M26 Pershing tank

The M26 Pershing tank was an American heavy tank of the Second World War, armed with a powerful 90-millimetre gun, with thick frontal armour and a torsion-bar suspension, that entered service in the last months of the war in Europe and fought in the Battle of Remagen and in the advance into Germany. Named for General John J. Pershing, the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces in the First World War, the M26 was the first American tank that could fight the German Panther and Tiger on equal terms. About 2,200 were built, and the type served in Korea, where it fought Soviet-built T-34-85 tanks, and it became the basis for the M46, M47, and M48 Patton tanks that served the United States Army for the next forty years.

1. Key Facts

Field	Value
Type	Heavy tank (later reclassified medium)
Country	United States
Designer	Ordnance Department; built by Fisher Tank Arsenal and Detroit Tank Arsenal
Production	1944–1946
Number built	About 2,212
Crew	5 (commander, gunner, loader, driver, assistant driver/bow gunner)
Weight	About 41.7 tonnes (46 tons)
Length	8.65 metres (28 ft 4 in) with gun; hull 6.34 m
Width	3.51 metres (11 ft 6 in)
Height	2.78 metres (9 ft 1 in)
Engine	Ford GAF V-8 petrol, 500 hp
Speed	About 40 km/h (25 mph) on road
Range	About 160 km (100 miles) on road
Main armament	90 mm M3 gun (70 rounds)
Secondary armament	2 × .30-calibre machine guns; 1 × .50-calibre machine gun
Armour	Hull front 102 mm; turret front 102 mm; side 51–76 mm
Main theatres	North-West Europe 1945; Korea 1950–1953
Named for	General John J. Pershing

2. Origins and Development

The Need for a Heavier Tank

The M26 Pershing was developed because the American M4 Sherman, the standard medium tank of the United States Army, was outgunned and out-armoured by the German Panther and Tiger tanks that appeared in 1943. The Sherman’s 75-millimetre gun could not penetrate the frontal armour of the Panther or the Tiger at normal battle ranges, and its own armour could be penetrated by the German 75-millimetre and 88-millimetre guns at long range. The United States Army recognised that it needed a heavier tank, with a more powerful gun and thicker armour, and the Ordnance Department began work on the T26, a heavy tank armed with a 90-millimetre gun, in 1943. The T26 was developed from the earlier T23 medium tank, with a new turret, a new gun, and a torsion-bar suspension, and it was accepted for service as the M26 in 1944.

The T20 Series and the 90 mm Gun

The M26 was developed from the T20 series of medium tanks, which had been designed in 1942–1943 as a replacement for the Sherman, with a lower profile, a torsion-bar suspension, and a more powerful gun. The T23, the first of the series to be built, was armed with a 76-millimetre gun, but the Army wanted a 90-millimetre gun, which had been developed as an anti-aircraft gun and which could penetrate the armour of the Panther and the Tiger. The T25 and T26 were armed with the 90-millimetre gun, and the T26 was chosen for production, because it had the thickest armour and the best protection. The 90-millimetre M3 gun, with a muzzle velocity of about 853 metres per second, could penetrate about 150 millimetres of armour at 1,000 metres, which was enough to defeat the Panther and the Tiger from the front. The M26 was a tank that could fight the best German tanks on equal terms.

Production and the Zebra Mission

Production of the M26 began in November 1944 at the Fisher Tank Arsenal in Grand Blanc, Michigan, and at the Detroit Tank Arsenal, and about 2,212 were built by 1946. The first twenty M26 tanks were sent to Europe in January 1945 under the Zebra Mission, a special project to test the new tank in combat and to train American crews to use it. The Zebra Mission tanks were issued to the 3rd and 9th Armored Divisions, and they fought in the Battle of the Bulge, at Remagen, and in the advance into Germany, where they proved themselves against the Panther and the Tiger. The M26 arrived too late to have a major effect on the war in Europe, but it showed that the United States could build a heavy tank that was the equal of the best German tanks.

Delays and the Sherman Debate

The M26 was delayed by a debate within the United States Army about whether a heavy tank was needed, because the Army Ground Forces, under General Lesley McNair, believed that the Sherman was adequate and that tank destroyers, not tanks, should fight enemy tanks. McNair opposed the production of a heavy tank, and he delayed the M26 programme for more than a year, until the experience of Normandy, where Shermans were destroyed in large numbers by Panthers and Tigers, convinced the Army that a heavier tank was necessary. The delay meant that the M26 did not reach Europe until January 1945, and that only a few hundred were in service by the end of the war. The debate over the M26 is one of the most controversial episodes in the history of American tank development, and it is still debated by historians.

3. Technical Design

Hull, Armour, and Suspension

The M26 Pershing was a large, heavy tank, 8.65 metres long with its gun, 3.51 metres wide, and 2.78 metres high, weighing about 41.7 tonnes. Its hull was made of cast and welded steel, with a frontal armour of 102 millimetres, sloped at an angle that gave it an effective thickness of about 150 millimetres, and a side armour of 51 to 76 millimetres. Its turret was also well protected, with a frontal armour of 102 millimetres and a gun mantlet of 114 millimetres. Its torsion-bar suspension, with six road wheels on each side, gave it a smooth ride and good mobility over rough ground, though its weight made it slow and thirsty for fuel. Its Ford GAF V-8 petrol engine produced 500 horsepower, which gave it a top speed of about 40 kilometres per hour on the road and a range of about 160 kilometres.

The 90 mm Gun and Fire Control

The main armament of the M26 was the 90-millimetre M3 gun, a powerful weapon that could fire armour-piercing, high-explosive, and smoke rounds, with a muzzle velocity of about 853 metres per second for the armour-piercing round. The gun could penetrate the frontal armour of the Panther at 1,000 metres and the Tiger at 800 metres, which made the M26 the first American tank that could fight the best German tanks from the front. The gun was aimed with a telescopic sight and a periscopic sight, and it was stabilised in elevation, which allowed the gunner to fire on the move. The M26 carried 70 rounds of 90-millimetre ammunition, and its secondary armament was two .30-calibre machine guns, one coaxial and one in the bow, and one .50-calibre machine gun on the turret roof for anti-aircraft defence.

Crew and Ergonomics

The M26 had a crew of five: a commander, a gunner, a loader, a driver, and an assistant driver who operated the bow machine gun. The crew compartment was roomy by the standards of the time, with good visibility for the commander and the driver, and with a turret basket that allowed the gunner and the loader to work efficiently. The tank was comfortable to operate, though it was cramped in the turret, and its engine was noisy and hot. The M26 was liked by its crews, who appreciated its powerful gun and its thick armour, though they complained about its slow speed and its high fuel consumption. The crew of five was standard for American tanks, and it allowed the commander to concentrate on commanding, rather than on loading the gun.

4. Combat Service in Europe

The Battle of Remagen

The M26 Pershing first saw combat in Europe in February 1945, when the twenty tanks of the Zebra Mission were issued to the 3rd and 9th Armored Divisions, and they fought in the Battle of the Bulge and in the advance to the Rhine. The most famous action of the M26 in Europe was the Battle of Remagen in March 1945, when American troops captured the Ludendorff Bridge over the Rhine intact, and M26 tanks of the 9th Armored Division were among the first tanks to cross the river. The M26 tanks at Remagen fought German troops and tanks, and they provided fire support for the infantry, and they proved themselves in combat. The capture of the Remagen bridge was a turning point in the war, and the M26 was part of it.

The Advance into Germany

After Remagen, the M26 tanks fought in the advance into Germany, where they encountered Panther and Tiger tanks, and where they proved that they could fight the best German tanks on equal terms. At Dessau in April 1945, an M26 of the 3rd Armored Division destroyed a Tiger I at a range of about 1,000 metres, and at other actions M26 tanks destroyed Panthers and Panzer IVs. The M26 also fought in the Battle of Cologne, where it provided fire support for the infantry, and in the Ruhr Pocket, where it helped to encircle the German Army Group B. The M26 served in Europe for only three months, but it earned a reputation as a powerful and reliable tank, and it showed that the United States had finally built a tank that could match the Germans.

Super Pershing

One M26 was modified in the field as the T26E4 Super Pershing, with a longer, more powerful 90-millimetre gun and additional armour, and it fought in Germany in April 1945, where it destroyed a Panther and a Tiger. The Super Pershing was an experiment, and only one was built, but it showed that the M26 design could be improved, and it influenced the development of the later Patton tanks. The Super Pershing is remembered as one of the most powerful American tanks of the war, and it is displayed in museums as an example of what the M26 could have been if it had been developed earlier.

5. Combat Service in Korea

The First Tank Battles

In Korea, from 1950 to 1953, the M26 Pershing was the main American heavy tank, and it fought North Korean T-34-85 tanks and Chinese infantry in the first tank battles of the war. The M26 was sent to Korea in July 1950, as part of the first American reinforcements, and it fought in the Pusan Perimeter, where it stopped the North Korean advance, and in the Inchon landings, where it supported the Marines. The M26 was superior to the T-34-85 in firepower and in armour, and it destroyed many North Korean tanks, though it was also vulnerable to Chinese infantry with bazookas and to North Korean anti-tank guns. The Korean War was the largest and most important of the M26’s service, and it showed that the tank, though designed for the Second World War, was still effective in a new war.

Withdrawal and Replacement

The M26 was withdrawn from Korea in 1951, because its Ford engine was unreliable and underpowered, and because it was difficult to maintain in the field, and it was replaced by the M46 Patton, an improved M26 with a new engine and a new transmission. The M46 was a better tank, with a more powerful engine and a longer range, and it became the standard American tank in Korea. The M26 was retired from American service in the early 1950s, but it remained in service with other armies, including Belgium, France, and Italy, into the 1960s. The Korean War was the end of the M26’s front-line service, but it was also the beginning of the Patton series, which served the United States Army for the next forty years.

6. Strengths

Firepower and Armour

The greatest strengths of the M26 Pershing were its firepower and its armour, because its 90-millimetre gun could penetrate the frontal armour of the Panther and the Tiger, and its frontal armour of 102 millimetres, sloped, could resist the German 75-millimetre and 88-millimetre guns at long range. The M26 was the first American tank that could fight the best German tanks from the front, and it gave American tank crews the confidence that they could win a tank battle. Its gun was accurate and powerful, and its armour was thick enough to protect the crew against most German weapons. The M26 was a tank that could hold its own against any tank in the world in 1945, and it was a major step forward for American tank design.

Suspension and Mobility

The M26 had a torsion-bar suspension, which gave it a smooth ride and good mobility over rough ground, and which allowed it to fire on the move with reasonable accuracy. Its wide tracks gave it a low ground pressure, which allowed it to operate in mud and snow, and its steering was easy and responsive. The M26 was not as fast as the Sherman, but it was fast enough for a heavy tank, with a top speed of 40 kilometres per hour, and it could keep up with the infantry and with the other tanks. Its suspension and its mobility were strengths that made it a useful tank in Europe and in Korea, where it operated over difficult terrain.

7. Weaknesses

Engine and Reliability

The main weakness of the M26 Pershing was its engine, a Ford GAF V-8 petrol engine that produced only 500 horsepower, which was not enough for a tank that weighed 41.7 tonnes. The engine was underpowered, unreliable, and thirsty for fuel, and it gave the M26 a poor power-to-weight ratio and a short range of only 160 kilometres. The engine was the reason why the M26 was withdrawn from Korea in 1951, and why it was replaced by the M46 Patton, which had a more powerful engine. The M26 was a good tank with a bad engine, and its engine was its Achilles’ heel. The problem was solved in the M46, which used a Continental engine with 810 horsepower, and which became the standard American tank.

Weight and Transport

The M26 was heavy, at 41.7 tonnes, and it was difficult to transport, because it was too heavy for many bridges and too wide for some railway cars, and it required a special tank transporter to move it by road. Its weight also made it slow and difficult to manoeuvre in confined spaces, and it made it vulnerable to becoming stuck in mud. The M26 was a heavy tank, and its weight was the price of its thick armour and its powerful gun, but it was a real weakness, and it limited the tank’s usefulness in some theatres. The M26 was eventually reclassified as a medium tank, because the Army decided that its weight was acceptable for a medium, but its engine was not.

8. Comparison with Rivals

Against the Panther and the Tiger

The M26 Pershing was designed to fight the German Panther and Tiger, and it compared well with both. Its 90-millimetre gun could penetrate the Panther’s frontal armour at 1,000 metres and the Tiger’s at 800 metres, while its own frontal armour could resist the Panther’s 75-millimetre gun at long range and the Tiger’s 88-millimetre gun at medium range. The M26 was heavier than the Panther, but it was better protected, and it had a more powerful gun. The Panther was faster and had a better gun sight, but the M26 was more reliable and easier to maintain. The M26 was the equal of the Panther and the Tiger, and it was the first American tank that could claim that.

Against the T-34-85

In Korea, the M26 fought the Soviet-built T-34-85, and it was superior in firepower and in armour, because its 90-millimetre gun could penetrate the T-34’s armour at long range, while the T-34’s 85-millimetre gun could not penetrate the M26’s frontal armour at long range. The T-34 was faster and more manoeuvrable, and it was easier to maintain, but the M26 was better protected and better armed. The M26 destroyed many T-34 tanks in Korea, and it established a reputation as a powerful tank. The comparison with the T-34 showed that the M26, though designed for the Second World War, was still effective in a new war against a new enemy.

9. Legacy

The Patton Series

The legacy of the M26 Pershing is the Patton series of tanks, because the M46, M47, and M48 Patton tanks were all developed from the M26, using its hull, its turret, and its 90-millimetre gun, with a new engine and a new transmission. The M46 was an M26 with a Continental engine, the M47 was an M46 with a new turret, and the M48 was a new tank that used the lessons of the M26. The Patton series served the United States Army for more than forty years, in Korea, Vietnam, and the Middle East, and it was used by many other armies around the world. The M26 was the father of the Patton, and its design influenced American tank development for a generation.

A Symbol of American Tank Development

The M26 Pershing is remembered as the first American heavy tank that could fight the best German tanks on equal terms, and as a symbol of the United States Army’s ability to learn from its mistakes and to build a better tank. It is displayed in museums around the world, from the National Armor and Cavalry Museum at Fort Benning to the Tank Museum at Bovington, and it is respected by historians and by tank enthusiasts. The M26 arrived too late to have a major effect on the Second World War, but it showed that the United States could build a world-class tank, and it laid the foundation for the Patton series that dominated American tank design for the next forty years.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the M26 Pershing tank?
The M26 Pershing is an American heavy tank of the Second World War, armed with a 90-millimetre gun, with thick frontal armour and a torsion-bar suspension, named for General John J. Pershing.

How many M26 tanks were built?
About 2,212 were built between 1944 and 1946, by the Fisher Tank Arsenal and the Detroit Tank Arsenal.

When did the M26 first see combat?
It first saw combat in Europe in February 1945, with the 3rd and 9th Armored Divisions, and it fought at Remagen and in the advance into Germany.

Could the M26 defeat the Panther and the Tiger?
Yes. Its 90-millimetre gun could penetrate the Panther’s frontal armour at 1,000 metres and the Tiger’s at 800 metres, making it the first American tank that could fight them from the front.

Did the M26 serve in Korea?
Yes. It served in Korea from 1950 to 1951, where it fought North Korean T-34-85 tanks, before being replaced by the M46 Patton.

What was the Super Pershing?
The T26E4 Super Pershing was a single M26 modified with a longer 90-millimetre gun and extra armour. It fought in Germany in April 1945 and destroyed a Panther and a Tiger.

Sources

• The National Armor and Cavalry Museum, Fort Benning, M26 Pershing collection
• R. P. Hunnicutt, Pershing: A History of the Medium Tank T20 Series
• Steven J. Zaloga, M26/M46 Pershing Tank 1943–1953
• The Tank Museum, Bovington, M26 Pershing exhibits
• The US Army, Technical Manual TM 9-735: Heavy Tank M26
• The National WWII Museum, tank exhibits