The United States provided tens of thousands of its Medium Tank M4, also named the Sherman, to many of its Allies during the Second World War, under the terms of Lend-Lease.
International distribution
This chart shows Lend-Lease shipments to major recipients through 1 September 1945; subsequent transfers between countries within theaters of operations (i.e., from the United Kingdom to Poland or Canada, or the United States to Free France or China) after initial shipment are not included.
+ Lend-Lease shipments of Sherman tanks Variant United Kingdom Soviet Union Other (Canada, Brazil, Free France) Total M4 (75 mm) 2,096 53 (to Brazil) 2,149 M4 (105 mm) 593 593 M4A1 (75 mm) 942 4 (to Canada) 946 M4A1 (76 mm) 1,330 1,330 M4A2 (75 mm) 5,041 1,990 382 (to Free France) 7,413 M4A2 (76 mm) 5 2,073 2,078 M4A3 (75 mm) 7 7 M4A4 (75 mm) 7,167 2 274 (to Free France) 7,443Total 17,181 4,065 713 21,959
British nomenclature The British received far more M4 medium tanks, 17,181 (roughly 34% of all M4s produced), than any other Allied nation. The British practice of naming American tanks after American Civil War generals was continued, giving it the name Sherman after Union General William Tecumseh Sherman. The US later adopted the name and the practice of naming tanks after generals and initially used the full name "General Sherman"
In the British naming system, the major variants were identified by Mark numbers, the M4 being "Sherman I", the M4A1 "Sherman II" and so on. Letters after the mark number denoted modifications to the base model: "A" for the 76 mm L/55 gun instead of the 75mm, "B" for the 105 mm M4 L/22.5 howitzer, "C" for the British 76.2 mm QF 17-pounder gun, and "Y" for the later wider-tracked Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension (HVSS) type suspension. Gun and suspension letters were used in combination, e.g. Sherman IBY. However, not every combination appeared eg no production 75mm Shermans were built with HVSS and hence no HVSS 17pdr conversions - which would have been designated "CY" - therefore existed. HVSS Shermans were only fitted with 76mm M1 guns or 105mm M4 howitzers, AY and BY respectively in British service.
Sherman I – M4 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Continental R975 9-cylinder radial petrol engine Sherman Hybrid I – Sherman I with composite hull (cast front, welded rear) Sherman IB – Sherman I with 105 mm M4 L/22.5 howitzer Sherman IBY – Sherman IB with HVSS Sherman IC – Sherman I with 76.2 mm QF 17-pounder gun Sherman II – M4A1 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Continental R975 radial petrol engine Sherman IIA – M4A1(76)W, Sherman II with 76 mm M1 L/55 gun Sherman IIAY – M4A1(76)W HVSS, Sherman IIA with HVSS Sherman III – M4A2 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and GM6046 twin 6-cylinder diesel engine Sherman IIIA – M4A2(76)W, Sherman III with 76 mm M1A2 L/55 gun (unlikely to have been used by UK troops) Sherman IIIAY – M4A2(76)W HVSS, Sherman IIIA with HVSS (not used operationally by UK troops) Sherman IV – M4A3 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun (no Sherman IVs used operationally) and Ford GAA V8 petrol engine Sherman IVA – M4A3(76)W, Sherman IV with 76 mm M1A2 L/55 gun Sherman IVB – M4A3(105), Sherman IV with 105 mm M4 L/22.5 howitzer Sherman IVBY – M4A3(105) HVSS, Sherman IVB with HVSS Sherman V – M4A4 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun and Chrysler A57 multibank 30-cylinder "cloverleaf" petrol engine in a longer rear hull with more widely spaced bogies Sherman VC – Sherman V with 76.2 mm QF 17-pounder gun The term Sherman VI was not used. The "M4A5" was an American tested late production Ram Mk I cruiser tank. In British service it was named Tank Cruiser, Ram Mk I or Mk II. Sherman VII – M4A6 with 75 mm M3 L/40 gun, composite cast/welded hull and Ordnance RD-1820 9-cylinder radial diesel engine. Only 75 M4A6 were built and none are believed to have reached the UK Sherman II ARV III – M32B1 TRV (M4A1 Sherman II chassis) recovery vehicle Sherman V ARV III – M32B4 TRV (M4A4 Sherman V chassis) recovery vehicle. Extremely rare, almost mythical, vehicle. Production records are sketchy and British use is uncertain, but a photo does exist of an M32B4 in post-war Greek service
Allied variants
Conversions and modifications of the M4 by their foreign users included the British-Commonwealth Firefly with the potent British QF 17 pounder (76.2 mm) anti-tank gun; Adder, Salamander, Crocodile, and BadgerR. P. Hunnicutt, Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank, Presidio Press, Novato, CA, 1994, p. 420-421. flame-throwing Shermans; Kangaroo armoured personnel carrier; Armoured recovery vehicles (ARV); artillery tractors, and the specialist military engineering vehicles of "Hobart's Funnies" designed specifically for Operation Overlord ("D-Day") and the Battle of Normandy. In 1945, the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards at the Rhine fitted Sherman turrets with two "60 lb" RP-3 air-to-ground rockets on rails to create the Sherman Tulip. Canada created a prototype anti-aircraft vehicle with four 20 mm Polsten cannons mounted in a turret on Canadian-made M4A1 hull, which was called Skink. The Soviets reportedly replaced the US 75 mm gun on some M4A2s with the 76.2mm F-34 gun of the T-34 medium tank to create the M4M; they discontinued the practice when assured of US ammunition supply. A replacement with an 85 mm gun of an unspecified type was also considered, both with the retention of the original turret and with the installation of the T-34 turret. For the Normandy landings, the British developed special and specific deep wading kits for Shermans I/II, III and V. US forces in the Pacific suffered many drowned M4s by not having such kits early in the island landing campaigns, and they were rapidly copied for later landings.
Conversions
A number of Sherman tanks were converted to carry different armament or fill different roles than those for which the tank was originally manufactured. Among these were: Tank AA, 20 mm Quad, Skink – Canadian prototype anti-aircraft vehicle with four 20 mm Polsten cannon mounted in a turret on a Grizzly hull (tank made in Canada, not Lend-Leased). Sherman Duplex Drive (DD) – British-developed swimming gear fitted to British, Canadian, and US Shermans for the Normandy landings. Sherman 17pdr aka "Firefly" – British Sherman I or V re-armed with QF 17 pounder (76.2 mm) anti-tank gun with C added to designation (as in Sherman IC or VC). A few Sherman IIIC are believed to have existed, issued to units equipped with standard Sherman III for mechanical commonality: Aberdeen Proving Ground in the USA has one. Post-war the "Firefly" name is commonly used to refer to these vehicles, but it was not an official name and not commonly used during the war. Sherman Tulip – British Sherman with two 3-inch ("60lb") RP-3 rockets on rails added to the turret. Used by the 1st Coldstream Guards at the Rhine in 1945. RMASG "Control Tank" – Sherman V tanks allocated to the Royal Marines Armoured Support Group for the D-Day landings were fitted with a dial sight in a protruding square cover on the top right of the turret. This permitted them to be used accurately in the indirect fire role as self-propelled artillery, initially from the decks of landing craft but later also ashore. Direct fire sights were retained. These tanks can be identified in photos by the 360-degree compass bearing markings around the turret.
Combat engineering vehicles
– British developments for Shermans were extensive and included the fascine carrier (used by 79th Armoured Division), "Crib", "Twaby Ark", "Octopus", Sherman Bridgelayer – "Plymouth" – carrying Bailey bridge Sherman AVRE with Small Box Girder bridge Sherman CIRD – fitted with "Canadian Indestructible Roller Device" landmine exploder Sherman Crab – British Sherman with mine flail, one of a long line of flail devices
Recovery vehicles Sherman ARV I and Sherman ARV II – British armoured recovery vehicle conversions of Sherman I, III and V. It was British policy to have ARVs using the same mechanical parts as the gun tanks they supported wherever possible. ARV I was a simple turretless towing vehicle with light jib while ARV II had much more sophisticated recovery and repair equipment, a raised box-like superstructure and heavier jib. It was considered superior to the US M32 ARV, very few of which were used by British units. Beach Armoured Recovery Vehicle (BARV) – British conversion of Sherman III with large boat-shaped superstructure that was capable of deep wading near the shore. A simple push/pull ARV that served until replaced by Centurion BARV in the mid-1960s. The diesel-engined Sherman III was considered less likely to be affected by the wet environment than petrol-engined versions.
Artillery Sherman Gun Tractor – British field conversion in Italy by removing turrets from M4A2 Sherman III tanks to tow 17 pdr AT gun and carry crew with ammunition. Some of the removed 75mm M3 guns may have been used for the Churchill NA75 field conversions unique to the Italian campaign. Sherman Observation Post – an armoured mobile post for controlling artillery. The 75 mm gun was removed (with a dummy barrel fitted outside) to give room for map tables in the turret. Three radio sets were fitted (two Number 19 and a Number 18). Two more – both Number 38 – were carried for portable use outside the tank.Hunnicutt Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank p 309
Personnel carriers Sherman Kangaroo – Canadian Sherman converted into "Kangaroo" armoured personnel carrier
Flame Tanks Sherman Adder – A conversion kit to equip Sherman tanks, used in India on Sherman III and Sherman V Sherman Badger – Canada's replacement of its Ram Badger, the Sherman Badger was a turretless M4A2 HVSS Sherman with Wasp IIC flamethrower in place of hull machine gun, developed sometime from 1945 to 1949. The at was effective to , with elevation of +30 to −10 degrees and traverse of 30 degrees left and 23 degrees right. This inspired the US T68.
Service history United Kingdom
The British Empire received 17,184 Sherman tanks from the USA under Lend-Lease, roughly 78% of all American Shermans provided worldwide under this program. This includes Sherman tanks used by all members of the British Dominions and Empire and those Allies who were equipped by the UK, such as the Polish Armed Forces in the West. The first M4A1 Sherman II received by the UK was equipped with two driver-operated fixed mount machine-guns in the hull front and carried the shorter M2 75mm tank gun with a counterweight. The two extra hull machine-guns were a standard feature of very early Shermans, carried over from the previous M3 Medium (Lee/Grant) tank, and were one of the first elements to be discarded from the original plan. Bovington Tank Museum has an example of this build-standard, the very first Sherman tank supplied to the UK under Lend-Lease and named "Michael". The British became the primary users of the M4A4 Sherman V, which they found to be far more reliable than did the few US users (mainly for testing within the continental USA). M4 Sherman I, M4A1 Sherman II and M4A2 Sherman III were also used in (roughly) that order of importance. Free Polish and Czechoslovak government-in-exile armoured units supported and equipped by the British had M4A1s, M4A2s and some M4A4s.
Some Shermans in British service were also converted to specialist-type combat engineering vehicles. The Sherman Crab was the main conversion, which was designed to be used for clearing minefields in northwestern Europe and Italy. The Beach Armoured Recovery Vehicle was a waterproofed armoured recovery vehicle produced in small numbers and used only in support of beach-landings to pull drowned tanks and vehicles from the water and to push off stuck or beached landing-craft.
North Africa