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Michael Wittmann (22 April 1914 – 8 August 1944) was a German ''Waffen-SS'' tank commander during the Second World War. Wittmann rose to the rank of SS-''Hauptsturmführer'' (captain) and was a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross holder. He was credited with the destruction of 138 tanks and 132 anti-tank guns, along with an unknown number of other armoured vehicles, making him one of Germany's top scoring panzer aces, together with Johannes Bölter, Ernst Barkmann, Otto Carius and Kurt Knispel (the top scoring ace of the war with 168 tank kills). Wittmann is most famous for his ambush of elements of the British 7th Armoured Division, during the Battle of Villers-Bocage on 13 June 1944. While in command of a single ''Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger'' he destroyed up to 14 tanks and 15 personnel carriers along with 2 anti-tank guns within the space of 15 minutes. The circumstances behind Wittmann’s death have caused some debate and discussion over the years, but it had been accepted that Trooper Joe Ekins, the gunner in a Sherman Firefly of the 1st Northamptonshire Yeomanry, fired the round that destroyed his tank and killed Wittmann and his crew. The round penetrated the port armour of Wittmann's tank and ignited the ammo rack, which exploded and incinerated Wittmann and his crew. However, in recent years, some historians have suggested that members of the Canadian Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment may have been responsible instead. ==Early life and career== Michael Wittmann was born on 22 April 1914 in the village of Vogelthal in the Oberpfalz region of Bavaria. He was the second son of local farmer Johann Wittmann and his wife Ursula. In February 1934, Michael joined the Volunteer Labour Service, the FAD (what later became the RAD) and on 30 October 1934 he joined the German Army. He was assigned to the 19th Infantry Regiment based at Freising by Munich, eventually reaching the rank of ''Gefreiter'' (lance-corporal). In October 1936 the 22-year-old Wittmann joined the ''Allgemeine-SS''. On 5 April 1937, he was assigned to the premier regiment, later division ''Leibstandarte-SS Adolf Hitler'' (LSSAH) and was given the rank ''SS-Mann'' (private). A year later, he participated in the occupation of Austria and the Sudetenland with an armoured car platoon. Wittman also joined the Nazi Party. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Michael Wittmann」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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