Mk VII Tetrarch light tank

Light tank Mk VII, Tetrarch
Mk VII 'Tetrarch'
Type	Light tank
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
Used by	United Kingdom Soviet Union
Wars	Second World War
Production history
Designer	Vickers-Armstrongs
Designed	1938
Manufacturer	Metro-Cammell
Produced	1938–1942[1]
No. built	100–177[2]
Variants	Tetrarch I CS, Tetrarch DD
Specifications
Mass	16,800 pounds (7,600 kg)
Length	13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)[3]
Width	7 ft 7 in (2.31 m)[1]
Height	6 ft 11 in (2.12 m)[1]
Crew	3[1] (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 MAT H12 petrol 165 hp (123 kW)
Power/weight	21.7 hp (16.2 kW) per ton
Suspension	Coil spring
Operational range	140 miles (230 km)[1]
Maximum speed	40 miles per hour (64 km/h),[1] 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 used during the Second World War. The Tetrarch was the latest in the line of light tanks built by the company for the British Army. It improved upon its predecessor, the Light Tank Mk VIC, 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 only 100 to 177 of the tanks were produced.^[a]

The design flaws of the tank, 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. The majority of the tanks remained in Britain, although twenty were sent to the USSR as part of Lend-Lease. 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 Operation Ironclad, the invasion of Madagascar. 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.^[6] 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.

The division used approximately twenty Tetrarchs during Operation Tonga, the British airborne landings in Normandy in June 1944. The tanks were landed by glider, where their appearance caused the Germans to cancel a counter-attack at a key moment in the battle but individually, they did not perform well. Several were lost in accidents and those that did see action proved to be inferior in firepower and armour to the armoured vehicles of the German forces. A few days after the beginning of the operation, the tanks were removed from direct engagement with German armour and used only to provide fire support. By August 1944, most of the Tetrarchs in action were replaced with Cromwell tanks and the remainder were replaced by the M22 Locust in December 1944.

Tetrarchs did not see any further combat and were deemed obsolete by 1946; the last was retired in 1950. There were several variations on the Tetrarch design, including the Alecto self-propelled gun and the Light Tank Mk VIII but none of these were used operationally by the British Army.

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