Heavy tanks, despite what their designation may suggest, weren't simply designed to be great, lumbering hulks. Thick armor to absorb punishment was paramount, certainly, but so too was relative ...

But the 47-ton KVs were unwieldy, leaving them vulnerable to German troops maneuvering close on the flanks. A day after the German blitzkrieg into the Soviet Union in June 1941, more than 200 Nazi ...