Figure 1.--There is no dount what this little Aerrican boy about 1920 wants for Christmas and what his first big purchase will be as he grows up. Beginning with the Model-T Ford (1908), American boys developed a love affair with the automobile. Not only did virtually every Amerricn boy want one, but many were able to actually buy one because rather than expensive, finely crafted European cars, the average American worker could buy one at a ime that European woekers were struggling to purchase a bicycle. (I can recall purchasing my first car in 1964 for only $50.) Not only did American boys love to drive them, they loved working on them. The United States had the largest secondary school system in the world and most of these high schools were adding shop classes to the program. This had enormpus not fully understood geo-political consequences. When Hitler launched World War II, he did so based on a military plan involving Blitzkrieg--a war of movement, but with a populationm that had few boys who new how to drive, let alone work on and maintain motor vehicles. (Not only did far fewer boys attend secondary chools, but German secondary schools were highly ascademic and did not have shop classes.) The United Sttes in contrast had a population including a large numbers of boys and young men who could not only drive, but with only minimal training could maintain militry grade engines--not only army motor vhicle engins, but aircrafaft and naval motors and engines as well. Not well reported is not just that the Germans had far fewer tanks and trucks as well as airraft, but they had serious problems maintaining the motor vehicles and aircraft they did have.

Motor vehicles powered by intenal combution engines appeared in World War I, but horses dominated. Toward the end of the War, they became increasingly important, both British and French tabks and Americn trucks. Germany did not have a substabtial motor vehicle industry or access to the oil needed to fuel a large fleet of vehickes. Motor vehicles became important in World War I. They were fundamental in World War II. Both wheeled and tracked vessels played a huge role in the war. Tanks made to most heaflines. The greatesrt tank bttles of history werefoiught vduring the War and had a major impact on the outcome of the War. The most important wheeled vehicle was the truck. It has a much lower profile, but was abolutely vital nfor mobile warfare. The Germans had excellent engineers and produced some of the best tanks of the War. They have, however, been described as 'over enginneered', meaning changes that may have improved the tank slightly, but ignoring the impact on prouction, especiallhy mass production lines. The Germans has several problems impacting the production of tanks and trucks. These also impacted oyther aspects of the Herman war economy such as aircraft, but had devestating impacts on motor vehicle production. For these reasons the Germans actually used more horses in World War II than they had in world War I. Thanks in part to NAZI Propganda Minister Josef Gobbels who wanted tanks not horse carts photographd, this is not well understood today. The Germans did not invade the Soviet Union with huge a huge motorized force. Some 80 percent of the Ostheer was unmotorized infantry moving east on foot with horse-drawn carts. The Deutche Ostheer which would fight the the single most important campaign okf the War would be not only poorly equipped, but also not adequteky supplied and supported. No single matter impacted the outcome of the Ostkrieg more than this single fact. It was why Operation Brbarossa failed (1941) and why the American Arsenal of Democracy had time to gear up for war.

World War I

The World War I armies that went to war after the Germans crossed the Belgian border (August 1914) had a variety of modern arms, but unbelievably the modes of military transport were little changed since chatriot armies clashed at Qadesh (1274 BC). Weapons and supplies were carried on the backs of soldiers themselves or animals, either pack animals or on wagons drawn by them. Ot was the horse or mule that were what moved artillery, ammunition, and the vast quantity of supplies requird to wage modern. The only change of any importance was that early armies first depended on the donkey to move equipment and supplies. Motor vehicles had appeared early in he century, but none of the world's armies despite the vast sums expended in the European arms race had devoted any serious attention to the military potentional of these vehicles or tested them under field conditions. Motor vehicles powered by intenal combution engines appeared in World War I, but horses dominated. Toward the end of the War, they became increasingly important, both British and French tabks and Americn trucks. Germany did not have a substabtial motor vehicle industry or access to the oil needed to fuel a large fleet of vehicles.

World War II

Motor vehicles became important in World War I. They were fundamental in World War II. The Germans figured this out before the Allies, in part because the innovative Bltzkrieg tactics they developed were basically a modern version of the German way of war that they had used for centuries. [Citino] It was a natural outgrowth of the fact that Prussia was essentially not a country with an army, but an army with a country. The Germans worked out combined arms warfare before the Allies. Even after demonstrating in Poland (1939), the Allies were slow to adopt it. The French filed, but the Channel anbd the Atlantic Ocean gave Britain and America the time needed. The vast dustance oif the Soviet Steppe was just enough to nuy time for the Red Army, primarily because the Deutche Ostheer was not a fully mechannized force. Some 80 percent of the Ostheer was unmotorized infantry moving east on foot with horse-drawn carts. While the German generasls had workd out Blitzkrieg and made the military changes needed. Hitler failed to make the changes needed in the German economy to supply the generals with the impliments of war needed in sufficent quantity to win the War.

German Problems

The Germans had excellent engineers and produced some of the best tanks of the War. They have, however, been described as 'over enginneered', meaning changes that may have improved the tank slightly, but ignoring the impact on production, especiallhy mass production lines. The Germans has several problems impacting the production of tanks and trucks. These also impacted other aspects of the German war economy such as aircraft, but had devestating impacts on motor vehicle production. First, The Germans admired crafsmsnship and looked down on mass productiom. As a result, German companies never adopted mass production techniqies like the Americans, British, and Soviets. They knewwht mass production was, they just did not like the idea. This had a major impact on the German war economy and production levels. Second, craft shop operastions asdo necesited skill workers meaning men with extensdive traiong nd experience. American mass olroduction involved using wokers with little trainng or experrtise. Workers worked at a designated spot on the assembly line and performed only one action. Thus ytheynot need to be skilled craftsmen and could be quickly trained. Women for examole who had never been in factory before became an impotant part of the industrial work force with very limited training. The Germans had to turn to slave labor as the pressing need for men at the front meany drafting workers. The conditions of these slave laboers (physical abuse, food, clothing, housing, mecical care, ect. ) meany that productivity and quality fell off. Third, the Germans had fine engineers. Abd German companies attempoted to manufacture what was designed. Thisd was in coteast to American companies who worked with the military to make changes in initial designs makimg weapms and equipment easier to manufacture. Fourth, so as not to slow dowen asemnbly lines, the Americn military did not tinker with design. In contrast, the Germans were constantly tinkering, making small changes that mde little or no imkprivemnt, especially in tannks. Fifth, The Germans never settled on a major types (like the Soviet T-34 or the American Sherman) and produced it in large numbers. Every new model necesitated costly retooling and delays. Sixth, unble to produce the trucks needed by the Ostheer, the Germans commandered vehicles from all over occupied Europe. This created a maintenence nightmare because there were so mny vehicle types, all requiring different spare parts. Seventh, Germany had a relatively small motor vehicle inustry compared yto the other major industrial powers, this suignifivcantly affect motor vehicke production during the War. Eight, Germany was a resource poor country, like Japan, one of the reasons for launching the War. Germany lacked virtally every critical raw material needed for the War. And chief among them was oil. This was the very resource needed for Blitzkrieg (a war of movenent). Even if they had better managed their war economy and produced more vehicles, they did not have the oil to fuel what they had. Germany did not have the fuel for ther vehicles they had. Oil and coal shortages mean that production fell min ythe ovvupied countries, limiting the German avility to use these ecoonomies. Ninth, Germany had a very low levelmof autimoble ownreshio, lowercthan even Italy. There were major consequmnces to this. Few Germans knew how to drive or maintain motor vehicles. This at a time where virtually all Anericans knew how to drive including girls and women. And while large numbers of American teenagers knew hiotw to work on cars and took shop classes in highscMainennce prived significnt weakeness for the Germans. It may explain why tanks and aircarft were commony retuned to the Reich for even more maintenance. This all mmeant that the already inadeqate number of vehicles were all too often out of service as well as placeing additionl strain on an already over stretched rail system. Tenth, while Germany had only a small automobile industry, the countres they cinwquered, especvially France, had automobile and arms industries. Except for Czechoslovakia, the Germans failed to utilize these industries at any where near the pre-War capacity.

Deutsche Ostheer

For these reasons the Germans actually used more horses in World War II than they had in world War I. Thanks in part to NAZI Propganda Minister Josef Gobbels who wanted tanks not horse carts photographd, this is not well understood today. The Germans did not invade the Soviet Union with huge a huge motorized force. Some 80 percent of the Ostheer was unmotorized infantry moving east on foot with horse-drawn carts. The Deutche Ostheer which would fight the the single most important campaign okf the War would be not only poorly equipped, but also not adequteky supplied and supported. No single matter impacted the outcome of the Ostkrieg more than this single fact. It was why Operation Brbarossa failed (1941) and why the American Arsenal of Democracy had time to gear up for war.

Types of Motor Vehicles Vessels

Both wheeled and tracked vessels played a huge role in the war. Tanks with tracks made to most headlines. The greatesrt tank battles of history were fought during the War and had a major impact on the outcome of the War. The most important wheeled vehicle was the truck. It has a much lower profile, but was abolutely vital for mobile warfare. Tanks might open up hole in a enemy front line, but without trucks to rapidly explot the breech, the hole coild be closed abd the line restored. This is why the Western Front was so static for 4 years. Neither the Germans or the Allies had the necessary mobility to achieve a break through. This did not change until the final months of the war. Thev massive German Sprng Offensive failed made major gains, but the Germand did not have the mobility to exploit them. Then the Allies using British and French tanks and American trucks finally managed to blow the German Siegfried Line wide open--the Allied Hundred Days Campaign.

Tanks and Other Tracked Vehicles

Not fully realized in the inter-War era was the importance of a new weapon--the tank. The tank was a British creation and helped crack open the German defensive lines. It was not a very glanerous weapon at the time. It was slow and ungainly. The Germans never suceeded in building an effective tank in World War I. They were, however, on the receiving end of the British tank and were more aware than anyone that this was a weapon of the future. The horrors of trench warfare caused military planners to focus on new weapons to restore mobility and to avoid a future war resulting in mass losses of foot soldiers. While it was the Allies that developed tanks, it was the Germans, however, that after the War gave the greatest attention to developing new weapns. The Germans signed the Rapollo Treaty (1922) with the Soviet Union that allowed them to evadethe Versailles Peace Treaty and work with the Soviets on tanks and tank tactics in Russia. Hitler was impressed with General Guederian and gave cosiderable enophasis on armor in the NAZI rearmament campaign. One of the several benefits of seizing Czechoslovakia (March 1939) was control of the Skoda arms complex. The Germnans hen they began the War did not have a huge superority in tanks, rather it was their tactics that made a difference in the battle for France (May-June 1940). Military expers debate what the best tanks of the War were. Here it is sometimes lost on experts that you can not just compare the characteristics of each tank. Some of the German tanks were very effective indeed. They also tend to be complicated and difficult to build on an assembly line in large numbers. They also tended to be more difficult to maintain in the field. The American Sherman was deficient in firing power and armor, but was hughly maneurabe, easy to build, and maintain. Many experts believe that the T-34 was the most effective combinantion of gun, speed, and armor. It shocked the Germans when they first encounteed it. The German Panther was the German response. The Panther was also an extremnely effective tank. The Soviet T-34, hoewever, was much easier to build and maintain in the field. And the Soviet built it in numbers the Germans could only dream about. A major development in the later phase of the war was the development of light anti-tank weapons like the bazooka and Panzefaust that gave the infantryman the capability of stopping tanks.

Wheeled Vehicles

Wheeled vehicles appeared and played an important rule in World War I. As motor vehicles developed considerably during the inter-war era and World War II proved to be a war of movement. Thus wheeled motor vehicles proved to be critical to the War. Britain was the only country to enter the War with a fully motorized military. America with its huge capacity to build motor vehicles finally retired horses as it was preparing, The Germans despite popular notions enteresd the war still using horses to move both artillery and for logistics. It is tanks that dominate many World War II histories. Less often considered are the more prosaic wheeled vehicles. There were wheeled fighting vehicles such as armored cars. Many armored cars were partially tracked vehicles. Although not often conceived as a major weapon system, the truck proved to be along with the tank, played a critical role in the allied victory. Not only did American trucks make possible the rapid drive liberating France, but Studabaker American trucks delivered to the Soviets through Lend Lease were a key factor in the 1944 battles that demolished the Wehrmacht on the Eastern Front. Many American servicemen recall with affection the utilitarian jeep. The motor cycle was important during World War I, but less so during World War II. It found its greatest with the Germans, in part because they lacked the industrial capacity to build utilitarian four-wheeled vehicles as the United States did.

Sources

Citino, Robert M. The Germn Way of War (Univrersuty of Kansas Press: 2005), 448p. Citino stresses Auftragstaktik (flexible command) and Bewegung (movement). He often insists that Blitzkrieg was a Western press invention. The Germans talked about Bewegung.

Created: 4:50 AM 10/8/2009
Last updated: 11:53 AM 7/28/2011