Numbers on Tank Turrets

The unique turret markings of British Centaur tanks.

It may be noticed that during the Second World War, some British tanks particularly tanks which appeared for all intents and purposes to be Cromwells had numbers painted on their turrets. While visually similar to the Cromwell, these tanks are in fact Centaurs. The numbers on their turrets appear remarkably like degrees of a compass. The question therefore abounds as to why these tanks carry such unique markings.

Belonging to the Royal Marines Armoured Support Group, these tanks were intended to provide fire support to Royal Marine units during the Normandy invasion. The Royal Marine Armoured Support Group was equipped with Centaur Mk IV tanks, but did utilise a handful of Shermans. Discover the unique history of these tanks in the below video.