During the initial campaigns of World War Two the Wehrmacht’s
Panzer I’s, (Sd.Kfz. 101) formed the bulk of its armour.
In March 1938 the Wehrmacht Army marched into Austria, encountering
a breakdown rate of up to thirty percent. The knowledge gained
during the occupation of Austria allowed
Heinz
Guderian to remedy several major faults within the Wehrmacht
armour corps and subsequently allowed him to improve the fuel
supply and maintenance situation. In October 1938 Wehrmacht
tanks occupied Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland, and then occupied
the remainder of the country in March 1939. The take over
of Czechoslovakia allowed several Czech tank designs, such
as the
Panzer 35(t) and
Panzer
38(t), to be incorporated into the Wehrmacht Army. It
also prepared the Wehrmacht forces for the eventual invasion
of Poland.
Intended as a training tank to introduce the concept of
mobile armoured warfare into the Wehrmacht Army, its design
began in 1932 and mass production started in 1934. Despite
the original purpose of the vehicle, the Panzer I saw combat
in Spain 1936 to 1939 and Czechoslovakia's in 1939. The
experience gained during these earlier campaigns would shape
the way Wehrmacht armour invaded Poland in 1939 and France
in 1940. In 1941 the old Panzer I chassis was being used
to produce tank destroyers. There were many attempts to
upgrade the Panzer I throughout its history.
The Panzer I’s armour protection and light armament
affected its overall performance in combat. Although this
should not be a surprise as it was never designed for a
combat role. The Panzer I formed large portions of Wehrmacht
total armour strength in most major campaigns between September
1939 and December 1941.
This clip shows Panzer I's on parade, doing complex manoeuvres.
German Military Vehicles.
ISBN-10: 087349783X
Armoured Fighting Vehicles of Germany World War II.
ISBN-10: 0214203077
Encyclopedia of German Tanks of World Two.
ISBN-10: 1854095188
For a complete list of
sources
