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If field guns were to support tanks they had to have the same cross-country capabilities, ie had to be mounted upon tacked vehicles. Once again Gunners were saddled with makeshifts. Late in 1941 the first appeared; it was the Bishop, a 25-pr gun in a large steel box sitting on a Valentine tank chassis. It did not impress; due to the construction of the box the gun could elevate no more than 15° which restricted range to 6400 yds (5850 metres) instead of the normal 13400 (12225).
In November 1941 the Americans produced the Priest , their standard 105-mm field piece mounted upon a modified Grant M3 tank chassis. Some say the resemblance of its machine gun cupola to a church pulpit gave rise to the ecclesiastical nickname, thus continuing the tradition begun with the Bishop. Being rather better engineered, it proved a very successful equipment, having been used by the British as well as the Americans in all theatres of World War 2.
Britain wanted the Americans to build a 25-pr version of the Priest but they could not see their way clear to produce an equipment they would not use themselves. However, the Canadians set up a factory to make the Ram tank, a local pattern version of the Grant M3 which proved suitable for mounting the 25-pr. This combination became the Sexton which saw service until the 1950s.
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WL Ruffell Issue 81 March 1994 |
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