When Hitler ordered the conquest of Russia in the summer of 1941, confidence among the Panzer force was at an all time high. The desert war was progressing well and the German tactics of mixing tank and anti-tank forces together concealed the deficiencies in tank design, in some cases from the Germans themselves.
Despite the understandable cockiness of the German High Command, a few lessons from earlier campaigns had been absorbed, and the make-up of the tank force which shook Stalin to the core had a much higher proportion of the heavier Mark III and IV tanks, instead of the lightweight Panzer Is and IIs. This trend illustrated the steadily increasing reliance on heavier armour, which was to continue throughout the war. It was just as well, because the Wehrmacht was about to meet with a very nasty surprise.
After a few weeks of the campaign, during which the German armour had faced only obsolete Russian tanks such as the lumbering T-28 and the outdated BT-7, the German forces suddenly encountered two of the new Russian tanks which were to change the course of the war.
The first was the Heavy KV-1, a 46-ton monster, with superior heavy armour and a vicious 76mm gun capable of destroying any German tank from most ranges on the battlefield. In 1941 this was a deadly adversary indeed.
The Soviet KV-1 was a fine example of a tank made for specific conditions. It had broad tracks for dealing with mud and snow, and a diesel engine for operating in the coldest possible weather. It was a superb design and absolutely dominated the battlefield.
The other unpleasant surprise for the Germans was, of course, the arrival of the T-34, a medium tank far better armed and equipped than the German Mark IV. It was also better equipped to deal with the extreme Russian weather conditions. Its wide tracks made it equally at home in dry conditions or in the mud and snow. In addition, the sloping armour presented an angled front to German fire, designed to cause shells to glance off the armour.
Photographic proof that even the legendary T-34 was not equal to the Russian terrain. These three machines were bogged-down in marshy ground and abandoned by their crews. The wooden planks used to try and free the top machine are still visible.
The T-34 was to become the real nemesis of the German army. It was built for mass assembly, and the crude welding lines can be clearly seen on surviving examples. It was no beauty but it was tough, and it possessed a rare in-built ability to be upgraded as the situation changed.
When the T-34 first appeared in service it was fitted with a 76mm gun and had a two-man crew in the turret. By 1944, the Soviets had not only up-gunned the tank to an 88mm weapon, they had also increased the turret size to enable it to take three men, which made for a far more efficient tank on the battlefield.
Although the Germans would devise better tanks, they could never hope to compete in terms of the sheer number of T-34s.
The T-34 was the most prolific tank of the Second World and when we consider that the Soviets achieved that and moved their tank producing facilities right across the country under German pressure, it really is a remarkable achievement. The workmanship was crude enough to make the average British or American factory worker weep, but that was not the main concern for the Russians. They were out to produce as many reliable, tough fighting tanks as possible, and in the T-34 they achieved it.
Time and time again veterans of the Russian front will praise the T-34. Sixty years later, Russian Front veteran Gerhard Majewski recalled the effectiveness of the machines he fought against.
“The T-34 at its time was by far and away the best tank the world had ever seen. It was actually second to none. The shape is followed even to this day - the outline of the tank. It was the mother so to speak of all modern tanks. It was just right in every respect, the guns, the armour, the speed, the lot.”
The T-34 was by no means the best tank to emerge from the Second World War, but it was more than adequate for the task and the huge numbers manufactured would ultimately tip the balance of the whole war.