The German tank crew from the 5. SS-Panzer-Division “Wiking” sleep next to their PzKpfw III tanks in the temporarily occupied territory of Soviet Russia. Eastern Front, World War II in Europe.
PzKpfw III tanks is:
PzKpfw III tanks (Panzerkampfwagen III) is a German medium tank from World War II, mass-produced from 1937 to 1943. The abbreviated names of this tank were Pz.Kpfw.III, Panzer III, Pz.III. In the departmental rubricator of military equipment of Nazi Germany, this tank was designated Sd.Kfz. 141 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 141 – special purpose vehicle 141). In Soviet historical documents and popular literature, the Pz.Kpfw.III was referred to as “Type 3”, T-III or T-3.
These combat vehicles were used by the Wehrmacht from the first day of World War II. The latest records of the combat use of Pz.Kpfw. III tanks in regular Wehrmacht units date back to mid-1944; single tanks fought until the surrender of Germany. From mid-1941 to early 1943, the Pz.Kpfw. III Panzers was the backbone of the Wehrmacht’s armored forces (Panzerwaffe) and, despite its relative weakness compared to its contemporary tanks from the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition, made a significant contribution to the successes of the Wehrmacht of that period. Tanks of this type were supplied to the armies of Germany’s Axis allies. Captured PzIIIs were used by the Red Army and the Allies with good results. On the basis of the PzKpfw III tanks, self-propelled artillery mounts (SPGs) for various purposes were created in Germany and the USSR.