A 1940 steel witness at the Invalides

Departure of the Panzer III at Army museum in Paris

It will be one of the major pieces of the exhibition As in 40… from September 17, 2020 to January 10, 2021, which traces the terrible year that was 1940.

A reconstructed 1940 duel, panzer against French tank

When Germany attacked France on May 10, 1940, the Panzer III was the best German tank. Well conceived, it was one of the tools of the flash defeat of France. The exhibition "As in 40 ..." will show the Panzer III of the Armored Museum facing the most powerful French tank of the time, a B1 bis, usually kept in Mourmelon.

Despite a misconception, panzers were no more massive and powerful than their adversaries at the start of the conflict. The B1 bis is twice as heavy as its opponent, 30 tonnes, with more armament and thicker armor.

However, the Panzer III is much faster and better organized for its crew. An example: the French tank commander, alone in the turret, was overloaded with tasks (observing the battlefield, leading the crew, serving the machine gun and the cannon ...) where the Germans, three in turret, were distributed efficiently the tasks (a leader, a gun loader, a pointer to target the opponent).

However more than the technical differences, it was especially the instructions for use of these two machines and the strategy of the two adversaries who decided the outcome of the fights. The French army could not react effectively to the speed of the German army.