From Normandy to Germany in a Tank: The Memoirs of an Armoured Guardsman

A British tank soldier’s memoir detailing his perilous WWII journey, fierce battles, frontline experiences, and the liberation of Europe.

What was tank warfare like for an ordinary conscripted British soldier in the Second World War? Arthur Ibbotson was a Grenadier Guardsman whose training and battles from Normandy to Northern Germany (1943-45) help provide an answer.

He trained using the 30-ton M4 Sherman tank but after being flown into Normandy, he instead joined the crew of a 15-ton M5 Honey reconnaissance tank. Despite its diminutive size and small gun, he drove daily into enemy territory, coming close to death on five occasions.

His first combat involved capturing 100+ POWs, described here in detail for the first time. This was followed immediately by Operation Market Garden, where his tank periodically led the 50,000 men of 30 Corps. He defended the supply route against repeated German attacks and dealt with friendly fire from the US 101st, neither topic often covered in histories of the battle. Unlike the common portrayal of Market Garden as a disaster, Arthur regarded it as a victory, a perspective discussed in detail. Later, the Battle of the Bulge required a relocation back to Belgium, an often-overlooked British action.

Before crossing into Germany, he was issued with an ultra-modern M24 reconnaissance tank. While learning the vagaries of this technological wonder, he encountered more near-death situations, including a hit from a Panzerfaust and the death of a close friend that was killed by a mine over which Arthur had just driven. Explaining why he had gone through so much; he liberated a concentration camp days before the war’s end and spent his final service returning the country to peace.