What was a panzer? Why were they so important to the Germans? What was the U. S. military’s “answer” to the panzer?

Panzers were a series of tanks designed by the Germans and used in World War 2. They came in models I through VI (more commonly known as the Tiger Tank). It also means “tank” in German.

The reason they were extremely important to the germans was because most Panzer’s speed allowed them to make lightning advances on enemy lines, while simultaneously packing a punch with their cannons and being protected by strong armor (the last two were in later models).

At first, the US used M3 Lee tanks to combat panzers. However, their true answer was in the M4 Sherman tank, which learnt from the mistakes of the M3 (big target, etc) and was made to fight the panzer tanks (equipped with sloped armor, a 75 and sometimes 76mm cannon and decent speed).

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