List of British military equipment of World War II
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The following is a list of British military equipment of World War II which includes artillery, vehicles and vessels. This also would largely apply to Commonwealth of Nations countries in World War II like Australia, India and South Africa as the majority of their equipment would have been British as they were at that time part of the British Empire. However commonwealth countries did make their own unique weapons like the Owen gun and Vickers–Berthier.
Uniforms/protective equipment
[edit]
- MKl*, and MKll “steel or bowl style helmet”[1][2] - both the MKl* and Mkll helmet were introduced in 1938
- Mk III "Turtle" helmet[3] - introduced in 1944
- Helmet Steel Airborne Troop - for airborne forces
- Beret - the beret was introduced in place of the Field service cap for some units with specific colours for some units
- Green beret[4] - worn by British Commandos
- Maroon beret[5] - from 1942 by airborne units
- Tan beret[6] - Special Air Service from 1942 till 1944
- Black beret[7] - by armoured units, including the Royal Tank Corps from 1924
- Service Dress[8] - the field uniform at the start of the war until replaced by battledress
- Battledress ("Uniform No. 5")[9][page needed][10]
- 1937 pattern web equipment[11][12]
Knives and bayonets
[edit]
Pattern 1907 bayonet which was the standard bayonet for the SMLE No 1 mk III which was the standard British rifle in WWII till 1941 when the SMLE No 4 mk I was introduced which replaced it. 
No. 4 Bayonet which was the standard bayonet for late war Enfield No. 4 mk I rifle. - Sten bayonet mk I-Sten mk II
- No. 5 Bayonet
- No. 7 Bayonet-Sten mk V
- Push dagger
- BC-41
Fairbairn-Sykes fighting knife made famous by British special forces. - Smatchet
- Bayonet
- Kukri
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Weapons
[edit]Vehicles
[edit]- British Commonwealth armoured fighting vehicles of World War II
- British armoured fighting vehicle production during World War II
- See also: List of World War II military vehicles by country#United Kingdom
Naval ships
[edit]- List of Classes of British ships of World War II
- List of requisitioned trawlers of the Royal Navy (WWII)
Naval equipment
[edit]Aircraft
[edit]- List of aircraft of the United Kingdom in World War II
- Naval aircraft
- Equipment of RAF bombers
Radar
[edit]- Ground
- Chain Home, early warning radar
- Chain Home Low
- AMES Type 7
- GL Mk. I radar, gun laying radar for anti-aircraft batteries
- GL Mk. III radar, gun laying radar for anti-aircraft batteries
- Aircraft
- Monica (radar), tail warning radar fitted to bombers
- H2S (radar), ground scanning radar fitted to bombers
- AI Mk. IV radar, airborne interception radar fitted to fighters
- AI Mk. VIII radar, airborne interception radar fitted to fighters
- ASV Mark II radar
- ASV Mark III radar
- Naval
Missiles and bombs
[edit]Aerial bombs
[edit]
- Fire balloons
- "Bouncing bombs"
- Upkeep
- Highball
- Gas bombs
- Smoke bombs
- Tallboy bomb
- Grand Slam bomb
- Blockbuster bombs
- Disney bomb
Cartridges and shells
[edit]
- .303 British for standard issue rifles and light machine guns
- .38 S&W for standard issue revolvers
- 9×19mm Parabellum for standard issue submachine guns
See also
[edit]- List of equipment used in World War II
- List of common World War II infantry weapons
- List of secondary and special-issue World War II infantry weapons
References
[edit]- ^ Edwards, Nina (Freelance writer) (27 October 2014). Dressed for war : uniform, civilian clothing and trappings, 1914 to 1918. London. ISBN 978-0-85773-511-9. OCLC 895162723.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Dunstan, Simon (1984). Flak jackets : 20th Century Military Body Armour. Volstad, Ron. London: Osprey. ISBN 0-85045-569-3. OCLC 12519792.
- ^ "Steel Helmet, MKIII (with net): British". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ "Green Beret". webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Reynolds, David (1 September 1998). Paras: an illustrated history of Britain's airborne forces. Sutton. ISBN 978-0-7509-1723-0. pp. 1, 34, 121.
- ^ "Special Air Service (SAS) beret belonging to Ronald Grierson, 1970s (c) | Online Collection | National Army Museum, London". collection.nam.ac.uk. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ^ "Beret, Royal Tank Regiment". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ^ "British soldiers in France in 1939(in WW2) wearing service dress".
- ^ Jewell, Brian (1981). British Battledress, 1937-61. Men At Arms. illustrated by Mike Chappell. London: Osprey. ISBN 0-85045-387-9. OCLC 9732793.
- ^ Burns, Michael (1992). British combat dress since 1945. Arms & Armour. ISBN 0-85368-984-9. OCLC 26310051.
- ^ "Page 2 of 1937 Pattern Web Equipment". www.diggerhistory.info. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
- ^ Brayley & Chappell 2001, p. 39.
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