By then, the M4 Sherman, a 75 mm (2.95 in) armed medium tank, was already scheduled for production. The M3 design process began in July 1940, as a derivative of the T5 Medium Tank prototype, the T5E2. M3 Lee at Fort Knox, June 1942 Design of the M3 – The “Iron cathedral” And the M3 Lee quickly turned into its most tangible symbol. As the Lend-Lease act was passed, on March 11, 1941, President Roosevelt famously declared that the USA should become the “ arsenal of democracy“. The British industry was not able to deliver enough tanks to defend both the homeland and the empire, and notably its vital crossing points, like the Suez Canal.

Shortly after the battle of Britain was over, war engulfed North Africa. The result of the blitzkrieg in France came as a real surprise and immediately triggered a complete re-thinking of US tank design. If you spot anything out of place, please let us know! Hello dear reader! This article is in need of some care and attention and may contain errors or inaccuracies. 400 tanks were available then, mostly Light Tank M2 models. Its tank design was evolving through a peacetime, post-crisis context, and tactical thinking was inherited from WWI. When war broke out in Europe in 1939, the USA was far from ready to enter the fray. Born as a replacement for the unsuccessful M2 Medium Tank (1938), which never left the American soil, the M3 was designed and equipped in a rush.

The Lee/Grant never achieved the fame of the Sherman. This was due to its very roots and the role it played during the war. Medium Tank – 6,258 Built A Lend-Lease stopgap tank

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