British Army

In 1939, British assurances to the Polish led the British Empire to declare war on Germany. An Expeditionary Force was sent to France, only to be hastily evacuated as the German forces swept across France in 1940. Only the Dunkirk evacuations saved the entire Expeditionary Force from capture. Later, however, the British would have spectacular success defeating the Italians and Germans in North Africa, and in the D-Day invasions of Normandy with the help of the US. Over half of Allied soldiers on D-day were British. The British army was one of the major fighting forces on the side of the allies.

PIAT Anti-Tank

The Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank (PIAT) was a British anti-tank weapon developed during the Second World War. The PIAT was designed in response to the British Army's need for a hand-held infantry anti-tank weapon that was more effective than the current weapons it possessed. It consisted of a steel tube, a trigger mechanism and firing spring, and was based on the spigot mortar system.

Portable #2 "lifebouy"

The Flamethrower, Portable, No 2 (called Lifebuoy from the shape of the fuel tank), was a British flamethrower for infantry use in WW2. The "Lifebouy" was a harness carrying a ring-shaped fuel container with 18 liters of fuel on the back. A hose from the fuel tank passed to the nozzle assembly which had two pistol grips to hold and aim the spray. The nozzle was fitted with a 10-chambered cylinder which contained the ignition cartridges. These could be fired once, each giving the operator 10 bursts of flame. In practice this gave 10 one-second bursts. It was also possible to spray fuel without igniting it to ensure there was plenty splashed around the target, then fire an ignited burst to light up the whole lot.

No 4 Mk1 Lee-Enfield

The Lee-Enfield bolt-action, magazine-fed, repeating rifle was the main firearm used by the military forces of the British Empire/Commonwealth during the first half of the 20th century. The Lee-Enfield used the .303 British cartridge. During the Second World War, standard No. 4 rifles, selected for their accuracy during factory tests, were modified by the addition of a wooden cheek-piece, and telescopic sight mounts designed to accept a No. 32 3.5x telescopic sight.This particular sight progressed through three marks with the Mk 1 introduced in 1942, the Mk 2 in 1943 and finally the Mk 3 in 1944.

Mk II "Matilda II"

The Infantry Tank Mark II known as the Matilda II was a British Infantry tank of the Second World War.The Matilda was first used in combat by the 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiments in France in 1940. Its 2-pounder gun was comparable to other tank guns in the 37 to 45 mm range. Due to the thickness of its armour, it was largely immune to the guns of the German tanks and anti-tank guns in France. The famous 88 mm anti-aircraft guns were pressed into the anti-tank role as the only effective counter.

Mk IV "Churchill"

The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) was a heavy British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, and its use as the basis of many specialist vehicles. This series of tanks was named after Winston Churchill, who was not only the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom at the time, but had been involved with the development of the tank as a weapon during the First World War. The Churchill IV was the most numerous Churchill produced, and was virtually identical to the III, the largest change being a return to the less costly cast turret.

Bedford OLD 3 ton Truck

The Bedford QLD was the GS (General Service) cargo truck version of the QL series of truck, manufactured by Bedford Vehicles for use by the British Armed Forces in the 2nd World War.

Universal Carrier Mk I

The Universal Carrier, also known as the Bren Gun Carrier is a common name describing a family of light armoured tracked vehicles built by Vickers-Armstrong. Produced between 1934 and 1960, the vehicle was used widely by Allied forces during the Second World War. Universal Carriers were usually used for transporting personnel and equipment, mostly support weapons, or as machine gun platforms. With some 113,000 built in the United Kingdom and abroad, it was the most numerous armoured fighting vehicle in history.

QF 3.7' AA Gun

The 3.7-Inch QF AA was Britain's primary heavy anti-aircraft gun during World War II, the equivalent of the German 88 mm FlaK with a slightly larger caliber of 94 mm. The 3.7-inch gun was never used as an anti-tank weapon, except in one or two emergencies. This is in contrast to the German Army, which integrated their equivalent "88" into anti-tank defensive screens from 1940 onwards.

Ordinance QF "25 Pounder"

The Ordnance QF 25 pounder, or ”25-pounder”, was introduced into service just before WWII, during which it served as the major British field gun/howitzer. It was considered by many to be the best field artillery piece of the war, combining high rates of fire with a reasonably lethal shell in a highly mobile piece. Even by WWII standards, the 25 pdr was at the smaller-end of the scale although it had longer range than most other field equipments. However, it was designed to support the proven British doctrine of suppressive fire, not the concept of destructive fire that had proved false in the years of WWI.

Supermarine Spitfire Mk lla

The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the RAF and many other Allied countries through WWII. It was produced in greater numbers than any other Allied fighter design and was the only Allied fighter in production throughout the war. The Spitfire was designed as a short-range high-performance interceptor aircraft by R. J. Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works. The Spitfire's elliptical wing had a thin cross-section, allowing a higher top speed than the Hawker Hurricane and several contemporary fighters. Speed was seen as essential to carry out the mission of home defence against enemy bombers.

Hurricane Mk lla

The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. The 1930s design evolved through several versions and adaptations.Together with the Spitfire, the Hurricane was significant in enabling the Royal Air Force (RAF) to win the Battle of Britain of 1940, accounting for the majority of the RAF's air victories. About 14,000 Hurricanes were built by the end of 1944 , and served in all the major theatres of the Second World War.

Mosquito B Mark IV

The de Havilland Mosquito was a British combat aircraft that excelled in a number of roles during WWII. Uses of the Mosquito included: low to medium altitude daytime tactical bomber, high altitude night bomber, pathfinder, day or night fighter, fighter-bomber, intruder, maritime strike and photo reconnaissance aircraft. The aircraft served with the Royal Air Force and many other air forces during the Second World War and postwar. The Mosquito was known as the "Mossie" to its crews and was also known as "The Wooden Wonder" or "The Timber Terror" as the bulk of the aircraft was made of laminated plywood.

Vickers .303 MMG

The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled .303 inch machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The machine gun typically required a 6-8 man team to operate: one to fire, one to feed the ammunition, and the rest to help carry the weapon, its ammunition and spare parts. The Vickers machine gun was based on the successful Maxim gun of the late 19th century. After purchasing the Maxim company outright in 1896, Vickers took the design of the Maxim gun and improved it, reducing its weight by taking out all unnecessary parts, and adding a muzzle booster.

Machine Gun Nest

Machine gun nests were used by all armies as a way of holding positions, covering paths of enemy advance, and providing friendly forces with suppressing fire. Typically they were not heavily fortified and relied on a combination of improvised cover, camouflage, and temporary, hand-made earthen embankments to protect the gun crews and conceal them.

Pillbox

A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks. Dug-in guard posts (with loopholes through which to fire weapons) made from concrete are also known as "pillboxes". The originally jocular name arose from their perceived similarity to the cylindrical boxes in which medical pills were once sold. They are in effect a trench firing step hardened to protect against small-arms fire and grenades and raised to improve the field of fire.

Medical Tent

Combat medics are trained military personnel who provide first aid and frontline trauma care on the battlefield. They are also provide continuing medical care in the absence of a readily available physician, including care for disease and battle injury. They are normally co-located with the combat troops they serve in order to easily move with the troops. In 1864, sixteen European states (referring to themselves as "High Contracting Parties"), adopted the First Geneva Convention to save lives, to alleviate the suffering of wounded and sick military personnel, and to protect trained medical personal as civilians, in the act of rendering aid.

Radio Tent

Communications became more reliable in WW2, as radio receivers, rather than telegraph wires, became more widely used. This allowed for a longer range of communications with scout planes, bombers, and distant units for coordinating mortar and howitzer attacks.

Airfield

WW2 saw the first wide use of aircraft in combat support roles. Airfields were often quickly erected in fields with support buildings made to help effect repairs and protect planes while they were on the ground, as well as provide a base from which scout patrols and air cover could be launched. Air superiority was essential to protect and support ground forces as they advanced.

Barbed wire

Wire obstacles are designed to disrupt, delay and generally slow down an attacking enemy. During the time that the attackers are slowed down by the wire obstacle they are easy to target with machinegun and artillery fire. Wire obstacles may range from a simple barbed wire fence in front of a defensive position, to elaborate patterns of fences, & concertinas hundreds of meters thick. One example is the "low wire entanglement", which consists of irregularly placed stakes that have been driven into the ground with only some 15 cm showing; the barbed wire is then wrapped and tightened on to these. An enemy combatant running through the barrier is apt to trip and get caught.

Dragon Teeth

Dragon's teeth (German: Drachenzähne, literally "Dragon Teeth") were square-pyramidal fortifications of reinforced concrete used during the Second World War to impede the movement of tanks. The idea was to slow down and channel tanks into "killing zones" where they could easily be disposed of by anti-tank weapons. In practice, however, the use of combat engineers and specialist clearance vehicles enabled them to be disposed of relatively quickly, and they proved far less of an obstacle than many had expected.

Hedgehog

The Czech hedgehog was a static anti-tank obstacle made of angled iron used during World War II by various combatants. The hedgehog is very effective in keeping tanks from getting through a line of defence. It maintains its function even when tipped over by a nearby explosion. Although it may provide some scant cover for infantry, infantry forces are generally much less effective against fortified defensive positions than mechanized units. The name refers to the place of origin. The hedgehogs were originally used on the Czech-German border by the Czechoslovak border fortifications - a massive but never-completed fortification system built on the eve of World War II by Czechoslovakia.

Minefield

A land mine is a target operated explosive. Their non-explosive predessors (caltrops, stakes and spikes) have been used on the battlefield since ancient times. Landmines were designed to be used to deter, channel, delay and kill an enemy. Land mines are force multiplier increasing the efficiency a defending force without requiring more personnel. The name originates from the practice of mining, where tunnels were dug under enemy fortifications or forces. These tunnels ("mines") were first collapsed to destroy fortifications above, and later filled with explosives and detonated.