The Panzerlied (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: "Tank Song") was a

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

military

march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March ...

of the Nazi era, sung primarily by the

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) an ...

, the tank force of Nazi Germany during

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 opposing ...

. It is one of the best-known songs of the Wehrmacht and was popularised by the 1965 film ''

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

''. It is still used today by the Chilean and Brazilian armies The modern-day German Army has discontinued its use, due to the song's Nazi origins.

History

Panzerlied was composed in 1933 by Oberleutnant Kurt Wiehle. In 2017, the German Army was banned from publishing song books containing Panzerlied and other marching songs by the

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

Ursula von der Leyen Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...

as part of new efforts at denazification. The song is sung by some motorized and parachute units of the

Italian Army "The safeguard of the republic shall be the supreme law" , colors = , colors_labels = , march = ''Parata d'Eroi'' ("Heroes's parade") by Francesco Pellegrino, ''4 Maggio'' (May 4) ...

, most especially by the

185th Paratroopers Division Folgore 185th may refer to: *185th (2/1st West Riding) Brigade, formation of the Territorial Force of the British Army *185th Air Refueling Squadron flies the KC-135 Stratotanker *185th Air Refueling Wing (ARW), unit located at Sioux Gateway Airport, Iowa ...

under the title of ''"Sui Monti e Sui Mar"''. In

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, the lyrics were adapted slightly to become the "''Marche des Chars"'' used by the

501e régiment de chars de combat 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. It has attained significance throughout history in part because typical humans have five digits on eac ...

. The half portion of the song was used for Namibian patriotic song and unofficial anthem under South African rule, ''"Das Südwesterlied"''. In the songs of motorized and parachute units from the Brazilian Army under the title of ''"Canção da Tropa Blindada"''. A Spanish translation of the song is used by the

Chilean Army The Chilean Army ( es, Ejército de Chile) is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 80,000-person army (9,200 of which are conscripts) is organized into six divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade. In recent years, and ...

as an armoured cavalry march, and by the Chilean Naval Academy as a '' pasacalle''. The lyrics of Panzerlied were adapted to fit a Kriegsmarine song.

Lyrics

References

{{Authority control German military marches German patriotic songs