When a Lone Panzer III Took on an Entire Soviet Battalion

[@HeinzGuderian_]

Most people don't realize the Pz3 was the dedicated anti-armour tank of Germany until the Pz4 with the 75mm KwK 40 and Tiger. The 50mm gun of the Pz3 was amazing in the early years.

[@mr.waffentrager4400]

ussr had 20000 t26 and it was great against it

[@dillonhunt1720]

Pz3 didn't entirely go out of anti-armor service. The Stug III based on the Pz3 chasis would score the most tank kills of any vehicle of the war. With a little over 9,000 built they would claim over 30,000 Soviet tank kills according to the Bovington Tank Museum. Eventually upgunned to carry the same 75mm KwK 40 as the later variant Pz4s they would see service right up until the end of the war. Pz3 and its variants were arguably the backbone of the German tank force throughout the entire war.

[@HeinzGuderian_]

​@@dillonhunt1720 correct, but a chassis is not a tank. The truck in the Beverly Hillbillies used the chassis of a 1921 Oldsmobile 43-A roadster.

[@mirandela777]

It was useless against KV1, absolutely useless. Ze germans were terrorized by KV1-KV2 in first years of the war, until they scratched their heads and start building HEAVY tanks, something the soviets have since 1937 ! Ze germans were runing with their tails between legs when they faced T34s, and literary sh...their pants when they meet a KV1 or KV2 since no german weapon could pen the front armor of these heavy tanks. Now, fact is, a heavy tank AND a skilled crew will always be a deadly tool against medium tanks with inexperienced crews. Same was in Africa, where not once a single Tiger erased dozens of british crappy tanks, or more recently, when in Ukr a single T90M erased a 11 units column of ukrop armor...

[@HeinzGuderian_]

@@mirandela777 you do realize most tanks until late in the war were light and medium, right? In fact, nearly all of the Russian tanks were light tanks until 1942ish.

[@jeffyoung60]

The Pzkpfw III appeared in the North African campaign, circa 1941 with the upgraded 50 mm long-barrel cannon. It was there in North Africa much earlier with the 37 mm short barrel cannon. Fortunately for the Germans, the German authorities and the tank manufacturer agreed to design the III with the potential for upgrading to a larger cannon. They accurately foresaw enemy advancements in tank design and armor. The timing was good. The British started using the American-built M3 medium tank, which the Brits nicknamed the Grant and later the Lee with different versions. The American M3 had thick frontal plate armor and came armed with a 75mm cannon and a hull turret 37mm cannon. The M3 frontal glacis armor was sloped, giving its 2-inch thickness the equivalent of 3-inches. The 37mm proved ineffective. The upgraded Panzer III's long-barrel, high-velocity 50mm cannon was capable of penetrating the M3 armor. But the M3's 75mm cannon could penetrate the III's frontal, 2-inch, vertical plate armor. The Americans entered the war after December 7, 1941 and entered North Africa in 1942 in Operation Torch, bringing the M4 Sherman medium tank. The Panzer III's 50mm cannon could also penetrate the M4's hull at intermediate ranges. The Germans quickly realized the Panzer III was quickly becoming obsolescent. In stepped the Panzer IV, which bore a strong resemblance III. It had a 75mm long-barrel cannon and thicker frontal armor. The Panzer IV was Germany's equivalent of the American M4 Sherman, the workhorse, general purpose medium tank. In retrospect, Germany should have manufactured more Panzer IV tanks.

[@paullakowski2509]

Panzer III was a problematic development from the start with the suspension failing for the first 5 models A B C D E models and these should have been replaced one for one on the production line with Pz IV E. Those '< 150 defective Pz lll were all scraped through 1940... But a well led panzer can raise hell in the rear of a fumbling Russian battalion. It all sounds good if not a bit lucky'.fact is germans were much better trained than the russians for most of the war.

[@scotttyson7970]

Good info thanks

[@INSANESUICIDE]

Germany could never have focused on a numbers production game as they had the serious fuel issues, they would have done far better if they improved on the good designs they had and work out the kinks in some of their more well known vehicles. Then again it is a bit of a myth the suspension and drive train would constantly collapse and be very unreliable, as the reality is tanks are supposed to be transported on a strategic level via rail from front to front to avoid wear and tear on vehicles, and then only drive by their own power when in theater, the logistics situation in the east and south eastern front did not allow for that, and being long and narrow supply lines it doesn't take a genius to understand rail transport(especially from 42-43 when armored units where transported up and down the length of the front) or rather the lack thereof would mean extra strain on all vehicles having to move by their own power, add to that the extra need for spare parts to make up for the extra wear and tear, now imagine it has to move across long poorly made and overstretched lines of logistics further adding to the issue. One simple and short example of this is how Germany expended a lot of fuel, vehicles and spare parts just to transport fuel from their own territory deep into the soviet occupied lands, so a significant portion of what was needed at the front was in fact expended just getting it to the front. Logistics are key.

[@ronrobertson59]

I agree about the Panzer IV. Germany would have been better served by manufacturing the Panzer IV instead of so many competing designs.

[@INSANESUICIDE]

@@ronrobertson59 again the issue would be larger numbers, larger numbers would require more fuel, and fuel was always the limiting factor.

[@liverpoolscottish6430]

Few can fight like Fritz. Great initiative displayed by Bix, damn good soldier.

[@draganvelimirovic5990]

It is the German army, the Nazi state, which started to conquer... Do you have at least a little sense... They killed all the peoples of Europe...

[@juanzulu1318]

Very good image selection. They perfectly matched the narrated situations.

[@jamielacourse7578]

Excellent work presenting this wonderful rare footage, which I at least have never seen before. Glad to have this channel. And three cheers for the little panzer 3 that could!

[@FactBytes]

Thank you very much!

[@DarrenWalley]

Brilliant little video 📹 thank you for sharing.

[@PanzerdivisionWiking]

Great upload! Thank you for your dedication to uploading history

[@FactBytes]

My pleasure!

[@terraflow__bryanburdo4547]

This channel is amazing in footage and narration!

[@FactBytes]

Glad you like them!

[@tekis0]

Fact Bytes: Please more of these lesser known stories!

[@i-a-g-r-e-e-----f-----jo--b]

I enjoy reading about Panzer III battles on the Eastern Front, thanks for the exciting video! I read one story of a Panzer III in Russia in 1944 taking on 2 T-34s in a village and living with one destroyed Russian tank, that sounded pretty crazy!

[@FactBytes]

Interesting!

[@paullakowski2509]

@@FactBytes no what's crazy is the notion that it was rare in fact it was quite common. german troops were much better trained . The PzIII was mostly recon missions by 1944.

[@Inquisitor6321]

Not so surprising. The T-34 was not that hard to knock out. A PzKfw III J1, L, M or N has the firepower to knock out a T-34 rather easily with an experienced crew. You don't even have penetrate the armor. The spalling you'll cause on a direct hit that doesn't penetrate will likely incapacitate the crew members on the inside. Keep this fact in mind: There were 50,000+ T-34s produced in WWII. 85% of them were destroyed in combat beyond the point of being salvageable.

[@michaellarson938]

This was great, I just wish you had a human narrator, it's like they have never had a conversation

[@echohunter4199]

Would be hilarious if this was a real human voice, lol.

[@PeterWilliams-p8q]

I think it might be human voice but there is no emotion , no passion , a monotone. Say a sentence pause pause, say next sentence pause pause repeat.

[@Syntax977]

Its an AI channel

[@CORLEONESPORTS97]

DAMN MOTIVATING MAKES WE WANT TO GOOSE STEP RIGHT NOW

[@Gunter-ug6bl]

I am ecstatic over the coverage of my favorite vehicle the Panzer III . If one considers that Stug III is also a derivative of the Pz III , well suddenly the Pz III Is seen in a new light

[@OneofInfinity.]

Some action images I've never seen before 👍🏼 Only flaw the panzer 3 had to me was no hatches for the driver and the radio operator. I served as a gunner on a Leopard 2 and was the only crew member without my own hatch, I sat between the commander and the driver with no quick way out if needed.

[@duniagowes]

Isn't it too dangerous for tanks to move forward without any infantry support? Considering the anti tanks, etc in hidden positions, make the incoming tanks vulnerable?

[@fazole]

@2:00 he states that the accompanying infantry were ambushed or attacked, so could not support the tanks. It's not clear if the tank commander was aware of this from the narration.

[@duniagowes]

@@fazole yes, but what I mean is in general circumstances too.

[@PeterWilliams-p8q]

Tanks or just armoured vehicles without infantry support are vulnerable, one of the reasons that in the Ukraine the Russians are losing so many tanks and other vehicles. The panzer III and IV could be penatrated by anti tank rifles through the side and rear armour. Its why the late war panzer had side skirt armour. To protect against them, it also helped against bassoka and other shaped charged attacks.

[@supercheese7033]

When you're advancing into prepared defenses yes. After the breakthrough, the defender has to worry about getting time to stop an advancing tank.

[@duniagowes]

@@supercheese7033 thanks for the insight. Very makes sense.

[@grimdesaye6534]

Great sorry:) Thank you. Love to hear great German stories.

[@draganvelimirovic5990]

It is the German army, the Nazi state, which started to conquer... Do you have at least a little sense... They killed all the peoples of Europe...

[@jpmtlhead39]

So many saying that Michael Wittmann was the Greatest tank Commander of the war. Fortunately for the Germans,their Outstanding training created many "Michael Wittmann's" during the war. Thanks to those very Talented and Brave young man, Germany was able to hold on for so long with so few.

[@stargazer1744]

So true.

[@christopherfritz3840]

Tigers, Panthers, Maus'. Its incredible to think that at one point the lowly PzIII's could have conquered Russia in only three months.

[@rev.dr.davidcole8915]

I don't think people in the US appreciate, then or now, the danger of the red peril. The Germans, for all their faults, did. This was truly a heroic engagement.

[@ChesterWortham]

General Patton did he wanted to go on to Moscow while we had the army and air power to do it plus the atomic bomb they should have listened to him instead of killing him

[@JuergenGDB]

Pz III was the workhorse of the German Panzer units for 3 years before the Pz IV got its longer barrel. Not sure that part is correct at 1:30 Artillery duel at 800m is practically point-blank. Or did it start at 0800 hours? Is this an AI channel?

[@dravenmaster7859]

AI yes

[@keeroe2020]

Maybe not line of sight?

[@SteveBrownRocks2023]

Pz 3’s just LOOK cool too!

[@sorellantoimisto6501]

Good video but in 1:59 it is showing bridge scene in Finland (the sign in the right side on the bridge when motorcycle drives in to the bridge). We didint had Pzkpfw III in fights like in Russia area. But what ever war is in the videos is is good thing. Other facts are ok.

[@knot3d_]

It's not about the fire power. It's not about the armor or even the mobility. The real power of the Panzer 3 compared to its contemporaries is about ergonomics of the fighting compartment, the optics and tactical communication devices. Excellent armor, mobility or firepower could be found in France's Char B1, Somua S35 and the UK's Matilda 2 with the 2pdr Little John extender. Same even goes for the early T-34's. But where the Panzer 3's and 4's beat them is in terms of ergonomics, optics and communication. Doesn't matter if you have THE most powerful gun, best mobility or best armor - those mean jackshit when the crew can not operate in optimal condictions, when the commander can not swiftly align with the gunner or driver and when they can't coordinate a proper tactical manoeuvre. Heck, in the case of those French tanks, it was just often the commander, being overwhelmed before he could even spot and coordinate a tactical reaction. A proper 3-man turret concept is the engineering genius that gave the Panzer 3 an edge. Doesn't matter if they didn't pen the armor of the Char B1, the Somua S35, the Matilda 2 or the early T-34 - because unlike them, the Panzer 3 crews were often able to spot and land an incapacitating shot before them.

[@stargazer1744]

Congrats...you do know about tanks !

[@flybatramirez350]

Nice story, nice footage. Unfortunately the whole thing is ruined as an old washing machine that recently had a stroke seems to be reading out the words

[@victorfinberg8595]

sounds like something i read in hammer's slammers

[@stevenrowlandson9650]

Indeed the few or the one can make a difference.

[@Lotta207]

02:01 In your video, the chronicle of events unfortunately does not correspond to your text....((😒

[@raymundovergararoman2473]

Why germans never fitted the pzkwiii with the 3.7mm bk of the stuka? .think for a moment: gun would had worked automatically until his 5 round clip had emptied; did it had brought still good service in 1945? or why not to fit the pzkwiii with the hetzer's 75mm pak 39 gun, did the hetzer's gun had fitted well in the pzkwiii?.

[@ArviPontsa]

At 2min the sign says Finland/Suomi...no where near the actual battle

[@montieluckett7036]

Not something a soviet commander could have done. Their Command and Control, as it is now, was top down. While, though not encouraged, Rarely reprimanded, the German commander was usually Not penalized for showing initiative(especially if successful).

[@juanzulu1318]

Well, there are numerous instances in which Soviet tanks roamed behind Germam lines. But yes, their comm was bad and consequently these push throughs were uncoordinated.

[@APOLON-bm7ym]

"T vierunddreizig, zwei Uhr. Entfernung: sechshundertfuenfzig meter" "Panzergranatte geladen" "Feuer" "Getroffen. Ziel zerstoert" ...

[@andrewstrongman305]

There's some excellent footage here, unfortunately, the commentary is shit. Apparently a Sergeant Bicks was in command of the panzer, until suddenly a "lance-corporal Fink" was the tank's commander? Later, 'Finks' is the radio operator.

[@traxel14]

Did he and his crew survive WW2?

[@ColinFreeman-kh9us]

Amazing work you are doing, just brilliant footage . Brave men ( scared shitless I guess to ) all sides, not a feminist or a smart phone to be seen !

[@paulbenedict1289]

You might have specified in the title what Soviet forces were present at that village, because you see, taking on a village with a tank sounds remarkably unimpressive.

[@Compulsive_LARPer]

Why so insecure, Ivan? You guys still won that war, after all.

[@FactBytes]

Agree. Modified the title 👍

[@normvw4053]

Yeah, but did he come home?

[@stargazer1744]

He did and became an engineer after the war.

[@normvw4053]

@@stargazer1744 Thank you for that information. So many of them did not.

[@marcoherrmann1820]

First,great Story

[@FactBytes]

Thanks!

[@garymarshall6853]

Get rid of the computer narration!

[@SafetyProMalta]

The cream of the Wehrmacht, lost after 42.. but just wow....

[@babygoei5841]

Without drones

[@therecusantluddite1133]

christopher walken should of narrated

[@loneranger5349]

I think everyone knows 3 comes before 4 😊

[@t.j.payeur5331]

Great footage. Terrible robovoice...

[@JDDC-tq7qm]

Doesn't change the fact they still got their ass kicked by the Soviets 😂

[@bluedragontoybash2463]

Unfortunately there also a lot of story about brave medal seeking tank commander eager to seek glory plowing into Soviet village without infantry support only to surrounded by soviet infantry and then surrendered, tortured (badly) and killed

[@darrengilbert7438]

What book is this from?

[@OroborusFMA]

What is with this robo voice? William Shatner school of acting lol.

[@mattbarbarich3295]

Reminds me of that recent great Russian film The White Tiger think it's called.

[@paulcool4384]

Did he survived the war ?

[@JoeKing-_i_am_not_joking]

Yes. He died on 31 July 1986

[@stargazer1744]

@@JoeKing-_i_am_not_joking - RIP, a brave soldier.

[@mohammedyasin6879]

Deutschland, Uber, Alles

[@jimmunro4649]

AI talking sound like AI

[@richarddixon7276]

I thought so too , it's too H esitatant to much .

[@LiDrLin]

riding such a weak tank is equal to suicide. The german could have success at the beginning just because of their experience and skill.

[@Vlkh75]

More stories about Nazy heroes, ples!

[@palanka842]

Those fabulous Tiger tanks never entered Moskow, but humble T-34 soviet tanks raided Berlin at the end of the second world war!

[@stargazer1744]

Tiger tanks didn't appear on the front till late '43....Here on this video we are in Sept. '41, still far from Moscow, and talking about the small Panzer 3 !...so you're pissing off !

[@davidguardado4739]

Why AI ffs please just narrate the story 😡

[@paulwalker427]

still lost though

[@fryertuck6496]

Ai, instant click out.

[@crazyivan2356]

*Soviet, not Russian. There was 15 republics in the USSR, for God's sake!!*

[@rodjarrow6575]

On August 20, 1941, the battles near Leningrad destroyed 22 Wehrmacht tanks by one Soviet tank crew of Lieutenant Kolobanov, in general, five Soviet tanks subordinate to Kolobanov destroyed more than 43 Wehrmacht tanks in that battle near Leningrad on August 20, 1941. in that battle, all three Soviet tanks were not hit by the enemy

[@chriscarbaugh3936]

Sounds improbable

[@rodjarrow6575]

@@chriscarbaugh3936 And, nevertheless, this is a historical fact of the War II on the Eastern front August 20, 1941 kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5-Vd2aQrpuXbcU It was the battle of Lieutenant Kolobanov in 1941 that led Hitler to the idea of the importance of heavy tanks, which eventually became a fatal mistake for the Wehrmacht. Because it was not heavy tanks, but medium tanks that won the War II

[@Francis-m2d]

@@rodjarrow6575 It gets to be a question of sources and if the sources are from the Soviet side, I would take them with a grain of salt.

[@rodjarrow6575]

@@Francis-m2d Therefore, I do not trust sources that come from the opposite side, opponents of the Soviets in that period of history

[@Francis-m2d]

@@rodjarrow6575 Is that true, or are you blowing smoke? I am referring to Soviet claims of having destroyed 700 panzers at Kursk, where a study of German records show the count to be more like 225--235 tanks.

[@skywings7676]

Fake Story telling

[@shanegriffiths3020]

Did he survive the war.

[@alexacojo]

the village was soviet 🤣

[@juanzulu1318]

Very good image selection. They perfectly matched the narrated situations.