On October 14, 1935, the 1. Panzer-Division (1.Pz.Div.) came into being, the first of three debut tank divisions raised by the Germans in that year. The formation of the 1.Pz.Div. came from the Reichswehr era 3. Kavallerie-Division that had existed since June 1, 1920. The unit was first commanded by General der Kavallerie Maximilian von Weichs (who was the last commander of 3. Kavallerie-Division) until September 30, 1937 when Generalleutnant Rudolf Schmidt assumed command. Schmidt led the division through the Anschluß Österreichs (Annexation of Austria) and later the occupation of the Sudetenland in 1938 before, in 1939, commanding the unit in the taking of Czechoslovakia and the invasion of Poland (operation “Fall Weiss”; “Case White”). However, when operation Fall Gelb (“Case Yellow”), the planned invasion of France and the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands), was fully underway, the 1.Pz.Div. had a new commander, Generalleutnant Friedrich Kirchner, who assumed his position beginning on November 2, 1939.
When “Fall Gelb” commenced on May 10, 1940, 1.Pz.Div. was under XIX Korps which was commanded by General of Cavalry Heinz Guderian. XIX Korps itself was under Panzer Gruppe Kleist which in turn was underneath Heeresgruppe A (Army Group A) that was led by Generaloberst Gerd von Rundstedt. 1.Pz.Div. was mainly equipped with the Panzerkampfwagen I and II (PzKpfw I and II) which were light tanks with equally light armament and armor. However, by 1937, the unit began to receive the more powerful PzKpfw III medium tank as well as the PzKpfw IV medium tank. The former, with its 3.7cm and later 5cm gun, was designed to tackle enemy tanks while the latter, with a stubby 7.5cm gun, was tasked as a infantry support tank. These medium tanks, however, never completely replaced the PzKpfw II within the two tank regiments in the unit (Panzer-Abteilung I and Panzer-Abteilung II). 1.Pz.Div. took part in the Battle of Sedan (from May 12 to May 15, 1940), the Battle of Dunkirk (which raged from May 26, 1940 to June 4, 1940), before taking part in operation “Fall Rot” (“Case Red”) which was the second phase of the conquest of France. This phase would see the end of France, the country's leadership signing the armistice with Germany on June 22, 1940.
Overall, the 1.Pz.Div. suffered only light casualties. All told, the unit lost 500 men killed in action from the start of “Fall Gelb” to the German victory at the close of operations of “Fall Rot.” This photograph, however, illustrates quite well the grim side of that victory. The tank is a PzKpfw IV Ausf C and its entire front has been completely demolished. The front glacis plate, which was 30mm thick, is completely missing and has exposed the ZF 6-speed SSG 76 gearbox and where the steering gear had been on the front of the gearbox. To the left and right of the gearbox are the round disc brakes which were connected to the drive sprockets for each track which, in this case, at least the left drive sprocket is completely gone. The driver would have been sitting to the left of the gearbox and on the right would have been the radio operator. Given the level of destruction, it is highly doubtful either man survived whatever hit the tank. The tank caught fire and this is evidenced by the scorching on the hull side and the lack of rubber on the road wheels. That the tank is an Ausf C model is evidenced by the armored sleeve for the co-axial MG 34 machine-gun (just visible to the right of the 7.5cm KwK37 L/24 gun) and the lack of a hull mounted machine-gun. The tank can be identified as belonging to the 1.Pz.Div. by the stylized oak symbol which can be seen in white on the turret front, underneath the gunner's vision flap (to the left of the gun). The tank had been stripped of useful parts as another, earlier, photograph of the same tank showed far more parts on the tank. Identifiable parts removed include the steering gear, the brake cover for the left brake assembly, return rollers, and the tracks. In fact, one of the tank's road wheels can be seen propping up the gearbox.
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