The Tank Museum

The Panzer I was Germany’s first mass-produced tank. It entered service in 1934 and though it was built ostensibly for training, it did see action during the Spanish Civil War and in the early years of WW2. ⁠
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Its capabilities were limited by its two-man crew and the fact that there was only room inside for a radio receiver. Thus from 1935 Panzer battalions were also issued with these special command tanks or Panzerbefehlswagens - which featured an enlarged superstructure in place of the rotating turret, room inside for a crew of three, two radio sets, and a single machine gun for defence.⁠
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This would enable the commanders to not only send messages out to the rest of their platoon, battalion, or regiment of tanks - but also to report back to headquarters or command centres. ⁠
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These command tanks proved so useful that they remained in service until late 1942. In addition to panzer units, they were issued to artillery regiments as armoured observation posts and at least one was converted in an armoured ambulance.⁠
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Our particular tank was sent out to Tripoli, North Africa in March of 1941 – 85 years ago this month - and served with the 5th Panzer Regiment. It was captured by the British and was the subject of a 1943 School of Tank Technology report after its capture. ⁠
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A couple of key features of note - battle damage (thought to be from 2 pdr rounds) on the side of the superstructure (shown in the 2nd photograph,) and the extra armour plate which has been added on the front, as a result of experience in Poland in 1939.⁠

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The Tank Museum

This is a rare version of the Panzer III, the Befehlswagen Ausf K. Just 50 of this command vehicle were built between December 1942 and February 1943.

Most carried a dummy gun, which helped disguise the commander’s vehicle (a high priority target) but freed up space inside the hull for radios and documents. In contrast, the Ausf K carried a real gun.

This particular vehicle was knocked out on the Ukrainian Front.

17 hours ago | [YT] | 4,019

The Tank Museum

The Ferret armoured car was a British armoured fighting vehicle produced between 1952 and 1971 by Daimler - designed and built for reconnaissance purposes. It was widely used in the British Army as well as Commonwealth countries throughout the period.



Our example, a Mark 5 built in 1967, has a Swingfire ATGM turret fitted. The Anti-Tank Guided Missiles enabled the Ferret to engage and destroy any tank of the day at long range (4000m) – and the Swingfire turret fitted to the Mark 5 was the first example of aluminium armour to see service in the British Army.



Want to learn more about the Ferret? Check out our new publication – available to pre-order now via our Online Shop.

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The Tank Museum

The world’s best display of historic moving armour returns – three days of arena action, with explosive displays of historic and modern vehicles – amid the world’s best collection of over 300 tanks.⁠
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To get you warmed-up, take a look at a few highlights from TANKFEST 2021.⁠
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Will you be joining us? 26 – 28 June.

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The Tank Museum

If TOG II* wore pants, would it wear them like this or like this?

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The Tank Museum

This Churchill Mark III has four hatches for five crewmen. The two sharing are the gunner and the commander.

This has remained standard practice on modern four-man tanks (everyone gets their own hatch on three man vehicles).

The Centurion Mark 1 did give the gunner his own hatch, but as gunsights increased in bulk, using it became less and less practical and it was removed in favour of thicker armour.

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The Tank Museum

A good view of the different turrets used on the M3 Grant and M3 Lee Medium tanks.

The Grant, bringing up the rear, was modified for British requirements. The small machine gun turret was removed and the turret bustle extended to accommodate the radio.


The convoy is passing the Weld Arms, just a few miles from us here at Bovington. They're most likely heading towards the Gunnery School at nearby Lulworth Camp.

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The Tank Museum

150 Panzer 61s were built, the first in March 1961. ⁠
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With its tradition of neutrality and unique geography, Switzerland has a long history of designing and building its own weapons. The Panzer 61 was their first tank. ⁠
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It was designed to suit local conditions - the hydrostatic steering system is arranged to cope with steep and winding mountain roads, while the profile of the tank has been selected to fit the many tunnels on Switzerland's railways.⁠
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It was armed with the British 105mm gun and – unusually - a coaxial 20mm cannon, to the left of the main gun. The very similar Panzer 68 was derived from it, and almost 400 of these were built. ⁠
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The Panzer 61 was withdrawn in 1994.⁠

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The Tank Museum

One of the first objectives after D-Day was the French city of Caen. Located at a railway junction, it would be a key logistical hub for the Allies.

Any hope for a quick victory was dashed though, as entrenched German forces including six panzer divisions bogged the Allies down for a full month before they could drive the defenders out.

This M10 tank destroyer would have been key for defeating German panzers, and you can learn more about M10s here: https://youtu.be/icR4UKOLr5A

2 days ago | [YT] | 4,457

The Tank Museum

It is well known that the Sherman tanks during WW2 served as test beds for different variants and uses. But did you know about the Demolition Tank T31? ⁠
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It might look like something out of a video game, but this prototype was very real – here it is pictured at Aberdeen Proving Ground in 1945. ⁠
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The prototype T31 demolition tank was constructed in 1945 on the chassis of an M4A3 with HVSS suspension. A 105mm howitzer was mounted in a large, fabricated turret, with a 7.2in (183mm) rocket-launcher to either side. The project was abandoned before there was any series production.⁠

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