Used extensively by the German Army of World War Two, the “tank destroyer” was developed to counter the increasing dominance of the tank on the battlefield.

Germany would field a massive 18 different types of tank destroyer in World War Two – compared with the 7 or 8 different types used by US, British and Commonwealth forces. One of these in particular, Sturmgeschütz III, would destroy more tanks than any other AFV in the entire conflict.

In this video we look at the development, strengths and weaknesses of German tank destroyers: from the17 tonne Hetzer to the massive 70 tonne Jagdtiger - the heaviest tracked vehicle of the War.

00:00 | Introduction
00:59 | The First Tank Destroyers
04:14 | Avoiding Close Combat
06:59 | Jagdpanther
12:05 | Jagdtiger
15:31 | Hetzer
18:01 | Stug III
22:51 | Conclusion

This video features archive footage courtesy of British Pathé.

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