The Weald Foundation: Preserving and Educating on Historic Military Vehicles

The Weald Foundation is a charitable organization established to preserve, restore and maintain historic military vehicles from both World Wars, and to educate the public about their history. Our unique lineup of rare and important military vehicles that we have rescued is considered to be one of the finest working collections in the world.

At the Weald Foundation, schools, engineers, historians, modellers, enthusiasts, and collectors come together to discover and learn. We have carried out extensive work on many types of armoured fighting vehicles, including tank restoration. Our team sources original components and, where necessary, create new parts from the original blueprints or examples.

Our research into the history of every vehicle in our collection provides unique authenticity to our work. We strive to understand each vehicle’s story, where and when it was assembled, its role in combat, and the story of the people who operated them or fought against them.

Armed Forces Covenant logo

As a non-profit organization, we receive no UK government funding. Our work in restoring vehicles and creating a centre of technical and historical excellence depends on your support. You can help by becoming a member or making a donation, ensuring that this important restoration work continues to flourish.

By supporting the Weald Foundation, you can contribute to the preservation of these iconic vehicles and help educate the public about their history. Join us in our mission to preserve these pieces of history for future generations to appreciate and learn from.

Join us in our mission to preserve history and promote its educational value. Visit our Membership section to learn more about the Weald Foundation Membership Program and become a member or make a donation today.

In the Workshop

WORKSHOP DISPATCH – 18–22 MAY 2026

Back from a hugely successful Militracks 2026, with our Sd.Kfz.223 one of the stars of the event – fully equipped with original-style radio gear thanks to our friend Remco. The Jagdpanther’s magnetos are finished and the engine is running better than ever. Plus the seats have arrived for the TWC 223.

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WORKSHOP DISPATCH – 11–15 MAY 2026

A shorter week as the team prepared for Militracks 2026. We welcomed Cranbrook Men’s Shed for a tour, Terry and Tom painted the Sd.Kfz.223 camouflage and Balkenkreuz, and by Thursday the team was on their way to the Netherlands.

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WORKSHOP DISPATCH – 4–8 MAY 2026

Final preparations for Militracks 2026, Jagdpanther magneto investigation continues, and we ended the week with a successful Spring Members Open Day – where members got hands on and started the StuG III themselves.

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Weald Foundation Collection Hall

WORKSHOP DISPATCH – 27 APRIL – 1 MAY 2026

The Sd.Kfz.250/3 has moved into the main workshop, the Jagdpanther condenser has been replaced, and work continues on both Sd.Kfz.223 vehicles. Final preparations for our Spring Members Open Day are underway – and tickets are almost fully booked.

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Inside Track Magazine

Militracks 2026: The Sd.Kfz.223 returns to Overloon

Our first return to Militracks since 2019 saw the newly camouflaged Sd.Kfz.223 run daily on the one mile track at the Oorlogsmuseum Overloon. We drew strong interest from visitors, trialled loaned radio equipment in the field, and met some wonderful enthusiasts along the way.

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SdKfz 222

The Balkenkreuz on the Sd.Kfz.222: Orders and Practice

H.M. 1939 Nr. 770 was clear: white bars only, outline cross, no black. A review of period photographs of German armoured cars tells a more varied story — two different interpretations of bar spacing, rear crosses smaller than ordered, and by around 1942, a black centre cross that no order ever specified. This article applies the regulatory chain to the Foundation’s Sd.Kfz.222 and looks at what crews actually painted.

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Sd.Kfz.223

Balkenkreuz: The October 1939 Amendment

The solid white Balkenkreuz introduced in July 1939 did not outlast its first campaign. Six days after the Polish campaign ended, the Army General Staff wrote to condemn it as a danger to the vehicles it was meant to identify. On 26 October 1939, H.M. Nr. 770 changed the system permanently, removing the front cross entirely and replacing the solid white mark with the outline form that would remain standard for years to come.

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Balkenkreuz: The July 1939 Tank Specification

In July 1939 the Oberkommando des Heeres issued a classified order establishing the Balkenkreuz on all German armoured vehicles. Accompanying it was Annex 1: a set of individual placement sheets, one per vehicle type, giving the exact dimensions and position of the cross on every tank then in German service. This article opens that annex and works through what it specified, vehicle by vehicle.

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Become a Member

We are a charity and our work depends on your support.  Become a member today.  Help us to locate, recover, research and restore unique historic military vehicles from WW1 and WW2.