Apart from the official Order of Battle, German tank forces often operated in ad hoc formations, especially after the reverse of fortunes on the battlefield required makeshift units to tackle crisis situations more often.
The philosophy behind these brigades was that smaller but stronger tank units could manoeuvre and counteract more swiftly than cumbersome panzer divisions, which can be easily detected by enemy intelligence.
Nevertheless, when Hitler ordered the creation of the Panzer Brigades in July 1944, they were rather born out of necessity than a new defence doctrine of the German armed forces.
[4] Ten Panzer Brigades are created on July 7, 1944 on the orders of Adolf Hitler in an attempt to stabilize the Eastern Front.
[5] The order resulted from observations on the successes of ad-hoc kampfgruppes like Schwere Panzer Regiment under Oberst Franz Bäke.