Soviet Tanks of World War 2
The introduction of the T-34 evolved the war to the point that Germany had to revise its approach to tank design in an effort to field a comparable contender.

1 7TP The 7TP series was of a Polish design, based on the British Vickers-Armstrong 6-ton light tank (Mark E). When war with Germany was rolling about the horizon, the Polish government saw a need to replace their diminutive tanket... 1936

2 Infantry Tank Mk II Matilda (A12) The Matilda II was the definitive infantry tank for British armed forces in the early years of World War Two. With the Mark I series leading the way, the Mark II became the version produced in quantity. By war's end, however,... 1937

3 Infantry Tank Mk III Valentine Considered one of the more successful British tank designs of the early war years, the Valentine series served both British and Soviet forces effectively. British forces first fielded the system in Operation Crusader, in whic... 1940

4 Infantry Tank Mk IV Churchill (A22) The British Churchill series of tanks was the most important British tank of the Second World War. Built in numbers second only to the Valentine, the Churchill was designed to replace the aging Matildas. Reminiscent of tank d... 1941

5 IS-3/JS-3 (Josef Stalin) The IS-3 ("IS" for "Iosef Stalin" or "Josef Stalin") was an attempt to build upon the already formidable IS-2. Improvements over the IS-2 model included a redesigned rounded turret and a new heavily-sloped front armor configu... 1945

6 Medium Tank, M3 (Lee / Grant) The M3 medium tank series appeared at a time when Allied armor (in respects to both armor protection and armament) was generally inferior to their German counterparts in Europe and North Africa. The M3 evolved from the M2 med... 1942

7 Medium Tank, M4 / M4 (Sherman) The M4 Sherman series of medium tanks proved an invaluable asset to Allied operations North Africa, Europe and the Pacific theaters of war in World War 2. The Sherman proved a relatively inexpensive, easy-to-maintain and - pe... 1942

8 Sd.Kfz. 161 Panzerkampfwagen IV (Pz.Kpf.W IV) / Panzer 4 The Panzer IV (or "Panzerkampfwagen IV" and abbreviated as "Pz.KpfW. IV") formed the backbone of the German Army from its inception onwards and fought wherever its muscle was required. The type proved reliable as well as leth... 1939

9 SdKfz 142 StuG III (Sturmgeshutz) The StuG III was a well known German assault gun of World War 2. The system stemmed from a German Army need to supply ground troops with a mobile artillery system when traditional armor units such as tanks were not not made a... 1940

10 SU-152 (Zveroboy) By mid-1942 the Soviet Army needed a mobile heavy siege gun for fixed fortifications. Up to this point, most Soviet howitzers were pulled by horses along with their gun crews due to the fact that draft animals were more plent... 1942

11 SU-76 / Samokhodnaya Ustanovka 76M (Suchka) On June 22, 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union and caught them unaware. Hitler’s goal was to eliminate the Soviets as a military power and exterminate Communism while giving the German people living space. During the sum... 1942

12 T-26 As was the norm after World War 1 in all industrialized nations around the globe, Soviet warplanners set about to upgrade their armed forces to meet the demands of the everchanging battlefield. In particular demand was the im... 1931

13 T-34 The Soviet-produced T-34 was a medium tank that attained legendary status in the Second World War. Itself a product of much engineering and design of earlier models - the BT-IS, A-20, A-30 and the T-32 all coming before it - ... 1940

14 T-34/76 The T-34/76 was nothing more than the German designation used for the base T-34 medium tank in use by the Soviet Union during World War 2. For a full history of the T-34, visit the T-34 entry.... 1940

15 T-34/85 The T-34/85 is designated as an 'up-gunned' version of the familiar and successful base T-34 tank build by the Soviet Union and fielded during the Second World War. The T-34/85 featured a more powerful main gun - of 85mm cali... 1944