Cromwell Mk IV

クロムウェル戦車

英国
役割巡洋艦
サービス中1944–1955
構築4016

クロムウェル戦車正式にはタンク、クルーザー、Mk VIII、クロムウェル(A27M)は、第二次世界大戦で英国が投入した一連の巡洋艦タンクの1つであり、英国内戦の指導者オリバー・クロムウェルにちなんで名付けられた第二次世界大戦で、クロムウェルは強力で信頼性の高いエンジン(ロールス・ロイス流星)から高速を組み合わせた最初の戦車でした。しかし、当初提案された二重目的高速銃は砲塔に取り付けることができず、中速度の二重目的銃は不十分であることが判明した。高速砲を搭載した改良版がコメト戦車となりました。

ソース: クロムウェル・タンク・シュル・ウィキペディア

クロムウェル戦車 Mk.III
写真知りません
ローカライズ知りません
写真104
待って、検索タンククロムウェルの写真.
クロムウェル戦車 Mk.III
写真ビクター・クレスティニン
ローカライズラトルンアーマー博物館
クロムウェル戦車 Mk.III
写真ウラジーミル・ヤクボフ
ローカライズ知りません
写真98
クロムウェル Mk IV ウォーク アラウンド
写真アラン・マクニーリー
ローカライズ知りません
写真42

関連項目:

第二次世界大戦:電撃戦から原子爆弾までの決定的なビジュアルヒストリー(DK Definitive Visual Histories) - Amazon (アマゾン) 地図による第二次世界大戦の地図(地図によるDKの歴史地図) - Amazon (アマゾン)


The Thoroughbred of the British Cavalry

Cromwell Tank (Tank, Cruiser, Mk VIII, A27M) was Great Britain’s most successful domestic cruiser tank of World War II and one of the fastest armored vehicles of the entire conflict. Conceived to replace the mechanically unreliable Crusader, the Cromwell was engineered around a radical concept: taking the legendary Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine from the Spitfire and detuning it for armored warfare. The resulting “Meteor” engine transformed a boxy, traditionally armored vehicle into a hyper-mobile tactical hot rod. Serving as the primary reconnaissance and fast cavalry mount for British armored divisions during the liberation of Northwest Europe, the Cromwell set the vital design blueprints that would lead directly to the birth of the modern Main Battle Tank.

British Cromwell A27M cruiser tank on display showing its boxy riveted turret, large Christie suspension wheels, and flat front glacis plate
Attribute Technical Specification (Cromwell Mk IV Baseline)
役割 Cruiser Tank (Fast Cavalry / Armored Reconnaissance)
乗組員 5 (Commander, Gunner, Loader/Radio Operator, Driver, Hull Machine Gunner)
エンジン 1 × Rolls-Royce Meteor 27-liter V12 liquid-cooled gasoline engine (600 hp)
最高速度 64 km/h (40 mph) on roads — mechanically governed down from 50+ mph to prevent suspension damage
Combat Weight 27.5 metric tons (27 long tons)
Dimensions Length: 6.35 m | Width: 2.91 m | Height: 2.49 m (Highly compact and low profile)
Primary Armament 1 × Ordnance QF 75 mm Mk V gun (Fires the same high-explosive and armor-piercing ammunition as the US Sherman)
副武装 2 × 7.92mm Besa machine guns (1 coaxial, 1 bow-mounted in the hull)
Suspension Type Christie suspension (Large-diameter road wheels with internal coil springs, no return rollers)

Design Engineering: Aircraft V12 Power and Boxy British Rivets

  • The Meteor Engine Revolution: Early British tanks were chronically underpowered by weak commercial bus and truck engines. The A27M (“M” for Meteor) shattered this paradigm by adapting the 27-liter aluminum-block Rolls-Royce Merlin V12. Deprived of its supercharger and detuned to 600 horsepower, the Meteor provided the Cromwell with double the torque of contemporary German or American tanks, delivering instantaneous throttle response and mind-bending off-road speed.
  • The Christie Suspension & Speed Governors: The Cromwell used the classic Christie suspension layout featuring large, independent spring-loaded road wheels. The tank was so fast during initial testing that it easily exceeded 80 km/h (50 mph), which caused the rubber to violently strip off the road wheels and broke the crew’s bones over rough terrain. Engineers were forced to install a mechanical governor to cap the speed at a safer 64 km/h.
  • Stubbornly Vertical Armor Architecture: While the Soviets embraced sloped armor with the T-34, British designers built the Cromwell with a highly traditional, flat-sided structural layout. The hull and turret plates met at stark, 90-degree right angles. Though the front plate was reasonably thick at 76mm (later upgraded to 101mm), the lack of angling meant it relied strictly on physical metal thickness rather than geometry to deflect shells.
  • Transition to All-Welded Construction: Early Cromwell marks were built by riveting or bolting steel armor plates onto an internal structural framework. However, combat data proved that non-penetrating hits could shatter these rivets, turning them into lethal internal shrapnel inside the crew compartment. This pushed production into the definitive Mk IV variant, which adopted automated, high-strength arc welding to vastly improve the structural integrity of the hull.

Operational History: Racing Across France to the Gates of Berlin

  • The Normandy Breakout: The Cromwell entered mass combat in June 1944 during Operation Overlord, primarily equipping the armored reconnaissance regiments of the Guard Armoured Division and the legendary 7th Armoured Division (“The Desert Rats”). In the tight, enclosed hedgerows of the Normandy *bocage*, its extreme speed was difficult to exploit, making it highly vulnerable to ambush by hidden German anti-tank guns.
  • Outgunned by the Big Cats: Cromwell crews faced a terrifying firepower deficit when confronting German Tiger I and Panther tanks. The Cromwell’s dual-purpose 75mm gun excelled at firing high-explosive shells to support infantry, but it could not pierce the heavy frontal armor of German heavy armor. Cromwell tactics relied on using their speed to out-flank German tanks, sprinting around to punch shells into the thin side and rear armor plates of their heavier opponents.
  • The Great Pursuit Across Europe: Following the collapse of the German front line at the Falaise Pocket, the Cromwell found its true calling. During the race across France, Belgium, and into the Netherlands, Cromwell units spearheaded the advance, routinely covering over 100 kilometers a day. Their mechanical reliability was flawless compared to American or German armor, allowing British cavalry units to continuously outmaneuver retreating enemy columns.
  • The Lineage to Centurion: The Cromwell’s underlying hull engineering was so fundamentally sound that it served as the stepping stone for subsequent combat innovations. Engineers stretched the chassis and added a wider turret ring to create the Challenger and Comet tanks, which carried the heavy 17-pounder anti-tank gun. This direct evolutionary lineage eventually culminated in the creation of the Centurion, the world’s first true Main Battle Tank.

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