M7 Priest
It is my understanding that the M7 Priests were borrowed from the US Army for the D-day landings, and were to be returned to the Americans by the end of July.
The Following is from the official history of the Canadian Army in the Second World War “ The Victory Campaign” by C.P.Stacey (p210):
“General Simonds asked the Army Commander to obtain American permission to utilize for the purpose the U.S. "Priest" self-propelled guns which had just been withdrawn from the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, and General Crerar did so.
The urgent task of converting the "equipments" in time for the operation was undertaken by an ad hoc Advanced Workshop Detachment, 250 strong, known by the code name "Kangaroo", the name subsequently applied to the armoured personnel carrier. The Officer Commanding, Major G. A. Wiggan, R.C.E.M.E., wrote, "There were 13 units represented in this AWD but in spite of long hours and exhausting work there was not only no friction but a wonderful spirit of co-operation from first to last."The work began actively only on 3 August, the day on which the intention to undertake "Totalize" became firm, but by that evening a pilot model had been completed and sent to Simonds for inspection. The guns and mantlets were removed and armour-plate welded over the openings. When the supply of armour-plate gave out, two sheets of mild steel were substituted, with the space between them filled with sand. (General Mann recalls that the Navy complained at this time that Canadian soldiers were cutting pieces of plating out of craft stranded on the beaches.) Thanks to the "Kangaroo" men (among whom there were some British soldiers) the carriers were ready well ahead of the time for the operation. By the morning of Sunday 6 August, 76 Priests had been converted.”
The return date was pushed back to the end of September. After the fall of Boulogne the Priest Kangaroos were withdrawn from service, the guns remounted and the M7s returned to the Americans.
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04-07-04, 14:10
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