My previous post on the subject of Tiger tanks extolled the courage and cunning of a British tank crew who, out-gunned and out-armoured, simply adopted naval tactics and rammed the Tiger tank with their own puny Sherman. Here is a photo of the end result:
This tale excited 'SoD' who went haring off through the internet records and produced, amongst other things, the history of one of the most effective German tank commanders of WWII.
He looks a bit like a very young Burt Lancaster but actually his name is Kurt Knispel (20 September 1921 – 28 April 1945). A Sudetan German who served in their armoured forces, he was credited with the greatest number of confirmed 'tank kills', a total of 168, in the war. A maverick personality who refused to conform, he sported a goatee beard and long hair. According to Wiki:
Knispel's slow promotion is attributed to several conflicts with higher Nazi
authorities (for instance, he assaulted an Einsatzgruppen officer whom he saw mistreating Soviet POWs) and general lack of military bearing, sporting a goatee and hair longer than regulations. Only his impressive track-record saved him from ending up in a military prison.
Alas, this brave man died of his wounds 10 days before the war ended.
