Series Description:

This series will be the first to document almost every model of tank that saw service in World War II in roughly chronological order.  We will start with the Polish campaign of 1939 and work our way through until we reach the end of the conflict in 1945, with a tentative schedule of 90 episodes.  The emphasis of each video will not only be a technical description of the tank, but more importantly, we will attempt to put the vehicle within its proper historical context.

We will try to explain how each tank came into being, looking at the various factors that went into its design and production.  Questions such as how did a countries particular military doctrine influence the design of the tank they decided to build?  How did their industrial capabilities, or perhaps more importantly, how did their industrial limitations affect the design?  And of course, what larger political and strategic demands affected the design, production and introduction of these tank designs?

We will evaluate these tanks as well, doing our best to present a nuanced judgement looking at a variety of criteria.  Of course, first and foremost is the combat history of the vehicle.  Did it perform on the battlefield as hoped for?  Also, we need to look at whether or not the vehicle fit the particular needs of the military force that it was issued to.  Was this design a technological dead end or did it provide a basis for future development?  And finally, was this particular tank design one that helped shape the outcome of the war, either in a positive or a negative way for its user?

These are the types of questions we hope to answer on The Tanks of World War II.  We think the story of these armored behemoths is a fascinating bit of history and we are excited to tell it.  If you find these machines as interesting as we do, then please, follow us as we embark on this journey through the The Tanks of the Second World War.