The following is a list of British military equipment of World War II which includes artillery, vehicles and vessels. This also would largely apply to

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...

countries in World War II like Australia, India and South Africa as the majority of their equipment would have been British as they were at that time part of the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. However commonwealth countries did make their own unique weapons like the

Owen gun The Owen gun, known officially as the Owen machine carbine, was an Australian submachine gun designed by Evelyn Owen in 1938. The Owen was the only entirely Australian-designed and constructed service submachine gun of World War II and was used ...

and

Vickers–Berthier The Vickers–Berthier (VB) is a light machine gun that was produced by the British company Vickers-Armstrong. It was adopted by the British Indian Army and saw combat during World War II. History Berthier machine gun The Vickers–Berthier w ...

Uniforms/protective equipment

Two British soldiers in battledress with 1937 webbing wearing "Brodie" helmet * Brodie helmet Mark I and II * Mk III "Turtle" helmet - introduced in 1944 *

Helmet Steel Airborne Troop The Helmet Steel Airborne Troops (HSAT) is a paratrooper helmet of British origin worn by paratroopers and members of airlanding units. It was introduced in Second World War by the British Army and was also used by other Commonwealth armies. I ...

- for airborne forces *

Beret A beret ( or ; ; eu, txapela, ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap, usually of woven, hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in 19th century France and Spain, and the beret remains ...

- the beret was introduced in place of the Field service cap for some units with specific colours for some units **

Green beret The green beret was the official headdress of the British Commandos of the Second World War. It is still worn by members of the Royal Marines after passing the Commando Course, and personnel from other units of the Royal Navy, Army and RAF wh ...

- worn by British Commandos **

Maroon beret The maroon beret in a military configuration has been an international symbol of airborne forces since the Second World War. It was first officially introduced by the British Army in 1942, at the direction of Major-General Frederick "Boy" B ...

- from 1942 by airborne units **

Tan beret The tan beret also known as a beige beret has been adopted as official headgear by several special operations forces as a symbol of their unique capabilities. Afghan National Army Afghan National Army Special Forces members were awarded a tan be ...

- Special Air Service from 1942 till 1944 **

Black beret The black beret is a type of headgear. It is commonly worn by paramilitaries and militaries around the world, particularly armored forces such as the British Army's Royal Tank Regiment (RTR), the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps (RCAC), and Royal A ...

- by armoured units, including the Royal Tank Corps from 1924 *

Service Dress Service dress uniform is the informal type of uniform used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for everyday office, barracks and non-field duty purposes and sometimes for ceremonial occasions. It frequently consists of a ...

- the field uniform at the start of the war until replaced by battledress *

Battledress A combat uniform, also called field uniform, battledress or military fatigues, is a casual type of uniform used by military, police, fire and other public uniformed services for everyday fieldwork and combat duty purposes, as opposed to dress ...

("Uniform No. 5") *

1937 Pattern Web Equipment 1937 Pattern Web Equipment (also known as '37 Webbing') was an item of military load-carrying equipment. It replaced the 1908 Pattern and 1925 Pattern—on which it was based—and was standard issue for British and Commonwealth troops from its in ...

Knives and bayonets

World War I Pattern 1907 British Bayonet

Pattern 1907 bayonet The Pattern 1907 bayonet, officially called the Sword bayonet, pattern 1907 (Mark I), was a British bayonet designed to be used with the Short Magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE) rifle. The Pattern 1907 bayonet was used by the British and Commonwealth ...

No. 4 Bayonet *

Sten bayonet mk I The Sten bayonet Mark I was the standard bayonet for the Sten mk II submachine gun. Most of the bayonets were disposed of making originals extremely rare. Design The Sten bayonet mk I was a socket bayonet just like the No. 4 Bayonet. The blad ...

-Sten mk II * No. 5 Bayonet * No. 7 Bayonet-Sten mk V *

Push dagger A push dagger (alternately known as: punch dagger, punch knife, or push knife) is a short-bladed dagger with a "T" handle designed to be grasped and held in closed-fist hand, so that the blade protrudes from the front of the fist, either between ...

BC-41 The BC-41 was a combined knuckleduster and dagger weapon used by the British Commandos during World War II for close combat and ambush situations. Although effective, it was eventually replaced by the Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife. See also ...

Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife - Flickr - The Central Intelligence Agency

Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife The Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife is a double-edged fighting knife resembling a dagger or poignard with a foil grip. It was developed by William Ewart Fairbairn and Eric Anthony Sykes in Shanghai based on ideas that the two men had while serv ...

Smatchet A smatchet is a short, heavy fighting knife in overall length (including grip). It was designed by William E. Fairbairn during World War II. Design Though described in the Office of Strategic Services catalogue as a cross between a machete and ...

Bayonet A bayonet (from French ) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.Brayley, Martin, ''Bayonets: An Illustr ...

Kukri The kukri () or khukuri ( ne, खुकुरी, ) is a type of machete with a distinct recurve in its blade. It serves multiple purposes as a melee weapon and also as a regular cutting tool throughout most of South Asia. The ''kukri'', ''khuk ...

Weapons

List of World War II weapons of the United Kingdom Small arms Rifles *De Lisle Carbine - "silenced" design firing subsonic pistol ammunition. Specialist issue, 129 made. *Pattern 14 Rifle, Enfield Pattern 14 (P14) - Used as a marksman weapon until the No. IV Mk. I (T) was introduced, also iss ...

Vehicles

British Commonwealth armoured fighting vehicles of World War II Tanks of the Second World War Tankettes A tankette is a type of lightly armed and lightly armoured tracked combat vehicle resembling a small tank roughly the size of a car, mainly intended for light infantry support or reconnaissance. Colloquia ...

British armoured fighting vehicle production during World War II This article lists British armoured fighting vehicle production during the Second World War. The United Kingdom produced 27,528 tanks and self-propelled guns from July 1939 to May 1945, as well as 26,191 armoured cars and 69,071 armoured personn ...

Naval ships

* List of Classes of British ships of World War II *

List of requisitioned trawlers of the Royal Navy (WWII) This is a List of civilian trawlers requisitioned by the Royal Navy for use in World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the v ...

Naval equipment

* List of Royal Navy and other British naval forces military equipment of World War II

Aircraft

List of aircraft of the United Kingdom in World War II Here is a list of aircraft used by the British Royal Air Force (RAF), Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Army Air Corps (AAC) and British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC)Used for logistics support with RAF crews. during the Second World War. ...

* Naval aircraft **

List of Fleet Air Arm aircraft in World War II This list deals specifically with aircraft of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm (FAA) during World War II. The FAA operated aircraft from Royal Navy ships, mainly aircraft carriers but also including capital ships and cruisers, as well as from land ...

* Equipment of RAF bombers ** List of equipment of RAF Bomber Command aircraft of World War II

Radar

* Ground **

Chain Home Chain Home, or CH for short, was the codename for the ring of coastal Early Warning radar stations built by the Royal Air Force (RAF) before and during the Second World War to detect and track aircraft. Initially known as RDF, and given the off ...

, early warning radar **

Chain Home Low Chain Home Low (CHL) was the name of a British early warning radar system operated by the RAF during World War II. The name refers to CHL's ability to detect aircraft flying at altitudes below the capabilities of the original Chain Home (CH) rada ...

AMES Type 7 The AMES Type 7, also known as the Final GCI, was a ground-based radar system introduced during World War II by the Royal Air Force (RAF). The Type 7 was the first truly modern radar used by the Allies, providing a 360 degree view of the airspace a ...

GL Mk. I radar Radar, Gun Laying, Mark I, or GL Mk. I for short, was an early radar system developed by the British Army to provide range information to associated anti-aircraft artillery. There were two upgrades to the same basic system, GL/EF (Elevation Find ...

, gun laying radar for anti-aircraft batteries **

GL Mk. III radar Radar, Gun Laying, Mark III, or GL Mk. III for short, was a radar system used by the British Army to directly guide, or ''lay'', anti-aircraft artillery (AA). The GL Mk. III was not a single radar, but a family of related designs that saw constan ...

, gun laying radar for anti-aircraft batteries * Aircraft **

Monica (radar) Monica was a range-only tail warning radar for bombers, introduced by the RAF in June 1942. Officially known as ARI 5664, it operated at frequencies of around 300 MHz (on the boundary between VHF and UHF). The system was also used by the US ...

, tail warning radar fitted to bombers **

H2S (radar) H2S was the first airborne, ground scanning radar system. It was developed for the Royal Air Force's Bomber Command during World War II to identify targets on the ground for night and all-weather bombing. This allowed attacks outside the range ...

, ground scanning radar fitted to bombers **

AI Mk. IV radar Radar, Airborne Interception, Mark IV (AI Mk. IV), produced by USA as SCR-540, was the world's first operational air-to-air radar system. Early Mk. III units appeared in July 1940 on converted Bristol Blenheim light bombers, while the definit ...

, airborne interception radar fitted to fighters **

AI Mk. VIII radar Radar, Airborne Interception, Mark VIII, or AI Mk. VIII for short, was the first operational microwave-frequency Airborne Interception radar, air-to-air radar. It was used by Royal Air Force night fighters from late 1941 until the end of World War ...

, airborne interception radar fitted to fighters **

ASV Mark II radar Radar, Air-to-Surface Vessel, Mark II, or ASV Mk. II for short, was an airborne sea-surface search radar developed by the UK's Air Ministry immediately prior to the start of World War II. It was the first aircraft mounted radar of any sort to ...

ASV Mark III radar Radar, Air-to-Surface Vessel, Mark III, or ASV Mk. III for short, was a surface search radar system used by RAF Coastal Command during World War II. It was a slightly modified version of the H2S radar used by RAF Bomber Command, with minor change ...

* Naval **

List of World War II British naval radar This page is a List of World War II British naval radar. Nomenclature These sets were initially numbered as wireless telegraph (w/t) sets, but a distinguishing prefix of "2" was soon added. Metric sets were numbered in the 28x and 29x series. Wh ...

Missiles and bombs

Aerial bombs

Cartridges and shells

.303 British The .303 British (designated as the 303 British by the C.I.P. and SAAMI) or 7.7×56mmR, is a calibre rimmed rifle cartridge. The .303 inch bore diameter is measured between rifling lands as is the common practice in Europe which follows th ...

for standard issue rifles and light machine guns * .38 S&W for standard issue revolvers *

9×19mm Parabellum The 9×19mm Parabellum (also known as 9mm Parabellum or 9mm Luger or simply 9mm) is a rimless, tapered firearms cartridge. Originally designed by Austrian firearm designer Georg Luger in 1901, it is widely considered the most popular handgun a ...

for standard issue submachine guns

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:British military equipment of World War II British World War II United Kingdom in World War II-related lists .

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

World War II Equipment World War II Equipment