Figure 1.--The Germans made arguably the best machine guns of World War II. They spit out amunition at a phenomenal rate. The firing eate was so high that commanders had to instruct soldiers to avoid firing the guns on full automatic. The German logictical train just could not supply the level of fire at which these weapons were capable. Here four Waffen-SS soldiers are loading their ammunition belts in a trench near Leningrad (1942). You can see their MG-34 machine gun. It is generally considered the world's first general-purpose machine gun and was the most advanced machine gun in the world at the time the Germans launched the War. It had a firing rate of 800-900 rounds a minute. That meant all the rounds seen here would be spent in less than a minute of full auomatic fire. At the time this picture was taken the Germans were introducing the new MG-42 which not only had a higher firing rate, but had simpler mechnisms more suitable for mass prodution.

World War II histories often focus on the Luftwaffe planes and Heer Panzers. The Germans also built many of the finest infantry weapons of the War when compared in tests against the weaponry of other countries. What often did not go into the comparative tests, however, was field operations. The German weapons were often complicated and thus difficult to mass produce and maintain in the field. Also tight tolerances mean that they need to be berter maintained than Soviet weaponty. And here Hitler intervened to make matters worse. He often resisted the mass production of weapons. He did not like weapons that did not have the look and feel of a finely crafted weapon, meaning weapons that were stamped out in high speed presses, thus allowing them to be made inexpensively in large numbers. Strangely, the Germans did not work on rifles. German soldiers were armed with basically the same rifle used by their fathers in World War I. They had nothing coparable to the semi-automatic American M-1 Garande. They did produce assault rifles and machine guns with extremely high firing rates. Ironically the quality of German automatic weapons created problems for the notoriously weak German logistical train. Men had to be ordered not to fire machine guns on full automatic or if they did, only fire in limited bursts. The inability of the Germans to produce arms in the same quantity as the Americans, substantially weakened their combat effectiveness, especially when victory did not come in a short campaign as in Poland (1939) and France (1940). The war in the East proved a very different matter. And the Hitler's declaring war on America meant Germany was fighting a wr with two industrial collasses capable of producung arms and ordinance in extrodinary quantities. And the Germans did not even begin to put their economy on a full war footing until Hitler appointed Speer Armaments Minuster. The lomitations of German war profuctuin and logistics was no where else as Omaha Beach on D-Day. Here the German beach defenses meeded the rapid firing autommatic weapons and to fire on full automatic. But in perhaps the most important battle of the war the beach defenders began running out of amunition after only a few hours of combat. This incliuded both the infantry ovelooking the beach and the artillery covering the beach. This proved to be a key factor in the assault forces getting off the beach and seizing the high ground and fortified positions. Obviously you can have the finest gun in the workd, but if your logistic train is work, the quality if weapons means little. Another interesting aspect of German small arms is that the Germans, in sharp contrast to the allies, until the disateous final years of the War made no effort to transfer their advanced techonoly to their Axis allies--especially the Japanese. As a result, the Japanese fought the war with the poorest and least reliable small arns of any major beligerant country.

Overall Assessments

World War II histories often focus on the Luftwaffe planes and Heer Panzers. The Germans also built many of the finest infantry weapons of the War when compared in tests against the weaponry of other countries. What often did not go into the comparative tests, however, was field operations. The German weapons were often complicated and thus difficult to mass produce and maintain in the field. Also tight tolerances mean that they need to be berter maintained than Soviet weaponty. And here Hitler intervened to make matters worse. He often resisted the mass production of weapons. He did not like weapons that did not have the look and feel of a finely crafted weapon, meaning weapons that were stamped out in high speed presses, thus allowing them to be made inexpensively in large numbers.

Specific Weapons

Strangely, the Germans did not work on rifles. German soldiers were armed with basically the same rifle used by their fathers in World War I. They had nothing coparable to the semi-automatic American M-1 Garande. They did produce assault rifles and machine guns with extremely high firing rates. Ironically the quality of German automatic weapons created problems for the notoriously weak German logistical train. Men had to be ordered not to fire machine guns on full automatic or if they did, only fire in limited bursts. The inability of the Germans to produce arms in the same quantity as the Americans, substantially weakened their combat effectiveness, especially when victory did not come in a short campaign as in Poland (1939) and France (1940). The war in the East proved a very different matter. And the Hitler's declaring war on America meant Germany was fighting a wr with two industrial collassuses capable of producung arms and ordinance in extrodinary quantities. And the Germans did not even begin to put their economy on a full war footing until Hitler appointed Speer Armaments Minuster. The lomitations of German war profuctuin and logistics was no where else as Omaha Beach on D-Day. Here the German beach defenses meeded the rapid firing autommatic weapons and to fire on full automatic. But in perhaps the most important battle of the war the beach defenders began running out of amunition after only a few hours of combat. This incliuded both the infantry ovelooking the beach and the artillery covering the beach. This proved to be a key factor in the assault forces getting off the beach and seizing the high ground and fortified positions. Obviously you can have the finest gun in the workd, but if your logistic train is work, the quality if weapons means little. While infantry weapons are primarily small arms, the Germans produced the largest artillery piece classified as an nfantry weapon--the schweres Infanterie Geschütz 33.

Axis Alliance

Another interesting aspect of German small arms is that the Germans, in sharp contrast to the Allies, until the disateous final years of the War made no effort to transfer their advanced techonoly to their Axis allies--especially the Japanese. As a result, the Japanese fought the war with the poorest and least reliable small arns of any major beligerant country.

Created: 12:16 PM 8/17/2015
Last updated: 4:05 AM 3/10/2017