The Panzer I was a
light tank
A light tank is a tank variant initially designed for rapid movements in and out of combat, to outmaneuver heavier tanks. It is smaller in size with thinner armor and a less powerful main gun, tailored for better tactical mobility and ease of ...
produced in
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
in the 1930s. Its name is short for (
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
for "
armored fighting vehicle
An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, ...
mark I"), abbreviated as . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was ''
Sd.Kfz.
''Sonderkraftfahrzeug'' (abbreviated ''Sd.Kfz.'', German for "special purpose vehicle") was the ordnance inventory designation used by Nazi Germany during World War II for military vehicles; for example ''Sd.Kfz.'' 101 for the Panzer I.
Sd.Kfz. nu ...
101'' ("special purpose vehicle 101").
Design of the Panzer I began in 1932 and mass production began in 1934. Intended only as a training tank to introduce the concept of
armored warfare
Armoured warfare or armored warfare (mechanized forces, armoured forces or armored forces) (American English; see spelling differences), is the use of armored fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of ...
to the
German Army
The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
, the Panzer I saw combat in Spain during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
, in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
and
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and in China during the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
. Experiences with the Panzer I during the Spanish Civil War helped shape the German
Panzerwaffe
''Panzerwaffe'', later also ''Panzertruppe'' (German for "Armoured Force", "Armoured Arm" or "Tank Force". ''Waffe'': ombat"arm") refers to a command within the Heer of the German Wehrmacht, responsible for the affairs of panzer (tank) and ...
's
invasion of Poland
The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...
in 1939 and
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
in 1940. By 1941, the Panzer I chassis design was used as the basis of
tank destroyer
A tank destroyer, tank hunter, tank killer, or self-propelled anti-tank gun is a type of armoured fighting vehicle, armed with a direct fire artillery gun or missile launcher, designed specifically to engage and destroy enemy tanks, often wi ...
s and
assault guns. There were attempts to upgrade the Panzer I throughout its service history, including by foreign nations, to extend the design's lifespan. It continued to serve in the
Spanish Armed Forces
The Spanish Armed Forces are in charge of guaranteeing the sovereignty and independence of the Kingdom of Spain, defending its territorial integrity and the constitutional order, according to the functions entrusted to them by the Constitution o ...
until 1954.
The Panzer I's performance in armored combat was limited by its thin
armour
Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or fr ...
and light armament of two
machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
s, which were never intended for use against armoured targets, rather being ideal for infantry suppression, in line with inter-war doctrine. As a design intended for training, the Panzer I was less capable than some other contemporary light tank designs, such as the Soviet
T-26
The T-26 tank was a Soviet light tank used during many conflicts of the Interwar period and in World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and was one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s until its light ...
, although it was still relatively advanced compared to older designs, such as the
Renault FT
The Renault FT (frequently referred to in post-World War I literature as the FT-17, FT17, or similar) was a French light tank that was among the most revolutionary and influential tank designs in history. The FT was the first production tank to ...
, still in service in several nations, and others. Although lacking in armoured combat as a tank, it formed a large part of Germany's mechanized forces and was used in all major campaigns between September 1939 and December 1941, where it still performed much useful service against entrenched infantry and other "soft" targets, which were unable to respond even against thin armor, and who were highly vulnerable to machine gun fire. The small, vulnerable light tank, along with its somewhat more powerful successor the
Panzer II
The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' II (abbreviated PzKpfw II).
Although the vehicle had originally been designed as a stopgap while la ...
, would soon be surpassed as a front-line armoured combat vehicle by more powerful German tanks, such as the
Panzer III
The ''Panzerkampfwagen III'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was Sd.Kfz. 141. It was intended to fight oth ...
, and later the
Panzer IV
The ''Panzerkampfwagen'' IV (Pz.Kpfw. IV), commonly known as the ''Panzer'' IV, was a German medium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161.
The Panze ...
,
Panzer V
The Panther tank, officially ''Panzerkampfwagen V Panther'' (abbreviated PzKpfw V) with ordnance inventory designation: ''Sd.Kfz.'' 171, is a German medium tank of World War II. It was used on the Eastern and Western Fronts from mid-1943 to ...
, and
Panzer VI; nevertheless, the Panzer I's contribution to the early victories of Nazi Germany during World War II was significant. Later in the war, the turrets of many obsolete Panzer Is and
Panzer IIs were repurposed as gun turrets on
defensive fighting position
A defensive fighting position (DFP) is a type of earthwork constructed in a military context, generally large enough to accommodate anything from one soldier to a fire team (or similar sized unit).
Terminology
Tobruk type positions are nam ...
s, particularly on the
Atlantic Wall
The Atlantic Wall (german: link=no, Atlantikwall) was an extensive system of coastal defences and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticip ...
.
Development history
The post-
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
of 1919 prohibited the design, manufacture and deployment of
tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...
s within the
Reichswehr
''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...
. Paragraph Twenty-four of the treaty provided for a 100,000-
mark
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* Fi ...
fine and imprisonment of up to six months for anybody who "
anufacturedarmoured vehicles, tanks or similar machines, which may be turned to military use".
Despite the manpower and technical limitations imposed on the German Army by the Treaty of Versailles, several Reichswehr officers established a clandestine general staff to study World War I and develop future strategies and tactics. Although at first the concept of the tank as a mobile weapon of war met with apathy, German industry was encouraged to look into tank design, while quiet cooperation was undertaken with the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. There was also minor military cooperation with Sweden, including the extraction of technical data that proved invaluable to early German tank design. As early as 1926 the German companies Krupp,
Rheinmetall
Rheinmetall AG is a German automotive and arms manufacturer, headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. Its shares are traded on the Frankfurt stock exchange.
History
Rheinmetall was founded in 1889. Banker and investor Lorenz Zuckermandel
L ...
and
Daimler-Benz
The Mercedes-Benz Group Aktiengesellschaft, AG (previously named Daimler-Benz, DaimlerChrysler and Daimler) is a German Multinational corporation, multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It ...
were contracted to develop prototype tanks armed with a large, 75-millimeter
cannon
A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...
. These were designed under the cover name ''
Großtraktor'' (large
tractor
A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...
) to veil the true purpose of the vehicle.
[Franco, ''Panzer I: El Inicio de una Saga'', p. 3] By 1930 a light tank armed with rapid-fire machineguns was to be developed under the cover name ''
Leichttraktor
The ''Leichttraktor'' (Vs.Kfz.31) was a German experimental tank designed during the Interwar Period.
History
After the end of World War I, Germany was restricted in military development by the Treaty of Versailles. However, a secret program ...
'' (light tractor).
[Thomas L. Jentz, Hilary Louis Doyle: ''Panzer Tracts No.1-1 – Panzerkampfwagen I – from Kleintraktor to Ausf. B''] The six produced ''Großtraktor'' were later put into service for a brief period with the 1 Panzer Division; the ''Leichttraktor'' remained in testing until 1935.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, German tank theory was pioneered by two figures: General
Oswald Lutz
Oswald Lutz (6 November 1876 – 26 February 1944) was a German General who oversaw the motorization of the German Army in the late 1920s and early 1930s and was appointed as the commander of the Wehrmacht's Panzer Troops Command in 1935.
B ...
and his chief of staff, Lieutenant Colonel
Heinz Guderian
Heinz Wilhelm Guderian (; 17 June 1888 – 14 May 1954) was a German general during World War II who, after the war, became a successful memoirist. An early pioneer and advocate of the " blitzkrieg" approach, he played a central role in t ...
. Guderian became the more influential of the two and his ideas were widely publicized. Like his contemporary, Sir
Percy Hobart
Major General Sir Percy Cleghorn Stanley Hobart, (14 June 1885 – 19 February 1957), also known as "Hobo", was a British military engineer noted for his command of the 79th Armoured Division during the Second World War. He was responsible for ...
, Guderian initially envisioned an
armored
Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or f ...
corps
Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...
(''panzerkorps'') composed of several types of tanks. This included a slow
infantry tank
The infantry tank was a concept developed by the United Kingdom and France in the years leading up to World War II. Infantry tanks were designed to support infantrymen in an attack. To achieve this, the vehicles were generally heavily vehicle armo ...
, armed with a small-
caliber
In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge (firearms) , bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the f ...
cannon and several
machine guns
A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...
. The infantry tank, according to Guderian, was to be heavily armored to defend against enemy anti-tank guns and
artillery
Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...
. He also envisioned a fast breakthrough tank, similar to the British
cruiser tank, which was to be armoured against enemy anti-tank weapons and have a large, 75-millimeter (2.95 in) main gun. Lastly,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
needed a
heavy tank
Heavy tank is a term used to define a class of tanks produced from World War I through the end of the Cold War. These tanks generally sacrificed mobility and maneuverability for better armour protection and equal or greater firepower than tanks ...
, armed with a 150-millimeter (5.9 in) cannon to defeat enemy
fortifications
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
, and even stronger armor. Such a tank required a weight of 70 to 100 tonnes and was completely impractical given the manufacturing capabilities of the day.
Soon after rising to power in Germany,
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
approved the creation of Germany's first panzer divisions. Simplifying his earlier proposal, Guderian suggested the design of a main combat vehicle, which would be developed into the
Panzer III
The ''Panzerkampfwagen III'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was Sd.Kfz. 141. It was intended to fight oth ...
, and a breakthrough tank, the Panzer IV. No existing design appealed to Guderian. As a stopgap, the German Army ordered a preliminary vehicle to train German tank crews. This became the Panzer I.
The Panzer I's design history can be traced to the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
Carden Loyd tankette, of which it borrowed much of its track and suspension design. After six prototype ''Kleintraktor'' were produced the cover name was changed to ''Krupp-Traktor'' whereas the development codename was changed to ''Landwirtschaftlicher Schlepper'' (La S) (Agricultural Tractor). The La S was intended not just to train Germany's panzer troops, but to prepare Germany's industry for the mass production of tanks in the near future; a difficult engineering feat for the time. The armament of production versions was to be two 7.92 mm
MG 13 machine guns in a rotating turret. Machine guns were known to be largely useless against even the lightest tank armour of the time, restricting the Panzer I to a training and anti-infantry role by design.
The final official designation, assigned in 1938, was ''Panzerkampfwagen I'' (M.G.) with special ordnance number ''Sd.Kfz. 101''. The first 150 tanks (1./LaS, 1st series LaS, Krupp-Traktor), produced in 1934, did not include the rotating turret and were used for crew training. Following these, production was switched to the combat version of the tank. The Ausf. A was under-armoured, with steel plate of only 13 millimeters (0.51 in) at its thickest. The tank had several design flaws, including suspension problems, which made the vehicle pitch at high velocities, and engine overheating. The driver was positioned inside the chassis and used conventional steering levers to control the tank, while the commander was positioned in the turret where he also acted as gunner. The two crewmen could communicate by means of a voice tube. Machine gun ammunition was stowed in five bins, containing various numbers of 25-round magazines. 1,190 of the Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf. A were built in three series (2.-4./LaS).
Further 25 were built as command tanks.''
![Panzer I Ausf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Panzer_I_Ausf._A_at_El_Golos.jpg)
Many of the problems in the Ausf. A were corrected with the introduction of the Ausf. B. The air-cooled engine (producing just was replaced by a water-cooled, six-cylinder Maybach NL 38 TR, developing , and the
gearbox
Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), differe ...
was changed to a more reliable model. The larger engine required the extension of the vehicle's chassis by 40 cm (16 in), and this allowed the improvement of the tank's suspension, adding another
bogie wheel
A bogie ( ) (in some Word sense, senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a Wheelset (rail transport), wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a Modularity, modular subassembly of Railroad wheel, whee ...
and raising the tensioner. The tank's weight increased by 0.4 tons. Production of the Ausf. B began in August 1936 and finished in summer 1937 after 399 had been built in two series (5a-6a/LaS).
Further 159 were built as command tanks in two series, 295 chassis were built as turretless training tanks. 147 more training tanks were built as convertible chassis with hardened armour with option to upgrade them to full combat status by adding superstructure and turret.
Other frontline-type Panzer I tanks
Two more combat versions of the Panzer I were designed and produced between 1939 and 1942. By this stage, the design concept had been superseded by medium and heavy tanks and neither variant was produced in sufficient numbers to have a real impact on the progress of the war. These new tanks had nothing in common with either the Ausf. A or B except name.
[Gander, ''Tanks & Armour: Panzerkampfwagen I & II'', p. 14] One of these, the
Panzer I Ausf. C, was designed jointly between
Krauss-Maffei
KraussMaffei is a German manufacturer of injection molding machines, machines for plastics extrusion technology, and reaction process machinery. It was acquired by ChemChina in 2016.
History Locomotives
KraussMaffei was formed in 1931 from a me ...
and Daimler-Benz in 1939 to provide an amply armoured and armed reconnaissance light tank.
[Perrett, ''German Light Panzers'', p. 6] The Ausf. C boasted a completely new chassis and turret, a modern
torsion-bar suspension and five ''Schachtellaufwerk''-style interleaved roadwheels. It also had a maximum armor thickness of 30 millimeters (1.18 in), over twice that of either the Ausf. A or B, and was armed with a Mauser EW 141 semi-automatic
anti-tank rifle
An anti-tank rifle is an anti-materiel rifle designed to penetrate the vehicle armor, armor of armored fighting vehicles, most commonly tanks, armored personnel carriers, and infantry fighting vehicles. The term is usually used for weapons that c ...
, with a 50-round drum, firing powerful armor-piercing
7.92×94mm Patronen 318 anti-tank rounds. Forty of these tanks were produced, along with six prototypes.
Two tanks were deployed to
1st Panzer Division in 1943, and the other thirty-eight were deployed to the
LVIII Panzer Reserve Corps during the
Normandy landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
.
![Pz II Neu](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Pz_II_Neu.jpg)
The second vehicle, the
Ausf. F, was as different from the Ausf. C as it was from the Ausf. A and B. Intended as an infantry support tank, the Panzer I Ausf. F had a maximum armour thickness of 80 millimeters (3.15 in) and weighed between 18 and 21 tonnes. The Ausf. F was armed with two 7.92-millimeter
MG-34
The MG 34 (shortened from German: ''Maschinengewehr 34'', or "machine gun 34") is a Nazi Germany, German recoil-operated air-cooled general-purpose machine gun, first tested in 1929, introduced in 1934, and issued to units in 1936. It introduced ...
s. Thirty were produced in 1940, and a second order of 100 was later canceled. In order to compensate for the increased weight, a new Maybach HL45 Otto engine was used, allowing a maximum road speed of 25 kilometers per hour (15.5 mph) and used five overlapping road wheels per side, dropping the Ausf. C's interleaved units. Eight of the thirty tanks produced were sent to the 1st Panzer Division in 1943 and saw combat at the
Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk was a major World War II Eastern Front engagement between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in the southwestern USSR during late summer 1943; it ultimately became the largest tank battle in history. ...
. The rest were given to several army schools for training and evaluation purposes.
Combat history
Spanish Civil War
On 18 July 1936, war broke out on the
Iberian peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
as Spain dissolved into a state of
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. After the chaos of the initial uprising, two opposing sides coalesced and began to consolidate their position—the
Popular front
A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault".
More generally, it is "a coalition ...
(the Republicans) and the
Spanish Nationalist front. In an early example of a
proxy war
A proxy war is an armed conflict between two states or non-state actors, one or both of which act at the instigation or on behalf of other parties that are not directly involved in the hostilities. In order for a conflict to be considered a pr ...
, both sides quickly received support from other countries, most notably the Soviet Union and Germany as both wanted to test their tactics and equipment. The first shipment of foreign tanks, 50 Soviet
T-26
The T-26 tank was a Soviet light tank used during many conflicts of the Interwar period and in World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and was one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s until its light ...
s, arrived on 15 October. The shipment was under the surveillance of Nazi Germany's ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
'' and Germany immediately responded by sending 41 Panzer I's to Spain a few days later. This first shipment was followed by four more shipments of Panzer I Ausf. B's, with 122 vehicles shipped in total.
The first shipment of Panzer I's was brought under the command of Lieutenant Colonel
Wilhelm Ritter von Thoma
Wilhelm Josef Ritter von Thoma (11 September 1891 – 30 April 1948) was a German army officer who served in World War I, in the Spanish Civil War, and as a general in World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
Th ...
in Gruppe Thoma (also referred to as Panzergruppe Drohne). Gruppe Thoma formed part of Gruppe Imker, the ground formations of the German
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...
, who fought on the side of
Franco's Nationalists. Between July and October, a rapid Nationalist advance from
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
to
Toledo placed them in position to take the Spanish capital,
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
. The Nationalist advance and the fall of the town of
Illescas Illescas may refer to:
Places
* Illescas, San Luis Potosí, Mexico
* Illescas Peninsula, Peru
* Cerro Illescas, Peru
* Illescas, Toledo, a municipality in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain
* Illescas, Florida, village in Uruguay
* Il ...
to Nationalist armies on 18 October 1936 caused the government of the Popular Front's
Second Republic, including President
Manuel Azaña
Manuel Azaña Díaz (; 10 January 1880 – 3 November 1940) was a Spanish politician who served as Prime Minister of the Second Spanish Republic (1931–1933 and 1936), organizer of the Popular Front in 1935 and the last President of the Repu ...
, to flee to
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
and
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
. In an attempt to stem the Nationalist tide and gain crucial time for Madrid's defence, Soviet armour was deployed south of the city under the command of Colonel Krivoshein before the end of October. At this time, several T-26 tanks under the command of Captain Paul Arman were thrown into a Republican counterattack directed towards the town of
Torrejon de Velasco in an attempt to cut off the Nationalist advance north. This was the first recorded tank battle in the Spanish Civil War. Despite initial success, poor communication between the Soviet Republican armour and Spanish Republican infantry caused the isolation of Captain Arman's force and the subsequent destruction of a number of tanks. This battle also marked the first use of the
molotov cocktail
A Molotov cocktail (among several other names – ''see other names'') is a hand thrown incendiary weapon constructed from a frangible container filled with flammable substances equipped with a fuse (typically a glass bottle filled with flamma ...
against tanks.
Ritter
Ritter (German for "knight") is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second-lowest rank within the nobility, standing above "Edler" and below "Freiherr" (Baron). As with most titles an ...
von Thoma's Panzer Is fought for the Nationalists only days later on 30 October, and immediately experienced problems. As the Nationalist armour advanced, it was engaged by the Commune de Paris battalion, equipped with Soviet
BA-10
The BA-10 ( ru , Broneavtomobil 10, italic=yes) was an armored car developed in the Soviet Union in 1938 and produced through 1941. It was the most produced Soviet pre-1941 heavy armored car – 3311 were built in three versions. These versio ...
armoured cars. The 45-millimeter gun in the BA-10 was more than sufficient to knock out the poorly armoured Panzer I at ranges below 500 meters (550 yd).
Although the Panzer I would participate in almost every major Nationalist offensive of the war, the Nationalist army began to deploy more and more captured T-26 tanks to offset their disadvantage in protection and firepower. At one point, von Thoma offered up to 500
pesetas for each T-26 captured. Although the Panzer I was initially able to knock out the T-26 at close range—150 meters (165 yd) or less—using an armor-piercing 7.92 millimeter bullet, the Republican tanks began to engage at ranges where they were immune to the machine guns of the Panzer I.
The Panzer I was upgraded in order to increase its lethality. On 8 August 1937, Major General García Pallasar received a note from Generalísimo
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
that expressed the need for a Panzer I (or ''negrillo'', as their Spanish crews called them) with a 20-millimeter gun. Ultimately, the piece chosen was the
Breda Model 1935, due to the simplicity of the design over competitors such as the German
Flak 30. Furthermore, the 20 mm Breda was capable of perforating 40 millimeters of armour at 250 meters (1.57 in at 275 yd), which was more than sufficient to penetrate the frontal armour of the T-26. Although originally 40 Italian
CV.35 light tanks were ordered with the Breda in place of their original armament, this order was subsequently canceled after it was thought that the adaptation of the same gun to the Panzer I would yield better results. Prototypes were ready by September 1937 and an order was placed after successful results. The mounting of the Breda in the Panzer I required the original turret to be opened at the top and then extended by a vertical supplement. Four of these tanks were finished at the Armament Factory of
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
, but further production was canceled as it was decided sufficient numbers of Republican T-26 tanks had been captured to fulfill the Nationalist leadership's request for more lethal tanks. The Breda modification was not particularly liked by German crews, as the unprotected gap in the turret, designed to allow the tank's commander to aim, was found to be a dangerous weak point.
In late 1938, another Panzer I was sent to the Armament Factory of Seville in order to mount a 45 mm gun, captured from a Soviet tank (a T-26 or
BT-5
The BT tanks (russian: Быстроходный танк/БТ, translit=Bystrokhodnyy tank, lit. "fast moving tank" or "high-speed tank") were a series of Soviet light tanks produced in large numbers between 1932 and 1941. They were lightly arm ...
). A second was sent sometime later in order to exchange the original armament for a 37-millimeter Maklen anti-tank gun, which had been deployed to
Asturias
Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in nor ...
in late 1936 on the Soviet ship A. Andreiev. It remains unknown to what extent these trials and adaptations were completed, although it is safe to assume neither adaptation was successful beyond the drawing board.
World War II in China
In 1937, around ten Panzer I Ausf. A's were sold to the
Republic of China
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
(ROC) during a period of
strong co-operative ties between the ROC and Nazi Germany, which were subsequently fielded in the
Battle of Nanjing by the 3rd Armoured Battalion of the ROC's
National Revolutionary Army
The National Revolutionary Army (NRA; ), sometimes shortened to Revolutionary Army () before 1928, and as National Army () after 1928, was the military arm of the Kuomintang (KMT, or the Chinese Nationalist Party) from 1925 until 1947 in China ...
(NRA) to fight against the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
(IJA).
Following
the fall of Nanking, the Chinese Panzer I Ausf. A's were captured by the Japanese and put on display at the
Yasukuni Shrine
is a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo. It was founded by Emperor Meiji in June 1869 and commemorates those who died in service of Japan, from the Boshin War of 1868–1869, to the two Sino-Japanese Wars, 1894–1895 and 1937–1945 resp ...
. Because of the close relationship between Hitler's Germany and Imperial Japan by that time, the Chinese Panzer I Ausf. A was instead labelled as "Made in the USSR" (the USSR being the common enemy of these two strongly anti-communist nations).
World War II in Europe
During the initial campaigns of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Germany's light tanks, including the Panzer I, formed the bulk of its armoured strength.
[McCarthy, ''Panzerkrieg'', p. 51] In March 1938, the German Army
marched into Austria, experiencing a mechanical breakdown rate of up to thirty percent. However, the experience revealed to Guderian several faults within the German ''Panzerkorps'' and he subsequently improved logistical support. In October 1938, Germany occupied
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
's
Sudetenland
The Sudetenland ( , ; Czech and sk, Sudety) is the historical German name for the northern, southern, and western areas of former Czechoslovakia which were inhabited primarily by Sudeten Germans. These German speakers had predominated in the ...
, and the remainder of the country in March 1939. The capture of Czechoslovakia allowed several Czech tank designs, such as the
Panzer 38(t)
The 38(t), originally known as the ČKD LT vz. 38, was a tank designed during the 1930s, which saw extensive service during World War II. Developed in Czechoslovakia by ČKD, the type was adopted by Nazi Germany following the annexation of Cze ...
, and their subsequent variants and production, to be incorporated into the German Army's strength. It also prepared German forces for the invasion of
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
.
Poland and the campaign in the west
![Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-120-11, Polen, Panzer I am Ufer der Brahe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a5/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1978-120-11%2C_Polen%2C_Panzer_I_am_Ufer_der_Brahe.jpg)
On 1 September 1939, Germany
invaded Poland using seventy-two divisions (including 16 reserve infantry divisions in OKH reserves), including seven panzer divisions (1., 2., 3., 4., 5., 10., "Kempf") and four light divisions (1., 2., 3., 4.). Three days later,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
declared war on Germany. The seven panzer and four light divisions were arrayed in five armies, forming two army groups.
The battalion strength of the 1st Panzer Division included no less than fourteen Panzer Is, while the other six divisions included thirty-four. A total of about 2,700 tanks were available for the invasion of Poland, but only 310 of the heavier Panzer III and IV tanks were available. Furthermore, 350 were of Czech design—the rest were either Panzer Is or
Panzer II
The Panzer II is the common name used for a family of German tanks used in World War II. The official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' II (abbreviated PzKpfw II).
Although the vehicle had originally been designed as a stopgap while la ...
s. The invasion was swift and the last Polish pockets of resistance surrendered on 6 October.
[McCarthy, ''Panzerkrieg'', p. 59] The entire campaign had lasted five weeks (with help of the Soviet forces, which attacked on 17 September), and the success of Germany's tanks in the campaign was summed up in response to Hitler on 5 September: when asked if it had been the
dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...
s who destroyed a Polish artillery regiment, Guderian replied, "No, our panzers!"
![Panzer I Norway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Panzer_I_Norway.PNG)
Some 832 German tanks (including 320 PzI, 259 PzII, 40 Pz III, 76 PzIV, 77 Pz35(t), 13 PzBef III, 7 PzBef 38(t), 34 other PzBef and some Pz38(t))
[Fritz Hahn, ''Waffen und Geheimwaffen des deutschen Heeres 1933–1945'', ''Polen 1939''] were lost during the campaign, approximately 341 of which were never to return to service. This represented about a third of Germany's armor deployed for the Polish campaign.
During the campaign, no less than half of Germany's tanks were unavailable due to maintenance issues or enemy action, and of all tanks, the Panzer I proved the most vulnerable to Polish anti-tank weapons.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-B14898, Calais, britische Kriegsgefangene](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-B14898%2C_Calais%2C_britische_Kriegsgefangene.jpg)
Furthermore, it was found that the handling of armoured forces during the campaign left much to be desired. During the beginning of Guderian's attack in northern Poland, his corps was held back to coordinate with infantry for quite a while, preventing a faster advance. It was only after Army Group South had its attention taken from Warsaw at the
Battle of Bzura
The Battle of the Bzura (or the Battle of Kutno) was the largest Polish counter-attack of the German invasion of Poland and was fought from 9 to 19 September.''The Second World War: An Illustrated History '', Putnam, 1975, Google Print snippet ...
that Guderian's armour was fully unleashed. There were still lingering tendencies to reserve Germany's armour, even if in independent divisions, to cover an infantry advance or the flanks of advancing infantry armies. Although tank production was increased to 125 tanks per month after the Polish Campaign, losses forced the Germans to draw further strength from Czech tank designs, and light tanks continued to form the majority of Germany's armored strength.
Months later, Panzer Is participated in
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung (german: Unternehmen Weserübung , , 9 April – 10 June 1940) was Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign.
In the early morning of 9 Ap ...
—the invasion of Denmark and Norway.
Despite its obsolescence, the Panzer I was also used in the Battle of France, invasion of France in May 1940. Of 2,574 tanks available for the campaign, no fewer than 523 were Panzer Is, while there were 627 Panzer IIIs and IVs, 955 Panzer II, 106 Czech Panzer 35(t), and 228 Panzer 38(t). For their defense, the French boasted up to 4,000 tanks, including 300 Char B1, armed with a 47 mm (1.7 in) gun in the turret and a larger 75 mm (2.95 in) low-velocity gun in the hull. The French also had around 250 Somua S-35, widely regarded as one of the best tanks of the period, armed with the same 47 mm main gun and protected by almost 55 mm (2.17 in) of armour at its thickest point. Nevertheless, the French also deployed over 3,000 light tanks, including about 500 World War I-vintage FT-17s. German armor enjoyed multiple advantages: Radios allowed them to coordinate faster than their British or French counterparts, while the Germans also had superior tactical doctrine and markedly faster speed.
North Africa and campaigns to the east (against Soviet Russia and in the Balkans)
![Croatian Panzer I](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Croatian_Panzer_I.jpg)
Italian setbacks in Egypt and their colony of Libya caused Hitler to dispatch aircraft to Sicily, and a blocking force to North Africa. This blocking force was put under the command of Lieutenant General Erwin Rommel and included the motorized 5th Light Division and the 15th Panzer Division. This force landed at Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli on 12 February 1941. Upon arrival, Rommel had around 150 tanks, about half Panzer III and IV. The rest were Panzer I's and IIs, although the Panzer I was soon replaced. On 6 April 1941, Germany attacked both Yugoslavia and Greece, with fourteen divisions Battle of Greece, invading Greece from neighboring Bulgaria, which by then had joined the Tripartite Pact. The invasion of Yugoslavia included six panzer divisions which still fielded the Panzer I. Yugoslavia surrendered 17 April 1941, and Greece fell on 30 April 1941.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-265-0006-31, Russland, Befehlspanzer 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-265-0006-31%2C_Russland%2C_Befehlspanzer_1.jpg)
The final major campaign in which the Panzer I formed a large portion of the armoured strength was ''Operation Barbarossa'', 22 June 1941. The 3,300 German tanks included about 410 Panzer I's. By the end of the month, a large portion of the Red Army found itself Battle of Białystok–Minsk, trapped in the Minsk pocket,
[McCarthy, ''Panzerkrieg'', p. 103] and by 21 September Kiev had fallen, thereby allowing the Germans to concentrate on their ultimate objective, Moscow. Despite the success of Germany's armour in the Soviet Union, between June and September most German officers were shocked to find their tanks were inferior to newer Soviet models, the T-34 and Kliment Voroshilov tank, KV series.
As seen during the Spanish Civil War only 5 years earlier, the Panzer I was clearly no match for even the weakest of Soviet armour it encountered, with even armoured cars such as the BA-10 proving capable of defeating the Panzer I when fitted with medium-caliber anti-tank weapons. Army Group North quickly realized that none of the tank guns currently in use by German armor could reliably penetrate the thick frontal armour of the KV-1 (tank), KV-1. The performance of the Red Army during the Battle of Moscow and the growing numbers of new Soviet tanks made it obvious the Panzer I was not largely suitable for this front of war.
Some less battle-worthy Panzer Is were tasked with towing lorries and other light (mainly wheeled) vehicles through the thick rasputitsa, Russian-autumn mud to alleviate logistical and transportation issues and problems at the frontlines,
[Perrett, ''German Light Panzers'', p. 45] whilst other Panzer Is were relegated for anti-partisan (military), partisan actions or rear-guard protection duties (such as defending airfields or other vital military installations on occupied enemy territory).
Others
After Germany, Spain fielded the largest number of Panzer I tanks. A total of 122 were exported to Spain during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
, and, as late as 1945, Spain's "Brunete Armored Division" fielded 93. The Panzer I remained in use in Spain until aid arrived from the United States in 1954 when they were replaced by the relatively modern M47 Patton. Between 1935 and 1936, an export version of the Panzer I Ausf. B, named the L.K.B. (''Leichte Kampfwagen B''), was designed for export to Bulgaria. Modifications included up-gunning to a 20-millimeter gun and fitting a Krupp M 311 V-8 gasoline engine. Although three examples were built, none were exported to Bulgaria, although a single Panzer I Ausf. A had previously been sold.
A final order was supplied to Hungary in 1942, totalling eight Ausf. B's and six command versions. These were incorporated into the 1st Armoured Division and saw combat in late 1942. At least 1 Panzer I Ausf. B was sent to the Croatian Home Guard (World War II), Army of the Independent State of Croatia.
Variants
![Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf A](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Panzerkampfwagen_I_Ausf_A.JPG)
Between 1934 and the mid-1940s, several variants of the Panzer I were designed, especially during the later years of its combat history. Because they were obsolescent from their introduction, incapable of defeating foreign armor, and outclassed by newer German tanks, the Panzer I chassis were increasingly adapted as
tank destroyer
A tank destroyer, tank hunter, tank killer, or self-propelled anti-tank gun is a type of armoured fighting vehicle, armed with a direct fire artillery gun or missile launcher, designed specifically to engage and destroy enemy tanks, often wi ...
s and other variants. One of the best-known variants was the ''Sd.Kfz. 265 Panzerbefehlswagen, kleiner Panzerbefehlswagen'' ("small armoured command vehicle"), built on the Ausf. A and Ausf. B chassis—200 of these were manufactured. The Panzer I Ausf. B chassis was also used to build the German Army's first tracked tank destroyer, the Panzerjäger I. This vehicle was armed with a 47 mm kanon P.U.V. vz. 36 (Škoda A6), Czech 47-millimeter (1.85 in) anti-tank gun.
[Perrett, ''German Light Panzers 1932–42'', p. 7]
See also
Comparable vehicles
* Italy: L3/33 • L3/35
* Japan: Type 94 tankette, Type 94
* Poland: TKS, TK-3 and TKS
* Romania: R-1 tank, R-1
* Soviet Union: T-27 • T-37A tank, T-37A • T-38 tank, T-38
* Sweden: Strv m/37
* United Kingdom:
Carden Loyd tankette
Notes
Sources
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* Franco, Lucas M. (2006). "El Tanque de la Guerra Civil Española" in ''Historia de la Iberia Vieja'' , No. 13. .
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External links
Panzer IA in Chinese Army, Nanjing, 1937External Tour of Panzer IInternal Tour of Panzer I*
{{Authority control
Light tanks of Germany
Light tanks of the interwar period
Interwar tanks of Germany
Military vehicles introduced in the 1930s
World War II light tanks
World War II tanks of Germany
History of the tank