M36/M36B1 Tank Destroyer: Rare Photographs from Wartime Archives

US doctrine before the Second World War held that tanks should not be used against enemy tanks, so specialised tank destroyers were built for that job. The 3-inch gun of the M10 proved inadequate against heavier German armour, so a larger 90mm M3 gun was fitted into a new open-topped turret.

The M36B1 was designed from scratch as a tank destroyer, on a hull based on the M4A3 with a standard M36 turret. Examining surviving vehicles suggests its hulls were made for the purpose rather than converted from M4A3 hulls.

After the war the tank destroyers were made obsolete by changes in US antitank doctrine, but many were supplied to other nations, and some served in combat into the 21st century. Published by Pen & Sword Military in 2019, with 128 pages and ISBN-13 9781526748928. It belongs to the Images of War series.