Hi everyone, just a point of correction - the 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion, which I mention at 2:10, was not an S.S. unit, but a regular German Army unit. This is a fact that I overlooked during my research, so I do apologize. Thank you to those viewers who correctly pointed this out!
I always wonder if you know that every veteran gets a chill when the radio crackles at the start of each of your videos. The adrenaline rush that accompanies it is both exciting and surreal.
In the movie "Kelly's Heroes" Oddball told Kelly that they placed drainpipes over their gun barrels to make them look bigger - in actual fact the Firefly crews used to paint the ends of their long barrels a lighter shade to 'counter-shade' and make them look shorter. The Germans had learnt by then that the Fireflys were the most dangerous tanks facing them and would target them first if they got the chance! (One Canadian Firefly actually stuck a fake barrel out the back of the turret so the Germans wouldn't be sure which way it was pointing! Bit excessive but there you go!)
These are really bad optics and I can see this happening. Ever fired a 17 pounder> I have. Not inside a Turret though. Round after Round then more Round after round! The hours of waiting then seconds of stark Terror!
Indeed. Some people seem to behave as though the war ended with the Battle of the Bulge. Many months of hard fighting, in some cases some of the fiercest yet in the West, took place in 1945 in the final months of the war. Some of those battles were just a crucial as the ones preceding them.
@@garyhill2740 Not really. The war was already lost. The Germans just hadn't given up yet, because their fearless leader hiding in a bunker, wanted them to fight to the death.
Yes today most people seem content to live in peace under the jackboot conditions of globalist fascist tyranny on a scale way beyond anything Hitler could have dreamed of
Its sad but true. I have seen a bunch of people in my secondary school do Hitler salute's and Swastika's drawn on tables and joking about Stalin killing a lot of people. Wish people could just have at least some respect in them
We were on their side in this one. Americans didn't want anything to do with another war in Europa. The brother wars definitely took it's toll on Europeans.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc For sure that. There's a RUclips I saw that pin points all the known battles fought through out history that are listed on wiki. The European land mass is almost blotted out compared to anywere else. Another vid shows the changes in the world map vis-a-vis borderlines. Again, Europe is like a jigsaw puzzle over the centuries, compared to all other areas.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc "Americans didn't want anything to do with another war in Europa..." SOME (isolationist) Americans didn't want anything to do with war in Europe. A small majority - led by people like Charles Lindbergh, Joseph Kennedy and the America First movement. A SMALL majority. But, after Pearl Harbor and Hitler's declaration of war on the US, American participation became obligatory. America joined the British-Soviet Alliance because the mutual objectives of that Alliance - the defeat of Hitler's Germany - coincided. If you believe the USA joined the war to rescue anybody or "'cos freedom...", your history knowledge is still at kindergarten level.
@@alastairbarkley6572 Oh, I know exactly what it was about. That's why I can't say it on this platform without it being deleted immediately. We are living the results of our part in the "big win" in Europa now. Americans wanted the war so bad that US government had to force Japan's hand and then not even warn Pearl Harbor that the attack was coming. US government was already at war with Germany by supplying it's enemies with hundreds of thousands of pieces of military equipment Many of those went directly to communists who would have been defeated without them. 14,000 tanks and 8,000 aircraft went to butchers in the USSR. It's sick. 400,000 trucks and pieces of equipment. Even Stalin said they couldn't have survived the onslaught without all that equipment.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc Ummm... You do know the US required the UK to pay cash on the nail for war supplies until its gold reserves were gone. The US then issued loans/ IOUs which took until this century to pay back. It was a consequence of legislation demanding neutrality. Lease, Lend came later in the war. Some US politicians were quite clear that they were not going to prop up the British Empire. The UK also ceded territory and bases in exchange for 50 clapped out WWI 4 stacker destroyers. They were needed for convoy escorts and had some boilers removed in the UK to add extra bunkerage for extra range in the North Atlantic. This is not to say the supplies weren't essential to the UK's war effort, they certainly were, especially the high octane fuel for the RAF.
That's got to be one of the best produced 'Liveth for Evermore' videos so far. Lots of great detail, well narrated and a fitting tribute to a brave officer. Great work
Thank you for sharing and showing the bravery of our allied tankers who were all young men in their early twenties, fighting against an enemy who we are always led to believe had the superior kit, yet our guys extracted the best out of the allied tanks some of the stories are legendary everyone of them a hero for freedom, may they never be forgotten.
My father was at cagny too with the 5th battalion CSG. Me and my brother took him back there in 1976 to the farm house they attacked, just across the railway lines. Was a moving moment for me and my bro.
Interesting story, but whilst the Firefly undoubtedly packed a bigger punch than the standard 75mm gun, the 'standard' Shermans were more than capable of taking out Tigers with the right tactics. The 75mm had a much faster rate of fire than German tanks, it was the only tank with a gyro stabiliser for accurate shooting on the move and the HE shells could be set to delay so you could fire a HE shell through a wall for example and it would explode inside the building. The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry, who saw more action than any other armoured regiment in WW2, first in North Africa and then in Europe, learnt the hard way how to knock out German tanks in the close Normandy countryside. Basically they put down a phenomenal amount of fire on any enemy tank, forcing the crew to close up and rely on their periscopes for visibility. They would also 'brass up' any suspected infantry position with MG fire, forcing the Germans to return fire and reveal their location; they never moved without a round of AP 'up the spout'. For example on 26 June in Fontenay, A Squadron OC, John Semken found himself face to face with a Tiger Tank, only 120 yards apart. Semken fired immediately and in the space of 30 seconds his tank hit the Tiger 10 times. Although the Tiger only suffered superficial damage, the periscopes were all smashed and, with the weight of fire on them, the Tiger's crew bailed out. The SRY's crews were also adept at stalking German tanks and no-one was a greater exponent than Sgt, George Dring MM. That same day, in the advance on Rauray, George Dring destroyed a Panzer IV, a Tiger (crew bailed out), another Panzer IV and then a second Tiger, which he brewed up. Finally, as it was getting dark, he destroyed another Panzer IV at 1,200 yards with an AP round from his 75mm. The SRY didn't receive any Fireflys until late July. On Tuesday 1 August, during the battle for Point 361, George Dring with his 75mm destroyed a Jagdpanther and another Tiger which he stalked on foot and then moved his Sherman into position to engage. If you want to know more about the SRY, then I recommend 'An Englishman at War', 'Tank Action' and 'Brothers in Arms'. The SRY won more battle honours and more awards than any other Regiment in the British Army in WW2, and consequently they also had more soldiers killed and wounded than any other armoured regiment.
I read By Tank into Normandy, SRY book, and Dring and Semken are mentioned. Stuart Hills I think was the author. You are quite correct in everything you said sir.👏
@@Mark-vq5dz If you enjoyed Stuart Hill's book, then I recommend Tank Action, by David Render and Stuart Tootal. David and Stuart Hill were contemporary Troop leaders, both joined the SRY around D-Day. David's book is a little more 'warts and all'.
That seventeen-pounder British cannon really did level the playing field to some extent, at last, we had a gun capable of destroying any German tank on the battlefield. Those soldiers were so brave, we owe our freedom to them and of course our American and Russian allies.
@@meisterdestoasts1574yes any German armor. 256mm of apcr pen at 500 meters. 163mm of pen for its basic ap at 500 meters. Not even a tiger 2’s armor can withstand frontally. The 17 pounder is an anti aircraft gun so no shit it’s capable of cutting through even a tiger 2.
My grandfather joined REME on the day it was formed and maintained the Guards Division Sherman Fireflies whilst they were in training in England, it was emotional watching this video thinking that these were the tanks that he had prepared for war. Thanks for the video.
I absolutely love the story of the Firefly. Talk about innovative solutions, how about those Brits. Such as Major George Brighty, Lieutenant Colonel George Witheridge and Vickers engineer W.G.K. Kilbourn, these brilliant minds that took what was an idea for the Sherman platform and turned it into a Panther and Tiger killer. These men were not messing around when it came to the determination it took to potentially turn the tide of war on the battlefield. With German armor being what it was and the guns implemented into the Sherman’s turret that were falling so short at the time, that Ordnance QF 17-pounder turned out to be the hand of God. And the crews that manned these tanks were larger than life. Rest easy Lieutenant Lock, you’ll always be remembered.
@@Bullet-Tooth-Tony- I'd just be happy with some mark 2 Matilda's.. apparently there were only about 50 in France at the time of the battle of France...the two pounder was good enough,and amour like a tiger tank.
My Uncle Jim Grant was with the 7th Armoured all through Africa, Italy and then into Normandy. He ended up in Hamburg. He came back a broken man with a terrible temper. Truly the greatest generation.
@@Mark-vq5dz your correct, the British and Canadians fought the Germans best SS Troops and lost a lot of good Men in the process so I personally would like to see them get the appreciation that they deserve.
@@TheGrowler55 Exactly, people just jump on the 'Monty was a completely shit general' bandwagon. It does a disservice to those boys from Canada, UK , and many Americans too who faced up to 12th SS Panzer etc, and the majority of their heavy tank forces.
The decision for the British, Canadian and Polish armour to deliberately take on the SS Panzers and Tigers around Caen was made to pull in the more experienced crews in heavier German armour into that area and allow Bradley's armour to make faster speed around from the West and South. At no time in that campaign did the US Army face any Tigers let alone King Tigers. It did not sit well with the British when the Americans complained about how long it took to take Caen and move forward. Montgomery's plan was to create a pocket where almost the entire German Army in Northern France was encircled with the final closure at Falaise. Sadly Bradley failed to close the Southern jaw of the trap despite Polish armour gaining the hill above Falaise. Thousands of Germans escaped but even so the plan resulted in the destruction of most of Army Group B west of the Seine with over 50,000 Germans captured. It must have been a living hell inside that trap. I do not make excuses for them nor have any sympathy. Just stating a cruel fact.
He died so close to the end of the war. What a tragedy! I had a great-uncle who also died very close to the war end on April 23rd 1945. He was an American Soldier captured at the Battle of the Bulge. He was sent to Stalag 9B. Shortly thereafter the SS came to visit looking for Jewish soldiers. They found my great-uncle and sent him to a death camp called Berga where he was murdered. He was a 21 year old boy at his death, an aspiring engineer. This story is documented in a book written by Rodger Cohen called "Soldiers and Slaves."
Excellent Excellent well done that is the best and most unseen film I have seen of the Firefly bonus film of a destroyed Royal Tiger with a Porsche turret looking forward to more videos
@@snugglecity3500 the majority of the German tanks had thicker and sloped armour so were a lot better protected than most allied tanks and their 88mm canon was probably the deadliest during WWII
Thank you for the story. These men must never be forgotten: brave, unselfish they gave their lives for our freedom. We must respect and applaud their sacrifice.
Robert Boscawen (01:33) was severely wounded at Enschede trying to capture a bridge over the Twenthe Canal on the 1st of April 1945. Boscawen and his driver (Bland) were the only ones of his tank crew to survive. Guardsman H.T. Bradbury Guardsman F.J. Wright Guardsman L. Hanson L.CPL R. J. Wilson Serjeant R. Caulfield
Excellent production..Drew me in completely...The pace and coherence engaged my imagination's ability to picture the events, ...to grasp the somberness of it all, while still perceiving greatly the action, excitement, fear, determination, and the scale of the allied attack. The marvel that was the King Tiger II, it's imposing engineering and potential, yet you can imagine the futility that the nazi forces began to experience, as the Allied assault manifested itself daily. "The commander's King Tiger fell into a bomb crater and became irretrievable ", sort of sums up the war in microcosm
Thank you LFE for the Battle . I have never seen the photo of the Tigers in Manneville Forest before . Most King TigerII's in one spot apart from the propaganda movie reel shot of a Battalion of SS TigerII 's all parked in a field
There was a former tank crew member of a britsh Firefly that said given the choice he would of preferred to have a Tiger. LOL Great historical narrative, thanks!
@@ULTRA_2112 not from what I’ve researched. I’d like to see your sources. The first co,bat use of the tiger 2 on the eastern front was on The 12th of August ‘44, almost an entire month after this engagement
11/11/22 is coming up. My dad died 11/11/21 (really - bladder cancer). He was 79, and a chief on diesel submarines in the Royal Navy. I occasionally go to our war memorial in Plymouth (a large port). Remember some of those lads were in their teens. Just boys. But utterly professional, brave. And always missed. xx Hello Boys.
The 17lbr gun was the one western gun the german armour actually feared. They pulled their tanks out of the fighting around Oosterbeek at arnhem when they found they faced the 17lbr guns...which saved the 1st Airborne from being overrun.
Great video again, Rest easy to the lads who didn't make it. Goodwood saw some nasty loss of tanks for sure but what gets me was how quickly many of the RTR got there Sherman back or new ones days later or right after. Also reading the account of Von Rosen (503rd Schwere Panzer Abteilung) is intresting his tigers got bombed very badly indeed on the 18th July. It was so bad mutiple tigers were flipped and Von Rosen says he nearly went insane, he clearly snapped mentally in the bombardment. Also what do you think of Dalglish's (very good author, RIP to him aswell i heard he died in a plane crash) discussion on the "missing 88s" of Hans Von Luck claimed he threatened with a pistol.
Daglish's 'Over the Battlefield' books are definitely some of my favourites that cover the Normandy campaign, especially for their detail and unique aerial photographs. With regards to the missing 88s at Cagny, I haven't read too much into that topic, although I did briefly come across it a few months ago whilst researching an engagement involving a Sherman Firefly. There's a medal citation held by the National Archives which states that a Firefly knocked out a Tiger tank just North of Cagny. However, most books that cover Goodwood credit the Cagny 88s with knocking out the Tiger in a friendly fire incident, with no mention of a Firefly. If I recall correctly, the Firefly belonged to the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards.
What a smart crew and what great shot placement. Snuck to their side and fired right underneath the Turret, where ammo is stored along the inside wall. Seems like that shell went directly into the ammo (and most likely shrapneled even more) causing it to cook off. The King Tiger is a scary opponent, but these guys new exactly what to do. And it worked well. Rest in Peace to all of those lost during this massive conflict. For they were just Pawns in a much larger game being played.
I don't think they were intentionally trying to hit the ammo rack, my guess is the gunner simply aimed for the side of the hull because it's a bigger and easier target than the turret and the tiger's ammo storage just happened to be there
I mean, it could've penatrated it from any side.......but yeah regardless, great work from the crew. What I mean when I say it could've penatrated it from any side. Regardless if they were shooting the front the crew would've turned into mush from the shrapnel.
who else on this earth could have been steadfast in the face of such an onslaught? Thank you Great Britain. ------------------------------------------------------- The Russians and Australians stand on the same platform along with others mentioned by contributing comments below.
Thankyou for the kind words , my Great Grandfather died in Italy after fighting through North Africa. You Yanks are damn tough yourselves and stood firm also. I pray our 2 nations remain close and always support the other in times of need.
@@jackd1582 Itally was in a sort of civil war dominated by the right wing until they flipped on Hitler and then had something to fight for. Many Italian units served valiantly.
503 s.Pz.abt. in Normandy was a Heer (German Army) unit, not a Waffen-SS one. The one you are referring to - 103rd SS s.Pz.abt. was at the eastern front at that time and it got renamed to 503 SS s.Pz.abt. on 14th November 1944. From that date there were two 503rd heavy tank battalions the army and the SS one, but not earlier. Confusing, I know.
True, i didnt notice that good spot. Most of the 503rd was normal Tiger I and one company (3. Kompanie) was the new king tiger's. It's crazy only a few tigers made it out of france most being abandoned to battle damage or no fuel etc.
@@Invicta556 1st Company SpzAbt 503 started Normandy cpaign with Tiger II's. 3rd Company was reequipped after goodwood at Mailly le Camp. The pics in Paris , Manneville and on range all show third company.
@@allendail9562 cheers, forgive the info mix up. Just posted from top of my head and i think 3. Kompanie was Von Rosens. Best book i got on Tigers in france is Wolfgang Schnieder "Tigers in Normandy".
a neat lecture at washington war college is up here,( nick moran the irish/american guy,(several he did in tours of battle middle eastern towns during their troubles) considerations for sending M4 shermans is the numbers they made and shipped,were .weight,many more could be parked in ocean freighter compartments,warehouse sized they were,, as these were easy to repair,,,a motor could be lifted out and replaced in a couple hours,,more spare parts supplies of food medicine tools and small arms could go with them each. another couple reasons were width and weight, European bridges were mostly as wide still as a horse drawn carriage,easily fitting an M4 in passing them , vs heavier and wider tanks ,, they could not, Shermans designed purpose was suppression of semi hardened enemy battle positions ,using houses roofs barns and basements as concealment.These were not meant for use as MBTs,,war records show in numbers that the M 4 served its intended purpose well,,,lastly,the M4 had better speed than any german tank they faced,
Interesting story and a touching tribute. As to the Sherman Firefly kill of the King Tiger, I have to admit that I'm surprised. I didn't think the 17-Pounder would penetrate that much armor. It has me wondering if perhaps German steel was becoming inferior later in the war. But in any case, a very interesting piece of history. Thanks.
The 17-pounder was only as good as the kwk36 l/56 on the tiger 1 and at the ranges they fought in the last 6 or so months they good easily take out a king tiger. However the kwk43 l/71 was the best tank/antitank gun of the war. It could take out any allied tank at 2000 + mts . It was far better than the 90 mm american and 122mm russian. But fighting in the towns and citys in europe it was of no use.
It's interesting to hear that the Tiger crews' self-belief and sense of invulnerability was broken by the loss of just two tanks. I guess anyone would think of themselves as kings of the battlefield when sitting in a King Tiger, but that delusion was swiftly broken.
At the general engagement ranges throughout the mid-and late war periods, Tigers were generally able to survive most AT fire. Standard tactic was for them to drive straight into an enemy attack, under covering fire from either other tigers or their accompanying tank destroyers, as each of the tiger battalions consisted of a company of tigers and a company of 'heavy' tank destroyers. The QF 17lbr of the Brits changed that, and the heavy tank battalions tended to take a supporting role, rather than leading attacks against brit forces...which was very apparent at Arnhem/Oosterbeek once it was discovered that Brit 1st Airborne had deployed 17lbrs via glider (which was a real shock to the germans). Although US commentators generally don't like to admit it, the germans didn't have any great concern regarding the US 76mm gun, whereas they had a significant fear of the 17lbr. It was their bogeyman, similar to the Tiger fear of the western allies.
@@rogersmith7396 - yes he was. He had had great success at Villers Bocage where he showed initiative and courage, but the Canadians and British finally destroyed his troop in an ambush in August that year.
The standard A4 Sherman design was never engineered to go toe to toe against German armor. It was an infantry support weapons system whose relatively low velocity 75mn main gun was optimized to knock out enemy machine gun nests and pillboxes. By contrast, the Hellcat tank destroyer was purpose built to fulfill the role its name suggests.
And Boscawen is stressed on the caw - Bos-caw-wen. It is a Cornish name. Boscawen is likely a village in Cornwall where their name comes from. Like Boscastle, or Bosvena (now Bodmin).
An interesting piece of history, thank-you. As far as I'm aware, Schwere Panzer-Abteilung 503 were Heer, not SS - that does not detract from the achievement of knocking out the King Tiger.
I worked with an old Tankman in the 1950's . He told me of the time in N.Africa when as a tank commander, last in a line of six. Emerging from behind dunes the first five all brewed up , he smartly reversed back and got away. A butcher from Southend Essex , he was always happy, never saw him morose .
@liveth I’m from uk and just wondering if you’ve ever been to the tank museum near Lincolnshire. Or have you been to Duxford air show back in the day?🙏🇬🇧
Should change name to "British Firefly ambushes King Tiger" This is by no means a duel, the cologne battles were duels, not this... The tiger didn't even know what shot it.
503 was not an SS unit - 101 & 102 were. Obviously, the KT did not see the Firefly, as he should not have presented the thinner side armour. British lost 400 tanks at Goodwood. RIP heroes of the Commonwealth.
The '400 tanks' claim is an error in the original report which double-counted losses on 18th and 19th. Whilst there may have been 250+ tank casualties total losses were circa 100-150.
Nowhere near that number were lost, as it turned out, and many that were knocked out were later recovered and repaired. However, the German losses in the campaign as a whole were catastrophic.
Question - How does the British system of classifying ammunition work? For instance, in this video they mention a 17 pounder. Does that mean the whole artillery round weighs 17 pounds, or the warhead?
It's the weight of the projectile. The standard Armour Piercing, Capped, Ballistic Capped (APCBC) shell fired a 17lb projectile and the whole round weighed 37lbs. Mind you, the weight of the projectile did vary. The Armoured Piercing Depleting Sabot (APDS) round only had a projectile weight of just over 7lbs, albeit fired at a much higher velocity (about 1000fps more than APCBC) to get higher penetration.
A spherical steel ball approximately 76mm would weigh 17lbs. British cannon, even muzzleloading types, used the same nomenclature. Another example is shotgun ammunition, 12 lead balls in the diameter of a 12 bore shotgun weigh one pound, 10 balls= 1 pound hence, 10 bore. It's an old system pertaining to bore diameter.
Notice in the description the report called it a 17lb Sherman, not a firefly. My dad drove shermans up through Italy and then Belgium and Holland. We talked of the 17lb Sherman he never used the term firefly. He talked of how they would not have on lead because the Germans specifically targeted 17lb Shermans. I suspect it may have been oficially called a firefly but the term was not used by soldiers in the war. It is pretty much always used by those describing the war after the fact.
Imagine you are in a tank that you think is top-notch and the enemy will piss their pants when they see you only to see two of your almost invunerable tanks get blown up one after the other. No surprise they better called it a day
Good story, thanks for making a video out of it. The King Tiger also did not have a stellar debut in the Eastern Front - the first few were knocked out in an ambush by Russian T-34/85s who also mistook the new tank as "Panthers".
@@r.j.dunnill1465 that loss in Russia was down to the German crews rushed into combat on a tank they had not had proper time to train on. I recall the Tiger 2s were deployed in muddy ground with no Inf support or RECCE, the T34s were hidden in ambush and waited until the last save moment to fire to maximize chance of Pen the side armour.
A worn barrel could have set out the second tank when they tried to fire. The high velocity rounds wore the barrels and had to be changed frequently. This is why they went to a two piece. The round could have went off inside the barrel where the two came together. Just a theory and I may be way off.
For all the firefly fanboys out there. There's a interview with a real firefly tanker floating around. They had massive problems. The long and short due to how the gun had to be mounted it was impossible to fight after 3 rounds due to gases in the turret, he said "you could always tell a firefly crew on parade, they had no hair below the beret line, all scorched off '.
Sherman 76 crews had bigger problems. Next to impossible to frontally take out Tigers, Panthers, Jagdpanthers and Jagdpanzer IVs at anything beyond suicidal close ranges.
Great little piece of history. It takes some serious skills to stalk a tank in another tank I'd assume- particularly as the "prey" was part of an armoured attack- one would asume that he had friends nearby to watch his flanks. I wonder if the second Tiger II lost was a result of freindly fire? If no one on the British side claimed it, then makes sense that a stray 88 round could have done the job.
@@michaelkenny8540 sorry, maybe I wasn't clear. I fully believe that the engagement happened as described and the Firefly killed the Tiger II. But the story also mentioned a second Tiger II killed during the battle that no one claimed to have killed. I find it more likely that a stray 88 from a close by friendly tank took it out than various 75 mm and 17 pounder shots from Shermans directly in front. Especially when no British gunner claimed to have killed another one.
@@jevans80 I have looked at many air photos of that field and I can not see any wrecks. Whilst it is possible 1 wreck was there I think it highly unlikely there were 2 TII wrecks in that field. For certain the 2 photos used in the film and claimed to be the victim of a Firefly are of a Tiger II that was destroyed 1.3 km to the south. The wreck was not knocked out by a Firefly. In case you don't know the TII rammed by Gorman just east of Cagny has German apologists claiming it was hit by friendly fire and the two Tiger I that were knocked out NW of Cagny are also claimed to be friendly fire victims. There is an automatic reflex action to ascribe every Tiger loss to friendly fire.
@@michaelkenny8540 Thanks for explaining, I was just going off what was said in the video- I haven't got any further knowledge about the battle. Will have to look into it more, all the small battles are equally as important as the overall picture- I love reading the memoirs of those who served. German equipment was impressive, but to suggest that even a Tiger II could only be beaten by another Tiger II doesn't bear with the reality. And does a disservice to a lot of allied servicemen.
@Michael Kenny, the two photos of the King Tiger featured in the video are confirmed to have been the Tiger knocked out by the Firefly. Wolfgang Schneider, who has written extensively on Tigers in the Second World War, states so and actually identifies the tank as being King Tiger 101. Author Ian Daglish also created an interesting Then and Now of the wreck in the field shown in the video, which can be found in his 'Battleground Europe: Operation Goodwood' book. With regards to aerial photos, Ian Daglish has published a set in his 'Over the Battlefield: Operation Goowood' book, in which you can see the eight King Tigers advancing through the field. Unfortunately, the aerial photos are not of the highest quality, but you are still able to identify each individual King Tiger, including the one that became stuck in the crater early on into the counter-attack.
Obviously no way to know now, but if the commander had known it was a Tiger or King Tiger would he have been so aggressive? Thinking it was a Panther maybe made him more bold.
The TII shown at 4:20 is west of Guillerville ( to the right of the last 'e' of Manneville on air view at 3:45) and not in the field north of Manneville. It is shown in the post-bombing survey of the tank wrecks and there is no doubt of its location.
Marrying the 17 pounder to the Sherman was considered impossible by the Americans and convinced the War Office of this, but they were unaware that the Australians in developing their own tank were well on their way to achieving just that. A British Officer on secondment to the Australians was aware of this and on his return to the UK, he eventually met up with the designers in the UK that had been working on the idea [ I can't remember the exact sequence of events that led to this ] . One of the design team came up with a revised design [ making allowances for the length of the 17 pounders recoil ] over a weekend I believe, and history was made . The Australian " involvement " is here on RUclips somewhere. cheers.
Boscawen's book is a good read. He touches on something not often mentioned - the increasingly poor morale of British troops after November 1944 and the increasing shortage of trained fighting men, particularly infantry, by that stage of the war. This wasn't a uniquely British problem - American commanders complained bitterly about the number and quality of replacements arriving from the US and the Germans had nearly run out of barrels to scrape. British morale was also hammered by the likelihood that once Germany was defeated (an outcome obvious by this time), units would simply transfer to the Pacific to fight the Japanese. Some British infantry divisions had had a gruelling marathon. Gen. Thomas' 43rd Wessex Division had been in the thick of it right from Normandy - including a real mauling in (and after) Market-Garden and they fought right through to Germany's surrender vis Bremen, Hamburg, etc.
I suspect much of the 'poor morale' was simply due to most allied soldiers in the West knew by late 1944 that they were going to win so caution crept in as no point in dying when the end was in sight.
Indeed. The British 2nd Army was becoming chronically short of trained infantry by early 1945. It was a long war for Britain. Some units had been fighting continuously since 1941. The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry had fought long and hard in virtually every major engagement of the 8th Army in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia prior to going to Normandy.
People often make a big deal out of the low average age of American draftees in Vietnam. But in the spring of 1945 many of the replacements for units in Europe were coming straight out of high school. It's amazing the British still had any manpower left by the same time period.
He's mentioned before that he wasn't happy with the quality of some of his earlier videos so he took them down. He's been reuploading them, presumably after fixing them.
Allied soldiers regularly mistook Panters for Tigers. They were like the boogeyman, they saw them everywhere even when none were around. I love the fact that these guys erred in the other direction and knocked out a _King_ Tiger thinking it was a Panther. First time I heard of that happening. RIP, Lieutenant Lock.
Sounds like what Peter Townsend christened "Spitfire snobbery". Luftwaffe pilots brought down by a Hurricane would often claim they had been victims of a Spitfire, even in theatres where no Spits had been deployed. In fact, Hurricanes in the BoB brought down more enemy aircraft than any other fighter. Two points there, there were more Hurricanes than any other fighter and Hurricanes did not stick to attacking bombers. As one veteran put it, "theory is, all very well, but after the first pass there was total confusion. You shot at whatever was in front of you."
@@TheArgieHYes, most people don't go into depth. Spitfires against escorting fighters, Hurricanes against bombers was just the standard opening move when you had both types meeting an attack by escorted bombers. After that everyone is reacting to the other side reacting to them reacting to them ...
@@thetooner8203 Thanks, the other key factor in keeping the numbers up was you could repair a BoB Hurricane with a wooden peg and a mallet, plus a patch of linen and a dab of dope (provided nothing key had been hit, and the steel tube frame was intact). Spitfire's monocoque took rather more TLC. A humorous aside in the same vein. The Fiesler Fi 187? torpedo bomber biplanes (wonder where they got that idea) were sold off to Romania when it was decided that Graf Zeppelin the carrier was not going into service. They were used as general cooperation aircraft and allegedly one actually shot down an over confident P 51, I always, have wondered what the Mustang pilot claimed downed him.
The 17 pounder gun was the most powerful anti-tank gun on the battlefield even better than the dreaded 88mm. The Germans had far more powerful tanks but were still defeated by the allied tanks. It's easy to win when you have superior tanks and not enough credit is given to the allied tankers for overcoming the German tanks.
It goes to show the chaotic operational conditions in these battles, and how expectations and fears manifested as misidentifications,: King Tigers seen as Panthers while it seems that for the most part Tiger 1 reports were in fact Panzer IVs.
They do look a lot alike. Maybe not beside each other, but from 2000 yards, through smoke, rubble and vision suits or periscopes I would not be critical of mistaking a Mark III or IV for a Tiger I or a Tiger II for a Panther.
At least this one was examined and confirmed after it was knocked out. But yes, what you say is true. On his Military History Visualized channel the host, Bismarck, details how few King Tigers were in Western Europe at this time. He researched this from German records.
If only the French had used their tanks properly - French armour was the best of the lot in 1940. If you read the war diaries of some of the French junior officers, they're truly tragic and pathetic. A major's unit ordered to move every 6 hours, each time to positions more and more irrelevant to the battle and finally, the astonishing order to TORCH operational but unused tanks using their plentiful gasoline supply. French officers (up to Battalion level) were left both furious and ashamed - and with a burning hatred of their High Command. The best recruiting poster for de Gaulle's FFI imaginable. The causes of the 1940 collapse of the best equipped, most militarily powerful country in Europe (in fact, the second most powerful in the world) are really, really complex. If your knowledge is limited to jokes about white flags and cheese, you're missing out on really important history relevant to today. Nazi Germany didn't defeat France. FRANCE defeated France.
This is an interesting comment, it would probably make for an interesting debate. The scale of the impact of more capable tanks, still employed as they were in the fighting, would be really interesting to know. Probably quite uncomfortable to revisionist history as well. I would guess the impact would be negligible without the numbers and tactics of the later war. Of course if they had more capable vehicles *as* *well* as the above the BEF would have a decisive advantage whatever the strategic situation.
Hi everyone, just a point of correction - the 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion, which I mention at 2:10, was not an S.S. unit, but a regular German Army unit. This is a fact that I overlooked during my research, so I do apologize. Thank you to those viewers who correctly pointed this out!
I always wonder if you know that every veteran gets a chill when the radio crackles at the start of each of your videos. The adrenaline rush that accompanies it is both exciting and surreal.
It is O.K , We learn by our Mistakes . And we learned again by your Correction . Thank you for the Video .
Well they dressed up like SS.
@@givenfirstnamefamilyfirstn3935 a black uniform doth not an SS man make
Kudos for your front page correction. You have more integrity than many media outlets!
In the movie "Kelly's Heroes" Oddball told Kelly that they placed drainpipes over their gun barrels to make them look bigger - in actual fact the Firefly crews used to paint the ends of their long barrels a lighter shade to 'counter-shade' and make them look shorter. The Germans had learnt by then that the Fireflys were the most dangerous tanks facing them and would target them first if they got the chance! (One Canadian Firefly actually stuck a fake barrel out the back of the turret so the Germans wouldn't be sure which way it was pointing! Bit excessive but there you go!)
These are really bad optics and I can see this happening. Ever fired a 17 pounder> I have. Not inside a Turret though. Round after Round then more Round after round! The hours of waiting then seconds of stark Terror!
He died so close to the end of the war. The fact he was wounded twice shows how much fighting those final months saw.
Indeed. Some people seem to behave as though the war ended with the Battle of the Bulge. Many months of hard fighting, in some cases some of the fiercest yet in the West, took place in 1945 in the final months of the war. Some of those battles were just a crucial as the ones preceding them.
@@garyhill2740
Not really. The war was already lost.
The Germans just hadn't given up yet, because their fearless leader hiding in a bunker, wanted them to fight to the death.
Juli 1944: close to the end of the war? It ended in Europe in may 1945 stupid.
I believe that the month of April 1945 more than 10,000 allied soldiers died making it one of the bloodiest months of the war.
@@mmoffenbierAlbeit darkly in comparison, that number of casualties was a regular Tuesday afternoon in the Eastern front
"He gave his life that others might live in peace. It shall not be forgotten." Sadly, many have forgotten. And worse, they do not care.
And even worse try to re-write the events to suit a pro German agenda.
Yes today most people seem content to live in peace under the jackboot conditions of globalist fascist tyranny on a scale way beyond anything Hitler could have dreamed of
Its sad but true. I have seen a bunch of people in my secondary school do Hitler salute's and Swastika's drawn on tables and joking about Stalin killing a lot of people. Wish people could just have at least some respect in them
😂😂😂😂😂🤪
@@abstract0014 Don't over think it, they are just kids pushing boundaries. They'll grow up, after a fashion, soon enough.
Rest In Peace, Lt. Malcolm Lock.
As an American, I'm glad you guys were on our side.
We were on their side in this one. Americans didn't want anything to do with another war in Europa. The brother wars definitely took it's toll on Europeans.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc For sure that. There's a RUclips I saw that pin points all the known battles fought through out history that are listed on wiki. The European land mass is almost blotted out compared to anywere else. Another vid shows the changes in the world map vis-a-vis borderlines. Again, Europe is like a jigsaw puzzle over the centuries, compared to all other areas.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc "Americans didn't want anything to do with another war in Europa..." SOME (isolationist) Americans didn't want anything to do with war in Europe. A small majority - led by people like Charles Lindbergh, Joseph Kennedy and the America First movement. A SMALL majority. But, after Pearl Harbor and Hitler's declaration of war on the US, American participation became obligatory. America joined the British-Soviet Alliance because the mutual objectives of that Alliance - the defeat of Hitler's Germany - coincided. If you believe the USA joined the war to rescue anybody or "'cos freedom...", your history knowledge is still at kindergarten level.
@@alastairbarkley6572 Oh, I know exactly what it was about. That's why I can't say it on this platform without it being deleted immediately. We are living the results of our part in the "big win" in Europa now.
Americans wanted the war so bad that US government had to force Japan's hand and then not even warn Pearl Harbor that the attack was coming.
US government was already at war with Germany by supplying it's enemies with hundreds of thousands of pieces of military equipment Many of those went directly to communists who would have been defeated without them. 14,000 tanks and 8,000 aircraft went to butchers in the USSR. It's sick. 400,000 trucks and pieces of equipment.
Even Stalin said they couldn't have survived the onslaught without all that equipment.
@@MikeBrown-go1pc Ummm... You do know the US required the UK to pay cash on the nail for war supplies until its gold reserves were gone. The US then issued loans/ IOUs which took until this century to pay back. It was a consequence of legislation demanding neutrality. Lease, Lend came later in the war. Some US politicians were quite clear that they were not going to prop up the British Empire.
The UK also ceded territory and bases in exchange for 50 clapped out WWI 4 stacker destroyers. They were needed for convoy escorts and had some boilers removed in the UK to add extra bunkerage for extra range in the North Atlantic.
This is not to say the supplies weren't essential to the UK's war effort, they certainly were, especially the high octane fuel for the RAF.
That's got to be one of the best produced 'Liveth for Evermore' videos so far. Lots of great detail, well narrated and a fitting tribute to a brave officer. Great work
Thank you for sharing and showing the bravery of our allied tankers who were all young men in their early twenties, fighting against an enemy who we are always led to believe had the superior kit, yet our guys extracted the best out of the allied tanks some of the stories are legendary everyone of them a hero for freedom, may they never be forgotten.
Hear hear.
Though the Firefly's gun could punch through pretty much any German armour at all but the longest range...
Thanks for Firefly vs Tiger encounter vlog. A fav subject. Salute to Sherman crews
My father was at cagny too with the 5th battalion CSG. Me and my brother took him back there in 1976 to the farm house they attacked, just across the railway lines. Was a moving moment for me and my bro.
Interesting story, but whilst the Firefly undoubtedly packed a bigger punch than the standard 75mm gun, the 'standard' Shermans were more than capable of taking out Tigers with the right tactics. The 75mm had a much faster rate of fire than German tanks, it was the only tank with a gyro stabiliser for accurate shooting on the move and the HE shells could be set to delay so you could fire a HE shell through a wall for example and it would explode inside the building. The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry, who saw more action than any other armoured regiment in WW2, first in North Africa and then in Europe, learnt the hard way how to knock out German tanks in the close Normandy countryside. Basically they put down a phenomenal amount of fire on any enemy tank, forcing the crew to close up and rely on their periscopes for visibility. They would also 'brass up' any suspected infantry position with MG fire, forcing the Germans to return fire and reveal their location; they never moved without a round of AP 'up the spout'. For example on 26 June in Fontenay, A Squadron OC, John Semken found himself face to face with a Tiger Tank, only 120 yards apart. Semken fired immediately and in the space of 30 seconds his tank hit the Tiger 10 times. Although the Tiger only suffered superficial damage, the periscopes were all smashed and, with the weight of fire on them, the Tiger's crew bailed out. The SRY's crews were also adept at stalking German tanks and no-one was a greater exponent than Sgt, George Dring MM. That same day, in the advance on Rauray, George Dring destroyed a Panzer IV, a Tiger (crew bailed out), another Panzer IV and then a second Tiger, which he brewed up. Finally, as it was getting dark, he destroyed another Panzer IV at 1,200 yards with an AP round from his 75mm. The SRY didn't receive any Fireflys until late July. On Tuesday 1 August, during the battle for Point 361, George Dring with his 75mm destroyed a Jagdpanther and another Tiger which he stalked on foot and then moved his Sherman into position to engage. If you want to know more about the SRY, then I recommend 'An Englishman at War', 'Tank Action' and 'Brothers in Arms'. The SRY won more battle honours and more awards than any other Regiment in the British Army in WW2, and consequently they also had more soldiers killed and wounded than any other armoured regiment.
I read By Tank into Normandy, SRY book, and Dring and Semken are mentioned.
Stuart Hills I think was the author.
You are quite correct in everything you said sir.👏
Good tactics.
I always thought there was a way to cook a tiger, and now find out they were getting "Dringed".
@@Mark-vq5dz You are right. It is Stuart Mills and it is a fantastic book. They were some regiment.
@@Mark-vq5dz If you enjoyed Stuart Hill's book, then I recommend Tank Action, by David Render and Stuart Tootal. David and Stuart Hill were contemporary Troop leaders, both joined the SRY around D-Day. David's book is a little more 'warts and all'.
@@justincharlton-jones4787 Duly noted, I'm currently reading With the Jocks, about the Kings Own Scottish Borderes, fantastic read
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM. Thank you for this excellent informative video
Until we are gone ourselves, future generations are taught to never know so it can be repeated.
That seventeen-pounder British cannon really did level the playing field to some extent, at last, we had a gun capable of destroying any German tank on the battlefield. Those soldiers were so brave, we owe our freedom to them and of course our American and Russian allies.
Not ANY german tank, but 17pdr was a great AT Gun
@@meisterdestoasts1574yes, ANY German tank. It’s a fact.
@@meisterdestoasts1574yes any German armor. 256mm of apcr pen at 500 meters. 163mm of pen for its basic ap at 500 meters. Not even a tiger 2’s armor can withstand frontally. The 17 pounder is an anti aircraft gun so no shit it’s capable of cutting through even a tiger 2.
Russian allies. Now that is pure ignorance.
@@Raidernation1994i think you meant anti tank gun
My grandfather joined REME on the day it was formed and maintained the Guards Division Sherman Fireflies whilst they were in training in England, it was emotional watching this video thinking that these were the tanks that he had prepared for war. Thanks for the video.
Awesome video BTW!!!! Thanks for producing
As always;👍🏻
Love from the Lowlands🇳🇱
I absolutely love the story of the Firefly. Talk about innovative solutions, how about those Brits. Such as Major George Brighty, Lieutenant Colonel George Witheridge and Vickers engineer W.G.K. Kilbourn, these brilliant minds that took what was an idea for the Sherman platform and turned it into a Panther and Tiger killer. These men were not messing around when it came to the determination it took to potentially turn the tide of war on the battlefield. With German armor being what it was and the guns implemented into the Sherman’s turret that were falling so short at the time, that Ordnance QF 17-pounder turned out to be the hand of God. And the crews that manned these tanks were larger than life. Rest easy Lieutenant Lock, you’ll always be remembered.
Only wish they had the firefly or 17pounder in 1942.
@@desoneill5563 yeah,my mum and dad tells me about rationing..and the big sad when sweets weren't anymore..
@@roybennett9284 Or at Dunkirk even, a few hundred of those Fireflys would have thrown back the German armour.
@@Bullet-Tooth-Tony- I'd just be happy with some mark 2 Matilda's.. apparently there were only about 50 in France at the time of the battle of France...the two pounder was good enough,and amour like a tiger tank.
@@roybennett9284 You know rationing in Britain by the end of the war had made the population the healthiest it had ever been it makes sense.
One of my British uncles was a Coldstream Guard. Just subscribed!
My Uncle Jim Grant was with the 7th Armoured all through Africa, Italy and then into Normandy. He ended up in Hamburg.
He came back a broken man with a terrible temper.
Truly the greatest generation.
Another great video. This is my favorite channel.
Thanks for the work.
The British Army doesn't get enough credit for the amount of damage and work that they did in beating the Germans, RIP Lt Lock. 🇬🇧
Very true, the Brits and Canadians absorbed so much of the best the Germans had to offer in order for the right hook to be delivered by Patton.
@@Mark-vq5dz your correct, the British and Canadians fought the Germans best SS Troops and lost a lot of good Men in the process so I personally would like to see them get the appreciation that they deserve.
@@TheGrowler55 Exactly, people just jump on the 'Monty was a completely shit general' bandwagon.
It does a disservice to those boys from Canada, UK , and many Americans too who faced up to 12th SS Panzer etc, and the majority of their heavy tank forces.
The decision for the British, Canadian and Polish armour to deliberately take on the SS Panzers and Tigers around Caen was made to pull in the more experienced crews in heavier German armour into that area and allow Bradley's armour to make faster speed around from the West and South.
At no time in that campaign did the US Army face any Tigers let alone King Tigers. It did not sit well with the British when the Americans complained about how long it took to take Caen and move forward.
Montgomery's plan was to create a pocket where almost the entire German Army in Northern France was encircled with the final closure at Falaise. Sadly Bradley failed to close the Southern jaw of the trap despite Polish armour gaining the hill above Falaise. Thousands of Germans escaped but even so the plan resulted in the destruction of most of Army Group B west of the Seine with over 50,000 Germans captured. It must have been a living hell inside that trap. I do not make excuses for them nor have any sympathy. Just stating a cruel fact.
@@1chish Spot on
Boscawens book, armoured guardsman, is an excellent read....he himself was badly burned late in the war
He died so close to the end of the war. What a tragedy!
I had a great-uncle who also died very close to the war end on April 23rd 1945. He was an American Soldier captured at the Battle of the Bulge. He was sent to Stalag 9B. Shortly thereafter the SS came to visit looking for Jewish soldiers.
They found my great-uncle and sent him to a death camp called Berga where he was murdered. He was a 21 year old boy at his death, an aspiring engineer.
This story is documented in a book written by Rodger Cohen called "Soldiers and Slaves."
Respect to him and to you
Nazis were giant jackass even all the way to the end.
Keep up the good work for us history buffs!
Enjoy the holidays!
👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿🇬🇧
Excellent Excellent well done that is the best and most unseen film I have seen of the Firefly bonus film of a destroyed Royal Tiger with a Porsche turret looking forward to more videos
I am humbled.
We owe these folks so much.
I think of these men, much younger than me
Ready to sacrifice everything to make the world a safer place.
I have the upmost respect for the Allied tank crews that faced down the German Panzers. It must have been the most intense moments of their lives
Amen to that, I bet it was absolutely terrifying
@@alexwright9875 Speaking of Amen, I’ll bet a lot of them were praying at the time. They were braver then I’ll ever be.
No shit!
At least shermans had very good cre survivability for when they did get hit
@@snugglecity3500 the majority of the German tanks had thicker and sloped armour so were a lot better protected than most allied tanks and their 88mm canon was probably the deadliest during WWII
Any tank crew that went head to head with any tank that had the 88 mm gun has got the utmost respect and admiration from me
actually the 17 pounder had better penetration than the 88, but i would not want to be there
Thank you for the story. These men must never be forgotten: brave, unselfish they gave their lives for our freedom. We must respect and applaud their sacrifice.
Robert Boscawen (01:33) was severely wounded at Enschede trying to capture a bridge over the Twenthe Canal on the 1st of April 1945. Boscawen and his driver (Bland) were the only ones of his tank crew to survive.
Guardsman H.T. Bradbury
Guardsman F.J. Wright
Guardsman L. Hanson
L.CPL R. J. Wilson
Serjeant R. Caulfield
Must be bloody hard to have a six foot four guards man into a tank!
The surname Boscawen aroused my curiosity. It turns out to be Cornish in origin. Oh and the 17 Pounder was a heck of a gun.
Excellent production..Drew me in completely...The pace and coherence engaged my imagination's ability to picture the events, ...to grasp the somberness of it all, while still perceiving greatly the action, excitement, fear, determination, and the scale of the allied attack. The marvel that was the King Tiger II, it's imposing engineering and potential, yet you can imagine the futility that the nazi forces began to experience, as the Allied assault manifested itself daily. "The commander's King Tiger fell into a bomb crater and became irretrievable ", sort of sums up the war in microcosm
Great video!
Thank you LFE for the Battle . I have never seen the photo of the Tigers in Manneville Forest before . Most King TigerII's in one spot apart from the propaganda movie reel shot of a Battalion of SS TigerII 's all parked in a field
There was a former tank crew member of a britsh Firefly that said given the choice he would of preferred to have a Tiger. LOL Great historical narrative, thanks!
Of course he would have, same goes for the other way around I guarantee it.
Thanks... my dad was deafened by a Tiger 2 tank in WW2.. cheers from NZ👍🇳🇿
Shame he died so close to the end of the war in Europa. Wonder if he ever knew his was the first crew to knock out a Tiger II
The first crew to knock out a Tiger II on the Western Front...
The Red Army had done this before on Eastern Front...
@@ULTRA_2112 not from what I’ve researched. I’d like to see your sources. The first co,bat use of the tiger 2 on the eastern front was on The 12th of August ‘44, almost an entire month after this engagement
@@ULTRA_2112 I'd love to read the history on that if you happen to have it handy
Particularly with only a single round
@@ULTRA_2112 do u realise that the tiger 2 was first deployed during the normandy campaign so your statement is utterly false...
11/11/22 is coming up. My dad died 11/11/21 (really - bladder cancer). He was 79, and a chief on diesel submarines in the Royal Navy. I occasionally go to our war memorial in Plymouth (a large port). Remember some of those lads were in their teens. Just boys. But utterly professional, brave. And always missed. xx Hello Boys.
The 17lbr gun was the one western gun the german armour actually feared. They pulled their tanks out of the fighting around Oosterbeek at arnhem when they found they faced the 17lbr guns...which saved the 1st Airborne from being overrun.
In the south everything was a "Tiger" to the Americans but in in Classic British understatement they were merely Panthers.
Nothing mere about a Panther!
Great video again, Rest easy to the lads who didn't make it. Goodwood saw some nasty loss of tanks for sure but what gets me was how quickly many of the RTR got there Sherman back or new ones days later or right after. Also reading the account of Von Rosen (503rd Schwere Panzer Abteilung) is intresting his tigers got bombed very badly indeed on the 18th July. It was so bad mutiple tigers were flipped and Von Rosen says he nearly went insane, he clearly snapped mentally in the bombardment. Also what do you think of Dalglish's (very good author, RIP to him aswell i heard he died in a plane crash) discussion on the "missing 88s" of Hans Von Luck claimed he threatened with a pistol.
Daglish's 'Over the Battlefield' books are definitely some of my favourites that cover the Normandy campaign, especially for their detail and unique aerial photographs.
With regards to the missing 88s at Cagny, I haven't read too much into that topic, although I did briefly come across it a few months ago whilst researching an engagement involving a Sherman Firefly. There's a medal citation held by the National Archives which states that a Firefly knocked out a Tiger tank just North of Cagny. However, most books that cover Goodwood credit the Cagny 88s with knocking out the Tiger in a friendly fire incident, with no mention of a Firefly. If I recall correctly, the Firefly belonged to the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards.
I knew Robert Boscawen, he was my MP for some years, he was terribly scarred by burns.
What a smart crew and what great shot placement. Snuck to their side and fired right underneath the Turret, where ammo is stored along the inside wall. Seems like that shell went directly into the ammo (and most likely shrapneled even more) causing it to cook off. The King Tiger is a scary opponent, but these guys new exactly what to do. And it worked well. Rest in Peace to all of those lost during this massive conflict. For they were just Pawns in a much larger game being played.
I don't think they were intentionally trying to hit the ammo rack, my guess is the gunner simply aimed for the side of the hull because it's a bigger and easier target than the turret and the tiger's ammo storage just happened to be there
They were treating it as a Panther and the ammo is in the same location on the sides, I think it was an aimed panther kill that worked on a Tiger II P
I mean, it could've penatrated it from any side.......but yeah regardless, great work from the crew. What I mean when I say it could've penatrated it from any side. Regardless if they were shooting the front the crew would've turned into mush from the shrapnel.
Destroying enemy tanks from the flanks is a common occurrence, as they did everywhere and always. There is nothing special about it
@@tacos_with_sauce8887 Show me a photo of Tiger 2, penetrated in front by a Sherman
who else on this earth could have been steadfast in the face of such an onslaught?
Thank you Great Britain.
-------------------------------------------------------
The Russians and Australians stand on the same platform along with others mentioned by contributing comments below.
Thankyou for the kind words , my Great Grandfather died in Italy after fighting through North Africa. You Yanks are damn tough yourselves and stood firm also. I pray our 2 nations remain close and always support the other in times of need.
Germans / Russians . Certainly not Italians
@@jackd1582 Itally was in a sort of civil war dominated by the right wing until they flipped on Hitler and then had something to fight for.
Many Italian units served valiantly.
@@wisconsinfarmer4742 their underwater units . But kinda fighting some other country's war most of the time
Thank you for your very interesting and varied content.
1st class ...thanks for sharing
503 s.Pz.abt. in Normandy was a Heer (German Army) unit, not a Waffen-SS one. The one you are referring to - 103rd SS s.Pz.abt. was at the eastern front at that time and it got renamed to 503 SS s.Pz.abt. on 14th November 1944. From that date there were two 503rd heavy tank battalions the army and the SS one, but not earlier. Confusing, I know.
True, i didnt notice that good spot. Most of the 503rd was normal Tiger I and one company (3. Kompanie) was the new king tiger's. It's crazy only a few tigers made it out of france most being abandoned to battle damage or no fuel etc.
@@Invicta556 1st Company SpzAbt 503 started Normandy cpaign with Tiger II's. 3rd Company was reequipped after goodwood at Mailly le Camp. The pics in Paris , Manneville and on range all show third company.
@@allendail9562 cheers, forgive the info mix up. Just posted from top of my head and i think 3. Kompanie was Von Rosens. Best book i got on Tigers in france is Wolfgang Schnieder "Tigers in Normandy".
a neat lecture at washington war college is up here,( nick moran the irish/american guy,(several he did in tours of battle middle eastern towns during their troubles)
considerations for sending M4 shermans is the numbers they made and shipped,were .weight,many more could be parked in ocean freighter compartments,warehouse sized they were,, as these were easy to repair,,,a motor could be lifted out and replaced in a couple hours,,more spare parts supplies of food medicine tools and small arms could go with them each. another couple reasons were width and weight,
European bridges were mostly as wide still as a horse drawn carriage,easily fitting an M4 in passing them , vs heavier and wider tanks ,, they could not,
Shermans designed purpose was suppression of semi hardened enemy battle positions ,using houses roofs barns and basements as concealment.These were not meant for use as MBTs,,war records show in numbers that the M 4 served its intended purpose well,,,lastly,the M4 had better speed than any german tank they faced,
Interesting story and a touching tribute. As to the Sherman Firefly kill of the King Tiger, I have to admit that I'm surprised. I didn't think the 17-Pounder would penetrate that much armor. It has me wondering if perhaps German steel was becoming inferior later in the war. But in any case, a very interesting piece of history. Thanks.
The side armour of a Tiger II (38mm) was able to be penetrated easily enough and not just by the 17-pounder.
The 17 Pounder was a very effective anti tank gun. Much more effective than the regular US Sherman's gun
@@Slaktrax IIRC the upper hull and turret side was 80mm and angled. I have the specs somewhere.
The 17-pounder was only as good as the kwk36 l/56 on the tiger 1 and at the ranges they fought in the last 6 or so months they good easily take out a king tiger. However the kwk43 l/71 was the best tank/antitank gun of the war. It could take out any allied tank at 2000 + mts . It was far better than the 90 mm american and 122mm russian. But fighting in the towns and citys in europe it was of no use.
No mention of the armor-piercing discarding sabot (APDS) round available to Firefly crews.
It's interesting to hear that the Tiger crews' self-belief and sense of invulnerability was broken by the loss of just two tanks. I guess anyone would think of themselves as kings of the battlefield when sitting in a King Tiger, but that delusion was swiftly broken.
I think the damage taken by the bombing prior to the operation may have dropped the morale already.
At the general engagement ranges throughout the mid-and late war periods, Tigers were generally able to survive most AT fire. Standard tactic was for them to drive straight into an enemy attack, under covering fire from either other tigers or their accompanying tank destroyers, as each of the tiger battalions consisted of a company of tigers and a company of 'heavy' tank destroyers. The QF 17lbr of the Brits changed that, and the heavy tank battalions tended to take a supporting role, rather than leading attacks against brit forces...which was very apparent at Arnhem/Oosterbeek once it was discovered that Brit 1st Airborne had deployed 17lbrs via glider (which was a real shock to the germans). Although US commentators generally don't like to admit it, the germans didn't have any great concern regarding the US 76mm gun, whereas they had a significant fear of the 17lbr. It was their bogeyman, similar to the Tiger fear of the western allies.
Their great ace of the eastern front, Whitman, was killed quickly in Normandy.
@@Gungho1a - I didn’t know that, so thanks for posting.
@@rogersmith7396 - yes he was. He had had great success at Villers Bocage where he showed initiative and courage, but the Canadians and British finally destroyed his troop in an ambush in August that year.
The standard A4 Sherman design was never engineered to go toe to toe against German armor. It was an infantry support weapons system whose relatively low velocity 75mn main gun was optimized to knock out enemy machine gun nests and pillboxes.
By contrast, the Hellcat tank destroyer was purpose built to fulfill the role its name suggests.
The M4 was less infact designed to kill German tanks, wich it could do farely well with even the 75.
The M4 was infact designed to kill German tanks, wich it could do farely well with even the 75.
Bravest of the brave and we will remember them🇬🇧
Yes, you would have been just as brave if called on.
So that answers my question as too whether a firefly was capable of taking out King Tigers.
R.I.P LT Lock
Even a Sherman 75mm could take out a King Tiger from the side too, if it got close enough.
This is a very well-done video!!
Great video thank you
And Boscawen is stressed on the caw - Bos-caw-wen. It is a Cornish name. Boscawen is likely a village in Cornwall where their name comes from. Like Boscastle, or Bosvena (now Bodmin).
Very informative and nicely narrated
An interesting piece of history, thank-you.
As far as I'm aware, Schwere Panzer-Abteilung 503 were Heer, not SS - that does not detract from the achievement of knocking out the King Tiger.
Whoops, sorry, just seen your pinned note.
I worked with an old Tankman in the 1950's . He told me of the time in N.Africa when as a tank commander, last in a line of six. Emerging from behind dunes the first five all brewed up , he smartly reversed back and got away. A butcher from Southend Essex , he was always happy, never saw him morose .
I see the ever open eye of the Guards Armoured. I was in the 4th Guards Armoured disbandment parade in Münster in 1976/7
excellent video. the background music wasn't too loud , but tasteful, Well done..
@liveth I’m from uk and just wondering if you’ve ever been to the tank museum near Lincolnshire. Or have you been to Duxford air show back in the day?🙏🇬🇧
A firefly's 17pounder would penetrate a Royal Tiger all bar the front, an at a decent range.
My Gramps told me the 17 pounders could hammer hard! One shot kill of a king tiger!
Awesome.
Dude it was a side shot head on it stood no Chance
Should change name to "British Firefly ambushes King Tiger" This is by no means a duel, the cologne battles were duels, not this... The tiger didn't even know what shot it.
503 was not an SS unit - 101 & 102 were. Obviously, the KT did not see the Firefly, as he should not have presented the thinner side armour. British lost 400 tanks at Goodwood. RIP heroes of the Commonwealth.
The '400 tanks' claim is an error in the original report which double-counted losses on 18th and 19th. Whilst there may have been 250+ tank casualties total losses were circa 100-150.
The Germas had between 600 and 650 tanks at Caen, They lost about 550
@@michaelkenny8540 Most of the British tanks were also put back into action, something that gets left out.
Nowhere near that number were lost, as it turned out, and many that were knocked out were later recovered and repaired. However, the German losses in the campaign as a whole were catastrophic.
@@ivorbiggun710 I agree, it was far more costly for the Germans
Nice Video Sir, thank you for sharing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey I remember! This engagement is the last mission of the British campaign in COH 1.
Question - How does the British system of classifying ammunition work? For instance, in this video they mention a 17 pounder. Does that mean the whole artillery round weighs 17 pounds, or the warhead?
It's the weight of the warhead I believe
It's the weight of the projectile. The standard Armour Piercing, Capped, Ballistic Capped (APCBC) shell fired a 17lb projectile and the whole round weighed 37lbs. Mind you, the weight of the projectile did vary. The Armoured Piercing Depleting Sabot (APDS) round only had a projectile weight of just over 7lbs, albeit fired at a much higher velocity (about 1000fps more than APCBC) to get higher penetration.
Thank you Gareth and Kutter for answering my question.
A spherical steel ball approximately 76mm would weigh 17lbs. British cannon, even muzzleloading types, used the same nomenclature. Another example is shotgun ammunition, 12 lead balls in the diameter of a 12 bore shotgun weigh one pound, 10 balls= 1 pound hence, 10 bore. It's an old system pertaining to bore diameter.
Notice in the description the report called it a 17lb Sherman, not a firefly. My dad drove shermans up through Italy and then Belgium and Holland. We talked of the 17lb Sherman he never used the term firefly. He talked of how they would not have on lead because the Germans specifically targeted 17lb Shermans. I suspect it may have been oficially called a firefly but the term was not used by soldiers in the war. It is pretty much always used by those describing the war after the fact.
Imagine you are in a tank that you think is top-notch and the enemy will piss their pants when they see you only to see two of your almost invunerable tanks get blown up one after the other. No surprise they better called it a day
Sadly the only people that seem to forget are politicians
Good story, thanks for making a video out of it. The King Tiger also did not have a stellar debut in the Eastern Front - the first few were knocked out in an ambush by Russian T-34/85s who also mistook the new tank as "Panthers".
And in addition to the ones they knocked out, the Soviets captured three King Tigers intact in that engagement.
It went on to be more successful though, but obviously had no chance to change the outcome.
@@r.j.dunnill1465 that loss in Russia was down to the German crews rushed into combat on a tank they had not had proper time to train on. I recall the Tiger 2s were deployed in muddy ground with no Inf support or RECCE, the T34s were hidden in ambush and waited until the last save moment to fire to maximize chance of Pen the side armour.
@@Chris-qo6qq T-34/85s and IS-2s (which could pen the sides of Tiger IIs at long ranges).
The IS-2 leveled the playing field a tad.
A worn barrel could have set out the second tank when they tried to fire. The high velocity rounds wore the barrels and had to be changed frequently. This is why they went to a two piece. The round could have went off inside the barrel where the two came together. Just a theory and I may be way off.
Thank God for brave men like him
For all the firefly fanboys out there. There's a interview with a real firefly tanker floating around. They had massive problems. The long and short due to how the gun had to be mounted it was impossible to fight after 3 rounds due to gases in the turret, he said "you could always tell a firefly crew on parade, they had no hair below the beret line, all scorched off '.
Sherman 76 crews had bigger problems. Next to impossible to frontally take out Tigers, Panthers, Jagdpanthers and Jagdpanzer IVs at anything beyond suicidal close ranges.
Even the Hetzers 60mm sloped front plate was problematic.
Well the tigers also have a flaws and most tigers doesnt come to battle due to engine breakout😂😂😂
All armoured vehicles in WW2 had problems.
King Tiger: Nothing can touch us!
Firefly: Hold my beer.
The 17 pounder made the Sherman a deadly foe
Wasn't it a firefly that put an end to Michael Wittman?
Yes.
Great little piece of history. It takes some serious skills to stalk a tank in another tank I'd assume- particularly as the "prey" was part of an armoured attack- one would asume that he had friends nearby to watch his flanks.
I wonder if the second Tiger II lost was a result of freindly fire? If no one on the British side claimed it, then makes sense that a stray 88 round could have done the job.
the standard excuse of those who cannot face the fact a Tiger is knocked out-claim it was a friendly fire incident.
@@michaelkenny8540 sorry, maybe I wasn't clear. I fully believe that the engagement happened as described and the Firefly killed the Tiger II.
But the story also mentioned a second Tiger II killed during the battle that no one claimed to have killed. I find it more likely that a stray 88 from a close by friendly tank took it out than various 75 mm and 17 pounder shots from Shermans directly in front. Especially when no British gunner claimed to have killed another one.
@@jevans80 I have looked at many air photos of that field and I can not see any wrecks. Whilst it is possible 1 wreck was there I think it highly unlikely there were 2 TII wrecks in that field. For certain the 2 photos used in the film and claimed to be the victim of a Firefly are of a Tiger II that was destroyed 1.3 km to the south. The wreck was not knocked out by a Firefly. In case you don't know the TII rammed by Gorman just east of Cagny has German apologists claiming it was hit by friendly fire and the two Tiger I that were knocked out NW of Cagny are also claimed to be friendly fire victims. There is an automatic reflex action to ascribe every Tiger loss to friendly fire.
@@michaelkenny8540 Thanks for explaining, I was just going off what was said in the video- I haven't got any further knowledge about the battle. Will have to look into it more, all the small battles are equally as important as the overall picture- I love reading the memoirs of those who served.
German equipment was impressive, but to suggest that even a Tiger II could only be beaten by another Tiger II doesn't bear with the reality. And does a disservice to a lot of allied servicemen.
@Michael Kenny, the two photos of the King Tiger featured in the video are confirmed to have been the Tiger knocked out by the Firefly. Wolfgang Schneider, who has written extensively on Tigers in the Second World War, states so and actually identifies the tank as being King Tiger 101. Author Ian Daglish also created an interesting Then and Now of the wreck in the field shown in the video, which can be found in his 'Battleground Europe: Operation Goodwood' book.
With regards to aerial photos, Ian Daglish has published a set in his 'Over the Battlefield: Operation Goowood' book, in which you can see the eight King Tigers advancing through the field. Unfortunately, the aerial photos are not of the highest quality, but you are still able to identify each individual King Tiger, including the one that became stuck in the crater early on into the counter-attack.
Obviously no way to know now, but if the commander had known it was a Tiger or King Tiger would he have been so aggressive? Thinking it was a Panther maybe made him more bold.
All these men needed armoured vehicles to carry their bollocks for them!
I appreciate the respect you offer to the fallen
The TII shown at 4:20 is west of Guillerville ( to the right of the last 'e' of Manneville on air view at 3:45) and not in the field north of Manneville. It is shown in the post-bombing survey of the tank wrecks and there is no doubt of its location.
Thanks good clip
RIP Lt Lock - Hero of our freedom - Guillaume - City of Tours - France
Our Tommy's , If only they knew what has became of our Great Country 🇬🇧
With idiots like Boris running the show, what do you expect?
Yep, it's a lot better today. And yes my father was at D Day and wounded And a daughter served in the Army
Seems the internal explosion blew the gun out of its socket. Must have been pretty intense. Not much left of the crew I'd imagine.
Yea, in warthunder terms, ammorack
Hey man is it ok if i share this video with your name under it on my RUclips channel its such a good video
The Fireflys overall were superior to the standard Sherman. The British offered them to the Americans but they deferred.
Marrying the 17 pounder to the Sherman was considered impossible by the Americans and convinced the War Office of this, but they were unaware that the Australians in developing their own tank were well on their way to achieving just that. A British Officer on secondment to the Australians was aware of this and on his return to the UK, he eventually met up with the designers in the UK that had been working on the idea [ I can't remember the exact sequence of events that led to this ] . One of the design team came up with a revised design [ making allowances for the length of the 17 pounders recoil ] over a weekend I believe, and history was made . The Australian " involvement " is here on RUclips somewhere. cheers.
Boscawen's book is a good read. He touches on something not often mentioned - the increasingly poor morale of British troops after November 1944 and the increasing shortage of trained fighting men, particularly infantry, by that stage of the war. This wasn't a uniquely British problem - American commanders complained bitterly about the number and quality of replacements arriving from the US and the Germans had nearly run out of barrels to scrape. British morale was also hammered by the likelihood that once Germany was defeated (an outcome obvious by this time), units would simply transfer to the Pacific to fight the Japanese. Some British infantry divisions had had a gruelling marathon. Gen. Thomas' 43rd Wessex Division had been in the thick of it right from Normandy - including a real mauling in (and after) Market-Garden and they fought right through to Germany's surrender vis Bremen, Hamburg, etc.
I suspect much of the 'poor morale' was simply due to most allied soldiers in the West knew by late 1944 that they were going to win so caution crept in as no point in dying when the end was in sight.
Indeed. The British 2nd Army was becoming chronically short of trained infantry by early 1945. It was a long war for Britain. Some units had been fighting continuously since 1941. The Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry had fought long and hard in virtually every major engagement of the 8th Army in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia prior to going to Normandy.
People often make a big deal out of the low average age of American draftees in Vietnam. But in the spring of 1945 many of the replacements for units in Europe were coming straight out of high school. It's amazing the British still had any manpower left by the same time period.
How I wish *every* Sherman was a Firefly or a M4A3E8.
Imagine the fear and respect they would have instilled from afar.
Why did you remove the video of the Italian special forces in Afghanistan?
Because they switched sides ?
He's mentioned before that he wasn't happy with the quality of some of his earlier videos so he took them down. He's been reuploading them, presumably after fixing them.
Can you make a video on Task force K-bar
The Sherman Firefly. 1 GOOD German tank Killer. Reliable. In Good Number's and very effective...
Allied soldiers regularly mistook Panters for Tigers. They were like the boogeyman, they saw them everywhere even when none were around.
I love the fact that these guys erred in the other direction and knocked out a _King_ Tiger thinking it was a Panther. First time I heard of that happening. RIP, Lieutenant Lock.
To be fair,I would have feared the Panther more than a Tiger
Sounds like what Peter Townsend christened "Spitfire snobbery". Luftwaffe pilots brought down by a Hurricane would often claim they had been victims of a Spitfire, even in theatres where no Spits had been deployed. In fact, Hurricanes in the BoB brought down more enemy aircraft than any other fighter. Two points there, there were more Hurricanes than any other fighter and Hurricanes did not stick to attacking bombers. As one veteran put it, "theory is, all very well, but after the first pass there was total confusion. You shot at whatever was in front of you."
And the Germans saw Shermans everywhere.
@@TheArgieHYes, most people don't go into depth. Spitfires against escorting fighters, Hurricanes against bombers was just the standard opening move when you had both types meeting an attack by escorted bombers. After that everyone is reacting to the other side reacting to them reacting to them ...
@@thetooner8203 Thanks, the other key factor in keeping the numbers up was you could repair a BoB Hurricane with a wooden peg and a mallet, plus a patch of linen and a dab of dope (provided nothing key had been hit, and the steel tube frame was intact). Spitfire's monocoque took rather more TLC.
A humorous aside in the same vein. The Fiesler Fi 187? torpedo bomber biplanes (wonder where they got that idea) were sold off to Romania when it was decided that Graf Zeppelin the carrier was not going into service. They were used as general cooperation aircraft and allegedly one actually shot down an over confident P 51, I always, have wondered what the Mustang pilot claimed downed him.
The 17 pounder gun was the most powerful anti-tank gun on the battlefield even better than the dreaded 88mm. The Germans had far more powerful tanks but were still defeated by the allied tanks. It's easy to win when you have superior tanks and not enough credit is given to the allied tankers for overcoming the German tanks.
It goes to show the chaotic operational conditions in these battles, and how expectations and fears manifested as misidentifications,: King Tigers seen as Panthers while it seems that for the most part Tiger 1 reports were in fact Panzer IVs.
They do look a lot alike. Maybe not beside each other, but from 2000 yards, through smoke, rubble and vision suits or periscopes I would not be critical of mistaking a Mark III or IV for a Tiger I or a Tiger II for a Panther.
At least this one was examined and confirmed after it was knocked out. But yes, what you say is true. On his Military History Visualized channel the host, Bismarck, details how few King Tigers were in Western Europe at this time. He researched this from German records.
If only the BEF had those beasts in 1940, would have been a lot more destroyed German tanks.
If only the French had used their tanks properly - French armour was the best of the lot in 1940.
If you read the war diaries of some of the French junior officers, they're truly tragic and pathetic. A major's unit ordered to move every 6 hours, each time to positions more and more irrelevant to the battle and finally, the astonishing order to TORCH operational but unused tanks using their plentiful gasoline supply. French officers (up to Battalion level) were left both furious and ashamed - and with a burning hatred of their High Command. The best recruiting poster for de Gaulle's FFI imaginable.
The causes of the 1940 collapse of the best equipped, most militarily powerful country in Europe (in fact, the second most powerful in the world) are really, really complex. If your knowledge is limited to jokes about white flags and cheese, you're missing out on really important history relevant to today. Nazi Germany didn't defeat France. FRANCE defeated France.
This is an interesting comment, it would probably make for an interesting debate. The scale of the impact of more capable tanks, still employed as they were in the fighting, would be really interesting to know. Probably quite uncomfortable to revisionist history as well.
I would guess the impact would be negligible without the numbers and tactics of the later war. Of course if they had more capable vehicles *as* *well* as the above the BEF would have a decisive advantage whatever the strategic situation.
What is the size equivalent of a 17 pounder?
With heavily armed tanks like the Firefly and Tiger II it's really a problem of who gets to shoot first.