3 Famous WWII Tanks

A picture of a Tiger I Tank, from the German Federal Archives

  

   Of all the weapons used in World War Two, the tanks were some of the most important. They were involved right at the heart of battle. Here, I’ll talk about three tanks that played huge roles in World War Two: the Russian T-34, the American Sherman, and the German Tiger.

   

   I’ll start with the most produced and best all-round tank of the war: the T-34. It was developed from a series of fast tanks. It was a medium tank (which refers to its weight) and was in service from 1940–96. Its long service shows how great its design was. Russian leaders were at first reluctant to make it, but its high performance convinced them. Originally it had a powerful 76 mm gun, and in early 1944, the improved T-35-85 was introduced, with an 85 mm gun to compete with the German Tiger tanks. It was the Russians' main tank of the war and replaced many light and heavy tanks. 

   Some of the bad things about the tank were that it didn’t have good ergonomics and was noisy, alerting the enemy of it’s presence if nearby. Also, radios were expensive and only put in commander’s tanks. However, it had a revolutionary design. Its well-sloped armour made it harder to penetrate. It was low (8 ft tall), which made it a smaller target. It had wide tracks, which increased its cross-country mobility. It had heavy armour for a medium tank, yet its powerful engine could make it go very fast (it could go 53 km/h!). All throughout the war it was improved to make it cheaper to produce while still making it better.

   

   The Sherman tank was also mass-produced. It was quickly designed because the US didn’t have a modern tank when they entered the war. This medium tank was named after the Union general William Sherman. It was made into many special-purpose variants, such as tank destroyers, flame-throwing tanks, engineer tanks, and even amphibious tanks!

   It had thin armour, inferior guns, and was tall. Because of this it often caught fire when hit, was vulnerable to enemy tanks, and was usually unable to knock out German Panther and Tiger tanks. Although they were inferior to late-model German tanks, they massively outnumbered the German tanks. It was very reliable, technically simple, and could be built, deployed, maintained, and repared in large numbers, unlike the powerful German tanks. They actually did well in battle because of their large numbers, a more constant supply of fuel and ammunition, and the Allies superiority in the air, so they were able to play a large part in the liberation of the afflicted countries under Axis occupation.

   

   Now for the Germans’ Tiger Tank! Allied soldiers feared encounters with them, for they were the most powerful tank of the war. The Tiger I was 9ft 10in high and 56.9 tonnes (a heavy tank). It was armed with a very powerful 88 mm, and had very heavy armour, especially in the front, and an outstanding design. Later in the war, in August 1943, the Germans switched production to the admirable King Tiger tank. This one wighed 59.8 tonnes and had even more armour and a more powerful gun! However, it was very slow because of its weight, and its size made it hard to hide, which was a serious problem because of the Allies' air superiority. Also, the King Tiger used lots of gas and would often be abandoned or self-destroyed by the Germans because of lack of fuel. There were only 1355 Tigers and 485 King Tigers built before the end of the war. (They were only given to elite units)

   They were technically complex and unreliable (which limited their production and use). They had many other problems as well. For instance, the wheel system could get stuck with stones and mud. Sometimes in Russian winters the frozen mud would completely immobolize them. They were also very expensive. Despite many technical problems, they were still very lethal. Allied tanks avoided confronting them in open battle. The Tiger I could destroy the Sherman from over 2000 ft away, but the Sherman couldn’t penetrate its armour in the front even from very close! Allied tanks would usually have to attack them from the side or back.

    

   Because the entire world was involved, World War II was diverse in its weaponry, and tanks were no exception. They had various strengths and weaknesses which, used with the countries strategies, helped shape the look and outcome of the war.

© All rights reserved

Sources:   Victory in World War II by Nigel Cawthorne, www.wikipedia.com, www.2worldwar2.com, and other websites