British Tank Markings - A Guide

[Jemima Fawr]

Ace!  Again, thanks for doing this, so we don't have to! 

I've been doing a lot of research and revision on the Burma Front just lately.  So disregard my Burma painting guide for the moment, as it's still wrong in a few areas and is going to be completely rewritten.  7th Armoured Brigade and 50th Indian Tank Brigade are on my blog in the corrected form.  254th Indian Tank Brigade will be up soon, to be followed by 255th Indian Tank Brigade.

[SquireBev]

Apparently MMP Books are in the process of reprinting Taylor's Warpaint series. Finally some good news in 2020!

http://mmpbooks.biz/ksiazki/30

[Etranger]

Excellent! The completist in me needs Vol 4. Some of their other titles are also good reference works, eg the one on the Valentine.

[SquireBev]

Added Commonwealth Infantry insignia. I'm afraid I'm still neglecting the Far East - sorry Jemima! I will get around to it, honest.



https://tank-markings.blogspot.com/p/divisional-insignia-infantry-formations.html

[Jemima Fawr]

No worries!  I contradict myself with every bit of new research anyway...

One observation re 3rd Canadian Division - the colour of their badge was 'French Grey', which was a very bluish shade.  The original military 'French Grey' was the light blue colour worn by British cavalry on tropical service, being a mixture of blue and white fibres.  So I'd make it more of a greyish pale blue shade.

[SirRoystonPapworth]

Does anyone have any idea of the insignia for the short lived Australian 1st Armoured Division?

[Jemima Fawr]

Does anyone have any idea of the insignia for the short lived Australian 1st Armoured Division?

Wasn't it a WW1 tank silhouette?  Like the RTR arm-badge?

[Etranger]

Wasn't it a WW1 tank silhouette?  Like the RTR arm-badge?

Arm patch, according to wiki anyway...

[Etranger]

And a nice pic or two of a 1AAD Grant.



from https://www.worldwars.com/bald-hill-exercise-1st-australian-armoured-division/

[Jemima Fawr]

Arm patch, according to wiki anyway...

Cheers!  The old grey cells weren't far off!

[Jemima Fawr]

Ah, I had a look to see what the 2/6th Armoured Regt Stuarts at Buna had as markings; it was an armoured arm holding a battleaxe (white on black), but the unit patch was the WW1 tank badge as above, but on a diagonally-split red/green backing.  From further reading, it seems that the div sign was the arm with battleaxe, but the individual regiments wore the WW1 tank badge with different coloured backings.

[Jemima Fawr]

[Etranger]

Ah, I had a look to see what the 2/6th Armoured Regt Stuarts at Buna had as markings; it was an armoured arm holding a battleaxe (white on black), but the unit patch was the WW1 tank badge as above, but on a diagonally-split red/green backing.  From further reading, it seems that the div sign was the arm with battleaxe, but the individual regiments wore the WW1 tank badge with different coloured backings.

from wiki again. More on the Buna Stuarts here http://anzacsteel.hobbyvista.com/Armoured%20Vehicles/m3inactionph_1.htm including description of tank markings.


With the infantry & the cavalry regiments that traced their lineage back to the WWI AIF (or earlier) they often took the unit insignia from the ancestral formation, so a diagonal or horizontally split shoulder patch was common.

[SirRoystonPapworth]

Blimey chaps! Thank you!

Unusually I hadn't thought of looking on Wikipedia, it just seemed too obscure...

[Etranger]

Although I wouldn't use Wiki as the only primary source, for non-controversial topics it usually has useful information and there are typically links to references.