Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus (English: 'mouse') was a German World War II super-heavy tank completed in July of 1944. As of 2025, it is the heaviest fully enclosed armored fighting vehicle ever built.

At 188 tonnes, it is the heaviest operational tank ever made by any nation at any time in any war and was made despite the shortages of raw materials, industrial capacity, and manpower at the time in Nazi Germany.

Feb 8, 2019 · The German Panzer VIII tank of World War II, codenamed the Maus tank, was intended to be the biggest, best-armored and most powerful tank ever built – and the prototypes that were built succeeded in achieving these goals.

The Porsche-built Panzer VIII Maus (Mouse) was huge at over 10 metres in length and made of 170 tons of thick steel. But even more outrageous was the Landkreuzer P-100 Ratte (Rat). Hitler was most excited by this design and truly believed that the Ratte would win the war for him.

Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus (Mouse) was an experimental Nazi German super-heavy tank completed in 1944. It was the heaviest armored fighting vehicle ever created, at a staggering 207 tons!

Feb 15, 2025 · Article Summary: The Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus, Hitler’s super-heavy tank, was the largest tank ever built. Designed by Ferdinand Porsche, the Maus boasted impenetrable armor and a 128mm gun that could destroy any Allied tank.

May 22, 2018 · The Maus (mouse) super-heavy tank was the largest tank completed by Germany during the Second World War. The design history can be traced back to 1942, in response to Hitler's expectations of Russia's heavy tank development.

Jul 10, 2023 · The German Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus was the heaviest tank ever created, weighing in at 188 tonnes. Armed with a powerful gun, protected by thicker armour, and powered by an engine created by Porsche, the Panzer VIII was the secret monster tank that never was.

On June 8, 1942, Dr Ferdinand Porsche in Stuttgart received an order from Hitler to begin designing a super heavy main battle tank armed with a 12.8-cm cannon and a coaxial 7.5-cm cannon in a turret, which would have the largest possible armor.

Nov 21, 2019 · By the time the super-heavy Maus tank rolled out for its first tests in January 1944, the Nazis had — six months after Kursk — effectively lost the war. It was just a matter of time before the...