WW2 Weapons

The World Wars 1914-18 and 1939-45.

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Recent reports:

German 17 cm Schnell-Ladekanone (fast loading gun) L/40
World War One Diary for Friday, May 10, 1918: Sea War North Sea: British blocking attack on Ostend (49 casualties, Read more
Ju 88C-6 / R-1 night fighter
WW2 War Diary for Sunday, May 9, 1943: Secret War Air War Western Europe: Luftwaffe defectors land new Ju 88 Read more
Capitaine Rene Fonck
World War One Diary for Thursday, May 9, 1918: Air War Western Front: French ace Fonck in 5min 50sec (in Read more
Jews surrendering to SS troops
WW2 War Diary for Saturday, May 8, 1943: Occupied Territories Poland: Mordechai Anielewicz, 25-year-old commander of Jewish fighters in Warsaw, Read more
first heavy British strategic bombers is the Handley-Page 0/400
World War One Diary for Wednesday, May 8, 1918: Air War Britain: Trenchard accepts command of Independent Air Force for Read more
Axis PoWs Tunis
WW2 War Diary for Friday, May 7, 1943: Africa Tunisia: British occupy Tunis. Americans take Bizerta. Air War Britain: Fighter-bomber Read more
Signing of the Treaty of Bucharest
World War One Diary for Tuesday, May 7, 1918: Eastern Front PEACE OF BUCHAREST BETWEEN RUMANIA AND CENTRAL POWERS: Bulgaria Read more
British convoy caught during deployment
WW2 War Diary for Thursday, May 6, 1943: Africa Tunisia: FINAL BRITISH OFFENSIVE. 1st Army, reinforced with 7th Armoured and Read more
British trench raid equipment
World War One Diary for Monday, May 6, 1918: Southern Fronts Salonika: British coy trench raid (81 casualties) west of Read more
Himmler surveys women near Minsk
The 'Final Solution of the Jewish Question' with the Beginning of the Russian Campaign. An attempt at the chronological sequence Read more
25-pounder
WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, May 5, 1943: Africa Tunisia: British infantry recapture Djebel Bou Aoukaz, south of Tunis. Air Read more
Killed British MG gunners
World War One Diary for Sunday, May 5, 1918: Western Front Artillery duels and widespread skirmishing. France: Foch orders army Read more
Long-range escort fighters P-47 Thunderbolt
WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, May 4, 1943: Air War Western Europe: P-47 Thunderbolts escort B-17 Fortress bombers during raid Read more
German 38-cm gun in railway carriage
World War One Diary for Saturday, May 4, 1918: Western Front Flanders: Allied positions in Locre and south of Ypres Read more
French artillery Tunisia
WW2 War Diary for Monday, May 3, 1943: Africa Tunisia: American and French troops capture Mateur. Sea War Britain: Carrier Read more
Flight of DH4s
World War One Diary for Friday, May 3, 1918: Air War Germany: DH4s of No 55 Squadron seriously damage goods Read more
Dorner Do 217E-4
WW2 War Diary for Sunday, May 2, 1943: Air War Britain: 68 Dornier bombers (5 lost) lay mines off estuaries Read more
German troops arrest suspected Bolsheviks
World War One Diary for Thursday, May 2, 1918: Eastern Front Don: Cossacks cable Kaiser for help against Bolsheviks. Finland: Read more
Wehrmacht soldiers in training
Fighting power of the Wehrmacht, Part II. Training of soldiers, casualties, awards and death sentences of German and US Army Read more
German long-range railway gun
WW2 War Diary for Saturday, May 1, 1943: Home Fronts Britain: Dover shelled for 75 minutes. Africa Tunisia: US heavy Read more

About WW2 Weapons

WW2 affected virtually almost any corner of the globe. In the six years between 1939 and 1945, some kind of 50 million people lost their lives, and hardly any who survived were not affected. It was the costliest and utmost widespread conflict the world has forever obtained.
It was subsequently battled on ground, sea and in the air with weapons which in fact had first been used in World War One of 1914-18. Ironically, a far greater conflict was to come out from the burning embers of these ‘war to end all wars’, and with it huge innovations in technologies.
The countries engaged in WW2 finally owned the techniques, potential and weapons to fight every other in a much more powerful – and more deadly – manner.

However only Britain, her Empire allies as well as Germany were engaged during the full period (as well as, in fact, Japan and China since 1937). For all the other nations the conflict was of a shorter duration. The US and Japan, for example, were at war from December 1941 to August 1945 (and the USA was at the same time at war with Germany, until Hitler‘s defeat in May 1945).

The state of affairs was so complex, the skeins of partnerships and enmity so connected that it would require a really huge document in fact to illustrate the prospect.
Only one factor was less complicated and widespread to all the nations involved: the nature of the weapons that the soldier used to struggle their way to triumph – or defeat.

Of course, there were differences in detail of the WW2 weapons: the German Panzer V Panther was a very different tank from the US M4 Sherman, the Russian T-34, or the English Cromwell. But in fact they were all much the same – armored vehicles mounting powerful guns running on tracks.

The small arms with which the various opponent countries equipped their armies were totally different weapons in details too, but basically these were all guns for launching projectiles at high speed.
Simply speaking, lots of people would just say that guns are guns, bombs are bombs, aircraft are planes, and so on. But there is definitely even more to it than that, for the abilities to obtain victory or lose a war actually rested on these kinds of WW2 weapons’ qualities, just as a lot of as it did on the fighting abilities of those who employed them and on the strategic sense of those who directed them in their use.

Shermans vs Panthers
Shermans vs Panthers with 3d models.

General about WW2 Weapons:

All information, data, specifications and statistics used on the website WW2 Weapons have been compiled from a variety of sources and the large library of the author – who now lives on Crete for a long time – about military history and history, especially about the world wars, which has been built up over decades.

The most important source references and notes about additional literature can be found at the end for the most articles. To the best of our knowledge and belief, the most secure and reliable information and sources were used, which are also constantly updated and improved.

These data and specifications are used among other things for as accurate as possible historical military simulations, such as the war game WW2 Total. The photos are mostly ‘public domain’, but partly also property of the author.

The author therefore asks for understanding that he can’t handle additional requests for the sources or pictures beyond that due to time constraints and provides the information and its sources to the internet community as ‘as published’, i.e. either the visitor of this website considers it helpful and agrees with it over, or just leaves it.
Discussions and suggestions for improvement are nevertheless welcome and can be held below the respective reports.

Panzermuseum Munster,
Norman ‘Kretaner’ visits Panzer Museum Munster, Germany.
WW2 Weapons
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Conflict of Nations - World War III