German Ground Power in View

Captured Soviet BA-10 armored car providing cover for the gun crew of a 37mm anti-tank gun, Russia.

An SdKfz. 302, electric powered version, displayed at the Deutsches Panzermuseum, Munster (2005).

Goliath 303a captured by the Polish troops during Warsaw Uprising on display in the Polish Army Museum in Warsaw.

12cm Granatenwerfer 42 being sighted.

Heinz Guderian, front left, inspecting panzer troops in training.

General Heinz Guderian, commander of Germany’s Panzergruppe 2, chats with members of a tank crew on the Russian front, on September 3, 1941.

Captured German Bergepanther armored recovery vehicle under trials in Britain.

Bergepanzer Tiger recovery vehicle. The Bergetiger was the name the Allied forces gave to a German World War II armored tracked vehicle based on the Tiger I chassis. The vehicle was found abandoned on a roadside in Italy with terminal engine problems. The main gun had been removed, and a boom & winch assembly had been fitted to the turret. No other Tiger tanks modified in this manner were ever recovered. At the time the vehicle was found it was assumed the vehicle was intended as a tank recovery vehicle. Germans used the "berge" prefix to denote recovery vehicle versions of tanks, such as the "Bergepanther" and "Bergepanzer". Thus the allies dubbed the vehicle they had found the "Bergetiger". No official German name for this vehicle has ever been located. The Bergetiger's role as a recovery vehicle has been disputed ever since its discovery. The evidence often cited against it being a recovery vehicle is that its crane was not designed to tow the weight of a tank, nor was it equipped with any other common recovery equipment. A popular alternate theory is that the vehicle was field-modified (possibly after suffering damage to the main gun) as either a mine-clearing vehicle, or to drop explosives to clear battlefield obstacles.

Brummbär 15cm self-propelled howitzer.

15cm StuH 43 L/12 Brummbär self-propelled howitzer on Sturmpanzer chassis.

A German solider fires a backpack flamethrower across a field of tall grass in the Soviet Union. Circa 1941-1942.

Portable flamethrower Model 35 in operation.

Watched by an intrigued member of a German assault gun unit, a pioneer readies his equipment, a Kleif-type man-pack flamethrower. Note his asbestos gloves and heavy one-piece overalls.

Flamethrower Model 41 in action. Note the protective suit worn by the operator.

Man-portable flamethrower equipment.

German flamethrower Model 40 in action.

German Flamethrower Model 40.

Flamethrower Model 40 in action.

 

German flamethrower Model 40 in action.

German portable flamethrower Model 35 in operation.

German flamethrower Model 40 in action with Fallschirmjäger.

German portable flame thrower Model 41 introduced about August 1942.

German portable flame thrower Model 42.

German flamethrower in action.

General Franz Halder.

German soldiers aboard a Jagdpanzer IV/70 tank destroyer from the 12th SS Panzer Division during the Bulge.

This Jagdpanzer IV/70 of SS Panzerjäger Abteilung 1 was the mount of SS-Untersturmführer Otto Holst, commander of the battalion’s 1st Battery. It ended up in the Ambléve when SS-Standartenführer Hansen ordered the unit to attempt to cross the weak bridge at Petit-Spai.

Otto Holst’s Jagdpanzer IV/70 in the Amblève River after collapsing the Petit Spai bridge, 21 December 1944.

A blown bridge at Stavelot. Peiper, upon viewing such handiwork, muttered, “Those damned engineers.” A knocked out Jagdpanzer IV/70 assault gun is at left.

Jagdpanzer IV self-propelled gun, outside Oberpleis, Germany, March 1945.

Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyer.

Rear of same Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyer.

Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyer with 7.5cm StuK 42 L/70 gun.

Munitionspanzer IV Ausf F ammunition carrier for the Karl heavy mortar. Shown here with its crane raised.

Munitionspanzer IV Ausf F in traveling configuration.

One Lorraine 37L conversion was equipped with a 50mm cannon. It was used by the French resistance unit designated 1.Groupement Mobile de Reconnaissance, but it is not clear whether the conversion was performed by the Germans or the French.

7.5cm PaK 40/2 auf Fahrgestell PzKpfw II (Sf) (SdKfz 131) self-propelled gun.

Marder III self-propelled gun, Russia.

Marder III and troops before the launching of Operation Citadel, Kursk.

Panzerjäger 38(t) für 7.62 cm PaK 36(r) Sd.Kfz. 139 Marder III.

Waffen-SS troops with Mauser pistol.

German MG34 gunner.

On the second day of Pentecost, a large war game was organized by the Potsdam HJ under the guidance of experienced soldiers with modern new equipment (MG 34), June 14, 1943.

MG 34 on an anti-aircraft tripod mounting in use by the Afrika Korps in North Africa. It is fitted with a 50-round drum magazine and an anti-aircraft ring sight.

MG34 used on its tripod mount in the heavy machine gun role. The crew are wearing the Gebirgsmütze forage cap and normal field gray service dress.

This photo shows a Gebirgsjäger MG 34 machine gunner wearing anorak, white side out and with hood up and drawstring tied.

An MG 34 gunner on watch in a defensive position in North Africa. His helmet is effectively camouflaged with thick daubs of dried mud.

Twin MG 34 machine guns in an anti-aircraft mounting.

Waffen-SS crew operating an MG34 as a heavy machine gun as indicated by the sight.

MG34 being operated by a crew from the SS-Polizei Division.

A German machine gunner felled so quickly by an Allied bullet, that he still has hold of the ammo box. The MG 34 machine gun was probably placed against the wall by the photographer. Note the cloth wraps around his right boot. Probably late in the war, this showed the poor state of supply in the German armed forces by that time.

MG 34 machine gun sited in its curved weapon pit. The shape of the trench allowed the gunner to fire on an almost 360-degree front, while his crew could reload and feed in the ammunition belt. Also visible in the photo are two clips of rifle ammunition.

MG 34 7.92mm machine gun. A Mauser-built recoil-operated air-cooled machine gun with a rate of fire of 750 to 800 rounds per minute. It weighed 24.5 pounds and was fed from a 250-round link belt.

The first Russian winter. A German MG 34 heavy machine gun crew searches their sector of fire. The gunner’s pistol holster is clearly visible as is the squad leader’s MP 40 machine pistol and universal binocular container.

MG42 in service.

MG42 ready for action.

When there was little time to properly set up the MG42, another soldier could stand in for the mount. The MG34 was also used in this fashion.

German mountain troops had a distinctive badge featuring an Edelweiss mountain flower. In white metal it was carried on the left side of the Gebirgsmütze. On the service tunic it was worn on the right sleeve within an embroidered design. The men of this MG 42 light machine gun team are wearing the calico windjacket, a double breasted loose-fitting coat in sage green which is rarely seen in pictures as it was issued only on a ten percent strength basis. The gloves are dark field gray, in wool.

MG42 team in action.

MG42s being tested in a twin anti-aircraft mount. MG34s were also used in this mount and were found on naval vessels.

German infantry on the march in the Ardennes, December 1944. The first man carries a Panzerfaust and the second man a MG 42 machine gun, for which they are all carrying spare ammunition belts.

German MG 42 machine gun team.

A German squad clearing houses in the Soviet Union, armed with MP40s and rifles.

German soldier with an MP40.

Germany was so impressed with Britain’s miracle Sten gun, they stole the design and produced their own version of the famous $10 sub-machine gun. In fact, the MP 3008 was a near-perfect knock off of the iconic Mk. II Sten, save for its vertical magazine port — the Allied weapon was loaded through the side. Simple, but effective in close quarters, the MP 3008 was well suited to the urban warfare that marked the final days of the Third Reich. More than 10,000 MP 3008s were manufactured and distributed to Volkssturm formations before the German surrender.

MP44 machine carbine with rubber muzzle cap.

MP44 machine carbines in use with Luftwaffe field troops.

MP44 Sturmgewehr.

Waffen-SS soldier with Sturmgewehr StG 44.

Nashorn self-propelled gun, Riedwihr area, Germany.

Luftwaffe airmen with Opel Blitz.

Opel Blitz, Luftwaffe.

A Grossdeutschland Opel Blitz leads the (Mot) Inf. Division’s race to the Lower Don from 8-22 July 1942.

Czech LT-40 light tank with several PzKpfw. 35(t)s in background on the Russian front.

Panzerkampfwagen I light tanks, pre-war.

Uparmored PzKpfw IIIs, Eastern Front.

PzKpfw III medium tanks in production.

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. H in front, second vehicle is an up-gunned Ausf. F, Sofia, 1941.

Early Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. J.

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. J (Special).

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. M.

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. M.

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. M fitted with full skirt armor for hull and turret, circa 1943.

Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. N with short 75mm L/24 from the Panzerkampfwagen IV for the close support role and sometimes called the Sturmpanzer III. This particular vehicle was converted from an Ausf. L vehicle.

In 1942, 100 Ausf. M vehicles were converted to Panzerkampfwagen III (Fl) flamethrower tanks by replacing the 5cm gun with a flame projector which resembled the gun barrel but without a taper.

Panzerbefehlswagen III Ausf. E.

Panzerbefehlswagen III Ausf. E.

The Artillerie-Panzerbeobachtungswagen III armored observation post variant had a fixed turret with a dummy wooden gun barrel and a central ball-mounted machine gun in the mantlet, and served observation officers for motorized artillery units. This particular example is based on an Ausf. H.

Artillerie-Panzerbeobachtungswagen III with armored side skirts on hull and turret, converted from an Ausf. E or F, Russian Front, 1943.

Panzerkampfwagen III.

PzKpfw IV Ausf G.

By 1943-44 most PzKpfw IVs in action were fully equipped with long 75mm guns and Schürtzen plates, 8mm around the turret and 5mm on the sides. These new Ausf H vehicles (note the single cupola hatch) advancing through the outskirts of a Russian town have only the extra turret protection.

Camouflaged PzKpfw IV tanks, Russia.

Camouflaged PzKpfw IV with the long 7.5cm L43 gun, Russia.

PzKpfw IV undergoing maintenance.

PzKpfw IV.

PzKpfw IV.

Panzerkampfwagen IV tanks being prepared for travel by railroad flatcars.

Panzerkampfwagen IV, Belgium.

Replacing the track of a Panzerkampfwagen IV.

Panzerkampfwagen IV undergoing maintenance.

PzKpfw IV.

PzKpfw IV medium tank, dug-in, Lebisey-Caen road, France, July 1944.

Same PzKpfw IV medium tank, 4th vehicle, 3rd troop, 1st company, 1st battalion, dug-in, Lebisey-Caen road, France, July 1944.

PzKpfw IV medium tank turret interior.

PzKpfw V Ausf G Panther, abandoned due to engine failure near Cleryaux, Luxembourg, February 1945. A very recent heavy rain gives the impression of a gloss finish.

PzKpfw V Ausf G Panther medium tank.

Although in service with the regular army and Waffen-SS since 1942, the Panzerfaust or “tank fist” was also liberally distributed to the soldiers of the Volkssturm. The 13-lb. single-shot, rocket launcher required virtually no training to operate, but its melon-sized, fin-stabilized warhead could punch a hole in any Allied armored vehicle on the battlefield from distances of up to 150 meters. While only marginally effective in open country, the weapon was devastating in urban settings. In fact, during the Red Army’s 1945 invasion of Germany, up to 70 per cent of the Soviet tanks that were destroyed in action were taken out by man-portable weapons like the Panzerfaust. Upwards of 6 million rolled off assembly lines between 1942 and the war’s end, the most plentiful variants being the Panzerfaust 60 and Panzerfaust 100.

A Panzerfaust armed German soldier from the Panzer Division Hermann Göring smiles for the camera, Eastern Front, 1944.

Hollow charge anti-tank grenade being fitted into the barrel of a Panzerfaust.

Volksturm unit armed with Panzerfausts.

Surrendered German weapons and equipment, possibly from a Luftwaffe ground unit (note the Luftwaffe insignia on the helmets).

Surrendered German weapons, equipment and munitions.

88mm Panzerschreck ready for action. The gunner wears a protective face mask. Later models had a protective shield eliminating the need for the mask.

German soldier with a Panzerschreck anti-tank rocket launcher dug in at the edge of a hedgerow waiting for Allied armor to come down the road.

Maultier truck with armored body and Panzerwerfer 42 10-barreled rocket launcher.

Knocked out Maultier Panzerwerfer rocket artillery half-track, late August 1944.

Knocked out Maultier Panzerwerfer rocket artillery half-track, near Fussingen, Germany, March 1945.

Modified Polish TKS tankette used by the Germans as a light tractor in Norway.

Waffen-SS soldier at Kursk armed with a Soviet PPSh 41 submachine gun.

SdKfz 8 and a Czech Praga T IX tractor towing a Me 323D-1 Gigant transport across a field to the runway, Tunisia, December 1942.