Panzers would be indeed not very useful and the fight would have to be done mostly by alpine troops which were in short supply, already serving in the Balkans, Norway and the Caucasus. It was envisioned to deter any enemy with 80 000 well trained conscripts which perfectly well knew the country and used at best any natural and artificial defence this mountainous terrain can offer.
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The Swiss Army long considered an invasion of the country and several lines of defences, complete with bunkers and pillboxes, artillery and observation points dotted the landscape on any possible direction. Hitler however never seriously planned an invasion of Switzerland, although there were several concerns about him seen in the Swiss press as a warmonger, vigorously criticizing the the third Reich whereas Hitler saw Switzerland as a medieval rudiment of “renegade Germans”. With these feeble forces, the Swiss federation had to face a potential force of many Panzerdivisions that could he been detached for any invasion on the shortest notice. 12 Hotchkiss H35 were also purchased in addition. By 1939, the Swiss Army had 24 Panzer 39, Czech tanks purchased with properly Swiss modifications and based on the LTL-H. In 1931, eight Vickers Carden Loyd were also acquired, followed by a single Landsverk L60 for testings in 1936. The history of armoured warfare in Switzerland could be traced to the adoption of the French Renault FT as its first tank, only five vehicles that entered service in 1921. WW2 saw the third largest mobilization of the Swiss conscripts and reserves, under command of Henri Guisan.
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However there had been regular concerns by pacifists and leftist political side to suppress the army due to a bad image acquired first against the miners of the Gotthard tunnel in 1871, and later in the worker’s repression of 1918 following a general strike, and again after a rather violent reprisal against rioters involved an anti-fascist demonstrations in Geneva in 1932. Swiss Panzerwagen 39 (Czech LTH) before ww2, now preserved at Thun museumīut it was also a haven for all those who flied persecutions, resisters, deserters, and spies. During this time, the Swiss were never threatened by the Axis, because of an ambivalent rôle, notably on the economical side. A position of fierce independence kept with the central powers during ww1, and still kept during ww2.
#Swiss number of rounds wwii soldier professional
It is a citizen army, whereas other nations are now acquired to the idea of a small professional standing army and a corps of reservist. Since the constitution of the Bundesheer in 1848 (Federal Army) and then a reduction to Cantonal forces, the Swiss Army is an oddity for a strongly federal, neutral country with mandatory conscription.
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The Army is also developing an armor-piercing 6.8mm round but did not request funding for that project in this year’s budget.About 5000 armoured vehicles 1948- today. Early efforts also looked at 6.5mm to fill the niche between the existing 7.62mm and 5.56mm currently in the arsenal.Īrmy officials want a caliber that’s lighter than the 7.62mm currently used in some sniper systems and medium machine guns such as the M240.īut they want it to be as lethal or more at longer ranges to increase squad “overmatch” against peer and violent extremist adversaries, many of which use small arms that outrange the 5.56mm round common to the M4 and M16 used by nearly all soldiers.įunding in the budget will also go toward continued development of the general purpose 6.8mm round and a reduced range round so that soldiers can practice on existing 5.56mm ranges with the new caliber, that is designed to shoot farther than some of those ranges are designed to accommodate.
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The 6.8mm decision came after years of evaluation and study, and debate, in small caliber circles. A big part of the weapon’s development has centered around its ammunition.