Британские лёгкие танки межвоенного периода: Mark I - Mark VI

The Light Tank Mark I to Mark V were a series of related designs of light tank produced by Vickers for the British Army during the interwar period. Between the First and Second World Wars, the British produced a series of similar light tanks. They saw use in training, and in limited engagements with British Empire units such as the South African Army during the East African Campaign of 1941. All were around in weight and capable of on roads and around cross country. The British did not expect their light tanks to be used against anything except other light tanks at most and as such armament was a machine gun only—Vickers machine guns firing either a .303 inch or .0.5 inch (12.7 mm) round. Suspension was Horstmann coil spring on bogies. The engine was a Meadows six cylinder petrol. Up until the Mk V, they were crewed by a driver commander and gunner. The Mk V had a driver, a gunner and a commander helping on the gun. The various marks were produced in relatively small numbers. By the Mark V, the design was more or less optimised and it was the final development of in the form of the Light Tank Mk VI which was chosen for the British Army expansion programme in expectation of war. The following designations in the sequence Light Tank Mk VII "Tetrarch" and Light Tank Mk VIII "Harry Hopkins" were produced by Vickers but unrelated to the series of light tanks Mk I to Mark VI.

Following the activities of the Experimental Mechanized Force in the late 1920s, the British Army identified a need for two light tracked vehicles; one to carry a machine gun for the infantry and one with a turret for the Royal Tank Corps. The Carden Loyd tankette became the infantry vehicle, at the same time Carden privately developed a number of light, two man tank designs. The Carden Mark VII design was accepted as a prototype for the army's light tank. By that point Carden Loyd was part of Vickers Armstrong. Only a few of the first light tanks were built and, although never issued per se, gave useful information for subsequent developments. The Mark VII was a small machine gun armed vehicle with a Meadows engine which gave it a maximum speed of Suspension was two 2 wheel leaf sprung bogies on either side with an external girder to give the suspension strength. Considered a reconnaissance vehicle and a mobile machine gun position, the Mark VI was the final stage of development of the Carden Loyd series of tankettes. The Carden Loyd tankette was the prototype for the Universal Carrier.

The Mark I differed in a few points from Carden's Mark VII tankette. The external suspension girder was dropped by strengthening the suspension at the hull supports. The bevelled turret was replaced by a cylindrical design but still carried a single 0.303 Vickers machine gun. Giving it a "basis" of armour, increased weight and dropped the top speed to
The Meadows engine drove the tracks though a four speed gearbox to the front drive wheels. Steering was a combination of de clutching the drive to one track and braking to tighten the turn. The track was tensioned by a rear idler—which, being set at the same height as the drive sprocket, was new in British tank designs—and returned over three rollers. The Mark IA had a larger superstructure and a larger turret to give room for operating the machine gun. Horstmann suspension with horizontal coil springs replaced the leaf springs of the Mark I. Although it could give an easy ride under moderate conditions, the springs could, under certain circumstances, cause an uncontrollable bounce. The engine was also changed to a Ricardo diesel engine.

The Mark IV saw use in training, and weighed about five tonnes. These models had crews of two and were armed with Vickers machine guns. The idler wheels were removed, with the bogie wheels being respaced. The design once again used a Meadows built engine this time rated for 90 HP. 29 of the Mk IV A version are sent to India. The British 9th Armoured Car and Light Tank Company, Royal Tank Corps, were equipped with Vickers Carden Loyd Mk. IV Light Tanks. They were sent to the North West Frontier of India and took part in the 1936 1939 Waziristan campaign against the fiercely independent Pashtun tribesmen that inhabited that mountainous region. They were led by the religious leader Mirzali Khan and deployed guerrilla tactics of ambush and were not drawn into a decisive battle with the well trained and numerically superior British troops. The use of bullet proof machine gun armed tanks and air attacks by six RAF squadrons to support the infantry saw the support for Mirzali Khan begin to wane. In 1940 the North West Frontier quietened down with only the occasional raid on a village by the tribesmen. It remained this way until 1947 and the end of British rule, and the founding of the independent state of Pakistan. Although some were still in use at the start of World War Two, they were removed as not fit for service in armoured divisions. A Vickers design of 1933, 34 built from 1934. A surviving MkIV is the oldest running tank in the collection of The Tank Museum,Bovington.

The biggest change from the Mark IV to the Mark V was the introduction of a three man crew. The turret now carried the commander and the gunner, who was also the radio operator. The increase in the crew size increased the tank's effectiveness and spread the maintenance load. Until then, the commander had to direct the driver, navigate and operate the gun. If troop commander, he also directed the other tanks and their fire. The armament of the Mark V was an improvement over the earlier marks; a 0.5 inch Vickers machine gun was added to the existing 0.303.

The light tanks were kept in use for training until around 1942. Some saw active use in the Battle of France, the Western desert or Abyssinia from 1940–1941. They were followed by the Light Tank Mk VI from 1936. Like many of its predecessors, the Mark VI was used by the British Army to perform imperial policing duties in British India and other colonies in the British Empire, a role for which it and the other Vickers Armstrongs light tanks were found to be well suited.