Undoubtedly, the Centurion is the most successful British tank ever in terms of marketing and
combat records. Although this tank was too late to prove himself in the Second World
War, it managed to mark the First Cold War. It was the hero of many wars and particularly
the saviour of Israel. Now, we are investigating the Centurion, the legendary knight of the
crown. Please don't forget to subscribe to our channel
before we start and give us a thumbs up if you like our video. To be notified of our
new video, please click the bell button. During the First Cold War, we could see a
legendary tank, the Centurion, played a critical role and sealed fate in many of the major
conflicts. Yes, the Centurion was a tank of the First
Cold War, but its story began during the Second World War.
The development of the Centurion began in 1943.
In those years, British Army had two types of tank, the infantry tank and the cruiser
tank. The infantry tanks were being used to support
infantry. They were highly armoured but relatively slow. The mission definition of these tanks
was to break through heavily defended areas in the enemy lines, in coordination with the
infantry units. After that, the faster but relatively low
armoured cruiser tanks were rapidly advancing to cut the enemy's supply and communication
lines and to search and destroy the enemy's artillery batteries.
But, the German Tiger and the Panther tanks caused the change of the British Army's perspective.
Since the beginning of the war, the 88mm gun had been one of the most fearsome opponents
of the allied tanks. Now, the Tiger had this gun. Also, its armour
was too thick. The Panther was a superior tank in terms of
both firepower, ballistic protection, and manoeuvrability.
In 1943, the UK already had the 76.2mm 17-pounder gun, which was equivalent to the 75mm KwK
42 gun of the Panther. Yet, no available British tank was capable
of being fitted with this gun due to limited size of its turret.
As an interim solution, the UK developed the Archer and the Achilles. But, these tank destroyers
were not suitable for offensive missions. The 17-pounder gun was also fitted onto the
M4 Sherman tank. This variant, called Sherman Firefly, was highly effective in term of firepower.
But, its protection was not as desired. So, in 1943, the British Army requested the
development of a new tank. It would be able to stand 75 and 88mm guns. Also, this tank
would have the 17-pounder gun that could penetrate the armour of the latest German panzers.
The design works of the Centurion started immediately. The new tank would be equipped
with the 20mm Polsten gun against the enemy's anti-tank crew. It would have the Rolls-Royce
Merlin petrol engine. This engine was a derivative of the powerplant
used by the Spitfire and Hurricane fighters as well as the Lancaster bomber.
The British Army had observed that after being hit, the ammunition inside the turret could
cause a catastrophic explosion. Therefore, the Centurion would carry its ammunition for
the main gun below the level of the turret ring.
But, the Allies were preparing for the invasion of Europe. The resources had to be used for
building up a massive army. Therefore, the development of the Centurion
proceeded slowly. And, the tank did not see combat in the Second World War.
After a little amount of the Centurion Mk 1 had produced, the production shifted to
the up-armoured Mk 2 variant. The tank became operational in 1946.
The tank had the Hortsmann suspension system. This suspension provided better cross-country
capability and manoeuvrability to the Centurion than the cruiser tanks.
Also, its survivability was superior to the infantry tanks. Therefore, the Centurion was
able to be used for both roles. So, it was a universal tank, in other words, a main battle
tank. There are many Centurion variants and derivatives.
We will talk about only major ones. The Centurion Mk 2 did not have the 20mm Polsten
gun. This gun had intended to be operated by the loader. But, when he concentrated on
using the gun, the loader could not feed the main gun effectively.
In 1948, production of the Centurion Mk 3 began. This variant had an 84mm 20-pounder
gun. The gun could fire the armour-piercing discarding sabot projectile.
At that time, it was an important feature because the Western armies needed a tank,
which could encounter the Soviet IS-3 tank. Thanks to this munition, the 20-pounder gun
could penetrate the highly thick armour of this tank.
Also, the Mk 3 had a turret stabilization system. So, the tank could engage a target
while on the move. The new Centurion variant had two 51mm Bombthrower
Mk2 mortars. These mortars could fire white phosphorus munition, which was effective against
nearby enemy infantries by burning fiercely. Yet, this concept was not effective as it
desired, and the Bombthrower Mk2 was eliminated in later variants.
During the 1956 Hungarian Uprising, the British intelligence gained the chance to examine
the Soviet T-54 and ran an extensive report about it.
Based on this report, the UK developed a 105mm rifled gun called the L7. In 1958, the Centurion
Mk 7 became the first production tank fitted with the L7, one of the most successful Western
tank guns. Later, many Centurion users equipped their tank with this gun.
Also, many Centurion variants were fitted with a 12.7mm ranging gun. In general use,
this gun was firing a three-round burst of illuminating rounds to determine the enemy's
exact location and range. Until the M60 and Leopard 1 were introduced,
the Centurion had been the best tank available in the West.
The biggest disadvantage of the Centurion was its low range. Many modifications were
made, and many variants were developed to overcome this problem. However, the tank's
original production models with the petrol engine never had a satisfactory range.
Besides the United Kingdom, in a short time, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, India,
Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa,
Sweden, and Switzerland chose this tank. The 4-person crew of the latest variant of
the Centurion consisted of a commander, driver, gunner, and loader. Its hull length was 7.82
metres. The tank was 9.85 metres long, 3.39 metres wide, and 3.01 metres high. Its combat
weight was 51.82 tons. The 650 horsepower Rolls-Royce Mk IVB petrol engine provided
a maximum road speed of 35 kilometres per hour. The range of the tank was 190 kilometres.
The Centurion Mk 13 could negotiate 0.91-metre vertical steps, 3.35-metre trenches, and it
can ford to a depth of 1.45 metres. It had a 105mm L7 rifled main gun, two 7.62mm and
one 12.7mm machine guns. Many countries modernized their Centurion
fleets. One of the most known upgraded variants of
the tank was the Israeli Sho't. The Israel Defense Forces equipped its Centurions with
the 105mm L7 gun, the 750 horsepower AVDS-1790-2AC diesel engine, the Allison CD-850-6 automatic
transmission, and a new cooling system. The engine compartment was enlarged and raised
to fit the tank with the new powerpack. Using a diesel engine increased the range
and survivability of the Centurions. Besides, the ammunition capacity of the Sho't
increased to 72. After the 1973 Yom Kippur War, some of the
Sho't was equipped with a new turret drive mechanism, a new gun stabiliser, a new fire-control
system, and the Blazer explosive reactive armour packages.
Similarly, South Africa modernized some of its Centurions.
First, eight of these tanks were fitted with an 810 horsepower petrol engine coupled to
a new three-speed transmission by the Skokiaan Project.
Later, South Africa started the Semel Programme. Then, South Africa equipped the tank with
a new suspension, new turret drives, and new vision equipment. This new variant was named
Olifant. The later Mk 1A variant of the Olifant had
a locally built version of the 105mm L7-type rifled gun, 81 mm smoke grenade launchers,
night vision equipment for the commander, and 750 horsepower diesel engine coupled to
a semi-automatic transmission. The Olifant Mk 1B was equipped with new suspensions,
a 950 horsepower engine, the AMTRA III automatic transmission, laser rangefinder, and a reinforced
floor against landmines. It has passive composite armour packages over the frontal glacis plate
and turret. The Olifant Mk 2 is equipped with a 1,040
horsepower Continental turbocharged diesel engine, an upgraded fire control system, and
a computerised battle system. The tank has the hunter-killer capability.
The Centurion baptized of fire in 1950, during the Korean War. A British Centurion knocked
out a Cromwell tank, which had been captured by North Koreans before.
One year later, the tank successfully covered the withdrawal of the 29th Brigade of the
British Army. In this battle, against the massive Chinese forces attack, only five Centurions
were lost. In the rest of the war, these tanks were generally
deployed stationary on the high ground and used for fire support missions. Against mortar
shell and medium calibre artillery rounds, they were waiting in the prepared positions
called the elephant house, which was fortified with the railway sleepers and sandbags. In
1952, the British Centurions encountered a Chinese heavy artillery storm and got at least
45 direct hits. But, none of their crews was even injured. During the war, the tank repelled
many massive Chinese offensives. Especially in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965,
the Indian Centurions with 84mm guns made history. In the Battle of Asal Uttar, they
knocked out or captured 97 Pakistan tanks with only six losses.
So, the Centurion proved its superiority to the US-made M47 and M48s.
Also, Indian sources claim that this tank managed to shot down a Pakistani OH-13 helicopter
with an 84mm round. The Australian Army used its Centurions in
the Vietnam War. These tanks were generally deployed to reinforce firebases.
The Australian Centurion were respectable adversaries for the North Vietnamese soldiers,
who admitted that this tank was extremely difficult to destroy with the RPG type weapons.
Nevertheless, 42 of the total 58 Australian Centurions served in Vietnam suffered battle
damage. At first, Israeli soldiers had not liked the
Centurion, which was more complicated and heavier than the previous M4 Shermans and
AMX-13s. During the exercises, the tank suffered many
mechanical breakdowns. Short after, General Israel Tal introduced
a new field manual for maintenance. He also increased the training of gunners.
The Israeli gunners could reach the rate of fire of 15 rounds per minutes while the Arab
gunners only four to five rounds. Also, as we mentioned before, the Israel Defense
Forces were using the upgraded Sho't model. The result was spectacular.
In the 1967 Six-Day War, the well trained Israelis prevailed on all fronts. The Sho't
proved its ability to continue fighting even after extensive battle damage. The Israelis
who once had not liked the Centurion were now in love with it.
In the 1973 Yum Kippur War, 177 Sho'ts became the saviour of Israel at the Golan Front.
They encountered nearly 1,400 enemy tanks. In the first three days, every Israeli tank
at the Golan Front got hit at least 1.5 times. The Israel Defense Forces used 100 Sho'ts
at the last stage of the battle at Valley of Tears. Actually, these tanks had been knocked
out previously. But, they had been repaired, manned by the injured crew, and returned to
battlefield. These war-wounded Sho'ts managed to win the battle.
At the Golan Front, the Sho'ts knocked out over 500 Syrian T-55s and T-62s.
Yet, especially at the Sina Front, the Soviet-made AT-3 Sagger hurt them fiercely. Even so, Israel
managed to win the battle against the Egyptians. In 1982, the Sho'ts, equipped with the Blazer
explosive reactive armour against the shaped charged anti-tank missiles, fought in Lebanon.
Still, during the war, 21 Sho'ts were knocked out, 8 of which were destroyed.
The South African Centurions rarely clashed with enemy tanks. In 1987, the Olifants managed
to destroy two Angolan T-55s. Some of them were damaged by landmines.
Of course, there are many other combat records of the Centurion. Also, we could talk about
many other details. But, we had to summarize them to not exceed our time. The Centurion
was the dauntless protector of the free world's borders at the beginning of the First Cold
War. It was the hero of the UN Forces in Korea and the nightmare of the Pakistani Pattons.
The Centurion was the saviour of Israel. It was one of the most successful weapon systems
of the First cold War. Undoubtedly, the legendary Centurion is the pride of British tank history.
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