Panzers in Italy 1943-1945 (English)

5/13/2018 Panzers in Italy 1943-1945 (English)

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Tom Cock

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7023Panzers in Italy1943- 9 5 Text by Tom CockleColor plates by Douglas Jarneson


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By the end of 1942, Axis Forces inNorth Africa were being slowly squeezedback into Tunisia by the combined armieso f the United States and Great Britain. InJanuary 1943, U.s. President Franklin D.Roosevelt and B ritish Prime MinisterWinston S. Churchill met with the AlliedCombined Chiefs of Staff in the Moroccanport city of Casablanca to plan their nextmove.

American strategists favoredconcentrating on a cross-Channeloffensive and viewed any other course ofaction as a distraction from the main goal.Churchill on the other hand, felt that acampaign against Italy, 'the softunderbelly of Europe' as he called it, mighthelp knock Italy out of the war and divertsome German forces from the RussianFront. As the Allies were in no position tolaunch a major offensive in France in 1943and in order to maintain the initiative, itwas decided to invade Sicily as soon as theAxis Forces in North Africa were defeated.American General Dwight D. Eisenhowerwas named Supreme Commander and atarget date was set in early July 1943.

The plan called for the British EighthArmy, under General Sir Bernard L.Montgomery, to land near Pachino on thesouth east corner of the island, with theBritish 5th, 50th and 51st InfantryDivisions, the Canadian 1 st InfantryDivision and two Royal MarineCommando units. The American SeventhArmy, under Lieutenant General George S.Patton, with the U.S. lst, 3rd and 45thInfantry Divisions followed by the 2ndArmored Division, would land on theBritish left flank, near Gela.

Operation 'Husky', as it was called,would be the largest amphibious landing inhistory, using 3,300 vessels of all types toferry more than 80,000 troops, 7,000vehicles, 300 trucks, 600 tanks and 900artillery pieces from ports in North Africa,Great Britain and the United States ..Theinvasion would be preceded by the largestAllied airborne operation of the warcarrying almost 4,600 men in 222 planesand 144 gliders.

The Italians had about 200,000 troopsstationed on the island in five coastaldivisions and four poorly equippedinfantry divisions, the Aosta, Napoli,

In t roduct ionAssietta and Livorno Divisions. They werereinforced by some 30,000 German troopsIl1 the well trained and equipped15.Panzer-Grenadier-Division, underGeneralmajor Eberhard Rodt and Panzer-Division 'Hermann Goring', underGeneralleutnant Paul Conrath, supportedby 17 Tiger 1's from 2./s.pz.Abt.504.

The landings took place in the earlymorning hours of 10 July 1943. TheBritish, landing near Syracuse, took theport on the first day. The Americans,landing in the Gela sector faced some stiffopposition when the Italian LivornoDiv ision counterattacked with Panzer-Division 'Hermann Goring', the Italiansactually reaching Gela before they wererepulsed. Under intense naval gunfire, theItalian and German forces fell back. Acoordinated attack the next day broughtPanzer-Division 'Hermann Goring' towithin 2,000 yards of the Americanbeachhead before they again withdrewunder a storm of combined artillery andnaval gunfire.

On 12-14 July, FJR 3 and 1. andIIl./FJR 4 were parachuted into Sicily toreinforce the German positions in theCatania area. They were later followed by29. Panzer -Grenadier- Di v is ion underGeneralmajor Walter Fries, equipped with43 StuG.III, who were ferried over fromthe mainland.

On 2S July, as the battle for Sicilyraged on, Benito Mussolini was arrestedand control of the government was turnedover to Marshal Badoglio, whoimmediately began secret negotiations foran armistice. During the following weeks,the German defenders were graduallypushed back towards Messina, where,during the nights of 10 and II August, 34Panzers and 44 StuG.Ill and one remainingTiger were evacuated by ferry to the Italianmainland. On 17 August 1943, the U.S. IstInfantry Division entered Messina endingthe battle for Sicily. In all, 118 of the 217Panzers and Sturmgeschutz sent to Sicilywere lost.

In August 1943, Hitler also orderedSS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division 'LSSAH'transferred to northern Italy from theEastern Front to bolster German forcesthere. Leaving all their equipment behind,they were re-equipped with new

Pz.Kpfw.Ivs and Pz.Kpfw.V Pantalong with 27 Tiger I's of the nformed schwere SS-Panzer-Abteilung1.SS-Panzer-Korps 'Leibstandarte'.reformed 24.Panzer-Division wastransferred to central Italy in August 1

Encouraged by their progressSicily, in mid-July Allied strategists bto plan the assault on the Italian mainat Salerno. Mussolinis arrest furincreased the Allies optimism and GenEisenhower was instructed to urgeprepare plans for the operation.

Altbough the British Eighth Armycrossed the Strait of Messina oSeptember, 1943 landing near Reggiomain attacks did not take place unSeptember 1943. Code named Opera'Avalanche', the U.S. Fifth Army landSalerno on the Italian mainland withBritish X and U.S. VI Corps. At thetime, the British lst Airborne landeTaranto.

At this time, southern Italydefended by the German 10.Armee uGeneral der Panzertruppe HeinrichVietinghoff. His command inclu56.Armeekorps with 29.Panzer-GrenadDivision, 26.Panzer-Division16.Panzer-Division; 16.Panzerkorps15.Panzer-Grenadier- DivisionI.Fallschirmjager-DivisionllFliegerkorps with 2.FallschirmjagDivision ancl3.Panzer-Grenadier-DivisioGeneralfeldrnarschall Albert Kesselwas overall commander of all Gerforces in the south o f Italy.

The landings came as no surprislo.Panzer-Division, the only Gerdivision stationed in the Salerno area.German High Command had considSalerno to be a likely landing site16.Panzer-Division had just complanti-invasion maneuvers in the areaseveral static defenses had been seAgainst stiff opposition, the Allies slbegan consolidating the beachhead. Iearly morning light, a large forcePz.Kpfw.IV's from l ti.Panzer-Divisimade the first large-scale attack againsU.S. 36th Division north of Paesturwas not until after noon that the attackrepulsed and the American troopstheir initial objectives some four minland.


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Von Vietinghoff ordered 26.Panzer-Division and 29.Panzer-Grenadier-Division to break off contact with theadvancing British Eighth Army and rushnorth to Salerno. He also ordered Panzer-Division 'Hermann Goring' andlS.Panzer-Grenadier-Division, who wereresting and refitting in the Naples areaafter their withdrawal from Sicilydispatched south to block any Alliedattempt to advance toward Naples.Kesselring requested two Panzer-Divisions from 14.Armee stationed innorthern Italy, be transferred south to meetthe Allied threat, but Hitler refused therequest.

The Germans launched a majorcounter-attack against the Americanpositions all along the front on 13September. The situation became criticalwhen German tanks swept to within twomiles of the beach. Having committedtheir reserves, the Allies were short ofreinforcements and Montgomery's EighthArmy was still almost 120 miles away.Everyman who could hold a gunwa putinto the line and furious artillery firepoured into the German positions. Theattack faltered and by sunset. the Germanhad pulled back. Meanwhile, GeneralClark, concerned about the tenuouAmerican positions. made plans for themto be evacuated by sea to the British sector.Fortunately, during the evening,reinforcements arrived when 1,300 menfrom the 82nd Airborne dropped into theAmerican sector followed by parts of theu.S. 45th Infantry Division and British 7thArmoured Division by landing craft in theearly morning. Another German attack wasbeaten otf the next day and the situationbegan to improve for the Allies asreinforcements continued to pour in.Finally, on 18 September, after nine daysof fighting, the Germans pulled back fromthe beachhead in an organized withdrawalto a new defensive position in the northernApennines. By the lime Montgomery'sEighth Army linked up with the invasionforces, the fighting was largely over.

With the beachhead at Salernosecured, the Allies attention turned toaples. The u.S. Fifth Army would

advance along the west and capture theport of aples while the British EighthArmy attacked toward Foggia on theeastern ide of the Apennines. Themoun ainous terrain favored the defender

and the Germans became experts atdemolishing bridges along the narrow,winding roads and setting up small rearguard forces to impede the Allied advance.This gave the Germans two weeks tocompletely dismantle and remove ordestroy anything that may be helpful to theAllies. Railroads and buildings weredynamited clogging the streets with rubbleand ships were sunk and cranesdemolished in the harbor making ituseless. Within a month though, the portwas back operating almost at prewarlevels. The Germans began to realize thatthese tactics could delay the Alliedadvance by months and on 4 October,Hitler instructed Kesselring to et IIp adefensive line across Italy between Iaplesand Rome. This would come to be knownas the Gustav Line and would become thescene of much bitter fighting at a towncalled Cassino.

North of [he \oltll.mo River..theroadthat led from Naple to Rome branchedinto two road .one running along the coastand the other rhrough the mountain about= - 5 miles inland. T h e oa. t road. whichfollowed the ancient Appian Way. ranthrough the Pontine Iar: he and was theleast suitable of the two. The other route,once it passed Monte Cassino, opened upinto the Liri Valley and led directly toRome. The Germans were determined toblock ac.cess to the Allies.

The German defensive line actuallyconsisted of two shorter lines, the Barbaraand Bernhard Lines, blocking both roads.Both were designed to slow down theAllied advance so that the major defensiveline, the Gustav Line, could be completed.It took the Fifth Army more than twoweeks to break through the Barbara Lineand advance 40 miles only to be stopped011 the Bernhard Line. By IS November,the exhausted Fifth Army halted to rest andrefit for two weeks.

In order to break the stalemate thatwas developing, Allied planners conceiveda plan for an amphibious landing behindthe German lines that would force them toabandon their positions south of Rome.The landing site chosen was Anzio, a smallcoastal town 35 miles south of Rome.

The assault force of 40,000 men fromthe U.S. VI Corps, commanded by MajorGeneral John P. Lucas, landed on 22

January 1944, against light oppositiothe end of the first day, the U.SInfantry Division had advancedthree miles and the British 1st Ditwo miles. Mindful of the situationhad developed at Salerno and fearpossible trap, General Lucas decidhold his position until all the troopequipment could be put ashore.

Hitler immediately orreinforcement'. from YugosGermany. France and northern Italyin. By the end of the day, three divwere on their way from 14.Armnorth rn Italy to meet the new threat,~ith ome unit from the Cassino

the various units sentI./Pz.R

SturrnpaA reilung _]6 and Panzer-Abteilung301. By the time General Lucas lauan . OUi of the bridgeheadJanuarv, the Germans hac! assembformidable defense.

While the Germans were reactithe landing at Anzio. General Clarkagain. ordered Fifth Army to try to bthe Gustav Line. The Benedictine Aon top of Monte Cassino looked dowthe town of Cassino on the banksRapido River from a height of 1,700In order to reach the Rapido River,from the U.S. 34th and 36th InDivisions had to cross two miles ofswampy ground under the consurveillance of German observerswere able to call down extremely acartillery fire. It took more than a wget across the river.

At Anzio, the Germans launchmajor counter-attack clown the AlAnzio road against the U.S. 45th InDivision. Confined to the few goodbecause of wet, muddy fields, the Gattack gained some initial success bline held. After five days, the Gerealized they would not be able tothrough and suspended the attack.sides suffered about 19,000 casueach. A second, weaker attempt ninelater also failed. The inability of theto make any headway resulted in GLucas being replaced by Major GLucian Truscott, commander of the3rd Infantry Division.

While the Germans were occ


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with plans for the Anzio counter-attack,the 2nd New Zealand and 4th Indiandivisions were given the task of trying tobreak through the German defenses atCassino and into the Liri Valley. To thecommander of the 4th Indian Division, themonastery presented an insurmountableobstacle as long as it was intact. Althoughthe Germans maintained after that they hadno troops actually stationed in themonastery, at that time few Alliedcommanders believed it. After themonastery was bombed on 15 February,the elite German lPallschirmjager-Division occupied the ruins. The rubbleonly provided the German defenders withexcellent cover and made the positionmore difficult to take. Two more Alliedattacks failed to take their objective.

The next attack would follow anothermassive aerial bombardment on the town,but the weather conditions remainedunfavorable for the next three weeks and itwas not until 15 March that conditionswere right. Again, the ground attack wasmet by furious resistance fromparatroopers from Lf'allschirmjager-Division, who had survived the bombingin tunnels and bunkers. Mountains ofdebris and rain filled bomb cratershampered the movement of men and tanks.On the mountain, men from the 4th IndianDivision fought to within 250 yards of thesummit before being driven back by theGerman paratroopers.

General Alexander now transferredEighth Army from the Adriatic to theCassino area. A new offensi ve was plannedwith 14 divisions massed against theGermans. After more than six weeks ofpreparation, the Allies were ready. On 11May, more than 1,600 guns opened up withthe most massive barrage yet seen on theItalian Front. With their usual tenacity, theGermans fought back holding on to theirground except in the thinly held AurunciMountains where the FrenchExpeditionary Corps under General Juin,advanced several miles in a few days andthreatened to break into the Liri Valley inthe German rear. Sparked by this success,the British outflanked the town of Cassinoon 17 May and that night, Kesselringordered Ll-allschirmjager-Division toabandon the ruins and fall back. The nextday, the Polish IICorps occupied themonastery after taking almost 4,000casualties in the preceding week.

As the German 10.Armee retreated allalong the front, the Allies, now numberingseven divisions in the Anzio beachhead,launched an attack towards Cisterna to cutthem off. But General Clark, his eye on theprize of Rome, diverted some of his attackforce northwest toward Rome allowing thebulk of German forces from Cassino tobypass them and escape. Two regimentsfrom the U.S. 36th Infantry Divisionmarched through a hole in the Germandefenses and entered Rome on 4 June1944. It was the first enemy capital city tofall to the Allies.

The Germans continued to withdrawnorth leaving a trail of destruction behind.Another series of temporary defensivelines was being set up to hinder the Alliedadvance while the main line of resistance,the Gothic Line, was being hurriedlyconstructed across the Apennines 155miles north of Rome.

The Trasirneno Line ran through LakeTrasimeno 85 miles north of Rome. Here,Kesselring managed to hold up the Alliedadvance for ten days before conducting anorderly withdrawal to a new line 30 milesaway where the performance was repeated.By 4 August, they were back to the ArnoLine which followed the Arno Riverthrough Pisa and Florence and then overthe mountains to the Adriatic. At this point,they were only 20 miles from the GothicLine where a last stand would be made.

The beginning of August found botharmies facing each other across the ArnoRiver. Seven Allied divisions had beenwithdrawn for the landings in southernFrance and now General Alexander wasforced to shift troops to pick up the slackfor an assault across the Arno River. TheEighth Army was moved to the Adriaticcoast where the terrain was lessformidable. The plan was for the British toattack towards the coastal town of Rimini.It was hoped that the Germans would reactby shifting units from the center of the lineto meet the attack allowing the Fifth Armyto strike toward Bologna against littleresistance. On 25 August, Eighth Armylaunched its assault on Rimini across theArno Line. They made good progress atfirst but soon were bogged down byautumn rains. The Germans reacted asexpected and the Fifth Army crossed theArno virtually unopposed, moving intoPisa on 2 September and advancing to the

Gothic Line 15 miles north of Florenc13 September.

There are two narrow, winding pthrough the Apennines connecFlorence with Bologna, the Futa PasII Giogo Pass. General Clark chosesecondary II Giogo Pass believing thePass to be more strongly defended.narrow confines of the pass madnecessary to employ small groupinfantry, often in hand-to-hand combtake the commanding heights. Soonbulk of the Fifth Army was mothrough the pass toward their objecThe Gothic Line had been broken anGermans again withdrew to thedefensive line. On 10 October,torrential rains and fog, Pifth Armyto a halt 10 miles short of the Po Vall

Meanwhile, the British Eighth Aafter taking Rimini, continued slowlthe Aclriatic coast, crossing sevenswollen rivers until they too, were fto halt in late December. Both asettled down to a period of relativewith only sporadic bursts of acwaiting for another miserable Itwinter to pass.

In preparation for a new soffensive, the Allies stockpiled weaand fuel over the winter months.Eighth Army launched an attack towLake Comacchio on 9 April followedattack on Bologna by the Fifth Annydays later. On 21 April, both armies lup encircling the retreating GermPartisan groups rose up and harassedGermans by sabotaging tracks and sup roadblocks. The disintegrating Gearmies were surrendering in the tethousands as the Allies raced to seaAlpine passes and prevent their esThe battle for Italy was finally over.

Acknowledgements:Bundesarchiv, Koblenz; Ulls

Suddeutscher Verlag BilderdienImperial War Museum; RoMichulec; Thomas Anderson; andBaxter, HITM Archive.


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A heavily retouched photo of a Pz.Kpfw.111Ausf.J of II.IPz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring' in theNiscemi area. On the afternoon of the invasion,an attack on the American forces at Gela nearlysucceeded but the massive firepower of theInvasion f leet broke up the attack. The division'svehicles were painted in overall dark yellow withthe three digit tactical number painted in whitewith a black outline. Panzer-Division 'HermannGoring' used a complex system of vehicle unitidenti fication markings based on a white disc withdifferent colored lines corresponding to thenumbers around a clock face. Here, the disc onthe left front mudguard has a black line in the sixo'clock position indicating 6.Kompanie.

Operation 'Husky', the Allied invasion of Sicily, began on 10 July 1943. Island defenses inthe Ital ian 'Napoli ' and 'Uvorno' Div is ions along with Panzer-Division 'Hermann Goring' and 15.PGrenadier-Division. The crew of this SluG.111Ausf.F8 of Pz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring', performmaintenance on their vehicle in the days before the Allied landings. At this time, the regimenequipped with 20 StuG.111and 9 StuH. in their 111.Abteilung. The crewmen wear a variety ofuni forms including the unpopular tropical sun helmet.

A StuH42 Ausf.G and StuG.111Ausf.G of I II ./Pz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring' in a defensive posi tionthe invasion beaches, while their supporting infantry take a lunch break. Both vehicles havecamouflaged with cut fo liage to help conceal their out line.


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Another camouflaged StuG.111Ausf.G of III./Pz.Rgt. 'HermannGoring' in a town near the eastcoast of Sicily. Signs on thebuildings in the background point toCatania on the left and Siricusa onthe right. Panzer-Abteilung 129 of29.Panzer-Grenadier-Division,equipped with 43 StuG.III, weretransferred to Sicily on 22 July1943.

An Sd.Kfz.223 leichte Panzerspahwaqen (Fu) of Panzer-D'Hermann Goring' in the Vizzini area along the route taken by tCanadian Division. An internal explosion has scattered debris arouvehic le and dislodged the frame antenna.

II. ls/Pz.Abt.504, equipped with 17 Tiger 1'5, was assigned to Panzer-Division 'Hermann Goring' on 9 July 1943. Ten were lost during the first threof f ight ing when they were blown up by their crews to prevent capture. During the fol loWing weeks, the German defenders were gradually pushed back tMessina, where, during the nights of 10 and 11 August, 34 Panzers and 44 StuG.111and one remaining Tiger were evacuated by ferry to the Italian maOn 17 August 1943, the U.S. 1st Infantry Division entered Messina ending the battle for Sicily.


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This Semovente da 75/18 is one of 123 taken over by theGermans and has had new markings applied over the standardItalian camouflage paint scheme, consisting of the standardblack Balkenkreuz and a three digit tactical number, '224',probably in black with a white outline. Two of the crewmenappear to be wearing uniforms fashioned from captured Italiancamouflage cloth. In German service, it was referred to asSturmgeschutz M42 mit 75/18 858(i)

Aftersurrender of thegovernmentSeptember 194Germans movdisarm theira ll ies. As a resuquantities oftanks, self -proguns and armorewere absorbedGerman ArmySemovente dawas pphotographedthe surrender adisplays itsRegio EseriloArmy) regisplate.

A Carro CommandoCompagnia Semovente da 47/32,German designation Pz.Bef.Wg.47/32 770(i), in service with5.Gebirgs-Division. Note theheavy mountain boots worn bytwo of the soldiers.

Another view of one of theAutoblinda AB41 armored cars asit passes the cameraman. The8alkenkreuz on the side of the hullis now plainly visible. Other photosof this type of vehicle show theItal ian tact ical marking system st il lpainted on the angled rear sidesof the turret.

Two Autoblinda AB41 . PanzerspahAB41 201 (i) - on patrol in a mountainousThey retain their I tal ian camouflage paint sof gray-green patches over the yellow sanand would likely have carried the stBalkenkreuz on the front and both sideshull and on the rear of the turret.


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In August 1943,. SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division 'LSSAH' wastransferred to I taly f romthe Eastern Front tobolster German forcesafter the ItalianGovernmeht dismissedand then imprisonedMussolini. Leaving alltheir equipment behind,they were re-equippedwith new Pz.Kpfw.IV'sand Pz.Kpfw.VPanthers along with 27Tiger l's. Here an earlyPz.KpfwlV Ausf.H f romII'/SS-Pz.Rgu entersthe northern I talian cit yof Milan. It is painted ina camouflage schemeof green and brownpatches over the darkyellow base. Thecrudely painted tacticalnumber '618' is paintedin yellow with a blackand secondary whiteoutline behind thestandard Balkenkreuz.They also carried thedivisional emblem, awhite shield with askeleton key insideabove a pair of oakleaves, on the frontplate beside the driver'svisor and on the upperlef t rear plate.

Another early Pz.Kpfw.IV Aust. H from IL/SS-Pz.RgtMilan, August 1943. The black and white outlines arountact ical numbers are clearly visible here as well as the divisemblem painted on the rear plate.


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On 9 September 1943, the U.S. Fifth Army lanSalerno on the Italian mainland with the British X andCorps. German reaction was swift with 16.Panzer-Divisio29.Panzer-GrEmadier-Division at tacking the beachhead.an early Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H from 16.Panzer-Division,concealed from roving AII !ed f ighter-bombers under a larThe vehicle is fitted with the new drive sprocket and finhousings introduced in May 1943, but still retains the ad30mm bolted on armor plates on the front of the hull threplaced with sinqle 80mm plates in June 1943. It alsovision ports on the hull sides that were deleted in June

A brand new Tiger I Ausf.E of the newly formed schwere SS-Panzer-Abteilung of1.SS-Panzer-Korps 'Leibstandarte' which was sent to I taly in August 1943 along with SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division 'LSSAH'. At this t ime, they were painted in overal l dark yellowand displayed no markings. The unit remained in Northern Italy until the middle ofOctober when they were transferred back to the Eastern Front without having seen anyaction.

An Sd.Kfz.233 schwere Panzerspahwaqen (7.5cm) rolling along a dusty count ryroad. It is painted in overall dark yellow and displays the standard Wehrmachtregistration number plate. 'WH 1312055', in white with black numbers on the front. A totalof 129 Sd.Kfz.233 were built from July 1942 to October 1943 and were normally issuedto the reconnaissance bat talions in the Panzer divisions.

Panzer-Division 'HeGoring' and 15.PGrenadier-Divisionresting and refittingNaples area afterwi thdrawal f rom Sicily wlandings at Salerno tookThey were immedispatched south to bloAllied attempt to atoward Naples. Here aof new Pz.Kpfw.IV AusfI.lPz.Rgt. 'Hermannmake their way throuItalian village enroutefront. They are fitted wsmoke candle dischargethe turret that wereinstalled f rom February1943 and also appearthe 25mm thick roof plwas introduced abeginning of Ausf.H prodThe three digit tacticalappears to be red withoutline and thereBalkenkreuz, painted ioutline only, on the uprear plate.

10


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A Pz.Kpfw.1V Ausf.H of Il.lPz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring' passingthrough an Italian village in October 1943. The II.Abteilung appears tohave adopted a different style of marking on their vehicles than theI.Abteilung. The three digit tactical number '7 + 11' IS painted in newblack paint which makes it appear darker than the faded black of theBalkenkreuz. The tactical number and Balkenkreuz were repeated onthe sides of the turret skirt armor as well.

An Sd.Kfz.131 Marder II self-propelled ant i-tank gun of Panzer-Art illerie-Regiment 'Hermann Goring' in Southern Italy in late 1943. Mounting the 7PaK40/2, 576 Marder II's were manufactured between June 1942 and June 1943 with another 75 converted from obsolete Pz.Kpfw.11 chassis from Julyto March 1944. The crew has b.een issued with standard M38 Fallschirrnjaqer helmets.


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A PzAusf.G from IRegiment16.Panzer-Divis

Another Marder II self-propelled anti-tank gun of Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment 'Hermann Goring' passing through an Italian village followedFlakvierling 38 auf schwerer Gelandegangiger Lastkraf twagen 4.5t . More simply put, this was a 2cm Flakvierling 38 mounted on the chassis of the MBenz L4500 4.5 ton truck. The driver's cab and radiator received light armor plating and the rear deck was fitted with folding sides to increase thesize. It also carr ies a st riking hard-edged camouf lage scheme of green st ripes over the dark yellow base.

12

receivesoverhaul

anb

divisional maincompany. Partactical number'331', is visibleside of the tuarmor. The demblem, a 'Yhorizontal barit, painted iochre without line is fainton the rear plath e leftBalkenkreuz.time, 16Division consI I.Abteilungwith Pz.Kpfw.III .Abteilungwith StuG.11I.Abteilung waGermany beinwi th the new P


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A column of Pz.Kpfw.IV Aust.G of II.!Pz. Rgt.2 of 16.Panzer-Division parked along a road in Southern Italy while their crews relax in the late summ1943.The divisional emblem can be clearly seen beside the spare track links. Although looking rather new, these vehicles have already seen some actthe Salerno area. Another photo of the vehicle on the right shows that It has taken a hit from an anti-tank round on the right side just in front of the edeck and right below the hull roof which, apparently, did not disable it. All of them are painted In overall dark yellow and display a black stencil outlinedigit tactical number on the sides of the turret skirt armor.

Another Pz.Kpfw.!V Ausf.G moves toward the front. Judging from the dark colored uniforms, It is possibly from IlL/Panzer-Regiment 24 of 24.PaDivision, which was transferred to central Italy in August 1943 and then back to the Eastern Front a short time later in October. After being annihilateStalingrad, the division was reformed in February 1943 with two PZ.Abt. A !11.Abteilung, created in April 1943 was converted to a PZ.StuG.Abt., equippedtwo companies of StuG.111and two of Pz.Kpfw.lV. In the original photo, a white outlined three digit tactical number can faintly be seen on the side of theskirt armor.


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- _ - - - -An 8.8cm FlaK18 ant i-aircraft gun f rom an unidentified Luf twaffe Flak-Regiment . The gun is f inished in its anginal dark gray paint, and the h

attempt at camouflage would scarcely conceal it from the air against its sandy colored surroundings. This one has been fitted with the redesignegunshield. Capable of firing a 9.24 kg high explosive shell at a muzzle velocity of 820 mIs, it had a maximum effective ceiling of 8000 m.

_, . . __, : , .

A '.'~ "."; . : 4 : - ~

c , ' * ; . . . . _ . 1 . . ; . . . ;. . , - "A 20m Flakvierling 38 anti-aircraft gun is moved into position by its crew. All branches of the German Armed Forces used this gun and by Authe Luftwaffe alone had around 3600 in service. It was capable of firing at 880 rpm and had a maximum effective ceiling of 2200 m.

14


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A Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G from Pz.Rgt.2 of 16.Panzer-Division, knocked out in the British sector near Lucera in September 1943. An anti-tank rounpenetrated the right side of the turret, blowing out a large hole and setting off the ammunition resulting in the rear plate being blown off. Here, the damvehicle is apparently being towed around in a field to test the efficiency of various types of mines, near 8th Army headquarters on 22 October 1943.

A StuG.111 Ausf.G sits alongside a road near Satriano di Lucania,southwest of Potenza in September 1943. The roof of the fightingcompartment has been completely blown off as a result of an internalammunition explosion. I t is f in ished in overall dark yellow with a camouflagescheme of green patches. No unit markings are visible but both 16.Panzer-Division and 29.Panzer-Grenadier-Division were operating in the area andboth were equipped with StuG.111.

The crewmen of a Pz.Kpfw.111Ausf.N camouflage their vehicle wifoliage on a hillside in Southern Italy. A three digit tactical number, '12painted on the sides of the turret skirt armor in red with a white outlineit is likely that it also has a camouflage scheme of green patches ovedark yellow base. A lthough no unit markings can be seen, Pz.Rgt. 'HermGoring' reported three Pz.Kpfw.111Ausf.N on their table of organizationAugust 1943 and this may be one of them.


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Another view of the same column of Sd.Ktz.t 0/4 self-proaircraft guns halted along the street. The crew are all wearing truniforms including shorts and the gun commander, standing inwears the tropical sun helmet with the tricolor national emblem sside.

A Luftwaffe Sd.Ktz.t 0/4 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun rolpalm lined street in sunny Southern Italy in the summer of 194610 of these vehicles were produced from 1938 to 1944 and co2cm FlaK30 or, later as in this case, the FlaK38 anti-aircraft gunthe Oemag 07 half-t rack chassis.

A column of new Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G move through an Italian town near the Adriatic coast. The Panzer is finished in overall dark yellow avisible marking is the black Balkenkreuz painted on the side of the turret skirt armor. Note the dust covers installed on the muzzle brake and hmachine gun. They are probably from 16.Panzer-Oivision, the only unit equipped with Pz.Kpfw.IV in Southern Italy at the time.

16


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Another view of the column as it proceeds around the corner of a building on the same street. On the left, a sign points the way towards Bari, a poon the Adriatic coast, and Bitonto, a small town a few kilometers west.

A Panzer crewman guides the driver of a Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G as he backs under cover in an olive grove. In the background can be seen the Zeshelter quarter tents set up for the men to sleep in. These vehicles are possibly trom Pz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring'.


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A Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G from the same unit raises a great cloudit moves into position among the grove of olive trees. Both vehicleswith the 'Filzbalgfilter' engine air filter system on the rightintroduced in May 1943.The officer standing in front is wearingCross First Class pinned to the lef t breast of his tropical shirt.

A 15cm sFH18 artillery gun towed by an Sd.Kfz.7 half-track, is maneuvered around a grove of trees being used as a camp by a heavy toweunit. The Zeltbahn camouflage shelter quarter was designed to be joined together with others to form a small tent. The Sd.Kfz.7 is finished in oyellow with a camouflage paint scheme of green patches.

A 2cm Flakvierling 38 anti-aircraft gun prepares for action.only six soldiers are visible, the gun was normally crewed by a decommander and seven men. On the lef t, one of the two ammunitionstands ready with two twenty round magazines. The two crewmeright have painted their steel helmets with sand colored camouflag

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Another 2cm Flakvierlinq 38 anti-aircraft gun emplacement along theMediterranean coast in the Straits of Messina. The Entfernungsmesser 34range finder can be seen mounted on a tripod on the left. The EM34 wasnormally held in a harness strapped to the observer and used split imageoptics and triangulation to determine the distance to the target.

A battery of Italian Cannone da 90/53 anti-aircraft guns. Originallydesigned by Ansaldo in 1939, only 539 of these guns were produced by July1943. In German service they were officially referred to as the FlaK 309/1 (i)or, more commonly, the 9cm FlaK41 (i).

A Luftwaffe Sd.Kfz.1 0/4 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun stands ready foraction beside a road in Southern Italy during the summer of 1943. This one


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is fitted with the 2cm FlaK38.

The crew of this Luftwaffe Sd.Kfz.7/2 self-propelaircraft gun strike a pose for the PK photographSd.Kfz.7/2 mounted the potent 3.7cm FlaK36 anti-airon the chassis of the Sd.KIz.7 8t half-track primBeginning in late 1943, some vehicles received a ligplating over the driver's cab and engine compAltogether, 123 were produced between 1943 and 1crewmen are all wearing the distinctive tan coloredtropical uniforms that featured the large patch pockettrouser leg.

Another Luftwaffe Sd.Kfz.7/2 sel f-propelled angun, this time one with the lightly armor cab, sits abalong a road, the victim of an Allied air attack. Just alies, what appears to be a 2cm Flakvierling 38 mountechassis of the Mercedes-Benz L4500 4.5 ton truck. Thof fol iage camouflaging i t conceals i ts true ident ity.


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A 75cm PaK40 anti-tank guncrew, possibly from 16. Panzer-Division, await the Allied advance inSouthern Italy during the latesummer of 1943. When the U.S.F ifthArmy under Lt.Gen. Mark Clarklanded at Salerno in September1943, 16.Panzer-Division, with some17,000 men and over 100 tanks andassault guns, was the only fullyequipped German unit in Southern!\aly to oppose the Allies 4 divisionsand 70,000 men.

Another 7.Scm PaK40 gun crew inThe gun loader is ramming one shell ibreech while another man removes oneprotective metal shipping case. The 7.5cmcame into service in 1941 replacing thPaK38 as the main weapon in German aunits. It had a muzzle velocity of 930m/s acapable of penetrating 115mm of armor1500m.


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A British motorcyclist passes a row ofabandoned Italian transport at Pontecagnano,east of Salerno in September 1943. Visible overthe motorcyclist's left shoulder is a Breda TM 40towing tractor which was towing a trailer and anItalian generator.

" ._ ."'~. J. '~~~~ At $~ 1\ A 7.5cm PaK40/3 auf Panzerkam

38(t) Ausf.H (Sd.Kfz.138) from an uPanzerjaqer-Abteilunq, reportedly someItaly in late 1943. Also known as theAusf.H, this vehicle has been fitted wstandard stowage box on the rear of tdeck by a f ield workshop.

In this photo, another Marder III Ausf.H canbe seen in the background. Five kill rings aroundthe end of the gun barrel just behind the muzzlebrake can also be seen on the nearest vehicle. Itis finished with neatly applied camouflagescheme of green stripes on the dark yellow basewith no visible markings. They seem to haveattracted a lot of attention from the civilianpopulation gathered around.

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Two StuG.111Ausf.G from an unidentified unit parked along an Italianstreet. The nearest vehicle IS fitted with the smoke grenade launchersinstalled on vehicles manufactured from February to May 1943.

One of the crewmen of this S luG.111from 16.Panzer-Div is ion, strikes a jaunty pthe camera. This is one of the StuG.111manufactured from PzKpfw.111Ausf.M chasMAN. between January and March 194features the welded 30mm additionalplates on the front of the hull and onehatches on the glacis. Note the longer deflefront of the driver's visor. The tactical signPanzer Kompanie is painted on the frontfollowed by a '3', probably in black.

: f ! ' : t . ~y' ,"

Four StuG.111Ausf.G on a country road in Southern Italy durinsummer of 1943. All are heavily stowed with gear on the engine decknearest vehicle displays a black Balkenkreuz on the rear plate and thewading muffler of the Pz.Kpfw.111Ausf.M chassis can be seen on thethe vehicle on the road.

The crew of this StuG.111 Ausf.G from16.Panzer-Division, relax between engagements.Note the facial wound on the man sitting in themiddle. The vehicle ls probably undergoingmaintenance or repairs as the glacis hatcheshave been removed and are sitting on the rightmudguard.


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The crew of this StuG.111Aus16. Panzer-Division, show a vauniforms and headgear being worn.on the left is wearing a mouse-grayshirt . The second is wearing the tropand a field-gray later style M1943with plain metal cap buttons. The thiwearing a black Panzer jacket withpatches on the collar, normally wornPanzer crew. Obergefreiter rankcan be seen on his left sleeve awearing the early style M1943 fieldblack metal washer buttons. Tcommander on the right also is wet ropical tunic without shoulder st rapear ly pat tern black fieldcap with eithor red sou tache.

The crew of another StuG.111Ausf.G, relaxcards in the sun. A canvas tarp and some additfoliage have been placed around the vehicle to helpit f rom the air.

A crewman from the same unit poses onthe mantlet of his SluG.111 Ausf.G. Thisvehicle is also one of those manufactured onthe chassis of a Pz.Kpfw.111 AustM asindicated by the longer def lector in f ran! of thedriver's visor and the wide gap between thebolts that fasten the 30mm supplemenlalarmor above the driver's visor.

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The crewmen in the lelt bottom photo, are joined by men from other crews for a group photo. The wide diversity at uniforms being worn is quite appa. ere. Three men are wearing the reed-green denim Panzer style jacket with the large patch pocket on the left breast and the standard Army stylecatches. One even appears to be wearing a pullover camouflage smock.

A newly awardedIron Cross SecondClass hangs from thebutton hole in the lapelof the Obergelrei ter'sblack Panzer jacket. Hisother awards includean Eastern WinterCarnpaiqn 1941/42ribbon in his lapel, asilver Tank BattleBadge and a blackWound Badge. The guncommander's awardsinclude an Iron CrossFirst Class and a silverTank Battle Badge.


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A Commonwealth soldier lays out the track for a Universal Carrierecaptured from its former German owners. The front idler wheel has beeup on the back of the vehicle.

German troops clamber aboard a column of Sd.Kfz.250 half-tracks on the outskirts of an Italian town. This vehicle appears to be new and isoverall dark yellow. It also has the additional sheet metal stowage lockers along each side f itted to some vehicles. The numbers on the front are unare not duplicated on the following vehicle. Both have the standard Wehrmacht registration number painted on front, though the glare from thethe one on the front vehicle almost invisible.

An Sd.Kfz.9 heavy half-track prime mover tries to negotiate atight curve on an Italian mountain road in late 1943. The 18t Famo istowing an Sd.Ah.116 trailer carrying a severely bat tered Pz.Kpfw. IVAusf .G from pz.Rgt . 'Hermann Goring' on it .The Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.Gis painted in overall dark yellow with a patchy green camouflagepattern and a three digit tactical number, '331', painted in red with awhite outline on the side of the turret skirt armor. The Famo is alsopainted in overall dark yellow but has a Wide green horizontal zig-zagcamouflage st ripe painted on the cargo box.

Another view of the Famo shows the camouflage stripe on the cargood effect. The severe damage to the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G is also evidewhole final drive housing on the left side is missing.

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Fal lschirrnjaqer troops wrest le their 4.2cm Panzer jagerkanone41 anti-tank gun up a hi ll while a Propaganda Kompanie newsreel photographer captthe action in the background. The 4.2cm PJK41 was the second Gerlich (tapered bore) weapon developed for German paratroops In 1941. It was mouon the 3.7cm PaK35/36 carriage with a torsion bar suspension but featured a 40mm spaced gun shield that can clearly be seen here. Although not visthe length of the gun barrel was almost 550mm longer than the standard 3.7cm barrel. It utilized tungsten-cored ammunition, but as the supply of tungwas scarce, production was stopped in 1942. When ammunition supplies ran out, the guns were usually scrapped.

A captured BritishDaimler armored car ferriesthree Commonwealthprisoners. possibly from the4th Indian Division, to the rear.The armored car has a wavycamouflage stripe of darkyellow paint applied over theoriginal British green alongwith a three digit tacticalnumber, '028', probably inblack with a white outline. Ablack outline Balkenkreuz isalso painted on the side.

A Nashorn froms.Pz.Jg.Abt525 knocked outby Canadian troops nearPontecorvo in May 1944. lnAugust 1943, s.Pz.Jg.Abt.525was sent from France toNorthern Italy and then to theRome area in December1943. They were transferred tothe Cassino area in January1944. They also saw heavyf ighting in the Anzio-Nettunoarea in February beforereturning to the Cassino areain May.

A group of Commonwealth soldiers insa knocked out Panther Ostwallturm somewhon the Hitler Line near Monte Cassino in1943. This one consists of a normal Panturret although the majority used purposePanther turrets with 40mm roofs and f lat hatin place of the commander's cupola. A totalPantherturm l, mounted on a welded steeland 30 Pantherturm 1 1 [ , mounted on a reinfoconcrete base, were constructed in Italy inand 1944. An additional 182 were constructedthe Western Front with another 36 on the EasFront.


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A German Fallschirrnjaqer prepares to fire aLeichtgeschUtz 40 (10.5cm LG40) recoi lless art il lery piece.manufactured in a light alloy to reduce weight for airborne othey could be dismantled into five parachute loads orassembled in a special shock-absorbing crate. The weaponsame shell as the 10.5cm leFH18.

An Sd.Kfz.7 8t half-track prime-mover fords a shallow stream in Central Italy. The shipping stencil can be seen painted in black on the side pathe driver along with a white '8'. They were normally employed for towing heavy artillery pieces such as the 15cm sFH18 and the 8.8cm FlaK g12,000 units were manufactured between 1934 and 1944.

Ach t ung HaltBetr~tendef Stadt1 ft verboten.

E r l a u b r ) i s f c h e i n e n u r d u r c hu n d D e U ff ch e r K O lT lm a n

Yon R o m

A German military police checkpoint on the outskirts of Runiform and shoulder straps indicate this man is a Oberwacder Schutzpolizei d. Reiches, who has probably been seFeldgendarmerie duties. His uniform is cut in a style similar totropical tunic and his shoulder straps are piped in light green wand brown twisted braid. The Polizei badge on his left armhidden by an armband that likely says 'Hilfsgendarmerie', pblack letters on a light green band, which indicates 'auxiliaryis wearing the Polizeigebirgsjager 'Skimutze' featuring a sinflap with cloth Polizei badge and a metal cockade above. Ocombat veteran, he wears the Infantry Assault Badge and a blbadge pinned to his tunic. It's possible that he is also wEastern Winter Campaign 1941/42 ribbon in his lapel.


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Three Bri tish soldiers from the 78th Infantry Div.sion examine a knockedout Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G near San Salvo on the Adriatic coast in November1943. It has been fitted with additional 30mm armor plates that have beenbolted to the superstructure front and welded to the hull front. The meaningof the small cross, visible to the left of the driver's visor, is unknown and otherphotos show that it was applied at the factory. The missing tracks haveexposed the curved armor shield that protected the final drive housings onthe Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.B to G. Reinforced final drive housings were installed onthe Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H replacing the curved shield. Note how mud has builtup around the drive sprocket. The soldier in front is carrying a German fieldtelephone slung over his shoulder.

Another knocked out Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G is searched for souvenirsthree soldiers from the Canadian Three Rivers Regiment (12th ArmouRegiment) in October 1943. This one has been fitted with additional 30armor plates that have been welded to both the superstructure andfronts. The curved armor shield around the final drive is missing andprobably been shot away by the impact of the round that also damagedtrack. Two penetrations can also be seen in the front of the turret besidegun mantlet. These tanks are probably from 26.Panzer-Division, wfought in this area.

A destroyed StuG.111Ausf.G from 16.Panzer-Division lies in a field near San Salvo in November 1943. Tow cables have been attached to theindicating the vehicle may have been disabled and the Germans were attempting to recover it when it was knocked out.


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indicating the vehicle may have been disabled and the Germans were attempting to recover it when it was knocked out.

, ,

A Slurmgeschlitz.IV knocked out in the Pontecorvo area near Cassino in May 1944.The StuG.IV was hurriedly developed in December 1943 to replace lost production ofStuG.111 a fter a bombing raid on the Alketl plant in November. The first 30 werecompleted in December 1943 and production cont inued until April 1945 with some 1141buil t altogether. This one is f rom 90.Panzer-Grenadier-Division, which received 42 ofthese vehicles in February 1944, all of which were coated with Zimmerit.

30

Fallschir rriaqer troops man a 15cm sFH18 heavpiece. The man on the left is ramming in the projecanother prepares to hand the charge casing to anotheplace it in the breech. Both men on the right are wspl inter pat tern camouflage jump smock.

Helmets on wood poles mark the graves of two oof this knocked SluG.111Ausl.G near Pignataro inwhile several Commonwealth soldiers check for souunidentifiable unit marking is painted on the front poverall dark yellow vehicle.

Two soldiers from the Calgary Tanks (14thRegiment) pose in front of an abandoned Marder IIIthe outskirts of Aquino, near Pontecorvo, in MayMarder III is finished in a three-color camouflagehard-edged brown and green patches on the dark yeThe only visible marking is the standard white outliBalkenkreuz painted on the side of the fighting comThe Calgary Tanks took part in the battles in thisCanadian Ontario and Three Rivers Regiments and78th Division and 8th Indian Division on 11 May 1944


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This Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H was knocked out in the Cassino area in early 1944. Byt ime, most new armored vehicles were being delivered with Zimmerit anti-magnet iccoating which is visible here on the superstructure front plate.

A knocked out Marder III Ausf.H rests on the edge of a steep road embankmafter being cleared from the road by engineers. This photo is similar to one of anoMarder I II Ausf.H from Pz.Jg.Abt.171 of 71.lnfanter ie-Oivision, but they are not the svehicle. The tactical sign for a self-propelled anti-tank unit is painted in white onsloped front shield with a faded white outlined black Balkenkreuz painted on the sid

A pair of M4 Sherman tanks captured by the Germans near Monte Cassino and put into service by s.Pz.Abt.50B. Judging from the earth yellowolive drab camouflage paint scheme and markings, it was originally assiqnsd to the U.S. 756th Tank Battalion. The battalion also used a set of tacmarkings consisting of a set of bars to indicate the platoon painted above the tactical numbers on the side of the turret bustle, but they are obscured in


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photo by the German crewman in the driver's hatch.

The heavy battle tracks have been joined and the crewstruggle to insert the track pin to complete the task.

Another Tiger I Ausf.E from schwere Panzerkompanie'Meyer'. An emblem, consisting of a white shield with a blackcross inside, can be seen painted on the front of the hull.Vehicles in the unit were later repainted in a three-color scheme,some receiving individual names painted on the upper hull platebetween the driver's visor and hull machine gun ball mount. Thisparticular Tiger [ had tile name 'Stretch', meaning 'bum' or'tramp' painted on along with a large tactical number '8' paintedin black on the forward side of the turret. In March 1944, the unitwas integrated into s.Pz.Abt.508.

The last roadwheel is bolted in plathe installat ion of the bat tle t racks is co

In July 1943, schwere Panzerkompanie 'Meyer', under the temporary comOberleutnant Hans-Gert Meyer, was formed and sent to Italy to assist in disaItalian Army. Equipped with 8 early Tiger I's, they traveled through the Brenarriving in Modena in mid November. In late November, they were shippedRome. Here, an early product ion Tiger I Ausf.E, f itted with the pistol port on theof the turret, has its battle tracks installed. The vehicle is painted in overall dwith a camouflage pattern of brown patches applied. Markings include a blacnumber '2' on the rear of the turret stowage bin and a personal marking ressunburst, likely painted in red with eleven white points, painted on the side ofMost unusual though, isthe non-standard white Balkenkreuz with a black outl inon the side of the hull. This Tiger I would later become the personal vehicle ocompany commander, Hauptmann Schwebbach, when he joined the unitDecember 1943.

A young Feldwebel Panzer comstrikes a conf ident pose in the cupola oI Ausf.E. His decorations include the ribIron Cross Second Class in the lapel bof his black Panzer jacket and a GeneraBadge, awarded for assaults madedifferent days. A black Wound Badgvisible under the cord from his headset.

The crewmen are busyinstalling the outer roadwheelsnormally removed for railtransport. The unusual styleBalkenkreuz and camouflagepaint scheme can be seen to goodeffect in this photo. Also note thatat this time the tactical numbersappeared only on the rear of theturret stowage bin.

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Pz.Kpfw.VI Tiger I Aust.E, s.Pz.Kp.Meyer, northern Italy, fall 1943Thisearly production TIgerI hasa camouflage scheme of red brown (RAL8017)patches over the dark yellow (RAL7028) base. A single

1ctical number '2' ispainted inblock on the rear of the stowage bin. On the right side of the turret, a personal emblem looking much lnbursr.hasbeen painted. It appears to be a dark circle, possiblyred,with eleven white points radiating out around it,Themost unusual mar

sthe non-regulation Balkenkreuzpainted on the side of the hull inwhite with a block outline.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G, I./Pz.Rgt.2, 16.Panzer-Division, Salerno, Italy, September 1943Thislate model Pz.Kpfw.IVAusf.G ispointed in overall dark yellow (RAL7028).Markings include a standard block and white Balkenk

painted on the front door and rear of the turret skirtarmor and block stencil outline tactical number '303' pointed on the front. Inaddition,Balkenkreuzhasalso been painted on the insideface of the front door sothat it isstillvisiblewhen the door isopen. Thedivisionol emblem,with a horizontal bar through it, ispainted in yellow ochre with a black outline on the left side of the rear plate and on the front besidedriver's visor.


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StuG.1I1Ausf.G, IIl.jPz.Rgt.2, 16.Panzer-Division, Rome, Italy, November 1943ThisStuG.111usfG ispainted in overall dark yellow (RAL7028) with a standard black and white Balkenkreuz pointed on the

fighting comportment behind the red stencil outline tactical number' 1024' indicating it Isthe 4th vehicle in the 2nd platooncompany. Infront of that isa small stenciled shipping label 'Ve KIA' painted inblock,

Marder III Ausf.H, unknown Pz.Jq.Abt. northern Italy, summer 1944ThisMarder IIIAusf.Hispainted Ina camouflage scheme of olive green (RAL6003) and red brown (RAL8017) patches brush p

the dark yellow (RAL7028)base A narrow styleof black and white Balkenkreuzhasbeen pointed on the lower sideof the fighting com

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Pz.Kpfw.VI Tiger I Ausf.E, 3./s.Pz.Abt.504, near Uvorno, Italy, July 1944Thislate production Tiger I ispointed inoverall dark yellow (RAL7028)with a camouflage scheme of olive green (RAL6003)and red b

(RAL8017)sprayed insmall patches, Thetactical number '311' ispainted inwhite with a black outline with the firstdigit being about 50perlarger than the last two. On the left side they were painted high on the side of the turret with the two smaller digits even with the top olarger digit. As3Xompanie was equipped WithBorgward BIVradio controlled demolition vehicles, the additional antenna mounted on thesideof the turret required the tactical number to be lowered. Thetactical number was repeated on the rear of the stowage bin inuniformdigits.Theunit emblem. a spearhead superimposed over a stylized track, was painted on both sidesof the stowage bin and a standard band white Balkenkreuzwas painted on the side of the hull,

Pz.Bef.Wg.V Panther Ausf.A, I./Pz.Rgt.4, Florence, Italy, summer 1944Thisearly model Pz.Bef.wg.VPanther Ausf.A ispainted inoverall dark yellow (RAL7028).Thetactical number '102'painted inred with a woutline on the side of the turret indicates that this IS the battalion adjutants vehicle. Theonly other visiblemarkings ore a standard black

white Balkenkreuzpainted on the side of the hull in front of the tool stowage brackets.


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Pz.Kpfw.V Panther Ausf.A, I./Pz.Rgt.4, Rome, Italy, March 1944Thisearly model Panther Ausf.Aispainted inoverall dark yellow (RAL7028).Thetactical number '215' ispainted in red with a whit

A standard black and white Balkenkreuzispainted on the sidesof the hull infront of the tool stowage brackets and isrepeated on ththe hull between the exhaust pipes.

Panzerjager Tiger (P) Elefant, 1./s.H.Pz.Jg.Abt.653, Soriano, Italy, fall 1944ThisElefant ispainted in overall dark yellow (RAL7028) with a camouflage scheme of olive green (RAL6003) and red brown (

patches sprayed on. A white three digit tactical number' 124' ispointed just above the linewhere the Zimmerit stops.


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\ .

s.Pz.Sp.Wg.(Fu) (Sd.Kfz.232) (BRad), Pz.AufkLAbU 15, 15.PanzerGrenadierDivision, Italy, spring 1944Thislate production schwere Ponzerspchwoqen (Fu) ispainted in overall dark yellow (RAL 7028). The divisional emblem, a white star w

black letter 'B', representing the lost initial of the unit commander, ispainted on the top right of the front plate and top left of the rear plate.tocticol sign for a reconnoissonce company ispainted in white on the front side plate.

StuG.lV, StuG.Abt.l 034, 34.lnfanterie-Divisiorl, northern Italy, fall 1944ThisStliG.IV is pointed in overall dark yellow (RAL 7028) with a camouflage scheme of olive green (RAL 6003) and red brown (RAL 8

patches. A standard black and white Bolkenkreuz is painted on the armor plate beside the driver's compartment. The three digit tactnumber was usually painted on the Schurzen armor plates that are missing from this vehicle.


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Sturmpanzer IV Brummbor, Stu.Pz.Abt.216, Nettuno area, Italy, January 1944ThisBrummbor ispointed in overall dark yellow (RAL7028)with a camouflage scheme of red brown (RAL8017) interconnecting

singledigit tactical number'1 .ispointed inwhite on the upper rear corner of the sideof the fighting compartment along with a black aBalkenkreuz,

Sd.Kfz.164 Nashorn. 2.js.H.Pz.Jg.Abt.525, Nettuno area, Italy, March 1944Thisearly production Nashorn ispainted in overall dark yellow (RAL7028)with a subdued camouflage scheme of olive green (R

and red brown (RAL8017)patches, A standard black and white Balkenkreuzispointed on each sideof the fighting compartment aswthe left rear,Thethree digit tactical number '211' ispainted in block on the sidesof the fighting compartment above the engine alouvers. on the front of the curved gunshield and again on the right rear,A unit emblem was painted on the hinged portion of themudguard and resemblesa crouching lion perched on top of a tracked chassis,Additional tie downs have been welded to the sideswelds touched up with new dark yellow paint, Wirehas been woven through the tie downs to hold foliage,

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Pz.Kpfw.11IAust..M, II./Pz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring', Niscemi, Sicily, July 1943ThisPz.Kpfw.111usf.M ispointed in overall dark yellow (RAL7028) Markings are limited to the three digit tactical number '533'. painte

white with a black outline on the sidesand rear of the turret skirtarmor.

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G, 3./Pz.Abt.215, 15.Panzer-Grenadier-Division, Regalbutto, Sicily, July 1943ThisPz.Kpfw.lVAusf,Gispainted inoverall dark yellow (RAL7028) Markingsinclude a standard black and white Balkenkreuzpainted oneside and on the left side of the rear plate. Thedivisional emblem, a white star with a black letter 'G'. representing the last initial of the

commander. isalso painted on the rear plate. Thecompany number ispointed on the sidesof the turret Inblack on a white shieldwith a s


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40

StuG.1II Ausf.G, 16.SS-Panzer-Grenodier-Division 'ReichsfUhrer 55', Rome, itaiy, January 1944Thisearly StuG.1I1usf.G ispainted Inoverall dark yellow (RAL7028).It carries on unusual non-standard Balkenkreuzpointed onthe s

consistsof a white outline with a second black outline. Thisisrepeated on the rear plate but isso large that the bottom iscut off, Onof the mantlet and on the rear plate, a black runic 'SS'symbol isalsopointed, Thetactical signfor on assaultgun company ispaintedthe glacis plate with a number '1' inside,A number of the StuG,III'sof thisunit had personal names of wivesor girlfriendspointed on thedriver's visor.

Ponzerspohwoqen AB41 201 (i), 278.lnfanterie-Divis!on, Lon!go area, Itaiy, fait 1944After the capitulation of Italy in September 1943,the German Army confiscated large numbers of Italian vehicles and Incorporate

within variousunits,ThisAutoblinda AB41retains Itsoriginal Italian camouflage scheme of green patches on the sand yellow bose,A narstandard black Balkenkreuz was pointed on each side above the spare wheel as well as on the front of the hull and rear of the turretains itsoriginal Italian tactical signof a red rectangle, indicating 1st company, with a white stripe through it indicating 1stplatoon,


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A column of StuG.111Ausf.G make their waythrough Rome on the way toward the Anzio-Nettuno front in April 1944. They are from SS-Pz.Jg.Abt.16 of 16.SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division 'Peichstuhrer-S'S'. Formed in October1943 from Sturmhriqads 'Relchstuhrer-SS '. thedivision saw action in Italy throughout 1944before being transferred to Hungary in January1945. These vehicles are all painted in overalldark yellow and display a variety of markings.The runic symbol for the '88' was painted on thefront of the gun mantlet as well as the right sideofthe rear engine deckplate. A rhomboid shapedtactical sign for an assault gun company ispainted in red on the glacis and a personal name,unfortunately illegible, can be seen behind thestandard Balkenkreuz on the side of the fightingcompartment. A tactical number '4' can be seenon the side of the following vehicle.

Another StuAusf.G from 16Panzer-Grenadier-Division 'ReichsfOSS' on its way thrRome. This is an1943 production vewith driver's periscand additional 3bolted armor platethe glacis andhull f ront. The 'SS'symbol can be seethe front of thernantlst as well.

The column ofStuG.111 Ausf.G from16.SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division'ReichsfOhrer-SS',pass through thePiazza del Popalo inRome. The vehicle Infront is a ve ry earlyAusf.G completed inJanuary 1943 andfeatures the earlystepped mudguard thatwas hinged at the rear.The '8S' runes can beseen painted on thefront of the mantlet andthe tactical sign for anassault gun company ispainted in white on theglacis followed by thenumber '1' in black.


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A view of '215' as it rolls along the Via dei Fori Imperiali taken from theopposite s ide of the st reet. II I. IPz. Rgt.4 was converted to a Panther Abt. withfour Kompanies on 5 May 1943. On 19 October 1943, it was renamedI. IPz.RgtA af ter IJPz.Rgt.4 was t ransferred to form s.Pz.Abt .507, and sentto Italy in early February 1944 with 76 Panthers.

Another early Panther Ausf.A following '215', approaches theColosseum on the Via dei Fori Imper iali. Unfortunately, the tactical numberis illegible, but we can see that it carried a standard black Balkenkreuzpainted on the rear plate between the exhaust pipes. The small box mountedon the left rear of the engine deck was a common addition on the Panthersof I./Pz.RgtA.

A column of PanthersI .Abteilung/Panzer-Regiment 4 travelVia dei Fori Imperiali towards the ColoFebruary 1944. This is an early Panthand features the 'Ietterbox' machine guthe glacis. The tactical number '215' isred with a white outline on the side ofThe vehicle appears to be painted in aweathered and dirty overall dark yellorough coating of Zimmerit .

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Here we see thePanther Ausf.A trai ling'215' with theColosseum in thebackground.

A new Panther Ausf.A from I./Pz.Rgt.4 travelling with the column through Romein February 1944. It is fitted with the early 16 bolt roadwheels that have beenreinforced with 16 rivets. Note the boarding ladder suspended from the cross barbetween the exhaust pipes.

Another view of the sameTiger I Ausf.E from1./s.Pz.Abt.508 approachesthe Forum of Trajan near theVictor Emanuel Monument inRome in February 1944. TheTiger is painted in overall darkyellow with a camouflagescheme of green and brownpatches. Although not vis ible,it has a white outline tacticalnumber '1' painted on the rearof the stowage bin. A DKW NZ250 motorcycle has beenloaded on the engine deck,allowing the rider to enjoy thescenery along the way.

A mid production Tiger I Ausf.E as it travels through RS.Pz.Abt.508, equipped with 45 Tiger l's, was one of severalthe Germans rushed south to meet the Allied threat at Anzio.

Sturmpanzer-Abteilung 216 was also one of the units rushthe Anzio-Nettuno area in February 1944. They were the first ube equipped with the Sturmpanzer IV, which was first succesemployed at Kursk in July 1943. This one IS a mid production vbuilt on a Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H chassis and still has the sliding dvisor similar to the Tiger I. In front, is an obsolete Pz.Kpfw.11 AC, probably in use as a command vehicle. A column of British Pcan be seen marching to the rear along the right side of the ro


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The same Sturmpanzer IV with the column of British POW's receding in the distance. It is finished in overall dark yellow with random patchescamouflage paint and is fitted with a canvas collar around the mantlet. The crewman standing on the ground is wearing a pair of field grey coverallsblack Panzer uniform and has the lapels of his Panzer jacket pulled out.

Another Sturmpanzer IV from Sturmpanzer-Abteilung 216 passes a disabled Tiger I Ausf.E from s.Pz.Abt.508 near Anzio. This one was buchassis of a Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.G. The exhaust port for the turret traverse muffler has been plated over and it is fitted with the early plated coversfighting compartment ventilators as can be seen to the right of the crewman standing on the engine deck. In the background, an Sd.Kfz.9 Famo hetrack prime-mover is waiting to move in and recover the Tiger I.


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This is a later production Sturmpanzer IV featuring the boxed in drcompartment and rotating periscope in place of the sliding visor. It is painteoveral l dark yellow with a camouflage scheme of brown cr iss-cross lines. Thoughevident in this photo, it also had a standard white outlined black Balkenkreuz higthe side of the fighting compartment with a white '1' behind it.

A Sturmpanzer IV from Sturmpanzer-Abteilung216, left behind by the retreating Germans as theyevacuated the city of Rome on 4 June 1944. This one isbuil t on the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H chassis.

A mid production Sturmpanzer IV abandoned in a field near Anzio is inspected by some Italian youths. An internal explosion has blown the roof offcan be seen lying on the ground in front of it. It is also fitted with the newer cast steel idler that was introduced on the Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H in October 19


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A Nashorn from 2.1s.H.Pz.Jg.Abt.525 In the Anzio-Nettuno area in March 1944. This is an early productionvehicle fitted with the early eight-hole drive sprocket with aspacer ring to accommodate the 40cm wide track. It ispainted in overall dark yellow with a camouflage scheme ofgreen and brown patches. Markings include the standardBalkenkreuz along with a black three digit tactical number,'211', painted on the side. The tactical number is alsorepeated on the lef t side of the gunshield. The unit emblem,consisting of a crouching lion perched on top of a trackedchassis, was painted on the left hinged mudguard.Additional tie downs have been welded on the sides to holdwire for attaching fol iage for camouf lage.

46

17cm Kanone 18 in Morserlafette fires onbeachhead at Anzio. This heavy ar tillery piece could fhigh explosive project ile to a maximum range of 29600mounted on a carriage that not only had a gun recoil sthe gun platform slid back on the trails providing a secsystem. In action, the whole carriage was mounturntable that provided a complete 3600 rotation. Thenormally towed by the Sd.Kfz.8 hal f-track prime-mover

A heavily camouflaged 17cm Kanone 18 in Mobeing towed by an Sd.Kfz.8 half-track prime-movernarrow Italian street. It appears that the gun and limalso had some camouf lage paint applied, probably dstripes over the or iginal dark gray color.


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A 10.Scm leFH18 or leFH18M (M - mundungbremse - muzzle brake)is maneuvered into a prepared gun emplacement. One of the crew hasadded his weight on end of the gun barrel to help balance the heavy guntrails as they are opened up. Unfortunately, he has also blocked the view ofthe muzzle, which would indicate if the piece were fitted with a muzzle brakeor not. The leFH18 was the backbone of the German artillery and servedfrom 1935 to 1945. It fired a 14.8kg high explosive shell and had a maximumrange of 10575m.

A Wespe self-propelled light fieldhowitzer in the process of having its10.Scm leFH18M armament removedwith the help of an Sd.Kfz.9/1 18t half-track mounting a 51 Bilstein crane. TheWespe is painted in overall dark yellowand carries a white two digit tacticalnumber '11' and a narrow styleBalkenkreuz on the side armor of thefighting compartment. The vehicle tothe left is an Italian M13/40 tank orSemovente da 75/18 self-propelledgun.

Burnt powder hangs in the air as this B.Bcm FlaK35/37 ant i-aircraf tengages Allied aircraft over Italy in 1944. Just as the 10.5cm leFH 1Sthe backbone of the German artillery, so was the 8.Scm FlaK1B and 3the backbone of German ant i-aircraf t defenses. The gun fired a 9.24kgexplosive shel l and had a maximum effect ive ceil ing of BOOOm.

-.*'j

- J . _ - ~ '~ , - :47


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A diminutive 3.7cm PaK35/36 anti-tank gun mFallschirmjEiger troops in Rome in May 1944. Bothwearing the second model olive green jump smockLuftwaffe tropical uniform along with the distinctive pahelmet. The gun has been painted in a camouflage sdark yellow stripes over the original dark gray color.over 15,000 of these weapons were in service althoubeen rendered obsolete by that time. Its -Pzgammunition was only capable of penetrating 51mmplate at 500m.

A 7.5cm PaK40 anti-tank gun set up behind a barricaded streetin Rome as the Allies advanced on the city in late May 1944. Theirdistinctive helmets are the only thing that identify the gun crew asFallschlrrnjaqer who also wear the standard Luftwaffe tan tropicaluniform. The low gunshield only provided basic protection for thecrew, who were otherwise exposed to small arms and high explosivereturn fire. In contrast to the 3.7cm PaK35/36, the 7.5cm Pzgr.40ammunition could penetrate 154mm of armor plate at 5DOm.

A pair of Sd.Kfz.7/2 self-propel led anti -aircraf t guns guard the skies over Rome in the spr ing of 1944. Mounting the 3.7cm FlaK36 ant i-aircraf t gvehicles were originally produced on the standard half-track chassis and later received an armored cab and engine compartment. In the backgrouCastel Sant' Angelo, on the banks of the Tiber River, originally built as a tomb for the emperor Hadrian.


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GeneralfeldmarschallAlbert Kesselring,accompanied by some ofhis staf f off icers, observesa firing exercise from theengine deck of a StuG.IVfrom PZ.Abt.190 of90.Pz.Gren.Div. Thevehicle looks new and hasa camouflage scheme ofgreen and brown lines overthe dark yellow base color.Note as well the addition ofreinforced concrete used tosupplement the armorprotection in front of thedriver's compartment andthe canvas dust cover thatcompletely covers the'topfblerrde' cast gunmantle!.

Two Grille Ausf.H self-propelled howitzers sit amid the ruins ot Carocetto, an Itvillage north of Anzio near Aprilia in February 1944. Their crews have piled brtimbers and debris around them to help camouflage their position from Allied fighThe nearest vehicle is painted in overall dark yellow with a camouflage scheme ofis most likely wide brown strips and is marked with a newly painted stanBalkenkreuz. In the background is an Sd.Kfz.251/1 Ausf.C halt-t rack armored persocarrier, behind which, is a knocked out M4 Sherman tank from the U.S. 1st ArmDivision which supported the earlier British attack in this area. The Grille were normissued to the schwere Infanter iegeschOtz companies of the Panzergrenadier regime

The commander of a heavily camouflaged SluG. III Ausf.G scans the horizonlhrough his field glasses. His Army style tropical tunic, displaying Feldwebel rankshoulder straps, is hung over the open cupola hatch behind him. Unusually, itappears that he is wearing a Fallschirrruaqer steel helmet.

Grenadiers from PZ.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring', march along a road paPanther Ausf.Afrom !.fPz.Rgt.4 in February 1944 near Anzio. The weather inFebruary was rainy and some of the men are wearing their greatcoats underjump smocks. To the right can be seen a camouflaged Tiger I Ausf.E from es.Pz.Abt.508 or s.Pz.Kp. 'Meyer ', which also were committed to the attack agthe Allied landings at Anzio-Nettuno.


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An Elefant froms.Pz.Jg.Abt.B53 sitsimmobilized by a mine alongthe attack route towards theAnzio-Nettuno bridgehead on29 February 1944. A column ofPanthers from IJpz.Rgt4 canbe seen approaching along theroad accompanied by thegrenadiers from Pz.Rgt'Hermann Goring'.

A Borgward BI(Sd.Kfz.301) demolit iofrom Pz.Abt.(FKL) 30of a column of PanthI./Pz. RgtA near thNettuno bridgehead.January 1944, PZ.301 was orderedarr iving at its destinatof Rome on 5 Februunit was equippedStuG.111Ausf.G commcontrol vehicles andauthorized strengthBorgward demolit ionalthough it has nreported how maactually had available.

A column ofso . Kfz.251!1 Ausf.Chalf-track personnelcarriers advancesdown the same road.They have all beenheavily camouf lagedwith branches to helpconceal them fromAllied fighters. TheWehrmacht licensenumber 'WH 1261663'indicates they areprobably from one ofthe PanzerGrenadier-Divisions that took par tin the operation.

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This is the earlymodel of thele.ladungstrager(Sd.Kfz.302) 'Goliath',an electric drive remotecontrol, wire guideddemolition vehiclewhich carried a 60kgexplosive charge.Developed in 1942 toassault buildings andfortifications, it wasalso used againstarmored vehicles andcould cause severedamage although itwas highly vulnerableto small arms fire.

A Pz.Kpfw.111 Ausf.L from an unidentified unitabandoned in a field after the U.S. Fifth Army successfbroke out of the bridgehead in late May 1944.

A column ofPz,Kptw, IV, probablydestroyed by Alliedfighters as theyadvanced .along a roadnear Anzio. Near thebottom of the photo canbe seen the bypassroute taken by theadvancing Alliedvehicles, marked bytape after having beencleared of mines. Oneof the PZ.KPfw.IV's hasbeen completelyconsumed by fireleaving piles of lightgray ash from the burnt


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One of the early Tiger I Ausf.E originally from'Meyer' destroyed during the bat tle near Cisterna 25The Tigers had been repainted with a camouflage sgreen and brown over the dark yellow base color andtactical numbers f rom '1', seen here, to '8'. Note the ealying on the ground after being blown off by aexplosion. On 3 March 1944, the remaining TigeKompanie were integrated with s.Pz.Abt.508. Hiddenon the other side of the road, was an overturned Els. Pz.Jg.Abt.653.

Three Americansoldiers pose in front of acaptured Elefant froms.Pz.Jg.Abt.653 thatbroke down and had to beabandoned in late May1944. The vehicle isfinished in a camouflagescheme of green andbrown patches appliedover the dark yellow basecolor and a three digittactical number, '102' , hasbeen painted in white onboth sides. Not visible isthe gothic script letter 'U',an abbreviation for1.Kompanie commanderHauptmann HelmutUlbricht, also painted inwhite on the upper rightside of the upper rearplate.

52

Anotherthe same Eles.Pz.Jg.Abt.653enemycollection poibackgroundseen a Sturmpfrom SturmAbteilung 21with two largpieces, a 15cthe left and a10cm K1B onThis Elefanshipped bAberdeenGrounds inwhere it canseen today.


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The crew of this Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H struggle to replace a damaged track. It is likely that the track simply broke since there appears to be no mine damto the suspension. They have their work cut out for them as one end of the track as wound itself up between the second and third roadwheel. The whitemarking on the rear plate indicates this vehicle is from 15.Panzer-Grenadier-Division. Beside i t is a white rhomboid, the tactical s ign for a Panzer unit fol loby the number '2', indicating the company to which the vehicle is assigned.

A knocked out Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.H fromPz.Rgt. 'Hermann Goring'. Note the white circleon the left front mudguard with a black bar at thetwo o'clock position indicating this is a2.Kompanie vehicle. A crude cross marks thetemporary resting-place of one of the crew in theforeground.


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An ear ly Panther Ausf.A from I. !Pz.RgtA sit s abandoned alongside the road near San Giovanni Incarico, northwest of Pontecorvo on 25 Mayvehicle is remarkably intact and shows minimal damage. The three digit tactical number, '331' is painted in red with a white outline on the side oIn addition to the standard Balkenkreuz painted on each side of the hull, there was one painted on the rear plate between the vertical exhaustthe unusual stowage boxes (there were two) mounted on the rear of the engine deck.

Two British soldiers hunt for souvenirs in another early Panther Ausf.A from IJPz.RgtA knocked in the fighting around Aquino a few kilometeMonte Cassino in May 1944. Note the gun barrel in partial recoil.54


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A motorcyclecombination from26.Panzer-Division inthe Nettuno area. Theemblem painted on thefront of the sidecarapparently was asimpli fied version of thedivisional emblem thatwas sometimes used. IJ} /,(! ,< / I

I /'".

A StuG.111Ausf.G, probably from PzAbt.of 29.Panzer-Grenadier-Division, is towed bM31 armored recovery vehicle along theCasalina near Mignano Monte Lungo inMonte Cassino area in January 1944. A swhite letter 'A' has been painted on the side ofighting compartment in front of the stanBalkenkreuz. A larger 'A' is repeated on the gin black beside the unit emblem, two cropennants within the outline of a shield, alsblack. On the front of the gun mantlet, a swhite number '15' appears inside a white cNote the unusual machine gun ring mount oturret of the M31.

Two American soldiers appear to berepairing thefinal drive housing on this capturedStuG.111 Aust.G. A neatly painted three digittactical number '232' has been applied on theside of the fighting compartment in black with awhite outline behind the standard Balkenkreuz.The Zimmerit pattern indicates this StuG.111wasmanufactured at the MIAG plant after September


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An early StuG.111Ausf.G is inspected by two British soldiers in the summer ot 1944. It is titted with the smoke grenade launchers that werevehicles manufactured from February to May of 1943 and has the retrof it ted SchOrzen brackets that were installed by field workshops beginning in1943. The chassis number '92271' is painted on the 3Dmm supplementary armor plate on the right side of the vehicle.

An early M4A 1 Sherman winds its way past severalGerman vehicles including this mid-production Tiges.Pz.Abt.508. There is no visible damage on the Tiger andthat it was simply abandoned after it broke down. Note thestill in place on the muzzle brake and the gun locked in thposition.

Another view of the early M4A 1 Sherman as it passes the Tiger I.The Sherman is fitted with the early bolted transmission housing andnarrow M34 gun rnant let.

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An early Marder III Ausf.M sits in a hull downposition behind a stone fence while one of thecrew keeps a watchful eye out on the ground infront with his binoculars. The name 'Leopard' canbe been painted In black on the right side of thehull behind the driver's compartment. The earlyMarder III was fitted with a rounded, cast coveron the driver's compartment. A redesignedwelded cover was introduced at the end of 1943.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . b . . . . . . . . . .j

A soldier from the U.S. 133rd Infantry Division poses in front of a knocked out late Tiger I Afrom s.Pz.Abt.508 In the Cecina region in July 1944. The impact point from a round that dpenetrate the 1OOmmthick lower hull plate can be seen to the left. This Tiger I was hit by a 75mminto the engine compartment through the thinner, 80mm side hull plate resulting in an engine firdestroyed the vehicle.

Two Panzerbefehlswagen V Panther Ausf.A fr6m l.lpz.Rgt.4 near Florence during the summer of 1944. They are both early Ausf.A with the 'lettemachine gun port on the glacis. The one in front, tactical number '102', is a purpose built Befehls-Panther and is fitted with an armored mount for thantenna on the engine deck and has the spare antenna storage tubes mounted below the gun cleaning rod storage tube. The one behind with tactical nu'113', is a standard gun tank that has been assigned as a staff vehicle. Both Panthers are painted overall dark yellow with red tactical numbers outlin


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Befehls-Panther '113'shown crossingstream with '102' following behind. TPanther Ausf.A was equipped with thebinocular gunsight until mid-Novemberwhen the T.Z.F.12a monocular gunsigintroduced .

.. .

A photo of Befehls-Panther '102'giving a good view of the 'Ietterbox'machine gun port and the additionalperiscope providing forward vision forthe machine gunner/radio operator.Note the absence of a coaxial machinegun port in the mantlet - on Befehls-Panthers and Tigers, the ports weresealed with an armored plug.

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A view of the left side of the same late Panther Ausf.A from I.lPz.RgtAwith several British Commonwealth soldiers checking it out for souvenirs.The impact from a projectil.e on the side of the hull has torn away the guncleaning rod tube and part of the tool rack.

This late Panther Ausf.A from I.IPz.Rgt.4 looks as though it mabeen pushed off a road higher up this hill after losing a track or brdown. It rolled downhill with enough momentum to bury Its noseground. The Panther is painted in overall dark yellow and it has a tnumber,'214', painted in red with a white outline, on the side of the tu

A late Tiger I Ausf.E from 3.1s.Pz,Abt.508 sits abandoned in a grove of olive trees, the rear of its turret blackened by an engine fire. The whitetactical number '3' is still plainly visible on the side of the turret and rear of the stowage bin. The 3.Kompanie was equipped with Borgward BIV radio condemolition vehicles and so these Tigers had an additional radio antenna mount added to the right side of the turret.


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demolition vehicles and so these Tigers had an additional radio antenna mount added to the right side of the turret.

This SluG.111Ausf.G is one of those manufactured on the Pz.Kpfw.111chassis. Note the gap between the bolts fastening the additional 30mmarmor plate in front of the driver's position. II is also fitted with smokegrenade launchers and 30mm bolted on additional armor plates on theglacis and lower hull .

-0': " . .~ : - - : - - - : t -.. ." ,. ~.

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The Sd.Kfz.11 light 3-ton half-trackmover was employed for towing a varietyhowitzers, anti-tank guns and the Neberocket launcher. Here, an Sd.Kfz.11 is t7.5cm PaK40 anti-tank gun along a dustyroad. The gun crew has added some cutto the gunshield for camouflage.

A damagedJagdpanzer IVrecovery vehiclei t to the workshotransmissionprobably seized50 both tracksbeen shortenedlinked tbypassing thesprocket. TheJagdpanzermounted thePaK39/L48 gunof which werewith a muzzlelike this one.January to No1944, a total othese purposePanzerjaqer weand saw theaction withDivision 'HeGoring' in the s1944.


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Another early JagdpanzerlV passing an S.Scm FlaK36f37 anti-aircraft gun emplacement in the Italian countryside during the summer of 1944.visible on the side of the fighting compartment, is a three digit tactical number, '214', painted in either black or red with a white outline. Note the 18 kpainted on the barrel of the anti-aircraft gun.

Regular German Wehrmacht and Fallschirrnjaqeroccupy an elaborate trench protected by an 8.8cm FlaK1aircraft gun with 6 kill rings on the barrel, being utilizedground support role. The color of the Luftwaffe tanuniform contrasted with the standard Wehrmacht issugreen or khaki tropical uniform.

Fal lschirmjager troops fire their 12cm Granatwerier 42 mortar on Alliedpositions during the fighting in Italy during the summer of 1944. A splinterpattern camouflage jump smock belonging to one of them can be seenhanging from the lower end of the tube. The 12cm Gr.W 42 was copied froma Soviet design and could throw a 15.5kg bomb to 5700m making it the bestmortar in the German arsenal.


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Two soldiers from the Calgary Tanks (14th ARegiment) inspect the remains of a captured batteryNbw41 rocket launchers. The rockets were fired electsequence from each tube in order to avoid upsetting th

Two rockets canbe seen st reaking f roma battery ofNebelwerfer rocketlaunchers located atthe edge of a field. The15cm Nbw41 had amaximum range of6900m and the 21cmNbw42 had a maximumrange of 7850m. Theirmain disadvantage wasthe prominent smoketrail the projectiles leftthat clearly marked thebattery location forreturn art il lery fire.

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A dramaticof an Sd.mounting aFlak36 antigun, in action.is fitted witharmored cabengine compthat began toto some vehicle1943.


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The crew of this 10.5cm leFH18J40 howitzerprepares to set their artillery piece up in a narrowitalian village street. This was the last version ofthis gun to be produced and, in an effort toreduce the weight of the piece without sacri ficingperformance, combined the barrel of the 10.5cmleFH18M and a modified carriage from the 7.5cmPaK40. The smaller diameter PaK40 wheelswere later replaced with larger ones that werealso wider as can be seen in this photo. Theseguns were typically fitted with a large doublebaffl

Documents

Panzers in Italy 1943-1945 (English)