French Tanks of World War II (1): Infantry and Battle Tanks

by Steven J. Zaloga, Ian Palmer (Illustrator)

Overview

The first of two volumes covering the French armor of World War II, this title looks at the infantry and battle tanks that faced the onslaught of the German Blitzkrieg in 1940. Many of the French tanks were intended as replacements for the World War I-era Renault FT, and various modernization efforts throughout the inter-war years had given rise to a number of new infantry tanks, including the Renault R35 and R40, FCM 36, and the Hotchkiss H35 and H39. Alongside these developments was a separate family of battle tanks, starting with the Renault D1, D2, and, finally, the best-known French tank of the campaign – the Char B1 bis. French Tanks of World War II (1) offers a background to the design and development of these tank types, and an evaluation of their performance in the Battle of France.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472807762
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	02/20/2014
Series:	New Vanguard , #209
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	48
File size:	13 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Steven J. Zaloga received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has worked as an analyst in the aerospace industry for over two decades, covering missile systems and the international arms trade, and has served with the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think tank. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and military history, with an accent on the US Army in World War II as well as Russia and the former Soviet Union.
Steven J. Zaloga received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has worked as an analyst in the aerospace industry for three decades, covering missile systems and the international arms trade, and has served with the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think tank. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and history, including NVG 294 Allied Tanks in Normandy 1944 and NVG 283 American Guided Missiles of World War II. He currently lives in Maryland, USA.
Ian Palmer is a highly experienced digital artist with two decades of experience in the video games industry, both as a 3D artist and an Art Director. He has a passion for military history, gaming and riding his motorbike. He lives in Warwickshire with his wife, daughter and menagerie of pets.

Table of Contents

The Legacy Tank: Renault Ft 4

The Other Legacy Tank: Char De Rupture 2C 6

Modernizing the Ft 7

Char Léger D1 8

The Arms Race of the Late 1930s 10

Infantry Tank Organization in 1940 12

Unit Organization: The French DCR 14

Char Puissant D2 16

Char Léger MLE. 1935 R (Renault R35) 18

Char Léger FCM 36

Cavalry Tank for the Infantry: The Hotchkiss H35 and H39 26

Char B 31

Char B1 Bis 33

Renault Ue Infantry Vehicle 38

Chenillette Lorraine 42

The Shape of Things to Come 43

Further Reading 46

Index 48