The German Waffenamt issued an order to design the VK4501(H) (as the PzKpfw VI Ausf. E was then known) in May 1941, just one month prior to the commencement of Operation Barbarossa. Interestingly, Henschel und Sohn of Kassel was charged with building the heavily armored chassis while Krupp, by far the largest munitionwerks in Germany, was given the task of developing the turret. The PzKpfw VI Ausfuhrung E (type E) was one of the first German tanks to feature a torsion bar with eight interleaved wheels, which was designed to support the weight of the mammoth 57-ton tank. The Ausf. E mounted a huge 8.8cm KwK36 L/56 cannon and featured two MG34 machine guns for close support against enemy infantry. By war's end, 1,354 vehicles had been produced, some rolling off the Wegmann assembly line.

Pictured here is a 1:32 scale replica of a German Sd. Kfz. 181 PzKpfw VI Tiger I Ausf. E heavy tank that was attached to an unidentified unit, then deployed to Poland during 1944. Sold Out!

Dimensions:
Length: 10-1/4-inches
Width: 4-1/2-inches
Height: 3-1/2-inches

Release Date: October 2012

Historical Account: "Soaring Sonatas" - As the Soviets advanced through Poland in late 1944, the German administration collapsed. The Communist-controlled Committee of National Liberation (PKWN, Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego), headed by Boleslaw Bierut, was installed by the Soviet Union in July in Lublin, the first major Polish city to be liberated from the Nazis, and began to take over the administration of the country as the Germans retreated. The government in exile in London had only one card to play, the forces of the AK. This was why the government in exile was determined that the AK would cooperate with the advancing Red Army on a tactical level, while Polish civil authorities from underground took power in Allied-controlled Polish territory (see Operation Tempest) to prevent possibility of Soviets taking control over Poland. The failure of the Warsaw Uprising marked the end of any real chance that Poland would escape postwar Communist rule, especially given the unwillingness of the Western Allies to risk conflict with Soviets over Poland. (courtesy: Wikipedia)