WW2 Weapons

The World Wars 1914-18 and 1939-45.

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Recent reports:

Italian battleship 'Vittorio Veneto'
WW2 War Diary for Sunday, December 14, 1941: Sea War Mediterranean: Battleship Vittorio Veneto torpedoed by British submarine Urge off Read more
War in cinema
World War One Diary for Thursday, December 14, 1916: Eastern Front Rumania: Falkenhayn enters Buzeu in push for Braila and Read more
Russian infantry in winter camouflage
WW2 War Diary for Saturday, December 13, 1941: Eastern Front Russia: STALIN ORDERS GENERAL OFFENSIVE. Sea War Mediterranean: Italian fast Read more
British gunboat on the Tigris
World War One Diary for Wednesday, December 13, 1916: Middle East Mesopotamia: Maude begins Tigris offensive with 48,500 men; 174 Read more
killed in front of Moscow
WW2 War Diary for Friday, December 12, 1941: Politics Rumania: Government declares war on USA. Air War Germany: 43 RAF Read more
Nivelle
World War One Diary for Tuesday, December 12, 1916: Western Front GERMANY MAKES PEACE PROPOSALS. France: Foch removed by Joffre Read more
Hitler declares war on USA
WW2 War Diary for Thursday, December 11, 1941: Politics GERMANY AND ITALY DECLARE WAR ON USA. USA declares war on Read more
Italian battleship 'Regina Margherita'
World War One Diary for Monday, December 11, 1916: Sea War Adriatic: Italian bat­tleship Regina Margherita (many casualties including Captain) Read more
Battleship Prince of Wales and battlecruiser Repulse under attack
WW2 War Diary for Wednesday, December 10, 1941: Sea War Pacific: HMS PRINCE OF WALES AND REPULSE SUNK 322 KM Read more
Serbian artillery on the winter move
World War One Diary for Sunday, December 10, 1916: Southern Fronts Serbia: Russo-Serb attacks against Hill 1050 fail (until December Read more
Swearing-in of Russian soldiers.
WW2 War Diary for Tuesday, December 9, 1941: Eastern Front Siege of Leningrad: Russian troops restore railway supply line to Read more
Hindenburg with Grand Cross of the Iron Cross.
World War One Diary for Saturday, December 9, 1916: Home Fronts Germany: ­Hindenburg given the first 1914 Grand Cross of Read more
Japanese infantry in Hong Kong.
WW2 War Diary for Monday, December 8, 1941: China Battle of Hong Kong: Japanese 38 Infantry Division supported by heavy Read more
Romanian infantry in their trenches.
World War One Diary for Friday, December 8, 1916: Eastern Front Rumania - Battle of river Cricov (until December 12) Read more
burning battleships West Virginia and Tennessee
WW2 War Diary for Sunday, December 7, 1941: Sea War Pacific: JAPAN ATTACKS PEARL HARBOR. 350 dive bombers, torpedo planes Read more
David Lloyd George
World War One Diary for Thursday, December 7, 1916: Home Fronts Britain: LLOYD GEORGE BECOMES PRIME MINISTER. Call up of Read more
Siberian infantry in front of Moscow
WW2 War Diary for Saturday, December 6, 1941: Eastern Front Russian counter-offensive in Moscow sector gathers momentum: 10 armies now Read more
Mackensen captured Bucharest
World War One Diary for Wednesday, December 6, 1916: Eastern Front Rumania - FALL OF BUCHAREST: Mackensen rides in on Read more
Russian counter-attack near Moscow.
WW2 War Diary for Friday, December 5, 1941: Eastern Front Operation Barbarossa: SURPRISE RUSSIAN COUNTER-OFFENSIVE IN MOSCOW SECTOR. 4 armies Read more
Portuguese observation post
World War One Diary for Tuesday, December 5, 1916: African Fronts East Africa: Portugese invested at Newala, Marumba and Majembi 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