A History of the Gewehr 41/43

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Panzernacker by Tony Dudmann. This article first appeared in ‘Der Grenadier’ the newsletter of 916 Grenadier Regiment.

Tank-hunting in the German Army traces its routes back to the First World War when, in an attempt to break the deadlock on the Western Front, the British developed the tank which was first used in action on September 15th 1916 on the Somme. The tanks could overcome barbed wire and entrenched machine guns and frightened the German soldiers into leaving their trenches. It was soon discovered that the tanks were vulnerable.

On November 20th 1917, 476 Mark IV tanks attacked at Cambrai but by nightfall, 180 tanks were out of action, 65 were victims of enemy fire and the others through mechanical failure or had become stranded in the mud.

Over 100 British tanks were captured and 30 were put into service with German crews and made up a portion of the German Panzerwaffe in 1918. The British tanks that had been destroyed in action had been victims of German artillery fire, at that time there being no anti-tank weapons available. This changed in 1918 when it was discovered that by simply reversing the direction of the infantry rifle bullet with a heavy tungsten-carbide core in the cartridge case, it could penetrate the British tank armour. Soon the Mauser Werke at Obendorf produced an oversized rifle that could fire a 13mm bullet and penetrate one inch of armour at 250 yards.

A Panzer-Füsilier testing a Panzerfaust.
(Photograph by Simon Patrick © 2007. No un-authorised use.)

The Panzerschreck 54 Anti-Tank 'Bazooka'.

Recoil was a problem especially in the limited number of magazine-fed Mauser antitank rifles produced and used in combat at the battle of Hamel in July 1918. It is not known how many British tanks were put out of action by anti-tank rifles or by individual soldiers armed with satchel charges.

The Mauser 13.2mm Anti-Tank Rifle.

During the Reichswehr period, mock-up anti-tank guns had to be used in training due to the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles. The lessons learned in WW1 were expanded upon and bore fruit in the new world war. The concept of training individual soldiers to tackle armour had been carefully developed and the successes achieved in WW2 were more than impressive.

It was soon after the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, that it was clear that there were insufficient anti-tank guns to take on the increasing number of Russian tanks appearing on the battlefield.

Tank destroying had become more reliant upon acts of the individual soldier armed with mines or satchel charges than by the anti-tank guns. It was recognised that individual soldiers should be rewarded for their acts of bravery and at first the General Assault Badge (originally designed for combat engineers only) was awarded to soldiers who had single-handedly destroyed a Russian tank or armoured vehicle. Generous home leave was often also awarded.

Grenadier's operating a Panzerschreck 54 anti-tank rocket launcher.

A Landser stalking enemy tanks with a Panzerfaust from a position of cover.

On March 9th 1942, Oberkommando des Heeres signed the order instituting the Tank Destruction Badge in Silver. For each enemy tank or armoured vehicle destroyed, one TDB was awarded.

Multiple awards became common and OKH therefore ordered a higher-grade award to be instituted and as of 18th December 1943, the Tank Destruction Badge (TDB) in Gold was to be awarded for each fifth victory.

The TDB was intended not for antitank gun crews but rather the individual soldier who destroyed an enemy tank or armoured vehicle with hand held weapons such as satchel charges, rifle grenades, hand grenades and later the Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck. All awards were made retroactive to June 22nd 1941, the day the Germans invaded the Soviet Union.

The TDB could be awarded to any person regardless of rank or branch of service. Towards the end of the war, TDB's were awarded to Kriegsmarine personnel who found themselves without ships or submarines and who were hastily thrown into battle as infantry.

Numerous awards were also made to Hitler Jugend and Volkssturm units fighting against impossible odds defending Germany.

There are no records of exactly how many TDB's were awarded but it is known that the highest number of individual kills was twenty one. This was accomplished by Knight's Cross holder Oberleutnant Gunther Viezenz.

Viezenz survived the war, which is an amazing feat considering the odds. The courage of all those who took on tanks single-handedly is without question.

Knight's Cross holder Oberleutnant Gunther Viezenz had the highest number of kills, with twenty one tanks to his name..

How it's done! An experienced Landser demonstrates the operation of the Panzerfaust.

The Tank Destruction Award in Gold was awarded for the single handed destruction of five enemy tanks.

Experienced NCO's from 916 Gren. Regt. with a Panzerschreck

Experienced NCO's from 916 Gren. Regt. with a Panzerschreck

Experienced NCO's from 916 Gren. Regt. stand proudly in front of an Allied Sherman tank. Sherman tank crews would have had to been wary of the Panzerschreck.

The Tank Destruction Badge was called Das Sonderabzeichen fur das Niederkampfen von
Panzerkampfwagen usw. durch einzelkampfer in German, which translates as “Special award for the destruction of a tank etc. by an individual fighter”.

The official announcement of the introduction of the Tank Destruction Badge read as follows:

1) The Führer has permitted the introduction of a special badge for the destruction of an enemy tank etc. by an individual.

2) With effect from 22nd June 1941 the special badge will be awarded to qualified soldiers who single-handedly destroyed or otherwise put out of action an enemy tank or similarly armoured vehicle by the use of close-combat weapons or implements (antitank rifle, rifle grenades, bundle charge.)

A tank-destruction badge will be awarded to the individual most decisively involved in the destruction of each enemy armoured vehicle.

3) The badge consists of an aluminium corded cloth band 90mm in length and 32mm in width, edged with two 3mm high black woven thread stripes, to the centre of which is attached the stamped metal silhouette of a tank.

4) The sleeve-band (ribbon) will be worn on the upper right sleeve of the tunic; additional awards of the badge will be recognised by badges worn in the same manner.

5) The Tank Destruction Badge will be awarded by the battalion commander in battalion orders upon receipt of written recommendation of the individual's unit commander.

6) The date of the award is to be entered in the soldier's personal papers. The recipient is to be provided with a copy of relevant battalion general orders.

7) Badges can be requested through divisional channels to army headquarters.

8) The criteria for awarding of the General Assault Badge for the destruction of enemy tanks remains in force.

Top - The rifle grenade launcher; Gewehr-Panzergranate.
Bottom - An ordinary Mauser K98 rifle.

There were several anti-tank rifles developed before and during the early months of WW2; most were obsolete by 1940 but photos show some models still in use right up until the end of the war. Some French tanks were thickly armoured and the Pz.B 39 antitank rifle proved ineffective. The standard infantry anti-tank gun, the PAK 36 (or “Doorknocker” as it later became known in Russia) in 37mm proved sufficient in the early Blitzkrieg days but was also found to be ineffective against the heavily armoured Russian tanks during Operation Barbarossa in 1941. A range of anti-tank rifle grenades were also developed and early models were not successful and withdrawn from service. In 1943, a new model of rifle grenade launcher (Schiessbecher) was issued along with new types of grenades including the Gewehr-Panzergranate 30 and the Grosse Gewehr-Panzergranate. These grenades still had fairly short ranges and small amounts of TNT. The Schiessbecher system was considered expensive to produce especially when considering its limited effectiveness.

The most effective anti-tank weapons were those manufactured by the troops themselves; these included the Geballte Ladung - six stick grenade heads wired around a seventh complete stick grenade. Also very effective was the expedient weapon of a stick grenade attached to a Jerrycan of petrol.

Once the grenade was armed, the Jerrycan was tossed onto the engine deck of the enemy tank and the resulting explosion would set the tank's fuel system on fire.

Another “official” method was to throw two smoke grenades that were tied together with rope so that they looped around the tank's gun barrel and then produced thick smoke, which blinded the driver's forward vision. The tank could then be safely tackled with explosives or petrol bombs.

The Geballte Ladung - comprised of seven stick grenade heads.

Above: The magnetic hollow charge anti-tank weapon; Hafthohlladung.

Right: Detailed diagram of the inner workings and structure
of the magnetic hollow charge (Hafthohlladung).

A series of magnetic hollow charge anti-tank weapons (Hafthohlladung) were also produced weighing between 2 and 10 kilograms. The 3 Kg version proved to be one of the most potent anti-tank weapons.

To use a magnetic charge required nerves of steel as the soldier had to place the charge by hand directly onto the enemy tank before arming it, which gave only seven seconds to escape before detonation. The Germans were well aware of the effectiveness of magnetic hollow charge weapons and this led to the development of Zimmerit paste, for application to their own tanks.

Demolition charges also proved effective and were often attached three or four at a time to a length of wood and simply shoved under the tracks of an enemy tank.

Panzerfaust! A The various types of Panzerfausts and their respecxtive ranges and size for comparison.

In 1943, the Raketenpanzerbuchse 43 was developed based on captured American Bazookas. The Ofenrohr “stovepipe” as it was known, had a range of 150 metres and was highly effective. The blast was fearsome and the crew had to wear special protective clothing until the Panzerschreck 54 was developed which had a shield fitted to protect the crew.

In early 1944, the Faustpatrone, the world's first RPG, was developed and soon gave the German infantryman the ability to tackle any Allied tank head on. The Panzerfaust 30m and 60m were issued in huge numbers to offset the lack of anti-tank artillery.

The Panzerfaust 60m had a long rear blast when fired so had to be used with care. The Panzerfaust was produced in thousands and issued en-masse, it was also very simple to operate and archive footage shows Berlin housewives being trained in it's use by Volkssturm troops!

The main disadvantage of the Panzerfaust was that if used in open terrain, it required the operator to be fully exposed to the advancing enemy tank in order to get a clear shot. The American built Sherman was especially vulnerable and crews started welding extra armour plates on or added layers of sandbags to try to protect their tanks from the deadly weapon.

During the bitter street fighting in Berlin, the Panzerfaust soon became the biggest threat to Soviet armour and Hitler Youth boys became experts in their use.

Above: Panzerfaust 100m. At the rocket end of the Panzerfaust there are clear instructions for the weapons operation and use. The instructions include a warning or caution (Vorsicht !) for the rear end of the Panzerfaust.

Left: A Grenadier aims from his foxhole using the Panzerfaust's flip-up sights.

An anti-tank mine; Tellerminen

Finally, there were of course anti-tank mines; Tellerminen, also highly effective and as well as being placed on the ground so the enemy tank would drive over them and set them off, they could also be thrown or placed on an enemy tank. It would of course, take those nerves of steel again to place a T-mine onto the rear engine deck, tracks or most effective of all, in between the turret and hull. It is no wonder so many Tank Destruction Badges are seen in original photos!

Bibliography: Tank Killers. History of the Tank Destruction Badge by Thomas W. Breyette and Roger James Bender.