This blog is mostly going to consist of information and pictures of weaponry, technology, steampunk, and other interests I may have.
Thats why we love German War Machines.
“Stuka” Junkers Ju 87 dive-bomber.
(via mechgasm)
A German QF 1 pounder pom-pom located at the South African national Museum of Military History in Johannesburg.
German WW1 Maxim Flak M14, a version of the 37mm Maxim-Nordenfelt gun.
During WWI, when you see unique flame and toxic weapons used by the British who do you think of? I think of William Howard Livens. Born in 1889, as soon as WWI broke he enlisted as soon as possible, but unfortunately for him he just basically became a messenger boy at Chatham. After finding out about the sinking of the RMS Lusitania he vowed to kill an equal number of Germans to how many civilians died on the ship. And at the end of April 1915 he began his experimental work with flames and toxins. Then late in August 1915, Livens left Chatham to join one of the newly formed Royal Engineer Special Gas Companies where he was one of very few officers to have a background in engineering rather than chemistry. This is where his truly destructive work was created.
The Livens Large Gallery Flame Projector was a famous weapon of his that was used in WWI. It was 2.5 ton flame thrower that was carried into underground tunnels and assembled their. When in use a nozzle would pop out from underground in no man’s land and would begin to shoot diesel and kerosene that would be ignited and continuously burn. It wasn’t used many times because of how exact conditions would need to be for its use. But when it was used it was extremely successful. There is also a small documentary on this weapon where a team of historians and archaeologists try to find parts to one of these weapons and attempt to rebuild one. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGxP7F2GUwY
Another one of Livens weapons was The Livens Projector. Which was capable of sending canisters of toxic gas or flammable materials arcing towards Germans. The Livens Projector was also used to fire other substances. At one time or another the drums contained high explosive, oil and cotton-waste pellets, thermite, white phosphorus and “stinks”. Used as giant stink bombs to trick the enemy, “stinks” were malodorous but harmless substances such as bone oil and amyl acetate used to simulate a poison gas attack, thereby compelling the enemy to put on their cumbersome masks (which reduced the efficiency of German troops) on occasions when gas itself could not be safely employed. You can see troops loading the Livens Projector in the image above.
The Landkreuzer P. 1500 Monster, possibly would have been the most astonishing tank if it ever made it into production.
Now obviously the level of practicality is beyond low but hell this would be a real moral killer. Weighing in at 1,500 long tons and with a crew with over 100, nothing would have been able to compare to this giant. This would have used a 800 mm K (E) gun which would have fired that very large round you see in the picture. Along with that gun it would have also had 2x 15cm sFH 18/1 L/30 and multiple 15 mm MG151/15. The only thing to be able to power this beast would have been four MAN M9v 40/46 U-boat diesels with 2,200 hp.
Well the reasoning behind why this did not even make it into the prototype stage is well beyond understandable. But if it did I think this would have been my favorite tank of all time.
I sometimes think to myself what would happen and how different today would be if If England deiced to go through with their plan, and gas German cities with anthrax and chem weapons during WWII. The best conclusion I have thought of is that public perception would definitely taken a dive and would probably exist to this day, dominions and colonies would probably have aligned themselves even more closely with the US both politically and militarily afterwards. I’d even go so far as to say that Canada and Australia would have probably become republics depending on how much the public received news of chemicals weapons being deployed.
WOW! I can’t believe the filmmakers of this documentary managed to get a Soviet WWII vet to admit to illegally killing surrendered German soldiers. This is a crazy end to a very good, in depth documentary on WWII, covering, for once, the Eastern front as well as the other fronts.
WWII was unbelievably barbaric and cruel, but especially so on the Eastern Front, and this is readily apparent in recent scholarship on the behavior not only of the Wehrmacht, but of the Red Army as well.
Obviously, no Russians want to hear about the ‘Rape of Germany’, just as no American likes to find out that Allied forces on the Western front were behind some 20,000 rapes (I won ‘t go into the numbers for the Eastern front….they’re pretty controversial. Think ‘low’ millions. Also, understand that these Red Army men were probably terribly destroyed by their experiences in the War, and would act accordingly). But I feel that it is important, as a historian, to get as close to the truth as possible. Because, however unpleasant it may seem, that’s how we come to understand why these terrible things happen, and how we can prevent them from happening again.
Fallschirmjager of the Fallschirmjager-Aufklärung-Abteilung 12 about to do some reconnaissance in a type 82 Kübelwagen, near Saint-Lô France, July 1944.
Bulgarian Leichter Panzerspähwagen Sd.Kfz 222 from Germany. This one is from a reconnaissance regiment.
This is my favorite armored car of all time.
By far my favorite transporter, the Ju-52. I find this aircraft to be one of the most beautiful German aircraft of all time. It mainly operated as a cargo and troop carrier, and briefly as a medium bomber. Mainly operated by the Luftwaffe obviously, but was later used by France, Spain, Italy, Romania, and a few others. Unfortunately like many other planes of its time and type there are only 8 that are airworthy today.
