Special badge for fighting armored vehicles by lone fighters

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Tank destruction badge in gold and silver
Award of the tank destruction badge
German soldier with bazooka in a cover ditch, Ukraine 1944
Award document for the "special badge for fighting armored vehicles by lone fighters in gold"
Example of the tank destruction badge in gold and silver can be seen on the right sleeve
Medal clasp with gold tank destruction badges

The tank destruction badge (abbreviated tank destruction badge ) was an award for individual fighters in German combat units in World War II , which according to published on March 9, 1942 "with melee weapons or melee agents ( anti-tank rifle , rifle grenade, concentrated load , etc.) a destroyed or incapacitated enemy armored vehicles or other enemy armored vehicles in close combat ". By order of December 18, 1943, the Panzerfaust and Panzerschreck were also recognized as close combat weapons.

description

In addition to the concentrated charges, mostly bundles of hand grenades, the melee weapons consisted of Molotov cocktails , hand grenades , anti-tank mines or hollow charges . Concentrated charges or hand grenades were thrown and placed on the tank or chain wheels and chain in the hope of reducing or preventing its ability to move by destroying the sensitive chain wheels or chains. These were also thrown through the armored hatches, for which the attacker had to climb onto the tank. Molotov cocktails, glass bottles filled with incendiary material with a burning fuse, were thrown at the rear of the tank. The burning liquid ran through the ventilation slots of the engine into the engine compartment and set it on fire, which could cause a total failure of the tank. The anti-tank mines or hollow charges were partly provided with magnets in order to be able to attach them effectively to moving tanks.

In all of these attack variations with anti-tank weapons, however, it is to be regarded as a prerequisite that the enemy tank was not protected by its own infantry, which would have taken the attacking soldiers under fire immediately. When attacking with melee weapons, the tank had to either stand still or drive very slowly. The attack was made from the side or from behind, as the view from the tank was very limited. In addition, the attacking soldier had to hope that he was not noticed by other tanks during the attack, otherwise he would be immediately shot at with machine guns. On the other hand, attacks with anti-tank rifles, rifle grenades, bazookas and Panzerschreck could also be used from cover.

The tank destruction badge was donated on March 9, 1942 and could be awarded retrospectively until June 22, 1941. It consisted of a rectangular aluminum web (32 mm x 90 mm), delimited above and below by thin black strips of fabric knitted in about 3 mm and a silver-colored armor placed in the middle and punched from sheet metal. The badge was attached to the right sleeve at the level of the upper arm with the help of three cotter pins or two cotter pins and a counter plate. For each additional enemy tank destroyed or incapacitated, another badge was awarded and attached to the sleeve.

For reasons of space, the golden tank destruction badge was donated on December 18, 1943, which differed from the simple badge by the gold-colored web and the gold-colored tank and was awarded after the 5th tank was shot down. In this case, the loaned soldier had to discard the four previously obtained badges that remained in his possession.

The tank destruction badges were produced by several manufacturers and there were minor differences in the design of the badges. Since there was initially a shortage of tank destruction badges among troops at the front, provisional badges made by soldiers themselves were also awarded.

On March 7, 1945 Hitler ordered (full wording): Today the Führer ordered that every soldier who destroys 6 enemy tanks with bazookas or makeshift close-range weapons receives the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross . Kills with a stove pipe ( rocket armored rifle 54 ) are subject to a special rating. This provision must be made known to all soldiers as quickly as possible. It has no retroactive effect. The knight's cross proposals are to be sent by telex from the submitting office directly to the head of the Army Personnel Office (HPA) at the Führer Headquarters with the shortest possible justification, specifying the means of destruction and listing the required personal details. At the same time, reports must be made to the superior departments.

Most of the tank destruction badges were awarded to Günther Viezenz with a total of 21 badges, Friedrich Anding with 18 badges and Willi Frey with 12 badges. Walter Kuhn received four tank destruction badges for four tank destructions within a single day.

In the German Reich magazines and newspapers from 1942 onwards often reported on soldiers who had destroyed enemy tanks. These soldiers were known as tank crackers. Most of the reports featured soldiers with anti-tank badges on their uniforms.

According to Colonel General Heinz Guderian , around 10,000 tank destruction badges had been awarded by May 1944. By the end of the war there were an estimated 14,000. In contrast to Klietmann 1981, the militaria expert Lautenschläger assumes around 13,000 awards in 2013.

Since there was no swastika depicted on the tank destruction badges, they were also allowed to be worn in the Bundeswehr . As with other military orders of the Third Reich, copies of the tank destruction badge were also sold as originals in the military sector.

Tank destruction badges were also used in the armies of Finland, Hungary and Italy during World War II.

See also

literature

  • Dirk Schneider: "The tank destruction badge and the low-level aircraft destruction badge." Verlag Weber 2014, ISBN 978-3-9816518-2-9
  • Kurt-Gerhard Klietmann : Awards of the German Empire. 1936-1945. Motorbuch, Stuttgart 1981, ISBN 3-87943-689-4 .
  • Alex Buchner: German and Allied Army Weapons 1939–1945. Germany, USSR, England, USA. Podzun-Pallas, Friedberg / H. 1992, ISBN 3-7909-0469-4 .
  • Uwe Lautenschläger: The special badge for fighting armored vehicles by lone fighters. International Militaria Magazine 2013, No. 159: 5-38.

Web links

Commons : Special badge for fighting armored vehicles by lone fighters  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Uwe Lautenschläger: The special badge for fighting armored vehicles by lone fighters. International Militaria Magazine 2013, No. 159: 5-38.
  2. ↑ Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearers 1933-1945. Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2005, ISBN 3-938845-00-7 , p. 30.