Jolly Good Guns for King and Country: British Small Arms of World War II
The British had to do what they could as they stood alone against the might of Nazi Germany and that resulted in some unique development in small arms.
Boys Anti-Tank Rifle
While not technically an infantry weapon, the Boys Anti-Tank Rifle did see a variety of uses during the early stages of World War II. The gun was developed by Captain H C Boys prior to the war, and it was adopted for service in 1937. It was used against lightly armored German tanks and combat vehicles, and Britain also supplied Boys to Finland for use against the Soviet Union in the Winter War.
However, by 1941, as tank armor increased, the gun was essentially ineffectual as an anti-tank weapon. The .55 Boys cartridge was still useful against bunkers, machine gun nests, and light-skinned vehicles, and the gun remained in service until 1943 when it was replaced by the American .50 caliber M2 Browning machine gun.
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer who has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites. He is the author of several books on military headgear including A Gallery of Military Headdress, which is available on Amazon.com.
Image: Reuters.