This was a duel between the stalwart of the Wehrmacht armored divisions the Panzerkampfwagen III and the American's as yet untested M3 Grant. In reality both would prove unequal to the task as they floundered amidst the rugged hills and ravines of the Tunisian landscape. This book charts the design and development of these two disparate rivals their vastly different armament and armor as well as their tactical concepts. Analysing the strengths and weaknesses of these two opponents, this book explores the successes and failures of the Grant and Panzer III as they clashed at the critical battles of North Africa. Moreover it is an insight into the lives of the tank crews themselves as they struggled with the twin horrors of tank warfare and the fight for survival amidst some of the most inhospitable terrain on earth.

This was a duel between the stalwart of the Wehrmacht armored divisions the Panzerkampfwagen III and the American's as yet untested M3 Grant. In reality both would prove unequal to the task as they floundered amidst the rugged hills and ravines of the Tunisian landscape. This book charts the design and development of these two disparate rivals their vastly different armament and armor as well as their tactical concepts. Analysing the strengths and weaknesses of these two opponents, this book explores the successes and failures of the Grant and Panzer III as they clashed at the critical battles of North Africa. Moreover it is an insight into the lives of the tank crews themselves as they struggled with the twin horrors of tank warfare and the fight for survival amidst some of the most inhospitable terrain on earth.

The Panzer III was designed to be the backbone of the Panzer force and was deployed on every front. However, due to its deficient armament and poor armour, and despite its outstanding reliability, it was obsolete by 1942.This comprehensive overview of the Panzer III in action was compiled by Emmy Award winning historian Bob Carruthers. It draws heavily on war-time intelligence reports to produce a fascinating insight into the development and combat history of the Panzer III at the tactical and operational level.Also featured are rare developments such as the flame thrower variant alongside unpublished photographs and illustrations which provide an absorbing study, from an array of primary sources, of the world of the Panzer III and its crews, which conveys to the modern reader a vivid sense of how they were viewed at the time.

A unique comparison between the two most numerous British and German tank types from 1941 to 1943. Although much has been written about the Panzer III, little attention has been given to the equally prominent Valentine tank. This work compares the respective strengths and weaknesses of these iconic tanks, which frequently went head-to-head in brutal battles across Europe, Libya, Egypt, and Tunisia. It documents the upgrades made to each AFV type over three years, as up-gunned and up-armoured variants – ever more lethal, ever more survivable – arrived in North Africa. Dr Bruce Newsome explores the two tanks' encounters, from the first Valentine vs Panzer III clashes in 1941, to the Axis drive into Egypt, and on to the Tunisian fighting of 1942–1943. Colour artworks include profile, weaponry and gunsight, and battlescene views of both tanks, while maps chart the campaigns in which they met. Each AVF's performance is also covered, along with their technical details, design evolution, and crew histories.

This illustrated study pits Germany's PzKpfw III against the Soviet Union's T-34 in the wake of Hitler's 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. This book evaluates the PzKpfw III and T-34 medium tanks fielded by Germany and the Soviet Union during 1941. Both designs were intended to be the primary medium tanks of their respective armies, but owing to manufacturing difficulties, neither was available in quite the numbers intended. Even though both tanks were relatively new, neither was deemed entirely satisfactory, and replacements for both were already on the drawing board. Nevertheless, it was these tanks that clashed in what the Soviet Union called the Great Patriotic War. While the T-34 rapidly established a fearsome reputation only sometimes borne out by its actual performance, the PzKpfw lII was smaller, lighter, and not as well armed as its Soviet opponent but benefited from the support of a more seasoned and better structured army. Full-colour artwork, archive photographs and authoritative text drawing upon Russian- and German-language sources combine to reveal how the Germans harnessed the advantages of combat experience and superior organization to counter the T-34's tactical strengths, but also how the PzKpfw III quickly lost relevance as it became evident that it could not carry a gun powerful enough to destroy the T-34 at range.

The armour clashes in May 1940 were the biggest the world had yet seen, as the sweeping German advances of that period came to epitomize Blitzkrieg. The Wehrmacht's Panzer III was well matched by the French Somua S35 tanks, the two representing very different design philosophies and yet both ranking among the best in the world at the time. Fully illustrated with specially commissioned colour artwork, this work draws upon the latest research to provide a definitive analysis of the clash between these two high-quality, cutting-edge tank designs. It describes one of the key duels at the heart of a new type of warfare, in the epic battles at the outset of Hitler's conquest of France and the Low Countries.

The Panzer III was designed to be the backbone of the Panzer force and was deployed on every front. However, due to its deficient armament and poor armour, and despite its outstanding reliability, it was obsolete by 1942. This comprehensive overview of the Panzer III in action was compiled by Emmy Award winning historian Bob Carruthers. It draws heavily on war-time intelligence reports to produce a fascinating insight into the development and combat history of the Panzer III at the tactical and operational level. Also featured are rare developments such as the flame thrower variant alongside unpublished photographs and illustrations which provide an absorbing study, from an array of primary sources, of the world of the Panzer III and its crews, which conveys to the modern reader a vivid sense of how they were viewed at the time. This book is part of the 'Hitler's War Machine' series, a new military history range compiled and edited by Emmy Award winning author and historian Bob Carruthers. The series draws on primary sources and contemporary documents to provide a new insight into the true nature of Hitler's Wehrmacht. The series consultant is David Mcwhinnie creator of the award winning PBS series 'Battlefield'.