The Heikendorf Panther - The German Tank Found in a Basement
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ต.ค. 2024
- In 2015 at the small town of Heikendorf, near Kiel, Germany, a perfectly preserved Panther tank was found in someone's basement. Find out how this valuable relic ended up being brought to Germany and seized by the police.
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers 'Zero Night' and 'Castle of the Eagles', both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: en.wikipedia.o...
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Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
Credits: TH-cam Creative Commons; WikiCommons; Google Commons; Mark Felton Productions; Pudelek, Kim Holgar Kelting, Bjoertvedt
Sources: 'World War II in Review, German Fighting Vehicles No. 3, Issue 3', 2017; 'Heikendorf Panther' - military-stuff.org; 'Germany: WWII Panther tank seized from pensioner's cellar' - BBC News.
This man had it for 40 years and had it immaculate, the government only had it 5 minutes and broke the front suspension??????
He should be rewarded for saving history.
So he had a demilitarized tank that everyone knew about, permission to own it and didn't try to hide it since he drove the tank around for years... but now they're taking him to court? That doesn't seem fair
i have not looked into it but the video also mentioned he was in possetion of an 88mm flack gun and other WWII firearms it is possible that one of them was not licenced and demillitarised and so that led to his whole collection getting taken
EU is scared shitless of losing control.
What concerns the Panther, I really think he is being treated unjustly. I followed the media coverage for a while. Still, the other weapons discovered (for example the 8,8 cm AA gun) pose a serious offense against the Kriegswaffenkontrollgesetz, the law (mentioned in the video), which concerns the ownership of military grade weaponry.
@@l0lLorenzol0l How? yeah some asshole could do a terror attack with his collection, but nothing serious to hurt the EU.
And why did they have to damage it. Is careful not a word in the German army? It’s not like it was going to start up and drive away it had no tracks in the photos.
The 88 flak was obviously his concealed carry! You never know when a wild KV might appear.
I still remember when this went through the news here in Germany. Everyone was like: "Wow! Awesome restoration, he should put his work on display, so people who are interested in WWII Armor can have a look!" But the german media talked like he was a criminal and the gov stole everything from him... we have a very big problem with our past here in Germany
Give the tank back to grandpa!
Deserves a medal for preserving historical artifacts.
"recovered" is a funny way to say stolen.
I am living about 4km next to the Villa. Everyone knew he had many Nazi weapons and kept them in excellent condition. He didn't even charge you money, you could just ring the doorbell and ask him nicely and he would give you a tour of his collection. In regards to the Legend of the man plowing snow in the 1978 snow catastrophe with his Panther, this is not true. He did not use an actual tank but instead a Wehrmacht Sd.Kfz half track vehicle, but it's impossible to tell today which exact variant, since he doesn't own this thing anymore.
The seizing of the Panther by the government was also an absolute shitshow. The Panther was deep down in his garage and the tracks where laying right next to it. Instead of mounting the tracks and causing zero damage, they hauled the tank out of the garage without tracks while they had to pass a 90° angled corner. To get the tank around the corner, they broke out a sizable portion of concrete from the garage and assembled a complex construction of winches, then towed this thing around 100m to the street. Jesus..
wow.
just.
wow.
then again the Panther is a old war tank, maybe was for the best for the Military that once used them to break it.
Sound like a nice man then, too bad it's too late to see it there now.
But I get a peek at one in a museum one day.
the story is 3y old. Is there any update? How did the man do at the court? thanks for the insight and clarifications!
As an American, I can see how unjustified this seizure was and I do mean by every part of the word unjustified. The man had all the legal paperwork and caused no harmed. He owned all of it legally and followed the laws. But in the end it did not matter if he had a personal museum because government swept in. I honestly blame the liberalized government of Germany more so than the people involved. The German government cares far less about it's people then it does immigrants. This man is owed every percent of the value for the damages incurred.
do you know how he got the panther into the basement in the first place? as it was so difficult to get out?
The whole story is a complete joke! I was born in Heikendorf and I'm still living here. Everbody in Heikendorf nows the Panther and it's owner. I was growing up in the same street were the Panther was stored. My grandparents knew the owner. He was using it during the heavy winter storm in 78/79 to keep the streets in Heikendorf free. What happened know is very strange. Anyway.... Many greatings to all TH-cam users from Panther-city Heikendorf! 😉
The Panther was a decoy to conceal the Me-262 he had in the attic.
The one parked next to the V-2 rocket?
wholesome reply in this sea of racist shit, keep at it!
@@anarchythefox the p1000 ratte parked next to a horten ho 229
I heard the lake behind his backyard has a Bismarck docked there
Don't forget the U-Boat in the chimney.
This is unbelievable. Poor man I hope he gets his Panther back
It's so unfair they seized the tank, if it was demilitarized and restored by him, it's his property
Welcome to Germany
He could just get licenses for the Guns and FlaK gun. Once that's done if and it's still not enough, just make the guns D-Wat (or D-Wot, I forget) and seal the FlaK's breach, he should be good.
But he didn't before he was found with all the live guns, guy was hiding a live 88mm Flak gun so it's fair he going to court@@terrified057t4
If the State wants to take something from you they will find a law to do it.
Even with an active gun, if owned peaceably he’s done nothing wrong. No victim no crime
"German" Government: Nice tank you legally own, mind if we steal it?
Just this is the reason I wouldnt destroy a main gun off a tank if found one... Just cant trust governments.
Merkel will melt it and make an holocaust memorial or someting, is very sad
And they say the stazi has long been gone.
If you like ww2 stuff and you go to the german Army they Directly think that you a narzi ließe whaaat
It is said, that the owner drove around town during winter with his tank, to flatten the snow so that cars could drive on the roads again.
He also used his underground warehouse as private museum, with tickets sold to people.
A shame that his property got taken away.
not a shame...."criminal" maybe.....
@ROB H8U Wouldn't that be a trip! Get stuck and a WW2 tank comes along and rescues you.
@Michael Novak you're from America right? If so then the credibility of your knowledge is below zero.
@Michael Novak I think what Will Ferch was saying that what the German government wasn't just shameful, but criminal.
The taking of a legally obtained and legally maintained (the fact that the tank had legally demilitarized weaponry on it) object is criminal.
He is in violation of the War Weapons Control Act. As I understand it , it doesn't matter under German law whether they fire or not
Return the demilitarized Panther back to its owner
So dude bought a tank wreck legally, restored it legally, stored it legally, had legal documentation from the local government, and then the government just showed up and took it because?
Maybe the presence of the tank upset the local imam.
Cause he was hoarding other weapons/ammo and a live 88mm Flak gun
Nathan Bowman
- local government doesn't trump state or federal government.
Is that really too hard to understand?
Just an example of "gun control"
@@Gallagherfreak100 Maybe no
Some reports said that the owner used the tank to clear snow during winter for cars to pass properly
I remember when this story broke. The media portrayed the owner as "hiding" these items... Yes I see, hiding them from thieves. Don't steal kids, governments hate the competition.....
why was removing the tank quickly so important. why couldn't they wait for proper equipment to not damge all the wheels
@@Jixxor you are absolutely right; i heard it too!
Absolutley wrong.
About 20 pionier soldiers worked ~9 hours on this beast. Before starting, they built multiple ramps, because they didn't just have to pull it up a simple driveway, they had to get it over some steps, as well as around multiple tight corners.
Due to legal requirements, they had to do this without damaging the house. This was the highest priority. The fact that it didn't have tracks, probably didn't make it simpler.
www.shz.de/regionales/schleswig-holstein/panorama/panzer-im-keller-staatsanwaltschaft-erhebt-anklage-gegen-besitzer-id15752921.html
The picture in this article might illustrate part of why it was so hard. Considering the difficulty I think it's actually quite surprising they only damaged the suspension of a single wheel slightly.
German National Guard
They only had the weekend. LoL
George Takei's voice says " Oh- My ".
the owner used to drive it, at the time the tracks were off, and they just dragged it out, damaging other artifacts as well, they should of let him put the tracks on and driven it out, there was damage to the building as well
Because some stupid Left wing -Liberal politician thought the militaria collection was illegal - panicked and has urged to confiscate the private ww2 collection .
They knew about this tank for years including the local mayor what a load of bollocks!
give the man his tank back
No shite. What's the world coming to? It's getting so a guy can't even park his Panther in the garage.
they did , he got it back
@@kongman27 Source?
@@kongman27 EVIDENCES PLEASE
It is a valuable piece of history. I hope the owner gets honoured for his efforts.
If I remember correctly this guy was known for helping his neighbours by pulling tree stumps out and the removal of snow in winter.
In 1978/79 we had snow catastrophy in Germany. Some regions had that much snow that they were cut off from ressources. The army tried to help with tanks to supply the people. This guy helped with his Panther too.
Owner: "Hey that's my tank!"
Bundeswehr: "Not anymore pal, this is Wehrmacht property now"
Indiana Jones: "That belongs in a museum!"
He should get his stuff back! It was hurting no one.
@@MrCarpelan go away, commie
Numerous small arms and an 88-mm flak gun. Not just the tank. Not a German citizen but it sounds like the law basically just said 'round them ALL up', not just specific weapons.
well his basement was heavely damaged and if the tank stayed there it would have colapsed
fun fact this panzer was stolen so it was not his tank
@@schattenseele66 so he stole the tank he bought?
*0:40** they dragged the panther from its lair....* Damn poachers.
If he restored it....he should get to keep the fruits of his labors.
That's a Western ideal. The Germans will have none of that.
No in "democratic" country were illegals migrants had more rights for them than the native inhabitants
Welcome to a government lead by liberal socialism where nothing is "yours" regardless of proof or paperwork.
How messed up. That man legally bought and restored that tank. It should be returned to him and he should take the government to court.
I still tank the man should get his stuff back
So long as it was legally obtained and the guns can't fire. In many ways the owner should be congratulated for rescuing the Panther from the scrap yard and restoring it. Hopefully, sometime in the future we can get an update on what has happened.
Anyway, another gem - thanks Mark I'm glad I found your channel.
I bet he got some flak for having that 88 mm in his basement
@@simonkevnorris He didn't just have the tank and the 8,8, but Mortars, Maschine Guns, Assault Rifles and over a thousand rounds of live ammo. As far as I could find information, the lawsuit is still ongoing. As a part of this lawsuit the Bundeswehr looked at every single piece of equipment and saw that none of the weapons was lawfully demilitarized.
It doesn't matter if they can actually shoot, if the demilitarisation of the weapons isn't lawfull.
Therefore the weapons and equipment will be confiscated. This would be the same in pretty much every western Nation.
Pun not intended
@@thecashier930 Fuck off. Those guns should be in the hands of the one whom paid for them. The German government should be disbanded, and all government officials should be shot. Stop tolerating this nonsense.
The dude bought it, repaired it. And kept it in amazing condition.
And they *fucking* stole it, *and* managed to break the tank as they were doing it?
It would seem that even after nearly 74 years, Germany still
worries a lot about controlling these relics.
Nice work Mark.
Thank you sir!
It technically wasn't even a War Weapon. It was a replica, essentially
Great video again Mark. It’s sad to see that the owner was prosecuted and the tank and other weapons seized especially considering it was not a secret he had them. He did a great job on the restoration. I hope the tank is fixed and either returned or at least put in a working museum. History needs to be preserved and that is what the owner did.
Keep up the great work 😊
Yes I agree. If they find he legally can't own the tank (like he did for 50 years) then if it's worth €2500000, that's what he should receive... They stole his property!
@@julianneale6128 well the mad lad owned something around 12k illegal guns, 2 million "live" rounds, hundreds of mortars and the likes an 88 and the panther. The gov just sweeped it all up since it was all in violation of state law.
Bless this man and I hope he finds peace after having his life torn from him by a still alive and well, terrorizing government. This is the way of the future for our world.
There is a cat problem in my basement. It keeps furiously staring at me and it is made of steel
Germany: "personal property. Approved legally. WhAtS ThAt? ItS OuRs NoW!" "And by the way we are going to sue you too."
I hope this guy gets justice for this outrageous government overstep!
You've done it again...I knew nothing of any of this. I found the part about Britain building a bunch of Panther's and Jagdpanther's especially fascinating. Thank you.
I like how there are a lot of Americans defending this guy. Keep fighting the good fight my fellow Americans.
Someone important wants his tank.
this exactly.
Just been fined a quarter of a million Euros snd a suspended prison sentence!! What a joke!
Damn bureaucrats, can't have a decent hobby these days
German courts are corrupt. Always have been since 1945.
Then they maybe try jerking off
... ,😀
I wonder if the internet can generate enough pressure to get this man his Panther back.
Had he moved to Texas he wouldn't have this problem.
"he was brought to court because he of breaking military ownership rules"
IT WAS
DE
MI
LI
TARIZED.
BUT
HIS
FLAK
GUN
WASN'T
The state has become a monster everywhere - the ‘trial’ should have been made before seizure to establish its legality not after. Is not that universal principle?
Bloody government.
What a load of prats.
Give the man back his legally owned tank.
Good job they did not check the loft. There are a couple of Tiger tanks and a Sturmgeschütz III up there.
BULLSTUFF! That's where the V-2 collection is.🐴
Viking Power he will use his P1500 to destroy Angela merkel
This is a crap!
I hope my StuG won't ever be discovered...
I've always wanted to go down to my basement and find a tank. :-)
Sar Jim I did do that, it was full of warm water...
Mrtweet81 😂😂😂
Nah, you're looking in the wrong place. Gotta try the attic.
With my luck it would be a septic tank
Outrageous, this man should get his tank back and sue the German Government for the damage to it. I don't think the German Government is at all trustworthy.
GIVE BACK HIS PANTHER.
NO Government HAS ANY RIGHT TO STEAL A PRIVATE COLLECTION .
Is there a petition we all could sign?
Edit 1/12/19
Holy crap guys. Almost 1k likes. Many thanks! Imagine if we all join forces to serve justice to that collector?
Make a petition
Hanz Cedric I agree completely, but there is a silver lining, according to a reddit thread ( Thats sounds dumb but it was a credible source from a account with good rep) it is no longer at the academy and is now being restored and re-painted to go on display in a museum for the public.
Ummm...he broke the law!
They could take your kids off you if deemed an unfit parent... I think his Panther is gone
It's his Panther, give it back!!!
Seems they have the same problem in Germany that we have over here - a hysterical Government, insane Police and a total and complete disregard for private property.
Panther !! 🔥🔥🇩🇪🇩🇪 , thanks Much Mark !!!
Imagne how proud one can be with a panther. Only after 40 years to get it be taken away and be brought to court.
Great video as ever.
Informative and to the point.
Thank you Mark.
*German prison*
" what are you in for?"
"housebreaking, what about you?"
"Not much, had a Panther tank in the house"
"Scheiße!"
I thought that was one of the solemn reasons WWII in Germany was fought in the first place - so that never again would people and their possessions be taken from their homes by the government. Lesson not learned.
Just goes to show, appearance over practical. Like an AR-15, the image of the Big Scarry motorized vehicle FREAKED THE 1% OUT.
Put a blade on the front and it's a bulldozer.
i hate my country for stealing that mans tank.
I love this tank's design. It's such a beauty.
Give back the cat to that man.
It would be greatly appreciated that this Panther be kept in running order, as is a rare piece of wartime history, and should be preserved.
that poor dude
they need to give his stuff back !
That "poor dude" needs to be in prison for breaking German laws on owning weapons of war. (No, not the tank).
German news said, the guy has assembled a snow plough in the front of the tank and was removing the snow from the street in the the wintertime. The neighborhood knew that. So whats the problem, for not leaving the old man his demilitarized toy?
State-sponsored theft is what it is. The man had a note of proper decommissioning, and privately, lovingly restored a priceless historical vehicle from his own pocket, and that's the thanks he gets? Unbelievable.
It is clearly decommissioned, he brought it as a wreck from the scrap heap in another country, and restored it, bringing it back to Germany. The German govt should be thanking him, not punishing him.
Give him back his collection!
Somehow -- even after 40 years of WW2 reading -- I manage to learn something new on virtually every video. Thanks! Considering heading to your Patreon.
knock knock, who is it? ur neighbor, can i borrow ur Panther tank I have some communists in my backyard i need to get rid off!
Are they homeless Commies,
Or the local political kind ?
@@knutdergroe9757 locals, you know how they can be.
Either way they’re starving
Neighbor can I borrow the kv2?
I need to get rid of some fascists.
The KV-2 will get rid of the rest of the city block either way*
The owner got his tank back! cheers!
Sounds like someone needs to feel important and they had to have the rich guy arrested! Now who's the N.A.Z.I!
Leave him alone, its a piece of art and a piece of history. Good for him for taking care of it for so long.
Please keep us updated on this story. Thanks Mark.
Thanks for sharing, stupid it go seized. Buddy did an awesome job restoring it.
Sad story, no winners so far. Governments decommissioned and throw away and a collector restored it and has it taken away. What is wrong with Germany lately. I loved living there in the mid 90s and had a fantastic time. O how the world has changed.
Not just because you are more powerful than others doesn't mean you can just take someone's property, he obtained and restored that tank LEGALLY, and still they take it away from it's rightful owner, SHAME ON YOU
To add a bit of an explanation, this is apparently the doing of a, shall we say, overzealous regional chief prosecutor. She has also had circus animals seized on the instigation of PETA, then immediately had them sold off while they were allegedly being 'examined'. Similarly, a whole kennel's worth of dogs owned by a local breeder was seized on the grounds of a vague smuggling accusation. The press reported that there were dozens of such cases in the jurisdiction of this prosecutor.
I'd say what we're looking at here is an out of control state prosecutor who abuses her power for spectacular police actions and objectively unnecessary seizures of private property - ostensibly in the service of 'animal warfare' or 'anti-militarism', either because of her own political biases or because she thinks she stands to gain prestige by such things.
Koshiro2k3 well. Not everything of his collection was demilitarised. Like the torpedo.
@@David-eh9le - And how do you know that? The government told you? They never lie to you? LOL
He acquired it legally... and it was demilitarized.... yet it gets confiscated.... the governement is such a scam dangit... this stuff really gets me
He should of defended himself by rearming the panther!!!
One of my all-time favorite TH-cam channels 👍🏼
It's a shame what happened to him. A disregard of the right to private ownership. It wasn't even able to fire its main gun.
I can't imagine the amount of effort he put into preserving the tank. Panthers required lots of maintenance to keep them in working condition and apparently he drove it around until 1978.
This is what happens with items that one tries to keep by registering with the " Government " !!!!!!!! remember
Seems grossly unfair to take the tank off him when he’d legally bought and restored it ..
Wow chill government let him keep it
Such a beauty that panther......and the flak 8.8 too
He bought it legally and restored it. Why was it taken from him?
Apparently the National Socialists have taken power and they want their stuff back.
I hope the man gets back his slice of military history and I hope those who damaged his tank pays him the money to have it repaired. Yes the man had hold of one of the Bronze horses but that doesn't mean they're allowed to steal and damage his other historical items.
Hmm? Raided as in breaking down doors guns drawn? Just to recover a wartime relic
If someone kicked in my door with guns drawn I'd like to have a Panther I could get in and close the hatches too.
Nah, i think raided means them breaking down doors waving lawpapers and shouting
@@juststeve5542 Would be kinda funny to see the faces of the GIGN as they descend into the basement, finding a panther, engine running, with an 88 pointed at them, as they hear someone inside just shouting "FUCK OFF!"
@@Марсель-ж5ч I am fairly sure that is the default state of mind in many germans, irregardless of what is going on.
Elen Degenerate Cool comment ,But the panther didn’t have an 88,The caliber was 75mm
Amazing story!!! Thank you so much!
ESSO had a slogan way back: ´´ Put a tiger in your tank ´´ this guy maybe didnt have a car back then so he did the next best thing! LOL
Thank you for the tutorial! Before, my cat would hiss and bite at me whenever
I tried to pick it up. Now, it does not hiss and bite at all! In fact,
it does not even move a muscle anymore!
Some big basements over there !
Thanks for sharing I really enjoy your work and the history...
Give the tank back to his owner!
Some people joked that the Bundeswehr had so little operational tanks available that they needed every armored vehicle they could get :-)
The whole show was kind of ridiculous considering that it was well known to the autorities that this tank existed.
This is why I live in America. Where it is perfectly legal to own a tank, and with the right paper work, a live firing one.
This is such a sad situation. this guy was so far ahead of the game saving this stuff years back. however if I had a panther tank and a 88 and somebody came and took it away from me (I love tanks so much) I would be so angry they better be careful that I don't decide to drop my secret nuke I've got stashed away in my secret B29 on their house and then disappear into my secret bunker.
Proof positive that Government is forever the Bane of Humanity.
I'm living in Kiel and actually everybody with just a little bit interest in WW Weapons or crazy things in general knew, that someone in Heikendorf has a Panther (its actually called Panter in English. Don't say the TH, just the T).
The Bundeswehr unit had to damage the basement of the house to get the tank out of it. And the actual stand on the case is yet to be announced, but because the weapon was demilitarized and the tank was owned legally, it was a big joke everyone laughed about in our newspapers. The Republic has to give the tank back to the owner and has to repair or pay for every damage they made on the building.
No it's a Name, so it's Panther in all languages, except you want to translate it into english, than its cougar.
It was not legally owned and documented, since it's been bought in 1970s Britain with no legal status in Germany, also it had a permission of a local authority, which is irrelevant because the legal status had to be acquired by both state and federal authorities.
It was also not properly Demilitarised. A Demilitarisation needs to be certified by a weapon specialist.
I don't know who you heard laughing about this particular matter, because breaking the "War Machinery Control Act" is considered a serious crime in Germany.