German Tank Destruction Badge

**Troy Tempest** · February 8th, 2007 2:58 AM

Hi, I've posted this on a couple of sites, and I'm hoping someone here might have an idea! When the Sonderabzeichen für das niederkämpfen von Panzerkampfwagen durch Einzelkämpfer, or Special Badge for the single-handed destruction of a Tank, commonly known as the Tank Destruction Badge, was instituted on 9.3.42, it was backdated to 22.6.41 to cover the Russian campaign. As the bronze coloured metal representation of a tank was based on a mixture of Pz III and Pz IV tanks, why, when presumably most of these were won on the Eastern Front, didn't they have a representation of a T-34 in the middle of the badge? Seems more fitting to me!

Troy

**Klaus** · February 8th, 2007 3:14 AM

That never occured to me before. But you are right. Strange.

**Jim O** · February 8th, 2007 9:37 AM

Just a guess, but perhaps they didn't want soldiers proudly wearing a replica of a Soviet tank.

**Troy Tempest** · February 8th, 2007 7:17 PM

Hi Jim, but they'd be proudly wearing a replica of a Soviet tank that had been single-handedly destroyed without anti-tank weapons! Maybe they should have had a T-34 inside a red circle with a line through it!

Troy