Wunderwaffe Explained

Wunderwaffe (pronounced as /de/) is a German word meaning "wonder-weapon" and was a term assigned during World War II by Nazi Germany's propaganda ministry to some revolutionary "superweapons". Most of these weapons however remained prototypes, which either never reached the combat theater, or if they did, were too late or in too insignificant numbers to have a military effect.[1] The V-weapons, which were developed earlier and saw considerable deployment, especially against London and Antwerp, trace back to the same pool of highly inventive armament concepts. In the German language, the term Wunderwaffe generally refers to a universal solution which solves all problems related to a particular issue, mostly used ironically for its illusionary nature.

As the war situation worsened for Germany from 1942, claims about the development of revolutionary new weapons which could turn the tide became an increasingly prominent part of the propaganda directed at Germans by their government. In reality, the advanced weapons under development generally required lengthy periods of design work and testing, and there was no realistic prospect of the German military being able to field them before the end of the war. When some advanced designs, such as the Panther tank and Type XXI submarine, were rushed into production, their performance proved disappointing to the German military and leadership due to inadequate pre-production testing or poorly planned construction processes. Historian Michael J. Neufeld has noted that "the net result of all these weapons, deployed or otherwise, was that the Reich wasted a lot of money and technical expertise (and killed a lot of forced and slave laborers) in developing and producing exotic devices that yielded little or no tactical and strategic advantage".[2] However, a few weapons proved to be successful and have had a large influence in post-war designs.

Naval vessels

Aircraft carriers

Battleships

U-boats

Oceangoing U-boats

Littoral U-boats

U-Cruisers

Armoured vehicles

Anti-aircraft weapons

Anti-tank weapons

Super-heavy tanks

Reconnaissance tanks

Gliders

Piston engine aircraft

Jets and rocket-propelled aircraft

Helicopters

Bombs and explosives

Artillery

Missiles

Orbital

Rifles

Mission equipment

Purported

Similar developments in Axis powers

Japan

Romania

Hungary

See also

Notes

Works consulted

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. [Willy Ley]
  2. Web site: Neufeld . Michael . The Myth of the German "Wonder-Weapons" . Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum . 19 April 2020 . 13 April 2020.
  3. Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995, Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945, pp. 235–237 and 149
  4. Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995, Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945, pp. 228–235
  5. Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995, Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945, p. 265
  6. Dénes Bernád, Charles K. Kliment, Helion and Company, Magyar Warriors: The History of the Royal Hungarian Armed Forces 1919-1945, Volume 1, p. 371