page_title: Tanks of the interwar period
section_title: Czechoslovakia
hierarchical_section_title: Tanks of the interwar period / Czechoslovakia
caption_attribution_description: English: Czech manufactured LTP tank preserved at the Real Felipe Fortress. These tanks served with the Peruvian Army in the 1941 Ecuadorian-Peruvian War. Español: Tanque LTP de manufactura checa, preservado en la Fortaleza del Real Felipe. Estos tanques sirvieron con el Ejército del Perú en la Guerra del 41.
context_page_description: World War I established the validity of the tank concept and between the two world wars, many nations needed to have tanks, but only a few had the industrial resources to design and build them. During and after World War I, Britain and France were the intellectual leaders in tank design, with other countries generally following and adopting their designs. This early lead would be gradually lost during the course of the 1930s to the Soviet Union and, to a lesser extent, Nazi Germany.
context_section_description: The Czech Army bought three Carden-Loyd tankettes and a production licence for them in 1930, Českomoravská Kolben-Daněk building four copies that same year as prototypes for future orders. The Carden-Loyds were evaluated during the Fall maneuvers and revealed numerous problems: the crews had very poor vision through the narrow slits, the machine gun had a very narrow field of fire and the crewmen had a difficult time communicating. Furthermore, they were slow, underpowered and often broke down. One of the P-1 prototypes was rebuilt to address these issues with additional vision ports in all directions, internal ammunition storage and the machine gun's field of fire increased to 60°. It was extensively tested during 1931–32 and a few other changes were made as a result. The armor was increased from 6 to 8 mm (0.24 to 0.31 in) and from 9 to 12 mm (0.35 to 0.47 in) and a fixed machine gun was added for the driver. Two of the other prototypes were rebuilt to the same standard; all three were officially accepted by the Army on 17 October 1933. The order for seventy was placed on 19 April 1933, all being delivered by October 1934. The Škoda T-21 (original designation was Škoda Š-IIc) was Škoda's contribution to the IIc army category (medium tanks for general use) and a direct competitor to Praga V-8-H.
  In the early thirties both Praga and Škoda (main competitors for both Czechoslovak army contracts but also with regard to export) designed some successful light tanks (LT-35, later the LT-38) but both companies produced some unsuccessful infantry support tank designs, notably the Praga P-IIb and Škoda Š-IIb. Subsequently, both companies worked together to design a joint infantry tank project, designated ŠP-IIb. Both companies however also continued to work on their own private attempts to build IIb/IIc category prototypes. These private attempts would later become the Praga V-8-H and Škoda T-21.
  The main design works on the T-21 began as early as September 1936. The first prototype was finished in May 1937 and first variant from May 1937 was the original Š-IIc. The engine development was delayed and the prototype was fitted (in order to save time) with a 190 hp 13-liter V6, originally intended for the Š-III breakthrough tank prototype. In September 1937, the V6 engine was removed and the original Škoda engine intended for it was installed. It still failed its tests which were stopped in November, marking the end of the 1st development stage of T-21. By that time the Ministry of Defence committee was looking for a suitable Czechoslovak medium tank for the army but the Š-IIc did not to make the June 1938 army tests deadline and as a result this was the end of the T-21 as a potential Czechoslovak army medium tank. In any case, after the German occupation of Czechoslovakia that was no longer possible, not without German consent at least. During the early months of occupation German delegations visited the Škoda factory and tests were performed with the Š-IIc prototype which, by 22.5.1939, had been renamed, to fit the German nomenclature principles to Škoda T-21 (T = tank, 2 = medium, 1 = 1st variant). The Germans initially wanted to test it at Kummersdorf, but did not show too much interest in the design and instead the Germans decided to produce an improved version, which was named T-22.
  The British Carden-Lloyd Tankette's Czechoslovakia had acquired led to the Czechoslovakia designed tank, the Tančík vz. 33 which was assembled from a framework of steel "angle iron" beams, to which armor plates were riveted. The front armor was 12 mm (0.47 in) thick, the sides had a thickness of 8 mm (0.31 in), the top was 6 mm (0.24 in) thick and the bottom plates were 6 mm (0.24 in) in thickness. This was deemed enough to deflect armor-piercing 7.92 mm (0.312 in) bullets fired from distances greater than 125 metres (137 yd) from the front and 185 metres (202 yd) from the sides. Both were supposed to withstand ordinary bullets from over 50 metres (55 yd).
  The 1.95 litres (119 cu in), water-cooled, 30 horsepower (22 kW), inline 4-cylinder Praga eng
caption: A LT vz. 38 Czech LTL exported to Peru and designated as LTP
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