Pantherturm - Germany's Last Ditch Tank Bunkers
Driven to desperate measures in the last year of the war, the Germans used 268 Panther tank turrets to create 'Pantherturm', fearsome steel and concrete bunkers able to knock out most Allied tanks. They came as a nasty surprise to the Western Allies in Italy and on the Siegfried Line.
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers 'Zero Night' and 'Castle of the Eagles', both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fe...
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Primary Source: Defence of the Rhine 1944-45 by Steven J. Zaloga, (Osprey: 2013)
Credits: US National Archives; Library of Congress; Fabien Chaufournier
Hey Mark you would love this, my neighbor who is now 101 was in a pantherturm as a gunner and I was just talking to him the other day!
Falke_bl: See if you can get a video, or at least audio of his experiences. It would be very interesting for future historians.
Absolutely record your conversations with him. So much information and experiences from this generation is lost because of their age
He still THINKS THE NAZIS CAN WIN!!!!TELL HIM THE WAS IS OVER!!!!
@brokenwrench404 most of the vets in my town are in their 100s and are both axis and allies, even my grandfather was a vet tho on the axis side, being in the 506th heavy panzer battalion station in the Ardennes as a tiger 2 commander tho he passed in 2017 at 105
Wow that's amazing! I think it is so important to hear stories from both Axis and Allies.
The Panther tank is such a beautiful design, even today.
I agree. Sometimes a weapon can be beautiful in it's own way and the Panther is an example of that. I find the FW-190 to be a beautiful airplane. As is the Sopwith Camel. A few years back We went to the Udvar-Hazy museum and they have a FW-190 on display there. My wife noticed that was the only plane I was taking photos of. I told her how I thought it was a beautiful airplane. She gave me one of those "I am questioning my life choices" looks and moved on 😀Maybe there is some truth in the phrase "beauty is in the eye of the beholder"
"I love the smell of new Mark Felton videos in the morning. That information smell. Smells like....... VICTORY! Some day these videos will end."
The production of new videos will end, but the curated content may exist as long as our species finds it relevant, perhaps beyond that. And that is immortality.
Great topic very interesting. Just a bit more info to add. Many turrets were specifically made as PanzerTurms with added top armor to resist artillery shells. These turrets were all hand cranked not power traverse. The electric power generators inside were not for the turret treverse but for inside lighting.
I find all the "last ditch" stuff fascinating. It really was apocalyptic stuff in places with extra judicial killings for defeatists and some Gauleiter even fighting to the death in certain cities.
A captured German major general warned Patton and his staff of what you termed so well the "apocalyptic stuff" the Nazis were prepared to do. As he put it, everyone in Germany with any sense knew the war was lost and it was just a matter of time until the end came. And the top Nazis knew what was waiting for them when it happened, either suicide or a hangman's rope. Hence all the "last ditch" efforts to make the cost of Allied victory as bloody as possible.
I recently watched an Eastern German movie where a German colonel explains it to the Soviet parlimentaire: German officer cannot surrender unless he keeps his honor. So fighting to the last was their way of keeping their honor.
@@AlexP-mi2bc That is the reason I (as german) cringe when I see people talking about duty, honour, higher goals. A german officer has said "True heroism is when that what you have to do is against all your ideas, against your morals, against your feelings, but you do it nevertheless, because it is your duty, it is for the sake of your people." So to speak, when you sacrifice your own soul, you truly have done a lot. And when you leave away that a Nazi had said that, maybe reformulate it a little, then MANY, MANY people, esp. military-affined people would fully subscribe to it TODAY. In the US.
@@feedingravenscalm down weirdo it's just generic socialist mindsets and ideology at play.
@@feedingravens True. Interestingly enough, in that movie ("Ich war neunzehn", 1968) the Wehrmacht colonel who says these words about honor is not portrayed in the bad light. He is just a professional military who does his duty.
Genuine Pantherthurm was dug out of railway embankment in Szczecin in 2001. This turret was originally planned to guard the road to Szczecin and cover the bridges over Odra river. In the end it was blown up by it's crew, but the turret structure survived the explosion (though it was found laying upside down). This Pantherturm is now presented on reconstruction of wooden bunker and may be seen in the Museum of Coastal Defence in Świnoujście in north - western Poland.
Stettin!
@@theblackhand6485 It used to be until 1945, now it is SZCZECIN.
@@xrayperforator the funniest thing, google translating Stettin to Szczecin.
@@andrewcox6980 There's nothing to trasnlate. The history of German Stettin finished in 1945. Now it is Polish Szczecin.
At the time the Panther entered service, the Germans had learned the lesson of needing a good armoured recovery vehicle or ARV. Before the end of the war, over 300 Panthers were modified to fit the ARV role, which essentially required the removal of the turret and adding engineering features such as winches (if available). The finished product was known as a Bergepanther.
The Bergepanther where all purpose build. The inital batch where basically tank chassis without a turret but later had quite different hull fronts and a massive winch etc.
Burgerpanther sounds delicious
@@I_hunt_lolis One of those totally wrong Allied translations. In german it would be a Bulletenpanther and a Bullette does not come in a bun, it is only the meat part ;)
Some notes: Englisch wall is in german Mauer/ Wand, german Wall is in english rampart. The Westwall was not the first defensive line in western botderline of Germany.. In baroque era in south western part of HRE, mostly in current state Baden-Württemberg ( perhaps also Rheinland - Pfalz) a number of defensive lines existed.. Trough the Black Forrest the Vordere and hintere Linie, at north- eastern end of Black Forrest into hillland the Eppinger Linie. This lines consisted of natural obstacles and man made wood- earth obstacles/ fortifications. Also some villages/ settlements got light fortifications. Those lines been in peacetime manned only by few guards, in war time mostly by militiamen or even levies of untrained men. When Westwall was build , modern 1930s Bunkers and obstacles had been often at locations, where in baroque era wood- earth fortifications had been.
@@mbr5742assuming the turret assembly line could produce turret as fast or faster they would make a spare turret that could be used for fort while these non turret versions built.
I can only imagine the terror that Allied tankers experienced when being ambushed by one of these Pantherturme...
Panthertürme is the word you're looking for
@hansg9832 weird not how Dr Felton spelt it in the title or description.
@@lumenvitae4215it's the plural
Not much horror. A 75L70 firing from a fixed position at a target at a known range - most allied tankers would have no time to realize they just died
@@lumenvitae4215 der Turm die Türme the tower the towers (or turrets)
I never stop learning something new about WW2!
Brilliant. Just in time for my morning tea and cakes. Thank you Dr Felton. ☕️
It’s also logistically cheaper to mount one of these turrets. It doesn’t require fuel, entire mechanic crew, or part replacement program to maintain it.
It was a desperate, delay, speed bump at best
Mid af@@insideoutsideupsidedown2218
I'm guessing the bunker and turret required a gasoline engine-generator to supply power for the turret rotation and gun elevation.
@@gregorymalchuk272 I think he actually covered that in the video, some had powered traverse provided, some (I'd guess most) just had manual turret traverse and elevation. Since it's a stationary turret meant for point defence speed of traverse isn't really a huge concern.
Hi Dr. Felton, I just wanted to say thank you for your amazing storytelling. I find myself drinking my morning coffee and watching at least one of your videos each morning to learn something new! Thanks a ton!
Go Bruins! (I kid...Im from Richmond Hill..I grew up with the Leafs...and their endless disappointments..thats why Im a Bruin fan!)
Leafs suck!!
Go habs go !!
Despite its numerous design flaws, the Panther was by far the sexiest tank of WW2 and had a futuristic look to it.
A good looking tank all right, but personally I consider the King Tiger one of the most terrifying-looking tanks in history. Even 80 years later it's still frightening.
@@wayneantoniazzi2706 I agree that the Tiger II was a real monster.
Jagpanther too!
Ha i see I'm not the only one
@@wayneantoniazzi2706yes it was bwst at the aspect of what a tank is supposed to do - it's a war machine but Panther has asexappeal the Tiger doesn't
Well done Dr. FELTON! I recall reading in the lead up to the Battle of Berlin in the town of Frankfurt on der Oder, the garrison commander received 25 decrepit Panther tanks ( i think Ausf. D's) and he had them buried up to the turrets to create these Panther bunkers. He also had his technical teams cannibalize wrecked vehicles and "built" 22 PKw IV tanks to form a mobile reserve.
The drawing fits to that, it is definitely a 'D' turret with the circular hatch and a pistol port in the side. My uncle drove Panthers on the eastern front. I do not know whether he came along Frankfurt/Oder, but he lived in Frankfurt/Main. One of the few stories is that he and a friend walked on foot from the front to get out of the soviet occupied zone. On the demarcation line there was a US soldier holding them up, he could not let Werhmacht members exit the SBZ. But then he told them "In five minute I am going to take a leak behind the bushes", so they hid a little away, and when he disappeared, they ran. The guard came storming out of the bush, screamed and fired after them - and then waved to them.
I learned something new today: previously I had never known of these structures. Thank you Dr. Felton!
The Jagdpanther was one of the best looking tanks of ww2. Such a stepdown.
technically the jagdpanther was not a tank but a tank destroyer.The best looking and most effective tank in ww2 was the Panzer VG panther imo. By far the best variant of the panther as well. The panther had the perfect blend of firepower, maneuverability and protection of any tank that saw combat in WW2
@@BRANFED You are right i was mixed up i ment the "Panzerkampfwagen V Panther"
@@theblackjubalharshaw np.. it happens too me too..
@@BRANFED Well, wrong. Panthers were notoriously unreliable, even later versions like G. On a march of 100km usually half would broke down.
@@aleksazunjic9672 the G was as reliable as the panzer IV.. maybe 65 to 70% readines
i love the theme at the begining, it never gets old :D
Thank you Dr. Felton perfect timing!
When I was being tourist on the Greek island of Samos 15 years ago, I found many of those pantherturms. They dug holes and poured concrete, then set the ring gear in before the concrete cured. They were in preparation for the Turkish invasion, most likely installed in the early 70s. Look at the map and find Samos. It is so close to the Turkish mainland that it's the obvious first stepping stone for Turkey to invade, just like Sicily was for the Allies in 1943. Unfortunately, my education from Dr. Felton hadn't yet begun, so there's no way I could identify what kind of tank the turrets were from.
Great video Dr. Felton. I had heard of them before, but never knew this much information. Great job! 👍😊
Thanks again Dr Felton. Mark Felton Productions rocks!!!
A very informative video, Dr. Felton. Thanks !
Can you imagine being a young solider in Berlin during 1945? Wow.. insane what these folks went through. We so easily forget history and take so much for granted.
That tank @ 2.45 certainly rips up the roads! Good story !
Always a pleasure to view another of your videos. Thanks again!
Nice snippet of history. Thank you.
Dr. Felton is the foremost expert on WW2 in my opinion. He has probably forgotten more about the subject than you and I will ever know.
Simp
Wrong. He is expert in finding oddities, but does not understand big picture, logistics, strategic positions ...
@@aleksazunjic9672 Perhaps another oddity he'll find is your comment here.
@@aleksazunjic9672 Mark Felton narrating: little did aleks realize, that his position was *not* in fact strategically sound. Had he understood the bigger picture, he would have realized that the required logistical support to maintain his position was nowhere to be found. (I jest of course, calling him the foremost expert is quite a stretch, but I don't think that's due to any lack of understanding of any particular area on his part, it's just that the title is very presumptuous to assign anyone on such a broad reaching topic, unless he's just doing way more than anyone else in the field)
@@Michael-uc2pn I watched his videos for a long time. Most of them are about odd little things, Romanian female pilots, who was first to cross into Germany, what Churchill had for lunch ... However, he really does not understand big picture and scale of things. For example, once he stated that single German Nebelwerfer unit launched hundreds of tonnes of ammo during one counterattack in Normandy. Not understanding that Germans did not have that quantity of ammo for a single unit, could not fire it in a single day, and could not even transport it to frontline .
Thank you Dr Felton for yet another little known snippet of WW2 history!
Ideal for static defense. Thanks for the video. 👌
Im new to this whole scene You just talked way over my head I'm not going anywhere Thanks man!
Thanks for sharing...it was a wonderful historical coverage video about pantherturm antitank guns
Awsome stuff Mark
Another great video, sir! Each one you make becomes a topic of conversation when I talk to my son. You've made a father and son bond even closer.
Thank you Mark.
Thanks Mark.
Your videos are always class
Another Great Video covering a very interesting little known subject.
Much more educational than anything on the History Channel here in the US. Cheers, Mark!
It’s interesting that they wouldn’t have thought to weld more armor plates to them considering the added weight wouldn’t have mattered as much to a static turret.
They did. To the turret top. The front was already well protected
great video Mark, thanks
a great very interesting video as always Mr.Felton.have a good one.
An ingenious approach by the Germans. It may have been considered a “last ditch effort” to slow down the advancing Allied troops but they look to have been very effective. A few well placed and an enemy could do some real damage. Thank you Dr. Felton.
Actually, very ineffective considering the price. Static target which was pummeled with artillery and air power when it was discovered. Expensive guns that could have been used on tank destroyers if there was not enough Panther hulls.
Thanks for covering these. I asked about them awhile back after seeing them in sniper elite 3 or 4
I was under the impression that the turrets were specially built, not surplus from the tank production. Modifications including: thicker roof armour, simplified commander’s cupola, manual only traverse.
Both according to some sources. With the later turrets being the ones with add on roof armour etc.
A very interesting video on a subject not much covered, you've added fuel to the fire for me to make a road trip to see the restored Panther at the American Heritage Museum, thanks much and keep em coming!
Great history lesson Mark. thanks for posting
Thank you I've never heard of this before.😊
Great video as always.
Another great tidbit of history THANKS! 👍👍
Always so informative......love watching your videos and love it when a new one's are uploaded
Its always a good day when mark uploads!
Thank you
Manning one of those things must have been one of the scariest job in the German Army.
I don't think so. Strafbataillonen were.
Most of them where on the western fronts (Say in sunny Italy). Since the ammo was mostly underground you had a decend change of survival in those things (Many had thicker roofs than a normal Panther turret) and not that many enemy weapons that could kill you (No Fireflies or M36 in Italy and the 76mm armed M10 and M4 still need to get close) A lot better job than an infantrymen in the trenches
@@mbr5742 You are static, semi buried with the only way out being a hatch. It Is like shooting from a coffin.
@@pierluigiadreani2159 A very stable coffin. That is either immune to the bad guys or only vulnerable from a very close range. With restricted approaches so you can always show the strong frontal armor. While Sherman and company will likely present their site armor at 1000m+ at points. Points that you know exactly since you measured the ranges month ago. The Allies hated the things in Italy
@@pierluigiadreani2159 Oh and there is more than one hatch. The bunker has an entrance as well. Plus the rear turret hatch. And depending on the turret the top hatch. So three ways out for three guys
That's enough, time for bed ... OMG Felton just uploaded! 😂
I first found out about such device when Close Combat 3 game came out back in '98 I believe. Then I read up about them. Weirdly enough their armor and guns specs was subpar to the Panther tank in game. I still play it 😂
When I hear that opening music I know I’m about to watch a wonderful documentary of history.
Awesome as always👍
I've always found the topic of the Pantherturm fascinating. I always wondered what the crews of these last ditch weapons must have experienced, espically in the hopeless battle of Berlin. I made a small VR experience called "Tank Turret VR" inspired by the immobile panther positioned at the Sophie-Charlotte-Platz. Thanks for covering this topic!
Thanks, read about them many times but never with an accompanying photo!
In the Netherlands i have seen multiple like these, but with sherman turrets
Mark. Thanks for once again providing me with my Wednesday night entertainment!
another terrific upload.
Ingenious.
Switzerland did the same after the Centurion tanks were replaced by Leopards at the end of the 1980ies. The 105 mm L7 guns were still equipped with thermal sights, and deployed to 21 so-called "Centi Bunkers".
Believe also used WW2 German tanks they got after WW2 Think he has a video on Swiss defense
I love this channel! 😎
Many turrets came also from damaged Panther which were transformed in Bergepanther (ARV Panther, without turret). But, as we can see in this video, most of the turrets are picked up from obsolete versions of the Panther (Ausf. D). Panther n°211 is preserved in the Saumur museum (France).
I wasn't aware that these were called Tobruks. I knew about the machine gun Tobruks, but didn't realize they shared the name with the Panther turret guns. You learn something new every day.
My family is all about military history and thanks to Dr Felton, I run rings around them in WWll details and interesting stories
Ha, I guess you never reveal your source. Maintain a competitive edge.
Very useful and interesting video. Thanks.
Thanks very much Sir... Old Shoe🇺🇸
Another good history delivered by dr mark Felton...
Im listening 2 years of your storys great work love it thanks mark
Great video Sir..... remember having these turrets in the game Close Combat III "The Russian Front" battle for Berlin map.
great video about desperate measures
More fascinating stuff thanks Mark
A couple of other reasons the Germans used these: By 1943 they were mostly fighting a defensive battle that favored ambush; also, they had severe fuel shortages to run a mobile army by that time.
‘ Desperate ‘ is what comes to mind here.
The Germans also lacked the fuel to field all of the tanks they were able to produce.
Great video as usual ! 👍🏻🇨🇦👍🏻
Awesome!
Finland used to have lots of coastal defence in the form of basically tank turrets bolted on to a bunker with one zillion rounds of ammo.
More detail from some actual battles vs these would have been quite nice.
I used to believe that nothing of value ever came out of Norwich. That was until I discovered Dr Mark Felton.
That info music is iconic at this point
Fascinating.... Thanks for sharing another unknown fact on WWII
0:32 I believe in the background are two knocked out Churchill tanks belonging to the North Irish Horse who fought bravely assisted with Candian Infantry at the Hitler line.
Mark, the 75mm gun was first class, the mantlet armour adequate, but the side and rear armour was vulnerable to even relatively low powered shot and shell.
mark never fails to make us giggle and kick our feet when he uploads 💯💯
Straight up twirling my hair and giggling mirthfully rn
The introduction music always brings a smile because I know one of Marks videos is coming up!
I absolutely love your videos it's so nice to find a historian pronouncing the German names so well and natural as a lover of Germany her history and language it's so nice to hear it spoken so wonderfully
The panther tank turret was also used in Italy to defend an airfield near Rome. The Canadian armor got shot up pretty bad trying to cross the airfield to capture it.
Nice too see, you did visit the Overloon war museum in the Netherlands.
Yes ! While you were here you should have collected your medal ! The All Around Good Egg by the Netherlands
Interesting, as always.
Such a "Tobruk", made of a Panzer IV turret, was recently discovered in fairly good condition in Bulgaria. The turret is now in a museum.
You can always learn something new from Dr Felton my birthday is Dec 7 and I have studied the war extensively and this is the 1st time I've heard of panzer turms I never cease to be amazed by Dr Felton bravo Sir
TY 🙏🙏
Dr Felton I respect your German pronunciation abilities. ❤
Another good history lesson from Dr Felton. Also goes to show how desperate the axis where. It was a good use of materials and a hell of a suprise for anyone who came across them. Thanks again.
Another Reason why there were surplus Panther Turrets is because A Few Panther Hulls were converted to Bergepanzers(Engineer/Tank Workshop) Vehicles.
Ahhhhh amateur historian ambrosia. (I should clarify, I’m an amateur historian and Dr. Felton’s videos give me warm and fuzzy feelings)
Thank you for clarifying.
A amateur historian is a historian nevertheless.
*rolls around rubbing self with de-classified documents "
Greetings, comrade. I, too, am a happy amateur when listening to Mark Felton. His content has only gotten better with time.
Yes when he sticks to actual history. He seems to never come across a conspiracy theory he doesn't like or share either. That's how facts get muddled. When somebody shares little known history like he does and over time garners a solid reputation, then posts a conspiracy theory with little to no facts the uneducated who seem to have trouble discerning the difference take the conspiracy theory as fact. Then they pass it on and you can not convince them it isn't true because they got it from such a reliable source. I truly wish he would stick to factual history.
I remember as a kid I had a little volume of Sgt. Rock comics by DC, and there were multiple comics that featured the Germans using sunken tank turrets as pillboxes. As someone who grew up with the WWII-era Call of Duty's (CoD 2: Big Red One was my favorite back then), Medal of Honor: Frontline, Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers being played on repeat on History Channel, I had never heard of such a thing. Ever since, I always wondered if that was really something the Germans (or anyone in WWII) actually did, or if it was just something the creators at DC created. Thanks for clearing that up, and for providing the same great content as always!