HOME | DD

Description
A Ratte next to an E 50 medium tank and an Sd.Kfz.250.

Dwarfing all other armored vehicles on this page, or indeed this website, was the Landkreuzer P.1000 – The Rat.

This was to be the first of a new kind of “land battleships” (or “land ironclads”, as described by H.G. Wells a century before); a mobile fortress capable of leading an entire Panzerdivision, while covering the offensive with long range, powerful battleships guns, providing anti-aircraft defense, and acting as a mobile HQ.

The Ratte was designed by Krupp’s chief-engineer and officer of submarines, Edward Grotte. Edward, however, was not new to the idea of landships; before the war he had assisted the USSR in tank development, proposing many ridiculous monsters, similar to the rat. His only design that ever was built was a much more modest 25 tons.

Grotte suggested the design to Hitler, who immediately approved the plan in June 1942, naming it “landcruiser”.

This would have been a 1000ton, ultra heavy tank, equipped with dual 280mm (11 in) SK C/28 naval guns in a Panzerschiff mount, derived from the Detschland-class cruisers. Several designs were proposed and mockups made; the design in our illustration is the most common design for the Ratte. Secondary armament would consist of between two 12,8 cm (5 in) KwK 44 L/55s, or four to eight 12,7cm (5 in) SK C/34 naval guns, depending on model. After several design changes, anti-air defense was settled on two Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind-type turrets, each with quad 2cm (0.79 in) FlaK 38 autocannons.

The tank was so heavy that a unique six track system (two pairs of three) was conceived. Armor was impregnable even to aircraft bombs, with up to 36 cm (1 ft 2 in) of hardened steel plates. No bridge could hope to support such weight, but it could easily cross rivers due to its towering height. The wide hull contained a small bay for BMW motorcycles, several storage rooms, a compact infirmary area and a self-contained lavatory system.

Propulsion was assumed by either two 8,400hp MAN V12Z32/44 24-cylinder U-boat engines, or eight 2,000hp Daimler-Benz MB 501 20-cylinder E-boat engines. U-boat snorkels were also fitted for amphibious fording of deep rivers.

Shortly after the project was approved, Albert Speer cancelled it, as well as a self-propelled gun of 1500 tons, the P.1500 “Monster”, armed with the 800 mm (2 ft 7.5 in) Gustav gun, thus ending Hitler’s fantasy of an Empire-like fleet of war machines.

Idea is Not Mine and Just, German Project MEGA Tank.

Description
A Ratte next to an E 50 medium tank and an Sd.Kfz.250.

Dwarfing all other armored vehicles on this page, or indeed this website, was the Landkreuzer P.1000 – The Rat.

This was to be the first of a new kind of “land battleships” (or “land ironclads”, as described by H.G. Wells a century before); a mobile fortress capable of leading an entire Panzerdivision, while covering the offensive with long range, powerful battleships guns, providing anti-aircraft defense, and acting as a mobile HQ.

The Ratte was designed by Krupp’s chief-engineer and officer of submarines, Edward Grotte. Edward, however, was not new to the idea of landships; before the war he had assisted the USSR in tank development, proposing many ridiculous monsters, similar to the rat. His only design that ever was built was a much more modest 25 tons.

Grotte suggested the design to Hitler, who immediately approved the plan in June 1942, naming it “landcruiser”.

This would have been a 1000ton, ultra heavy tank, equipped with dual 280mm (11 in) SK C/28 naval guns in a Panzerschiff mount, derived from the Detschland-class cruisers. Several designs were proposed and mockups made; the design in our illustration is the most common design for the Ratte. Secondary armament would consist of between two 12,8 cm (5 in) KwK 44 L/55s, or four to eight 12,7cm (5 in) SK C/34 naval guns, depending on model. After several design changes, anti-air defense was settled on two Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind-type turrets, each with quad 2cm (0.79 in) FlaK 38 autocannons.

The tank was so heavy that a unique six track system (two pairs of three) was conceived. Armor was impregnable even to aircraft bombs, with up to 36 cm (1 ft 2 in) of hardened steel plates. No bridge could hope to support such weight, but it could easily cross rivers due to its towering height. The wide hull contained a small bay for BMW motorcycles, several storage rooms, a compact infirmary area and a self-contained lavatory system.

Propulsion was assumed by either two 8,400hp MAN V12Z32/44 24-cylinder U-boat engines, or eight 2,000hp Daimler-Benz MB 501 20-cylinder E-boat engines. U-boat snorkels were also fitted for amphibious fording of deep rivers.

Shortly after the project was approved, Albert Speer cancelled it, as well as a self-propelled gun of 1500 tons, the P.1500 “Monster”, armed with the 800 mm (2 ft 7.5 in) Gustav gun, thus ending Hitler’s fantasy of an Empire-like fleet of war machines.

Idea is Not Mine and Just, German Project MEGA Tank.