Italian tanks presentation : Semovente da 105/25

Anyway, here is the final stage of the Semovente concept, the only one to earn some respect in the battlefield and prove its effectiveness. To update the Semovente's design, it was decided to redesign it on the chassis of the P40 heavy tank; when it was understood that it would not be ready in time, an especially-made version of the M15/42 tank's chassis was selected.

The result was an AFV that was wider and even lower than the Semovente M40/M41/M42, barely 1,75 meters (5 feet and 7 inches, more or less); for the first time, welding was extensively used in the lateral part of the casemate (sign that, although far too late, the Italian industry was beginning to learn something from the Germans); the armament was a powerful 105 mm gun, a variant of a proposed 105 mm field gun made by Ansaldo. Protection was left more or less unchanged, although the lateral skirts were to prove somewhat effective against hand-held anti-tank weapons (like the Bazooka).

Unfortunately, it was put into production far too late. On September 8th, 1943, only a few were in service, and participated in the battle around Roma against the German forces. Afterwards, they were pressed in service for the German forces, and Ansaldo produced further 91 of them; although they acquitted themselves well (their HESH and HEAT shells being more than capable of defeating Allied tanks), the Wehrmacht asked for a version with more anti-tank capability, which resulted in the Semovente M42T (of which I will speak in a dedicated page).

For their low silhouette, they were affectionately nicknamed "Bassotto" (Italian for "dachsund") by their crews.

EDIT : I corrected an error I let slip through my fingers in the title.