Captured Soviet KV-1E Inspected by Wehrmacht Troops

June 8, 2025 - Reading time: 4 minutes

Wehrmacht soldiers inspect a damaged Soviet KV-1E heavy tank, later redesignated as Panzerkampfwagen KV-IB 755(r).

In this stark wartime photograph, German Wehrmacht soldiers are seen inspecting a damaged Soviet KV-1E heavy tank, which has fallen into enemy hands during the fierce battles of 1941. The tank, nicknamed “Ekhranirovanny” (Screened) by the Red Army for its extra armor plating, stands as a prize of war — battered, but still imposing.

Visible beside the tank is a 76mm shell, the same caliber fired by the KV-1’s ZiS-5 main gun. Such rounds packed a serious punch, but even the mighty KV-1 had its vulnerabilities once mobility was lost or flanks were exposed.

Within the German military structure, captured KV-1 tanks were designated and cataloged based on their configurations:

• Panzerkampfwagen KV-IA 753(r): Early KV-1 models from 1939–40 with welded turrets and no extra armor. Some were retrofitted with German 75mm guns and turret-mounted commander’s cupolas, and equipped with Wehrmacht radio gear.

• Panzerkampfwagen KV-IB 755(r): 1941 production models like the one in the photo, featuring cast turrets and additional armor (KV-1E variant). These too received German communications equipment and sometimes visual modifications.

• Panzerkampfwagen KV-IC 756(r): Later war variants from 1941–42, again often upgraded with German weaponry and structural add-ons for integration into German units.

Although such captured vehicles were rare and logistically complicated to maintain, their use reflects both the desperation and resourcefulness of German field units during the grueling early months of Operation Barbarossa. The KV-1E in the photo serves as both a battlefield relic and a repurposed tool of war — an echo of its original Soviet purpose now reversed against its makers.

🖼️ Technical photo data:

• 📸 Photographer: Unknown Wehrmacht soldier

• 📅 Date: 1941

• 📍 Location: USSR