The commander was given a seat so the co-driver could act as the gunner in combat. A number of modifications were made to British Stuarts. It was nearer to the cruiser tank, and so was originally used in that role. Its armour was too thin for it to quality as an infantry tank, but its small turret and short range limited its use as a cruiser tank. The Stuart fell between the two main types of British tanks. The Americans also recognised the potential for confusion, and the M4 Light Tank was redesignated as the M5 to avoid a clash with the M4 Sherman Medium Tank. The M3 Light Tank became the General Stuart, normally shortened to just Stuart, while the M3 Medium Tank became the Lee or the Grant. The British decided to give their new American tanks names in order to avoid confusion between the M3 Light Tank and M3 Medium Tank.

In July 1941 84 were sent to the Middle East, where they were an invaluable addition to the strength of the 8th Army.

280 of the first 538 M3s to be produced reached the British. The Stuart was soon outclassed by more modern German tanks, but remained in use as a reconnaissance tank to the end of the war.Īfter the introduction of Lend Lease the British ordered 100 M2A4 Light Tanks and as many M3 Light Tanks as could be spared. The Stuart Light Tank was the British designation for the American M3 and M5 Light Tanks, the first tank to be received in large numbers after the start of Lend-Lease and an important addition to the British armoured forces in North Africa in 1941-42.

British modern light tanks