A panzer division (German: Panzerdivision) was an armored (tank) division in the army and air force branches of the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II. The panzer divisions were the key element of German success in the Blitzkrieg operations of the early years of the war.
A panzer division was a combined arms formation, having both tanks (German Panzerkampfwagen, "armored fighting vehicle", usually shortened to "Panzer") and infantry as organic components, along with the usual assets of artillery, anti-aircraft, signals, etc. However, the proportions of the components of a panzer division changed over time.
Read more about Panzer Division: Pre-war Development, World War II, Tank Complement, Flags, In Popular Culture
Famous quotes containing the word division:
“That crazed girl improvising her music,
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Her soul in division from itself
Climbing, falling she knew not where,
Hiding amid the cargo of a steamship
Her knee-cap broken.”
—William Butler Yeats (18651939)