Tanks in the German Army the Vistula River near Baranów Sandomierski. The majority of King Tigers went to Wehrmacht units, while some 150 were assigned to the Waffen SS. The first Tigers II tanks reached schwere Panzer Abteilungen of both Wehrmacht and Waffen SS as early as February 1944. Only two companies of Schwere Heers Panzer Abteilung 503 (s.H.Pz.Abt. 503), equipped with Tiger II tanks (with Porsche turrets), were committed to the fighting in Normandy. Tiger II tanks of Schwere Heers Panzer Abteilung 506 (s.H.Pz.Abt. 506), saw combat during the "Market Garden" operation in the Netherlands in September 1944. On 15 October 1944 Tiger IIs
Tanks in the British Army May 1940, temporarily discomfiting the 7th Panzer Division under Rommel. In the battle, elements of motorized SS regiment ""Totenkopf"" (later to be expanded into SS-Division "Totenkopf")—were overrun, their standard PaK 36/37 anti-tank guns proving ineffective against the heavily armoured British Matilda tank. Rommel committed some of his armour to local counterattacks, only to find the guns of the "Panzer" II and Panzer 38(t) tanks could not penetrate the Matildas' armour. Desperate to prevent a British breakthrough, Rommel ordered the division's FlaK 18 anti-aircraft guns and field guns be formed into a defensive line and fire anti-tank and HE rounds in