List of weapons in Downfall

This page lists out the weapons seen on Downfall.

85-mm M1939 (52-K) gun
The 85-mm M1939 (52-K) gun is a Soviet-made anti-aircraft gun. It was seen in the Hitler Youth Scene, where Peter Kranz and other Hitler Youths were seen handling the flak gun.

The gun used was most likely supposed to be the German 8.8 cm Flak 18/36/37/41, whose barrel is similar, however because the filming took place in Russia, a 52-K was more easy to obtain.

Cyanide pill
Cyanide pills were lethal poisons used by many of the people in Hitler's circles to commit suicide. The pill consists of concentrated potassium cyanide solution, encased in a glass ampoule, which were in turn covered in rubber casing during storage. The mode of usage involves, instead of ingesting the pill itself, crushing the glass ampule between one's teeth, breaking the ampoule and releasing the lethal fast-acting neurotoxin.

The pills supplied to Hitler in the Fuhrerbunker were sent by Himmler, and Hitler in turn distributes them to some of the bunker occupants. Because most of the cyanide pills were manufactured in concentration camps, there are concerns that some of them were sabotaged and non-lethal, so Hitler tests one on Blondi with help from Werner Haase and his dog handler Fritz Tornow. Blondi died almost instantly, rendering Hitler inconsolable afterwards.

Eva Braun chose cyanide pills to kill herself with Hitler, as she doesn't want to have her face disfigured if she were to shoot herself. Hewel is the only other person besides Hitler and Eva who bit a cyanide pill to his death. Gerda Christian, Traudl Junge and Constanze Manziarly also received a cyanide pill each from Hitler, but do not use them.

Degtyaryov DP-28
The Degtyaryov DP-28, or Degtyaryov's infantry machine gun (DP), is a light machine gun used by the Soviet starting 1928. It is easy to manufacture and has few parts, but breaks easily. The machine gun was seen in the night battle scene with Mohnke.

Karabiner 98k
The Karabiner 98k is a German made bolt-action rifle, used extensively by the Wehrmacht until the end of WWII. They can be seen in the beginning of the film, where the Wolfsschanze's guards are seen handling them. There were also seen towards the end of the film, where the soldiers smashes up the guns on the ground as the Soviet forces surround them.

Luger P08
The Pistole Parabellum 1908 or Parabellum-Pistole (Pistol Parabellum), popularly known as the Luger, is a toggle-locked recoil-operated semi-automatic pistol. It was made popular by Germany during both World Wars, who supplies the pistols to the army.

SS-Brigadeführer Wilhelm Mohnke carried a Luger P08 pistol as his sidearm. He was seen with it when the last remaining German officers prepared for the Red Army. Hermann Göring also carried a Luger, although it's not seen in the movie.

MG 34
The Maschinengewehr 34, or MG 34, is a German air-cooled machine gun that was first produced and accepted into service in 1934, and first issued to units in 1935. Manufactured by Mauser, they are a stand-issue to the Kreigsmarine, though the manufacturing process is time-consuming and expensive for the expanding armed forces. They can be seen in Peter Kranz's street battle scene, where a German soldier fire at the advancing Soviets behind the cover of sandbags.

Model 24 Grenade
The Model 24 Grenade or Model 24 Stielhandgranate was the standard hand grenade of the German Army from the end of World War I until the end of World War II. The very distinctive appearance led to its being called a "stick grenade", or a "potato masher" in British Army slang.

The Model 24 Grenade appears briefly in Downfall. As Weidling and his adjutant is entering the Fuhrerbunker on charges of desertion, several are being passed out to a group of Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS soldiers in the Reichstag's underground passages, as they are preparing for battle. They appear more often in parodies that feature scenes from Saving Private Ryan.

Model 39 Grenade
The Model 39 Grenade or M39 (German Eihandgranate 39, nicknamed Eierhandgranate "Egg hand grenade") or simply Granate 39 was a German hand grenade introduced in 1939 and produced until 1945. The grenades are deployed by unscrewing the ball cap, pulling it out revealing the coiled wire, gently stretching it, then quickly pulling it and throwing the grenade.

These grenades are famous for its use by high-ranking Nazi officers who were on orders to commit suicide. Grawitz used two of these grenades to kill himself and his family. This becomes a recurring joke in the parodies, where Grawitz blows himself every time he is either sad of angry. Apart from his family, he also blew up Hitler after he told him that he can't cook.

Mosin-Nagant M38 Carbine
The Mosin–Nagant (Russian: Винтовка Мосина, ISO 9: Vintovka Mosina) is a bolt-action, internal magazine-fed, military rifle invented under the government commission by Russian and Belgian inventors, and used by the armed forces of the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union and other nations.

The model seen in Downfall is the M38, as there are many other models. A lot of M38 Carbines are seen in the hands of Red Army soldiers, but not that many full sized M91/30 rifles, which is rather odd, since the Mosin Nagant M91/30 was the most common weapon in any Red Army Infantry unit. As in the case of the PPSh-41, M38 carbines were issued in anticipation of the heavy street fighting. Other than submachine guns, the M38 Carbine was issued to truck drivers and secondary members of crew served weapons. So the mix of PPSh-41s and M38s is historically correct.