The US Army realized that with the coming war in Europe, mobile artillery was a must and self-propelled artillery was ideal. Early adaptations of half-track-based gun mounts revealed that the best system would have to be armored and fully tracked. The first iteration of a fully tracked and armored carriage was the pairing of a 105mm howitzer with a reworked M3 Lee chassis. This pairing was designated as the T32 during its development and trials, and upon production authorization was redesignated at the M7 Howitzer Motor Carriage.
During early production of the M7, a number of these vehicles were diverted to support the British Army, and in that service the vehicle was named 'Priest' because of the pulpit-like machine gun mount. While in British service, the M7 Priest was a very successfuly weapons system except for one crucial detail - the armament was American, which meant that it was incompatible with British rounds and therefore required special logistics to support the vehicle in combat.
In US service, the M7 was a great success and provided the US Army with crucial fire support throughout the push off the beaches and into Germany. The M7 was later upgraded from the M3 Lee to the M4 Sherman chassis late in the war and use of the M7 continued well into the Korean War.
Vier verschillende uitvoeringen mogelijk;
- U.S.Army, 2nd Armored Division, Sicily, July 1943.
- Battery B, 14th AFAB, U.S.Army, 2nd Armored Division, Normandy, 1944.
- British Army, 11th Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, 1st Armored Division, El Alamein, 1942.
- 31st Firing Battery, 64 RADB, French 2nd Armored Division, France, September 1944.
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