CONCLUSION

The only running Tiger I tank in the world, at Tankfest 2013 at the Tank Museum at Bovington. (Getty)

Despite the many drawbacks of expense, mechanical difficulties and problems of mobility and transportation, the Tiger I and II undoubtedly deserved their legendary status acquired on the battlefields of World War II.

The combination of powerful guns and armour so heavy as to be impenetrable to all but a few opponents was, as Hitler intended, a fearsome one, but ultimately the low production rate, especially of the heavy Tiger II, and the vulnerability of both tanks to mechanical problems requiring intensive maintenance, recovery and repair, meant that the Tiger I and II’s effectiveness as war-winning weapons was drastically limited.

As the war progressed, the difficulty in developing, fielding and supporting a variety of armoured vehicle sizes and types became readily apparent to nations, who found the resulting mix of light, medium and heavy tanks and self-propelled guns (often with overlapping and redundant capabilities and incompatible parts) cost-prohibitive to maintain. The single multirole main battle tank design, capable of being mass-produced and able to be modified and upgraded as needed, became increasingly appealing, and the race to build the most indestructible heavy tank was no longer a plausible expenditure of effort.

Although soon outmoded, the Tiger I and II at their best were as formidable as the myths around them suggested. That they still continue to capture the imagination today is attested to by their enduring popularity among armour enthusiasts, modellers and gamers, and the star power of those few examples maintained in running order at museums around the world. Chief among these are Tiger 131 of the 504th Heavy Panzer Battalion, on show at the Tank Museum, Bovington, UK, and the only Tiger II in running order, on display at the Musée des Blindés, Saumur, France.