The Vickers Mk. I Was first used in a Tank with the Mk. I Heavy Tank from 1916 - the first true production Tank. These were crewed by men of the Machine Gun Corps. They were subsequently used in most Tanks up to the Second World War, particularly those built by the Vickers Company.
Early tanks came in both 'Male' and 'Female' versions. The Male was fitted with 6-pounder quick-firing guns, and four Hotchkiss Light Machine Guns. The Female Tank was fitted with 4 Mk. I Vickers MGs in sponsons on each side (two per side), as well as two Hotckiss MGs in the front and rear doors.
| Date first in service | June 1916 | |
| Type | Mark I, Female | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 27 | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft ½ in |
| Width | 14 ft 4 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 26 ft 5 in | |
| Crew | 8 | |
| Armament | 4x .303in. Vickers MGs 1 x .303-in. Hotchkiss MG | |
| Ammunition | 31,232 | |
| Engine | Daimler, 105 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 23 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 3.7 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 12 to 6 mm | |
| Remarks | Originally provided with a tail to assist in crossing obstacles and steering, which increased overall length to 32 ft 6 in. The first tank to go into action (Sept. 1916). | |
The Mk. II was a development of the Mk. I but, for several reasons, was relegated to training purposes only. The weapons arrangements were as for the Mk. I (4 Vickers MGs on the Female variant).
All subsequent Marks of Tank used only Hotchkiss and Lewis guns. It wasn't until post-Great War Tank developments that the Vickers was reintroduced into Tank use and specific AFV variants were produced.
| Date first in service | 1924 | |
| Type | Medium, Mark I | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 11¾ | |
| Overall | Height | 9 ft 3 in |
| Width | 9 ft 1½ in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 17 ft 6 in | |
| Crew | 5 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 3-pdr. |
| Secondary | 2 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. Four mountings for Hotchkiss MGs. | |
| Ammunition | Main | 90 |
| Secondary | 5,000 | |
| Engine | Armstrong Siddeley 90 b.h.p. (air-cooled) | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 150 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 18 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 6.5 mm | |
| Remarks | Commonly called the Vickers Medium - and originally designated the Light Tank Mark I. The Mark IA differed mainly in its armour thickness of 8 to 6.5mm. Close support versions of the tanks were armed with a 3.7-in. mortar instead of a 3-pdr. gun. | |
| Date first in service | 1926 | |
| Type | Medium, Mark II | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 12½ | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 10 in |
| Width | 9 ft 3 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 17 ft 6 in | |
| Crew | 5 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 3-pdr. |
| Secondary | 2 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. Four mountings for Hotchkiss MGs. | |
| Ammunition | Main | 90 |
| Secondary | 5,000 | |
| Engine | Armstrong Siddeley 90 b.h.p. (air-cooled) | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 150 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 18 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 8 mm | |
| Remarks | Close support versions of the tanks were armed with a 3.7-in. mortar instead of a 3-pdr. gun. | |
| Date first in service | 1926 | |
| Type | Independent | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 31½ | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 10 in |
| Width | 10 ft 6 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 25 ft 5 in | |
| Crew | 8 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 3-pdr. |
| Secondary | 4 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. | |
| Ammunition | Main | 200 |
| Secondary | 7,000 | |
| Engine | Armstrong Siddeley 398 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 200 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 20 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 29 - 13 mm. | |
| Remarks | The first multi-turret tank; only one built. The A1E1 specification. | |
| Date first in service | 1930 | |
| Type | Medium, Mark III | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 18¾ | |
| Overall | Height | 9 ft 9 in |
| Width | 9 ft 0 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 21 ft 5 in | |
| Crew | 6 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 3-pdr. |
| Secondary | 3 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. | |
| Ammunition | Main | 180 |
| Secondary | 5,000 | |
| Engine | Armstrong Siddeley 180 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 100 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 30 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 14 mm. | |
| Remarks | The original version, known as the '16 tonner' had twin machine guns in the auxiliary turrets. Only three of these machines were built. | |
| Date first in service | 1931 | |
| Type | Light Tank, Mk. IIA & IIB | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 4¼ | |
| Overall | Height | 6 ft 7½ in |
| Width | 6 ft 3½ in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 11 ft 9 in | |
| Crew | 2 | |
| Armament | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. | |
| Ammunition | 4,000 | |
| Engine | Rolls-Royce 66 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 150 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 30 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 10 - 4 mm. | |
| Remarks | These were typical vehicles of the light tank series evolved from the Carden-Loyd tankettes. Used in operations in India 1935 - 1939. | |
Mk. VIB
| Date first in service | 1938 | |
| Type | Light Tank, Mk. VIA & VIB | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 5½ | |
| Overall | Height | 6 ft 9 in |
| Width | 6 ft 9 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 13 ft 0 in | |
| Crew | 3 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x .5-in. Vickers MG. |
| Secondary | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. | |
| Ammunition | Main | 400 |
| Secondary | 2,500 | |
| Engine | Meadows 89 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 130 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 35 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 14 - 4 mm. | |
| Remarks | Mark VI tanks were used in France and the Middle East in 1940-1941. A later Mark of tank, the Mark VI C differed in having Besa machine-guns, instead of Vickers. | |
| Date first in service | 1938 | |
| Type | Cruiser, Mark I (A9, Mark I) | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 12 | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 4 in |
| Width | 8 ft 4 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 19 ft 3 in | |
| Crew | 6 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 2-pdr. |
| Secondary | 3 x .303-in. Vickers MGs. (one coaxial and two in auxiliary turrets) | |
| Ammunition | Main | 100 |
| Secondary | 3,000 | |
| Engine | A.E.C. 6-cyl. 150 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 100 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 25 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 14 - 6 mm. | |
| Remarks | First tank to be fitted with hydraulic traversing gear. Close support version armed with 3.7-in. mortar instead of 2-pdr. gun. | |
| Date first in service | 1938 | |
| Type | Infantry Tank, Mark I | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 11 | |
| Overall | Height | 6 ft 1½ in |
| Width | 7 ft 6 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 15 ft 11 in | |
| Crew | 2 | |
| Armament | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MG. | |
| Ammunition | 4,000 | |
| Engine | Ford V8 70 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 80 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 8 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 60 - 10 mm. | |
| Remarks | The first post-Great War vehicle specifically designed as an infantry tank. Heavily armoured for its day. | |
| Date first in service | 1939 | |
| Type | Cruiser, Mark II (A10, Mark I) | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 13¾ | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 6 in |
| Width | 8 ft 3½ in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 18 ft 1 in | |
| Crew | 4 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 2-pdr. |
| Secondary | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MG. (coaxial) | |
| Ammunition | Main | 100 |
| Secondary | 4,050 | |
| Engine | A.E.C. 6-cyl. 150 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 100 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 16 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 30 mm. | |
| Remarks | Close support version of the tank was armed with a 3.7-in. mortar instead of 2-pdr. gun. The cruiser tank Mark IIA was the firt tank to be armed with the Besa machine-gun and had a crew of 5, and a second Besa machine-gun. | |
| Date first in service | 1939 | |
| Type | Cruiser, Mark III (A13, Mark I) | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 14¾ | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 6 in |
| Width | 8 ft 4 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 19 ft 9 in | |
| Crew | 4 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 2-pdr. |
| Secondary | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MG. (coaxial) | |
| Ammunition | Main | 87 |
| Secondary | 3,750 | |
| Engine | Nuffield Liberty I 340 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 90 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 30 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 14 - 6 mm. | |
| Remarks | The first Cruiser with Christie suspension. The Marks IV and IVA were almost identical, the main difference being an increase to 30 mm. max in the armour protection of the turret and frontal plating of the hull. | |
| Date first in service | 1939 | |
| Type | Infantry Tank, Mark II (Matilda) | |
| Weight in Tons (fully laden) | 26½ | |
| Overall | Height | 8 ft 0 in |
| Width | 8 ft 6 in | |
| Length (inc. gun) | 18 ft 5 in | |
| Crew | 4 | |
| Armament | Main | 1 x 2-pdr. |
| Secondary | 1 x .303-in. Vickers MG. (coaxial) | |
| Ammunition | Main | 93 |
| Secondary | 2,925 | |
| Engine | A.E.C. 2 x 87 b.h.p. | |
| Fuel Endurance (road miles) | 70 | |
| Max. Road Speed (m.p.h.) | 15 | |
| Armour (max. or max.-min.) | 78 - 20 mm. | |
| Remarks | Other models of the tank had a 7.92-mm. Besa MG. which superceded the Vickers. There were five marks of Matilda differing mainly in engine type. It was the first diesel-engined British tank. Close support version with 3-in. howitzer. | |
The Matilda was the last tank in British service to be armed with the Vickers MG. After this, they were replaced with the 7.92-mm Besa, and subsequently .30-in. Browning MGs.