An abandoned Tiger II panzer

In running order, it weighs 69 tonnes. More than twice the weight of an American Sherman tank. Carrying the number 113, it is known to belong to the 1st Company of the 101st SS Heavy Tank Battalion. The unit of armored ace Michael Wittmann. This battalion fought in Normandy. Decimated, the 1st Company returns to Germany to be equipped with the brand-new Tiger II. It fought on the Seine. Inexorably beaten back by the advancing Americans, it retreated via Compiègne and La Capelle. Survivors made their way north via Maubeuge and Mons.

This is probably the retreat route taken by the Tiger tank abandonned in Jemappes. On September 2, the Nimy bridge was blown up. It spanned the Canal du Centre. The retreat route to Brussels was cut off. Another crossing point had to be found, for example by following the canal westwards, a route the tank may have taken before running out of fuel. Period photos show signs of preparation for a tow that never took place. To clear the road, the Americans moved the wreckage a little further along, to the junction with Rue du Docteur Wolkas, where it awaited scrap metal.