View source for Ordnance QF 2-pounder

{{Short description|Tank gun and anti-tank gun}}{{About|the World War II tank and anti-tank gun|the anti-aircraft "pom-pom" autocannon|QF 2 pounder naval gun}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
<!--SCROLL DOWN IN ORDER TO EDIT THE ARTICLE-->
{{Infobox weapon
| name               = Ordnance QF 2 pounder
| image              = File:The British Army in the United Kingdom 1939-45 H23836.jpg
| image_size         = 300
| caption            = QF 2 pounder set up for firing; the gun commander stands behind the gun and the third crewmember would fetch ammunition.
| origin             = United Kingdom
| type               = [[Tank gun]]<br/>[[Anti-tank gun]]
<!-- Type selection -->| is_ranged          = yes
| is_bladed          = 
| is_explosive       = 
| is_artillery       = yes
| is_vehicle         = 
| is_UK              = yes
<!-- Service history -->| service            = 1936–1945
| used_by            = United Kingdom<br/>Australia<br/>Ireland<br/>Nazi Germany (captured)<br>Egypt<br>Malaysia
| wars               = [[Spanish Civil War]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaweap00chri |url-access=limited |last=Bishop|first=Chris |date=1998 |publisher=Barnes & Noble Books |isbn=0760710228 |location=New York|oclc=40924461 |page=[https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaweap00chri/page/n177 180]}}</ref><br>[[World War II]]<br>[[1948 Arab–Israeli War]]<ref>{{cite book|title=Israeli Defense Forces, 1948 to the Present |series=Uniforms Illustrated 12|last1=Russell|first1= Lee|last2= Katz|first2= Sam |publisher=Olympic Marketing Corp|date=April 1986|isbn=978-0853687559|page=6}}</ref>
<!-- Production history -->| designer           = 
| design_date        = 1936
| manufacturer       = [[Vickers-Armstrongs]]
| production_date    = 1936–1944
| number             = 12,000<ref name=MF>{{cite web |url=http://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=468 |title=Ordnance QF 2-pounder Anti-Tank Gun |date=2018-09-29 |work=Military Factory |access-date=5 February 2013 |archive-date=29 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429062333/https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=468 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| variants           = <!-- General specifications -->
| spec_label         = on Carriage Mk II
| weight             = {{convert|814|kg|lb|abbr=on|order=flip}}
| length             = 
| part_length        = overall: {{convert|2.08|m|ftin|abbr=on|order=flip|sigfig=1}} L/52 {{efn|rifling was {{convert|5|ft|6|in|abbr=on}}<ref>Boyd</ref>  }}
| width              = {{convert|59.25|in|m|abbr=on}}
| height             = {{convert|55.15|in|m|abbr=on}}
| crew               = 3–5<ref name=MF/>
<!-- Ranged weapon specifications -->| cartridge          = 40×304mmR<ref>{{citation |url=https://armourersbench.com/2019/03/10/the-2-pounder-anti-tank-gun/ |title=The 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun |work=The Armourer's Bench |date=2019-03-10 |access-date=19 September 2021 |archive-date=13 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413001655/https://armourersbench.com/2019/03/10/the-2-pounder-anti-tank-gun/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
| caliber            = {{convert|40|mm|abbr=on|3}}
| action             = 
| rate               = 22 rounds per minute
| velocity           = 2,600 ft/s (792 m/s) with AP shot
| range              = {{convert|1500|yd|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=MDT2>{{citation |publisher=War Office |title=Mobile Division Training Pamphlet No. 2, Notes on the Employment of the Tank Brigade |date=1938 |page=30}}</ref>
| max_range          = {{convert|1800 |yd|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=Handbook>''Handbook for the Ordnance, Q.F., 2-Pr Marks IX and X on Carriages, Q.F. 2-Pr., Marks I and II Land Service'' 1938</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2021}}
| feed               = [[Breech-loading weapon|Breech-loaded]]
| sights             = No.24b
<!-- Artillery specifications -->| breech             = Semi-automatic [[Rifled_breech_loader#The_sliding_block|vertical sliding-block]]
| recoil             = [[Hydro-spring]]
| carriage           = three-leg platform
| elevation          = -13° to +15°
| traverse           = 360°
}}

The '''Ordnance QF 2-pounder''' ([[British ordnance terms#QF|QF]] denoting "quick firing"), or simply "2 pounder gun", was a {{convert|40|mm|abbr=on|3}} British [[anti-tank gun]] and vehicle-mounted gun employed in the [[World War II|Second World War]].

It was the main anti-tank weapon of the artillery units in the [[Battle of France]] and, due to the need to rearm quickly after the [[Dunkirk evacuation]], remained in service during the [[North African campaign]]. In its vehicle-mounted variant the 2-pounder was a common main gun on British tanks early in World War II, as well as being a typical main armament of [[Armored car (military)|armoured car]]s, such as the [[Daimler armoured car|Daimler]], throughout the war. As the armour protection of [[Axis powers|Axis]] tanks improved, the 2-pounder lost effectiveness and it was gradually replaced by the 57 mm [[Ordnance QF 6 pounder|QF 6-pounder]] starting in 1942. It equipped infantry battalion anti-tank platoons, replacing their anti-tank rifles until being replaced in turn by 6-pounders, but remained in service until the end of the war.

This QF 2-pounder was distinctly different from the [[QF 2 pounder naval gun|QF 2 pounder "pom-pom" gun]]  naval [[anti-aircraft gun]] used by the [[Royal Navy]] which was a 40 mm autocannon.

==History==
The gun was developed as both a tank weapon and an anti-tank gun. For reasons of economy and standardization, it was accepted – as the 2-pdr Mark IX – for both purposes in October 1935. Carriages for the gun were designed by Vickers and the Design Department at the [[Royal Arsenal|Woolwich Arsenal]].{{sfn|Henry|2004|p=6–7}}
[[File:The British Army in the United Kingdom 1939-45 H9102.jpg|thumb|left|Mark I carriage, April 1941]]
Vickers was the first to submit a design, which was accepted as the 'Ordnance QF 2-pounder Mark IX on Carriage Mark I'. A limited number of pieces were built in 1936. The carriage had an innovative three-legged construction. In the travelling position, one of the legs was used as a towing trail, and the other two were folded. When the gun was positioned for combat, the legs were emplaced on the ground and the wheels were lifted up. Woolwich Arsenal had continued to develop their carriage and when re-examined was seen to be superior to Vickers design, and with this carriage the gun was adopted as 'Ordnance QF 2-pounder Mark IX on Carriage Mark II'. It was conceptually similar, although the wheels had to be removed when the gun was emplaced for combat. This carriage was also manufactured by Vickers.{{sfn|Henry|2004|p=6–7}}
[[File:Ordnance QF 2-pounder Gun, Marks IX & X, on Carriage QF 2-pounder, Mark II.png|thumb|left|Mark II carriage, firing and travelling views]]
The unusual construction gave the gun good stability and a traverse of 360 [[Degree (angle)|degree]]s, allowing it to quickly engage moving vehicles from any approach. The gunner had handwheels for traverse and elevation. Additionally, he could disengage the traverse mechanism and the gun commander could rotate the gun by pushing against the gunners shoulders. The commander was aided by a simple ring and bead sight on the top of the shield. The gunner had a 1.9x magnification telescopic sight with a 21 degree field of view, graduated from {{convert|600|yd|m|abbr=on}} to {{convert|1,800|yd|m|abbr=on}} at 300 yd intervals.<ref name=Handbook/> The gunner also had a notch and bead sight above the telescopic<ref name=TM30p150/>

With the Vickers carriage, the gun could also be fired from its wheels, at the expense of limited traverse. The shield was 5/16 inch armour plate. Typically it was towed by a 15-cwt (3/4-ton) truck{{efn|15 [[hundredweight]] was the nominal carrying capacity of the vehicle. The [[Morris CS8]] and [[Fordson WOT]]2 were typical of the type.}} with 68 rounds on the truck with a further 14 on the carriage itself.<ref name=TM30p150>{{citation |title=TM 30-410: Handbook on the British army : with supplements on the Royal Air Force and civilian defense organizations |date=September 30, 1942 |page =150-151 |publisher=War Department}}</ref> It could also be carried "portee" on a 30-cwt truck.

The 40&nbsp;mm 2-pounder could outperform{{citation needed|date=January 2013}} a typical 37&nbsp;mm piece, such as the German [[3.7 cm PaK 36]] or the [[Bofors 37 mm]], and significantly outclassed 25mm and 20mm weapons of that era. A drawback of the 2-pounder was that it was nearly twice as heavy as the PaK 36 and had a higher profile.{{citation needed|date=January 2013}}

The gun was first put into use on armoured fighting vehicles as the main armament of the new lines of cruiser and infantry tanks – the [[Cruiser Mk I]] and the [[Matilda II]] which entered production in 1937. The [[Light Tank Mk VII Tetrarch|Light Tank Mk VII]] designed in 1937 also had the gun, as did the [[Daimler armoured car]] developed in the following years.

To improve performance a squeeze bore system was developed. The [[Littlejohn adaptor]] which screwed onto the end of the gun's barrel was used with [[Armour-piercing_ammunition#APCNR|Armour-piercing, composite non-rigid]] (APCNR) ammunition. The round fired a light alloy carrier surrounding a heavy [[tungsten]] shot; as it passed through the tapered barrel of the adaptor, the carrier was squeezed from 40 mm to 30 mm diameter. The reduction in cross-sectional area increased the driving force and therefore the velocity of the round taking penetration from 52 mm to 88 mm.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Antony G |date= |title=The Vickers 40mm S Gun With Littlejohn Adaptor |url=http://www.quarryhs.co.uk/sgun.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170416133317/http://www.quarryhs.co.uk/sgun.htm |archive-date=2017-04-16 |access-date=2023-06-17 |website=quarryhs.co.uk}}</ref>

A late-war project was the Canadian '''David High Velocity''' to allow 2-pdr ammunition to be fired from the larger-calibre 6-pdr. This was intended to improve the [[muzzle velocity]] of the shot. Initial trials carried out in Canada and the U.K. were promising; <ref>{{citation |contribution=Artillery, Anti-tank, Q.F. 2-pounder High Velocity “David” Firing and travelling trials |title=Canadian Military Headquarters, London (CMHQ), Files Block No. 55 - 5792 |editor-last=Fulton |editor-first=Colonel F.F. |publisher=Library and Archives Canada / Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |pages=1614–36 |contribution-url=https://heritage.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.lac_reel_c5792 |accessdate=2022-12-31 |archive-date=5 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240405153027/https://heritage.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.lac_reel_c5792 |url-status=live }}</ref> however the system was still being developed when the war ended, and the program was subsequently ended along with it.

Another development was the 2-pdr HV 'Pipsqueak', a postwar gun using a 40x438R cartridge originally intended as the main armament for the [[Alvis Saladin]] armoured car that was to replace the [[AEC armoured car]]. This was designed to fire [[Armour-piercing_ammunition#Types|Armour-Piercing Discarding Sabot]] (APDS) rounds, which would match the penetration of the 'Littlejohn adaptor' shot while still allowing high-explosive (HE) shells to be fired. The claimed performance was better, the {{convert|1,295|m/s|abbr=on}} shot penetrating {{convert|85|mm|abbr=on}} of armour at 60 degrees at {{convert|900|m|yd|abbr=on}}. Development of this gun was also abandoned when the role of the Saladin shifted towards infantry fire support, and a low-velocity 76 mm gun was selected for it instead.{{citation needed|date=January 2013}}

Initially one of the most serious shortcomings of the 2-pdr was the lack of a high-explosive shell resulting from the British doctrine, especially when the 2-pdr was the main gun of a tank; this was very important when a tank was being used for infantry support, intentionally leaving it with only its machine gun for anti-personnel use. The doctrine was slow to change even in the light of battlefield experience,{{according to whom|date=June 2023}} and the high-explosive shell was not produced until late 1942.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wwiiequipment.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73:2-pounder-anti-tank-gun&catid=40:anti-tank&Itemid=58|work=WWII Equipment |title= The 2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun|last=Boyd|first=David|date=1 January 2009  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403152626/http://www.wwiiequipment.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=73:2-pounder-anti-tank-gun&catid=40:anti-tank&Itemid=58|url-status=live |archive-date=2022-04-03 }}</ref>

==Service history ==
[[File:Loading Valentine tank 2 pdr gun IWM E 9766.jpg|thumb|Crew inside a Valentine tank loading the gun]]
[[File:2-pounder gun.jpg|thumb|2 pounder in action, legs unfolded, with British troops]]
[[File:Australian 2-pdr anti-tank gun in action at Bakri on the Muar-Parit Sulong Road.jpg|thumb|Australian 2 pounder crew firing on Japanese tanks at [[point-blank range]] in the [[Battle of Muar]]]]
[[File:Type 95 Ha-Go tank Malaya AWM 011298.jpg|thumb|[[Type 95 Ha-Go]] tanks, victims of the Australian 2 pounder gun (see above image)]]

The 2-pdr gun became a part of the [[Royal Artillery]] in 1938, when five field brigades were converted to anti-tank regiments.{{sfn|Henry|2004|p=39}} In the early western campaigns, the 2-pdr was employed by two types of Royal Artillery formations: anti-tank [[regiment]]s of infantry [[division (military)|divisions]] (four [[Artillery battery|batteries]] with 12 pieces each), and light anti-aircraft/anti-tank regiments of armoured divisions (two 12-gun AT batteries). From October 1940, separate 48-gun anti-tank regiments were introduced in armoured divisions too. Infantry [[brigade]] structure initially included an anti-tank [[company (military unit)|company]], though it was typically equipped with [[25 mm Hotchkiss anti-tank gun]]s; these companies were disbanded later in the war. From 1942, infantry [[battalion]]s received their own six-gun anti-tank [[platoon]]s. The organization was different in the [[Far East]] theatres. The exact internal structure of AT units was also subject to changes and variations.

The gun first saw combat with the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War II)]] during the German invasion of the [[Low Countries]] and the subsequent [[Battle of Dunkirk|rear-guard actions at Dunkirk]]. Most of the British Army's 2-pdrs were left behind in France during the retreat, stripping most of the army's infantry anti-tank capability. Those guns captured at Dunkirk entered German service under the designation '''4.0&nbsp;cm Pak 192 (e)''' or '''4.0&nbsp;cm Pak 154 (b)''', the "e" and "b" referring to the origin (English or mistakenly attributed to the Belgian Army).

Although Woolwich Arsenal had already designed a successor to the 2-pdr, the [[Ordnance QF 6 pounder|6 pounder gun]], it was decided in the face of a possible German invasion to re-equip the army with the 2-pdr, avoiding the period of adaptation to production, and also of re-training and acclimatization with the new weapon. Consequently, 6 pounder production was delayed until November 1941 and frontline availability until spring 1942. Thus during most of the [[North African Campaign]] the army had to rely on the 2-pdr, augmented by the [[Ordnance QF 25 pounder|25 pounder gun-howitzer]] functioning as an anti-tank gun—a role for which it was capable (at the expense of diverting it from its main artillery role). As [[Nazi Germany|German]] tank design evolved, anti-armour performance of the 2-pdr gradually became insufficient; however, the gun owes a large part of the bad reputation it gained during the campaign to the open terrain, which made the high-silhouette piece hard to conceal, and to poor tactics.{{cn|date=September 2021}}

In North Africa, it was found that the 2-pdr was damaged by being towed long distances across rough, stony deserts. Starting in 1941, the British developed the "[[Portée (military)|en portee]]" method of mounting the 2-pdr, and later the 6-pounder, on a truck. Though only intended for transport, with the gun carried unloaded, crews tended to fire from their vehicles for more mobility, with consequent casualties. Hence the vehicles tended to reverse into action so that the gunshield of the 2-pdr would provide a measure of protection against enemy fire. An infantry battalion anti-tank platoon would have eight guns on 3-ton lorries<ref>{{citation |title=British Infantry battalion (Middle East) |url=http://bayonetstrength.uk/BritishArmy/BritInfBn/4.%20WE%20Inf%20Bn%20ME%20Apr1942.pdf |page=8 |quote=citing War establishment reference VI/547/1 effective April 1942 |website=Bayonetstrength.uk |access-date=19 September 2021 |archive-date=28 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221128100438/http://bayonetstrength.uk/BritishArmy/BritInfBn/4.%20WE%20Inf%20Bn%20ME%20Apr1942.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> On 21 November 1941 during [[Operation_Crusader#Sidi_Rezegh|battle of Sidi Rezegh]] Second lieutenant [[George Ward Gunn]] of the [[J (Sidi Rezegh) Battery Royal Horse Artillery|J Battery Royal Horse Artillery]] earned the [[Victoria Cross]] for his action with a 2-pdr. The troop of four portee 2-pdrs under his command engaged a German counter-attack of about 60 tanks. Three of the guns were knocked out, and all bar one gunner killed or fatally wounded. Despite the truck being on fire, Gunn manned the gun himself with a sergeant as his loader, engaging the enemy at 800 yards, he fired 40-50 rounds knocking out two tanks and damaging others before he was killed.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=35530 |date=17 April 1942|page=1741|supp=y}}</ref> The battery commander then took over.

From mid-1942, the 2-pdr was increasingly displaced to infantry anti-tank platoons, to [[Home Guard (United Kingdom)|Home Guard]] units in Great Britain, and to the Far East, where it was still effective against the smaller and more lightly armoured Japanese tanks. It was finally removed from service entirely in December 1945. As a vehicle weapon, it remained in use throughout the war. Although most tanks equipped with it were withdrawn or upgraded to the 6-pdr, it remained in use with armoured cars.

Its performance as an anti-armour weapon was improved later in the war with the development of more sophisticated ammunition and got an additional boost with the introduction of the [[Littlejohn adaptor]], which converted it to a [[Shell (projectile)#Armour-piercing, composite non-rigid|squeeze-bore]] design firing specially designed shells at much higher velocities. However, the Littlejohn adaptor prevented the use of [[High Explosive]] rounds. These improvements, however, were constantly outpaced by improvements in tank design.

As a tank gun, used stationary the effective range was out to 1500 yds.<ref name=MDT2/>

==Ammunition==
{| class="wikitable"
|- style="text-align:center;"
|+Available ammunition<ref>''Regulations for Army Ordnance Services Volume 4 Ammunition Pamphlet No. 8 Q.F. Fixed Ammunition Amendments No. 20 Part 2 Cartridge, Q.F., 2-pr., Mks. 9A and 10A Guns and Cartridge, Q.F., 2-pr., S.V., Mk. 10B Gun'' 1956</ref>{{sfn|Hunnicutt|1994|p =496}}<ref name="GUNSVSARMOUR">Guns vs Armour 1939 to 1945.</ref>
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center; "
!width="30%" |Type
!Model
!Shot/shell
!Round weight
!Projectile weight
!Filler
!Muzzle velocity
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | [[Shell (projectile)#Armour-piercing|Armour-piercing]], [[Tracer ammunition|tracer]]
|Shell AP/T Mk IT
|[[Shell_(projectile)#Armour-piercing|Shell]]
|
| {{convert|2.375|lb|kg|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|11|dram|g|abbr=on}} [[Lyddite]]
| {{convert|807|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | [[Shell (projectile)#Armour-piercing|Armour-piercing]], [[Tracer ammunition|tracer]]
|AP/T Mk I
|[[Round shot|Shot]]
| {{convert|2.04|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|1.08|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
|
| {{convert|792|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | Armour-piercing, tracer, increased charge
|APHV/T
|Shot
| {{convert|2.04|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|1.08|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| -
| {{convert|853|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | [[Armour-piercing, capped, ballistic cap]], tracer
|APCBC/T Mk I
|Shot
| {{convert|2.22|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|1.22|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| -
| {{convert|792|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | [[Shell (projectile)#Armour-piercing, composite non-rigid|Armour-piercing, composite non-rigid]]<br/> (used with the Littlejohn adaptor)
|AP/CNR (APSV{{efn|"armour piercing super velocity"}}) Mk I
|Shot
|?
| {{convert|1.037|lb|kg|abbr=on}}
| -
| {{convert|1,280|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | Armour-piercing, composite non-rigid<br/> (used with the Littlejohn adaptor)
|AP/CNR (APSV) Mk II
|Shot
|?
| {{convert|1.234|lb|kg|abbr=on}}
| -
| {{convert|1,189|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | Practice, tracer<ref name=Handbook/>
| Shot, Practice, Mk IT
| Flathead Shot
|
| {{convert|2.375|lb|kg|abbr=on}}
| -
| {{convert|610|m/s|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="border:1px solid #996; text-align:left" | [[Shell (projectile)#High-explosive|High-explosive]], tracer
|HE/T Mk II
|[[Shell (projectile)|Shell]]
| {{convert|1.86|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|0.86|kg|lb|abbr=on}}
| {{convert|3|oz|g|abbr=on}} [[TNT]] or [[RDX]]
| {{convert|792|m/s|abbr=on}}
|}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+Estimated armour penetration (mm)<ref>{{Cite book|title=World War II Ballistics: Armor and Gunnery |last1=Bird |first1=Lorrin |last2=Livingston |first2=Robert |publisher=Overmatch Press |year=2001 |location=Albany, NY  |page=60|oclc=71143143}}</ref>{{efn|Different methods of armour penetration measurement were used in different countries / periods. Therefore, direct comparison is often impossible}}{{failed verification|reason=these numbers to not match ones in source quoted|date=September 2021}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
!Distance
!{{convert|100|yd|m|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|500|yd|m|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|1000|yd|m|abbr=on}}
!{{convert|1500|yd|m|abbr=on}}
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="text-align:left" | AP (meet angle 30°)
| 53
| 47
| 40
| 34
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="text-align:left" | APHV (meet angle 30°)
| 105
| 90
| 74
| 60
|- style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center;"
|style="text-align:left" | APCBC (meet angle 30°)
| 58
| 53
| 49
| 44
|-
|}

==Variants==
Gun variants:{{sfn|Henry|2004|p=}}
*Mk IX – main pre-war production version, with barrel of autofrettage construction
*Mk IX-A – Mk IX simplified for mass production
*Mk X – later production version, with forged barrel
*Mk X-A – Mk X with dimension tolerances reduced
*Mk X-B – main late-war vehicle version, fitted with the Littlejohn adaptor
Carriage variants:
*Mk I – carriage designed by Vickers
*Mk II – carriage designed by the Royal Arsenal

==Self-propelled mounts==
[[File:Matilda Compass.jpg|thumb|Matilda II]]
[[File:2 pdr Aust ATG carrier(AWM 134672).jpg|thumb|Australian 2 pounder anti-tank gun carrier]]

;Tanks:
*[[Tetrarch tank|Light Tank Mk VII, Tetrarch]]
*[[Light Tank Mk VIII|Light Tank Mk VIII, Harry Hopkins]]
*[[Cruiser Mk I|Cruiser Tank Mk I]] 
*[[Cruiser Mk II|Cruiser Tank Mk II]]
*[[Cruiser Mk III|Cruiser Tank Mk III]]
*[[Covenanter tank|Cruiser Tank Mk V, Covenanter]]
*[[Crusader tank|Cruiser Tank Mk VI, Crusader]] – MkI and Mk II
*[[Matilda II|Infantry Tank Mk II, Matilda]]
*[[Valentine tank|Infantry Tank Mk III, Valentine]] – Marks I to VII
*[[Churchill tank|Infantry Tank Mk IV, Churchill]] – Mk I and Mk II
*[[Ram tank|Ram I]] (Canada)
*[[Sentinel tank|AC1 Sentinel]] (Australia)
;Armoured cars:
*[[AEC armoured car]] – Mk I
*[[Coventry armoured car]]
*[[Daimler armoured car]]
*[[Marmon-Herrington armoured car]] (South Africa) – Mk IV, and Mk VI prototype
*[[Rhino heavy armoured car]] (Australia, prototype only)
;Other vehicles:
*[[Universal Carrier#Australian|2 pounder anti-tank gun carrier]] (Australia, used for training)
*[[Loyd Carrier]]{{sfn|Chamberlain||Gander|1974|p= 38}} (experimental)

==Surviving examples==
*There is an [[Irish Army]] QF 2 pdr in the museum in [[Collins Barracks]] in Dublin City.
*Another QF 2 pdr is on display at the Canadian Military Heritage Museum in Brantford Ontario Canada.
*Two guns, one of them on an improvised carriage, are on display in the [[Israel Defense Forces History Museum|IDF History Museum]] (Batey HaOsef) in Tel Aviv, Israel.
*An Australian-made QF 2 pdr is on display at the [[Australian War Memorial]]. <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C153411|title=2 Pounder Anti-Tank Gun|website=www.awm.gov.au|language=en|access-date=2019-09-24|archive-date=24 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924105904/https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C153411|url-status=live}}</ref>
*The "Wakenshaw Gun", part of the Durham Light Infantry Museum collection, is on display at "The Story" Museum and archive, Mount Oswald, South Road, Durham, DH1 3TQ (https://www.thestorydurham.org/our-collections/online-collection/?item-id=DURLI_994&fromSearch=true&search=anti-tank)

==See also==
*[[QF 2 pounder naval gun]] "pom-pom" AA gun, of the same bore but with a pre-World War I heritage.
*[[British standard ordnance weights and measurements]]
*[[37 mm gun M3]], contemporary US equivalent
*[[45 mm anti-tank gun M1937 (53-K)]] 
*[[45 mm anti-tank gun M1932 (19-K)]]
*[[45 mm anti-tank gun M1942 (M-42)]], contemporary Soviet equivalents
*[[Type 94 37 mm anti-tank gun]]
*[[Type 1 37 mm anti-tank gun]]
*[[25 mm Hotchkiss anti-tank gun]]
*[[Bofors 37 mm anti-tank gun]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
;Notes
{{Reflist}}
;Bibliography
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Hogg |first=I. V. |author-link=Ian V. Hogg |title=Allied Artillery of World War Two |year=1998 |publisher=Crowood Press |location=Ramsbury |isbn=1-86126-165-9}}
* {{cite book |last1=Chamberlain |first1=Peter |last2=Gander |first2=Terry |title=Anti-Tank Weapons |year=1974 |publisher=Arco Publishing |location=New York |series=WWII Fact Files |isbn=0-668-03505-6}}
*{{citation |title=British Anti-tank Artillery 1939–45 |date=2004 |publisher=Osprey |series=New Vanguard 98 |last=Henry |first=Chris |isbn=9781841766386}} 
* {{cite book |last=Hunnicutt |first=R. P.|author-link=R. P. Hunnicutt |title=Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank |year=1994 |publisher=Presidio Press |isbn=0-89141-080-5}}
* {{cite web |title=British Guns 37mm and 40mm calibre: penetration table |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |url=http://gva.freeweb.hu/weapons/british_guns2.html |website=Guns vs Armour 1939 to 1945 |access-date=18 November 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101207005635/http://gva.freeweb.hu/weapons/british_guns2.html |archive-date=7 December 2010 |df=dmy-all }}
{{Refend}}

==Further reading==

*{{cite web |url=https://www.quarryhs.co.uk/37-40mm.htm |first=Anthony G. |last=Williams |title=37mm and 40mm guns in British service |date=1 June 2013 |df=dmy-all |work=Military Guns & Ammunition |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205132406/https://www.quarryhs.co.uk/37-40mm.htm |archive-date=2022-12-05 }}

==External links==
{{Commons|QF 2 pounder}}
*[http://www.tarrif.net/cgi/production/all_artillery_adv.php?op=show_atg&anti_tank_gunsX=7 2-pdr at WWII Online]


{{WWIIBritishCommGuns}}
{{BritishEmpireWeapons}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:QF 02 pounder}}
[[Category:Field artillery]]
[[Category:40 mm artillery]]
[[Category:World War II artillery of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:World War II tank guns]]
[[Category:Tank guns of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:World War II anti-tank guns]]
[[Category:Vickers]]
[[Category:Military equipment introduced in the 1930s]]