WW2 Weapons

The World Wars 1914-18 and 1939-45.

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Recent reports:

'Billy' Bishop
World War One Diary for Sunday, March 25, 1917: Air War Western Front: Bishop gains first of 72 victories. Only Read more
P-40 E falls victim to an Oscar
WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, March 24, 1942: Air War Southeast Asia: Major John Van Kuren Newkirk ('Scarsdale Jack') top Read more
Swearing of Russian troops
World War One Diary for Saturday, March 24, 1917: Eastern Front Russia - Russian Army proclaims loyalty to Provisional Government: Read more
Russian air crews take over in Anchorage in Alaska Lend-Lease B-25 Mitchell bombers
WW2 War Diary for Monday, March 23, 1942: Air War Britain: Night raid on Dover. Pacific: Japanese bomb Port Moresby Read more
Grneral Robert Nivelle
World War One Diary for Friday, March 23, 1917: Western Front Germans flood Oise valley and La Fare (French near Read more
Italian battleship is firing her guns
WW2 War Diary for Sunday, March 22, 1942: Sea War Mediterranean: BATTLE OF SIRTE. Italian battleship Littorio intercepts Alexandria-Malta convoy Read more
Ex-Zar Nicholas from his prison
World War One Diary for Thursday, March 22, 1917: Politics Russia: USA as first, Allies and Switzerland recognize Russian Provisional Read more
Aircraft carrier 'Shinano'
Japanese aircraft carrier Shinano. History, development, service, specifications, statistics, pictures and 3D model of the Yamato-class carrier conversation. Shinano Type: Read more
Air raid helpers searching for survivors Malta
WW2 War Diary for Saturday, March 21, 1942: Air War Mediterranean: Heavy raids on Malta. Home Fronts Britain - London Read more
US merchant ship 'Illlinois'
World War One Diary for Wednesday, March 21, 1917: Sea War North Sea: US tanker Healdton sunk (20 die) by Read more
Opel Blitz truck is loaded with supplies
WW2 War Diary for Friday, March 20, 1942: Sea War Mediterranean: U-boat U-652 sinks British destroyers Heythrop and Jaguar north Read more
God punish England
World War One Diary for Tuesday, March 20, 1917: Western Front Aisne: Germans demolish irreplaceable medieval castle of Coucy-le-Chateau, 10 Read more
Wiiliam-Joseph Slim
WW2 War Diary for Thursday, March 19, 1942: Southeast Asia Burma: General Slim arrives to take over command of British Read more
Frech battleship 'Danton'
World War One Diary for Monday, March 19, 1917: Sea War Mediterranean: U-64 sinks modern French battleship Danton (296 lost) Read more
Wuerzburg radar device at Bruneval
WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, March 18, 1942: Home Fronts Britain: Admiral Lord Mountbatten appointed Chief of Combined Operations. Read more
Turkish staff officer with a ten-year-old boy soldier
World War One Diary for Sunday, March 18, 1917: Middle East Armenia Kemal C-in-C Turk Second Army (Deputy since March Read more
General Douglas MacArthur
WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, March 17, 1942: Home Fronts Australia: MacArthur appointed Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Southwest Read more
British 'tribal transport' porters
World War One Diary for Saturday, March 17, 1917: African Fronts East Africa: Hoskins asks for 15,000 carriers per month Read more
counter-attack with assault gun
WW2 War Diary for Monday, March 16, 1942: Home Front USA: Death of Francis Du Pont, research chemist and industrialist; Read more
remains of L39
World War One Diary for Friday, March 16, 1917: Air War France: German airship L39 shot down by French anti-aircraft 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
Conflict of Nations - World War III