Panzer IVs make their way through the Italian countryside in 1943

0:00 This appears to be an early production Panzer IV Ausf. H as it features the "Zimmerit" anti-magnetic mine coating that makes the turret number illegible, as well as the distinctive lighter cast front sprocket fitted in an effort to compensate for the front-heaviness of the additional armor. The 30mm thick applique armor at the front of the hull however is bolted on, as opposed to being a single thicker plate, this is a feature of the previous Ausf. G which would make this example a transitional model.

The "Schürzen" 8mm thick turret skirts are present, however the 5mm hull skirts are missing. The brackets for the latter are visible, suggesting that the plates were torn off at some point during operations, this was quite a common occurrence in the field. The following tank turret number 524 is an Ausf. G.

0:06 Another view of the tank visible at the start of the clip showing the distinctive front sprocket. One also gets a sense of the terrain on the Italian mainland that was widely considered to be unsuitable for armored vehicles, and it was not uncommon to have tanks tumble down hillsides having strayed off narrow roads, often with fatal results. The following tank turret number 534 is also an Ausf. G, as is 533 and from this angle we can see that the space between the turret and the skirts is used as a convenient storage space.

0:20 A Panzer III Ausf. M armed with the long 5cm L/60 gun and also visible from the rear is the distinctive deep wading equipment fitted to this variant. The following sequence is another view of Panzer IV Ausf. G turret number 524 and its young crew.