Full Description
The German army faced tanks of superior size, armor and firepower from the outset of World War II. Although their Panzerwaffen handled the Polish campaign, war with France meant confronting superior heavy and medium tanks like the Char B and Somua, with 47 mm high velocity cannon that penetrated German tank armor with ease. French infantry disposed of effective antitank weapons and a portion of their 75 mm field guns were detailed as antitank guns. Even greater challenges emerged with the Russo-German War, for the Germans had no initial answer to the KV-1 heavy tank and T-34 medium.
The successive technical shocks of superior tanks introduced by each side produced a gun-armor race that continued in some manner even after the war's end. The Germans placed a premium on technological quality and superiority over mass production, for which their industry (and, arguably, their regime) remained rather unsuited. Not satisfied with the advantage they obtained with the Tiger and Panther series tanks, the army leadership and Adolf Hitler himself pushed for larger and more powerful tanks than had ever been built.
Contents
Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1 German Tank Development, 1918-1939; 2 War and the Heavy Tank Programs, 1939-1945; 3 Tiger I; 4 The Successor Tiger II Tank; 5 Inspecting a Tiger II; 6 Dr Porsche's Tank to the Battlefield—The Ferdinand-Elefant Experience; 7 Superheavy Tanks—Maus and E-100; 8 Jagdtiger; 9 Sturmmörser Tiger; 10 German Heavy Tank Units in World War II; Conclusions—Quality vs. Quantity?; Appendix I Schilling, History of German Tank Development; Appendix II Interrogation of Dr Stiele v Heydekampf; Appendix III Interrogation of Dr Ernest Kniepkamp [Tank Engines]; Appendix IV Chobham Preliminary Report—Tiger B Turret Armor [for Porsche Tiger]; Appendix V German Heavy Tank Cannon 1942-1945; Select Bibliography; Index.
