Produktbeschreibung
Infantry Tank, Mk II, Matilda (A12) - The Matilda ruled the Early Western Desert war. Slow but a very tough tank to stop. Its 2pdr main gun had to get close to knock out German tanks. Pack contains 1 Tank, 1 Tank Commander and 1 Dismounted Crew figures.
The duck rides again?
The Matilda I (A11 Infantry Tank Mk I) got it's name when General Sir Hugh Ellis, watching the new tank in trials, commented that it waddled like Matilda the Duck, a comic strip character of the time. The Matilda II naturally inherited the name.
The Matilda II was first considered even before the Matilda I was in service. The British had two initial Infantry Tank concepts. They were for either; a) a very small and inconspicuous tank with heavy armour and armed with machine-guns and available in large numbers or b) a larger tank with an anti-tank gun and
heavy armour able to engage enemy tanks as well as infantry with its machine-guns.
Of these two ideas the Matilda I fulfilled the first, but it was soon decided that something similar to the second concept was required.
Initially the A11 Matilda I was considered for upgrade, but it was quickly decided that its hull and turret were too small to take the 2pdr gun.
A new tank was designed and designated the A12. Initially it was called the Matilda
Senior or the Matilda II, but with the withdrawal from service of the Matilda I it became simply known as the Matilda.
The pilot models were ready as early as April 1938, but production difficulties meant only 2 were in service at the outbreak of war in September 1939. By early 1940 the first units were in service in France with the 7th Royal Tank Regiment and were very successful at the Battle of Arras, proving the superiority of their armour against the 3.7cm Anti Tank guns of the Germans.
They went on to see extensive service in North Africa where Italian tank or anti-tank guns could not stop them. The arrival of the German 88 in the ground role in mid 1941 changed this and their last major deployment as a gun tank occurred at Alamein in July 1942.
Because the turret and turret ring were too small to take the 6pdr gun the Matilda was relegated to secondary combat roles such as mine clearing.
It has a maximum armour thickness of 78mm and a minimum of 13mm. It is armed with a 2pdr OQF gun and coaxial machine-gun in its turret. It has a maximum speed of 13mph and a cross-country speed of 8mph.
A CS (Close Support) version was also developed armed with a 3" howitzer capable of firing high explosive and smoke.
The Matilda in Flames of War -
The Matilda II has a lot of armour especially if you are using it in the Early War. It has a front of 7, side of 6 and top of 2. This is more than enough to stop anything except the German FlaK 36 8.8cm gun. In the early war they are extremely effective and the Italians will have a great deal of trouble seeing them off without resorting to their heavier artillery. Germans too will have to rely on their artillery or the 88. The 2pdr is an extremely effective weapon against the light armour of most early war tanks (AT 7 versus armour 1-4).
In mid war it is a little more vulnerable with the availability of more 88s, 90s and 75s in the Italian and German forces, but it's still a formidable opponent. 7 points of armour still gives it enough armour to stand up to most Axis guns, while the 2pdr is not cutting edge it is still capable of knocking out a wide variety of armoured vehicles.
With a top armour of 2 it can stand the most savage infantry assaults, only specialist troops posing any real danger.
The CS Matilda 3" gun can be used as close support artillery pinning opponents before assaulting or using smoke to screen your movements.
As Infantry Tank Support Platoons you can field up to 2 platoons of 3 Matilda IIs with your British Rifle Company. |
