Centurion Mk 13 MBT 'Sophia Leeann'

The development of the Centurion Main Battle Tank began in 1943 when the British Army asked for a new cruiser tank equipped with at least a 17-pounder gun. They wanted a fast tank that, even though heavily armored, would perform well in cross-country travel. Six prototypes of the new tank, known as the A-41, were built and sent to Germany in 1945, but the war ended just a month before they saw combat. Initially, they were equipped the 17-pdr (76.2-mm) cannon which was one of the best tank guns used by the Western Allies during the war. By the time Centurions saw combat in 1950 during the Korean War, they had been upgunned to the more powerful 20-pdr (83.4-mm) cannon. This remained the standard gun on Centurions until the early 1960s when they were upgunned with the 105-mm L7 cannon.

The four-man crew of the Centurion was well-protected with armor up to 6-inches (152-mm) thick. Stowage bins mounted on the turret sides provided standoff protection from HEAT rounds while skirts along the suspension helped protect against anti-tank rockets. Various upgrades throughout the years allowed the Centurion to stay in service with many countries well into the 1980s.

The Centurion has been exported to numerous countries including the Canada, Denmark, Israel and South Africa. They saw action in numerous wars including the Indo-Pakistani Wars, Arab-Israeli Wars, the 1956 Suez War, and various conflicts in southern Africa between South Africa and Cuban forces.

Between 1946 and 1962, 4,423 Centurions were produced, consisting of 13 basic marks and numerous variants. In British Army use it was replaced by the Chieftain.

Mk 8 - Mk 10 - MK 13
The Centurion Mk 8 was produced between 1953 and 1956, before being succeeded by later variants such as the Mk 10., featured a fully cast turret and was armed with the 20-pounder gun. The Mk 13, developed around 1967, was an advanced evolution of the Mk 10, which was again an advanced upgrade of the Mk 8. It incorporating upgrades such as the 105mm L7 gun, improved armor, infrared searchlight, smoke dischargers, and enhanced NBC protection. The Mk 13 was modernized/upgraded between 1967-1969.

CENTURION MARKS

Centurion Mk 1 – Initial Production Model Designation; 17-pdr main gun

Centurion Mk 2 – 17-pdr main gun; improved armor protection; cast turret.

Centurion Mk 3 Fitted with 20pdr, 2 stowage positions for track links on glacis

Centurion Mk 4 – Proposed close-support model; fitted with CS 95mm gun.

Centurion Mk 5 Browning machine guns fitted to coaxial and commander’s cupola mounts, stowage bin on glacis

Centurion Mk 5/1 (FV4011) – Improved Armor Protection

Centurion Mk 5/2 Up gunned to 105mm L7

Centurion Mk 6 – Based on Mk 5; up gunned to 105mm L7 ; improved armour.

Centurion Mk 6/1 – Based on Mk 6; fitted with IR equipment.

Centurion Mk 6/2 – Based on Mk 6/1; fitted with ranging machine gun

Centurion Mk 7 (FV4007) – Revised engine compartment.

Centurion Mk 7/1 (FV4012) – Improved Armor

Centurion Mk 7/2 – Up gunned Mk 7 Version to 105mm L7

Centurion Mk 8 – Redesigned barrel base and commander’s cupola.

Centurion Mk 8/1 – Improved Armor

Centurion Mk 8/2 – Up gunned Version to 105mm L7

Centurion Mk 9 (FV4015) – Based on Mk 7 Model; up gunned to 105mm L7 and improved armor.

Centurion Mk 9/1 – IR equipment

Centurion Mk 9/2 – Fitted with ranging machine gun

Centurion Mk 10 (FV4017) – Based on the Centurion Mk 8 model; additional armor  protection; 105mm L7 main gun.

Centurion Mk 10/1 – IR equipment

Centurion Mk 10/2 – Based on the Centurion Mk 10 but with a ranging machine gun

Centurion Mk 11 – Based on Mk 6 model but with ranging machine gun and IR equipment.

Centurion Mk 12 – Based on Mk 9 model but with ranging machine gun and IR equipment.

Centurion Mk 12 AVRE 105 – Forward Artillery Observation Vehicle modified for AVRE.

Centurion Mk 13 – Based on Mk 10 model but with ranging machine gun and IR equipment.