The elegant British 40mm 2-pdr. was designed between the two wars as a replacement for the less-capable 47mm 3-pdr. tank weapon. Entering service in 1936, the anti-tank gun version included features unheard for the time: an optical sight, semi-automatic breech, two-speed traversing gear, and a two-wheeled carriage with three trail legs. When its wheels were raised from the ground, it could be quickly traversed through 360 degrees.

     A little known fact is that an HE shell was developed for the 2-pdr., but for some unexplained reasons it was never put into general service. That meant both tank and anti-tank fire was limited to just solid-shot
AP rounds; HE fire power coming from machineguns or ‘close-support’ tanks armed with 3.7 inch breech-loading mortars or 3 inch howitzers – two vehicles required to do the job of one.