Uploaded August 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
At the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe, Hungary's arsenal comprised a relatively small number of obsolete armored vehicles. By 1941, this force was bolstered by the introduction of the Toldi I and II light tanks, essentially identical except for the latter being constructed with domestic components. These vehicles boasted minimal protection, with just 13 mm (0.51 in) of armor at the front, and were armed with a pewny 20 mm (0.78 in) anti-tank rifles which were inadequate even by the standards of the interwar period. Once the Operation Barbarossa, Axis invasion of the Soviet Union, commenced, the realities of combat on the Eastern Front quickly exposed the complete inadequacy of these obsolete light tanks.
Since Hungary had nothing to replace them with, efforts turned to modernizing the existing fleet of Toldis. Undertaken modifications included the installation of a 40 mm (1.57 in) gun and an increase in frontal armor thickness, leading to the development of the Toldi IIA variant. However, due to its low priority, conversion of the Toldi IIA tanks happened on a limited scale and exceedingly late. Further attempts to improve performance of these light tanks continued with the Toldi III project, which never progressed beyond the prototype stage.
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Article: tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/hungary/toldi-iia
Sources:
C. Bescze (2007) Magyar Steel Hungarian Armour in WW II, STRATUS.
B. Adam, E. Miklos, S. Gyula (2006) A Magyar Királyi Honvédség külföldi gyártású páncélos harcjárművei 1920-1945, Petit Real
S.J.Zaloga (2013) Tanks of the Hitler’s Eastern Allies 1941-45, New Vanguard..
A. T. Jones (2013) Armored Warfare and Hitler’s Allies 1941-1945, Pen and Sword
Bojan B. Dumitrijević and Dragan Savić (2011) Oklopne jedinice na Jugoslovenskom ratištu,, Institut za savremenu istoriju, Beograd
G. Finizio (1987) Hungarian Armor, Wheels and Tracks.
P. Chamberlain and C. Ellis (1977) Axis Combat Vehicles, Arco Publishing Company
P. Mujzer (2020) The 38M Toldi Light Tank Kagero
P. Mujzer (2017) Operational History Of The Hungarian Armored Troops in World War II, Kagero
P. Mujzer (2017) Hungarian Armored Forces in World War II, Kagero
E. M. G. Martinez (2019) Images of War Hungarian Armored Fighting Vehicles, Pen & Sword
armedconflicts.com/Hungary-HUN-c500387
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An article by Marko P.
Narrated by Sosoniaru
Edited by Daniele Notaro
Sound edited by Sosoniaru
Music by @relaxinglofibeats593
At the outbreak of the Second World War in Europe, Hungary's arsenal comprised a relatively small number of obsolete armored vehicles. By 1941, this force was bolstered by the introduction of the Toldi I and II light tanks, essentially identical except for the latter being constructed with domestic components. These vehicles boasted minimal protection, with just 13 mm (0.51 in) of armor at the front, and were armed with a pewny 20 mm (0.78 in) anti-tank rifles which were inadequate even by the standards of the interwar period. Once the Operation Barbarossa, Axis invasion of the Soviet Union, commenced, the realities of combat on the Eastern Front quickly exposed the complete inadequacy of these obsolete light tanks.
Since Hungary had nothing to replace them with, efforts turned to modernizing the existing fleet of Toldis. Undertaken modifications included the installation of a 40 mm (1.57 in) gun and an increase in frontal armor thickness, leading to the development of the Toldi IIA variant. However, due to its low priority, conversion of the Toldi IIA tanks happened on a limited scale and exceedingly late. Further attempts to improve performance of these light tanks continued with the Toldi III project, which never progressed beyond the prototype stage.
Join this channel to get access to exclusive perks:
youtube.com/channel/UC2tZSN6WSAtzKLalKbflBLg/join
If you liked this video, please consider donating on Patreon or Paypal!
Patreon: patreon.com/tankartfund
Paypal: paypal.com/paypalme/tankencyclopedia
Article: tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/hungary/toldi-iia
Sources:
C. Bescze (2007) Magyar Steel Hungarian Armour in WW II, STRATUS.
B. Adam, E. Miklos, S. Gyula (2006) A Magyar Királyi Honvédség külföldi gyártású páncélos harcjárművei 1920-1945, Petit Real
S.J.Zaloga (2013) Tanks of the Hitler’s Eastern Allies 1941-45, New Vanguard..
A. T. Jones (2013) Armored Warfare and Hitler’s Allies 1941-1945, Pen and Sword
Bojan B. Dumitrijević and Dragan Savić (2011) Oklopne jedinice na Jugoslovenskom ratištu,, Institut za savremenu istoriju, Beograd
G. Finizio (1987) Hungarian Armor, Wheels and Tracks.
P. Chamberlain and C. Ellis (1977) Axis Combat Vehicles, Arco Publishing Company
P. Mujzer (2020) The 38M Toldi Light Tank Kagero
P. Mujzer (2017) Operational History Of The Hungarian Armored Troops in World War II, Kagero
P. Mujzer (2017) Hungarian Armored Forces in World War II, Kagero
E. M. G. Martinez (2019) Images of War Hungarian Armored Fighting Vehicles, Pen & Sword
armedconflicts.com/Hungary-HUN-c500387
Tank Encyclopedia Magazines and Books: payhip.com/TankEncyclopedia
Reddit: reddit.com/r/TankEncyclopedia
TE Shop: tanks-encyclopedia.com/Goodies/tanks-posters.php
Our website: tanks-encyclopedia.com
Gaming News Website: tanks-encyclopedia.com/games
Facebook: facebook.com/tanksencyclopedia
Twitter: twitter.com/tanksenc
Discord: discord.gg/3VjQ8Zq
Email: tanks.encyclopedia@gmail.com
An article by Marko P.
Narrated by Sosoniaru
Edited by Daniele Notaro
Sound edited by Sosoniaru
Music by @relaxinglofibeats593
