GA-56
John Jenkins Designs
Not yet released - expected in mid-March.
JJ Designs presents King Tiger #314 “Anneliese”, faithfully recreating one of s.Pz.Abt. 503’s formidable King Tiger heavy panzers photographed during this turbulent period. King Tiger #314 features extra track links on its turret sides as well as between its exhaust pipes, upgrades implemented by s.Pz.Abt. 503. Additionally, "Anneliese" features a solid winter whitewash paint scheme, with patches left unpainted for the turret numbers and on the cannon mantlet sides where the name "Anneliese" (most likely the name of a crew member's wife or girlfriend) was proudly written in white letters.
In addition to historically accurate markings and paint scheme, John Jenkins Designs King Tiger #314 “Anneliese” also includes the following features:
- All hatches open and close
- Detailed turret and hull interior
- Detailed engine bay
- Removable side mudguards
When schwere Panzerabteilung 503 (s.Pz.Abt. 503) left its Mailly-le-Camp training area in northern France for the Normandy invasion front in July 1944, it left behind two of its early King Tigers with pre-production turrets (colloquially known as "Porsche" turrets, even though they were designed and built by Krupp) due to mechanical issues. Leutnant von Rosen, one of the Abteilung's officers, later recovered these panzers and returned them to the unit in Sennelager, Germany where s.Pz.Abt. 503 was refitting and re-equipping following the costly engagements in France. One of these early panzers was assigned to the 3./s.Pz.Abt. 503 and given the turret number "314".
By late September, s.Pz.Abt. 503 had completed its reconstitution and been brought back to full strength with a complete complement of new King Tiger heavy tanks. In October 1944, King Tiger #314, along with the freshly re-equipped Abteilung, was rushed east to Hungary as the Wehrmacht struggled to stabilize the deteriorating front against the advancing Red Army. The unit was attached to Armeegruppe Fretter-Pico and hastily deployed to Budapest to assist the infamous German commando leader Otto Skorzeny in executing Operation Panzerfaust (Unternehmen Panzerfaust). When Hungary’s Regent, Admiral Miklós Horthy, attempted to pull his nation out of the war and negotiate with the Soviets, Hitler ordered Otto Skorzeny and his commandos to seize control of Budapest and remove Horthy from power. s.Pz.Abt. 503’s King Tigers played a prominent role in this dramatic coup, entering the capital in mid-October to assist German troops in securing key positions, using the intimidating presence of their immense panzers to compel Hungarian government compliance with Nazi objectives.
With the political crisis resolved in favor of German interests, s.Pz.Abt. 503’s focus shifted back to combat operations. From the end of October through November, s.Pz.Abt. 503 fought in the Battle of Debrecen and to the east of Budapest around Szolnok and Gyöngös, often still achieving deep penetrations into enemy territory before being forced to withdraw due to logistical and enemy pressures. As the Red Army pushed relentlessly westward, s.Pz.Abt. 503 withdrew and in December 1944, missions followed in the Lake Balaton area where German forces sought to blunt Soviet offensives and to relieve the encirclement of Budapest. Fighting alongside such units as 5. SS-Panzer-Division "Wiking", 23. Panzer-Division, and 44. Reichs-Grenadier-Division "Hoch und Deutschmeister". s.Pz.Abt. 503 inflicted significant attrition on their foes but suffered mounting losses from anti-tank fire, mechanical failures, and the harsh conditions. These grueling battles that ultimately failed to relieve the doomed forces in Budapest gave way to a successful offensive in January that wiped out Russian forces at the Gran Bridgehead, and marked some of the last major armored engagements for Germany’s heavy tanks.
Interestingly, during this time the Abteilung was officially redesignated schwere Panzer-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle as part of Panzerkorps Feldherrnhalle. While military history enthusiasts often refer to the unit as s.Pz.Abt. 503 "Feldherrnhalle", the unit itself never recognized this name change and veterans always referred to themselves as members of "5-0-3".
Although able to continue achieving local tactical successes against numerically superior Russian forces, s.Pz.Abt. 503, along with the rest of the German forces in the east, was inexorably pushed back in the spring of 1945. On 10 May 1945, s.Pz.Abt. 503 mustered as a unit for the last time. After awarding the final Iron Crosses to its personnel, s.Pz.Abt. 503 destroyed its remaining two King Tigers and all its support vehicles, divided into groups of 5 to 12 individuals, and attempted to escape westward into Bavaria. While 120 personnel escaped capture and made it to the West, 400 personnel were captured by U.S. forces and ultimately handed over to the Russians...a story typical of many German units as the Third Reich collapsed.
Ultimately, s.Pz.Abt. 503 was the most successful of all the Tiger Abteilungen, destroying over 1,700 Allied tanks with the use of 176 Tigers and 76 King Tigers.