Unfortunately, although the Mark VII had thicker armour, fitting the them with a 75mm gun was a major mistake due to it having an AP capability inferior to that of the 6-pdr - instead of being able (as proven in North Africa and Italy) to knockout Tigers and Panthers at 1000 yards plus, the 75mm gunned tanks sent far too many good men to their untimely deaths. The North Irish Horse, in which I served, used theirs almost exclusively as mobile artillery.