Panzer Heroes of World War II: [N.A.], #1

Introduction

Panzerwaffe

Introduction

Origins

Heinz Guderian, the tactician of the Panzerwaffe

A new way of waging war, the Blitzkrieg.

Panzertruppen

The Panzerwaffe in World War II

German Panzerwaffe armored vehicles

Introduction to German panzers

Light, medium and heavy tanks

Tank destroyers

Light, medium and heavy tank statistics

Anti-tank statistics

Panzer I

Panzer II

Panzer III

Panzer IV

Panzer V Panther

Tiger I

Tiger II

Panzerjäger I

Mader III

Hetzer

Jagdpanzer IV

Jagdpanther

Jagdtiger

Nashorn

Panzer Heroes of the Heer

Bäke, Franz

Carius, Otto

Interview with Otto Carius

Ernst, Albert

Hyazinth, Strachitz

Kerscher, Albert

Knispel, Kurt

Löwe, Erich

Sandrock, Hans

von Fersen, Ernst August Baron

Waffen-SS Panzer Heroes

Egger, Paul

Fey, Willi

von Ribbentrop, Rudolf

von Westernhagen, Heinz

Wittmann, Michael

Documents and certificates of Michael Wittmann

Lebenslauf (Curriculum Vitae)

R.u.S.R. Questionnaire

Michael Wittmann's service record

Telegram to the attention of Sepp Dietrich

Letter of recommendation of SS-Oberführer Wisch

Telegram of the Oak Leaves by Michael Wittmann

Memorandum of the Oak Leaves by Michael Wittmann

Memorandum supporting the Issuance of the Swords to Wittmann

Swords confirmation telegram to Wittmann

Wittmann's MIA Confirmation Note

Woll, Balthasar Bobby Woll, Balthasar Bobby

Epilogue

Symbology

World War II Fronts and Campaigns

Decorations

Axis Tanks

Graduation table

Panzerwaffe Aces

Bibliography

INTRODUCTION

« —Did our dive bombers do this?

—No, our panzers.»

Hitler’s question to Guderian as they were driving through the remains of a Polish artillery regiment

Armored vehicles have recently become very popular again. Modeling is back in fashion, as is video games related to the powerful machines that fought, mainly, in World War II.  This new boom has brought with it an important interest in everything related to them, and even today it is not uncommon to find merchandising of any kind, and there are also parents who dress their children with armored prints (me among them).  Of course, this is because the generation to which I belong, and a few that followed, grew up with an interest in history and military themes for various reasons and have enough purchasing power to make video games related to them world famous, so much so that some of these titles have millions of players around the world. We must, of course, remember that all this started before in Eastern Europe where the population was bombarded daily with dozens of documentaries about WWII on TV and how the heroic Russian people drove the damned Nazis out of their land. This brought about, as I say, that someone ended up programming and designing a game of armored vehicles, which later, due to the tremendous success in Eastern Europe, was extended to other geographical areas of the globe. Now, as I say, players from all over the world share their passion for armored vehicles through their computer screens.

And this also aroused great interest in those who fought aboard them during World War II. Otto Carius, one of the many tankers I have had the good fortune to talk to and know lamented, oddly enough, this very situation: "Before everything was silence, and now with the internet everything is lies. Curiously, this great interest has led to many lies and false data being spread about these war heroes on both sides, so sooner or later someone would have to publish a rigorous study on the actions of German tankers during World War II. And once again, it is once again me who picks up the gauntlet of the challenge to embark on another project, to talk objectively about some of the best German tankers, and therefore of military history. Why the Germans are considered the best tankers of World War II is quite easy to understand, if in that list we include only those who destroyed the most enemies" during the conflict, as they do with the famous air aces.  The German soldier, regardless of which branch of the army he belonged to, fought practically without rest from 1939 to 1945, performing different combat missions repeatedly that would end up increasing their number of victories exponentially ... If they were fortunate enough to survive each of those actions on the battlefield! Basically, you could say that the German soldier fought until he died in the war. There were many German tankers who died during that conflict, but others would fight for years, accumulating victories as well as military honors, and many, but not all, achieved the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. These actions and these military men deserve a place in history, but always trying to discern if they really deserved that recognition. There is no doubt that this book will greatly help to know a little better these facts and to remember those who fought, fought and died aboard the most emblematic tanks of World War II as the Panzer IV, the Panzer V Panther, or the mythical Königstiger, the Tiger II.

José A. Márquez Periano

December 2017

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PANZERWAFFE

GERMAN ARMORED FORCES

«If the tank has succeeded, victory comes next.»

Heinz Guderian

INTRODUCTION

ORIGINS UP TO WORLD WAR II

Talk about the Panzerwaffe (translator's note: in German, Panzer: Armored or armored; Waffe: weapon) is to talk about the German armored forces during World War II. It would take many years after the Great War for the term to be forged. In addition, the Panzerwaffe was central to the German Wehrmacht's most brilliant military successes during the war, ensuring that the Third Reich was cloaked in a halo of invincibility during the early years of the conflict. Some say the term was first used by the American press to refer to General Walther von Brauchitsch.

But as I have already said, there was a process of transformation, learning and tactical, technical and scientific advances that made the German armored vehicles the backbone of the German army. The new tactics, accompanied by good crews and the technological advantage at some stages of the war, made the German armored forces fearsome and powerful, although it was more important the way in which the German forces were used than the armored vehicles themselves, as we will see below.

This technical and tactical advantage would lead to many German tankers achieving a great number of successes aboard some of the most mythical tanks of World War II, although many battles would also show that German tanks were often not the best of the war, so German engineers and armor developers initiated a series of projects and prototypes, of which only some went into production.

This book will help you to solve many doubts and to demolish many myths about the German armored vehicles. The reader will reach a simple conclusion at the end of the work that the author has decided to advance in these pages so that it can take root: German tankers were the best, not their armor, and they achieved excellence on the European battlefields during World War II.

Flag of a panzer battalion

ORIGINS

The origin of the Panzerwaffe should be traced back to at least the Great War, when the first armored vehicles began to appear on the European battlefields. Armored vehicles were born to put an end once and for all to the so-called trench warfare that had been born with the First World War. With static fronts of hundreds of kilometers and defensive lines on both sides, the advance of large armies was already unfeasible and impracticable. Hundreds of thousands of men lost their lives trying to capture enemy trenches, only to capture a front line, lose it, recapture it, and so on indefinitely as one side and the other bled out little by little losing more and more men.

The tank, as we already know, is a British invention that tried to revolutionize warfare, emerging as a weapon that would try to break with static trench warfare in Europe. Although the tank did not play a fundamental role in the Great War, there were several countries that saw potential in the new weapon, so they invested men, time and resources in its development, especially France and England. Although Germany did develop some of its own vehicles, such as the Sturmpanzerwagen A7V, the only tank that the German Empire manufactured during the Great War. Unfortunately, its limited production (only 20 units were built) was of little use against the 2,500 Mark I built by the British and the more than 3,500 Renault FT built by the French. The Germans also captured some 180 Mark I's that would be used during the war.

This new artifact was seen by the old Napoleonic-minded generals as an aberration, although the officers who preceded them did discover and enhance the potential of armored vehicles, but for that we would have to wait a few more years due to the Treaty of Versailles of June 28, 1919.

The treaty, the end of the war and the lack of resources prevented Germany from developing the new designs that were in the testing phase, such as the Oberschleisien, the K-Wagen and the LK series. The Treaty of Versailles imposed a series of important restrictions on Germany, especially on its army, such as limiting it to a professional army of 100,000 men, as well as the prohibition to develop and build any type of military vehicles, airplanes and submarines. Obviously among these prohibitions was also the prohibition to manufacture or develop armored vehicles.

Despite this, Germany ignored it and began to create a new air and armored force around the middle of the 1920s. In order not to show their true plans, the Germans concealed their real intentions by stating that they were developing aircraft for commercial interests and tanks as tractors. Also, during those strange interwar years, Germany had a strange relationship with the Soviet Union. The Third Reich could train men and develop weaponry in Russia while the Germans delivered technology to the Soviets, as well as military know-how strange bedfellows considering that both countries would meet in World War II. Thus, Germany was able to develop and produce its first tank since the A7V, namely the PzKpfw I Ausf. A, commonly known as the Panzer I.

But that was not the only thing that would end up giving the necessary impetus to the German armed forces and more specifically to its armored branch. With the rise of Adolf Hitler in 1933 the impositions of the Treaty of Versailles were ignored by Germany, so finally the German country began to rearm and rebuild its army. And what happened next? This rearmament caused big businessmen and companies such as Krupp, Daimler Benz or Rheinmetall-Borss to set to work to develop all kinds of armaments for the hungry German army. This laid the foundations that they needed for its birth.

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A7V, christened Hagen, lost by the Germans at Fremicourt on 31 August 1918.

Heinz Guderian was an officer who participated in World War I and who would become one of the main fathers of the new combat tactics to be used by the German army, and more specifically by the Panzerwaffe. But before we move on, who was Heinz Guderian and what do we know about him?

Our protagonist was born in the early morning of June 17, 1888, in Külm, West Prussia, today called Chelmo, on the Vistula, near Dansk, in Poland. He was the son of Prussian officer Friedrich Guderian (1st lieutenant of the 2nd Pomeranian Fighter Battalion) and Clara Kirchhoff. He studied at military schools and at the Military Academy in Gross-Lichtenfelde, very close to Berlin, from 1901 to 1907. He was assigned to Jagër-Batallion Nr. 10 commanded by his father. Then, in 1908, he entered the War College in Metz, which at that time was occupied by Germany, and after graduating with honors went on to become the second lieutenant of the same battalion in Goslar.

He fell in love in 1911 with Margarete Goerne, but his father thought he was too young to marry and sent him for special training in the 3rd Telegraph Battalion. As soon as training ended on October 1, 1913, Heinz married Margarete. They had two sons, and both participated in the war in the Panzer Corps. The eldest of them, Heinz Günter, became a Major General in the Bundeswehr as early as the 1950s.

In 1914, Heinz was assigned as an intelligence officer and stationed on the Western Front. He participated in several missions that allowed him to appreciate the results of many battles, including the disaster of the Marne and the massacre of Verdun. In those years he did not have command of troops, but he obtained the Iron Cross Second and First Class, in addition to attaining the rank of captain. In 1918 he had the opportunity to prove his ability to solve tactical problems in a way that impressed his instructors. In April 1917 he was transferred to the General Staff of the 4th Infantry Division, being the youngest officer in such a high position. In June of the same year, he was transferred to the General Command of the Guard Army Corps and was transferred several times to important posts on the General Staff until the end of the Great War.

After the war, Guderian joined the Reichswehr, where the best former officers and soldiers of the defeated Germany were recruited and was transferred to the Baltic as a border officer and later to Silesia. There he had the opportunity to write articles on motorization and was placed in command of several Motorized Units. Between 1922 and 1924, he was assigned to the position of Inspector of Troop Transport in Munich, which by then had only trucks and motorcycles.

Between 1924 and 1931, as Inspector/Commander of all transport units and teacher of tactics in Berlin, Guderian laid the foundations for the future German units that would make him famous. Promoted to Major in 1927, he managed to get his hands on every motorized vehicle within reach. In 1929, when Germany was not allowed to manufacture tanks, he traveled to Sweden to visit a tank battalion equipped with the m/21 and m21-29, Swedish versions of the German LK II tank. He also visited the secret test range in Kazan, Russia, where he met several tank officers who years later would become his enemies.

In February 1931, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and two years later to colonel. He continually continued to write articles on Panzers and motorized warfare and helped solve problems when the first tanks began to be built. When Hitler was already in power, he had the opportunity to see the maneuvers of Guderian's small Panzers I, zigzagging swiftly across the battlefield. Hitler was enraptured by the spectacle. That is what I want, and this is what I will have, he said, and authorized the creation of three Panzer Divisions, ignoring the mandates of the Treaty of Versailles. Shortly thereafter, Guderian was appointed Commander of the 2nd Panzer Division and promoted to Major General. After a year and a half, he was promoted to Lieutenant General and received command of the XVI Army Corps. He commanded the spearhead in the Anschluss in Austria and in the invasion of Sudetenland (Czechoslovakia). Ten months later he was promoted to General and assigned to the position that would allow him to set a milestone in the methods of warfare: Chef der Schnellen Truppen, Chief of Rapid Displacement Troops. In that position, he was responsible for recruiting, training and developing tactics and techniques in all motorized and armored units of the German Wehrmacht. At that time, he had the rank and authority to bring to the German armed forces all the personality, experience and ingenuity that made the Panzer forces famous.

He masterfully combined armored vehicles with Panzers, communications and the Air Force, developing what was called the Blitzkrieg or Lightning War. In his command vehicle, which was always close to the front, there was a complete radio system equipped with the most modern equipment, including the famous Enigma scrambler, with a replacement vehicle ready for any eventuality.

Therefore, as we can see by reviewing Guderian's biography before World War II, his figure was paramount in laying the foundations of German tactics. In his position as chief of fast-moving troops he served to improve and implement the new military doctrines that were developed thanks to the ingenuity of this extraordinary military man.

A NEW WAY OF WAGING WAR

THE BLITZKRIEG

As we already know, the Germans implemented the Blitzkrieg during World War II, and the father of the Blitzkrieg was General Heinz Guderian. But what is Blitzkrieg? It is the name commonly used to describe a military tactic based on a powerful initial bombardment of an area, which is then followed by the use of a large number of mobile forces that must attack with speed, taking advantage of the initial surprise that should prevent the enemy from being able to react correctly to such a lightning attack, in such a way as to prevent them from creating a defensive line or defensive movements. In this way a breach is produced in the enemy front that is enlarged by the continuous advance of the armored forces, thus being able to pocket the enemy defending troops left behind by reinforcements that follow the advance of these units.

Although it gradually took shape during the Great War in its most basic principles, it would be modified and improved by more strategists, being mainly used by the Germans during World War II by adding and incorporating armored vehicles. This technique grew to avoid trench warfare and was perfected by Wehrmacht generals, especially Guderian.

But the Blitzkrieg, despite being "almost developed by the Germans has several myths that we will unveil in this chapter. To begin with, the birth of the term. As we already know the term means in German lightning war". We all imagine German generals nodding at an operational map as Hitler points to a place on the front and orders the Blitzkrieg to begin. Well, this could never happen because this term was not used by the Wehrmacht, either before or during the war. Although it did appear sporadically in some military publication, it would be curiously thanks to an American journalist of Time magazine who published an article dated September 25, 1939, about the Polish campaign:

«The battle front has been lost, and with it the illusion that had always existed in a battle front. In this there was no war of occupation, but a war of rapid penetration and cancellation – Blitzkrieg, lightning war. The swift columns of tanks and armored trucks have plunged into Poland while bombs rained from the sky announcing their arrival. They have cut off communications, killed animals, scattered the population and spread terror. Acting sometimes 50 kilometers ahead of the infantry and artillery, they have wiped out the Polish defenses before they had time to organize. Then, while the infantry mopped up, they moved to attack again far behind what was known as the front.»

Another big mistake is to think that the Germans were the first to use the Blitzkrieg during World War II. It was not the Germans, but the Soviets, a few months before the beginning of the Polish Campaign that would start the conflict we study in this work on September 1, 1939. Who was responsible? None other than Marshal Zhukov during the forgotten battle between Japan and the Soviet Union, which went down in history under the name of the Battle of Jaljin Gol or the Nomonhan Incident, in which the Japanese suffered a resounding defeat, so much so that it would lead them to avoid at all costs having to face the Soviets again during World War II. And how was it possible that Zhukov knew the tactics of the Blitzkrieg? Quite simply, if we remember that Germans and Soviets were forced allies during the interwar period and while Germans could use Russia as a testing and training ground for their men, the Soviet Union received in return technology and access to the advanced military tactics of the Germans.

Returning to Germany, it was Guderian who promoted the use of Blitzkrieg, and he was always a strong advocate of the use and expansion of German armored forces. Guderian's masterpiece in which he expounded his ideas, Achtung! Panzer!, fell into the hands of the German dictator, Adolf Hitler. After reading the work he shared the views of the military genius and after being invited to witness some maneuvers of the new German armored forces in Kummersdord he was ecstatic by the deployment of the German Panzers. Hitler, with his chest full of pride said the following:

«This is what I want: and this is what I will have.»

Since Germany was no longer controlled by the Treaty of Versailles, there was nothing to prevent German forces from developing and panzer divisions and new models of armored vehicles from being created.

Subsequently the Panzerwaffe began to develop and was able to start fighting in the Spanish Civil War, although the participation of German armored vehicles was rather uneven and insufficient.

There is no doubt that the Blitzkrieg would be fundamental for the German victories in Poland, France and in the first stages in the Eastern Front, but the Allied air superiority and the lack of supplies and an insufficient manufacturing of units would end up deciding the victory of the Allied side, as well as other factors such as the defenses in depth (like the one the Soviets developed in Kursk) and the lack of fuel that would end up drowning in an almost agonizing way the Blitzkrieg and the German armored units ... but that is another story to be told another time.

PANZERTRUPPEN

An army is nothing without its generals, but a general is nothing without his men. The backbone of the German army, of the Heer, was its armor, and the vertebrae were the men of the panzer force, those who were known as Panzertruppen, armored troops.

In their beginnings the panzer tank forces were perfectly distinguishable thanks to their close-fitting black uniforms, in addition to their black caps and their skulls with two tibiae on their lapels and caps. These skulls were the old symbol of some Prussian cavalry units and the Panzertruppen simply assimilated this symbol as their own. As an anecdote to emphasize that the German tankers that came to fight in the Spanish Civil War used that black cap that distinguished them as tankers, and the Spaniards liked them so much (it seems that it gave them a certain distinguished air to the Germans that they were assimilated by the national army, and nowadays that is the color of the caps that Spanish armored troops use today.

Panzertruppen in 1936

This cap was quickly modified by a simpler version, which is the most common we know, a model that began to be used around 1938. Regarding uniforms, these remained black, although from 1943 it was common to find tankers wearing other types of uniforms, such as winter or camouflage uniforms, although this was more typical of the Waffen-SS armored units.

All tankers would undergo at least three months of intensive training in one of the two training schools (Panzertruppenschule I and II) through which every tanker had to pass to be part of the German armored force. The Panzertruppenschule I was the school located in Munster, in Lower Saxony (today it is an armored museum) where the armored officers were sent to learn everything necessary to operate the famous Panzers. There, candidates were sent after basic training (which usually lasted 12 to 16 weeks), and after passing an 8-week course at the Kriegsschule (War School). The course used to last approximately 16 weeks to become familiar with armored vehicles and the use of tactics in commanding panzers on the battlefield. All students acquired the rank of Fähnrich (aspiring officer). After graduation they received the rank of Oberfähnrich and were sent to the battlefield. At the end of 1943, this school was used to train the officers of the famous Panzer Lehr division. The Panzertruppenschule II was the same as its sister school and was in the city of Wünsdor, Germany.

As we have seen, before being able to study in these schools, the applicant first had to pass basic training in the land army that lasted approximately 3 to 4 months. Later, with the introduction of new vehicles, especially armored vehicles, some veteran tank officers were withdrawn from the front to receive training in other schools specifically prepared for the training of new combat machines, such as for example the Tiger I. In addition, the future tankers had to learn how to occupy each of the positions in a tank: commander, gunner, loader, radio operator or driver to know perfectly how an armored vehicle worked and all the positions that normally made up a tank crew. These training courses usually lasted weeks or even months, but sometimes these courses lasted a few weeks if there was an urgency of replacements.

General reviewing armored troops in October 1936.

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THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR

Although Panzer I tanks and German units were sent to this bloody civil war, the results were rather poor. The few tanks sent and the lack of experience of the crews was remarkable, in addition to the scarce firepower that the Panzer I had against the Soviet tanks, the T-26. While the German tanks only carried 2 machine guns, the T-26 was equipped with a cannon that could easily destroy any German armored vehicle. The Spanish Civil War served to learn from mistakes, especially tactical ones.

POLAND

The Polish campaign was far from a bed of roses, as readers familiar with my works will already know. In my book Swords of the Waffen-SS, we closely follow the German troops in Poland, where the deficiencies of the panzer units became evident. The Panzer I and II lacked sufficient firepower, often struggled with the terrain, and were easy prey for enemy anti-tank guns. These tanks frequently lacked the power to overcome obstacles, becoming stuck and vulnerable to destruction by the limited but effective Polish heavy units.

As a result, the battalions within the few panzer divisions ceased to operate autonomously and instead followed divisional orders to achieve greater vehicle concentration. This approach exponentially increased firepower in specific sectors and, in turn, integrated panzer divisions into larger units to enhance offensive capabilities. A significant effort was also made to improve the training of new tank crews, particularly in marksmanship, where German tankers displayed notable deficiencies.

Moreover, the campaign highlighted the persistent lack of firepower in German tanks, prompting the development of new, more powerful vehicles. It also reinforced the effectiveness of the 88-millimeter anti-aircraft