TheHumber armoured carwas one of the most widely produced Britisharmoured carsof the Second World War. It supplemented theHumber Light Reconnaissance Carand remained in service until the end of the war.
| Humber armoured car | |
|---|---|
 The Mk IV armed with a 37 mm gun was the most produced variant of the Humber armoured car. | |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| Used by | United KingdomandBritish Indiain Second World War, Italy operated captured models,[1]other nations post war. |
| Wars | Second World War 1948 Arab-Israeli War Operation Polo Portuguese-Indian War Sino-Indian War |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Rootes Group(Karrier) |
| Produced | 1940–1945 |
| No.built | 5,400 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 5 t |
| Length | 15 ft 1.5 in (4.610 m) |
| Width | 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) |
| Height | 7 ft 10 in (2.39 m) |
| Crew | Mk I, II, IV: 3 Mk III: 4 |
| Armour | 15 mm (0.59 in) |
Main armament | Mk I-III: 15 mmBesa machine gun Mk IV:M5 or M6 37 mm gun |
Secondary armament | 7.92 mmBesa machine gun |
| Engine | Rootes 6 cylinderpetrol engine 90 hp (67 kW) |
| Power/weight | 12.9 hp/tonne |
| Suspension | Wheel 4x4, rigid front and rear axles, rear-wheel drive with selectable four-wheel drive |
Operational range | 200 miles (320 km) |
| Maximum speed | 50 mph (80 km/h) |
Development
editThe Guy company did not have sufficient production capacity to produce sufficientGuy armoured carsas well as other vehicles, so shortly after war broke out theRootes Groupwere approached to produce an armoured car – at the time the terminology "Tank, Light (Wheeled)" was used by the Army.[2]Working from the Guy design,Karrierdesigned a vehicle using as a basis their KT 4artillery tractorchassis (already in production for theIndian Army) and the armoured body of the Guy armoured car. Karrier moved the KT4 engine to the rear and fitted welded bodies and turrets provided by Guy. As it had been based on proven elements, trials of prototypes passed without serious issues and an order for 500 was placed in 1940 and the first deliveries made in 1941.[3]
The Karrier name was dropped to avoid confusion with the BritishUniversal Carriertracked vehicle[4]and the vehicles were designated "Armoured Car, Humber Mk 1" using the name ofHumber Limited(another member of the Rootes Group) though production was by Karrier at the Luton works ofCommer(another Rootes company).[3]
The first Humbers were more or less identical to the Guy down to the faults in the armour, but this was later rectified.
The Mark III improved upon the Mark II by providing a three-man turret. Mark III production ended in 1942 after 1,650 had been built.
The Humber was a relatively complicated build compared to the Daimler Amoured Car but the Rootes Group had larger production capacity so both companies worked on a common design for production. While design of this possible replacement, the2-pounder(40mm) armedCoventry armoured car,was underway, the Mark IV was designed. This put the US 37 mm gun in the turret but at the cost of one crewman. The Coventry was not ordered as a replacement and so production of Mark IV continued, for a total of 2,000.
Design
editThe Humber was a rectangular chassis frame with a rear mounted engine. The gearbox was mounted to the front of the engine; it fed a centrally mounted transfer box which distributed power to front and rear differentials. The rigid axles were mounted on leaf springs front and rear with hydraulic dampers. The welded armoured hull was mounted at four points – front, rear and sides – to give some flexibility but with precautions against excessive movement of the hull on the chassis.[5]
For forward vision the driver had a flap in the front of the "cab" (which became part of the glacis from the Mark II onwards). When shut the view he was protected by a Triplex bullet proof glass block. These could be readily replaced if damaged. There were other flaps to the sides. In order to see to the rear there was a combination of a flap in the rear bulkhead between the fighting compartment and engine bay and a mechanism that raised the engine cover.[5]
The turret, armed with one 15mm and one 7.92mmBesa machine guns,was hand traversed. The vehicle commander acted as the wireless operator.
Service history
editThe vehicle was used in theNorth African Campaignfrom late 1941 by the11th Hussarsand other units. It was also widely used in theEuropean theatrebyreconnaissanceregiments of British and Canadian infantry divisions. A few vehicles were used for patrol duty along theIran supply route.ABritish Indian Armyarmoured car regiment, partly equipped with Humbers, served in the reconquest of Burma.[6]Portugalreceived a number of Humber vehicles in 1943, most of them going to theArmy,but with 20 going to theNational Republican Guard.After the Second World War, the Humber was employed byEgyptin 1948–49 as well as byBurma,Ceylon,Cyprus,Denmark,India,Mexicoand theNetherlands.
The Humber armoured car was used inBurma Campaignby the16th Light Cavalry,an Indian armoured car regiment, which formed part ofFourteenth Armytroops.[6][7]
AfterIndependence,anIndian Armyregiment,63rd Cavalry,was raised with Humber Mk IV armoured cars as one of its squadrons which was later hived off as an independent reconnaissance squadron and the integral squadron re-raised, the second time with Daimlers.[8]The Humbers and Daimlers of the Indian Army formed the mounts of thePresident's Bodyguardand were deployed in the defense ofChushulat heights above 14,000 ft during the 1962Indo-China War.[9][10]The Humber was used against the Indian Army in 1948 by the 2nd and 4th Hyderabad Lancers, armoured car cavalry units of the Hyderabad State Forces, duringOperation Polo.[11]
Humber armoured cars were employed during theIndian invasion of Goa in December 1961.These vehicles equipped the four reconnaissance squadrons of thePortuguese garrisoninGoa.The Portuguese Humbers engaged the invading Indian forces in the brief fights that occurred in the border villages of Doromagogo, Malinguém and Polem, and in the break through the Indian troops surrounding the Portuguese forces inMapusa.[12]
Survivors
editThis sectionneeds additional citations forverification.(October 2022) |
Several static and operational cars are distributed through North America and Europe.The Tank Museum,Bovington, England has an original and sole survivor Guy Wheeled Tank on display and a Humber Mk II not currently on display.[13]A Mk IV is on display at the Australian Armour and Artillery Museum inCairns,Australia.[14]Two Portuguese cars are on display, one at the Museu do Combatente inLisbonand the other at the Military Museum ofElvas.
Variants
edit
- Mark I
- Original version, hull as the Guy armoured car Mark 1A. Armed with one 15 mm and one 7.92 mm calibreBesa machine guns.Three-man crew: driver, gunner, commander. About 300 units built.
- Mark II
- Changes to the turret, better armour around driver and radiator. 440 units built.
- Mark II OP
- Observation post vehicle fitted for communication with field artillery batteries, armed with two 7.92 mm Besa machine guns
- Mark III
- Larger three-man turret with provisions for a wireless operator freeing up the wireless operation tasks of the commander.
- Mark III "Rear Link"
- gun replaced with dummy to allow installation of aWireless Set No. 19High Power, ie amplified, and its generator. Issued two per regiment for communication between Brigade and Divisional headquarters.
- Mark IV
- Equipped with the USM5 or M6 37 mmhigh velocity gun in place of the 15 mm Besa. The larger gun required the removal of the third crewman in the turret (the wireless operator). Turret hatches were rearranged with the new gun and crew layout. About 2,000 units built.
- AA Mark I
- The Mark I fitted with a different turret (byStothert & Pitt) mounting four 7.92 mm Besa machine guns able to elevate to near vertical and an AA sight. Introduced in 1943, the vehicle was intended to provide anti-aircraft support for armoured car units (at a rate of one troop of four cars per regiment), but the Allied air superiority meant they were needed less and less as the war progressed and the troops were disbanded in 1944. A twin 15mm Besa version was also made.[15]
Former operators
editSecond World War
edit
Post-War
edit
See also
edit- Fox armoured car– aCanadianvehicle based on the Humber Mk III
References
edit- ^Jim H (18 February 2010)."National and Libyan Paratrooper Units 1940–41".Commando Supremo.
- ^White, p. 10
- ^abWhite, p. 11
- ^Fletcher, David(1989).The Great Tank Scandal: British Armour in the Second World War - Part 1.HMSO.ISBN978-0-11-290460-1.
- ^abWhite, p. 15
- ^abFowler, William (26 February 2009).We Gave Our Today: Burma 1941–1945.Orion. p. 176.ISBN978-0-297-85761-7.
- ^Davies, R. Mark."British & Indian Armoured Units Of the Burma Campaign: A Painting Guide"(PDF).Fire and Fury Games.Retrieved29 March2014.
- ^Sandhu, Gurcharn Singh (1987).The Indian Armour: History of the Indian Armoured Corps, 1941–1971.Vision Books. p. 312.ISBN978-81-7094-004-3.
- ^"The President's Bodyguard".The President of India.The President's Secretariat, Government of India.Retrieved29 March2014.
- ^Bhat, Anil (2011)."A Tryst with India's History".Salute magazine.Archived fromthe originalon 23 June 2014.Retrieved29 March2014.
- ^Prasad, Dr. S. N. (1972).Operation Polo: The Police Action Against Hyderabad, 1948.Historical Section, Ministry of Defence, Government of India. p. 75 – via Manager of Publications, Government of India, Delhi.
- ^Mendonça, Paulp (2011)."A invasão de Goa".[.Retrieved15 April2015.
- ^"IWM London".Imperial War Museums.Retrieved20 August2023.
- ^"Exhibits".The Australian Armour & Artillery Museum.Retrieved4 October2022.
- ^White, p. 19
Sources
edit- George Forty (1996),World War Two Armoured Fighting Vehicles and Self-Propelled Artillery,Osprey Publishing,ISBN1-85532-582-9.
- I. Moschanskiy,Bronekollektsiya,1999, no. 02 (Armored vehicles of the Great Britain 1939–1945 part 2), Modelist-Konstruktor. (И. Мощанский –Бронетанковая техника Великобритании 1939–1945 часть 2,Моделист-Конструктор, Бронеколлекция 1999–02)[1]
- Humber Mark IV/Fox Mark II Armoured CarWarwheels.net
- Fletcher, David(1989).The Great Tank Scandal: British Armour in the Second World War - Part 1.HMSO.ISBN978-0-11-290460-1.
- White, BT (1970),Armoured Cars: Guy, Daimler, Humber, AEC,AFV Weapons Profile No. 21, Profile Publications
External links
edit
- Armyvehicles.dk
- Photo galleries at Tanxheaven (Mk IV):[2],[3].
- Dutch Cavalry Museumhas two Humber Armoured Cars and theHumber Light Reconnaissance Carin its exposition.