The Panzerkampfwagen VII Löwe (Lion) was a design for a
super-heavy tank created by
Krupp for the
German government during
World War II. The project, initially code-named VK 70.01 (K), never left the drawing board, and was dropped on 5–6 March 1942, in favor of
Porsche's heavier
Panzer VIII Maus.[1][2]
Variants
The Löwe was designed in two variants, unofficially designated Leichter Löwe (light lion) and Schwerer Löwe (heavy lion), both with a crew of five:[1]
Leichter Löwe/VK 70.01 (K)
It was to weigh 76
t (75 long tons; 84 short tons), with 100 mm (3.9 in) of frontal armor, a front-mounted
turret, a 10.5 cm (4.1 in) L/70 high velocity gun, and a coaxial machine gun, with a top speed of 27 km/h (17 mph). It was later cancelled by
Adolf Hitler.[1]
Schwerer Löwe/VK 72.01(K)
It was to weigh 90
t (89 long tons; 99 short tons), with 120 mm (4.7 in) frontal armor, a rear-mounted turret, a 10.5 cm L/70 high velocity gun, and a coaxial machine gun, but only managing a top speed of 23 km/h (14 mph). After redesign it had 150 mm (5.9 in) frontal armor,
8.8 cm (3.5 in) L/71 gun, and a top speed increased to 35 km/h (22 mph).[1][2]