Great Britain had introduced the tank to the world during World War I,
and maintained its lead in armored warfare with the Experimental
Mechanized Force during the late 1920s, watched with interest by German
advocates of Blitzkrieg. Despite these successes, the Experimental
Mechanised Force was disbanded in the 1930s, making Britain relatively
unprepared for World War II, both in terms of armored doctrine and
equipment.
This fully illustrated new study examines the men who crewed the tanks
of Britain's armored force during World War II, which was only four
battalions large in 1939. It looks at the recruitment and training of
the vast numbers of men required, their equipment, appearance and combat
experience in every theater of the war as the British armored division
sought to catch up with the German Panzers.