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112-650: Although the vehicle had originally been designed as a stopgap while larger, more advanced tanks were developed, it nonetheless went on to play an important role in the early years of World War II, during the Polish and French campaigns . The Panzer II was the most numerous tank in the German Panzer divisions at the beginning of the war. It was used both in North Africa against the Western Allies and on

224-639: A military alliance with the United Kingdom and with France , believing that Polish independence and territorial integrity would be defended with their support if it were to be threatened by Germany. On the other hand, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and his Foreign Secretary , Lord Halifax , still hoped to strike a deal with Hitler regarding Danzig (and possibly the Polish Corridor). Chamberlain and his supporters believed war could be avoided and hoped Germany would agree to leave

336-536: A "last minute" order in the summer of 1939, Poland bought 160 French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 fighters and 111 English airplanes (100 light bombers Fairey Battle , 10 Hurricanes and 1 Supermarine Spitfire ; the sale of 150 Spitfires asked by the Polish government was rejected by the Air Ministry). Despite the fact that some of the airplanes had been shipped to Poland (the first transport of purchased aircraft on

448-531: A 'Bomber Brigade', 'Pursuit Brigade' and aircraft assigned to the various ground armies. The Polish fighters were older than their German counterparts; the PZL P.11 fighter—produced in the early 1930s—had a top speed of only 365 km/h (227 mph), far less than German bombers. To compensate, the pilots relied on its maneuverability and high diving speed. The Polish Air Force's decisions to strengthen its resources came too late, mostly due to budget limitations. As

560-574: A German sabotage group which had not heard anything about a delay of the invasion made an attack on the Jablunkov Pass and Mosty railway station in Silesia . On the morning of 26 August, this group was repelled by Polish troops. The German side described all this as an incident "caused by an insane individual" (see Jabłonków incident ). On 26 August, Hitler tried to dissuade the British and

672-449: A Panzer II tank. The tanks were specially sealed, some modifications to the engine exhaust and cooling were needed, as was an inflatable rubber ring used to seal the turret during amphibious operation. A propeller; linked by a universal joint to an extension, was linked to the tank's engine to provide motive power, steering in water being effected by a rudder mounted behind the propeller. Speeds of up to 6 mph in dead calm were claimed, as

784-658: A bloody terror and are driven from their homes. The series of border violations, which are unbearable to a great power, prove that the Poles no longer are willing to respect the German frontier." Poland participated with Germany in the partition of Czechoslovakia that followed the Munich Agreement , although they were not part of the agreement. It coerced Czechoslovakia to surrender the region of Český Těšín by issuing an ultimatum to that effect on 30 September 1938, which

896-419: A range of 290 km (180 mi). The FuG12 and FuG Spr a radios were installed, while 330 rounds of 20 mm and 2,250 rounds of 7.92 mm ammunition were carried. Total vehicle weight was 11.8 tonnes. It had 30 mm of armour on the front of the hull and 20 mm of armour on the sides and back and the same on the turret. It accommodated four crew members, the commander (gunner), driver, loader and

1008-638: A realization of any pre-1933 Weimar plans to invade and partition Poland, annex Bohemia and Austria, and create satellite or puppet states economically subordinate to Germany. As part of this long-term policy, Hitler at first pursued a policy of rapprochement with Poland, trying to improve opinion in Germany, culminating in the German–Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934. Earlier, Hitler's foreign policy worked to weaken ties between Poland and France and attempted to manoeuvre Poland into

1120-617: A stopgap tank was developed. Designs for a stopgap tank were solicited from Krupp , MAN , Henschel , and Daimler-Benz . Design work on the Panzer II began on 27 January 1934. The first experimental model was ready in February 1935. The final design was based on the Panzer I , but larger, and with a turret mounting a 20 mm auto cannon anti-tank gun and leaf spring suspension Production began in 1935, but it took another eighteen months for

1232-452: A view to replacing it with a 37 mm cannon, but nothing came of this. Prototypes were built with a 50 mm tank gun, but by then the Panzer II had outlived its usefulness as a tank regardless of armament. Greater success was had by replacing the standard 2 cm armour-piercing explosive ammunition with tungsten cored solid ammunition , but due to shortages of tungsten this ammunition was in chronically short supply. All production versions of

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1344-540: A week before the onset of war, Hitler delivered a speech to his military commanders at the Obersalzberg : The object of the war is … physically to destroy the enemy. That is why I have prepared, for the moment only in the East, my 'Death's Head' formations with orders to kill without pity or mercy all men, women, and children of Polish descent or language. Only in this way can we obtain the living space we need. With

1456-650: Is also known in Poland as the September campaign ( Polish : kampania wrześniowa ) or 1939 defensive war (Polish: wojna obronna 1939 roku ) and known in Germany as the Poland campaign ( German : Überfall auf Polen, Polenfeldzug ). German forces invaded Poland from the north, south, and west the morning after the Gleiwitz incident . Slovak military forces advanced alongside the Germans in northern Slovakia . As

1568-628: Is unknown when exactly the Flammpanzer II got the name „Flamingo“, however it most likely originated some time after world war 2 and was never officially used for the vehicle. A light reconnaissance tank, the Ausf. L was the only Panzer II design with the Schachtellaufwerk overlapping/interleaved road wheels and "slack track" configuration to enter series production, with 100 being built from September 1943 to January 1944 in addition to

1680-504: Is unknown. After the development of the Fahrgestell Panzerkampfwagen II for mounting the sIG 33, Alkett designed a version mounting a 10.5 cm leichte Feldhaubitze 18/2 field howitzer in an open-topped superstructure. This was Germany's only widely produced self-propelled 105 mm howitzer. Between February 1943 and June 1944, 676 were built by FAMO, and it served on all major fronts. To support

1792-756: The Anti-Comintern Pact , forming a cooperative front against the Soviet Union . Poland would be granted territory to its northeast in Ukraine and Belarus if it agreed to wage war against the Soviet Union, but the concessions the Poles were expected to make meant that their homeland would become largely dependent on Germany, functioning as little more than a client state . The Poles feared that their independence would eventually be threatened altogether; historically Hitler had already denounced

1904-663: The Atlantic Wall . Production of the tank itself ceased by January 1944, but its chassis remained in use as the basis of several other armoured vehicles, chiefly self-propelled artillery and tank destroyers such as the Wespe and Marder II respectively. In 1934, delays in the design and production of the Panzer III and Panzer IV medium tanks were becoming apparent. The Panzer I had no weapons capable of defeating armor and thus no chance of success against enemy tanks so

2016-461: The Eastern Front against the Soviet Union. The Panzer II was supplanted by the Panzer III and IV medium tanks by 1940/1941. By the end of 1942, it had been largely removed from front line service and it was used for training and on secondary fronts. The turrets of the then-obsolete Panzer Is and Panzer IIs were reused as gun turrets on specially built defensive bunkers, particularly on

2128-464: The Panzer I as a chassis for a bridge layer, work moved to the Panzer II, led by Magirus . It is not known how many of these conversions were made, but four were known to have been in service with the 7th Panzer Division in May 1940. Continued development of the reconnaissance tank concept led to the much up-armoured Ausf. J, which used the same concept as the Panzer I Ausf. F of the same period, under

2240-700: The Reichsautobahn system, be built in order to connect East Prussia with Germany proper , running through the Polish Corridor. Poland rejected this proposal, fearing that after accepting these demands, it would become increasingly subject to the will of Germany and eventually lose its independence as the Czechs had. Polish leaders also distrusted Hitler. The British were also wary of Germany's increasing strength and assertiveness threatening its balance of power strategy. On 31 March 1939, Poland formed

2352-606: The Romanian Bridgehead could be created. The Polish General Staff had not begun elaborating the "West" defence plan until 4 March 1939. It was assumed that the Polish Army, fighting in the initial phase of the war alone, would have to defend the western regions of the country. The plan of operations took into account the numerical and material superiority of the enemy and, also assumed the defensive character of Polish operations. The Polish intentions were defending

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2464-725: The United Kingdom . On 3 September, based on their alliance agreements with Poland, the United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany; in the end their aid to Poland was very limited . France invaded a small part of Germany in the Saar Offensive , and the Polish army was effectively defeated even before the British Expeditionary Force could be transported to Europe, with the bulk of the BEF in France by

2576-673: The Wehrmacht advanced, Polish forces withdrew from their forward bases of operation close to the Germany–Poland border to more established defense lines to the east. After the mid-September Polish defeat in the Battle of the Bzura , the Germans gained an undisputed advantage. Polish forces then withdrew to the southeast where they prepared for a long defence of the Romanian Bridgehead and awaited expected support and relief from France and

2688-475: The 1,009 cars and trucks and 4,842 horses in the average German infantry division, the average Polish infantry division had 76 cars and trucks and 6,939 horses. The Polish Air Force ( Lotnictwo Wojskowe ) was at a severe disadvantage against the German Luftwaffe due to inferiority in numbers and the obsolescence of its fighter planes. However, contrary to German propaganda, it was not destroyed on

2800-542: The 50mm Pak 38 and troop-tested on the Eastern Front. Given experimental designation VK 9.03, the Ausf. H was intended as the production model of the Ausf. G, with armor for the sides and rear increased to 20 mm and a new four speed transmission (plus reverse) similar to that of the PzKpfw 38(t) nA. Only two prototypes were ever completed by the time of cancellation in September 1942. After failed attempts to use

2912-481: The 7.62 cm mounting was built giving a lower profile. The Marder II served with the Germans on all fronts through the end of the war. Conceived along the same lines as the Marder II, the 5 cm PaK 38 was an expedient solution to mount the 50 mm antitank gun on the Panzer II chassis. However, the much greater effectiveness of the 75 mm antitank gun made this option less desirable. Production quantity

3024-555: The Ausf. D and Ausf. E tank versions, the Flamm (often wrongly referred to as "Flamingo") used a new turret mounting a single MG34 machine gun, and two remotely controlled flamethrowers mounted in small turrets at each front corner of the vehicle. Each flamethrower could cover the front 180° arc, while the turret traversed 360°. The flamethrowers were supplied with 320 litres of fuel and four tanks of compressed nitrogen . The nitrogen tanks were built into armoured boxes along each side of

3136-406: The Ausf. D/E chassis, it was decided to use the remaining chassis to mount captured Soviet antitank guns. The hull and suspension was unmodified from the earlier models, but the superstructure was built up to provide a large, open-topped fighting compartment with a Soviet 76.2 mm antitank gun , which, while not turreted, did have significant traverse. Only developed as an interim solution, the vehicle

3248-488: The Ausf. L "Luchs", the Ausf. M would have had four crew; however, no examples are known to have been constructed. One use for obsolete Panzer II tanks that had their turrets removed for use in fortifications was as utility carriers. A number of chassis not used for conversion to self-propelled guns were instead handed over to the Engineers for use as personnel and equipment carriers. Developed in prototype form only, this

3360-463: The Ausf. L, with a Maybach HL157 P engine driving an eight speed transmission (plus reverse). While the hull was based on that of the Pz.Kpfw. II J, it was redesigned after the Panzer V Panther , most noticeably with the introduction of fully sloped frontal armour. Was rejected after developers realized that Panzer IVs and Vs could do similar work without the need for a new vehicle. Background: History of

3472-570: The British merchant fleet and took part in wartime convoys . The September Campaign was devised by General Franz Halder , the chief of the general staff , and directed by General Walther von Brauchitsch the commander in chief of the German ground forces . It called for the start of hostilities before a declaration of war , and pursued a doctrine of mass encirclement and destruction of enemy forces. The infantry, far from completely mechanized but fitted with fast-moving artillery and logistic support,

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3584-458: The Corridor broke down, and months passed without diplomatic interaction between Germany and Poland. During this interim period, the Germans learned that France and Britain had failed to secure an alliance with the Soviet Union against Germany, and that the Soviet Union was interested in an alliance with Germany against Poland. Hitler had already issued orders to prepare for a possible "solution of

3696-511: The French from interfering in the upcoming conflict, even pledging that the Wehrmacht forces would be made available to Britain's empire in the future. The negotiations convinced Hitler that there was little chance the Western Allies would declare war on Germany, and even if they did, because of the lack of "territorial guarantees" to Poland, they would be willing to negotiate a compromise favourable to Germany after its conquest of Poland. Meanwhile,

3808-428: The German puppet state of Slovakia meant that Poland's southern flank was also exposed. Hitler demanded that Poland be conquered in six weeks, but German planners thought that it would require three months. They intended to exploit their long border fully with the great enveloping manoeuver of Fall Weiss . German units were to invade Poland from three directions: All three assaults were to converge on Warsaw , and

3920-558: The Germans had seven Panzer divisions, with 2,009 tanks between them, using a new operational doctrine . It held that these divisions should act in coordination with other elements of the military, punching holes in the enemy line and isolating selected units, which would be encircled and destroyed. This would be followed up by less-mobile mechanized infantry and foot soldiers. The Luftwaffe (air force) provided both tactical and strategic air power , particularly dive bombers that disrupted lines of supply and communications. Together,

4032-557: The Germans, and these units, dispersed within the infantry, were unable to effectively engage the Germans. Experiences in the Polish–Soviet War shaped Polish Army organizational and operational doctrine. Unlike the trench warfare of World War I, the Polish–Soviet War was a conflict in which the cavalry 's mobility played a decisive role. Poland acknowledged the benefits of mobility but was unable to invest heavily in many of

4144-456: The Model F reverted to the previous leaf spring type suspension. All versions had a range of 200 km (120 mi). The Panzer II had a crew of three men. The driver sat in the forward left hull with the gearbox on the right. The commander sat in a seat in the turret, and was responsible for aiming and firing the cannon and co-axial machine gun, while a loader/radio operator sat on the floor of

4256-604: The Panzer II tanks was the five overlapping road wheel configuration termed Schachtellaufwerk by the Germans. This was used as the basis for the redesign of the Panzer II into a reconnaissance tank with high speed and good off-road performance. The Ausf. G was the first Panzer II to use this configuration, and was developed under the experimental designation VK 9.01. There is no record of the Ausf. G being issued to combat units, and only 12 full vehicles were built from April 1941 to February 1942 by MAN. The turrets were subsequently issued for use in fortifications. Two were converted to use

4368-400: The Panzer II were fitted with a 140 PS (138 HP), gasoline-fuelled six-cylinder Maybach HL62 TRM engine and ZF transmissions. Models A, B, and C had a top speed of 40 km/h (25 mph). Models D and E had a torsion bar suspension and a better transmission, giving a top road speed of 55 km/h (33 mph) but the cross country speed was much lower than previous models, so

4480-541: The Polish Army by about 1/3. Germany had a substantial numeric advantage over Poland and had developed a significant military before the conflict. The Heer (army) had 3,472 tanks in its inventory, of which 2,859 were with the Field Army and 408 with the Replacement Army . 453 tanks were assigned into four light divisions, while another 225 tanks were in detached regiments and companies. Most notably,

4592-548: The Polish Army during the invasion of 1939 was the 7TP light tank. It was the first tank in the world to be equipped with a diesel engine and 360° Gundlach periscope . The 7TP was significantly better armed than its most common opponents, the German Panzer I and II , but only 140 tanks were produced between 1935 and the outbreak of the war. Poland had also a few relatively modern imported designs, such as 50 Renault R35 tanks and 38 Vickers E tanks. The Polish Navy

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4704-490: The Polish defeat at the Battle of Kock , German and Soviet forces gained full control over Poland. The success of the invasion marked the end of the Second Polish Republic, though Poland never formally surrendered. On 8 October, after an initial period of military administration , Germany directly annexed western Poland and the former Free City of Danzig and placed the remaining block of territory under

4816-563: The Polish problem by military means" through the Case White scenario. In May, in a statement to his generals while they were in the midst of planning the invasion of Poland, Hitler made it clear that the invasion would not come without resistance as it had in Czechoslovakia: With minor exceptions German national unification has been achieved. Further successes cannot be achieved without bloodshed. Poland will always be on

4928-470: The Polish-German border and lacked compact defence lines and good defence positions along disadvantageous terrain. That strategy also left supply lines poorly protected. One-third of Poland's forces were massed in or near the Polish Corridor, making them vulnerable to a double envelopment from East Prussia and the west. Another third was concentrated in the north-central part of the country, between

5040-567: The September Campaign, not all of those aircraft were mobilized. By 1 September, out of about 120 heavy bombers PZL.37s produced, only 36 PZL.37s were deployed, the rest being mostly in training units. All those aircraft were of indigenous Polish design, with the bombers being more modern than the fighters, according to the Ludomił Rayski air force expansion plan, which relied on a strong bomber force. The Polish Air Force consisted of

5152-658: The Soviets agreed to divide Eastern Europe, including Poland, into two spheres of influence ; the western one-third of the country was to go to Germany and the eastern two-thirds to the Soviet Union. The German assault was originally scheduled to begin at 4:00 a.m. on 26 August. However, on 25 August, the Polish-British Common Defence Pact was signed as an annex to the Franco-Polish alliance. In this accord, Britain committed itself to

5264-599: The Wespe in operation, 159 Wespe chassis were completed without installation of the howitzer, instead functioning as ammunition carriers. They carried 90 rounds of 105 mm calibre. These could be converted to normal Wespes by installation of the leFH 18 in the field if needed. One of Germany's first attempts at developing an amphibious tank , the Schwimmkörper was a device built by Gebr Sachsenberg that consisted of two large pontoons, with one attached to each side of

5376-502: The administration of the newly established General Government . The Soviet Union incorporated its newly acquired areas into its constituent Byelorussian and Ukrainian republics , and immediately started a campaign of Sovietization . In the aftermath of the invasion, a collective of underground resistance organizations formed the Polish Underground State within the territory of the former Polish state. Many of

5488-518: The armed forces time to complete its mobilization and execute a general counteroffensive with the support of the Western Allies . In case of a failure to defend most of the territory, the army was to retreat to the south-east of the country, where the rough terrain, the Stryj and Dniestr rivers, valleys, hills and swamps would provide natural lines of defence against the German advance, and

5600-415: The armour of the superstructure and turret were built up to 30 mm (1.2 in) on the front with 15 mm (0.59 in) to the sides and rear. There was some minor alteration of the suspension and a new commander's cupola as well. Weight increased to 9.5 tonnes. From March 1941 to July 1942, 509 were built; this was the final major tank version of the Panzer II series. Based on the same suspension as

5712-435: The conversion of the four Ausf. M tanks. Originally given the experimental designation VK 1303, it was adopted under the alternate name Panzerspähwagen II and given the popular name Luchs (" Lynx "). The Luchs was larger than the Ausf. G in most dimensions (length 4.63 m; height 2.21 m; width 2.48 m). It was equipped with a six speed transmission (plus reverse), and could reach a speed of 60 km/h (37 mph) with

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5824-420: The defence of Poland, guaranteeing to preserve Polish independence. At the same time, the British and the Poles were hinting to Berlin that they were willing to resume discussions—not at all how Hitler hoped to frame the conflict. Thus, he wavered and postponed his attack until 1 September, managing to in effect halt the entire invasion "in mid-leap". However, there was one exception: on the night of 25–26 August,

5936-523: The development of industry, especially in the armaments industry in ethnically Polish areas. Moreover, Poland had to deal with damage caused by World War I . This resulted in the need to build a defense industry from scratch. Between 1936 and 1939, Poland invested heavily in the newly created Central Industrial Region . Preparations for a defensive war with Germany were ongoing for many years, but most plans assumed fighting would not begin before 1942. To raise funds for industrial development, Poland sold much of

6048-822: The end of September. On 17 September, the Soviet Red Army invaded Eastern Poland , the territory beyond the Curzon Line that fell into the Soviet " sphere of influence " according to the secret protocol of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact; this rendered the Polish plan of defence obsolete. Facing a second front, the Polish government concluded the defence of the Romanian Bridgehead was no longer feasible and ordered an emergency evacuation of all troops to neutral Romania . On 6 October, following

6160-407: The expectation that the Western Allies would honor their treaty obligations and quickly start an offensive of their own, the French and the British expected the war to develop into trench warfare, much like World War I. The Polish government was not notified of the strategy and based all of its defence plans on promises of quick relief by the Western Allies. Polish forces were stretched thinly along

6272-462: The expensive, unproven inventions since then. In spite of this, Polish cavalry brigades were used as mobile mounted infantry and had some successes against both German infantry and cavalry. An average Polish infantry division consisted of 16,492 soldiers and was equipped with 326 light and medium machine guns, 132 heavy machine guns, 92 anti-tank rifles and several dozen light, medium, heavy, anti-tank and anti-airplane field artillery. Contrary to

6384-491: The experimental designation VK 16.01. Heavier armour was added, bringing protection up to 80 mm on the front (similar to the maximum armour found on the KV-1 model 1941 Soviet heavy tank) and 50 mm to the sides and rear, with 25 mm roof and floor plates, increasing total weight to 18 tonnes. Equipped with the same Maybach HL45 P as the Pz.Kpfw. I F, top speed was reduced to 31 km/h (19 mph). Primary armament

6496-530: The fenders widened. Total length increased to 4.81 m (15 ft 9 in)and width to 2.22 m (7 ft 3 in),. At least 25 of this model were produced from March through July 1937. The first true production model, the Ausf. A , included an armour upgrade to 14.5 mm (0.57 in) on all sides, as well as a 14.5 mm floor plate, and an improved transmission. It entered production in July 1937 and

6608-504: The first combat-ready tank to be delivered. The Panzer II was designed before the experience of the Spanish Civil War of 1936–39 showed that protection against armour-piercing shells was required for tanks to survive on a modern battlefield. Prior to that, armour was designed to stop machine gun fire and high-explosive shell fragments. The Panzer II Ausf. A to C had 14 mm of slightly sloped homogeneous steel armour on

6720-443: The flame tank Panzer II ( Flamm ). The Ausf. E differed from the Ausf. D by having lubricated tracks; seven chassis were completed. Continuing the conventional design of the Ausf. C, the Ausf. F superstructure front was made from a single piece of armour plate with a redesigned visor. Also, a dummy visor was placed next to it to confuse enemy gunners. The hull was redesigned with a flat 35 mm (1.4 in) plate on its front, and

6832-590: The ground—in fact it was successfully dispersed before the conflict started and not a single one of its combat planes was destroyed on the ground in the first days of the conflict. In the era of fast progress in aviation the Polish Air Force lacked modern fighters, vastly due to the cancellation of many advanced projects, such as the PZL.38 Wilk and a delay in the introduction of a completely new modern Polish fighter PZL.50 Jastrząb . However, its pilots were among

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6944-486: The increased number of overflights by high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft and cross-border troop movements signaled that war was imminent. On 29 August, prompted by the British, Germany issued one last diplomatic offer, with Fall Weiss yet to be rescheduled. That evening, the German government responded in a communication that it aimed not only for the restoration of Danzig but also the Polish Corridor (which had not previously been part of Hitler's demands) in addition to

7056-580: The invasion to commence soon afterwards. On 29 August, Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Józef Beck ordered military mobilization , but under the pressure from Great Britain and France, the mobilization was cancelled. When the final mobilization started, it added to the confusion. On 30 August, the Polish Navy sent its destroyer flotilla to Britain, executing the Peking Plan . On the same day, Marshal of Poland Edward Rydz-Śmigły announced

7168-472: The invasion was to divide Polish territory at the end of the operation; Poland was to cease to exist as a country and all Poles ("inferior people") were to be exterminated. The Soviets invaded Poland on 17 September. The campaign ended on 6 October with Germany and the Soviet Union dividing and annexing the whole of Poland under the terms of the German–Soviet Frontier Treaty . The invasion

7280-424: The later Ausf. B, the Ausf. b was the second limited production series embodying further developments, primarily a heavy reworking of suspension components resulting in a wider track and a longer hull. Length was increased to 4.76 metres but width and height were unchanged. Additionally, a Maybach HL62 TR engine was used with new drivetrain components to match. Deck armour for the superstructure and turret roof

7392-580: The light divisions were converted to Panzer divisions . Only the turret was the same as the Ausf. C model, with a new hull and superstructure design and the use of a Maybach HL62TRM engine driving a seven-gear transmission (plus reverse). The design was shorter (4.65 m) but wider (2.3 m) and taller (2.06 m) than the Ausf. C. Speed was increased to 55 km/h. A total of 43 Ausf. D tanks were built from October 1938 through March 1939 by MAN, and they served in Poland. They were withdrawn in March 1940 for conversion to

7504-707: The main Polish army was to be encircled and destroyed west of the Vistula . Fall Weiss was initiated on 1 September 1939 and was the first operation of Second World War in Europe . The Polish determination to deploy forces directly at the German-Polish border, prompted by the Polish-British Common Defence Pact, shaped the country's defence plan, " Plan West ". Poland's most valuable natural resources, industry and population were along

7616-456: The major cities of Łódź and Warsaw. The forward positioning of Polish forces vastly increased the difficulty of carrying out strategic maneuvres, compounded by inadequate mobility, as Polish units often lacked the ability to retreat from their defensive positions, as they were being overrun by more mobile German mechanized formations. Shell (projectile)#Armour-piercing, composite rigid (APCR) Too Many Requests If you report this error to

7728-424: The military exiles who escaped Poland joined the Polish Armed Forces in the West , an armed force loyal to the Polish government-in-exile . On 30 January 1933, the National Socialist German Workers' Party , under its leader Adolf Hitler , came to power in Germany . While some dissident elements within the Weimar Republic had long sought to annex territories belonging to Poland, it was Hitler's own idea and not

7840-469: The mobilization of Polish troops. However, he was pressured into revoking the order by the French, who apparently still hoped for a diplomatic settlement, failing to realize that the Germans were fully mobilized and concentrated at the Polish border. During the night of 31 August, the Gleiwitz incident , a false flag attack on the radio station, was staged near the border city of Gleiwitz in Upper Silesia by German units posing as Polish troops, as part of

7952-400: The modern equipment it produced. In 1936, a National Defence Fund was set up to collect funds necessary for strengthening the Polish Armed forces. The Polish Army had approximately a million soldiers, but not all were mobilized by 1 September. Latecomers sustained significant casualties when public transport became targets of the Luftwaffe . The Polish military had fewer armored forces than

8064-766: The new methods were nicknamed " Blitzkrieg " (lightning war). While historian Basil Liddell Hart claimed "Poland was a full demonstration of the Blitzkrieg theory", some other historians disagree. Aircraft played a major role in the campaign. Bombers also attacked cities, causing huge losses amongst the civilian population through terror bombing and strafing. The Luftwaffe forces consisted of 1,180 fighters , 290 Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers, 1,100 conventional bombers (mainly Heinkel He 111s and Dornier Do 17s ), and an assortment of 550 transport and 350 reconnaissance aircraft. In total, Germany had close to 4,000 aircraft, most of them modern. A force of 2,315 aircraft

8176-489: The nominally independent Free City. Hitler sought to use this as casus belli , a reason for war, reverse the post-1918 territorial losses, and on many occasions had appealed to German nationalism , promising to "liberate" the German minority still in the Corridor, as well as Danzig. The invasion was referred to by Germany as the 1939 Defensive War ( Verteidigungskrieg ) since Hitler proclaimed that Poland had attacked Germany and that "Germans in Poland are persecuted with

8288-597: The radio operator. One of the first gun mount variants of the Panzer II design was to emplace a 15 cm sIG 33 heavy infantry gun on a turret-less Panzer II chassis. The prototype utilized an Ausf. B tank chassis, but it was quickly realized that it was not sufficient for the mounting. A new, longer chassis incorporating an extra road wheel was designed and built, named the Fahrgestell Panzerkampfwagen II. An open-topped 15 mm thick armored superstructure sufficient against small arms and shrapnel

8400-428: The requested Polish representative had failed to arrive by midnight. When Polish Ambassador Lipski went to see Ribbentrop later on 31 August to indicate that Poland was favorably disposed to negotiations, he announced that he did not have the full power to sign, and Ribbentrop dismissed him. It was then broadcast that Poland had rejected Germany's offer, and negotiations with Poland came to an end. Hitler issued orders for

8512-408: The requirement for an immediate arrival of a Polish representative with full signing powers as an unacceptable ultimatum . On the night of 30/31 August, German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop read a 16-point German proposal to ambassador Nevile Henderson . When the ambassador requested a copy of the proposals for transmission to the Polish government, Ribbentrop refused, on the grounds that

8624-622: The rest of Poland alone. German hegemony over Central Europe was also at stake. In private, Hitler said in May that Danzig was not the important issue to him, but the creation of Lebensraum for Germany. With tensions mounting, Germany turned to aggressive diplomacy. On 28 April 1939, Hitler unilaterally withdrew from both the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934 and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement of 1935. Talks over Danzig and

8736-626: The rest of the Reich. The Polish Corridor constituted land long disputed by Poland and Germany, and was inhabited by a Polish majority. The Corridor had become a part of Poland after the Treaty of Versailles . Many Germans also wanted the urban port city of Danzig and its environs (comprising the Free City of Danzig) to be reincorporated into Germany. Danzig city had a German majority, and had been separated from Germany after Versailles and made into

8848-488: The right of Poland to independence in 1930, writing that Poles and Czechs were a "rabble not worth a penny more than the inhabitants of Sudan or India. How can they demand the rights of independent states?" The population of the Free City of Danzig was strongly in favour of annexation by Germany, as were many of the ethnic German inhabitants of the Polish territory that separated the German exclave of East Prussia from

8960-537: The safeguarding of the German minority in Poland. It said that they were willing to commence negotiations, but indicated that a Polish representative with the power to sign an agreement had to arrive in Berlin the next day while in the meantime it would draw up a set of proposals. The British Cabinet was pleased that negotiations had been agreed to but, mindful of how Emil Hácha had been forced to sign his country away under similar circumstances just months earlier, regarded

9072-410: The ship "Lassel" sailed from Liverpool on 28 August ), none of them would take part in combat. In late 1938, the Polish Air Force also ordered 300 advanced PZL.46 Sum light bombers, but due to a delay in starting mass production, none of them were delivered before 1 September. When in the spring of 1939 it turned out that there were problems with the implementation of the new PZL.50 Jastrząb fighter, it

9184-532: The side of our adversaries... Danzig is not the objective. It is a matter of expanding our living space in the east, of making our food supply secure, and solving the problem of the Baltic states. To provide sufficient food you must have sparsely settled areas. There is therefore no question of sparing Poland, and the decision remains to attack Poland at the first opportunity. We cannot expect a repetition of Czechoslovakia. There will be fighting. On 22 August, just over

9296-406: The sides, front, and back, with 10 mm of armour on the top and bottom. Most of them were later given increased armour in the front of the vehicle, most noticeable by the changed appearance of the front hull from rounded to boxy shape. Starting with the D model, the front armour was increased to 30 mm. The Model F had 35 mm front armour and 20 mm side armour. This level of protection

9408-492: The superstructure. Armour was 30 mm to the front and 14.5 mm to the side and rear, although the turret was increased to 20 mm at the sides and rear. Total weight was 12 tonnes and dimensions were increased to a length of 4.9 m and width of 2.4 m although it was a bit shorter at 1.85 m tall. A FuG2 radio was carried. One hundred and fifty-one Panzerkampfwagen II (F) ( Flamm ) vehicles were built from April 1940 through March 1942. Initial production of Ausf. A vehicles

9520-504: The surprise signing of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact on 23 August, the result of secret Nazi–Soviet talks held in Moscow , Germany neutralized the possibility of Soviet opposition to a campaign against Poland and war became imminent. In fact, the Soviets agreed not to aid France or the UK in the event of their going to war with Germany over Poland and, in a secret protocol of the pact, the Germans and

9632-502: The tank , Tank classification , interwar period Invasion of Poland German–Soviet–Slovak victory Baltic coast 4–10 September Northern Front Southern Front Asia-Pacific Mediterranean and Middle East Other campaigns Coups The Invasion of Poland , also known as the September Campaign , Polish Campaign , and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939),

9744-425: The tank behind the driver. He had a radio on the left and several 20mm ammunition storage bins. Not to be confused with the later Ausf. A (the sole difference being the capitalization of the letter A), the Ausf. a was the first version of the Panzer II to be built (albeit in limited numbers), and was subdivided into three sub-variants. The Ausf. a/1 was initially built with a cast idler wheel with rubber tire, but this

9856-517: The western border in Eastern Upper Silesia . Polish policy centred on their protection, especially since many politicians feared that if Poland retreated from the regions disputed by Germany, Britain and France would sign a separate peace treaty with Germany like the 1938 Munich Agreement and allow Germany to stay in those regions. The fact that none of Poland's allies had specifically guaranteed Polish borders or territorial integrity

9968-643: The western regions that were judged as indispensable for waging the war, taking advantage of the propitious conditions for counterattacks by reserve units and avoiding it from being smashed before the beginning of Franco-British operations in Western Europe. The operation plan had not been elaborated in detail and concerned only the first stage of operations. The British and the French estimated that Poland would be able to defend itself for two to three months, and Poland estimated it could do so for at least six months. While Poland drafted its estimates based upon

10080-474: The wider Operation Himmler . On 31 August, Hitler ordered hostilities against Poland to start at 4:45 the next morning. However, partly because of the earlier stoppage, Poland finally managed to mobilize only about 70% of its planned forces (only about 900,000 of 1,350,000 soldiers planned to mobilize in first order), and because of that many units were still forming or moving to their designated frontline positions. The late mobilization reduced combat capability of

10192-480: The world's best trained, as proven a year later in the Battle of Britain , in which the Poles played a notable part. Overall, the Germans enjoyed numerical and qualitative aircraft superiority. Poland had only about 600 aircraft, of which only PZL.37 Łoś heavy bombers were modern and comparable to their German counterparts. The Polish Air Force had roughly 185 PZL P.11 and some 95 PZL P.7 fighters, 175 PZL.23 Karaś Bs, 35 Karaś as light bombers. However, for

10304-653: Was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany , the Slovak Republic , and the Soviet Union , which marked the beginning of World War II . The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week after the signing of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between Germany and the Soviet Union, and one day after the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union had approved the pact. One of the aims of

10416-697: Was a small fleet of destroyers , submarines and smaller support vessels. Most Polish surface units followed Operation Peking, leaving Polish ports on 20 August and escaping by way of the North Sea to join with the British Royal Navy . Submarine forces participated in Operation Worek , with the goal of engaging and damaging German shipping in the Baltic Sea , but they had much less success. In addition, many merchant marine ships joined

10528-536: Was accepted by Czechoslovakia on 1 October. This region had a Polish majority and had been disputed between Czechoslovakia and Poland in the aftermath of World War I. The Polish annexation of Slovak territory (several villages in the regions of Čadca , Orava and Spiš ) later served as the justification for the Slovak state to join the German invasion. By 1937, Germany began to increase its demands for Danzig, while proposing that an extraterritorial roadway, part of

10640-506: Was advocated by some generals, including Heinz Guderian , would have had the armour punching holes in the enemy's front and ranging deep into rear areas, but the campaign in Poland would be fought along more traditional lines. That stemmed from conservatism on the part of the German High Command, which mainly restricted the role of armour and mechanized forces to supporting the conventional infantry divisions. Poland's terrain

10752-474: Was another Polish concern. These reasons made the Polish government disregard French advice to deploy the bulk of its forces behind natural barriers, such as the Vistula and San Rivers, despite some Polish generals supporting the idea to be a better strategy. The West Plan allowed the Polish armies to retreat inside the country, but that was supposed to be a slow retreat behind prepared positions intended to give

10864-676: Was assigned to Weiss . Due to its earlier participation in the Spanish Civil War , the Luftwaffe was probably the most experienced, best-trained and best-equipped air force in the world in 1939. Emerging in 1918 as an independent country after 123 years of the Partitions of Poland , the Second Polish Republic , when compared with countries such as United Kingdom or Germany, was a relatively indigent and mostly agricultural country. The partitioning powers did not invest in

10976-640: Was based on 46 Panzer II Ausf. D/E chassis that were never completed as tanks, in March 1940 the 43 still existing Panzer II Ausf. D were recalled for conversion and from August 1941 until the cancellation in March 1942 a further 62 Ausf. B vehicles were made from new-production Ausf. D chassis (out of an order for 150 vehicles). The Panzer II (F) was deployed in the USSR, but was not very successful due to its limited armor, and survivors were soon withdrawn for conversion to Marder II tank destroyers in December 1941. It

11088-406: Was capable of firing at a rate of 600 rounds per minute (280 rounds per minute sustained) from 10-round magazines. A total of 180 shells were carried. The Panzer II also had a 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 34 machine gun mounted coaxially with the main gun. The 2 cm autocannon proved to be ineffective against many Allied tanks even at the start of the war, and experiments were conducted with

11200-471: Was clearly too tall and poorly protected, but had a powerful weapon. While the 7.62 cm PaK 36(r) was a good stopgap measure, the 7.5 cm PaK 40 mounted on the tank chassis of the Ausf. F resulted in a better overall fighting machine. New production amounted to 576 examples from June 1942 to June 1943, as well as the conversion of 75 tanks after new production had stopped. The work was done by Daimler-Benz, FAMO, and MAN. A much improved superstructure for

11312-406: Was decided to temporarily implement the production of the fighter PZL P 11.G Kobuz. Nevertheless, due to the outbreak of the war, not one of the ordered 90 aircraft of this type were delivered to the army. The tank force consisted of two armored brigades, four independent tank battalions and some 30 companies of TKS tankettes attached to infantry divisions and cavalry brigades. A standard tank of

11424-469: Was increased to 10–12 mm. Total weight increased to 7.9 tonnes. Twenty-five were built by Daimler-Benz and MAN in February and March 1937. As the last of the developmental limited production series of Panzer IIs, the Ausf. c came very close to matching the mass production configuration with the replacement of the six small road wheels with five larger independently sprung road wheels and an additional return roller. The tracks were further modified and

11536-410: Was one of three abortive attempts to use the Panzer II chassis for mounting a 5 cm PaK 38 gun, this time on the chassis of the Ausf. G. Two examples were produced which had similar weight to the tank version, and both were put in front-line service, but production was not undertaken as priority was given to heavier armed models. The VK 16.02 was intended to be the 5 cm KwK 39 -armed replacement for

11648-487: Was provided around the gun. This was not high enough to give full protection for the crew while manning the gun, although they were still covered directly to the front by the tall gun shield. Only 12 were built in November and December 1941. These served with the 707th and 708th Heavy Infantry Gun Companies in North Africa until their destruction in 1943. After a lack of success with conventional and flame tank variants on

11760-476: Was replaced after ten production examples with a welded part. The Ausf. a/2 improved engine access problems. The Ausf. a/3 included improved suspension and engine cooling. In general, the specifications for the Ausf. a models was similar, and a total of 75 were produced from May 1936 to February 1937 by Daimler-Benz and MAN . The Ausf. a was considered the 1 Serie under the LaS 100 name. Again, not to be confused with

11872-429: Was still only proof against small arms fire. This amount of armour could be penetrated by towed anti-tank weapons, such as the Soviet 45mm , the British 2-pounder and the French canon de 47 . Most tank versions of the Panzer II were armed with a 2 cm KwK 30 L/55 auto-cannon . Some later versions used the similar 2 cm KwK 38 L/55. This auto-cannon was based on the 2 cm FlaK 30 anti-aircraft gun , and

11984-481: Was superseded by the Ausf. B in December 1937, which introduced only minimal changes. A few minor changes were made in the Ausf. C version, which became the standard production model from June 1938 through April 1940. A total of 1,113 examples of Ausf. c, A, B, and C tanks were built from March 1937 through April 1940 by Alkett , FAMO , Daimler-Benz, Henschel , MAN, MIAG, and Wegmann . These models were almost identical and were used in service interchangeably. This

12096-423: Was the 2 cm KwK 38 L/55 gun. 22 were produced by MAN between April and December 1942, and seven were issued to the 12th Panzer Division on the Eastern Front . A single example of an Ausf. J with a jib in place of its turret was found operating as an armoured recovery vehicle . There is no record of an official program for this vehicle. Using the same chassis as the Ausf. H and the turret and superstructure of

12208-409: Was the ability to cope with conditions up to sea state 4. Once ashore the pontoons were detachable. The modified tanks were issued to the 18th Panzer Regiment, which was formed in 1940. However, with cancellation of Operation Sealion , the plan to invade England, the tanks were used in the conventional manner by the regiment on the Eastern Front . The fourth and final suspension configuration used for

12320-410: Was the most widespread tank version of the Panzer II. Earlier versions of Ausf. C have a rounded hull front, but many had additional armour plates bolted on the turret and hull front. Some were also retro-fitted with commander's cupolas. With a completely new torsion bar suspension with four road wheels, the Ausf. D was developed as a tank for use in the light divisions. After the invasion of Poland

12432-467: Was to be supported by Panzers and small numbers of truck-mounted infantry (the Schützen regiments, forerunners of the panzergrenadiers ) to assist the rapid movement of troops and concentrate on localized parts of the enemy front , eventually isolating segments of the enemy, surrounding, and destroying them. The prewar "armoured idea", which an American journalist in 1939 dubbed Blitzkrieg , which

12544-478: Was well suited for mobile operations when the weather co-operated; the country had flat plains , with long frontiers totalling almost 5,600 km (3,500 mi). Poland's long border with Germany on the west and north, facing East Prussia, extended 2,000 km (1,200 mi). It had been lengthened by another 300 km (190 mi) on the southern side in the aftermath of the 1938 Munich Agreement. The German incorporation of Bohemia and Moravia and creation of

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