Valentine
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"From your Valentine"
- – St. Valentine, having no idea that a badass machine of war would be named after him
The Valentine tank, aka the Valentine MK II, is a unit available in Flames of War. It was a British tank that saw prolific service in the Soviet Army. In contrast to other tanks of the early war of British design, it was a tough and decent design.
IRL[edit]
The name of the Valentine is largely unknown, though the simplest explanations are that it was either named that on the day it was submitted to the War Office, or it was simply a generic codename used by Vickers Armstrong. After the loss of a ton of material after the Fall of France, the Valentine was rushed into production.
In spite of the concerns from the war department on the size of its turret and crew compartment, the tank rapidly began to replace the Matilda II after proving to be not only tough, but also for exceptional mechanical reliability. The QF 2 pounder lacked HE shells or adequate penetrating power, so later variants incorporated 75mm cannons. It made up the core of British lend-lease to the Soviet Union. The Soviets found the gun lacked penetrating power, but in general they enjoyed its reliability, smaller size, and superior armor.
Valentines also saw service in the Battle of Madagascar along their Tetrarch cousins, and in the Pacific New Zealand-crewed Valentines fought the Japanese on Nissan Island. In the latter part of the war, the Valentine was largely replaced by the Churchill, though some stayed on as command vehicles for detachments of Archer Tank Destroyers. The final official recorded use of the Valentine MK II was by the Greeks, who used a turretless variant during the Cyprus Emergency with a Bren gun.
| British Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | Crusader (Tank) - M5/M3 Stuart - Cromwell Recce - Churchill - M4 Sherman - T14 Heavy Tank - Matilda II - TOG 2 - Comet - Challenger - Valentine |
| Transports: | M3 Halftrack - Universal Carrier - CMP 3-ton - LVT-4 |
| Infantry: | Mortar Platoon - British Mech Company - Commando Platoon - Parachute Company - Rifle Platoon - Rifle Company - Vickers Platoon |
| Artillery: | 6lb Gun - 17lb Gun - M7 Priest - 25-Pounder Field Troop - Land Mattress |
| Tank Destroyer: | Archer (Tank Destroyer) - Churchill Gun Carrier |
| Recon: | Humber Scout Car Troop - Daimler Armoured Car Troop - Boarhound Armored Car - Staghound |
| Aircraft: | Typhoon - Hurricane - Auster - Kittyhawk |
| Anti-Aircraft: | Crusader AA - Bofors Light AA Troop - Bofors AA Troop |
| Soviet Forces in Flames of War | |
|---|---|
| Tanks: | T-70 - Valentine - M5/M3 Stuart - M3 Lee - T-34 - KV - Churchill - IS-2 - Captured Tank Platoon - T-28 - BT-7 - KV-2 - T-26 |
| Transports: | M3 Scout Car - Universal Carrier - SdKfz 251 |
| Infantry: | Rifles - Motor Rifles - Penal Company - Storm Group - SMG Company - Engineer Sapper Company |
| Artillery: | Katyusha - 152mm Artillery - 122mm Artillery - 76mm Artillery - 120mm Mortars - 82mm mortars |
| Tank Destroyers and Assault Guns: | 45mm Anti Tank - 57mm Anti Tank - 76mm Anti Tank - 100mm Anti Tank - SU-76 - SU-85 - SU-100 - SU-122 - SU-152 - ISU-122/ISU-152 |
| Recon: | Scout Platoon - BA-64 Platoon - Armored Reconnaissance Platoon - Reconnaissance Platoon |
| Aircraft: | Il-2 Sturmovik |
| Anti-Aircraft: | ZSU M17 - DShK AA MG Platoon |
| Midwar Monsters: | KV-3 - KV-5 - T-43 |