needed]
Both theSoviet Union and theUnited States benefited from their industrial capacity to manufacture a well-balanced medium tank in very large numbers — around 57,000T-34 and 49,234M4 Sherman tanks were built during the war.
During and after World War II, the roles of light tanks were gradually taken over by less-expensive armoured cars and specialised reconnaissance vehicles. Heavy tanks, having shown their limitations in combat, experienced a limited post-war arms race of progressively more heavily armed and armoured designs. With the rise of more sophisticated anti-tank missile weapons, to which heavy tanks had demonstrated high vulnerability, these too were eventually phased out. With advances in technology, aspects such as mobility, armour and weaponry pushed the medium tank to form the core of a country's armoured fighting capability, eventually merging into themain battle tank. Simpler and more economicalself-propelled guns, and lateranti-tank guided missiles, came to fulfill some fire-support and anti-tank roles, thus shifting the tactical approach how tanks were used.
Although the term "medium tank" classification has largely fallen out of use after World War II, the term is informally used to describe somefirst and second-generation main battle tanks which fall between 20 and 50 tons, such as theLeopard 1 andT-72 each of which weigh around 40 short tons, while third and subsequent generations have increased markedly in weight and have included some of the heaviest main battle tanks such as theM1 Abrams which is over 60 short tons. In the 1990s the "medium" main battle tanks still proved useful, such as the Canadian Leopard 1 tanks deployed to Kosovo in 1999 which were much better suited to the poor roads and soft ground than the French armoured cars there, but were still able to move along narrow streets and over lighter bridge classifications than the much heavier M1 Abrams tanks used by the Americans.[1][2]
The role of medium tanks started with a prioritisation of speed. Medium tanks could travel faster, but needed help to cross trenches, where heavy tanks were large enough to cross unaided. In British use, this evolved into theCruiser tank class, while other tank doctrines formed around the medium tank making the main advance.
In this later use, medium tanks represent the designer's intent of producing a successful balance of firepower, mobility, and protection. Medium tanks aim to be suitable to the widest variety of roles, with less reliance on other types of tank during normal operations.
Tanks of theFirst World War | |
|---|---|
| Light | |
| Medium | |
| Heavy | |
| Prototypes, experimentals | |
| Main battle | |
|---|---|
| Light /medium | |
| Prototypes, experimentals | |
Background:History of the tank,Tank classification | |
