11. Hitler’s Super Tank
The Panzer VIII Maus was the heaviest tank ever built. It measured about 33 feet long, 12 feet wide, 12 feet high, and weighed nearly 200 tons. Its secondary armament was a 75 mm coaxial gun instead of a machine gun. Its main gun was a 128 mm monster capable of destroying any Allied tank at ranges of up to 2.2 miles. It was increased at Hitler’s insistence to 150 mm, because the Fuhrer thought the 128 mm looked like a toy gun on the Maus. Unfortunately for the Germans – and fortunately for the Allies – the Maus’ huge size and heavy weight came at a correspondingly heavy price that made it nearly useless.
The tank was too heavy for most bridges. So in order to cross rivers it had to either wade through fords where available, or drive over the river’s bottom while using a snorkel for ventilation. Additionally, to simply get the Maus moving was a problem. It was no easy task to develop an engine and drive train that were powerful enough to propel 200 tons of metal on the ground at any appreciable speed, yet small enough to fit inside the tank. In the end, the maximum speed achieved during trials was eight miles per hour on a hard surface.
