Tank, Infantry, Black Prince (A43) is the name that was assigned to an experimental development of the

Churchill tank The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, its ability to climb steep slopes, a ...

with a larger, wider hull and a

QF 17-pounder The Ordnance Quick-Firing 17-pounder (or just 17-pdr)Under the British standard ordnance weights and measurements the gun's approximate projectile weight is used to denote different guns of the same calibre. Hence this was a 3-inch gun, of which ...

(76.2 mm) gun. It was named after

Edward, the Black Prince Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, suc ...

, a famous 14th century military leader.

Development

As a development from the Churchill, the Black Prince was a continuation of the line of Infantry tanks, that is slower, heavier tanks intended to operate in close support of infantry. It also was able to work closely with other tanks. The parallel development in British tank design were the Cruiser tanks, which were intended for more mobile operations. A43 was the General Staff Specification number issued in 1943, for an interim tank that would eventually be superseded by a "Universal tank" that would replace both Infantry and Cruiser tanks. The cruiser line led to the

Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

and its 17 pounder-armed Challenger variant, eventually followed by the

Comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ...

equipped with the 77 mm gun derived from the design of the 17 pounder. These tanks entered service during the war. While not as heavily protected as the Churchill, the Comet showed the way British tank development was going. This led to the last of the cruiser line and the first of the Universal tanks (now more widely known as

Main Battle Tank A main battle tank (MBT), also known as a battle tank or universal tank, is a tank that fills the role of armor-protected direct fire and maneuver in many modern armies. Cold War-era development of more powerful engines, better suspension sys ...

s), the very successful Centurion. A larger gun than that carried by a conventional Churchill required a larger turret on a wider turret ring and consequently a widening of the tank hull. The Black Prince weighed around ten tons more than the Churchill so the suspension was modified and the tracks widened by 10 inches to carry the extra load. However, the Churchill's engine was retained, leading to the tank being underpowered and slow, with maximum speeds on roads and cross country. This was so slow that the tank's tactical usefulness would have been limited. Consideration was given to the use of the

Rolls-Royce Meteor The Rolls-Royce Meteor later renamed the Rover Meteor is a British tank engine that was developed during the Second World War. It was used in British tanks up to 1964. It was a result of co-operation between Leyland Motors and Rolls-Royce who bet ...

engine; this would have increased the available power to , but the idea never left the drawing–board. Likewise, plans to fit the Black Prince with the turret from the Centurion were never carried out. By the time the Black Prince prototypes had appeared in May 1945, the

Sherman Firefly The Sherman Firefly was a tank used by the United Kingdom and some armoured formations of other Allies in the Second World War. It was based on the US M4 Sherman, but was fitted with the more powerful 3-inch (76.2 mm) calibre British 17- ...

had proved itself in combat, the Comet tank was in service and the introduction of Centurion was imminent. All these tanks carried the QF 17-pounder or a derivative; all had better mobility than the Black Prince and the Centurion had frontal armour of comparable effectiveness.The Centurion had thinner, , frontal armour but it was sloped increasing its effective protection. The Black Prince had become redundant and the project was abandoned. The Black Prince marked the end of the development of the A22F Churchill Mk VII, and the end of the Infantry tank concept in British tank design.

Survivors

The only intact Black Prince is held by

The Tank Museum The Tank Museum (previously The Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of armoured fighting vehicles at Bovington Camp in Dorset, South West England. It is about north of the village of Wool and west of the major port of Poole. The collection ...

Bovington Bovington Camp () is a British Army military base in Dorset, England. Together with Lulworth Camp it forms part of Bovington Garrison. The garrison is home to The Armour Centre and contains two barracks complexes and two forest and heathland tr ...

, UK; it is the fourth of the six prototypes that were built. It has recently been restored to running condition. A Black Prince hull was recovered from Salisbury Plain in the 1980s as part of the Tony Budge Collection, and is now held by the Rex and Rod Cadman Collection.

Notes

References

;Citations ;Bibliography *White, B T ''British Tanks 1915-1945''

External links

A43, Tank, Infantry, Black Prince
{{WWIIBritishAFVs Infantry tanks World War II tanks of the United Kingdom Heavy tanks of the United Kingdom Abandoned military projects of the United Kingdom Black Prince tank Trial and research tanks of the United Kingdom Edward the Black Prince

Development

Survivors

See also

Notes

References

External links