Pz Kpfw I ausf B with 20mm Breda Mod.35 gun

After the first combats between Nationalist Panzer I.B  tanks against Republican T-26B medium tanks within the 1936-39 Spanish Civil War, the uselessness of the german armament was patent. At the beginning of 1937, Nationalist decided to mount a 20mm Breda Mod.35 gun on the Panzer I tanks to try to alleviate this clear disadvantage. It was planned to upgunned the fifth Panzer I of each tank company to improve the anti-tank capacity of the units. A problem arose when the turret’s front had to be modified to allow targeting of the shooter. The solution was to make two openings as peepholes, which significantly weakened the protection of this area. The German builder was not at all in agreement with this solution and they nicknamed the new tank as “der Tod Panzer”,(the Death’s tank), and this modification had to be suspended, having produced only 4 examples. This type of “field improvement” by the Nationalist Army was not strange, since in October 1936, one Panzer I was also modified to install an experimental flamethrower, but no further information is available.

Panzer I.B Breda 20mm gallery and more info