Editing Matilda II (section)

===North Africa 1940 to 1942===
[[Image:Matilda Compass.jpg|thumb|A Matilda advancing through [[Egypt]] as part of [[Operation Compass]]]]

Up to early 1942, in the [[North Africa campaign|war in North Africa]], the Matilda proved highly effective against Italian and German tanks, although vulnerable to the larger calibre and medium calibre anti-tank guns.

In late 1940, during [[Operation Compass]], Matildas of the British [[7th Armoured Division (United Kingdom)|7th Armoured Division]] wreaked havoc among the Italian forces in [[Egypt]]. The Italians were equipped with [[L3/35|L3 tankettes]] and [[M11/39|M11/39 medium tanks]], neither of which had any chance against the Matildas. Italian gunners were to discover that the Matildas were impervious to a wide assortment of artillery. Matildas continued to confound the Italians as the British pushed them out of Egypt and entered [[Libya]] to take [[Bardia]] and [[Tobruk]]. Even as late as November 1941, German infantry combat reports show the impotence of ill-equipped infantry against the Matilda.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rommelsriposte.com/2008/10/12/defending-position-19/ |title=Defending Position 19 |work= The Crusader Project|date=12 October 2008 }}{{self-published source|date=October 2014}}</ref>{{Self-published inline|date=October 2014}}

Ultimately, in the rapid manoeuvre warfare often practised in the open desert of North Africa, the Matilda's low speed and unreliable steering mechanism became major problems. Another snag was the lack of a high-explosive shell (the appropriate shell existed but was not issued).{{citation needed|date=December 2020}} When the German ''[[Afrika Korps]]'' arrived in [[North Africa]], the [[8.8 cm FlaK 18/36/37/41|88 mm anti-aircraft gun]] was again pressed into service against the Matilda, causing heavy losses during [[Operation Battleaxe]], when sixty-four Matildas were lost. The arrival of the more powerful [[5 cm Pak 38]] and [[7.5 cm Pak 40]] anti-tank guns also provided a means for the German infantry to engage Matilda tanks at combat ranges. Nevertheless, during [[Operation Crusader]] Matilda tanks of 1st and 32nd Army Tank Brigades were instrumental in the break-out from Tobruk and the capture of the Axis fortress of Bardia.{{sfnp|Orpen|1971|p={{page needed|date=October 2014}}}} The operation was decided by the [[infantry tank]]s, after the failure of the [[cruiser tank]]s of the 7th Armoured Division to overcome the Axis tank forces in the open desert.{{sfnp|Murphy|1961|loc=Chapter 14 and 15|p={{page needed|date=July 2019}}}}

[[Image:E 003743 E.jpg|thumb|left|A captured Matilda put into use by the German forces, is recaptured and its crew taken prisoner by New Zealand troops, 3 December 1941 during the battle to open the corridor to Tobruk, Operation Crusader.]]

As the German army received new tanks with more powerful guns, as well as more powerful anti-tank guns and ammunition, the Matilda proved less and less effective. Firing tests conducted by the ''Afrika Korps'' showed that the Matilda had become vulnerable to a number of German weapons at ordinary combat ranges.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rommelsriposte.com/2010/04/27/german-firing-trials-against-the-matilda-ii/ |title=German Firing Trials against the Matilda II |work=The Crusader Project|date=27 April 2010 }}{{self-published source|date=October 2014}}</ref>{{Self-published inline|date=October 2014}} Due to the small size of the turret and the need to balance the gun in it, up-gunning the Matilda, without developing a larger turret, was impractical. There was at least one instance of the turret from the [[Cavalier tank|A24/A27 cruiser tank]] series being fitted to a Matilda, complete with 6-pounder gun. As the size of the Matilda's turret ring was 54&nbsp;inches (1.37 m) vs. the 57&nbsp;inches of the A27, it was possible that a larger turret ring had been superimposed on the hull. The Churchill Mark III also had a 54-inch turret ring but was armed with a 6-pounder and that might have offered an alternative route.{{sfnp|Fletcher|1994|p=14}} It was also somewhat expensive to produce. Vickers proposed an alternative, the [[Valentine tank]], which had the same gun and a similar level of armour protection but on a faster and cheaper chassis derived from that of their [[Cruiser Mk II|"heavy cruiser" Cruiser Mk II]]. With the arrival of the Valentine in autumn 1941, the Matilda was phased out by the British Army through attrition, with lost vehicles no longer being replaced. By the time of the [[Second Battle of El Alamein]] (October 1942), few Matildas were in service, with many having been lost during Operation Crusader and then the Gazala battles in early summer of 1942. Around twenty-five took part in the battle as mine-clearing '''Matilda Scorpion''' [[mine flail]] tanks.