Other titles in the Stackpole Military History Series

THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR

Cavalry Raids of the Civil WarPickett’s Charge

Witness to Gettysburg

WORLD WAR II

Armor Battles of the Waffen-SS, 1943–45Army of the West

Australian CommandosThe B-24 in China

Backwater WarThe Battle of Sicily

Beyond the BeachheadThe Brandenburger Commandos

The BrigadeBringing the Thunder

Coast Watching in World War IIColossal CracksD-Day to Berlin

Eagles of the Third ReichExit Rommel

Flying American Combat Aircraft of World War IIFist from the Sky

Forging the ThunderboltFortress France

The German Defeat in the East, 1944–45German Order of Battle, Vols. 2 and 3

Germany’s Panzer Arm in World War IIGrenadiers

Infantry AcesIron Arm

Luftwaffe AcesMesserschmitts over Sicily

Michael Wittmann, Vols. 1 and 2

The Nazi RocketeersOn the Canal

Packs On!Panzer Aces

Panzer Aces IIThe Panzer LegionsRetreat to the Reich

Rommel’s Desert WarThe Savage Sky

A Soldier in the CockpitStalin’s Keys to Victory

Surviving Bataan and BeyondTigers in the Mud

The 12th SS, Vols. 1 and 2

THE COLD WAR / VIETNAM

Flying American Combat Aircraft: The Cold WarLand with No SunStreet without Joy

WARS OF THE MIDDLE EAST

Never-Ending Conflict

GENERAL MILITARY HISTORY

Carriers in CombatDesert Battles

Copyright © 2007 by Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr.

Published bySTACKPOLE BOOKS5067 Ritter RoadMechanicsburg, PA 17055www.stackpolebooks.com

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All inquiries should be addressed to Stackpole Books,5067 Ritter Road, Mechanicsburg, PA 17055

This is a revised and expanded edition of HITLER’S LEGIONS by Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr., originally published in one volume by Stein and Day. Copyright © 1985by Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr.

Cover design by Tracy Patterson

Cover photo courtesy of HITM Archive, www.hitm-archive.co.uk

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mitcham, Samuel W.German order of battle / Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr.p. cm. — (Stackpole military history series)

Includes bibliographical references and index.ISBN-13: 978-0-8117-3416-5ISBN-10: 0-8117-3416-11. Germany. Heer. Infanterie. 2. Germany. Heer—History—World War, 1939–1945. 3. World War, 1939–1945—Regimental histories—Germany. 4. Germany—History, Military—20th century. I. Title.

D757.3.M57 2007940.54'1343—dc22

2007 014285

eBook ISBN: 9780811744904

Table of ContentsIntroduction

1. The German Division

2. The Wehrkreise System

3. The 1st–290th Infantry Divisions

Index

IntroductionAs a young graduate student recently discharged from the U.S. Army, I started writing a book entitledHitler’s Legions: The Order of Battle of the German Army, World War II in the mid-1970s andfinished it seven years later. Since that time, a huge amount of literature on the order of battle of theGerman armed forces and their commanders has become available—so much so that Hitler’s Legionsbecame obsolete. The purpose of this book, and its companion volumes, is to replace the original, topresent the order of battle of the German ground forces in World War II, and to trace each divisionfrom inception to destruction. I also (insofar as is possible) have listed the divisional commandersand the dates they held command. If they were promoted, killed, or wounded during their tenure, Ihave included this information as well. I only regret that I was not able to give a short biography ofeach commander, as I did in Panzer Legions and in the endnotes of some of my earlier books.

I would like to thank Chris Evans, the history editor at Stackpole Books, for suggesting this project,and David Reisch at Stackpole for all of his help. I would also like to thank Melinda Matthews, thehead of the interlibrary loan department at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, for her usual superbjob in tracking down reference material, as well as anyone else who provided useable informationfor this project. Sincere appreciation is also extended to Paul Moreau and Dr. Donny Elias for theirhelp and encouragement. Most of all, I would like to thank my long-suffering wife, Donna, and mykids, Lacy and Gavin, for all that they have had to put up with during this process.

Dr. Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr.Monroe, Louisiana

Map 1

Map 2

Map 3

Map 4

CHAPTER 1

The German DivisionTHE DIVISIONAL STAFFGerman divisions in World War II varied remarkably in strength, composition, organization,transport, equipment, and even in racial composition. The division staffs of most combat units,however, were very similar and were divided into three operational groupings: theFührungsabteilung, or tactical detachment; the Quartiermeister, or supply group; and theAdjutantur, or personnel group.

The tactical group included the chief of operations (or Ia) and the chief intelligence officer (Ic) aswell as their respective staffs. The Ia served as chief of staff in division-sized units or lower, and theIc was directly subordinate to him. (The term “chief of staff” was normally reserved for corps-levelheadquarters or higher.) Besides the intelligence officer, various other combat-oriented subordinatesworked for the chief of operations, including the Ia for artillery, air liaison officers, and others. Thistactical headquarters was also known as the division’s command post (CP).

The supply headquarters, which was physically separated from the CP, was headed by the Ib (chiefsupply officer, or divisional quartermaster). It included the IVa (chief administrative officer), the IVb(chief medical officer), the IVc (chief veterinary officer), and the V (motor transport officer). All ofthese officers were in charge of their own sections. Most of them were not General Staff officers;however, to hold an I-type position (i.e., Ia, Ib, or Ic), an officer had to be at least a probationarymember of the General Staff.

The third operational grouping was the personnel, or Adjutantur, group, which was headed by theIIa, the chief personnel officer or adjutant. Subordinate to him were the IIb or second personnelofficer (who was also referred to as “Adjutant Two”), the III (chief judge advocate), the chaplain(IVd), and various other sections necessary for the smooth functioning of the staff headquarters, suchas motor pools, security detachments, and the like. In the U.S. Army this organization would havebeen called a Headquarters Company, and indeed many German divisions had a Staff Company(although not all of them did). The IIa section handled all officer personnel matters while the IIb wasresponsible for enlisted personnel matters. The IIb routed requests for replacements through the IIaand was subordinate to him in all matters.

The III and IVd, the motor pool officer, also commanded their own sections under the overalldirection of the IIa.

In addition to the three major groups, divisions had special staffs with officers and sectionsassigned on a temporary or permanent basis. These might include a commander of divisional supplytroops (subordinate to the Ib on most matters), the senior military police officer, the commander ofprojector (i.e., rocket-launcher) troops, the gas protection officer and, after July 20, 1944, theNational Socialist guidance officer. Most division headquarters also had a motorized mappingdetachment and a motorcycle messenger platoon, which bore the same numbers as the division.

One very important special staff officer was the senior artillery commander(Artilleriekommandanteur, or Arko). He was attached to the division on a temporary basis and wasresponsible for recommending the allocation of attached General Headquarters artillery units (i.e.,

those loaned to the division from a corps or higher headquarters) within the division. His commandwas also called an Arko.

When no General Headquarters artillery units were attached to the division (which was theexception, rather than the rule), the division artillery commander (Artillerieführer, or Arfü) wasresponsible for all artillery matters; however, if an Arko was present, he normally commanded thedivisional artillery forces, while the Arfü directed the division’s organic artillery regiment.

Arkos were corps-level General Headquarters (GHQ) units which were often detached to thedivisional level. Higher-level artillery headquarters and units (i.e., units found at the army and armygroup levels) were commanded by a higher artillery command, which was called a Harko (HöhererArtilleriekommandeur). The commander himself was also called the Harko.

THE INFANTRY LINE REGIMENTSGerman divisions were organized in any number of ways. However, infantry units were the mostnumerous. The total German Army and Waffen-SS strength in 1941, for example, was 163 infantrydivisions (including four light and six mountain divisions), one cavalry division, nine securitydivisions, fourteen motorized infantry divisions, and twenty-one panzer divisions. In addition, all ofthe panzer divisions (except those in Africa) had at least two motorized infantry regiments (whichwere later redesignated panzer grenadier regiments). Because of the numerical predominance ofinfantry-type units in the Wehrmacht, they will be discussed as the rule.

Early in the war, each German infantry division had three infantry regiments of three battalionseach, an artillery regiment, a signal battalion, an anti-tank battalion, an engineer battalion, and areconnaissance battalion, which was changed to a fusilier battalion (or a company) in many divisionscreated or reorganized after 1942. (Fusilier units were usually equipped with bicycles. This fact,however, did not apply to infantry regiments, which were occasionally given the honorary title“Fusilier,” but without any changes to their mobility.) Similarly, many divisions created after 1942had only two infantry regiments, and a signal company instead of a signal battalion.

Infantry regiments—which were renamed grenadier regiments by Führer order on October 15,1942—consisted of two or three infantry battalions, an infantry howitzer company, and an anti-tankcompany. The earlier in the war a division was formed, the more likely it was to have threeregiments, and the more likely these regiments were to have three battalions, for a total of nineinfantry battalions per division. As Hitler made known his requirement for more and more divisions,the strength of each level of command declined remarkably. After 1941, for example, theestablishment level of an infantry company was reduced from 180 to 80, and as the war dragged on,most companies were well below establishment. It is easy to see, then, why it is difficult togeneralize about the strength of a German division: a 1939 division of three regiments—each withthree infantry battalions consisting of companies of 180 men each—would be much stronger than a1944 two-regiment Volksgrenadier (people’s infantry) division with only four infantry battalions inall (and these with companies of fewer than eighty men each). Besides these reductions, thedivisional units—signal, tank destroyer, engineer, and reconnaissance battalions—were oftendowngraded from battalion to company-sized units later in the war.

Infantry battalions normally consisted of three infantry companies and either a machine-guncompany or heavy weapons company. As late as 1944 most infantry companies had three rifleplatoons and one heavy machine-gun section (or an 81mm mortar section), except in Volksgrenadierdivisions, where the grenadier companies had two submachine-gun platoons and one rifle platoon.

The machine-gun company—present in most mountain, light, and panzer grenadier divisions—included 81mm mortars and heavy machine guns. In infantry and panzer divisions, this unit wasreplaced by the heavy weapons company, which consisted of infantry howitzer or 120mm mortarplatoons, as well as heavy machine-gun platoons or sections.

The first eight companies in the two-battalion regiments—or the first twelve in three-battalionregiments—were organic to the battalions (i.e., were one of the three infantry companies or thebattalion’s heavy weapons company and were under the command of the battalion commander). Theninth company (or 13th Company in three-battalion regiments) was an infantry howitzer companydirectly under regimental control. Even in two-battalion regiments, it usually bore the designation13th Company. In such cases, no “9th Company,” “10th Company,” “11th Company,” or “12thCompany” existed. The equipment of this unit was varied. In Volksgrenadier divisions it includedtwo platoons of 120mm mortars and one platoon of infantry howitzers. Infantry howitzer companies ofearlier-vintage divisions had more howitzer units and fewer mortar sections than divisions that weremobilized later in the war.

The 10th Company in two-battalion regiments (or 14th Company in three-battalion regiments) wasthe infantry anti-tank company, which was equipped with 37mm anti-tank guns or with short-range75mm and 150mm anti-tank guns. Later they were equipped with Panzerfausts (individually carried,single-shot, disposable anti-tank weapons) or other anti-tank weapons similar to the bazooka. The14th Company in Volksgrenadier divisions was called a tank destroyer company, and was equippedsolely with Panzerfausts.

THE ARTILLERY REGIMENTIn infantry and light (or Jäger) divisions, the artillery regiments consisted of four battalions, numberedI, II, III, and IV. I, II, and III battalions were equipped with towed or horse-drawn 105mm howitzers,while IV battalion had 150mm howitzers. Battalions normally consisted of three batteries of four gunseach—forty-eight guns per regiment. As with all other German military formations, the rule for thistype of organization was violated with increasing frequency after 1943; many units, for example,were outfitted with captured foreign equipment.

The artillery regiments in panzer and motorized divisions were more mobile and often self-propelled. Panzer artillery regiments, however, usually had only three battalions: I and II wereequipped with 105mm howitzers, and III was armed with 150mm howitzers.

Mountain artillery regiments normally consisted of four battalions. I, II, and III battalions wereequipped with 75mm mountain howitzers and IV with 105mm mountain howitzers, which were lighterthan normal howitzers of the same caliber.

Divisional artillery units frequently were reinforced by units from the GHQ artillery pool at corps-level or above. As already discussed, these units, as well as the organic divisional artillery regiment,were commanded by the Arko. The Arko might bring an assortment of units with him, including GHQobservation units, light, medium, heavy, or super-heavy batteries or battalions, which might be horse-drawn, motorized, tractor-drawn, self-propelled, railway-transported, or even fixed, in extremelyrare cases. Other artillery units often attached to the division included armored assault-gun battalions,which consisted of a headquarters battery and three six-gun batteries equipped with 75mm self-propelled assault guns that were employed as if they were tanks. Flak (Fliegerabwehrkanone, oranti-aircraft cannon) battalions (organic to many panzer and SS panzer divisions) were occasionally

attached to divisions and included three 88mm gun batteries and two 20mm gun batteries. Light anti-aircraft (Fliegerabwehr, or Fla) battalions were also occasionally attached, or were even organic, tosome divisions.

DIVISIONAL UNITSThe primary units organic to the divisional headquarters were the reconnaissance, anti-tank, engineer,and signal battalions. Divisional reconnaissance battalions were remarkably varied, even relativelyearly in the war. Generally speaking, however, there were two major types in 1942: those found ininfantry divisions and those in motorized, light, and panzer divisions. Infantry reconnaissancebattalions normally consisted of three companies: one mounted, one motorcycle, and one motorized(heavy weapons) company. Light, motorized, and panzer divisional reconnaissance battalionsnormally were completely motorized.

From 1943 onward, newly organized divisions incorporated fusilier battalions, which wereorganized like infantry battalions except that they were more mobile. Usually they were equippedwith bicycles.

The divisional anti-tank battalions were variously equipped, but normally consisted of short-range37mm, 75mm, and 150mm anti-tank guns. Originally designated Panzer Abwehr units (tank defense oranti-tank units), they were redesignated Panzerjäger (tank hunter or tank destroyer) battalions onApril 1, 1940. Later in the war, they were more and more frequently equipped with hand-carriedPanzerfausts or self-propelled assault guns, or sometimes combinations of the two. These self-propelled assault guns were turretless, open-topped, tracked, and armed with a gun mounted on thehull. There usually were eighteen assault guns per battalion (and thirty-one assault guns in an assaultgun brigade, which was a type of unit independent of the divisions). Many early-model assault guns(i.e., 1940 or 1941 types) were mounted on Panzer Mark III (PzKw III) chassis and might employ alow-velocity 75mm or 105mm gun or a low-velocity 105mm howitzer. These were graduallyreplaced by long-barrel, high-velocity 75mm guns and carried both solid (anti-tank) and highexplosive shells. They continued to be mounted on the PzKw III chassis, however. These assault gunswere extremely important to the German Army in World War II. Not only did they provide manydivisions with excellent anti-tank protection, but they debilitated many enemy (especially Russian)armored units as well. By early 1944, for example, the assault gun arm claimed to have destroyed20,000 enemy tanks. The assault-gun arm was an integral part of the artillery branch, which suppliedthe officers and training. It was in no way subordinate to the panzer branch—much to the chagrin ofColonel General Heinz Guderian, the chief of the panzer inspectorate in 1943.

As the war went on and casualties mounted (especially in Russia), many reconnaissance units wereseriously depleted by casualties. Often they were merged with the division’s tank destroyer battalionsto form schnelle (mobile or fast) battalions. These units had the dual missions of conductingreconnaissance and providing anti-tank defense. They were organized any number of ways. The 227thSchnelle Battalion of the 227th Infantry Division, for example, had four bicycle squadrons(companies), armed mainly with light machine guns; a motorized tank destroyer company, equippedwith a dozen 37mm anti-tank guns; and a heavy company, with an armored car platoon, twomotorcycle platoons, two tank destroyer platoons (with three 37mm anti-tank guns each), and anengineer platoon. The 236th Schnelle Battalion of the 162nd Infantry Division, on the other hand,controlled three motorized tank destroyer companies (one armed with towed 37mm guns and two with50mm guns); one bicycle squadron; and a signals platoon. Other divisions had almost every

conceivable variation in between by 1942.As the war dragged on, reconnaissance battalions were often replaced with fusilier battalions.

They were equipped mainly with bicycles and armed with light machine guns, or with 50mm and/or80mm mortars and light machine guns

The combat engineer battalions included assault, construction, demolition, and bridging troops.They were skilled at penetrating minefields and fortified areas, as well as in delaying enemyadvances when Hitler allowed his divisions to conduct timely and well-organized retreats—whichoccurred only rarely. The engineer battalions frequently suffered even higher rates of casualties thantheir infantry counterparts.

Nondivisional engineer battalions were frequently attached to divisions for specific operations.Divisional engineer battalions could, on occasion, be transferred to the GHQ pool or attached toother divisions, although most corps commanders preferred to respect the unit integrity of the divisionwhenever possible.

The division signal battalion had three constituent units: a headquarters detachment, a telephonecompany, and a radio company. It could, if necessary, be augmented by GHQ units, such as telegraphcompanies or interception units.

DIVISIONAL SUPPORT UNITSEach German division had its own organic supply and transport echelons under the IIa. These unitsincluded supply companies, transport units, motor transport units, the divisional trains, repair units,and others. The variation of the German divisional supply echelons are such that generalization isdifficult.

Medical units (Sanitätsabteilunge, or medical detachments) were allocated on the basis of one perdivision. They consisted of one or two medical companies, a field hospital, and two or threeambulance platoons, often grouped together under an ambulance company. They usually bore thedivisional auxiliary number, which was usually the same as that of the division; for example, the304th Medical Unit belonged to the 304th Infantry Division.

TABLE 1: THE VEHICLES OF A TYPICAL GERMAN INFANTRY DIVISION PRIOR TO1943: HORSE VS. MOTOR

MotorVehicles

Horse-DrawnVehicles

Divisional Headquarters (includingadministrative, supply, medical, police, postal,and veterinary units)

253 245

Reconnaissance Battalion 30 3

Signal Battalion 103 7

Artillery Regiment 105 229

Anti-Tank Battalion 114 0

Engineer Battalion 87 19

Three infantry regiments (3,250 men each, andeach with 683 horses, 6 small infantry guns, 2large infantry guns, 12 anti-tank guns)

75 (x3) 210 (x3)

TOTALS:

17,000 men, 5,375 horses 911 1,133

A division of this size would require 53 tons of hay daily, as well as 54 tons of food, 20 tons of gasoline and diesel, one ton of lubricants, 10 tons of ordnance stores,and 12 tons of other stores, excluding baggage and ammunition.

After 1943, the proportion of horse-drawn vehicles per division increased as the number of motor vehicles and amount of fuel available to each division declined.SOURCE: Deighton: p. 175

Each division in the German Army, with the exception of the panzer and motorized divisions, had aveterinary company. Since the average German division had 3,000 to 6,000 horses and mules, whichcarried supplies, ammunition, troops, the wounded, artillery, and other important items, thesignificance of a good veterinary company is apparent. Table 1, for a “typical” German infantrydivision prior to 1943, shows the number of horse-drawn motorized vehicles, and this table may evenoverstate the number of motor vehicles in the typical division. The reliance that German infantry unitsplaced on the horse has long been underestimated by historians.

Divisional headquarters also controlled a number of what might be termed miscellaneous units,including a bakery company, a military police detachment, a slaughter unit (for animals), and a fieldpost office unit. Other formations, such as railway repair companies, depot units, smoke units,bridging sections, and others, might be attached to the division on an as-needed basis.

The supply troops of the 24th Infantry Division were fairly typical. The 24th Divisional SupplyTroops included the 1st through 8th Motorized Light Supply Columns, the 24th MotorizedMaintenance Platoon, the 24th Motorized Supply Company, the 24th Divisional Administration Unit,the 24th Motorized Field Bakery, the 24th Motorized Butcher Company, the 24th Medical Battalion(including the 1/24th Medical Company and the 2/24th Motorized Medical Company), the 24thMotorized Field Hospital, two ambulance companies (1/ and 2/24th), the 24th Veterinary Company,the 24th Motorized Military Police Troop, and the 24th Motorized Field Post Office.

Almost every German division also had a divisional staff company (equivalent to the headquarterscompany in the U.S. Army), a motorized mapping detachment, and a motorcycle messenger platoon.

These mapping and motorcycle units bore the number of the division (for example, the 78th MappingDetachment and the 78th Motorcycle Messenger Platoon belonged to the 78th Infantry Division).

TYPE 44 DIVISIONSBeginning in the autumn of 1943, a new divisional organization was introduced: the Type 44 division.It was based on three grenadier regiments of two battalions each—or six infantry battalions perdivision instead of nine. Typically, a division was taken out of the line and reorganized, with the IIIBattalion of each grenadier regiment being abolished and reconnaissance units becoming fusilier(bicycle) units. Also, tank destroyer and signal battalions were frequently (though not always)downgraded to companies. The Type 44 division thus was smaller and had less equipment and fewermotorized vehicles than its predecessors.

THE VOLKSGRENADIER DIVISIONSIn late 1944, the Volksgrenadier (People’s Grenadier) division was organized. They lacked themanpower and heavy equipment of earlier infantry divisions and were often equipped with obsoleteor foreign equipment. Most of them, for example, had a battalion of 75mm guns, instead of the modern105mm howitzers, which were in short supply by 1944. Their infantry units, however, were wellequipped with submachine guns, and they had a large number of shoulder-fired Panzerfaust andPanzerschreck anti-tank weapons.

Volksgrenadier divisions are covered in the infantry chapters in Volumes One and Two.

PANZER DIVISIONSThe panzer divisions in the Polish and French campaigns of 1939 and 1940 possessed many moremen and tanks than those that fought after 1940. The 1st through 5th and 10th panzer divisionsconsisted of two panzer regiments of two battalions each and had between 13,000 and 14,000 men.Others (numbered 6th through 9th) had one regiment of three battalions each and had about 12,000men. The 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Panzers (formerly light divisions) were equipped mainly with capturedCzechoslovakian tanks. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 10th Panzer Divisions had to give up theirsecond panzer regiments in the fall of 1940 to create new, smaller panzer divisions in order to satisfyHitler’s illogical demands for more (but weaker) armored units. The number of tanks per divisiondeclined from around 320 in 1939 to 230 in 1940 and fewer than 190 in 1941. By 1943 theestablishment of a panzer division required about 165 tanks (although none serving on the EasternFront had that many), and by the end of 1944 it was reduced to fifty-four, and the panzer regimentreduced from three to two battalions per regiment.

In 1939, before the war began, Germany also had seven panzer brigades: the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th,8th, and 6th. They controlled two panzer regiments and belonged to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 10th, 4th, and5th Panzer Divisions, respectively. The 6th Panzer Brigade was an independent formation—i.e., ithad no divisional headquarters. Between April 1939 and November 1, 1942, all seven weredissolved or were upgraded to divisional status.

Between June 27, 1943, and the end of the war, the German Army created eighteen additionalpanzer brigade headquarters, numbered 10, 18, 21, and 100 through 115. They attempted to employsmall, independent panzer brigades on the Western Front in 1944, but this experiment proved to be acostly failure. All of the panzer brigades had ceased to exist by the end of the war. Most wereabsorbed by existing panzer divisions, although two of the panzer brigade staffs were used to form

Panzer Division Norway and Panzer Division Döberitz in 1944–45.The motorized infantry strength of the panzer division also declined as the war wore on. In 1940,

for example, each panzer division had a motorized infantry brigade consisting of two motorizedinfantry regiments of two battalions each plus a motorcycle battalion. Gradually the motorizedinfantry brigade headquarters was phased out.

Other than these differences, the panzer division was similar in organizational structure to theGerman infantry division. Most of the panzer and panzer grenadier divisions also had a motorcyclebattalion not found in infantry, mountain, or jäger divisions and an anti-aircraft battalion was addedafter 1940. There was, of course, no veterinary company in armored units.

Panzer divisions are covered in Volume Three.

MOTORIZED (PANZER GRENADIER) DIVISIONSGerman motorized infantry divisions were redesignated panzer grenadier divisions on June 23, 1943.Originally they consisted of three motorized infantry regiments of three battalions each. In late 1940,however, they had to give up their third regiments so the High Command could form new motorizeddivisions, dropping the number of motorized infantry battalions per division from nine to six.Eventually—from 1941 on—they added a panzer or assault-gun battalion of thirty to fifty tanks orguns each. Also, many of the line battalions traded their trucks for armored half-tracks. The supportunits in the panzer grenadier units were similar to those found in panzer formations.

Motorized and panzer grenadier divisions are covered in Volume Three.

MOUNTAIN DIVISIONSMountain divisions were similar to infantry divisions except in training and in that the mountaindivision’s equipment was lighter. Their artillery and anti-tank guns were also lighter and of smallercaliber. They had three regiments of three battalions each. Many of these battalions had fivecompanies: three mountain jäger, one machine gun, and one heavy weapons. Their reconnaissanceunits were equipped with bicycles.

Mountain divisions are covered in Volume Two.

JÄGER (LIGHT) DIVISIONSThese units were similar to mountain divisions in organization and equipment, except that they hadonly two regiments. They were created as pursuit divisions. The exceptions were the 90th Light andl64th Light Afrika divisions, which were used, and partially equipped, for desert warfare.

Jäger divisions are covered in Volume Two.

LIGHT DIVISIONSThe original light divisions were formed beginning in 1934–36, and four (numbered 1st through 4th)were in existence when the Wehrmacht invaded Poland in 1939. They consisted of two motorizedrifle regiments, a tank battalion, a reconnaissance regiment, and numerous supporting units. Theyproved to be too unwieldy in Poland, and in the winter of 1939–40, all four were converted intopanzer units.

Light divisions are covered in Volume Two.

SECURITY DIVISIONSThese units were formed from 1941 on and consisted of two security (or infantry) regiments, whichwere also known as local defense regiments. They were initially not authorized to have artillery andwere designed to guard key towns and cities, headquarters, and other installations in Russia, andoccasionally they were involved in anti-partisan operations.

After operations began in Russia, some of the security divisions acted upon their own initiative,incorporated captured Soviet artillery pieces into their units, and set up their own (unauthorized)artillery batteries. OKH (the High Command of the Army) accepted this fact, and some of thebatteries were even officially sanctioned after 1941. Generally speaking, however, security divisionsdid not officially have artillery or armored units. Most of the security divisions were eventuallycaught up in front-line fighting on the Eastern Front. The only security division found in the West wasthe 325th, which spent virtually its entire existence in Paris.

Security divisions are covered in the infantry chapters of Volumes One and Two.

MISCELLANEOUS ARMY DIVISIONSThe Nazi army had an incredible number of miscellaneous or special purpose divisions, includingReserve, Replacement, Field Training, Coastal Defense, Air Landing, Fortress, Cavalry, and otherdivisions. They shall be discussed in turn.

These divisions are covered in Volume Two.

LUFTWAFFE UNITSLuftwaffe ground divisions were of three types: parachute, Luftwaffe field, and flak. The parachuteunits were made up of specially trained volunteers and were excellent combat formations, althoughafter the Battle of Crete in 1941 they were used almost exclusively as infantry divisions. TheLuftwaffe field divisions, on the other hand, were made up of drafted excess air force personnel whowere poorly trained for the infantry role and thus did poorly in ground combat. Flak divisions wereassigned to armies or army groups and served throughout the area of operations. A number of thesedivisions had territorial responsibilities within Germany.

The Hermann Goering Parachute Panzer and Parachute Panzer Grenadier Divisions were tacticallyunder the control of the army and administratively under the control of the Luftwaffe. (This was alsooften the case with other Luftwaffe ground units as well.) They will be discussed under their armycategories, even though they were technically Luftwaffe units.

Luftwaffe units are covered in Volume Two.

SS DIVISIONSA total of forty-two Waffen-SS (armed SS) divisions were used as ground combat units during thewar, even though many of these formations were not even made up of Germans. Their performancevaried considerably. The most effective of these forces were the German SS panzer divisions, whichwere larger than their army counterparts because each had six motorized rifle battalions per division,as compared to four in the army panzer units. They also received the best equipment Germany couldmanufacture on a priority basis. Their officers, however, tended to be younger, less experienced, andless well trained than their army counterparts, although their enthusiasm and zeal often made up forthese deficiencies, and they gained experience as the war progressed. The major deficiency of the

German SS division was their lack of qualified General Staff officers. This inadequacy was neverfully redressed. On the other hand, the men of the German SS divisions fought with a fanaticism notdemonstrated by the average infantry division. The foreign SS divisions varied in quality from goodto virtually useless. In general, the organization of the Waffen-SS divisions was similar to the armydivisions, and they normally fought under army command, although they were responsible to the officeof the Reichsführer-SS in administrative and disciplinary matters.

Waffen SS divisions are covered in Volume Three.Sources*

Len Deighton, Blitzkrieg: From the Rise of Hitler to the Fall of Dunkirk (1979): p. 175 (hereafter cited as “Deighton”); Richard L. DiNardo, Mechanized Juggernaut orMilitary Anachronism? Horses and the German Army of World War II (1991); Gordon A. Harrison, Cross-Channel Attack, United States Army in World War II,European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief of Military History (1951): 240 (hereafter cited as “Harrison”); Burkhart Mueller-Hillebrand, Das Heer, 1933–1945 (1954–69), 3 volumes; Oskar Munzel, Die deutschen Gepanzer Truppen bis 1945 (1965); George F. Nafziger, The German Order of Battle: Infantry in WorldWar II (2000): 33, 68–69 (hereafter cited as “Nafziger 2000”); Albert Seaton, The Russo-German War, 1941–45 (1970) (hereafter cited as “Seaton”); G. Tornau and F.Korowski, Sturmartillerie Fels in der Brandung (1965); United States Army Military Intelligence Service, “Order of Battle of the German Army,” War Department(1942) (hereafter cited as “OB 42”); Ibid 1943 (hereafter cited as “OB 43”); Ibid 1944 (hereafter cited as “OB 44”) and Ibid 1945 (hereafter cited as “OB 45”).

* For complete bibliography, see Volume Three.

CHAPTER 2

The Wehrkreise SystemThe German Wehrkreis, or military district, had special significance for the German Army division,because it had responsibility for recruiting, drafting, inducting, and training German soldiers, as wellas for mobilizing divisions and providing them with training and trained replacements. Each Germandivision was normally associated with a single Wehrkreis. These military districts date back toimperial times, but the World War II–era Wehrkreise (the plural form of Wehrkreis) go back to 1919,when the Reichswehr functioned as the Armed Forces Command for the Weimar Republic, which hadreplaced the imperial government of the kaiser after World War I. When Hitler rose to power in1933, he did away with the Republic, dissolved the old Reichswehr, and established the Wehrmacht(armed forces). Four high commands oversaw the military expansion and later helped direct Hitler’swar: the High Command of the Army (Oberkommando des Heeres, or OKH); the High Command ofthe Navy (Oberkommando der Marine, or OKM); the High Command of the Luftwaffe(Oberkommando der Luftwaffe, or OKL, which was officially established in 1935); and later theHigh Command of the Armed Forces (Oberkommando der Wehrmacht , or OKW), which wasestablished from the War (formerly Defense) Ministry on February 4, 1938. Hitler, however, had theforesight to retain the Wehrkreise system, which already had written contingency plans for thesubstantial enlargement of the army. At first the various Wehrkreise worked directly under OKH, butin August 1939 the Home Army (or Replacement Army) was created to oversee and coordinate thefunctions of the Wehrkreise; however, it did little to change their actual operations until the fall of1942. The Wehrkreise have not received the attention of many historians because they did their jobsso quietly, but ever so thoroughly. The Wehrkreise grew in number during the expansion program,from seven in 1932 to nineteen in 1943. Map 5 shows the Wehrkreise as they existed in 1939, andMap 6 shows them in late 1944. Map 7 shows the general regions of Germany.

Although they lost some of their training missions from late 1942 until 1944, the Wehrkreise werestill the primary headquarters to which the German divisions looked for training and—more importantas the war went on—replacements. The Wehrkreise were also responsible for rebuilding and refittingshattered divisions, a responsibility that also took on more importance as the war continued.

The German Army was mobilized in “waves” of divisions, a process that continued throughout thewar. This process was conducted by the Wehrkreise, under the supervision of the Replacement Army.Table 2 shows how this process worked for infantry divisions from 1934 until October 1944. Afterthat point the data becomes extremely jumbled, which is to be expected, considering the state NaziGermany was in by late 1944. Despite the confusion, however, the “wave” system continued tofunction almost to the end. There were thirty-five numbered mobilization waves in the 1934–March1945 period.

TABLE 2: GERMAN MOBILIZATION WAVES FOR INFANTRY DIVISIONS, 1934–45

Wave Formed Number ofdivisions

DivisionSeries Comments

1 1934–1938 39 1–46 Peace-time army units

2 Aug1939 15 52–87 From reservists

3 Sep1939 20 206–246 Landwehr (older

personnel)

4 Aug1939 14 251–269 From reserve units

5 Sep1939 5 93–98 Reservists

6 Nov1939 4 81–88 All disbanded, 1940

—- Nov1939 5 —- Frontier Guard Units

(1)

7 Jan1940 14 161–199 From reserve units (2)

8 Feb1940 10 290–299 Positional units;

Western Front

Oberrhein Feb1940 4 554–557 Disbanded, 1940

9 Mar1940 10 351–399 Mostly 1940 draft class

Formed from

—- Jun1940

4 (3) Replacement units inPoland

10 Jun1940 9 270–280 Formed from

Replacement units

—- Jun1940 9 351–395

Formed after Frenchcampaign; olderpersonnel

11 Oct1940 10 121–137 For Operation

“Barbarossa”

12 Oct1940 10 97–113 For Russian campaign

13 Nov1940 9 302–327 For use in occupied

Western Europe

14 Nov1940 8 332–342 For use in occupied

Western Europe

15 May1941 15 702–719 Static; for West and

Balkans

16 Jun1941 4 201–204 Security divisions

—- Dec1941 1 416 For use in Denmark;

older age men

17 Dec1941 4 328–331 For use in Russia

18 Jan1942 5 383–389 For use in Russia

19 Apr1942 4 370–377 Static; For use in

France

20 June1942 3 38, 39, 65 Assigned to English

Channel coast

—- Sep1942 5 343–348 Static divisions for use

in France

Kreimhilde Nov1942 3 326–338 Germany, later France

—- Nov1942 3 23, 369,

373 Croatia

—- Feb1943 13 Various

Bore numbers ofdivisions destroyed atStalingrad

Brunhilde& GiselaDiv.s

May1943 3 282, 355,

356 France

—- Jun1943 5 Various

Bore numbers ofdivisions destroyed inTunisia

—- Jul–Sep1943 7 242–266 Static divisions for use

in France

21Nov–Dec1943

10 349–367 New type (n.A.44)divisions (4)

22 Dec1943 6 271–278

From remnants ofdisbanded units; usedin West

23 Feb1944 —- —-

Grenadier regiments;later absorbed by 25thWave

24 Apr 3 68, 331, From reserve divisions

1944 389

Magen Jul1944 1 70 For troops with

stomach problems

25 Feb1944 6 77–92 For use in West

26 May1944 4 Named

Shadow divisions;absorbed by reformeddivisions

27 Jun1944 5 59–237 Formed from shadow

divisions

Krim May1944 3 50, 73, 98

Bore numbers of unitsdestroyed in theCrimea; used in Russia

28 Jul1944 4 Various Formed from shadow

divisions

29 Jul1944 13 541–562

Grenadier (laterVolksgrenadier)divisions

30 Aug1944 6 12–563 Volksgrenadier

divisions

31 Aug1944 12 560–572

Grenadier divisionsabsorbed later by 32ndWave

32 Sep1944

Severaldivisions ofany previouswave reformedasVolksgrenadierDivisions

Reserve and Security

—- Oct1944

9 148–462 divisions reformed asinfantry divisions

33 Jan1945 10 85–716

Burned out divisionsreformed as “Inf Div45” units

—- Jan1945 10

Reserve,training andreplacementdivisionsconvertedto infantrydivisions

34 Feb1945 4

Shadowdivisionsconvertedto infantryor VGdivisions

—- Feb1945 4 Named Northern Germany

35 Mar1945 8 Varied

Four RAD (ReichLabor Service) andfour infantry div.s

—- Apr1945 3 Varied Rhine sector

NOTES:(1) Five infantry divisions (50th, 60th, 72nd, 205th and 311th) were formed from frontier guard, Landwehr and police units from October 1939 to January 1, 1940.

These units had no “wave” number. Four independent infantry regiments, numbered 125, 253, 326, and 347, were also formed.(2) Includes 199th Infantry Division, which was activated in Norway in October 1940. Its three infantry regiments were formed with the other Wave 7 units in early

1940.(3) Included divisions numbered 100, 200, 300, and 400. All four were dissolved in August 1940.(4) Divisions assigned to France, Poland, Italy, and the Balkans.SOURCE: Georg Tessin, Deutsche Verbände und Truppen, 1918–1939 (1974). Georg Tessin, Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im

Zweiten Weltkrieg, 1939–1945 (1979–1986), Vol. 1: 43–103.

Although the strengths of the German infantry divisions fluctuated wildly as the war progressed, theTOE (Table of Organization and Equipment) strength of the early divisions was fairly standard. The

typical first-wave divisions (those formed prior to mobilization) had 534 officers, 102 Beamte(officials or warrant officers), 2,701 non-commissioned officers (NCOs—sergeants and corporals),and 14,397 privates—for a total of 17,734 men. Of these, 78 percent were active duty personnel; 12percent were Reservist I (with at least one year’s active duty); 6 percent were Reservist II (somewhatolder men who reached age eighteen in the “White Years” [1920–1934], when Germany wasforbidden by the Treaty of Versailles from having a military draft); and 4 percent were Landwehr(men from the older age groups but with World War I experience).

Second-wave divisions had slightly fewer men: 491 officers, 98 Beamte, 2,273 NCOs, and 12,411privates—for a total of 15,273 men. Usually second-wave infantry regiments had a heavy mortarcompany instead of an infantry gun company. Second-wave divisions did not usually have a fieldreplacement battalion. Only 6 percent of its men were peacetime active-duty personnel; 83 percentwere Reservist Is.

The standard third-wave division was more like a first-wave division in terms of TOE and had17,901 men, but less than 1 percent of them were peacetime active-duty personnel. About 12 percentwere Reservist Is, 46 percent were Reservist IIs, and 42 percent were Landwehr. Fourth-wavedivisions had 15,019 men, of whom 9 percent were active-duty personnel, 21 percent were ReservistIs, 46 percent were Reservist IIs, and 24 percent were Landwehr. Thus the average German infantrydivision on the eve of the outbreak of World War II had a total of about 16,000 men. With attachedGHQ (General Headquarters units), some divisions easily topped 20,000 men. This total, of course,dropped considerably as the war progressed. By late 1944, many corps could not boast 20,000 men.

Prior to the general mobilization of June 1939, each Wehrkreis had two components in itsheadquarters: a tactical component, which became a corps headquarters upon mobilization and whichwent to the front, and a second or deputy component, which remained at home to direct training andreplacement activities in the territory. This component consisted primarily of older soldiers whowere no longer able to endure the physical hardships of field campaigns, but who were well trainedand perfectly capable of efficiently administering their territories. Table 3 reflects this well, for itshows the Wehrkreis system as it existed in 1942, along with its commanders and their ages. Notethat the youngest Wehrkreis commander was fifty-eight, and the average commander was in his mid-sixties—ten to twelve years older than a corps commander at the front. Similar conditions existed inthe subordinate posts. Many positions in the military districts were held by older officers—many ofthem World War I veterans—who were no longer fit for the rigors of active campaigning but whowere competent military administrators.

TABLE 3: WEHRKREIS COMMANDERS IN 1942

Wehrkreis Commander in 1942 (Age in parentheses)

I General* Peter Weyer (63)

II General Max Fohrenbach (70)

III General Baron von Dalwigk zu Lichtenfels (66)

IV General Erich Wollwarth (70)

V General Erwin Osswald (60)

VI General Glokke (58)

VII General Edmund Wachenfeld (64)

VIII General Hans Halm (63)

IX General Rudolf Schniewindt (64)

X General Walter Raschick (60)

XI General Wolfgang Muff (62)

XII General Albrecht Steppuhn (63)

XIII General Friedrich von Cochenhausen (63)

XVII General Alfred Streccius (64)

XVIII General Hubert Schaller-Kallide (60)

XX General Max Bock (62)

GeneralGouvernement

(Poland) General Walter Petzel (59)

*German general officer ranks began with major general. Divisions were commanded by major generals and lieutenant generals and, occasionally, by colonels.Wehrkreise and corps were normally commanded by full generals (three stars on the American scale). Higher headquarters were usually commanded by colonel generalsand field marshals. See Appendix 1 in Volume 3 for a table comparing German Army, Waffen-SS, and U.S. Army ranks.

Three Wehrkreise were special-function headquarters and had no territorial responsibilities or

deputy components. Wehrkreis XIV controlled the German motorized infantry divisions; WehrkreisXV controlled the light divisions; and Wehrkreis XVI was responsible for the administration andtraining of Hitler’s panzer divisions. When they were upgraded to corps headquarters in mid-1939,these Wehrkreise ceased to exist as such, and their training and replacement functions were takenover by the remaining Wehrkreise.

The Replacement Army (or Home Army) was created in Berlin on August 26, 1939, to direct andcoordinate the activities of the Wehrkreise, which had been directly under the High Command of theArmy (OKH) until that time. From its beginning until July 20, 1944, it was commanded by ColonelGeneral Friedrick “Fritz” Fromm and then by Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler from July 21, 1944,until the end of the war. Colonel Count Claus von Stauffenberg, Fromm’s one-eyed, one-armed chiefof staff, was the officer who attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler on July 20, but succeeded only inwounding him. The effective but weak-kneed and vacillating Fromm turned against the conspiratorsand, about midnight on July 20, executed von Stauffenberg, former chief of the Army General StaffColonel General Ludwig Beck, and three other officers. This action did not save him, however. Hitlerrelieved him of his command, imprisoned him, and had him executed for cowardice on March 19,1945. None of this, however, disrupted the function of the Wehrkreise, which continued to providenew divisions and to rebuild old ones until they were overrun by the Allied armies at the end of thewar. Their effectiveness can be gauged by the fact that the German Army grew from 100,000 men in1935 to more than 4,000,000 by early 1944, and had already suffered more than 2,000,000 casualtiesby that date. It is certainly not an exaggeration to state that, had it not been for the Wehrkreise system,the Third Reich never would have been able to keep its forces in the field for as long as it did.

Because of the close relationship that existed between each German division and its Wehrkreis,particularly early in the war, a brief description of the organization and operational history of eachWehrkreis is provided in Volume 3. This discussion, however, may be skipped by those who aremore interested in the histories of the individual divisions. Also, the home Wehrkreis of eachdivision will be noted in subsequent chapters, because that suggests where many and possibly most ofthe division’s personnel originated, as well as where its replacements came from. Table 4 shows thelocation of each Wehrkreis in 1942.

TABLE 4: THE WEHRKREISE AND THEIR TERRITORIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Wehrkreis Headquarters Territorial Extent

I Königsberg East Prussia; extended in 1939 to includeMemel and portions of northern Poland

II Stettin Mecklenburg and Pomerania

III Berlin Altmark, Neumark, and Brandenburg

IV Dresden Saxony and part of Thuringia; later annexedpart of northern Bohemia

V Stuttgart Wuerttemberg and part of Baden; extended in1940 to include Alsace

VI Munster Westphalia and Rhineland; later extended intoeastern Belgium

VII Munich Southern Bavaria

VIII Breslau Silesia and Sudetenland; later parts of Moraviaand southwestern Poland

IX Kassel Hessen and part of Thuringia

X HamburgSchleswig-Holstein and northern Hanover;extended in 1940 to include part of DanishSlesvig

XI Hanover Braunschweig (Brunswick), Anhalt, and mostof Hanover

XII WiesbadenEifel, the Palatinate, and the Saar; part ofHesse; extended after the fall of France toinclude Lorraine, including the Nancy area

XIII Nuremberg Northern Bavaria; extended in 1938 to includepart of western Bohemia

XIV BerlinNo territorial responsibilities; ceased to existas a Wehrkreis in 1939; later becameHeadquarters, XIV Panzer Corps

XV BerlinNo territorial responsibilities; ceased to existas a Wehrkreis in 1939; later becameHeadquarters, 3rd Panzer Army

XVI BerlinNo territorial responsibilities; ceased to existas a Wehrkreis in 1939; later became

Headquarters, 4th Panzer Army

XVII Vienna Northern Austria; extended in 1939 to includethe outhern districts of Czechoslovakia

XVIII Salzburg Southern Austria; extended in 1941 to includethe northern parts of Slovenia

XX Danzig The former Danzig Free State, the PolishCorridor, and the western part of East Prussia

GeneralGouvernement Warsaw Created in 1943 and included central and most

of southern Poland

Bohemia andMoravia Prague Most of what was formerly Czechoslovakia;

created in late 1942

NOTE: The territorial adjustments made by Reichsführer-SS Himmler in late 1944 are not included in this table; they were relatively minor in any event.

The division was the basic tactical unit on the battlefield; however, the divisions were directed bycorps headquarters, which were, in turn, controlled by army headquarters, which were more oftenthan not directed by army groups. Appendix 3 in Volume 3 provides a thumbnail sketch of the higherheadquarters employed by the German Army and the Waffen-SS in World War II.Notes and Sources: Fromm’s official title from 1939 to 1944 was chief of Army Equipment and Commander-in-Chief, Replacement Army. Sources on theWehrkreise system and its effects on the German war effort include Robert Goralski, World War II Almanac, 1931–1945 (1972); Werner Haupt, Die deutschenInfanterie-Divisionen, Vol. 2; Aufstellungswelle-Sommer 1939 (1992): 7–8, 63–64, 123–24 (hereafter cited as “Haupt, Infanterie”); Kriegstagebuch desOberkommando der Wehrmacht (Wehrmachtfuehrungsstab), Bücher I–IV (1961); Nafziger 2000; Georg F. Nafziger, The German Order of Battle, Panzers andArtillery in World War II (1999) (hereafter cited as “Nafziger 1999”); Georg Tessin, Verbände and Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im ZweitenWeltkrieg, 1939–1945 (1973–80), Vol. 1 (hereafter cited as “Tessin”); U.S. Army Military Intelligence Division, “The German Replacement Army (Ersatzheer),” U.S.War Department (1945) (hereafter cited as “RA “); OB 42; OB 43; OB 45.

CHAPTER 3

The 1st–290th Infantry Divisions*

1ST GRENADIER DIVISION EAST PRUSSIAComposition: Grenadier Regiment East Prussia 1, Grenadier Regiment East Prussia 2, Artillery

Regiment East Prussia 1, Fusilier Company East Prussia 1, Tank Destroyer Battalion East Prussia 1,Engineer Company East Prussia 1, Signal Company East Prussia 1

Home Station: Sensburg, Wehrkreis IThis 29th Wave Division was formed on July 24, 1944, in the Prussian Eylau area. On August 6, itwas redesignated 561st Grenadier Division. Its 1st Grenadier Regiment became the 1141st GrenadierRegiment in the new division; its 2nd Grenadier Regiment became the 1142nd, and its artilleryregiment became the 1561st Artillery Regiment. All of its divisional units received the number 1561,except the reconnaissance company, which became the 561st Fusilier.Sources: www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de, Andreas Altenburger, webmaster (hereafter cited as “Lexikon”); Tessin, Vol. 14: 189.

1ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1st Infantry Regiment, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 43rd Infantry Regiment, 1st Artillery

Regiment, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion, 1st EngineerBattalion, 1st Signal Battalion, 1st Field Replacement Battalion, 1st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Königsberg, later Insterburg, Wehrkreis IThis division—made up almost entirely of East Prussians—was formed by the expansion of the

historic 1st Infantry Regiment in October 1934, shortly before Hitler officially reintroducedconscription in Germany. From October 1934 to October 1935, it operated under the code nameArtillieführer I (Artillery Commander—sometimes translated as Artillery Command I, or Arko 1). Itofficially became the 1st Infantry Division on October 15, 1935. It maintained a strong traditionalistflavor and had as its divisional symbol the Hohenzollern coat of arms—the emblem of the rulingfamily of Imperial Germany from 1871 to 1918.

The divisional headquarters moved to Insterburg in 1936. In 1939, the division invaded northernPoland as part of Army Group North. It fought well there, as well as in Belgium and France thefollowing year, where it suffered 1,051 casualties, including 234 killed. Among the dead was PrinceWilhelm of Prussia, who was serving as a first lieutenant. The 1st Infantry was earmarked to take partin the invasion of Great Britain in 1940 and was posted along the Atlantic coast of France untilSeptember, when the invasion was cancelled and it was transported back to East Prussia.

In June 1941, the 1st Infantry Division crossed into Russia with Army Group North and washeavily engaged in the Baltic States during the drive on Leningrad. By October 1941, its strength hadbeen reduced by two-thirds; nevertheless, it continued to fight on the northern sector of the RussianFront, primarily as a part of the 18th Army, for more than two years. During this time, it took part inthe Battle of Lake Peipus, the Battles of Lake Ladoga, and the Battle of the German Corridor (east ofLeningrad), as well as the siege of Leningrad itself. In October 1943, the 1st Infantry was attached toArmy Group South and fought in the Battle of Krivoi Rog in the Dnieper campaign in southern Russia.Later it saw action in the Ukraine and was encircled with the 1st Panzer Army between the Bug and

the Dnestr rivers in March 1944. In the subsequent breakout it formed the rear guard of the XXXXVIPanzer Corps and suffered heavy casualties. (See Appendix 4 in Volume 3 for a chronological outlineof the ground war in Europe during World War II.) Later, after a period of rest and rebuilding, it wassent to the central sector in August 1944. The survivors of the 1st Infantry remained with Army GroupCenter and ended the war fighting the Soviets in the division’s home territory of East Prussia,including the battles of Schlossberg, Königsberg, Samland, and Pillau.

Commanders of the East Prussian 1st Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Georg vonKüchler (assumed command October 1, 1934), Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Schroth(assumed command October 1, 1935), Major General/Lieutenant General Joachim von Kortzfleisch(January 1, 1938), Major General/Lieutenant General Philipp Kleffel (April 15, 1940), MajorGeneral Dr. Friedrich Altrichter (July 12, 1941), Kleffel (returned September 4, 1941), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Martin Grase (January 16, 1942), Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Ernst-Anton von Krosigk (July 1, 1943), Colonel Hans-Joachim Baurmeister (May 10,1944), von Krosigk (returned June 8, 1944), Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Schittnig(October 1, 1944), Lieutenant General Henning von Thadden (February 28, 1945), and Colonel EgonOverbeck (April 26, 1945–end.)Notes and Sources: Königsberg is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Insterburg is now Cherniakhovsk, Russia. The 1st Field Replacement Battalion became the III/336thInfantry Regiment (161st Infantry Division) in January 1940. Schroth was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1936. Kortzfleisch was promoted to lieutenantgeneral on June 1, 1939. Kleffel became a lieutenant general on June 1, 1941. Grase made lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Krosigk was promoted to major generalon September 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. Schittnig reached the rank of lieutenant general on January 1, 1945. Henning von Thadden waswounded in action on April 26, 1945, and died in the field hospital at Vordingborg, Denmark in May 1945.Paul Carell, Scorched Earth (1971 edition): 242, 525 (hereafter cited as “Carell 1971”); Theodor Hartmann, Wehrmacht Divisional Signs, 1938–45 (1970): p. 9(hereafter cited as “Hartmann”); Wolf Keilig, Die Generale des Heeres (1983): 343 (hereafter cited as “Keilig”; Robert M. Kennedy, The German Campaign in Poland(1919), United States Department of the Army Pamphlet 20-255 (1956): 10B, 74 (hereafter cited as “Kennedy”); Erich von Manstein, Lost Victories (1958), 483(hereafter cited as “Manstein”); Nafziger 2000: 37; Werner Richter, Die 1. Ostpreussische Infanterie-Division (Munich, 1975), ff. 1; Harrison E. Salisbury, The 900Days: The Siege of Leningrad (1969), p. 351 (hereafter cited as “Salisbury”); Tessin, Volume 2: 20–21; OB 42: 73; and Earl F. Ziemke, Stalingrad to Berlin: TheGerman Defeat in the East (1966): 250 (hereafter cited as “Ziemke 1966”).

1ST LIGHT DIVISIONSee 6th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

1ST MARINE DIVISIONComposition (February 1945): 1st Marine Rifle Regiment (301st–304th Naval Security

Battalions), 2nd Marine Rifle Regiment (305th–308th Naval Security Battalions), 3rd Marine RifleRegiment (309th–312th Naval Security Battalions), 4th Marine Rifle Regiment (313th–316th NavalSecurity Battalions)

Home Station: See belowCreated in Stettin in February 1945 by the order of Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz, the commander-

in-chief of the German Navy, this division was built around Marine (Naval) Security Brigade“North.” It was turned over to Army Group Vistula by March 1, 1945, and assigned a defensivesector on the Oder River near Stettin, northeast of Berlin. The army, meanwhile, reorganized it into adivision with three regiments—the 1st, 2nd, and 4th Marine—each with two battalions. It alsoincluded the 1st Marine Division Fusilier Company (later Battalion); the 1st Marine DivisionArtillery Regiment (with only one battalion); the 1st Marine Division Tank Destroyer Battalion; the1st Marine Division Signal Battalion; and the 1st Marine Division Field Replacement Battalion. Itfought its only battle in April 1945, when the Russians made their final push on the capital of theReich. The 1st Marine was quickly destroyed in this drive. Those who escaped this debacle managed

to surrender to the British in early May 1945.The term “marine” in the German military of 1945 did not carry with it the connotation of elitism

that it did (and does) to the American. The commander of Army Group Vistula felt that GrandAdmiral Karl Dönitz, the commander-in-chief of the Navy, was simply trying to impress Hitler byoffering him this division—that Dönitz could not believe this improvised formation would help thearmy group in its predicament. This conclusion probably was correct: these men were trained sailors,not trained infantrymen, and were virtually useless in land battles against the Soviets.

The brigade/division commanders were Rear Admiral Hans Hartmann (November 7, 1944) andArmy Major General Wilhelm Bleckwenn (February 28, 1945).Notes and Sources: Stettin is now Szczecin, Poland. Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV, p. 1,898; Cornelius Ryan, The Last Battle (1966), p. 271; Tessin, Volume2: 58.

2ND GRENADIER DIVISION EAST PRUSSIAComposition: Grenadier Regiment East Prussia 3, Grenadier Regiment East Prussia 4, Artillery

Regiment East Prussia 2, Fusilier Company East Prussia 2, Tank Destroyer Battalion East Prussia 2,Engineer Company East Prussia 2, Signal Company East Prussia 2

Home Station: Stablack, Wehrkreis IThis division was formed on July 24, 1944, in Troop Maneuver Area Stablack. On July 27, it was

redesignated 562nd Grenadier Division. Its 3rd Grenadier Regiment became the 1144th GrenadierRegiment in the new division; its 4th Grenadier Regiment became the 1145th, and its artilleryregiment became the 1562nd Artillery Regiment. All of its divisional units received the number 1562,except the reconnaissance company, which became the 562nd Fusilier.Sources: Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 14: 189.

2ND INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 12th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

2ND LIGHT DIVISIONSee 7th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

2ND MARINE DIVISIONComposition: 5th Marine Grenadier Regiment, 6th Marine Grenadier Regiment, 7th Marine

Grenadier Regiment, 2nd Marine Artillery Regiment, 2nd Marine Division Fusilier Battalion, 2ndMarine Division Tank Destroyer Battalion, 2nd Marine Division Engineer Battalion, 2nd MarineDivision Field Replacement Battalion

Home Station: GlückstadtHurriedly formed in the Schleswig-Holstein region of northern Germany from excess naval

personnel in March 1945, this division was sent to the Western Front in the zone south of Bremen onthe Weser River on April 7. Here it fought against the British and took part in the retreat to the Elbe.It surrendered to the British at the end of the war. The division’s original commander, Vice AdmiralErnst Scheurlen, assumed command on February 11 and was killed in action on April 8. He wastemporarily succeeded by his senior regimental commander, Naval Captain (Kapitän zur See)Werner Hartmann, until Scheurlen’s permanent replacement, Army Colonel Count Werner von

Bassewitz-Levetzow, arrived on April 10. Bassewitz led the division in the retreat from the Weserand surrendered its remnants to the British when the war ended the following month.Notes and Sources: Hartmann normally commanded the 6th Marine Grenadier Regiment.Tessin, Volume 2: 129. Also see forum.axishistory.com and Lexikon.

3RD INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 3rd Motorized Division (Volume Three).

3RD LIGHT DIVISIONSee 8th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

3RD MARINE DIVISIONComposition: 8th Marine Grenadier Regiment, 9th Marine Grenadier Regiment, 10th Marine

Grenadier Regiment, 234th Artillery Regiment, 3rd Marine Division Fusilier Battalion, 3rd MarineDivision Tank Destroyer Battalion, 3rd Marine Division Engineer Battalion, 3rd Marine DivisionSignal Battalion, 3rd Marine Division Field Training Battalion

Home Station: WarenThe 3rd Marine Division was formed from the 126th and 128th Naval Security Battalions and the

survivors of the army’s veteran 163rd Infantry Division who had escaped the disaster at Kolberg. Thedivision was sent to Pomerania, where it formed part of the 3rd Panzer Army and where the army’s234th Artillery Regiment was assigned to it. It fought in the Swinemuende sector, in theSachsenhausen (Oranienburg) Bridgehead, and at Lindow, near Berlin. It surrendered to the Russiansnear Kyritz after the capital of the Third Reich fell.

Its commanders were Colonel von Witzleben (April 1–3, 1945) and Colonel/Major General FritzFullriede (April 3, 1945–end).Sources: Dermont Bradley, Karl-Friedrich Hildebrand and Marcus Roevekamp, Die Generale des Heeres (1993–Present), Vol. 4: 151–53 (hereafter cited as “Bradleyet al.”; Christopher Chant, ed., The Marshall Cavendish Illustrated Encyclopedia of World War II (1972), Volume 17: 2376 (hereafter cited as “Chant”); Lexikon;Ryan: 271; Tessin, Vol. 2: 198.

4TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 14th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

4TH LIGHT DIVISIONSee 9th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

5TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 5th Jaeger Division (Volume Two).

5TH LIGHT DIVISIONSee 21st Panzer Division (Volume Three).

6TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 18th Infantry Regiment, 37th Infantry Regiment, 58th Infantry Regiment, 6th Artillery

Regiment, 6th Reconnaissance Battalion, 6th Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion, 6th Engineer

Battalion, 6th Signal Battalion, 6th Field Replacement Battalion, 6th Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Bielefeld, Wehrkreis VIThis Rhineland-Westphalian division was created at Münster in the Reichsheer reorganization of

1921. Its personnel were mainly Westphalians but included some East Prussians and Rhinelanders.Cadres from the 6th Infantry Division were later used to form several other divisions. The 6th wassent to the Saar sector (Western Front) when World War II broke out and first saw heavy action inFrance in 1940, where it earned a reputation as an effective fighting unit. It remained in westernFrance on garrison duty until March 1941, when it was sent to East Prussia. In June 1941 it took partin the invasion of Russia as part of the 9th Army, Army Group Center. The division took part in heavyfighting on the drive to Moscow but managed to cross the Volga River at Kalinin, north of the Russiancapital, in late November. It was in an exposed position when the Soviet winter offensive began,holding sixteen miles of frontage when the average division supposedly could hold only six milessuccessfully against a determined assault. The 6th nevertheless repulsed several Soviet attacks andgave ground only gradually, while both inflicting and sustaining heavy casualties.

German 88mm anti-aircraft gun in action. Although originally designed for air defense, it also proved to be an excellent anti-tank gun. Asimilar model formed the main battle gun for the Tiger tanks. This gun has already knocked out about a dozen enemy tanks, as seen bythe victory bands on the barrel of the gun.HITM ARCHIVE

The 6th Infantry remained with Army Group Center for the next two and a half years. In 1942 itfought in the defensive battles of the Rzhev salient and in March of the following year took part in the9th Army’s brilliant retreat from the Rzhev bulge, a maneuver that freed a dozen divisions from a veryexposed position. In July 1943, after a brief rest period at Smolensk, it saw action at Kursk and Oreland in the defensive battles on the middle Dnieper. It was smashed near Mogilev during the Sovietsummer offensive of 1944, which also shattered Army Group Center. Most of the division wassurrounded with the XXXV Corps and forced to surrender.

Enough of the 6th escaped, however, for the High Command to recommission a skeleton division inthe autumn of 1944. It was organized in Troop Maneuver Area (Truppenübungsplatz) Sennelager(near Paderborn) from Rhinelanders and Westphalians. The new division included 1,100 survivors ofthe old 6th Infantry Division (mostly returning wounded) plus the entire 552nd Grenadier Division,with which it was merged to form the 6th Volksgrenadier Division. It included the 18th, 37th and 58thGrenadier Regiments, the 6th Artillery Regiment, and the 6th Engineer Battalion. Its grenadierregiments, however, only had two understrength battalions each. Initially designated the 6th GrenadierDivision on July 25, 1944, it became the 6th Volksgrenadier Division on October 9. Meanwhile, itadded the 6th Fusilier Battalion, the 6th Fla (light anti-aircraft) Company, the 6th Tank DestroyerBattalion and the 1006th Assault Gun Battalion to its table of organization. The rebuilt 6th—whichwas never more than a battle group—was sent back to the Eastern Front and took part in the retreatthrough Poland. It fought at Warsaw and Radom and was in action on the Vistula in December 1944.In the last campaign the remnants of the 6th Volksgrenadier fought in Silesia and Bohemia, and waspart of Field Marshal Ferdinand Schoerner’s army group, which was surrounded by the Russians atDeutsch-Brod, east of Prague, Czechoslovakia, in late April and May 1945. It surrendered to the RedArmy on May 8, 1945.

Commanders of the 6th Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division were Major General Wilhelm Keitel(assumed command October 1, 1934), Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Kuntze (September15, 1935), Lieutenant General Baron Arnold von Biegeleben (March 1, 1938), Colonel ElderAlexander von Daniels (acting commander, July 26, 1940), Biegeleben (returned, August 13, 1940),Colonel Alexander von Hartmann (October 11, 1940), Major General Hans-Joachim von Stumpfeld(October 12, 1940), Lieutenant General Helge Auleb (October 14, 1940), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Horst Grossmann (January 7, 1942), Major General Egon von Neindorf(December 16, 1943), Colonel Alexander Conrady (January 12, 1944), Colonel Guenther Klammt(January 19, 1944), Grossmann (February 1944), Lieutenant General Walter Heyne (May 19, 1944),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Otto-Hermann Brücker (July 15, 1944), and MajorGeneral Friedrich-Wilhelm Liegmann (May 4, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 6th Field Replacement Battalion was sent to the 196th Infantry Division in January 1940, where it became the I/362nd Infantry Regiment (IBattalion/362nd Infantry Regiment). Kuntze was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1936. Baron von Biegeleben died of natural causes in France on October11, 1940. Horst Grossmann was promoted to major general on January 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Hans-Walter Heyne was captured onJune 29, 1944. Brücker was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on April 20, 1945.Paul Carell, Hitler Moves East, 1941–43 (1966): 196, 357 (hereafter cited as “Carell 1966”); Carell 1971: 25–26, 309, 314, 597; Horst Grossmann, Geschichte derrheinisch-westfälischen 6. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1958): ff. 1; Kennedy: 10B; Lexikon; Manstein: 134; Nafziger 2000: 40–41; Tessin, Vol. 3: 13–14; OB 42:73; OB 43: 126.

7TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 19th Infantry Regiment, 61st Infantry Regiment, 62nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Artillery

Regiment, 7th Reconnaissance Battalion, 7th Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion, 7th EngineerBattalion, 7th Signal Battalion, 7th Field Replacement Battalion, 7th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Munich, Wehrkreis VIIThe 7th Infantry was a Bavarian unit, originally formed in the Reichsheer reorganization of 1921.

The division which distinguished itself on so many World War II battlefields, however, originatedfrom that part of the division which was codenamed “Artillery Leader VII” in October 1934. Itofficially became the 7th Infantry Division on October 15, 1935, some months after Hitler denouncedthe Treaty of Versailles and began Germany’s military expansion. After 1940, the 638th InfantryRegiment, a volunteer force of French legionnaires under Colonel Roger Labonne, was attached to the

division. Called “a good fighting division” by American intelligence, the 7th Infantry was heavilyengaged in southern Poland in September 1939. It was then posted to the Lower Rhine in October. Inthe French campaign the following year, the 7th fought the British Expeditionary Force in Belgium butwent into reserve after the fall of Dunkirk and was not subsequently engaged in the West. InDecember 1940, each of the division’s grenadier regiments gave up a battalion to the 97th InfantryDivision. These were never replaced.

The division was on occupation duty in northern France until April 1941, when it was sent back toPoland. In June it took part in the invasion of Russia with Army Group Center and fought in the siegeof Mogilev on the upper Dnieper, as well as in the battles of Bialystok, Minsk, Smolensk, andVyasma (Vjasma). Later it was involved in the final thrust toward Moscow and in the ensuing Russiancounteroffensive that saved Stalin’s capital. The division spent 1942 on the relatively quiet centralsector at Gshatsk and Spas-Demyansk and took part in the Kursk offensive as part of the 9th Army. Itmanaged to escape the near-annihilation of Army Group Center in the summer of 1944 and conducteda fighting retreat across the Bug and Narev (Narew) and through Poland that fall. It finally was cut offby the last Soviet offensive and ended the war isolated behind Russian lines on the Hela peninsula, atthe mouth of the Vistula, where it surrendered on May 8, 1945.

The 7th Infantry’s divisional commanders included Major General Otto Tscherning (assumedcommand April 1, 1934), Major General/Lieutenant General Franz Halder (October 1, 1934), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Otto Hartmann (October 1, 1936), Major General Karl Bornemann (April1, 1938), Major General Eugen Ott (August 1, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General BaronEccard von Gablenz (October 1, 1939), Major General Ernst Pauer von Arlau (December 13, 1941),Major General Hans Jordan (December 29, 1941), Colonel Edmund Hoffmeister (October 20, 1942),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Fritz-Georg von Rappard (November 1, 1942), ColonelWilhelm Rademacher (April 7, 1943), Rappard (April 26, 1943), Colonel Carl Andre (October 2,1943), Major General Gustav Gihr (December 1, 1943), and Rappard (December 8, 1943–end).

After the 199th Grenadier Regiment of the 57th Infantry Division was destroyed, the 7th Division’s19th Grenadier Regiment bore the honorary title “Infantry Regiment List,” in honor of Adolf Hitler’sWorld War I regimental commander.Notes and Sources: The 7th Field Replacement Battalion became the III/339th Infantry Regiment of the 167th Infantry Division in January 1940. Halder waspromoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1936. He later served as chief of the General Staff (1938–42). Hartmann became a lieutenant general on March 1, 1938.Gablenz reached the same rank on August 1, 1940. Rappard was promoted to major general on November 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on May 1, 1943. Hesurrendered the division to the Soviets, who hanged him in 1946. Colonel Alois Weber reportedly briefly served as acting commander of the division in August 1944.Carell 1966: 86, 330, 350; Carell 1971: 26; Chant, Volume 18: 2381, 2393; Hartmann: 10; Wilhelm Hertlein, Chronik der 7. Infanterie-Division (1984); Keilig: 147,160; Andris Kursietis, Wehrmacht at War, 1939–45 (1998), 88 (hereafter cited as “Kursietis”); Manstein: 52; Mehner, Vol. 12: 451; Nafziger 2000: 42–43; Tessin,Vol. 3: 56–57; OB 42: 73; OB 43: 127; OB 45: 141.

8TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 8th Jäger Division (Volume Two).

9TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1942): 36th Infantry Regiment, 57th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Regiment, 9th

Artillery Regiment, 9th Reconnaissance Battalion, 9th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 9th EngineerBattalion, 9th Signal Battalion, 9th Field Replacement Battalion, 9th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Giessen, Wehrkreis IXThis peacetime division was formed in Giessen in October 1934 under the codename “Infantry

Leader V” and consisted of soldiers from Hessen-Nassau. It officially became the 9th InfantryDivision on October 15, 1935. Upon mobilization in August 1939, it was sent to the Saar Front andhelped guard Germany’s exposed western flank while Germany’s main armies overran Poland. Itlater fought well in western Luxembourg, Belgium and France as part of Panzer Group von Kleist(1940). It was on occupation duty in western France until March 1941, when it was transferred tosouthern Poland. Beginning in July 1941, the 9th Infantry spent three years on the southern sector ofthe Eastern Front. It crossed the Bug, fought at Zhitomir and in the breaching of the Stalin Line in July,and in the 1941 Ukraine campaign that climaxed with the fall of Kiev. It then pushed on across theDonets, faced the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, and fought at Isjum (Izyum) (May 1942), on theCrimea (July), at Rostov (August), and in the Caucasus campaign of 1942–43. Later it fought atNovorossisk and in the Kuban, as well as at Melitopol (1943) and in the Nikopol Bridgehead. It wasdown to battle group strength by October 23, 1943, when it was reorganized. Each of its infantryregiments (now dubbed grenadier regiments) lost their III Battalions, and its reconnaissance battalionbecame a fusilier battalion (indicating the presence of a large number of bicycles). In May 1944 itwas involved in the Second Battle of Uman, and in August it was cut off and almost completelydestroyed at Kischinev in the Romanian debacle.

The remnants of the veteran division were sent to the Ossboel-Esbjerg area of Denmark, wherethey absorbed the partially formed Dennewitz (584th) Grenadier Division. The 9th reemerged in theArdennes offensive in late 1944 as a Volksgrenadier division; however, its former esprit de corpswas gone. The 9th continued to fight in the West, opposing the American thrust across Luxembourgand then southern Germany, but with little success. In April 1945, the remnants of the unit (whichconsisted mainly of the divisional commander and his staff, since almost all of the combat units hadbeen destroyed) were attached to the 352nd Volksgrenadier Division and defended Franconia andNuremberg as part of the XIII SS Corps. After this battle the survivors of the division surrendered tothe Americans on May 8, 1945.

The commanders of the 9th Infantry/Volksgrenadier included Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Erwin Osswald (assumed command, April 1, 1934), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralErich Lüdke (October 1, 1934), Osswald (March 7, 1936), Lieutenant General Georg von Apell(November 4, 1938), Lieutenant General Erwin Vierow (August 1, 1940), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Baron Siegmund von Schleinitz (January 6, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralFriedrich Hofmann (August 20, 1943), Colonel Otto-Hermann Brücker (May 1, 1944),Colonel/Major General Werner Gebb (June 16, 1944), and Colonel/Major General of ReservesWerner Kolb (November 1, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: In January 1940, the 9th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 169th Infantry Division and was used to form the 378th InfantryRegiment. Osswald was promoted to major general on May 1, 1934, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1936. Lüdke became a lieutenant general on November 1,1935. Schleinitz was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1942. Hofmann reached the same rank on December 1, 1943. Gebb was promoted to major generalon July 1, 1944. He was captured by the Russians in August 1944 and, like a great many officers taken prisoner on the Eastern Front, joined the anti-Nazi NationalFree Germany Committee. He died in a Soviet prison in 1952. Werner Kolb was promoted to major general of reserves on February 1, 1945.Carell 1966: 557; Hugh M. Cole, The Ardennes: The Battle of the Bulge, United States Army in World War II, European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief ofMilitary History (1965): 641–42 (hereafter cited as “Cole 1965”); Manstein: 423, Oberkommando des Heeres (German Army High Command), Chief of theReplacement Army (Ersatz), “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944 (hereafter cited as “Frontnachweiser”); Tessin, Vol. 3: 131–33; OB 42: 71; OB 43: 127; OB 44:177–78; OB 45: 141–42.

10TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 10th Panzer Grenadier Division (Volume Three).

11TH INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 2nd Infantry Regiment, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 44th Infantry Regiment, 11thArtillery Regiment, 11th Reconnaissance Battalion, 11th Anti-Tank Battalion, 11th EngineerBattalion, 11th Signal Battalion, 11th Field Replacement Battalion, 11th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Allenstein, Wehrkreis IFormed in October 1934 by the expansion of the 2nd Infantry Regiment of the old Reichswehr, the

11th Infantry consisted of personnel from East Prussia and the Rhineland. It was initially codenamedStaff, Infantry Leader I but was redesignated 11th Infantry Division on October 15, 1935. Itparticipated in the Polish campaign, where it fought as part of the 3rd Army, Army Group North. InJanuary 1940, its 11th Field Replacement Battalion became the II/364th Infantry Regiment of the161st Infantry Division. After the French campaign, in which it played a minor role, it was transferredto the Atlantic coast of France until March 1941, when it returned to East Prussia. The 11th took partin the initial invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 and, except for a brief period of rest andreorganization in Greece in 1943, remained in the East until the end of the war. The division took partin the sweep across the Baltic States in 1941, the Siege of Leningrad, the Battle of Zoltsy, and in thefighting north of Lake Ladoga. Later, it helped repulse the Soviet offensive south of Lake Ladoga in1943.

After rebuilding in Greece (where it was reduced from nine to six grenadier battalions), it wentback into action in northern Russia, fought in the battles of Narva, Pernau, and Riga, and took part inthe withdrawal from Leningrad to western Latvia. Finally, it was cut off in the Courland Pocket whenthe Russians penetrated to the Baltic Sea in the fall of 1944 and was still there when Adolf Hitlercommitted suicide on April 30, 1945. A few days later, however, much of the division (along with agood part of the 14th Panzer Division) was evacuated from the Courland Pocket by the German Navyon the last available ships and sent to Kiel, thus avoiding Russian captivity. It was selected forevacuation by Colonel General Karl Hilpert, the commander-in-chief of Army Group Courland,because of its outstanding service as a “fire-fighter” division in the desperate winter battles of 1944–45, during which the Soviets made six unsuccessful attempts to crush the pocket. The remainder of thedivision surrendered to the Red Army on May 8, 1945.

The 11th Infantry was commanded at various times by Major General/Lieutenant General Günthervon Niebelschütz (assumed command October 1, 1935), Lieutenant General Max Bock (April 1,1937), Major General/Lieutenant General Herbert von Böckmann (October 26, 1939), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Siegfried Thomaschki (January 26, 1942), Major General Karl-Albrechtvon Groddeck (July 10, 1943), Thomaschki (July 30, 1943), Lieutenant General Karl Burdack(September 7, 1943), Lieutenant General Hellmuth Reymann (April 1, 1944), and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Gerhard Feyerabend (November 18, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Niebelschütz was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1935. Böckmann was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1940.Thomaschki was elevated to major general on March 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Feyerabend became a lieutenant general on March 1, 1945.Werner Buxa, Weg und Schicksal der 11. Infanterie-Division (1952); Carell 1971: 260; Kennedy: 74; Kursietis: 92; Manstein: 196; Nafziger 2000: 48; Tessin, Vol. 3:198–99; Juergen Thorwald, Defeat in the East (1980): 288 (hereafter cited as “Thorwald”); OB 45: 142.

11TH MARINE DIVISIONComposition: 111th Marine Rifle Regiment, 112th Marine Rifle Regiment, 113th Marine Rifle

Regiment, assorted divisional troopsThe 11th Marine Division was formed in the Netherlands in March 1945. Its 111th Regiment came

from the 14th Schiffs-Stamm-Abt. (14th Ships Cadre Battalion) at Berda; the 112th was the former

16th Cadre Battalion at Bergen op Zoom; and the 113th descended from the 20th Ships CadreBattalion at Ede. The divisional staff was the former Staff, 2nd Ships Cadre Regiment at Beverloo. Itwas attached to the army’s Corps Detachment Diestel of the 25th Army. The division was neverproperly formed and as of April 12 was still badly organized. For that reason it was disbanded andits infantry battalions were handed over to army units. The commander of the 11th Marine Divisionwas Naval Captain Hans Ahlmann.Sources: Axis History Forum, forum.axishistory.com; Tessin, Vol. 3: 213.

12TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 27th Fusilier Regiment, 48th Infantry Regiment, 89th Infantry Regiment, 12th

Artillery Regiment, 12th Reconnaissance Battalion, 12th Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion,12th Engineer Battalion, 12th Signal Battalion, 12th Field Replacement Battalion, 12th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Schwerin, Wehrkreis IIA Mecklenberg unit stationed in Pomerania prior to the start of the war, the 12th Infantry was

formed in Schwerin under the codename Infantry Leader II (Infanterieführer II), a term which (inGerman) referred to the deputy (infantry) commander of the 2nd Infantry Division or to hisheadquarters. (Prior to 1935, each German infantry division had two deputy commanders: an infantryleader and an artillery leader.) The division was officially designated the 12th Infantry Division onOctober 15, 1935, and was sent to East Prussia in late July 1939. It participated in almost everymajor campaign of World War II. The 12th Infantry Division distinguished itself in Poland and laterin the French campaign where it beat back a French attempt to cut the “panzer corridor,” and relievethe main British and French armies, which were trapped in Belgium. The 12th remained in France onoccupation duty until May 1941, when it was sent back to East Prussia. In June the 12th invadedRussia with the 16th Army and played a part in the capture of Dvinsk and the sweep across northernRussia, but was checked outside Leningrad. The next year, the division was the main force in therelief of the II Corps trapped in the Demyansk Pocket. The division spent most of the Russiancampaign in the northern sector, fighting at Demyansk, Nevel, and Vitebsk. By September 1943, itsthree grenadier regiments each had only two battalions left. It was smashed by the Soviet summeroffensive of 1944 and was forced to surrender to the Russians in July 1944, after Army Group Centerhad been annihilated in the Minsk-Vitebsk encirclements. None of the combat elements of the 12thInfantry Division escaped the disaster that overtook the army group.

The 12th Infantry was rebuilt in East Prussia in the late summer and autumn of 1944, and wasbrought up to a strength of 14,800 men. It was also fully equipped, which was rare for a rebuilt unit inthe fifth year of the war. Redesignated a Volksgrenadier division, the 12th was sent to Aachen on theWestern Front in mid-September, under the command of Colonel Gerhard Engel, Hitler’s formeradjutant who turned out to be a very capable combat commander. The 12th fought in the Ardennes aspart of the I SS Panzer Corps, and American military intelligence reported that it was the best infantrydivision in the 6th Panzer Army. It remained on the Western Front after the 6th Panzer Army wentEast, and in February 1945 was opposing the U.S. 9th Army’s advance across the Roer. By now,however, the 12th Volksgrenadier was a burned-out force, and its resistance was crumbling. It endedup in the Ruhr Pocket, where it was finally destroyed along with the rest of Army Group B in April1945.

The division’s last commander, Major General König, was captured at Wuppertalon April 18,

1945. He had assumed command only six days before. Previous commanders of the division were:Lieutenant General Wilhelm Ulex (assumed command October 1, 1935), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Albrecht Schubert (October 12, 1936), Major General Ludwig von der Leyen (March 10,1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Walter von Seydlitz-Kurzbach (March 10, 1940), ColonelKarl Hernekamp (January 1, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Kurt-Jürgen vonLützow (March 9, 1942), Colonel Wilhelm Lorenz (July 11, 1942), Major General Edgar Roehricht(July 15, 1942), Lützow (July 20, 1942), Colonel Gerhard Müller (October 2, 1942), Lützow(December 1942), Lieutenant General Curt Jahn (May 25, 1944), Lieutenant General Rudolf Bamler(June 1, 1944), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Gerhard Engel (June 28, 1944), MajorGeneral Guenther Rohr (November 1, 1944), Engel (November 1944), Colonel Rudolf Langhäuser(January 1, 1945), Engel (February 1945), and König (April 12, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 12th Field Replacement Battalion became the III/303rd Infantry Regiment of the 162nd Infantry Division in January 1940. Schubert waspromoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1938. Leyer reached that rank on June 1, 1938. Walter von Seydlitz-Kurzbach was promoted to lieutenant general onDecember 1, 1941. Baron von Luetzow became a lieutenant general as of January 1, 1943. General Bamber was captured at the end of June 1944. Like von Seydlitz-Kurzbach and von Lützow, he joined the National Free Germany Committee. Colonel Gerhard Müller commanded the division briefly in 1942, but the exact dates arenot clear. Gerhard Engel, who had been Hitler’s adjutant since 1937, was promoted to major general on November 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1945.He was seriously wounded in the latter stages of the Battle of the Bulge (on January 1, 1945), but returned to duty in February 1945. König was simultaneouslycommander of the 272nd Volksgrenadier Division.British Military Intelligence Interrogation Report CSDIC (U.K.), SRGG 1197 (c), dated 4 May 1945, Air University Archives, Historical Research Center, MaxwellAir Force Base, Alabama (hereafter cited as “Air University Files”); Carell 1966: 596; Carell 1971: 288, 301; Guy Chapman, Why France Fell: The Defeat of theFrench Army in 1940, 1968: 130 (hereafter cited as “Chapman”); Cole 1965: 81,132; Hartmann: 10–11; Keilig: 82; Kennedy: 74; Kursietis: 93; Lexicon; Charles B.MacDonald, The Last Offensive, United States Army in World War II, The European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief of Military History (1973): 27, 159;Charles B. MacDonald, The Siegfried Line Campaign, United States Army in World War II, The European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief of MilitaryHistory (1963): 71, 87–88, 283, 410 (hereafter MacDonald’s Siegfried Line will be cited as “MacDonald 1963” and his Last Offensive as “MacDonald 1973”);Nafziger 2000: 50–51; Hermann Teske, Bewegungskrieg: Führungsprobleme einer Infanterie-Division im Westfeldzug, 1940 (1955); Tessin, Vol. 3: 234–36; OB 42: 74;OB 43: 128; OB 44: 178; OB 45: 142–43.

13TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 13th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

14TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 14th Motorized Division (Volume Three).

14TH LANDWEHR DIVISIONComposition: 33rd Landwehr Infantry Regiment, 40th Landwehr Infantry Regiment, 59th Landwehr

Infantry Regiment, 182nd Landwehr Infantry Regiment, 14th Landwehr Artillery Battalion, 14thLandwehr Reconnaissance Battalion, 14th Landwehr Anti-Tank Battalion, 14th Landwehr EngineerBattalion, 14th Landwehr Signal Battalion

Home Station: Wehrkreis VThis division was activated at Karlsruhe, Offenburg, Freiburg and Mülheim on August 26, 1939, to

guard parts of Germany’s western border against France attack while the main armies overranPoland. Its men were older age (Landwehr) personnel with limited training. The division staff camefrom the 7th Army Depot at Freiburg. The 33rd Landwehr Infantry Regiment was attached to the 35thInfantry Division until September 25, 1939.

A German half-track (with crew inside) tows an 88mm anti-aircraft gun into position.HITM ARCHIVE

The 14th Landwehr was posted to the Upper Rhine as part of the 7th Army during the “Phony War”of 1939–40. It was redesignated the 205th Infantry Division on January 1, 1940, and its 40th, 59th,and 182nd Regiments became the 335th, 353rd, and 358th Infantry Regiments, respectively. OnJanuary 17, 1940, the 33rd Landwehr became the 326th Infantry Regiment of the 198th InfantryDivision. All of the 14th Landwehr’s other units were transferred to the 205th Infantry Division,except the 14th Reconnaissance Battalion, which was dissolved. The commander of the 14thLandwehr Division, Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst Richter, became commander of the205th Infantry Division.Notes and Sources: Richter was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1939.Keilig: 275; Tessin, Vol. 3: 295; Peter Schmitz, Klaus-Juergen Thies, Guenter Wegmann, and Christian Zweng, Die deutschen Divisionen, 1939–1945 (1993), Band(Volume) 3: 117–18 (hereafter cited as “Schmitz et al.”).

15TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 81st Infantry Regiment, 88th Infantry Regiment, 106th Infantry Regiment, 15th

Artillery Regiment, 15th Reconnaissance Battalion, 15th Anti-Tank Battalion, 15th EngineerBattalion, 15th Signal Battalion, 15th Field Replacement Battalion, 15th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Würzburg (1935–36), then Frankfurtam Main, Wehrkreis IXThe 15th Infantry Division was formed on October 2, 1934, under the codename “Artillery Leader

V” with troops recruited from the Main-Franconia region. It was designated 15th Infantry Division onOctober 15, 1935. Later it was augmented with Austrians after that country became part of the Reich.The division did not participate in the invasion of Poland and was relatively lightly engaged inFrance. In November 1940, three of its infantry battalions were detached to the 113th InfantryDivision; all three were reformed as new battalions. The division first saw heavy action in theRussian campaign of 1941, where the 15th took part in the Battle of Minsk, the siege of Mogilev, andthe battles of Smolensk, Yelnya (Jelnja), Vyasma (Vyazma), and Moscow as part of Army Group

Center. Later it foughts in the Battle of the Yelnya Bend and Gshatsk before being rotated back to LaRochelle, France, prior to the start of the Soviet winter offensive.

The 15th Infantry remained in France until after the fall of Stalingrad, but in early February 1943,the High Command ordered the division to embark for Russia. On February 9, it was on the Atlanticcoast; nine days later it was back in action on the Eastern Front, where it remained for the rest of thewar. After fighting at Kharkov and in the Donets as part of the 4th Panzer Army, the division sufferedheavy losses at the Battle of Dnepropetrovsk in the summer of 1943. Reorganized as a six grenadierbattalion unit, it fought in the battles of the southern Ukraine (including Krivoy Rog and Uman) and, inAugust 1944, was encircled at Kischinev, Romania, west of the lower Dnestr. It broke out, butsuffered such serious losses that it had to be completely rebuilt. All of its grenadier regiments werereduced to two understrength battalions. Nevertheless, the 15th Infantry—now at battle group strength—was back in the line by October, opposing the Soviet advance through northern Hungary andSlovakia. By March 1945 it was reportedly in remnants. The next month it was surrounded—alongwith most of Army Group Center—in the large pocket at Deutsch-Brod (just north of Brunn [Brno]and east of Prague) and was there when the war ended. It surrendered to the Soviets on May 5.

Commanders of the 15th Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Friedrich-Wilhelm “Fritz”Brandt (assumed command October 15, 1935), Major General/Lieutenant General Emil von Leeb(March 15, 1936), Major General Walter Behschnitt (April 1, 1939), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Friedrich-Wilhelm von Chappuis (October 6, 1939), Lieutenant General Ernst-Eberhard Hell(August 12, 1940), Colonel Alfred Schreiber (January 8, 1942), Colonel Bronislaw Pawel (January8, 1942), Schreiber (January 23, 1942), Pawel (February 3, 1942), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Erich Buschenhagen (June 18, 1942), Colonel Rudolf Hirt (September 30, 1943),Buschenhagen (October 2, 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Rudolf Sperl(November 20, 1943), Colonel Ottomar Babel (August 21, 1944), and Colonel/Major General HansLaengenfelder (October 17, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 15th Field Replacement Battalion became the III/392nd Infantry Regiment of the 169th Infantry Division in January 1940. In December1943, the 81st Grenadier Regiment was attached to the 1st Hungary Army and was replaced by the 1236th Grenadier Regiment. The unit was redesignated the 81stGrenadier Regiment in March 1944. Leeb was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1937. Chappuis was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1940.Buschenhagen reached the same rank on May 1, 1943. Colonel Hirt’s normal position was commander of the 15th Artillery Regiment. Sperl was promoted to majorgeneral on February 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. Laengenfelder became a major general on January 1, 1945. He was captured on May 10,1945, and was in Soviet prisons until October 1955. The town of Deutsch-Brod was later renamed Havlickuv-Brod and is in the Czech Republic.Carell 1966: 86, 92; Carell 1971: 200, 205; Keilig: 59; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1145–46; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 54; Scheibert: 157; Tessin, Vol. 4: 6–7;OB 43: 128; OB 44: 179; OB 45: 144. For part of the Hungarian campaign of late 1944/early 1945, the remnants of the 27th Hungarian Light Infantry Division wereunder the division’s command (Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1884).

16TH INFANTRY DIVISION (#1)Composition: 60th Infantry Regiment, 64th Infantry Regiment, 79th Infantry Regiment, 16th

Artillery Regiment, 16th Reconnaissance Battalion, 16th Anti-Tank Battalion, 16th EngineerBattalion, 16th Signal Battalion, 16th Field Replacement Battalion, 16th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Münster, Wehrkreis VIThis peacetime division formed in October 1934, and was made up of Westphalians and Prussians.

Initially codenamed “Commandant of Münster,” it became the 16th Infantry Division on October 15,1935. It was sent to the Lower Rhine in September 1939 and was stationed on the Saar Front thatwinter. The 16th Infantry took part in the invasion of France in 1940, pushed through Luxembourg, andsupported the panzers in the decisive Battle of Sedan in May. After this campaign it returned toGermany and was divided: part formed the nucleus of the 16th Panzer Division and part the base for

the 16th Motorized Infantry Division. It ceased to exist on August 6, 1940. Its commanders includedMajor General Gotthard Heinrici (assumed command October 1, 1937), Major General HeinrichKrampf (February 1, 1940), and Colonel/Major General Hans Valentin Hube (June 1, 1940).

See also 16th Panzer Division and 116th Panzer Grenadier Division, both in Volume Three.Notes and Sources: The 16th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 196th Infantry Division as the III/362nd Infantry Regiment in January 1940. Hubewas promoted to major general on June 1, 1940.Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1453; Nafziger 2000: 55; Tessin, Vol. 4: 30–31; OB 45: 144.

16TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISION (#2)Composition: 21st Grenadier Regiment, 223rd Grenadier Regiment, 225th Grenadier Regiment,

1316th Artillery Regiment, 1316th Fusilier Battalion, 1316th Engineer Battalion, 1316th TankDestroyer Battalion, 1316th Signal Battalion, 1316th Field Replacement Battalion, 1316th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VIIIThe second 16th Infantry Division was formed behind the Western Front on August 4, 1944, when

the remnants of the 16th Luftwaffe Field Division and the 158th Reserve Division were consolidatedunder its headquarters. The division was short on equipment and training but was well led by reserveofficers. It covered the northern flank of the 19th Army on their retreat from the Bay of Biscay toDijon, while most of the Allied forces were tied down in the Battle of Falaise; however, the divisiondid lose two battalions to French partisans. The next month the 16th Infantry was trapped between the3rd and 7th U.S. armies west of the Moselle and was smashed. Only about 1,000 of its 7,000remaining soldiers escaped the encirclement. On October 9, 1944, the division was reformed in theVosges Mountains under its old unit numbers and reinforced with miscellaneous support troops,mainly from the Staff, 30th Fortress Regiment, the 437th Replacement and Training Battalion, and the49th Fortress Machine Gun Battalion, as well as elements of the 158th Reserve Division, but it neveragain amounted to more than a battle group. It was nevertheless designated the 16th VolksgrenadierDivision and sent back to the line. It fought in southern Alsace and suffered heavy losses inHimmler’s disastrous counteroffensive near Strasbourg. The remnants of the 16th Volksgrenadierfought in the last campaigns on the Upper Rhine, the Saar, and Tübingen in southern Germany andsurrendered to the Americans at the end of the war on May 8, 1945.

Its commanders included Lieutenant General Ernst Haeckel (assumed command August 5, 1944),Colonel Tillessen (November 1944), Colonel Eberhard Zorn (November 15, 1944), ColonelAlexander Moeckel (December 29, 1944), Colonel Friedrich Trompeter (March 25, 1945), andColonel Robert Kaestner (April 6, 1945).Notes and Sources: Alexander Moeckel was promoted to major general on March 1, 1945. He was killed in action near Karlsruhe 25 days later. Colonel Trompeter,commander of the 225th Grenadier Regiment and senior regimental commander, assumed temporary command of the division.Martin Blumenson, Breakout and Pursuit, United States Army in World War II, European Theater of Operations, Office of the Chief of Military History (1960): 561,567 (hereafter cited as “Blumenson 1960”); Hugh M. Cole, The Lorraine Campaign, United States Army in World War II, European Theater of Operations, Office ofthe Chief of Military History (1950) (hereafter cited as “Cole 1950”); Nafziger 2000: 55–56; Tessin, Vol. 4: 32–33; RA: 130; OB 45: 144.

16TH MARINE DIVISIONComposition: See below.The 16th Marine Division was formed from excess naval personnel in the Netherlands in last

weeks of the war. Organized in March 1945, it included the 161st, 162nd and 163rd MarineRegiments—which were formed from the 6th Ships Cadre Battalion (Schiffs-Stamm-Abt.) at

Steenwijk, the 10th Ships Cadre Battalion at Assens and the 24th Ships Cadre Battalion at Groningen,respectively. The division staff was the former Staff, 4th Ships Cadre Regiment. Naval Captain CarlHollweg was the division commander.

Almost as soon as it received it, the army disbanded the 16th Marine. Its 4th Cadre Regiment and6th Cadre Battalion were used to form the 604th Grenadier Regiment and the 219th FusilierGrenadier Battalion of the 219th Infantry Division, its 10th Cadre Battalion was used to form the219th Grenadier Regiment and 703rd Fusilier Battalion of the 703rd Infantry Division, and the 24thCadre Battalion became the 579th Grenadier Regiment of the 703rd Infantry Division. The 16thMarine Division ceased to exist on April 12, 1945.Sources: Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 4: 44.

17TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 21st Infantry Regiment, 55th Infantry Regiment, 95th Infantry Regiment, 17th

Artillery Regiment, 17th Reconnaissance Battalion (Bicycle), 17th Anti-Tank Battalion, 17thEngineer Battalion, 17th Signal Battalion, 17th Field Replacement Battalion, 17th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Nuremberg, Wehrkreis XIIIThis Bavarian division was created in the initial German military build-up of 1934 by the

expansion of the 21st Infantry Regiment at Nuremberg. It was codenamed “Infantry Leader VII” untilOctober 15, 1935, when it became the 17th Infantry. It fought its first battles in southern Poland andsoon acquired a reputation as an effective combat unit. Later it did equally well in the invasion ofFrance and was in the forefront of Army Group Center’s last thrusts toward Moscow in the winter of1941–42. (Earlier it had fought at Brest-Litovsk, Bialystok and Gomel, among other places.) The 17thwas exhausted after the Soviet winter offensive and was sent to France to rest and rebuild in thesummer of 1942. It returned to Russia in February 1943, after the fall of Stalingrad brought theGerman southern sector to the verge of collapse. In the spring of 1943 it took part in the battlesaround Juchnov and Gshatsk. After the German defeat at Kursk in July, the 17th Infantry fought on theMius, the lower Dnieper, at the Nikopol Bridgehead and in the southern Ukraine, where it againsuffered heavy casualties. It was reorganized as a Type 44 division (with six grenadier battalions) inOctober 1943. It was defending in southern Poland in late 1944 and was smashed on the Vistula inJanuary 1945. In March, it was defending the Hirschberg–Bad Warmbrunn zone of Silesia andconsisted of the 95th Grenadier Regiment (two battalions), the 1246th Grenadier Regiment, the 17thDivision Fusilier Regiment and assorted divisional troops. (The 1246th Grenadier Regimentconsisted of the Staff and students of the Army NCO School at Bruenn [Brno], which the division hadabsorbed.) The division absorbed elements of the defunct 88th and 291st Infantry Divisions that samemonth. Remnants of this veteran division were surrounded in Czechoslovakia in late April 1945 andsurrendered there.

Commanders of the division included Major General/Lieutenant General Herbert Lock (assumedcommand April 1, 1939), Lieutenant General Ernst Guentzel (October 28, 1941), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Gustav-Adolf von Zangen (December 25, 1941), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Richard Zimmer (April 1, 1943), Colonel Otto-Hermann Brücker(February 1944), Colonel Georg Haus (March 15, 1944), Brücker (April 16, 1944), Zimmer again(May 1944), and Colonel/Major General Max Sachsenheimer (September 28, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: The 17th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 183rd Infantry Division in January 1940, and became the II/343rd Infantry

Regiment. Lock was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1940. Zangen was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Zimmer was promoted to majorgeneral on June 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1944. Sachsenheimer became a major general on December 1, 1944.Carell 1966: 196; Kennedy: 74; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Nafziger 2000: 57–58; Tessin, Vol. 4: 57–59; RA: 204; OB 43: 128–29; OB 45: 145.

18TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 18th Motorized Division (Volume Three).

18TH VOLKSGRENADIER DIVISIONComposition: 293rd Grenadier Regiment, 294th Grenadier Regiment, 295th Grenadier Regiment,

1818th Artillery Regiment, 18th Fusilier Battalion, 1818th Engineer Battalion, 1818th Tank DestroyerBattalion, 1818th Signal Battalion, 1818th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VNot to be confused with the original 18th Infantry Division, which was converted into a motorized

(later panzer grenadier) division and sent to the Eastern Front in 1941, this division was formed inDenmark on September 2, 1944, chiefly from excess naval personnel transferred to the army,members of the 571st Grenadier Division, and the remnants of the badly mauled 18th Luftwaffe FieldDivision, so all branches of the armed forces were represented in its ranks. The new Volksgrenadierdivision first saw combat in the West in October 1944 when it was assigned a sector of the Ardenneseast of St. Vith. In mid-December it attacked the U.S. 106th Infantry Division and destroyed most ofit, inflicting upon the U.S. Army the greatest disaster it suffered in the European Theater of Operationsin World War II. The division later suffered heavy losses west of St. Vith in the Battle of the Bulge. Itwas still fighting two months later, however, opposing the Allied drive on the Pruem. The 18thVolksgrenadier Division effectively ceased to exist as a separate combat unit in March 1945, whenits combat units were attached to the 26th Volksgrenadier Division and its staff was placed under thebattle commandant of Bonn. The remnants of the 18th Volksgrenadier finally surrendered to theWestern Allies near Kassel at the close of hostilities.

It was commanded by Colonel/Major General Hoffmann-Schönborn (assumed command September1944) and Lieutenant General Walter Botsch (February 5, 1945).Notes and Sources: Hoffmann-Schönborn was promoted to major general on December 1, 1944.Keilig: 147; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1891; Tessin, Vol. 4: 88–90; OB 45: 145. Thanks also to Dr. Krollspell ofthe Axis History Forum (forum.axishistory.com) for a personal communication.

19TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 19th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

19TH VOLKSGRENADIER DIVISIONComposition: 59th Grenadier Regiment, 73rd Grenadier Regiment, 74th Grenadier Regiment,

119th Artillery Regiment, 119th Fusilier Battalion, 119th Engineer Battalion, 119th Tank DestroyerBattalion, 119th Signal Battalion, 119th Field Replacement Battalion, 119th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Oksbol, Denmark, Wehrkreis IXOriginally designated the Division “Jutland,” the 19th Infantry was activated on August 8, 1944, at

Oksbol, Denmark, as the 19th Grenadier Division. Upgraded to Volksgrenadier status on October 9, itincluded survivors of the 19th Luftwaffe Field Division, which had been smashed on the Western

Front in July. By September 1944, the 19th Infantry was with Army Group B in France and inNovember was conducting a fighting withdrawal across the Moselle. At that time it had a strength of8,500, high for the German Army in the last half of 1944. In late 1944, the division absorbed the fewmembers of the 77th Infantry Division who had not been captured or killed in Normandy, in the fall ofCherbourg, or at Dinand. The 19th fought in the battles in the Saar and in the retreat acrosssouthwestern Germany and into Franconia, where it finally surrendered at the end of the war.

Commanders of the 19th Volksgrenadier Division were Lieutenant General Paul Elfeldt (August1944), Lieutenant General Walter Wissmath (August 1944), and Colonel/Major General KarlBritzelmayr (November 23, 1944).Notes and Sources: Britzelmayr was promoted to major general on December 1, 1944.Keilig: 51–52; Tessin, Vol. 4: 115; OB 45: 146. Also see MacDonald 1973.

20TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 20th Motorized Division (Volume Three).

21ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 3rd Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Regiment, 21st Artillery

Regiment, 21st Reconnaissance Battalion, 21st Anti-Tank Battalion, 21st Engineer Battalion, 21stSignal Battalion, 21st Field Replacement Battalion, 21st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mohrungen, Wehrkreis IThe 21st Infantry was created in 1935 when the 3rd Infantry Regiment “Deutsch Eylau” was

expanded. From October 1934 until October 10, 1935, it operated under the codename “Commandantof Elbing.” In the invasion of Poland the 21st was led by Lieutenant General Hans-Kuno von Both,who had assumed command on November 10, 1938. Later it was commanded by MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Otto Sponheimer (November 1, 1939), Major General Gerhard Matzky(January 10, 1943), Colonel Hubert Lamey (November 1, 1943), Matzky (December 1, 1943), MajorGeneral Franz Sensuss (March 1, 1944), Lieutenant General Hermann Foertsch (March 28, 1944),Major General Heinrich Goetz (August 22, 1944), Colonel Scharenberg (October 1944), ColonelFriedrich Beyse (December 12, 1944), Goetz (January 14, 1945), and Major General Karl Koetz(April 1, 1945).

The 21st Infantry took part in the French campaign pushing through the Ardennes and Luxembourgand forcing the Aisne, the Marne, and the Saone. It remained in France until September 1940, when itwas sent to East Prussia. The 21st crossed into Russia with Army Group North, swept through theBaltic States, fought in the battles of Tilsit, Volkhov and Grusino, and broke through the Sovietdefensive positions on the Msta River, the last natural barrier before Leningrad. The division spentthe next three years in northern Russia, participated in the Siege of Leningrad, fought in the Battle ofVolkhov (1942), and in the Second Battle of Lake Ladoga in early 1943. It was reorganized as a six-grenadier-battalion (Type 44) division on October 2, 1943. After distinguishing itself during theretreat from Leningrad, the 21st was transferred by Army Group Center in the fall of 1944. It wassmashed in the Russian invasion of East Prussia, but the survivors of the unit continued to resist—atbattle group strength—until the fall of the Third Reich. The remnants of the 21st Infantry Divisionwere still in East Prussia (in the Hela sector) at the end of the war.Notes and Sources: The 21st Field Replacement Battalion became the III/371st Infantry Regiment of the 161st Infantry Division in January 1940. A new 21st FieldReplacement Battalion was created in 1940. Sponheimer was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1941. Matzky reached the same rank on April 1, 1943. General

Goetz was seriously wounded on September 25, 1944.Baron Christop von Allmayer-Beck, Die Geschichte der 21. (ostpr./westpr.) Infanterie-Division (1960); Carell 1966: 251, 417–21; Carell 1971: 260; Hartmann: 12;Keilig: 47, 110, 329; Kennedy: 74; Nafziger 2000: 62–63; H. H. Podzun, Weg und Schicksal der 21. Infanterie-Division (1951); Horst Scheibert, Die Traeger desdeutschen Kreuzes in Gold—Das Heer (1983): 42; Tessin, Vol 4: 156–57; RA: 20; OB 43: 129; OB 44: 180; OB 45: 146.

22ND INFANTRY (LATER AIR LANDING) DIVISIONComposition: 16th Infantry Regiment, 47th Infantry Regiment, 65th Infantry Regiment, 22nd

Artillery Regiment, 22nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 22nd Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion,22nd Engineer Battalion, 22nd Signal Battalion, 22nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Oldenburg and Delmenhorst, Wehrkreis XOriginally an infantry division, the 22nd was created in Bremen on October 15, 1935, by the

expansion of the 16th Infantry Regiment of the old Reichswehr. The personnel were from LowerSaxony. Later the division was converted into an air landing force—which in the Nazi period meantthat they followed paratrooper and glider units into action in transport planes as soon as a workableairstrip could be secured. This, in turn, meant that they had lighter artillery and less heavy equipmentthan a standard infantry division. Elements of the 22nd were involved in the occupation of theSudetenland in 1938. The next year the 16th Regiment of the division fought in Poland while the othertwo regiments were stationed on the West Wall.

In the French campaign of 1940 elements of the division took part in the glider-borne assault on thekey Belgian fortress of Eben Emael, while other divisional forces landed at The Hague, Rotterdam,Moerdijk, and Dordrecht. In the Dutch capital, the division failed in its mission to capture the royalfamily, and the divisional commander, Lieutenant General Count Hans von Sponeck, was seriouslywounded in the attempt. In the Russian invasion the 22nd Air Landing was equipped as a standardline unit and fought as a regular infantry force under the 11th Army, Army Group South. Attacking outof Romania, it was the first German division to penetrate the Dnieper line and also fought on thePruth, Dnestr, and Bug. It overran the Perekop Isthmus and took part in the initial assault onSevastopol, where it suffered heavy losses. On June 28, 1942, combat elements of the 22nd AirLanding, along with the 24th Infantry Division, crossed a thousand-yard-wide stretch of North Bay inrubber rafts and landed in the Russian rear, east of the city. Russian resistance in Sevastopol, whichhad been fierce, crumbled rapidly after this highly successful surprise attack.

A German artillery piece in a camouflaged position.HITM ARCHIVE

Following the clearing of the Crimea in early July, the 22nd Air Landing was returned to Germany,once more re-equipped as an air landing division and was sent to Crete where, as Field Marshal vonManstein bitterly complained, “though one of our best formations—it was to lie more or less idle forthe rest of the war.” Eventually the 22nd was equipped as a motorized air landing division, althoughit was never used as such nor officially redesignated panzer grenadier. Part of the division—the 47thGrenadier Regiment—went to Tunisia in late 1942 and was captured there when the African Frontcollapsed in May 1943. The rest of the division remained in Crete until 1944. In autumn 1944, theHigh Command constructed a second 47th Grenadier Regiment and sent it to Crete. A few weeks laterthe 22nd was finally evacuated to the mainland, as part of the general withdrawal from theMediterranean and lower Balkans. It fought the Soviets and Tito’s partisans in Montenegro and in theSarajevo area and was still on the front line in Steiermark, Austria when Germany surrendered. Itwas redesignated a Volksgrenadier division on March 26, 1945, even though it was never organizedas such.

Commanders of the 22nd Air Landing included Lieutenant General Adolf Strauss (October 15,1935), Major General/Lieutenant General Count Hans von Sponeck (October 1, 1938), MajorGeneral Ludwig Wolff (October 10, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich-WilhelmMüller (August 1, 1942), Major General Heinrich Kreipe (February 15, 1944), Lieutenant GeneralHelmut Friebe (May 1, 1944), and Lieutenant General Gerhard Kühne (April 16, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Sponeck was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1940. He was executed by the Gestapo on July 23, 1944. Müller was promoted tolieutenant general on April 1, 1943. General Kreipe was abducted by British Commandos on April 26, 1944. The senior regimental commander directed the divisionfrom April 26 to May 1, 1944.Carell 1966: 291–92, 308, 505; Roger Edwards, German Airborne Troops, 1939–45 (1974): 136 (hereafter cited as “Edwards”); Hartmann: 57; Manstein: 260;Friedrich-August Metzsch, Die Geschichte der 22. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1952); Tessin, Vol. 4: 176–77; OB 42: 75; OB 45: 146–47.

23RD INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 26th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

23RD INFANTRY DIVISION (#2)Composition: 9th Grenadier Regiment, 67th Grenadier Regiment “von Seeckt,” 68th Fusilier

Grenadier Regiment, 23rd Artillery Regiment, 23rd Fusilier Battalion, 23rd Anti-Tank Battalion,23rd Engineer Battalion, 23rd Signal Battalion, 23rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Potsdam, Wehrkreis IIIThe second 23rd Infantry Division was assembled in Denmark and Potsdam on October 23, 1942.

It adopted the regimental numbers of the original 23rd, which had been converted into the 26th PanzerDivision shortly before. Cadres for the new division were provided by the old 23rd Infantry (now26th Panzer) Division. The 67th Grenadier Regiment received the honorary title “von Seeckt” tohonor Colonel General Hans von Seeckt, who had created the Reichswehr in the early 1920s. The68th Regiment received the honorary title “Fusilier” in late 1942, but its organization and equipmentwere no different from that of a standard grenadier regiment.

The new division was sent into action on the Eastern Front in early 1943 and fought on the northernsector. It was involved in the siege of Leningrad from February to August 1943. Because of heavycasualties, three of its grenadier battalions were dissolved in September 1943. Briefly sent to ArmyGroup Center in the fall of 1943, it fought in the defensive Battle of Nevel but was returned to ArmyGroup North in February 1944 after the Russians broke the siege of Leningrad. Later the divisionwithdrew through Estonia, and defended Saareman Island (Osel) in autumn 1944, againstoverwhelming Russian landings. It was, however, successfully evacuated by the German Navy. Afterthis battle, the 9th Grenadier Regiment was disbanded. By October, it was defending in the CourlandPocket, but in January 1945, the remnants of this veteran but depleted division were evacuated by seato northern Germany and sent to Army Group Center in East Prussia, where it remained until the fallof Berlin. It surrendered to the Russians.

Commanders of the second 23rd Infantry Division included Colonel/Major General Friedrich vonSchellwitz (November 15, 1942), Colonel Horst von Mellenthin (July 15, 1943), Schellwitz (August7, 1943), Horst von Mellenthin (August 20, 1943), Colonel/Major General Paul Gurran (September1, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Chales de Beaulieu (February 22, 1944), andLieutenant General Hans Schirmer (September 11, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Schellwitz was promoted to major general on January 1, 1943. Horst von Mellenthin was the brother of Major General Friedrich William (F. W.)von Mellenthin, the famous author and a General Staff officer in his own right. Gurran was promoted to major general on October 1, 1943. He was wounded in actionon February 22, 1944 and died in the hospital at Majevo on April 22, 1944. Chales de Beaulieu was promoted to Lieutenant General on May 1, 1944, but was relievedof his command by Colonel General Schoerner for his (Chales’s) previous association with anti-Nazi conspirator General Eric Hoepner, who was hanged in August1944.Keilig: 222; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 9, 260; Volume IV: 1889; Friedrich Wilhelm von Mellenthin, German Generals of World War II (1977): 136–38(hereafter cited as “Mellenthin 1977”); Nafziger 2000: 66–68; Seaton: 232; Tessin, Vol. 4: 192–93; OB 45: 147.

24TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 31st Infantry Regiment, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 102nd Infantry Regiment, 24th

Artillery Regiment, 24th Reconnaissance Battalion, 24th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 24th EngineerBattalion, 24th Signal Battalion, 24th Field Replacement Battalion, 24th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Chemnitz, Wehrkreis IV

Created in Hitler’s original military expansion, the 24th Infantry was formed on October 15, 1935,and was in action from the first battle until the end of the war. It took part in the invasion of Poland aspart of Army Group South. An Allied intelligence document reported that its “morale and fightingvalue [are] very high, to judge by the French campaign.” After fighting in France (and remaining thereon occupation duty until April 1941), it crossed into Russia in June, fought its way across easternGalacia and the Ukraine and into the Crimea with von Manstein’s 11th Army, and took part in theSiege of Sevastopol for several months. With the 22nd Air Landing Division it was involved in theamphibious assault that led to the fall of the city in early July 1942. Transferred to Army Group Northwith the 11th Army, the division helped repulse the Russian counteroffensives in the Lake lImen areain the latter part of 1942. The 24th remained in the northern sector of the Eastern Front for theremainder of the war. It was reorganized as a Type 44 division in September 1943, when each of itsgrenadier regiments were reduced to two battalions each. It was part of the 18th Army when theSoviets broke the Siege of Leningrad in mid-January 1944. Unlike several other divisions, the 24thkept its composure and was later officially cited for its bravery in the withdrawal through the BalticStates. In July 1944 it held its line against the Russian summer offensive, withdrew into westernLatvia at its own pace in October 1944, and fought in the six battles of the Courland Pocket (1944–45).

Commanders of the 24th Infantry included Major General/Lieutenant General Werner Kienitz(assumed command October 15, 1935), Lieutenant General Sigismund von Förster (April 1, 1938),Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Olbricht (November 10, 1938), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Justin von Obernitz (February 15, 1940), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hans von Tettau (June 14, 1940), Colonel Ernst Anton von Krosigk(February 14, 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Versock (March 1, 1943),Major General Walter Wissmath (June 10, 1943), Versock (July 6, 1943), Colonel Kurt Opelt(February 19, 1944), Colonel Herbert von Wagner (February 21, 1944), Lieutenant General BaronHans von Falkenstein (February 24, 1944), Versock (June 3, 1944), and Colonel/Major GeneralHarald Schultz (September 3, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: The 24th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 162nd Infantry Division in January 1940. Here it was redesignated I/329th InfantryRegiment. Kienitz, Olbricht and Obernitz were all promoted to lieutenant general, on April 1, 1937, January 1, 1939, and June 1, 1940, respectively. Tettau became amajor general on March 1, 1940, and a lieutenant general on March 1, 1942. Versock became a major general on May 1, 1943, and a lieutenant general on November 1,1943. Schultz was promoted to major general on December 1, 1944. He was in Soviet prisons until October 1955.Carell 1966: 304, 503; Keilig: 92, 315, 354; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Lexikon; Manstein: 243, 260; Nafziger 2000: 68–69; Salisbury: 538; Scheibert: 270; Seaton: 264;Tessin, Vol. 4: 208–210; Hans von Tettau and Kurt Versock, Geschichte der 24. Infanterie-Division, 1935–1945 (1956); RA: 72; OB 42: 76; OB 43: 129; OB 44: 181;OB 45: 148; Ziemke 1966: 261.

25TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 25th Motorized Division (Volume Three).

26TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 39th Infantry Regiment (later 39th Fusilier Regiment), 77th Infantry Regiment, 78th

Infantry Regiment, 26th Artillery Regiment, 26th Reconnaissance Battalion, 26th Anti-Tank Battalion,26th Engineer Battalion, 26th Signal Battalion, 26th Field Replacement Battalion, 26th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Cologne, Wehrkreis VIActivated on April 1, 1936, this division was made up mainly of Westphalian-Rhinelanders, with

some East Prussians. It was known as the “Dom” (Cathedral) Division, because of its divisional

emblem, patterned after the Great Cathedral at Cologne (Köln). It did not take part in the invasion ofPoland and was only lightly engaged in the Western campaign of 1940, fighting in Luxembourg and inthe Aisne and Champagne sectors. It was on occupation duty on the Franco-Belgian border until May1941, when it was sent to Poland. The 26th got its first serious test in the Russian campaign of 1941,where it performed well. It distinguished itself when it crossed the Volga between Moscow andLeningrad, and stormed Rzhev, along with the 206th Infantry Division. It was heavily engaged againstthe Russian winter offensive of 1941–1942. Although relatively undamaged in the defensive fightingon the central sector in 1942, the 26th again suffered heavy casualties in the Battle of Kursk, Hitler’slast major offensive on the Eastern Front. Shortly thereafter, it was reorganized as three two-battalionregiments. It opposed the Soviet offensive after the failure of the Kursk operation, fought at Orel(1943) and in the defense of Smolensk, and conducted itself brilliantly in the defense of Kovel in July1944.

Although it managed to escape destruction in the Russian summer offensive that smashed ArmyGroup Center that year, the division was finally overrun near the East Prussian border in September1944, and had to be withdrawn from the line. It was rebuilt in September and October 1944, in theWarthelager Maneuver Area in western Poland, where it was fleshed out with naval and Luftwaffepersonnel, and recruits from Westphalia and the Rhineland formerly assigned to the 582ndVolksgrenadier Division. Its grenadier regiments were reduced from three to two battalions each andits reconnaissance battalion became a fusilier company. Redesignated a Volksgrenadier division onSeptember 17, it was sent to the Luxembourg sector of the Western Front in November. The newVolksgrenadier division suffered heavy casualties in the Battle of the Bulge, where it took part in thesiege of Bastogne as part of the XXXXVII Panzer Corps of the 5th Panzer Army. It also performedwell in this campaign. At the end of the offensive the division had a combat strength of only 1,782men; nevertheless, it remained in action and opposed the Allied drive on Pruem in February 1945. Itfinished the war on the Western Front and surrendered to the Americans in the Harz Mountains inMay 1945.

Commanders of the 26th Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included Lieutenant General Fritz Kühne(assumed command March 7, 1936), Lieutenant General Sigismund von Förster (November 10,1938), Major General Walter Weiss (January 15, 1941), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant GeneralFriedrich Wiese, (April 15, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Johann de Boer(August 5, 1943), Colonel Frommberger (July 1944), and Colonel Heim Kokott (August 10, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: The 26th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 196th Infantry Division and became the III/362nd Infantry Regiment in January1940. Wiese was promoted to major general on September 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. De Boer became a major general on October 1, 1943,and a lieutenant general on April 1, 1944. Kokott was promoted to major general on January 1, 1945.Carell 1966: 196, 357; Carell 1971: 305; Cole 1965: 632; Kursietis: 108; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: Map IV and 5–6; Nafziger 2000: 71–73; “Frontnachweiser,” 15December 1944; Tessin, Vol. 4: 237–38; RA: 100; OB 43: 130; OB 44: 181; OB 45: 148.

27th INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 17th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

28TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 28th Jäger Division (Volume Two).

29TH INFANTRY DIVISION

See 29th Motorized Division (Volume Three).

30TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 6th Infantry Regiment, 26th Infantry (later Fusilier) Regiment, 46th Infantry

Regiment, 30th Artillery Regiment, 30th Reconnaissance Battalion (Bicycle), 30th Anti-TankBattalion, 30th Engineer Battalion, 30th Signal Battalion, 30th Field Replacement Battalion, 30thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Lübeck, Wehrkreis XCreated by the expansion of the 6th Infantry Regiment of the old Reichswehr in on October 1, 1936,

the 30th consisted of men recruited from Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany. It was earmarkedfor the attack on Prague in 1938, before British Prime Minister Chamberlain gave in to Hitler’sdemands in the infamous Munich accords that abandoned Czechoslovakia, leaving the rump state toeventually capitulate without a fight. In 1939, the division, led by Major General Kurt von Briesen,crossed into Poland as part of Army Group South and, near Radom on September 9, faced the mostmassive breakout attempt launched by the Polish Army in World War II. The 30th was strained to thebreaking point and only a desperate counterattack personally led by von Briesen with his lastreserves turned back the Poles. Briesen’s left arm was shattered in the fighting and had to beamputated. Shortly afterward Hitler and Colonel General Wilhelm Keitel, the chief of the ArmedForces High Command, visited the 30th and awarded its commander the Knight’s Cross, the first suchaward presented to a divisional commander in the war. Therefore the 30th was nicknamed the“Briesen Division.” (Briesen himself was promoted and eventually was killed in action leading LIICorps on the Eastern Front on November 20, 1941.)

Meanwhile, the division fought in Belgium, Flanders and France in 1940 and remained in Franceuntil May 1941, when it was transferred to the East. The 30th Infantry was with Army Group Northfrom 1941 until the end of the war. It fought in the Battle of Dvinsk (1941) and was encircled atDemyansk with II Corps in January 1942. It was not relieved for more than a year. During that time,three of its grenadier battalions were disbanded due to high casualties. After it was freed in February1943, the Briesen Division fought at Staraja Russa, in the Leningrad withdrawal, in the retreat throughthe Baltic States, and in the six battles of the Courland (Kurland) Pocket. It finally surrendered in theCourland Pocket on May 8, 1945.

Commanders of the division included Major General/Lieutenant General von Briesen (assumedcommand March 1, 1938), Lieutenant General Franz Böhme (July 1, 1939), Briesen (July 19, 1939),Lieutenant General Kurt von Tippelskirch (January 5, 1941), Lieutenant General Thomas-Emil vonWickede (June 5, 1942), Lieutenant General Paul Winter (August 9, 1943), Major General GerhardHenke (October 29, 1943), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Hasse (November 5, 1943), LieutenantGeneral Hans von Basse (March 15, 1944), Colonel/Major General Otto Barth (August 15, 1944),and Major General/Lieutenant General Albert Henze (January 30, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 30th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 170th Infantry Division in January 1940 and became the II/401st InfantryRegiment. Briesen was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1939. Barth was promoted to major general on November 9, 1944. Henze became a lieutenantgeneral effective May 1, 1945.Hans Breithaupt, Die Geschichte der 30. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1955). Carell 1966: 19, 427; Carell 1971: 288; Hartmann: 12–13; Keilig: 41, 51; Kennedy:Map 7; Lexikon; Manstein: 56, 184; Nafziger 2000: 76–77; Tessin, Vol. 4: 282–83; RA: 160; OB 43: 130–31; Plocher 1943: 414; OB 44: 182; OB 34: 149.

31ST INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADLER) DIVISIONComposition: 12th Infantry Regiment, 17th Infantry Regiment, 82nd Infantry Regiment, 31st

Artillery Regiment, 31st Reconnaissance Battalion, 31st Anti-Tank Battalion, 31st EngineerBattalion, 31st Signal Battalion, 31st Field Replacement Battalion, 31st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Brunswick (Braunschweig), Wehrkreis XIRecruited mainly from the Brunswick (Braunschweig) area of north-central Germany, this division

was activated on October 1, 1936, and fought in southern Poland in 1939. Shifted to the WesternFront, it was engaged in heavy fighting in Belgium and France the following year. It returned toPoland in September 1940. In 1941 it took part in the Russian invasion with the 2nd Panzer Army inthe central sector, fighting in the battles for Bialystok, Minsk, Smolensk, Vyasma, and Bryansk, aswell as in Guderian’s unsuccessful attempt to encircle Tula (southeast of Moscow) in late 1941. Itsuffered serious losses in the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42. Remaining on the defensive withArmy Group Center in 1942, it fought in the Battle of Kursk in July 1943, as part of 9th Army. Laterthat year, the 31st took part in the battles of the middle Dnieper and in the subsequent retreats throughRussia. It was down to battle group strength by October and had been reorganized as a six grenadierbattalion unit (with three grenadier regiments). In June 1944, it faced the gigantic Russian summeroffensive as part of 4th Army and was finally overwhelmed and virtually destroyed in the fighting.Lieutenant General Wilhelm Ochsner, the divisional commander, was taken prisoner along with mostof his men.

The 31st was resurrected in Germany that fall, using returning wounded and new recruits. It wasinitially designated the 31st Grenadier Division, but was merged with the 550th Grenadier Divisionto form the 31st Volksgrenadier Division. It returned to combat in September 1944, as part of ArmyGroup North. It was officially commended for its conduct in the early battles of the Courland Pocket.In early 1945, it was evacuated by sea to northern Germany and fought with Army Group Vistula inthe final campaigns. It was isolated on the Hela peninsula and was forced to surrender to the Russiansin May 1945.

Divisional commanders of the 31st Infantry/Volksgrenadier included Major General/LieutenantGeneral Rudolf Kämpfe (April 1, 1937), Major General Kurt Kalmuekoff (May 22, 1941), MajorGeneral Gerhard Berthold (August 15, 1941), Colonel Friedrich Hossbach (January 21, 1942),Berthold (returned February 28, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Pflieger (April 16,1942), Colonel Hermann Flörke (April 1, 1943), Lieutenant General Friedrich Hossbach (May 16,1943), Colonel Hans-Joachim von Stolzmann (August 2, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralWilhelm Ochsner (September 25, 1943), Colonel Ernst König (late June 1944), and Colonel/MajorGeneral Stolzmann (July 1, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: The 31st Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 181st Infantry Division and became the II/359th Infantry Regiment in January 1940.Rudolf Kaempfe was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1938. General Kalmuekoff was killed in action at Swonco on August 13, 1941. Gerhard Bertholdwas killed in action on April 14, 1942. Pflieger was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Ochsner was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1944.He was a Soviet prisoner until 1955. Stolzmann was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944. The division was commanded by its senior regimental commanderfrom August 13 to 15, 1941 and April 14 to 16, 1942, following the deaths of Generals Kalmuekoff and Berthold, respectively.Carell 1966: 111, 341; Carell 1971: 22, 26, 597; Rolf Hinze, Geschichte der 31. Infanterie-Division (1997); Friedrich Hossbach, Infanterie im Ostfeldzug, 1941/42 (31.Infanterie-Division) (1951); Keilig: 161; Kennedy: 71 and Map 7; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 78–79; Tessin, Vol. 5: 1–3; OB 43: 130; OB 45: 149–50. Also seeKriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1898.

32ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 4th Infantry Regiment, 94th Infantry Regiment, 96th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Artillery

Regiment, 32nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 32nd Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer) Battalion, 32ndEngineer Battalion, 32nd Signal Battalion, 32nd Field Replacement Battalion, 32nd DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Köslin, Wehrkreis IIKnown as the “Lion Division” from its unit emblem, this division consisted mainly of Pomeranians

and Prussians. Formed by the expansion of the 4th Infantry Regiment of the old Reichswehr onOctober 1, 1936, the 32nd Infantry Division fought well throughout its career, and its effectivenesswas praised in secret Allied intelligence documents. It attacked from Pomerania into Poland inSeptember 1939 and helped sever the Danzig Corridor. Transferred to the Western Front with the 4thArmy in October 1939, it turned back a French attempt to breach the so-called “Panzer Corridor” thatextended from the German frontier to the coast of the North Sea in May 1940. It was sent from Franceto East Prussia in October.

During the invasion of Russia in 1941, it fought in the battles of Dvinsk, Kholm, Lake Ilmen, andthe Valdai Hills, and was tied down in the battles around Demyansk from January 1942 to February1943. It was encircled much of this time and had to be resupplied by air. Three of its infantrybattalions were disbanded in 1942, due to heavy casualties. The 32nd remained on the northern sectorduring the defensive battles of 1943 and was briefly transferred to Army Group Center in January1944, where it fought at Nevel. Hurried back to the northern sector after the Russians broke the siegeof Leningrad on January 18, the Lion Division was cited for its excellent conduct in the retreatthrough the Baltic States. Finally withdrawn into the Courland Pocket, it took part in the desperatebattles in western Latvia in the winter of 1944–45, before being evacuated to Germany by sea in early1945. The division was finally cut off in the Hela peninsula by the final Soviet offensives andsurrendered to the Red Army on May 8, 1945.

Its commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Nikolaus von Falkenhorst (assumedcommand October 1, 1936), Lieutenant General Franz Böhme (July 19, 1939), Major General BaronEccard von Gablenz (October 1, 1939), Boehme (December 1, 1939), Lieutenant General WilhelmBohnstedt (June 15, 1940), Colonel Max Ilgen (January 24, 1942), Colonel Karl Hernekamp (March1, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Wilhelm Wegener (June 1, 1942), Major General AlfredThielmann (June 27, 1943), Wegener (returned July 1943), Lieutenant General Hans Boeckh-Behrens(September 15, 1943), Colonel Franz Schlieper (February 1, 1944), Boeckh-Behrens (returned June1, 1944), Colonel Georg Kossmala (August 1944), and Boeckh-Behrens (August 1944 to May 8,1945).Notes and Sources: The 31st Field Replacement Battalion was assigned to the 162nd Infantry Division in January 1940, and became the III/314th Infantry Regiment.Falkenhorst was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1937. Wegener was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. General Boeckh-Behrens died inRussian captivity on February 13, 1955.Carell 1966: 76–77,427; Carell 1971: 288; Chant, Volume 18: 2393; Chapman: 130; Alister Horne, To Lose a Battle: France, 1940, 1969: 525 (hereafter cited as“Horne”); Keilig: 44, 85; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 79–81; Tessin, Vol. 5: 14–15; Juergen Schroeder and Joachim Schultz-Naumann, DieGeschichte der pommerschen 32. Infanterie-Division, 1935–1945. (1962); OB 42: 77; OB 43: 131; OB 44: 183; OB 45: 150.

33RD INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 15th Panzer Division (Volume Three).

34TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1939): 80th Infantry Regiment, 105th Infantry Regiment, 107th Infantry Regiment,

34th Artillery Regiment, 34th Reconnaissance Battalion, 34th Anti-Tank Battalion, 34th EngineerBattalion, 34th Signal Battalion, 34th Field Replacement Battalion, 34th Divisional Supply Troops.The 105th Infantry Regiment became the 253rd Infantry Regiment in September 1939.

Home Station: Koblenz, Wehrkreis XII

The 34th Infantry Division was formed on April 1, 1936, from Rhinelanders and Hessians. Itremained on the Western Front during the Polish campaign but fought in France the following year. Itwas stationed in Belgium from July 1940 to May 1941, when it was sent east. In 1941 it joined in theinvasion of the Soviet Union as part of Army Group Center and was heavily engaged at Minsk,Smolensk, Gomel, and Vyasma; in the Battle of Moscow; and against the Russian Winter Offensive of1941–42. The 34th Infantry fought around Juchnow in the defensive battles on the central sector in1942, took part in the bitter defensive battles for Kharkov in January 1943, fought at Orel in July andAugust, and distinguished itself in the third battle for Kharkov in August 1943. The following month,its grenadier regiments each lost a battalion due to heavy casualties. The division performed well inthe retreat through the northern Ukraine in the spring of 1944, fighting at Cherkassy and Uman, amongothers.

After three years of more or less continuous action on the Eastern Front, however, the division waspretty well burned out by summer. Sent back to Germany, it absorbed Shadow Division Neuhammer,but its grenadier regiments still had only enough men to form two battalions each. In July it wastransferred to northwestern Italy, where it was part of the rear-area Army Detachment von Zangen(later the Ligurian Army), which was made up of Italian units and third-rate German formations. InOctober 1944, the 34th Infantry was on duty on the French-Italian frontier, guarding against a possibleattempt by Eisenhower to take the German armies in Italy in the rear. The division remained with theLigurian Army for the rest of the war and was still in northern Italy when World War II ended. Itsurrendered to the Americans at Coumo, Italy. It was never committed to the front-line fighting inItaly, the way it had been in Russia.

Commanders of the 34th included Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Behlendorff (assumedcommand July 19, 1939), Major General Werner Sanne (May 11, 1940), Behlendorff (November 1,1940), Major General Friedrich Fürst (October 18, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralTheodor Scherer (September 5, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General FriedrichHochbaum (November 2, 1942), Lieutenant General Theobald Lieb (May 31, 1944), and ColonelFerdinand Hippel (1945).Notes and Sources: The 34th Field Replacement Battalion became the III/315th Infantry Regiment of the 167th Infantry Division in January 1940. Behlendorff waspromoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1940. He was seriously wounded on May 11, 1940. Scherer was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1942.Hochbaum was promoted to major general on January 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on July 1, 1943. Colonel Ferdinand Hippel commanded the division briefly in1945, apparently while Lieb was on leave, but the exact dates are not made clear by the records.Bradley et al., Vol. I: 277–78; Carell l966: 414–15; Ernest F. Fisher, Cassino to the Alps, United States Army in World War II, Mediterranean Theater of Operations,Office of the Chief of Military History, 1977: 293, 303 (hereafter cited as “Fisher”); Hartmann: 13; Keilig: 204, 355; Kursielis: 112; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 461;Nafziger 2000: 81–82; Telford Taylor, Sword and Swastika: Generals and Nazis in the Third Reich, 1969: 165 (hereafter cited as “Taylor”); Tessin, Vol. 5: 35–36;RA: 188; OB 43: 131; OB 45: 150–51.

35TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 34th Infantry (later Fusilier) Regiment, 109th Infantry Regiment, 111th Infantry

Regiment, 35th Artillery Regiment, 35th Reconnaissance Battalion, 35th Anti-Tank Battalion, 35thEngineer Battalion, 35th Signal Battalion, 35th Field Replacement Battalion, 35th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Karlsruhe, Wehrkreis VFormed on October 1, 1936, this first-wave division consisted mainly of troops from Baden and

Wuerttemberg. Sent to the West Wall in 1939, the 35th first saw action in Belgium in May 1940 andlater fought against the British Expeditionary Force around Dunkirk. From July 1940 to April 1941, itoccupied a sector of the English Channel coast in Belgium. It was sent to East Prussia in May 1941

and invaded the Soviet Union the following month as part of Army Group Center, fighting at Smolenskand Vyasma, among other battles. It was with General Hoepner’s 4th Panzer Group during the finaldrive on Moscow. When the mid-October thaw came, the men of the 35th trudged eastward throughknee-deep mud. Their infantry companies were down to a strength of 30 men; nevertheless theycrossed the Ruza River (October 20) and took Volokolanisk (October 27) along with 1,800 prisoners.Their supplies and ammunition were exhausted by this time so the division went over to thedefensive. Stalled before the Russian capital in December, the 35th suffered heavy casualties oncemore against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, losing more than 2,500 men—1,000 of them dueto severe frostbite. Although in reality a burned-out force by then, the division remained in the line inthe Gshatsk sector until early 1943.

German infantry in camouflaged uniforms. This photograph was probably taken in 1944 or 1945 as both men are armed with lightmachine guns, which were not common in the German Wehrmacht until after 1943.HITM ARCHIVE

In the early spring of 1943, it took part in the Rzhev withdrawal and was heavily engaged in thedefensive fighting on the central sector that summer and the following winter. In November 1943, itwas rebuilt was a Type 1944 division and now consisted of the 34th Fusilier, 109th Grenadier and111th Grenadier Regiments, all with two battalions; the 35th Fusilier (reconnaissance) Battalion; the35th Artillery Regiment; and assorted divisional troops. It fought against the massive Soviet summeroffensive of 1944 and suffered such heavy casualties in the Battle of Bobruisk in July 1944 that it hadto be taken out of the line for the first time in three years. Sent to Poland, it absorbed the 1034th and1042nd March Battalions and was hurriedly thrown back into the line. It fought at Brest, Modlin, andin the retreat to the Vistula. After the fall of Danzig, the 35th Infantry Division was largely destroyedduring the retreat to the Hela peninsula. Here the remnants of the division surrendered to the Russiansat the end of the war.

Commanders of the division included: Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Wolfgang Reinhard(assumed command November 24, 1938), Lieutenant General Walther Fisher von Weikersthal(November 25, 1940), Major General Baron Rudolf von Roman (December 1, 1941), Colonel/Major

General/Lieutenant General Ludwig Merker (September 10, 1942), Colonel/Major General OttoDrescher (April 1943), Merker again (June 8, 1943), Lieutenant General Johann-Georg Richert(November 5, 1943), Major General Gustav Gihr (April 9, 1944), and Richert (May 11, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Reinhard was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1939. Merker was promoted to major general on October 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on April 1, 1943. Drescher was promoted to major general on June 1, 1943. General Richert was hanged in Minsk on January 30, 1946.Hans Baumann, Die 35 Infanterie Division im Zweiten Weltkrieg (1964): 114–17 Carell 1966: 330; Carell 1971: 309; Hartmann: 13–14; Keilig: 275, 282; Lexikon;Mehner, Vol. 12: 451; Seaton: 188; Tessin, Vol. 5: 44–45; RA: 86; OB 42: 77; OB 43: 132; OB 44: 183; OB 45: 151. For some excellent photographs of the division inRussia, see Kameradschaftsdienst 35. Inf. Div., Die 35. Infanterie-Division, 1935–1945, Deutsche Infanterie-Divisionen im Bild (1980).

36TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONSee 36th Panzer Grenadier Division (Volume Three).

38TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 108th Infantry Regiment, 112th Infantry Regiment, 138th Artillery Regiment, 138th

[combined] Tank Destroyer and Reconnaissance Battalion, 138th Engineer Battalion, 138th SignalBattalion, 138th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Munsterlager, Wehrkreis XIFormed on July 8, 1942, this division was transferred to the The Hague in the Netherlands in

August, then was sent into 15th Army’s reserve in northern France, and was finally given a sector ofthe Atlantic coast at St. Nazaire under 7th Army in 1943. Its infantry regiments were redesignatedgrenadier battalions on October 15, 1942. Sent to the Russian Front in the spring of 1943, it wasvirtually destroyed in the Donets battles, in the retreat to the Dnieper and at Krivoy Rog. Theremnants of the 38th Infantry Division were assigned to the 276th Infantry Division in October.

Commanders of the 38th were Lieutenant General Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt (assumed commandJune 30, 1942) and Colonel/Major General Kurt Eberding (August 25, 1943–end).Notes and Sources: From September 10 to November 14, 1943 (when it ceased to exist), the 38th Infantry Division was under the operational control of the 62ndInfantry Division. Kurt Eberding was promoted to major general on September 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 183; Keilig: 87; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1383,1390; Volume III: 8, 732; Nafziger 2000: 84–85; Tessin, Vol. 5: 72; RA: 46; OB 43: 132; OB44: 184; OB 45: 152.

39TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 113th Infantry Regiment, 114th Infantry Regiment, 139th Artillery Regiment, 139th

Reconnaissance Battalion, 139th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 139th Engineer Battalion, 139th SignalBattalion, 139th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis IVFormed in Troop Maneuver Area Elsenborn in northwestern Germany on July 10, 1942, the 39th

Infantry consisted mainly of Poles and other non-Germans. It was soon transferred to the Netherlands,where it performed garrison duties on the Schelde until being sent to Russia in early 1943. Thedivision was heavily engaged on the southern sector near Kharkov from April to August, wasinvolved in the retreat to the Dnieper, was down to battle group strength by autumn 1943, and sufferedsuch heavy losses in the lower Dnieper campaign that it had to be downgraded on October 23. Its menwere incorporated into the 106th Infantry Division as Division Group 39. Its headquarters was sent tothe Peloponnesus, where it eventually became the Staff, 41st Fortress Division. The 39th was neverconsidered a first-class combat division.

Its commanders included Lieutenant General Hugo Hoefl (assumed command July 10, 1942),

Lieutenant General Ludwig Löweneck (December 31, 1942), Colonel Maximilian Hünten (May 15,1943), and Major General Paul Mahlmann (September 3, 1943).Sources: General Löweneck was killed in an accident on the Eastern Front on May 14, 1943.Keilig: 144; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1383; Volume III: 1156; Nafziger 2000: 86–87; Tessin, Vol. 5: 79; RA: 100; OB 43: 132; OB 45: 152.

41ST FORTRESS (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 938th Grenadier Regiment, 965th Grenadier Regiment, 733rd Grenadier

Regiment, 1009th Fortress Infantry Battalion, 1012th Fortress Infantry Battalion, 919th Army CoastalArtillery Regiment, 141st Fusilier Battalion, 141st Engineer Battalion, 141st Signal Battalion, 309thArmy Anti-Aircraft Battalion, 141st Divisional Suppy Troops

Home Station: Schweidnitz, Wehrkreis VIIIThe 41st Fortress Division was formed in Bruck on December 11, 1943, was sent to Greece, and

was assigned the mission of guarding the Peloponnesus, that strategic isthmus connecting northern andsouthern Greece. Originally a two-regiment division, the 41st incorporated the 733rd GrenadierRegiment of the 133rd Fortress Division into its table of organization in September 1944. The 41stformed the rear guard of Army Group F when the Germans evacuated Greece in the fall of 1944,clashing with royalist guerrillas and the 2nd British Airborne Division during the retreat to Corinth. Itwas engaged in continuous small but bitter rear-guard actions as the Nazis retreated through Serbiaand Croatia.

In January 1945, it was upgraded to infantry division status and fought the regular Soviet forcesbetween the Drava and the Sava Rivers in early 1945. It now consisted of the 1230th (formerly733rd) Grenadier Regiment, the 1231st (formerly 938th) Grenadier Regiment, the 1232nd (formerly965th) Grenadier Regiment, the 141st Artillery Regiment and assorted divisional troops, includingthe 141st Tank Destroyer Battalion (the former Alarm Regiment Athens). The 41st Infantry was stillserving on the southern sector of the Eastern Front when the war ended. It surrendered to theYugoslavs on May 8, 1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General Frank Krech (assumed command November20, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Dr. Fritz Benicke (May 1, 1944), and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Wolfgang-Rudiger Hauser (July 30, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: General Krech was killed in action on April 27, 1944. The division was temporarily commanded by its senior regimental commander until Dr.Benicke arrived. He was promoted to lieutenant general on May 1, 1944. Hauser was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1945. He was a prisoner inYugoslavia until October 1951.Chant, Volume 15: 2045; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 5: 95–96; OB 45: 153–54.

44TH INFANTRY DIVISION “HOCH UND DEUTSCHMEISTER”Composition (1943): 131st Grenadier Regiment, 132nd Fusilier Grenadier Regiment, 134th

Grenadier Regiment (Reichsgrenadier Regiment Hoch und Deutschmeister), 95th Artillery Regiment,44th Fusilier Battalion, 46th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 80th Engineer Battalion, 64th Signal Battalion,44th Field Replacement Battalion, 44th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Vienna, Wehrkreis XVIIFormed in Vienna on April 1, 1938, from soldiers of the former Austrian Army, the 44th was

created by the expansion of the historic 4th Viennese Regiment “Hoch und Deutschmeister,” whichtraced its ancestory back to 1526. The division initially included the 131st, 132nd, and 134th InfantryRegiments, the 96th Artillery Regiment, and the 46th Anti-Tank, 80th Engineer, 64th Signal, and 44th

Field Replacement Battalions. It crossed into Poland in 1939, took part in the attack on Krakow(Kracow) and later advanced across the Vistula. As part of the 6th Army in France it did less well,leading a U.S. intelligence officer to report that its “morale [is] less high than that of the otherAustrian divisions.” It remained in France until March 1941 and formed part of the 1st Panzer Group(later Army) in the initial advance into southern Russia. In 1941 and 1942, the Viennese divisionfought in the Ukraine, at Zhitomir, Kiev, and Kharkov, in the Donets, and in the initial advance towardthe Caucasus, until being attached to the 6th Army for the drive on the Volga. In mid-November 1942,the remnants of the virtually destroyed 534th, 535th, and 536th Infantry Regiments of the recentlydissolved 384th Infantry Division were attached to the 44th Division, which was cut off in Stalingradwith Paulus’s army soon after. The original 44th ceased to exist on January 31, 1943, three daysbefore the last remnants of the 6th Army surrendered.

A second 44th Infantry Division was recruited in Austria, in 1943, to replace the divisiondestroyed at Stalingrad. It was given the honorary title “Reichsgrenadier Division Hoch undDeutschmeister.” After a training period in Belgium, it was sent to northern Italy in August 1943,where it formed part of Field Marshal Rommel’s ad hoc Army Group B. In December it was sent intoaction on the Italian Front south of Rome and remained on the front line for more than a year. It foughtin the battles of Cassino and the Gothic Line, and launched a counterattack at Monte Battaglia inSeptember 1944, which was described as “terrific” by the American commander. By all accounts anexcellent fighting unit, the 44th was sent to the Hungarian sector of the Eastern Front in February1945, where it was soon reduced to Kampfgruppe (regimental) strength in heavy fighting and waslargely destroyed at Jenoe on March 23. The remnants of the division nevertheless remained on thesouthern sector of the Eastern Front until the end of the war. They then managed to disengage from theRed Army and surrendered to the Americans north of Linz on May 8, 1945.

Commanders of the Hoch und Deutschmeister Division included Lieutenant General AlbrechtSchubert (assumed command April 1, 1938), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Siebert(October 1, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Heinrich Deboi (May 2, 1942), LieutenantGeneral Dr. Franz Beyer (February 1943), Lieutenant General Dr. Fritz Franek (January 1, 1944),Lieutenant General Bruno Ortner (May 1, 1944), Lieutenant General Hans-Günther von Rost (June 25,1944), and Colonel Hoffmann (March 23, 1945).Notes and Sources: In January 1940, the 44th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 164th Infantry Division and became the III/443rd InfantryRegiment. Siebert was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1941. Deboi was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1942, and was captured whenStalingrad fell. He remained in prison until 1953. General von Rost was killed in action at Jenoe on March 23, 1945. Colonel Hoffmann was the senior regimentalcommander.Carell 1966: 472, 490; Fisher: 64, 82, 351; Garland and Smyth: 282–88; Hartmann: 14–15; Keilig: 64, 284; Manstein: 52; Nafziger 2000: 88–91; Anton Schimak, KarlLamprecht and Friedrich Dettmer, Die 44. Infanterie-Division: Tagebuch der Hoch- und Deutschmeister (1969); Tessin, Vol. 5: 116–17; RA: 220; OB 42: 77; OB 43:132; OB 44: 185; OB 45: 153.

45TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 130th Infantry Regiment, 133rd Infantry Regiment, 135th Infantry Regiment, 98th

Artillery Regiment, 45th Reconnaissance Battalion, 45th Anti-Tank Battalion, 81st EngineerBattalion, 65th Signal Battalion, 45th Field Replacement Battalion, 45th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Linz, Wehrkreis XVIIWhen Hitler annexed Austria in 1938, the 4th Austrian Division was redesignated 45th Infantry and

incorporated into the Nazi Army on April 1. A year and a half later it was in action in Poland, on theright wing of Army Group South. In 1940 it participated in the French campaign and was on

occupation duty in Belgium until May 1941. The following month it was in the initial attack on theSoviet Union. The Austrian division suffered heavy casualties in the reduction of the fortress ofBrest-Litovsk in June and July 1941. Later it fought at Pinsk, Gomel and at Tula (behind and south ofMoscow) as part of the 2nd Panzer Army. It put up fierce resistance against the Sovietcounteroffensive of December 1941, but was eventually forced to retreat. On December 12 ArmyChief of the General Staff Halder reported the division unfit for combat for lack of supplies. The nextday its main withdrawal route was cut by the Russians, and part of the division was encircled anddispersed; much of its artillery had to be abandoned because its horses starved or froze to death. The45th nevertheless remained in the line, fought on the southern sector of the Eastern Front in 1942 (atOrel and Voronesch), and was on the central sector throughout 1943. It suffered serious casualties inthe Battle of Kursk in July 1943, when Hitler’s last major offensive in the East was turned back. Thatautumn the division fought in the defense of Sozh, Bryansk, and Gomel, and in the subsequent retreatsin the central sector. The 45th Infantry was largely destroyed near Bobruisk in the Russian summeroffensive of 1944, along with most of the rest of Army Group Center.

The very few survivors of the 45th were used as the cadre of the 45th Grenadier Division, whichwas formed in the Dollersheim Maneuver Area. The new 45th merged with the 546th GrenadierDivision (a Sperrdivision, or blocking division) and, as of July 18, 1944, included the 130th, 133rd,and 135th Grenadier Regiments (each with only two battalions), as well as the 98th ArtilleryRegiment and assorted divisional troops. The 45th Grenadier Division, however, was stillunderstrength, so it was allowed to absorb the 1132nd Grenadier Regiment on September 22. Sentback to Poland, the division was renamed the 45th Volksgrenadier Division on October 21. It was inaction on the Eastern Front by autumn, fought in the battles of Warsaw and Radom in early 1945, waspushed into Silesia, and finally capitulated at Königgrätz, Czechoslovakia, in May 1945. By this time,only one of its grenadier regiments (the 130th) was still extant and, on April 20, 1945, it wasredesignated Division Group 45 and was placed under the operational control of the FührerGrenadier Division.

The commanders of the 45th included Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Materna(assumed command April 1, 1938), Major General Gerhard Körner (October 25, 1940), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Fritz Schlieper (May 1, 1941), Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Fritz Kühlwein (February 27, 1942), Colonel/Major General Baron Hans von Falkenstein(April 25, 1943), Colonel/Major General Joachim Engel (November 30, 1943), Major GeneralGustav Gihr (February 27, 1944), Engel (June 1, 1944), Colonel/Major General Richard Daniel (July19, 1944), and Major General Erich Hassenstein (March 1945).Notes and Sources: In January 1940, the 45th Field Replacement Battalion was transferred to the 297th Infantry Division and became the II/135th InfantryRegiment. By 1943, the reconnaissance battalion had three bicycle squadrons and a heavy squadron. Friedrich Materna was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1,1939. General Körner was killed in an accident on April 27, 1941. Who commanded the division from October 1 to 25, 1940, and April 27–30, 1941, is not clear.Schlieper was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1941. Kühlwein was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1,1943. Baron von Falkenstein was promoted to major general on May 1, 1943. Engels was promoted to major general on June 1, 1944, and was captured by theRussians in July. He joined the National Free Germany Committee and died in a Soviet prison in June 1948. Daniel was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944,and was seriously wounded on March 18, 1945. General Hassenstein committed suicide on May 2, 1945.Carell 1966: 33, 344–45; Carell 1971: 597; Keilig: 64; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume IV: 1876; Rudolf Gschoepf, MeinWeg mit der 45. Infanterie-Division (1955); Mellenthin 1977: 42–43; Nafziger 2000: 91–93; Seaton: 224, citing Halder, Kriegstagebuch, Volume III: 340; Tessin, Vol.5: 124–26; RA: 220; OB 42: 78; OB 43: 133; OB 44: 185; OB 45: 154.

46TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 42nd Infantry Regiment, 72nd Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Regiment, 114th

Artillery Regiment, 46th Reconnaissance Battalion, 52nd Anti-Tank Battalion, 88th Engineer

Battalion, 76th Signal Battalion, 46th Field Replacement Battalion, 46th Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Karlsbad, Wehrkreis XIIIFormed from Sudetenland personnel on November 24, 1938, this division fought in Poland (1939)

and in France (1940) and was on the Atlantic coast until February 1941. It fought in Yugoslavia inApril and took part in the Russian campaign, attacking through the Ukraine in July 1941 andpenetrating the Perekop Isthmus in the northern Crimea in September. While the bulk of the 11th Armylay siege to the naval fortress of Sevastopol on the southwestern side of the Crimean peninsula, the46th Infantry Division, now under Lieutenant General Kurt Himer, defended the eastern approaches tothe Crimea on the Kerch peninsula. In the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42 it was attacked by twofull Soviet armies. Ordered to hold at all costs, General Himer and his corps commander, GeneralCount Hans von Sponeck, decided to retreat against orders rather than to allow the division to beslaughtered. This action so infuriated Field Marshal Walther von Reichenau that he stripped thedivision of its banners and its honors. Hitler ordered both von Sponeck and Himer relieved of theircommands. Within two weeks Field Marshal Reichenau was dead, and his successor, Field MarshalFedor von Bock, ordered the banners returned and restored Himer to his command.

Officially restored to honor, the division took part in the Siege of Sevastopol and in the Caucasuscampaign of 1942–43, where it formed the rearguard of the XXXIX Mountain Corps in the subsequentretreat. Later it fought in the Kuban, the Donets, at Belgorod and Isjum, in the Battle ofDnepropetrovsk (where it was seriously damaged), and in the retreat through the southern Ukraine,where it again took heavy casualties. It was reduced from nine to six grenadier battalions inSeptember 1943. Despite its reduced numbers, the 46th Infantry distinguished itself in the withdrawalthrough Transylvania and the Carpathians. In late 1944 the division—now at regimental strength—was in action on the Slovak-Hungarian frontier. It was reorganized and redesignated a Volksgrenadierdivision in March 1945. The remnants of the 46th surrendered to the Russians in the Deutsch-Brodsector of Czechoslovakia on May 8, 1945.

The commanders of the 46th Infantry included Major General/Lieutenant General Paul von Hase(assumed command August 1938), Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Kriebel (July 24, 1940),Lieutenant General Kurt Himer (September 17, 1941), senior regimental commander (March 26 toApril 5, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst Haccius (April 5, 1942), Colonel Karl vonLe Suire (February 13, 1943), Lieutenant General Arthur Hauffe (February 26, 1943), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Kurt Röpke (August 20, 1943), Colonel Hugo Ewringmann (July 10,1944), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Erich Reuter (August 26, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: In January 1940, the 46th Field Replacement Battalion became part of the 183rd Infantry Division and was redesignated I/330th InfantryRegiment. Hase was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1940. Kriebel was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1940. He was either wounded or fell illin September 1941; in any case, he did not return to active duty until July 1942. Unlike Count von Sponeck, who was executed on Himmler’s orders after the July 20attempt on Hitler’s life failed, General Himer was not shot for retreating against orders, but his career was ruined just the same. He was mortally wounded on March26 and died in the hospital at Simferopol on April 4, 1942. Haccius was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943, and was killed in action in the northernCaucasus on February 11, 1943. Röpke was advanced to lieutenant general on February 1, 1944. Erich Reuter was promoted to major general on November 9, 1944,and to lieutenant general on April 20, 1945. He was a Soviet prisoner until 1955.Carell 1966: 297, 316–22, 482, 485; Keilig: 121, 129, 187, 274; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Manstein: 134; Nafziger 2000: 93–95; Tessin, Vol. 5: 133–34; RA: 204; OB43: 133; OB 45: 154–55.

47TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 103rd Grenadier Regiment, 104th Grenadier Regiment, 115th Grenadier Regiment,

147th Artillery Regiment, 47th Fusilier Battalion, 147th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 147th EngineerBattalion, 147th Signal Battalion, 147th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bonn, Wehrkreis VIThe 47th Infantry Division was formed in the Calais area of France from the 156th Reserve

Division on February 1, 1944. Initially engaged in Normandy, it was withdrawn before the frontcollapsed and thus escaped encirclement at Falaise. Later it suffered heavy losses at Mons and wasforced to reform in the vicinity of Aarhus, Denmark. It merged with the 577th Grenadier Division onSeptember 17, 1944, to form the 47th Volksgrenadier Division. It retained its original three grenadierregiments (although they were reduced from three to two battalions each), along with its artilleryregiment and the normal divisional support units. Its fusilier battalion, however, became the 47thFusilier Company. It was committed to the Battle of Aachen in September, where it again sufferedserious casualties. In January 1945, it went into the attack in Himmler’s ill-fated offensive againstStrasbourg. Later it engaged in fighting in the Rhineland east of Aachen and, in late March, wasvirtually destroyed during the American advance through the Germersheim area of Bavaria. Theremnants of the 47th Volksgrenadier surrendered to the Americans near Muensingen at the end of thewar.

Its divisional commanders included Lieutenant General Otto Elfeldt (February 1, 1944), MajorGeneral Carl Wahle (July 30, 1944), Lieutenant General Siegfried Macholz (September 4, 1944), andLieutenant General Max Bork (September 18, 1944).

See also 156th Reserve Division.Notes and Sources: General Wahle was captured near Mons on September 4, 1944.Carell 1971: 595–98; Chant, Volume 17: 2277, 2368; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 81; MacDonald 1963: 411; Mehner, Vol. 12: 456; Nafziger 2000: 95–96;“Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Tessin, Vol. 5: 142–43; RA: 100; OB 45: 155.

A German field artillery piece.HITM ARCHIVE

48TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 126th Grenadier Regiment, 127th Grenadier Regiment, 128th Grenadier Regiment,

148th Artillery Regiment, 148th (later 48th) Fusilier Battalion, 148th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 148thEngineer Battalion, 148th Signal Battalion, 148th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, Wehrkreis XIFormed in the West Flanders area of Belgium from the 171st Reserve Division on February 1,

1944, this unit included many Poles and other non-Germans. Its grenadier regiments were small andonly had two battalions each. Initially posted on the Belgian coast, the 48th was transferred to Franceafter the collapse of the Normandy Front and first engaged the Allies in the Chartres area in August.Inexperienced in battle, inadequately trained, and not particularly loyal to the Third Reich, the 48thInfantry did not perform well in combat. It was defeated at Chartres, Metz, and later in the SiegfriedLine battles. Severely damaged by Patton’s 3rd Army, it finally collapsed altogether and had to betemporarily absorbed by the 559th Infantry Division in November. Reorganized in Slovakia andeastern Austria in early 1945, it was redesignated a Volksgrenadier division and sent to the EasternFront. It fought as part of the 8th Army as the Russians successfully drove on Vienna and ended thewar at battle group strength on the lower Danube sector of the Eastern Front, north of Vienna. Part ofthe division surrendered to the Soviets, part to the Americans.

Commanders of the 48th Infantry/Volksgrenadier were Lieutenant General Casper (assumedcommand February 1, 1944), Major General Gerhard Kegler (October 1, 1944), Colonel ArnoldScholz (October 1944), and Casper (January 30, 1945–end).

See also 171st Reserve Division.Notes and Sources: General Casper fell ill in the fall of 1944 and had to be relieved.Blumenson 1960: 570, 584–85; Cole 1950: 48, 357, 365; Harrison: Map VI; Hartmann: 15; Keilig: 59; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1145; Volume IV: 1904;Kursietis: 116; Nafziger 2000: 96–97; Tessin, Vol. 5: 149; RA: 172; OB 45: 155.

49TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 148th Grenadier Regiment, 149th Grenadier Regiment, 150th Grenadier Regiment,

149th Artillery Regiment, 49th Fusilier Battalion, 149th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 149th EngineerBattalion, 149th Signal Battalion, 149th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Braunschweig (Brunswick), Wehrkreis XIThis division was formed in the Boulogne area of France from the 191st Reserve Division on

February 1, 1944. First in combat in northern France in August 1944, the division took part in thewithdrawal to Paris and into the Low Countries and was smashed at Mons (near the Albert Canal) byField Marshal Montgomery’s soldiers. The divisional commander, Lieutenant General SiegfriedMacholz, tried to reorganize his shattered units at Hasselt, but managed to assemble only 1,500 men—mostly support troops who had no anti-tank guns and only one piece of artillery: a Russian 122mmhowitzer. Only one regimental headquarters—the 148th Grenadier—could be located. Soon (on orabout September 4) Macholz (who had commanded the division since its formation) was replaced byLieutenant General Erich Baessler. The division was briefly withdrawn from the line and, on October19, 1944, absorbed the 31st and 57th Fortress Machine Gun Battalions, the 302nd and 505th InfantryRegiments (from OB West), the 1423rd Fortress Infantry Battalion, a grenadier replacement andtraining battalion, and the I, VI, XI and XVIII Landwehr Fortress Battalions. The 49th Infantry wassoon back in action north of Aachen but was withdrawn after the city fell and was disbanded shortlyafterwards (on November 23, 1944). The survivors of the division were sent to the 246thVolksgrenadier Division. The divisional staff was sent to Metz and used to form the Staff, VII PanzerCorps.

See also 191st Reserve Division.Notes and Sources: The date General Baessler assumed command of the 49th Infantry is not made clear by the records.

Cole 1950: 192, 430; Cole 1965: 35; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 18; MacDonald 1963: 97–98, 282, 297, 500; Nafziger 2000: 97; Tessin, Vol. 5: 156; RA: 172; OB 45:156.

50TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 121st Infantry Regiment, 122nd Infantry Regiment, 123rd Infantry Regiment, 150th

Artillery Regiment, 150th Reconnaissance Battalion, 150th Anti-Tank Battalion, 150th EngineerBattalion, 150th Signal Battalion, 150th Divisional Supply Troops. The 150th Field ReplacementBattalion was formed in 1942.

Home Station: Kuestrin, Wehrkreis IIIOriginally formed as the Kuestrin Frontier Command in the Oder-Warta basin of eastern Germany,

this headquarters was upgraded to infantry division status on August 26, 1939, and its frontier troopswere inducted into the active army for the invasion of Poland. Initially the 50th Infantry was small fora division. Its infantry regiments only had 11 companies each, instead of the standard 14. Thisdeficiency was corrected during the winter of 1939–40. Meanwhile, the 50th was lightly engaged inthe Polish campaign of 1939 and fought in the French and Balkans campaign (i.e., northern Greece).Later it crossed into southern Russia, where it fought at Odessa and Nikolajew, and was involved inbreaching the Perekop Isthmus in the northern Crimea and in the reduction of Sevastopol (1941–42).Later, in the fall of 1942, the 50th Infantry took part in the Caucasus campaign and narrowly avoidedbeing cut off in the Kuban bridgehead by marching across the Sea of Azov on the ice, because the landroutes had been cut off or threatened by the Russians.

After the retreat to the lower Dnieper, the 50th Infantry was returned to the Crimea, where, in April1944, it faced an exact reversal of roles from that of 1941: it was defending the Perekop Isthmusagainst a Russian attack. Finally defeated after suffering heavy losses, it retreated back to Sevastopol,where the divisional commander, Major General Friedrich Sixt, was seriously wounded and had tobe evacuated by air on May 1. Eight days later his replacement, Colonel Paul Betz, was killed inaction. In the evacuation of the Crimea by the German Navy, most of the 50th was left behind; most ofthese were made prisoner, except for the officers, who were brutally murdered by the Russians afterthey had surrendered. Only 2,800 men from the division managed to escape by sea. They weretransported to Romania, reformed, and sent back into action with Army Group Center in July. Itsgrenadier regiments, however, now only had two weak battalions each. The burned-out divisionsuffered heavy losses against the Soviet summer offensive of 1944 but was still in combat in late1944, when it was defending a sector in East Prussia. It was largely destroyed in the HeligenbeilPocket in March 1945. The remnants of the division escaped to the Hela Pocket, where theysurrendered to the Red Army in May. During the war, this tough division suffered 33,700 casualties(more than twice its maximum strength), including 6,000 killed, 23,000 wounded, and 4,700 missing.These totals exclude those who surrendered at the end of the war.

Leaders of the division included Lieutenant General Konrad Sorsche (August 26, 1939), LieutenantGeneral Karl Hollidt (October 25, 1940), Major General August Schmidt (January 31, 1942),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Schmidt (March 1, 1943), Colonel HermannBoehme (July 26, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Sixt (July 3, 1943), Lieutenant ColonelKonrad Stephanus (May 1, 1944), Betz (May 2, 1944) , Colonel Guenther Biermann (May 10, 1944),Major General Alexander von Pfuhstein (May–June 1944), Colonel/Major General Georg Haus (July1, 1944), Major General Kurt Domansky (April 18, 1945), and Colonel Ribbert (April 28, 1945).Notes and Sources: Kuestrin is now Kostrzyn, Poland. Schwerin/Warthe is now Skwierzyna, Poland. Friedrich Schmidt was promoted to major general on March 1,1942 and to lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. He was killed in action in the Kuban on June 26, 1943. Colonel Betz was posthumously promoted to major general.

Major General Dr. Hermann Hohn was designated as commander of the 50th Infantry on May 26, 1944, but apparently never assumed command of the division. Hewas taking a training course in Germany at the time and returned to the 72nd Infantry Division, which he had commanded the year before. Georg Haus was nameddivisional commander on June 5, but did not actually arrive at divisional headquarters until July 1, 1944. He was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944. Hewas killed in action at Stutthof (near Gdansk), East Prussia, on April 18, 1945. General Domansky was also killed at Stutthof on April 28. Colonel Ribbert, who wasnormally commander of the 121st Grenadier Regiment, was acting commander of the 50th Infantry when it surrendered.Carell 1966: 297, 482, 503, 509; Carell 1971: 142, 538–58; Chant, Volume 7: 907; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 56–57; Keilig: 32; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Lexikon;Manstein 24; Hermann Plocher, “The German Air Force Versus Russia, 1943,” United States Air Force Historical Studies: Number 155, Aerospace Studies Institute,Air University (1967); published in hardback form by Arno Press (1968): 322 (herafter cited as “Plocher MS” with the appropriate year); Tessin, Vol. 5: 162–63; RA:46; OB 42: 78; OB 45: 156. For the divisional veteran’s association’s website, see http://50-infanterie-division.de.

52ND INFANTRY (LATER FIELD TRAINING AND SECURITY) DIVISIONComposition (1939): 163rd Infantry Regiment, 181st Infantry Regiment, 205th Infantry Regiment,

152nd Artillery Regiment, 152nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 152nd Anti-Tank Battalion, 152ndEngineer Battalion, 152nd Signal Battalion, 152nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Kassel, Wehrkreis IXThe staff of this division was formed from the reserve personnel of Infantry Command IX on

August 26, 1939. The 52nd was originally a three-regiment infantry division, with its regimentscoming from the 29th Motorized, 9th Infantry and 15th Infantry Divisions, respectively. It was sent tothe Saar sector (Western Front) when the war broke out. Elements of the 52nd reportedly took part inthe invasion of Norway (April 1940) while most of its units fought in the French campaign in Mayand June. It was on occupation duty in France until June 1941, when it was sent to Army GroupCenter in Russia. The 52nd remained on the line for more than two years, fighting at Bobruisk,Bryansk, and Moscow, against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, and at Juchnow, Spass-Demensk, Orel, and Nevel before suffering such heavy losses in the defensive Battle of Smolensk inthe fall of 1943 that it had to be withdrawn. (Meanwhile, each third grenadier battalion wasdisbanded due to heavy casualties.)

Instead of rebuilding the 52nd as an infantry division, the High Command of the Army decided toconvert it into a field training unit, and it was stripped of most of its artillery. On December 3, 1943,it was formally redesignated a field training division. It now consisted of the 565th, 566th, and 567thGrenadier Regiments (two battalions each) and a handful of division support units. (Its tank destroyerbattalion, for example, had been reduced to a company.) The 52nd was stationed in White Rutheniafrom November 1943 to June 1944. On April 12, 1944, the division was disbanded as a combat unit.The divisional staff, however, was transferred to Army Group North, where it was redesignated 52ndSecurity Division and controlled the 57th, 89th, and 611th Security Regiments in the Baltic States. InApril 1945 it became Fortress Command Libau as part of the 18th Army’s reserve. It surrendered tothe Red Army in May 1945.

Commanders of the division included Major General Karl Adolf Hollidt (August 26, 1939), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hans-Juergen von Armin (September 8, 1939), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Dr. Lothar Rendulic (October 5, 1940), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General RudolfPeschel (November 1, 1942), Major General Albert Newiger (December 10, 1943), and LieutenantGeneral Baron Albert Digeon von Monteton (September 5, 1944).Notes and Sources: Armin was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1939. Rendulic was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1941. Peschel waspromoted to major general on December 1, 1942 and to lieutenant general on June 1, 1943. Digeon was hanged in Riga on February 3, 1946.Carell 1966: 196; Carell 1971: 309; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 9–11; Keilig: 13, 70, 241, 253; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1888; Volume IV; 1897; Lexikon;Seaton: 366–67, 591; Tessin, Vol. 5: 176–78; OB 45: 157. Also see Thorwald, Defeat in the East, and Lothar Rendulic, Gekämpft Gesiegt (1957).

56TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISION

Composition: 171st Infantry Regiment, 192nd Infantry Regiment, 234th Infantry Regiment, 156thArtillery Regiment, 156th Reconnaissance Battalion, 156th Anti-Tank Battalion, 156th EngineerBattalion, 156th Signal Battalion, 156th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Dresden, Wehrkreis IVThe 56th Infantry, known as the Swords (“Schwerter”) Division from its unit emblem, was formed

upon mobilization on August 26, 1939. Its men were mostly Saxon reservists. Its 171st InfantryRegiment came from the 24th Infantry Division, its 192nd Infantry Regiment came from the 4thInfantry Division, and its 234th Infantry Regiment was from the 14th Infantry Division. The divisionalstaff was the former Staff, Infantry Leader IV in Dresden. It was with the 14th Army in Poland, whereits primary mission seems to have been rounding up Polish stragglers. In Belgium the following yearit had a much tougher task for it was involved in heavy fighting against the British ExpeditionaryForce. The 56th acquitted itself well. It remained in Belgium after the fall of Dunkirk and returned toPoland in September. In the meantime, it contributed cadres for the formation of the 294th and 304thInfantry Divisions.

In 1941 the division was in the spearhead of Army Group Center, crossing the Bug River on rubberrafts. The 56th took part in the advance on and retreat from Moscow (fighting in the battles of Kovel,Kiev and Bryansk on the way) and remained on the central sector of the Russian Front for the rest ofthe war. It held a sector near Orel throughout 1942, and suffered heavy casualties in the Battle ofKursk in July 1943. The division temporarily ceased to exist on November 2, 1943, when its Staffwas redesignated Corps Detachment D. It controlled Division Group 56 (the former members of the56th Infantry Division); Division Group 262 (the former 262nd Infantry Division); the 761stGrenadier Brigade; and assorted divisional troops, which bore the number 156. Corps Detachment Dfought at Smolensk and Vitebsk, and was smashed in the Soviet summer offensive of 1944.

Briefly withdrawn in the autumn of 1944, the 56th was recreated in East Prussia on September 10,1944, when Staff, Corps Detachment D became Headquarters, 56th Infantry Division, once more.Division Group 56 became the 171st Grenadier Regiment, Division Group 262 became the 192ndGrenadier Regiment, and the 761st Grenadier Brigade became the 234th Grenadier Regiment. Eachgrenadier regiment in the new division had only two battalions. The division also included the 156thArtillery Regiment (with two battalions instead of the normal four), the 156th Fusilier Battalion, the156th Tank Destroyer Battalion, the 156th Engineer Battalion, the 156th Signal Battalion, and the156th Field Replacement Battalion. During this process, the division absorbed the 1067th and 1068thGrenadier Regiment, the 1041st March Battalion and several artillery battalions. The 56th InfantryDivision returned to Army Group Center as a Volksgrenadier division and was destroyed in theBattle of the Heiligenbeil Pocket in March 1945. The divisional staff was evacuated to Pomerania,where it was used to form Staff, Division Ulrich von Hutten.

The commanders of the 56th Infantry Division/Corps Detachment D/56th Volksgrenadier Divisionincluded Major General Karl Kriebel (assumed command August 15, 1939), Lieutenant General Paulvon Hase (July 24, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Karl von Oven (November 15, 1940),Colonel/Major General Otto Lüdecke (January 24, 1943), Lieutenant General Vincenz Müller(September 15, 1943), Major General Bernhard Pampel umbenannt (“called”) Pamberg (June 1,1944), and Major General/Lieutenant General Edmund Blaurock (July 15, 1944).Notes and Sources: Heiligenbeil is now Mamonova, Russia. In 1942, the 156th Reconnaissance Battalion became the 156th Fusilier Battalion, and consisted of twogrenadier companies, a bicycle squadron and a heavy weapons company. Oven was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1941. Lüdecke became a major general onApril 1, 1943. Blaurock was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1945.Carell 1966: 18; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 12–14; Keilig: 36, 233, 256; Kennedy: Map 10; Mehner, Vol 8: 554; Vol. 9: 390; Nafziger 2000: 101–3; Tessin, Vol. 5: 204–05; RA: 72; OB 43: 134; OB 45: 157.

57TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 179th Infantry Regiment, 199th Infantry Regiment, 217th Infantry Regiment, 157th

Artiliery Regiment, 157th Reconnaissance Battalion, 157th Anti-Tank Battalion, 157th EngineerBattalion, 157th Signal Battalion, 157th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bad Reichenhall, Wehrkreis VIICreated from Bavarian reserve personnel in the summer of 1939, this division was activated upon

mobilization on August 26, 1939. It received its 179th and 199th Infantry Regiments from the 7thInfantry Division and the 217th Infantry Regiment from the 217th Infantry Division. The Headquarterswas the former staff of Infantry Leader VII, 7th Infantry Division. The new division “distinguisheditself in southern Poland and in operations on the lower Somme,” to quote an Allied intelligencereport. It was this Bavarian division that blunted General Charles de Gaulle’s attempts to annihilatethe German bridgehead at Abbeville. Despite de Gaulle’s later grossly exaggerated claims of asignificant success, his French 4th Armored Division was, in fact, smashed, along with anotherFrench mechanized division, at a time when France could not afford the loss. A few days later theGerman 18th Army took Paris, which was virtually without armored protection. After fighting inFrance, the 57th Infantry was stationed in Normandy until April 1941, when it was sent to Poland.

In June 1941 it took part in the sweep across southern Russia, fighting at Brody, Uman, Krivoy Rogand Kharkov. The division remained on the southern sector, taking part in the Battle of Voronesch in1942, and suffering heavy losses at the battles of Kursk and Kharkov (1943). It participated in theDnieper withdrawal (1943) and was encircled at Cherkassy in February 1944. It broke out but withheavy loss of equipment and life. Briefly sent to the rear (to Debica, Poland) to regroup, the 57th was

rebuilt as a Type 44 division (with six grenadier battalions). Its artillery was partially re-equippedwith captured French guns. The division soon returned to the front, but this time to Army GroupCenter just in time for the Russian summer offensive of 1944. It was surrounded at Mogilev (east ofMinsk) along with the rest of the 4th Army’s XXVII Corps, and was destroyed during the first weekof July 1944. Soon afterward the 57th Infantry was officially disbanded. Its survivors wereincorporated into the II/57th Divisional Group of Corps Detachment G.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Oskar Bluemm(November 10, 1938), Major General Anton Dostler (September 26, 1941), Bluemm (April 10,1942), Lieutenant General Friedrich Siebert (October 10, 1942), Colonel/Major General OttoFretter-Pico (February 20, 1943), Lieutenant General Vincenz Müller (September 1, 1943), andColonel/Major General Adolf Trowitz (September 19, 1943).Notes and Sources: General Bluemm was named Infantry Leader VII on November 10, 1938. He was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1940. Fretter-Picowas promoted to major general on March 1, 1943. Trowitz was promoted to major general on November 1, 1943. He was captured on July 7, 1944, and joined theNational Free Germany Committee while in captivity. He was not released until 1955.Carell 1971: 594–97; Hartmann: 15; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 15–17; Keilig: 38, 95; Kennedy: 133 and Map 10; Kursietis; 118; Nafziger 2000: 103–4; Tessin, Vol. 5:211–12; RA: 116; OB 42: 79; OB 43: 134; OB 45: 158.

58TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 154th Infantry Regiment, 209th Infantry Regiment, 220th Infantry Regiment, 158th

Artillery Regiment, 158th Reconnaissance Battalion, 158th Anti-Tank Battalion, 158th EngineerBattalion, 158th Signal Battalion, 158th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Oldenburg, Wehrkreis XMobilized in Hamburg on August 26, 1939, this former reserve division received infantry cadres

from the 22nd and 30th Infantry Divisions. It staff came from the Staff, Infantry Commander 22 atLüneburg. The new division was sent to the Saar sector in September 1939 and was only slightlyinvolved in the French campaign, where it fought in Luxembourg, Verdun and Toul. It was onoccupation duty in Belgium until April 1941, when it was sent to East Prussia. It was first heavilyengaged in 1941 on the northern sector of the Russian Front, where it broke through the Stalin Line,swept through the Baltic States, fought at Lake Peipus, and took part in the siege of Leningrad. Thenext year it took part in the Battle of Volkhov (south of Leningrad) from March through July, beforebeing switched to the Oranienbaum sector, where it remained until November 1942. Meanwhile, inJuly 1942, its I/154th Infantry Regiment, III/209th Infantry Regiment, and III/220th Infantry Regimentwere disbanded. Their survivors were assigned to the extant battalions in their regiments. Thedivision, meanwhile, remained on the northern sector of the Eastern Front until the fall of 1943, whenit was sent to Nevel (Newel) on the extreme southern flank of the army group. It was hurriedly rushedback to the north in January 1944, but arrived too late to prevent the Soviets from breaking the siegeof Leningrad. It lost one-third of its men and all its heavy equipment in the withdrawal from the city. Itnevertheless fought on the Narva, at Dünaburg, and at Memel. In February 1945, the 58th returned tothe central sector and was cut off in the Samland region of East Prussia in March 1945. It ended up onthe Hela peninsula, where it surrendered in May.

Commanders of this Saxon division included Major General/Lieutenant General Iwan Heunert(August 26, 1939), Major General Dr. phil. Friedrich Altrichter (September 4, 1941), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Karl von Graffen (March 27, 1942), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Berlin(May 1, 1943), von Graffen (June 6, 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Curt Siewert(September 15, 1943), and Colonel Fritz Klasing (April 13, 1945).

Notes and Sources: Heunert was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1940. Karl von Graffen was promoted to major general on July 1, 1942 and tolieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Siewert became a major general on December 1, 1943, and a lieutenant general on July 1, 1944. He was wounded in action onApril 13, 1945, and was medically evacuated back to the Reich.Carell 1966: 287–88; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 18–20; Keilig: 324; Manstein: 196; Nafziger 2000: 105–6; Salisbury: 351; Tessin, Vol. 5: 219–20; Ziemke 1966: 258,262; OB 42: 79; OB 43: 135; OB 45: 158.

59TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1034th Grenadier Regiment; 1035th Grenadier Regiment, 1036th Grenadier

Regiment, 159th Artillery Regiment, 59th Fusilier Battalion, 159th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 159thEngineer Battalion, 159th Signal Battalion, 159th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis IIFormed on an emergency basis on June 26, 1944, at the Gross Born Maneuver Area, this division

was in action on the Western Front by August. Its ranks were filled by troops on furlough fromNorway or the Eastern Front. The commitment of such ad hoc divisions to combat with inadequatetraining (as a unit) and severe equipment shortages is indicative of the desperate situation Germanyfaced after the Battle of Normandy and the subsequent encirclement of the 7th and 5th Panzer armiesin the Falaise Pocket in western France. The 59th fought in the Calais and Dunkirk areas and sufferedheavy losses in the 15th Army’s withdrawal to the North Brabant area of Holland. By mid-Septemberthe division’s total strength was 1,000 infantrymen, a few engineers, a field replacement battalion,eighteen anti-tank guns, and thirty howitzers; nevertheless it fought against the elite U.S. 101stAirborne Division in Operation Market-Garden and succeeded in delaying the advance of the BritishXXX Armored Corps to Arnhem, where the British 1st Airborne Division was being smashed by theII SS Panzer Corps.

In October, the 59th Infantry Division was in Army Group B’s reserve during the Battle of theScheldt. It took part in the retreat across the Maas and was finally taken out of the line to rest and refitin November. Despite its shortages in every department, the 59th was back on the front line inDecember, fighting near Aachen, in the Siegfried Line battles. In February 1945, it defended Juelichand opposed the 9th U.S. Army’s attempts to cross the Roer. Eventually transferred to the 5th PanzerArmy, the 59th fought against both the 1st and 3rd U.S. armies as they drove on the Rhine. Littleremained of the stubborn emergency division as the Battle of the Ruhr Pocket began, and this remnantsurrendered to the Americans at the end of the battle in April 1945, as German resistance in the Westdisintegrated and the Allies closed in on the industrial heart of the Third Reich.

The division’s commanders included Lieutenant General Walter Poppe (July 5, 1944) andLieutenant General Hanskurt Hoecker (February 1945).Sources: Cole 1965: 613; Keilig: 144; MacDonald 1963: 125, 216–17; MacDonald 1973: 153, 189; Tessin, Vol. 5: 226; RA: 32; OB 45: 159.

60TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 60th Panzer Grenadier Division (Volume Three).

61ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 151st Infantry Regiment, 162nd Infantry Regiment, 176th Infantry Regiment, 161st

Artillery Regiment, 161st Reconnaissance Battalion, 161st Anti-Tank Battalion, 161st EngineerBattalion, 161st Signal Battalion, 161st Field Replacement Battalion, 161st Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Insterburg, Wehrkreis I

Formed from reservists on August 8, 1939, this East Prussian division received the 151st, 162ndand 176th Infantry Regiments from the East Prussian 1st, 11th and 21st Infantry Divisions,respectively. Its Staff was the former Staff, Infantry Leader I (sometimes translated as InfantryCommander I), one of the two deputy commanders of the 1st Infantry Division. The new divisionfought in northern Poland in 1939 and took part in the siege of Warsaw. The next year it was part ofArmy Group B when it overran Belgium and captured Dunkirk. The 61st Infantry Division spent therest of 1940 on occupation duty in Brittany before returning to East Prussia at the end of January1941.

A German infantryman (Landser) in action on the Eastern Front. He is carrying a Mauser rifle and a stick grenade.HITM ARCHIVE

It remained with Army Group B (which was redesignated Army Group North) for the invasion ofRussia in 1941. It fought in the drive on Leningrad, took part in the Battle of the Valday Hills,opposed the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, and was later engaged in the siege of Leningrad.Three of its infantry battalions were disbanded in June and July 1942, due to heavy casualties. In thewinter of 1942–43, the 61st Infantry fought in the Second Battle of Lake Ladoga where it rescued the227th Infantry Division, which had been encircled by elements of two Russian armies nearSchlüsselburg. It stayed in the Volchov/Leningrad area throughout 1943. When the Russian winteroffensive of 1944 began on January 17, the 61st was the only reserve division in the 18th Army,

which was besieging the city. Committed to battle, the 61st was unable to prevent the Soviets fromfinally breaking the siege on January 28. It nevertheless distinguished itself in the Narva battles and inthe retreat through the Baltic states. Meanwhile, it absorbed the remnants of the 9th Luftwaffe FieldDivision on April 2. It was shifted to Army Group Center after the Center’s disastrous defeats in Juneand July 1944. The division served with the XXXIX Panzer Corps in the retreat through Poland and,by January 1945, was cut off in East Prussia, where it remained—at battle group strength—until April10, 1945. On that date Königsberg was overrun by the Red Army and the 61st was finally destroyed.It had been reorganized and redesignated 61st Volksgrenadier Division in October 1944.

Commanders of the 61st Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included Lieutenant General SiegfriedHaenicke (August 8, 1939), Colonel Franz Scheidies (March 27, 1942), Major General WernerHühner (April 8, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Guenther Krappe (February 1, 1943),Colonel Gottfried Weber (April 30, 1943), Krappe (May 1, 1943), Major General Johann Albrechtvon Blücher (December 1943), Krappe (resumed command February 1, 1944), and LieutenantGeneral Rudolf Sperl (December 11, 1944).Notes and Sources: The division received the 161st Field Replacement Battalion in August 1941. It was dissolved in June 1943. Franz Scheidies was promoted tomajor general on April 1, 1942 and was killed in action west of Gluschitza on April 7, 1942. Hühner was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Krappebecame a lieutenant general on October 1, 1943. General Sperl was captured by the Red Army on April 10, 1945, the day Königsberg fell.Carell 1966: 419; Carell 1971: 260, 265; Hartmann: 16; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 21–23; Walter Hubatsch, Geschichte der 61. Infanterie-Division (2nd ed., 1961);Keilig: 152, 184, 328; Kennedy: Map 10; Nafziger 2000: 107–8; Salisbury: 538; Tessin, Vol. 5: 239–41; RA: 20; OB 44: 189; OB 45: 159.

62ND INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 164th Infantry Regiment, 183rd Infantry Regiment, 190th Infantry Regiment, 162nd

Artillery Regiment, 162nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 162nd Anti-Tank Battalion, 162nd EngineerBattalion, 162nd Signal Battalion, 162nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Glatz, Wehrkreis VIIIMade up of Silesian reservists, this division was formed in the summer of 1939. It included cadres

provided by the 8th, 18th and 28th Infantry Divisions. Its headquarters was the former Staff, ArtilleryCommander VIII. Activated on August 26, 1939, the 62nd Infantry fought well in Poland, Belgium andFrance, and returned to Poland in July 1940. In June 1941 it was on the southern sector of the RussianFront, fighting at Kholm, in the Dnieper crossings, and at Kiev. In 1942 it was in the Battle ofKharkov, on the Don, and in the Donetz. In late 1942 it was used to stabilize the 3rd Romanian Army,which was in the process of disintegrating under heavy Soviet attacks. Later, with Army DetachmentHollidt, the 62nd suffered heavy losses in the retreat from Stalingrad, where it tried to stabilize theItalian 8th Army. During this retreat, the division lost so many men that its 183rd and 190th GrenadierRegiments had to be dissolved. It took part in the Kursk offensive of July 1943 and, following thisreversal, was involved in the withdrawal to and from the Dnestr, where it again sustained highcasualties.

Reorganized on November 2, 1943, it now included the 179th and 354th Grenadier Regiments(with two understrength battalions each), Division Group 38 (a regimental sized unit which was allthat was left of the 38th Infantry Division), and the standard divisional troops. (The 354th GrenadierRegiment was formerly part of the 286th Security Division.) It was reorganized again on March 3,1944, when it was combined with the 123rd Infantry Division to form Corps Detachment F. It re-emerged as a separate division on July 20, 1944, when Corps Detachment F was redesignated 62ndInfantry Division. It remained on the front line until August 1944, when it was virtually destroyed atJassy, Bessarabia (Romania). The remnants of the division were withdrawn in September 1944 to

refit and reorganize in the Neuhammer Maneuver Area, where the Headquarters of the 62nd wasreactivated on September 22, as a Volksgrenadier division. It was restocked with inexperiencedrecruits from the 583rd Volksgrenadier Division. In November 1944, the 62nd VolksgrenadierDivision was transferred to the Western Front, where it fought in the Eifel battles, the Ardennesoffensive, and the Battle of Monschau, where it was “virtually wiped out” by the U.S. 9th InfantryDivision. Nevertheless the remnants of the 62nd were reorganized and recommitted to action as partof the 5th Panzer Army. It fought at Bonn and in the Battle of the Remagan Bridgehead, and wasfinally finished off in the Ruhr Pocket, less than a month before the end of the war. It surrendered tothe Americans near Düsseldorf.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Keiner (assumed commandAugust 26, 1939), senior regimental commander (September 17–23, 1941); Lieutenant GeneralRudolf Friedrich (assumed command September 23, 1941), Colonel/Major General Richard-Heinrichvon Reuss (September 15, 1942), Colonel Erich Gruner (December 23, 1942), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Helmuth Huffmann (January 31, 1943), senior regimental commander(November 5–15, 1943), Colonel/Major General Count Botho von Hülsen (November 15, 1943),Major General Louis Tronnier (March 10, 1944), Colonel/Major General Friedrich Kittel(November 1, 1944), Colonel Fritz Warnecke (December 1944), Kittel (January 1945), and ColonelArthur Juettner (March 10, 1945).Notes and Sources: Keiner was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1940. He was severely wounded on September 17, 1941. His permanent replacementarrived on September 23. Reuss was promoted to major general on December 1, 1942. During the retreat from Stalingrad, he was killed in action on December 22, 1942.Huffmann was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1943. Who was the acting divisional commander from November 5 to 15, 1943, is not known. Botho vonHülsen was promoted to major general on December 1, 1943. General Tronnier was captured in August 1944 and died in a Soviet prison in 1952, even though he joinedthe National Free Germany Committee.Cole 1965: 175; Hartmann: 16–17; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 24–26; Keilig: 170, 362; Kennedy: 74; Manstein: 297–98, 322, 388; MacDonald 1973: 69, 194; Nafziger2000: 109–11; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; A. Reinicke, H. G. Hermann and Friedrich Kittel, Die 62. Infanterie-Division, 1938–1944/Die 62. Volks-Grenadier-Division, 1944–1945 (1968); Tessin, Vol. 5: 246–48; OB 42: 80; OB 43: 135; OB 45: 160.

63RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 160th Grenadier Regiment, 492nd Grenadier Regiment, 625th Grenadier Regiment,

63rd Fusilier BattalionThis division was formed on April 12, 1945, on the Dutch coast, in the rear area of OB West. Its

grenadier regiments were formed from the navy’s 14th, 16th and 24th Ships Cadre Battalions(Schiffs-Stamm-Abt.) respectively. The division staff was the former Corps Detachment Diestel (alsothe former Special Administrative Divisional Staff 331), which basically absorbed the 11th MarineDivision and was then redesignated 63rd Infantry Division. Lieutenant General Erich Diestel was thecommander of the 63rd but became acting commander of Army Detachment Kleffel in April. He wasreplaced as commander of the 63rd by Colonel Polster. The division was not completely formedwhen the war ended; it never saw combat.Sources: Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 446; Tessin, Vol. 3: 213; Vol. 5: 253.

64TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1037th Grenadier Regiment, 1038th Grenadier Regiment, 1059th Grenadier

Regiment, 164th Artillery Regiment, 64th Fusilier Battalion, 164th Tank Destroyer Company, 164thEngineer Battalion, 164th Signal Battalion, 164th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bonn, Wehrkreis VIFormed at the Wahn Maneuver Area near Cologne, this static, emergency unit consisted mainly of

men on leave from the Eastern Front. It was a Type 44 division, except that its artillery regiment hadonly three battalions. Thrown into the line at Abbeville, France, in August 1944, it fought in the Battleof the Albert Canal and was left isolated when the 15th Army withdrew behind the Scheldt. OnOctober 2 the division commander, Major General Kurt Eberding, had a total of 2,350 infantrymen,plus more than 8,500 support and miscellaneous service troops, many of whom were not organic tothe division. Eberding hedgehogged, incorporated his service troops into the infantry and, despiteoverwhelming odds, chose to fight the entire Canadian II Corps, rather than surrender. This decisionled to the month-long Battle of the Breskens Pocket, in which the 64th Infantry Division was graduallycrushed. General Eberding was captured on November 2, and the fighting ended the next day. The64th Infantry had been totally destroyed but had bought valuable time for the German Army; it had, infact, given Hitler enough time to launch the Ardennes Offensive.Sources: MacDonald 1963: 219, 221; Hans Speidel, Invasion, 1944 (1968): 41 (hereafter cited as “Speidel”); Tessin, Vol. 5: 258–59; RA: 100; OB 45: 160.

65TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 145th Infantry Regiment, 146th Infantry Regiment, 147th Infantry Regiment, 165th

Artillery Regiment, 165th Motorcycle Battalion, 165th Reconnaissance/Tank Destroyer Battalion(combined), 165th Engineer Battalion, 165th Signal Battalion, 165th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Saarbrücken, Wehrkreis XIIOriginally a two-regiment division (each regiment had three battalions), the 65th was created on

July 7, 1942, trained in Troop Maneuver Area Bitsch, and was sent to Antwerp in the fall. In thesummer of 1943 it underwent a massive personnel exchange with the regiments of the 265th InfantryDivision before being sent to Italy in August 1943. After crossing the border with Rommel’s ad hocArmy Group B, it was in action in October, holding the Sangro River line against elements ofMontgomery’s 8th Army. In the winter fighting in southern Italy, the inexperienced 65th was mauledby the British, to the point where Lieutenant General Siegfried Westphal, chief of staff of Army GroupC, reported that “to all intents and purposes [it] no longer existed.” Nevertheless, on October 27,1943, the survivors of the division were reorganized as a Type 44 division and were given a thirdregimental headquarters—the 147th. The other two regiments were reduced from a strength of three totwo infantry battalions each. In January 1944 the 65th Infantry (minus one regiment on attached duty atGenoa) was hurried back into action against the Allied landing at Anzio. A month later the division,led by Lieutenant General Dr. Georg Pfeiffer, formed part of the I Parachute Corps’ attack at Anzio(Nettuno) and remained in the line until the German front was finally broken and Rome fell. After theretreat from Anzio, the 65th withdrew to Pisa, reformed, and absorbed the personnel of the MielauShadow Division. Thus reinforced, the division fought in the Battles of the Gothic Line and Po River,and remained on the Italian Front until the end of the war. The division ceased to exist on April 22,1945, when its last commander, Lieutenant General Hellmuth Pfeiffer, was killed in action nearFinale on the southern bank of the Po. Some of its survivors surrendered to the Americans, others tothe British at Trient.

The divisional commanders included Major General Hans Boemers (assumed command July 7,1942), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Rupprecht (January 1, 1943), Colonel/Major General GustavHeistermann von Ziehlberg (May 21, 1943), Ernst Guenther Baade (November 27, 1943), and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hellmuth Pfeiffer (December 1, 1943).Notes and Sources: Heistermann was promoted to major general on August 1, 1943. He was severely wounded in the left arm on November 27, 1943. Pfeiffer waspromoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1944.Blumenson 1969: 63–64, 206, 258; Fisher: 302 and Map III; Keilig: 15–16; Alfred Kesselring, A Soldier’s Record (1970): 228; Kursietis: 121; Nafziger 2000: 111–12;

Frido von Senger und Etterlin, Neither Fear nor Hope, George Malcolm, trans. (1963; reprint ed., 1989) (hereafter cited as “Senger”); Tessin, Vol. 5: 263–64; RA: 188;OB 43: 136; OB 44: 189; OB 45: 160–61; Wilhelm Velten, Vom Kugelbaum zur Handgranate: Der Weg der 65. Infanterie-Division (1974).

68TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 169th Infantry Regiment, 188th Infantry Regiment, 196th Infantry Regiment, 168th

Artillery Regiment, 168th Reconnaissance Battalion, 168th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 168th EngineerBattalion, 168th Signal Battalion, 168th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Guben, Wehrkreis IIIOrganized from second-wave reservists in the summer of 1939, the 68th Infantry was mobilized on

August 26, fought in southern Poland, and took part in the French campaign. The division returned toPoland in July 1940, after the fall of Paris, and went into Russia with Army Group South in July1941, but was not heavily engaged until the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42. The 68th Infantryremained on the southern sector of the Eastern Front for the rest of the war and suffered heavy lossesin the winter of 1941–42, in the withdrawal from Kiev (1943), at Zhitomir (1943–44), and in thebattles of the northern Ukraine (1943–44). Three of its infantry battalions had been dissolved by July1942.

Sent back to Troop Maneuver Area Demba in February 1944, it was partially rebuilt. By now,however, its grenadier regiments had only two understrength battalions each. The 68th Infantryreturned to action in March and was with the 1st Panzer Army when it was encircled and broke out ofthe pocket east of the Dnestr in March and April 1944. In the fall of 1944 the 68th Infantry fought inSlovakia and in southern Poland and in January 1945 was involved in the Baranov Bridgeheaddisaster, when the Red Army broke the German defense west of the Vistula. In February and March ittook part in the defense of Upper Silesia. The division surrendered with Army Group Center inCzechoslovakia in May 1945.

Its commanders included Colonel/Major General Georg Braun (assumed command August 26,1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Robert Meissner (November 16, 1941), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hans Schmidt (January 24, 1943), and Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Paul Scheuerpflug (October 25, 1943).Notes and Sources: The 188th Grenadier Regiment absorbed the 1st Alarm Regiment on January 14, 1943. Braun was promoted to major general on December 1,1939 and was killed on November 14, 1941, when partisans blew up his headquarters at Kharkov. Meissner was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942.Hans Schmidt was promoted to major general on April 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on October 1, 1943. (He is not to be confused with General of Infantry HansSchmidt, who commanded the 260th Infantry Division and IX Corps.) Paul Scheuerpflug was promoted to major general on January 1, 1944, and to lieutenant generalon August 1, 1944. According to Mehner (Vol. 12: 452), Lieutenant General Georg Maisel was the last commander of the 68th Infantry Division. Most sources,however, list Scheuerpflug, who died at the Auschwitz hospital in Poland on August 8, 1945.Carell 1971: 233; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 27–29; Keilig: 304–5; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kursietis: 121; Manstein: 526; Nafziger 2000: 112–13; Tessin, Vol. 5: 279–80; RA: 46; OB 42: 80; OB 44: 190; OB 45: 161; Ziemke 1966: 279–80.

69TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 159th Infantry Regiment, 193rd Infantry Regiment, 236th Infantry Regiment, 69th

Artillery Regiment, 169th Reconnaissance Battalion, 169th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 169th EngineerBattalion, 169th Signal Battalion, 169th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Detmold, Wehrkreis VIThe North Rhineland-Westphalian 69th Infantry Division was made up of Ruhr area reservists

mustered in upon mobilization on August 26, 1939. Its headquarters was the former Staff, ArtilleryCommander 16 in Münster. In April 1940, the division landed in Norway and captured the cities ofStavanger and Bergen. Later that year it occupied the western coast of Norway from Nordfjord (100

miles north of Bergen) to Egersund. In 1941, its 193rd Infantry Regiment went to northern Finland ontemporary assignment to the 210th Infantry Division and did not rejoin the 69th until 1943. The parentunit, meanwhile, was transferred to the Eastern Front in the spring of 1943. At first lightly engaged onthe northern sector near Leningrad, the 69th was later involved in the retreats on the northern sector in1944, before being sent to Army Group Center in autumn 1944. After the retreat through Poland, thedivision fought in East Prussia and was part of the 3rd Panzer Army in the Battle of Tilsit on January19–21, 1945. Here, near where Napoleon made his famous pact with Czar Alexander, the 69thInfantry Division was virtually wiped out. The divisional commander, Lieutenant General SiegfriedRein, died with his men. The remnants of the unit retreated into the fortress of Königsberg, where theyalso were destroyed on April 12, 1945.

Commanders of the 69th Infantry Division were: Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHermann Tittel (August 26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Bruno Ortner (September 29,1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Siegfried Rein (February 1, 1944), Colonel Grimme(January 20, 1945), and Colonel/Major General Kaspar Völker (February 9, 1945).Notes and Sources: Tilsit is now Sovetsk, Russia. Tittel was promoted to major general on October 1, 1939, and to lieutenant general on September 1, 1941. Ortnerwas promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Rein was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944, and was killed in action on January 20, 1945.Völker was promoted to major general on April 1, 1945.Chant, Volume 16: 2228; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 30–31; Keilig: 356; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 7, 260, 734, 1158; Volume IV: 1897; Mehner, Vol. 12:452; Tessin, Vol. 5: 285–86; OB 42: 80; OB 43: 136; OB 44: 190; OB 45: 161–62; Ziemke 1959: 34; also see Thorwald: 89–104, for an account of the Battle ofKönigsberg.

70TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1018th Grenadier Regiment, 1019th Grenadier Regiment, 1020th Grenadier

Regiment, 170th Artillery Regiment, 170th Fusilier Battalion, 170th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 170thEngineer Battalion, 170th Signal Battalion, 170th Field Replacement Battalion, 170th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VINicknamed the “White Bread Division” because most of its 7,500 soldiers had stomach problems

and required special diets, this static division was mustered in on Walcheren Island, Holland, on July17, 1944. Cadres of the 165th Reserve Division were also transferred to the division, along with thedivisional staff and the Staff, 5th Reserve Artillery Regiment. The grenadier battalions of the 70thwere former security battalions. The former 1203rd and 1205th Security Battalions became the I andII Battalions, 1018th Grenadier Regiment; the 1211th and 1212th Security Battalions became the I andII/1019th Grenadier Regiment; and the 1213th and 1214th Security Battalions became the twobattalions of the 1020th Grenadier Regiment. The 70th Artillery Regiment had only three battalions,instead of the standard four. The 70th Infantry remained on the island in the Scheldt until November1944, when it was attacked by the 1st Canadian Army. The ailing soldiers fought surprisingly well,for it took Montgomery’s veteran forces nine days to defeat them. The divisional commander,Lieutenant General Wilhelm Daser, was captured on November 9, and the fighting ended shortlythereafter. Almost all of the division’s soldiers were either killed or taken prisoner.Notes and Sources: General Daser was the only commander the 70th Infantry Division ever had. He was the former commander of the 165th Reserve Division. Hewas promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. The British Official History states General Daser surrendered on November 6, and the last resistance ended twodays later.Chant, Volume 15: 2086–87; L. F. Ellis, Victory in the West, Volume II, The Defeat of Germany (1968): 123; Keilig: 64; MacDonald 1963: 219; Speidel: 41; Tessin, Vol.5: 291–92; OB 45: 162.

71ST INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 191st Infantry Regiment, 194th Infantry Regiment, 211th Infantry Regiment, 171stArtillery Regiment, 171st Reconnaissance Battalion, 171st Anti-Tank Battalion, 171st EngineerBattalion, 171st Signal Battalion, 171st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hildesheim, Wehrkreis XIThis reserve division was recruited mainly from the Hanover area and was called up for active

duty on August 26, 1939. It staff was the former Staff, Infantry Commander 19. Sent to the Saar areawhile Hitler overran Poland, the 71st first saw major action in France, where it distinguished itself atSedan and in the advance to Verdun. It returned to Germany in October as part of the HighCommand’s reserve, and served as a training unit in the Königsbrück Troop Maneuver Area fromthen until March 1941. Sent to Russia in June 1941, the division fought in the drive on Kiev andsuffered heavy losses. Rotated back to Belgium and France to rest and refit in November 1941, itreturned to Stalino in southern Russia in the spring of 1942. Assigned to the 6th Army, the 71stInfantry Division fought at Kharkov and in the Battle of the Izyum Pocket in May, in the Battle ofVoronezh in June and July, and in the Battle of the Kalach Pocket in August. It was trapped in theStalingrad Pocket in November and was largely destroyed in the subsequent street fighting. Thedivision commander, General von Hartmann was among those killed; in the last week of the battle hereportedly deliberately exposed himself to enemy fire, preferring death to a Siberian prison camp.Very few of his men survived Soviet captivity.

A second 71st Infantry Division was formed in Denmark on February 17, 1943. Initially sent toIstria, Slovenia, on garrison duty, the 71st crossed into northern Italy as part of the II SS Panzer Corpsin the fall of 1943 and was sent to the front after the Anzio (Nettuno) landings in January 1944. Laterit took part in the Battle of Cassino. The 71st was heavily engaged for three months and had only 100combat effectives left by May 18. Sent to the rear to rebuild, it went back into action in July. The 71stfought in the Battles of the Gothic Line and suffered heavy losses in the Rimini area. Withdrawn to theVenezia-Giulia area of northern Italy to refit, it was transferred to the southern sector of the EasternFront in late 1944 and fought in the Hungarian and Austrian campaigns. It was still in the East whenthe war ended but managed to disengage and escape to the west. It surrendered to the British at St.Veith in May 1945.

Its commanders included Major General Wolfgang Ziegler (assumed command August 26, 1939),Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Weisenberger (October 15, 1939), Major General FriedrichHerrlein (February 15, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Alexander von Hartmann (March28, 1941), Colonel Max Schrank (January 23, 1942), Hartmann (April 1, 1942), Colonel/MajorGeneral Fritz Roske (January 25, 1943), Major General Bernhard Pampel umbenannt von Papenau(February 17, 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Wilhelm Raapke (March 15, 1943),and Major General Eberhard von Schuckman (January 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: General Ziegler died in Heidelburg on October 14, 1939, of natural causes. Karl Weisenberger was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1,1940. Hartmann was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1942. Roske was promoted to major general on January 27, 1943, and was captured when Stalingradfell. He spent the next 12 years in Soviet prisons. Raapke was promoted to major general on June 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1944.Blumenson 1969: 361; Carell l966: 491; Fisher: 46, 86, 278, 302; Hartmann: 17; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 32–34; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1160;Nafziger 2000: 115–16; Hans Noelke, ed., Die 71. Infanterie-Division im Zweiten Weltkrieg, 1939-–1945 (1984); John Shaw et al, Red Army Resurgent (1979): 189(hereafter cited as “Shaw”); Tessin, Vol. 6: 1–3; RA: 172; OB 43: 136–37; OB 45: 162.

72ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 105th Infantry Regiment, 124th Infantry Regiment, 266th Infantry Regiment, 172nd

Artillery Regiment, 172nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 72nd Anti-Tank (later 172nd Tank Destroyer)

Battalion, 172nd Engineer Battalion, 172nd Signal Battalion, 315th Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Koblenz, later Heidelberg, Wehrkreis XIIOriginally created as the Trier Frontier Command, the 72nd was reorganized as an infantry

division on September 19, 1939. Most of its troops were Rhinelanders and Bavarians. Sent to theWest Wall during the “Phony War” of 1939–April 1940, it was not considered a very good fightingunit in the early part of the conflict. After being lightly engaged in France, it spent three months inBrittany and three months in Paris, before being sent to Romania in January 1941. The division tookpart in the Balkans campaign in the spring of 1941 (fighting in Greece) and then crossed into Russiaas a part of Army Group South. It fought in the Crimea and in the subsequent siege of Sevastopolbefore being transferred to Army Group Center in September 1942. On the central sector it took partin the winter fighting of 1942–43, in the Rzhev withdrawal, and in the Battle of Kursk.

Transferred back to the southern sector, it fought at Orel and Bryansk, in the Dnieper bend battles,at Kiev, and in the southern Ukraine. It was finally encircled at Cherkassy with the IX Infantry Corps.During the battle and eventual break-out attempt, General Stemmermann, the corps commander,personally assumed command of the division. When he was killed by an anti-tank shell, all orderdisappeared in the 72nd. Perhaps half of the division escaped. Reformed in the spring of 1944, itsgrenadier regiments were each reduced from three to two battalions each. The 72nd was in Poland inthe summer and was officially cited for its performance in the Vistula defensive battles in August. Itsuffered very heavy casualties in southern Poland and was smashed in the Battle of the BaranovBridgehead on January 12, 1945, as the Russians drove on Breslau and Silesia. It rallied quickly andwas soon back in combat on the Oder, although it was now a Kampfgruppe. Most of the divisionfinally surrendered to the Russians in Czechoslovakia on May 8, 1945, although small elements didescape through the mountains to the west.

Commanders of the division included Major General/Lieutenant General Franz Mattenklott(assumed command August 26, 1939), Major General Helge Auleb (July 25, 1940), Mattenklott(returned September 4, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Philipp Müller-Gebhard(November 6, 1941), Colonel/Major General Curt Souchay (July 10, 1942), Müller-Gebhard(November 24, 1942), Colonel Count Ralph von Oriola (February 17, 1943), Müller-Gebhard (May3, 1943), Lieutenant General Erwin Menny (November 1, 1943), Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Dr. Hermann Hohn (November 20, 1943), Lieutenant General Gustav Harteneck (March 25,1944), Colonel Karl Arning (June 10, 1944), Hohn (July 1, 1944), Major General WernerKampfhenkel (April 20, 1945), and Lieutenant General Hugo Beisswaenger (May 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: Mattenklott was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1940. Müller-Gebhard was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1942.Souchay was promoted to major general on August 1, 1942. Hohn was promoted to major general on March 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on January 30, 1945.Carell 1971: 309; Chant: Volume 16: 2232; Hartmann: 18; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 60–62; Keilig: 27, 149, 162; Lexikon; Manstein: 34, 260; Mehner, Vol. 12: 452;Nafziger 2000: 116–18; Franz Pesch, Hans May, Matthias Roth and Jupp Steffen, Die 72. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1982); Tessin, Vol. 6: 9–10; OB 43: 137;OB 45: 163.

73RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 170th Infantry Regiment, 186th Infantry Regiment, 213th Infantry Regiment, 173rd

Artillery Regiment, 173rd Reconnaissance (later Bicycle) Battalion, 173rd Tank Destroyer Battalion,173rd Engineer Battalion, 173rd Signal Battalion, 173rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Erlangen, Wehrkreis XIIIThis division probably saw as much combat as any German infantry division in World War II. It

was formed around cadres from the 17th Infantry Division and its headquarters was the former Staff,Artillery Commander 17 at Nuremberg (one of the two deputy commanders of the 17th InfantryDivision). After being created in the initial mobilization on August 26, 1939, the 73rd was lightlyengaged in Poland and France. Attached to Stumme’s XXXX Motorized Corps, the 73rd sweptthrough the Balkans and invaded Russia in July 1941. It fought in the Crimea, the subsequent Siege ofSevastopol, on the Mius River, in the advance across the Don, and in the Caucasus campaign. Thedivision retreated into the Kuban bridgehead after the tide of the war in Russia turned againstGermany and in January 1943 was heavily engaged against the Soviet amphibious landings atNovorossiysk (Novorossisk), in which it was primarily responsible for checking the surprise Russianattack.

Shortly afterward the 73rd Infantry—now at battle group strength—was pulled out of thebridgehead and sent north, where it fought at Melitopol and on the lower Dnieper. Returned to theCrimea in early 1944, it was smashed in April and May during the retreat to Sevastopol. Part of thedivision escaped by sea when the fortress fell, but much of it was trapped in the city; GeneralBoehme, the division commander, was captured when his tactical headquarters was overrun by theRussians. The 73rd was reformed in eastern Hungary the summer of 1944 and was reduced to sixunderstrength grenadier battalions.

It reappeared in combat in September, when it helped crush the Polish Home Army in the Warsawuprising. Later the division was sent to Army Group Center, where it held a bridgehead on the easternbank of the Vistula until it was struck by the entire Soviet 47th Army. Under this massive attack theveteran division finally collapsed and was largely destroyed at Thorn on January 30, 1945;nevertheless, the remnants of the 73rd Infantry were still in action in February 1945, opposing theRussian winter offensive in eastern Germany. It fought in West Prussia and was finally effectivelydestroyed in the Battle of Danzig in early April 1945. The division commander was transferredelsewhere, the few surviving combat units were absorbed by other units, and the staff was withdrawninto OKH reserve. It boarded the Goya for the trip back to the Reich and most of it went down withthe ship when it was sunk by the Soviets on April 17. The post of division commander remainedvacant and the staff was headed by Major (General Staff) Lang. Apparently no decision as to what todo with the remnants of this headquarters had been made when the war ended.

Commanders of the 73rd Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Friedrich von Rabenau(August 26, 1939), Lieutenant General Bruno Bieler (September 29, 1939), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Rudolf von Bünau (November 1, 1941), Colonel Erich Gruner (May 1943), LieutenantGeneral Rudolf von Bünau (June 3, 1943), Lieutenant General Hermann Boehme (September 7,1943), Major General Johannes Nedtwig (December 1, 1943), Boehme (returned, January 1, 1944),Lieutenant General Dr. Fritz Franek (June 26, 1944), Colonel Kurt Haehling (July 30, 1944), andColonel/Major General Franz Schlieper (September 7, 1944).Notes and Sources: Buenau was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1942. Boehme was captured on May 31, 1944. He joined the National FreeGermany Committee while a prisoner of war. He remained in Soviet prisons until 1955. Dr. Franek was captured by the Russians on July 29, 1944, and remained aprisoner until 1949. Schlieper was promoted to major general on December 1, 1944.Carell 1966: 296, 503, 535; Carell 1971: 172, 538–58; Hartmann: 18–19; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 35–37; Keilig: 302; Kennedy: 74; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, VolumeIII: 731; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 452; Nafziger 2000: 118–19; Tessin, Vol. 6: 15–16; OB 43: 137–38; OB 44: 192; OB 45: 163–64; Ziemke 1966: 344.

74TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1031st Grenadier Regiment, 1032nd Grenadier Regiment, 1033rd Grenadier

Regiment, Artillery Battalion Milowitz, Engineer Battalion Milowitz

This division was activated and began forming on January 27, 1944, in Troop Maneuver AreaMilowitz in the Protectorate (formerly Czechoslovakia). It was planned for the new division toabsorb Shadow Division Milowitz under the direction of the 173rd Reserve Division. This processwas cancelled on February 28, however, and the troops were sent to Army Group South, the 320thInfantry Division and the 389th Infantry Division. The Staff of the 74th Infantry was eventually used toform the Staff, 237th Infantry Division. The grenadier regiments of the 74th Infantry were nevercompletely formed.Sources: Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 6: 20.

75TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1939): l72nd Infantry Regiment, 202nd Infantry Regiment, 222nd Infantry Regiment,

l75th Artillery Regiment, 175th Reconnaissance Battalion, 175th Anti-Tank Battalion, 175th EngineerBattalion, 175th Signal Battalion, 175th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Neustrelitz, Wehrkreis IIOriginally recruited in the Schwerin area of Prussia, this reserve division was formed upon

mobilization on August 26, 1939, around cadres provided by the 12th Infantry Division. It served onthe Saar Front (1939–40), in the French campaign opposite the Maginot Line (1940), and on theEastern Front (1941–45). Assigned to Army Group South, it fought at Kholm, Kiev (1941), Belgorod(1941–42), and Voronezh (1942–43), and was not particularly distinguished in the early phases of thewar in the East. Later it performed quite well in the Kiev withdrawal, in the retreat across thenorthern Ukraine, and in the battles on and around the Dnestr. It suffered heavy losses in the Battle ofKiev in the fall of 1943, at Cherkassy (February–March 1944) and in the Brody sector (April–June1944). Meanwhile, on October 2, 1943, it was reorganized as a Type 44 division. By the end of theyear, it only had five grenadier battalions. Attached to 1st Panzer Army, it fought in the Carpathians,in the Beskiden district (in the Polish Carpathians) and in Upper Silesia. It was crushed at BohemianOstrau in early 1945 and ended the war in the pocket east of Prague in May 1945.

Commanders of the 75th Infantry Division included Major General/Lieutenant General ErnstHammer (assumed command August 26, 1939), Major General Erich Diestel (September 5, 1942),Lieutenant General Helmuth Beukemann (September 15, 1942), Major General Karl Arning (July 10,1944), and Colonel/Major General Lother Berger (April 6, 1945).Notes and Sources: The division spent the period July 1940 to June 1941 in Poland. Hammer was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1940. Bergerbecame a major general on April 20, 1945.Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 38–39; Nafziger 2000: 119–20; Tessin, Vol. 6: 24–25; RA: 32; OB 42: 81; OB 43: 138; OB 44: 192; German Order of Battle, 1944, Armsand Armour Press, London, 1975: D 64 (hereafter cited as “OB 44b”); OB 45: 164; Ziemke 1966: 279.

76TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: l78th Infantry Regiment, 203rd Infantry Regiment, 230th Infantry Regiment, 176th

Artillery Regiment, 176th Reconnaissance Battalion, 176th Anti-Tank Battalion, 176th EngineerBattalion, 176th Signal Battalion, 176th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Brandenburg, Wehrkreis IIIFormed from Prussian reservists upon mobilization on August 26, 1939, this division’s staff was

the former Staff, Infantry Commander 23, one of the two deputy commanders of the Potsdamer 23rdInfantry Division. It was initially sent the Saar in September 1939 and first saw heavy action inBelgium and France, where it fought very well. Transferred to Poland in late 1940 and to Romania in

the spring, it invaded Russia in 1941 and served on the southern sector from the beginning. It took partin the sweep across the Ukraine, the winter battles of 1941–42 in which Army Group South had toretreat from Rostov, the Izyum counteroffensive of May 1942, and the German victories at Voronezhand Kalack, which almost won the war on the southern sector for Germany. The 76th took part in thestreet fighting in Stalingrad and was encircled there in November 1942. It fought on the heavilyattacked western perimeter from then until January 31, 1943, when it was destroyed. LieutenantGeneral Karl Rosenburg, the divisional commander, was among those taken prisoner when the cityfell.

A second 76th Infantry Division was built in the spring of 1943, to replace the division destroyedat Stalingrad. Its unit numbers remained the same as the original 76th, except that its 230th Regimentwas given the honorary title 230th Fusilier Grenadier Regiment, and its l76th ReconnaissanceBattalion was replaced by the 76th Fusilier Battalion. The new division was initially based inBrittany, France, before crossing into Italy in August 1943. That winter it was transferred to thesouthern sector of the Eastern Front, where it fought at Krivoy Rog, in the Nikolajev Bridgehead, andon the Dnieper bend, and suffered heavy losses in the Dnieper withdrawal in March 1944. Itabsorbed the remnants of the 5th Luftwaffe Field Division that same month. Even so, it had to cut itsnumber of infantry battalions from nine to six. Continuing in action on the Eastern Front, the 76thretreated across the Ukraine and Romania, and fought in the Hungarian campaign, where it wasvirtually destroyed in the Battle of Oradea (October 8–12, 1944) when it and the 23rd PanzerDivision defended the city for five days against the Soviet 6th Guards Tank Army. The remnants ofthe division were sent to Slovakia and then Moravia, where they were reorganized. The division—now a Kampfgruppe—was surrounded with the 1st Panzer Army at Deutsch-Brod (east of Prague) atthe end of April 1945. They surrendered to the Russians after Hitler committed suicide on April 30,1945.

Divisional commanders of the 76th Infantry included Major General/Lieutenant GeneralMaximilian de Angelis (assumed command August 26, 1939), Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Carl Rosenburg (January 26, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General ErichAbraham (February 17, 1943), Colonel Otto-Hermann Brücker (July 1944), Abraham (August 1944),Major General/Lieutenant General Siegfried von Rekowski (October 17, 1944), Colonel Dr. BaronWilhelm-Moritz von Bissing (February 8, 1945), and Major General Erhard-Heinrich Berner(February 14, 1945).Notes and Sources: General de Angelis was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1940. Rosenburg was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and tolieutenant general on December 1, 1942. He was captured at Stalingrad on January 31, 1943, and remained in Soviet prisons until 1955. Abrahams became a majorgeneral on June 1, 1943, and a lieutenant general on January 1, 1944. Rekowski was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1944. Berner was a Soviet prisoneruntil 1955.Garland and Smyth: 282–83; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 40–42; Keilig: 8, 273; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Lexikon; Jochen Loeser, Bittere Pflicht: Kampfund Untergang der 76. Berlin-Brandenburgischen Infanterie-Division (1986); Manstein: 553; Mellenthin 1956: 225; Nafziger 2000: 121–22; Seaton: 494; Tessin, Vol.6: 29–31; RA: 46; OB 42: 81; OB 43: 138; OB 44: 193; OB 45: 164–65.

77TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1049th Grenadier Regiment, 1050th Grenadier Regiment, 177th Artillery Regiment,

77th Fusilier Battalion, 177th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 177th Engineer Battalion, 177th SignalBattalion, 177th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Ulm, Wehrkreis V

A German sergeant reading a topographic map. The item around his neck is a gask mask container.HITM ARCHIVE

Organized in the Muensingen Maneuver Area in Poland in the winter of 1943–44, the 77th InfantryDivision was activated on January 15, 1944, and included troops from previously establishedreinforced infantry regiments and veterans of the 355th Infantry Division and the defunct 364thInfantry Division. (A reinforced infantry regiment usually had an organic artillery battalion.) Thedivision staff was largely from the 355th Infantry Division and the Home Army provided the 1021stGrenadier Regiment, which was redesignated 1049th Grenadier Regiment. Most of its men were fromWuerttemberg. It traveled to Caen in Normandy in January and February 1944, and was on the Frenchcoast between the Cotentin and Brittany peninsulas on D-Day. Quickly engaged on the exposed leftflank of the German front, it faced the bulk of two American corps that soon cut the German forces inthe Cotentin in half. Isolated in the northern sector of the peninsula, the division was ordered to retirein the direction of Cherbourg. Realizing that this order was tantamount to sacrificing the unit, MajorGeneral Stegmann led his division in a breakout against Hitler’s direct orders. Approximately half ofthe men of the 77th Infantry escaped; Stegmann, however, was killed by an American fighter-bomber,which riddled his body with 20mm shells as it strafed the vehicle in which he was riding. His deathin action probably saved him from later execution by the Nazis. Reserve Colonel Rudolf Bacherer,the senior regimental commander, assumed command of the 77th Infantry Division and completed the

escape. The division had no chance to rest and recover, however, since Hitler refused to believe themajor invasion in the West had come and refused to significantly reinforce Field Marshal Rommel’sArmy Group B with infantry units. The burned-out division therefore remained on the front lines andby late July had repulsed a number of heavy American attacks but had taken severe casualties in theprocess. SS General Hausser, the commander of the 7th Army, listed the division as practicallydestroyed; still, it continued to resist until August 15, 1944, when it was surrounded and destroyed atSt. Malo. Colonel Bacherer surrendered the 4,000 survivors of the division at the end of this battle.

Commanders of the 77th Infantry were Lieutenant General Walter Poppe (February 1, 1944),Bacherer (April 25, 1944), Stegmann (May 1, 1944), and Bacherer (June 18, 1944).Sources: Blumenson 1960: 401–4, 442; Carell 1973: 186–89; Chant, Volume 12: 1668, 1671; Harrison: Map VI; Nafziger 2000: 122–23; Tessin, Vol. 6: 36; RA: 86;OB 45: 165.

78TH INFANTRY (LATER ASSAULT) DIVISIONComposition (1941): 195th Infantry Regiment, 215th Infantry Regiment, 238th Infantry Regiment,

178th Artillery Regiment, 178th Reconnaissance Battalion, 178th Anti-Tank Battalion, 178thEngineer Battalion, 178th Signal Battalion, 178th Field Replacement Battalion, 178th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Tübingen, Wehrkreis VA Wuerttemberg division formed at Stuttgart on mobilization from reservists, its headquarters was

the former Staff, Artillery Commander 5. It was initially sent to the Upper Rhine in September andwas in OKH reserve in northern France in May 1940. It was on occupation duty in northern Franceuntil April 1941, when it was sent to Poland. By June it was on the Eastern Front, where it servedwith Army Group Center in the initial campaign. The division fought at Bialystok and Smolensk anddistinguished itself in the battles of Bialowieza and the Yelnya bend. It also fought in the Battle ofMoscow and against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42. During that period it dropped the 238thInfantry Regiment from its table of organization and received the 14th Infantry (later Sturm) Regimentfrom the 5th Infantry Division. The 78th fought in the Rzhev salient and remained on the central sectorof the Russian Front. It acquired such an excellent combat record that it was given the honorary title“Sturm” (Storm or Assault) division on January 1, 1943. In 1943 it took part in the Battle of Kurskand in the successful defense of Smolensk and Orscha, before being crushed near Minsk in themassive Soviet summer offensive of 1944. The division’s commander, Lieutenant General HansTraut, and most of his men were captured.

The 78th was reformed at the Muensingen Troop Maneuver Area in late July 1944 by absorbing the543rd Grenadier Division (a Sperr, or blocking, unit). It was redesignated the 78th VolksgrenadierDivision on October 9, 1944, returned to action in Galacia (southern Poland) in autumn, and againsuffered heavy casualties. The division was again largely destroyed in January 1945, when itattempted to block the Russian drive into Upper Silesia. The remnants of this veteran divisionremained in action despite its losses and finally surrendered at Deutsch-Brod, Czechoslovakia, withthe rest of Army Group Center, in May 1945.

Commanders of the 78th Infantry/Sturm/Volksgrenadier Division included Lieutenant General FritzBrand (assumed command August 26, 1939), Lieutenant General Curt Gallenkamp (October 1, 1939),Major General Emil Markgraf (September 29, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General PaulVoelkers (November 19, 1941), Lieutenant General Hans Traut (April 1, 1943), Colonel Heribertvon Larisch (November 1, 1943), Traut (February 15, 1944), Lieutenant General Siegfried Rasp (July

12, 1944), Colonel Alois Weber (September 23, 1944), Major General Harald von Hirschfeld(December 1, 1944), Major General Hans Schrepffer (January 18, 1945), Major General WilhelmNagel (January 20, 1945), Colonel Gerhard Matthias (April 1945), and Major General ErichGeissler (May 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: The division added the 189th Assault Gun Company and the 293rd Army Anti-Aircraft Battalion in 1942–43. Voelkers was promoted tolieutenant general on September 1, 1942. Traut was a prisoner of war until 1955. General von Hirschfeld was killed in an air attack on January 18, 1945.Carell 1966: 330, 350; Carell 1971: 26, 30, 588–97; Chant, Volume 16: 2231–32; Hartmann: 19; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 43–45; Kursietis: 125; Mehner, Vol. 6: 538,Vol. 12: 452; Nafziger 2000: 123–26; Tessin, Vol. 6: 40–42; RA: 86; OB 42: 82; OB 43: 138; OB 45: 165–66; Fritz Vetter, Die 78. Infanterie- und Sturmdivision,1938–1945: Eine Dokumentation in Bildern (1981).

79TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 208th Infantry Regiment, 212th Infantry Regiment, 226th Infantry Regiment, 179th

Artillery Regiment, 179th Reconnaissance Battalion, 179th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 179th EngineerBattalion, 179th Signal Battalion, 179th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Koblenz, later Metz, Wehrkreis XIIThis Rhinelander reserve division was assembled upon mobilization on August 26, 1939. Its staff

was the former headquarters of Infantry Commander 34. The men of its 208th Infantry Regiment camefrom the 34th Infantry Division, the soldiers of 212th Infantry Regiment came from the 36th InfantryDivision, and the 226th Infantry Regiment was the former 115th Infantry Regiment of the 33rd InfantryDivision. The 79th Division first saw action in the Saar Front against the French in 1939–40. Lightlyengaged in the annihilation of the French Army in May and June 1940, it was on occupation duty inFrance until April 1941, when it was sent back to Germany. It joined Army Group South in Russia inJuly 1941 and fought its way through the Ukraine and across the Dnieper. It took part in the Battle ofKiev, where several Soviet armies were encircled and destroyed, and later opposed the Russianwinter offensive of 1941–42. In 1942 the 79th Infantry fought in the Battle of Kharkov, in theencirclement of 200,000 Russians at Izyum, in the Battle of Voronezh, and in the encirclement atKalack, where another Russian army was destroyed. The division was itself surrounded with 6thArmy in the Stalingrad Pocket in November 1942 and destroyed in late January 1943. Shortly beforethe fall, however, the Luftwaffe flew part of the division staff and elements of the 179th InfantryRegiment out of the pocket. They would make the nucleus of a new division.

A second 79th Infantry Division was created at Stalino in the spring of 1943 and was quickly sentto the southern sector of the Russian Front, which had undergone crisis after crisis since November1942. The division was initially engaged in the Kuban bridgehead in the summer of 1943 beforebeing evacuated via the Crimea to the lower Dnieper, where it was involved in heavy fighting in theNikopol Bridgehead (November 1943–January 1944). At first the combat ability of the 79th wasconsidered low, but its rating improved with experience. It took part in the retreats through theUkraine and into Romania in 1943 and 1944. The division absorbed the 1001st March Battalion inearly 1944, but still had to disband three of its infantry battalions in June. In late August 1944,Romania defected from the Axis, leaving the rebuilt 6th Army and much of Army Group SouthUkraine—including the 79th Infantry—cut off. The division tried to cut its way through Russian lineswith General Mieth’s IV Corps but was destroyed by the Red Army near the village of Chitcani on theBerlad River. General Mieth died in this battle. Only one soldier from the division made good hisescape, reaching German lines in Hungary 12 days after the division was destroyed.

A third 79th Infantry Division was formed as a Volksgrenadier unit in the Thorn area of WehrkriesXX (Poland) on October 27, 1944. Most of its new recruits were transferred from the partially

formed 586th Volksgrenadier Division. Transferred to the Western Front in December 1944, it wasabout half its authorized strength in the Battle of the Bulge, where it formed part of the LXXXV Corpsof the 7th Army. In this campaign the 79th had very little artillery, but its infantrymen proved to beformidable opponents and were highly praised by U. S. Army Intelligence. By February 1945 thedivision was with the LIII Corps (7th Army) in western Germany and fought in the battles of theVianden Bulge and Bitburg. The remnants of the 276th Volksgrenadier Division were attached to the79th near the end of the war, while the 79th VG retreated across the Mosel and Rhine. Its survivorssurrendered to the Americans around Heidelburg and Darmstadt at the end of the war.

Commanders of the 79th Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included Major General/LieutenantGeneral Strecker (assumed command August 26, 1939), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant GeneralRichard von Schwerin (January 14, 1942), Colonel/Major General Heinrich Kreipe (June 3, 1943),Colonel Andreas von Aulock (October 19, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich-August Weinknecht (October 25, 1943), Major General Erich Weber (October 1944), ColonelReinherr (dates uncertain), Colonel Kurt Hummel (March 1945), Lieutenant Colonel Cord von Hobe,Colonel Reymann, and Colonel Seeher (dates uncertain).Notes and Sources: Strecker was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1940. Schwerin was promoted to major general on June 1, 1942, and to lieutenant generalon December 1, 1942. Kreipe was promoted to major general on September 1, 1943. Weinknecht was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1944. He was capturedon August 29, 1944, and remained in Soviet prisons until 1955.Cole 1965: 535–36; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 46–47; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1901; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: Map V; Nafziger 2000: 126–28;“Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Mellenthin 1956: 225; W. Rehm, Jassy, 1959; Scheibert: 24; Seaton: 478–82; Tessin, Vol. 6: 46–48; RA: 188; OB 43: 139; OB44: 194; OB 44b: D66; OB 45: 166.

80TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 872nd Grenadier Regiment, 873rd Grenadier Regiment, 874th Grenadier RegimentHome Station: Bamberg, Wehrkreis XIIIFormation of the 80th Infantry Division began in Bamberg on May 5, 1943. A few days later, the

334th Infantry Division (along with the rest of Army Group Afrika) was destroyed in Tunisia. Hitlerordered that the next divisions created by the Replacement Army use the designations of the recentlydestroyed divisions. Accordingly, the 80th Infantry Division was used to form the new 334th InfantryDivision.Sources: Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 6: 52.

81ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 161st Infantry Regiment, 174th Infantry Regiment, 189th Infantry Regiment, 181st

Artillery Regiment, 181st Bicycle Squadron, 181st Tank Destroyer Battalion, 181st EngineerBattalion, 181st Signal Battalion, 181st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Görlitz, later Breslau, Wehrkreis VIIIFormed from Silesians in the Neuhammer Troop Maneuver Area on December 1, 1939, the 81st

Infantry first saw combat in France in 1940, when it was lightly engaged in mopping up operations.Remaining in France on garrison duty for over a year, the division was hurriedly sent to Russia inDecember 1941, after the Soviet winter offensive began. Thrown into action on the exposed northernwing of Army Group Center as soon as it detrained, the 81st was involved in heavy defensive fightingfrom the outset. In January 1942, it was outflanked and encircled at Tripalevo but managed to hold outagainst repeated Russian attacks and was eventually rescued. The Silesian unit fought in the battlesaround Demyansk in November 1942 through February 1943, and, in the last two months of 1942,

knocked out an amazing total of 170 Soviet tanks. It fought in the Siege of Leningrad (January–November 1943), at Nevel and in the retreat from Leningrad. By September 1943, it had lost so manymen that it was down to six grenadier battalions and its artillery regiment had only three batteries left.After distinguishing itself in the retreat through the Baltic States (in which the 161st GrenadierRegiment was destroyed), it was trapped in the Courland Pocket, where it remained until the end ofthe war.

Its divisional commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Wilhelm vonLoeper (assumed command December 1, 1939), Major General Hugo Ribstein (October 5, 1940),Major General Erich Schopper (December 10, 1941), Colonel Gottfried Weber (March 1, 1943),Schopper (March 13, 1943), Weber (June 1, 1943), Schopper (returned June 30, 1943), LieutenantGeneral Vollrath Lübbe (April 5, 1944), Colonel of Reserves Dr. Ernst Meiners (July 1, 1944), andColonel Franz-Eccard von Bentivegni (July 10, 1944).Notes and Sources: Loeper was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1940. Ribstein was apparently wounded on December 8, 1941. He died atHalberstadt on December 26. The senior regimental commander led the division from December 8 to 10, when General Schopper arrived. He was promoted tolieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Bentivegni was promoted to major general on August 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on January 30, 1945. He was releasedfrom prison in 1955.Carell 1966: 384–85; Carell 1971: 288–89; Hartmann: 19–20; Werner Haupt, Die 81. Infanterie-Division: Geschichte einer schlesischen Division (1985); Nafziger2000: 128–30; Tessin, Vol. 6: 56–57; RA: 130; OB 42: 82; OB 43: 139; OB 45: 166–67.

82ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 158th Infantry Regiment, 166th Infantry Regiment, 168th Infantry Regiment, 182nd

Artillery Regiment, 182nd Bicycle Squadron, 182nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 182nd EngineerBattalion, 182nd Signal Battalion, 182nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Frankfurt-on-the-Main, Wehrkreis IXMobilized on December 1, 1939 at Truppenübungsplaetzen (Troop Maneuver Areas)

Hammelburg and Wildflecken, this reserve division was outfitted with Czech equipment. It wasstationed in France in 1940, was sent home on furlough during the Christmas season of 1940, and wason garrison duty in the Netherlands from early 1941 until the spring of 1942. Transferred to ArmyGroup South in May 1942, it remained on the Russian Front for the next two years. It fought at Kurskand Voronezh and in the actions around Kiev before being encircled at Cherkassy in February 1944.Breaking out with heavy losses, it was encircled (along with the 1st Panzer Army) in the Kamenetz-Podolsk Pocket (the “Hube Pocket”). It broke out with the rest of the army but had been so reduced bycasualties that it was downgraded to Divisiongruppe 82 (Division Group 82) and was assigned to the254th Infantry Division on May 10, 1944. This unit (the 82nd Division Group) was destroyed atBrody later that year.

Commanders of this division included Major General/Lieutenant General Josef Lehmann(December 1, 1939), Major General Friedrich Hossbach (April 1, 1942), Lieutenant General AlfredBaentsch (July 6, 1942), Lieutenant General Karl Faulenbach (January 31, 1943), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Walter Heyne (March 15, 1943), Colonel Friedrich-August Weinknecht(May 1, 1943), and Heyne (June 3, 1943).Notes and Sources: Lehmann was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1941. General Baentsch was killed in the Battle of Voronezh on January 31, 1943. WalterHeyne was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1943.Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1123, 1127; Volume III: 1131; Nafziger 2000: 130–31; Tessin, Vol. 6: 62–63; RA: 144; OB 43: 139; OB 45: 167. Also seeKriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1877, 1888.

83RD INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 251st Infantry Regiment, 257th Infantry Regiment, 277th Infantry Regiment, 183rdArtillery Regiment, 183rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 183rd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 183rdEngineer Battalion, 183rd Signal Battalion, 183rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hamburg, Wehrkreis XThe 83rd Infantry was formed on December 1, 1939, in Troop Maneuver Area Bergen and

consisted of reservists from northern Germany (Wehrkreise II, X, XI, and XX). It initial strength was15,552 men. It fought in France in June 1940, and spent Christmas of 1940 at home on furlough. Itremained in France on occupation duty throughout 1941 but was hurriedly transferred to the centralsector of the Russian Front at the end of the year. Here it was split into several emergency combatgroups and was not fully reunited under its own divisional headquarters for six months. It fought in thedefensive battles of Army Group Center in 1942 and most of 1943 (including Velish, Veliki Luki, andNevel) and was transferred to Army Group North in autumn 1943. By now, it was down to fourgrenadier battalions and the 251st and 277th Grenadier Regiments had been consolidated into the547th Grenadier Regiment. Neither of its surviving regiments had an infantry gun company. Thedivision took part in the Leningrad withdrawal, the Narva defensive battles, the retreat through theBaltic States, and the first of the six battles of the Courland Pocket, in which all Soviet attempts tocrush Army Group North (later Courland) were repulsed. The veteran infantry division wastransferred to the Vistula and ended the war on the Hela peninsula. It surrendered to the Russians inMay 1945.

Commanders of the 83rd included Major General Kurt von der Chevallerie (December 1, 1939),Major General/Lieutenant General Alexander von Zülow (December 10, 1940), Colonel Fritz-Georgvon Rappard (February 4, 1942), Colonel/Major General Adolf Sinzinger (March 16, 1942),Lieutenant General Theodor Scherer (November 2, 1942), Colonel Wilhelm/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Wilhelm Heun (March 1, 1944), Colonel Heinrich Goetz (June 29,1944), Heun (August 22, 1944), Major General of Reserves Maximilian Wengler (March 27, 1945),and Colonel Helmuth Raatz (April 26, 1945).Notes and Sources: Zuelow was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1941. Sinzinger became a major general on April 1, 1942. Heun was promoted to majorgeneral on May 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on November 9, 1944. Goetz reached the rank of major general on August 1, 1944. Wengler was killed in action atNeutief/Pillau on April 26, 1945.Carell 1966: 384–85; Keilig: 139; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1362, 1369, 1375; Volume III: 6, 259, 1158; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 452; Nafziger 2000:132; Tessin, Vol. 6: 68–69; Reinhard Tiemann, Geschichte der 83. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1960); RA: 160; OB 43: 140; OB 44: 195; OB 45: 167.

84TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1051st Grenadier Regiment, 1052nd Grenadier Regiment, 1062nd Grenadier

Regiment, 184th Artillery Regiment, 84th Fusilier Battalion, 184th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 184thEngineer Battalion, 184th Signal Battalion, 184th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Aachen, Wehrkreis VIThis division was formed in northern France on February 4, 1944, primarily from recently

activated 1022nd and 1032nd Grenadier Regiments (reinforced infantry regiments), which became the1051st and 1052nd Grenadier Regiments, and the remnants of the 332nd and 355th Infantry Divisions.Each of the grenadier regiments of the 84th initially had an artillery battalion. These were laterassigned to the 184th Artillery Regiment, and the III/184th Artillery Regiment and the 84th FusilierBattalion were added later. By May the division’s training was complete, and it was transported tothe Rouen area of France to await the Allied invasion. Sent to Normandy in late July, it fought in the

Battles of Mortain and Vire before being encircled at Falaise along with the bulk of the 5th Panzerand 7th armies. In the subsequent break-out attempt only about one infantry regiment escaped; thedivisional commander was among those captured. The 84th was sent to the Somme River area in therear of the 7th Army to reform and was reinforced with miscellaneous local defense and securityunits, including a Luftwaffe field battalion.

Pronounced fit for combat in September, despite the fact that it only had four grenadier battalions,it was attached to the II Parachute Corps, 1st Parachute Army, and fought against the U.S. 82ndAirborne Division in the Nijmegen area during Operation Market-Garden, the Allies’ disastrous firstattempt to breach the Rhine defenses. The 84th Infantry suffered serious casualties in the fighting andwas at only battle group strength by November 1944. In December, an ad hoc infantry regiment wasassigned to it as the 1062nd Grenadier Regiment. The division remained on the front line in thenorthern sector of the Western Front and was fighting in the Kleve area of the Netherlands in January1945. In late March the division was finally smashed by a series of heavy British air and groundattacks and was overrun in the Wesel Bridgehead west of the Rhine. Many of the division’s seniorofficers were captured along with most of the LXXXVI Corps’ staff. The 84th withdrew to theLueneberg Heide and was disbanded shortly thereafter.

Its commanders included Lieutenant General Erwin Menny (February 10, 1944), Colonel/MajorGeneral Heinz Fiebig (August 21, 1944–end), and Colonel Siegfried Kossack (1945).Notes and Sources: The III/184th Artillery Regiment was not added to the division’s TOE until November 1944. When the division was disbanded, the 184thArtillery Regiment became the 584th Artillery Regiment z.b.V. General Menny was captured at Falaise on August 21, 1944. Fiebig was promoted to major general onDecember 1, 1944. Colonel Kossack, the commander of the 1051st Grenadier Regiment and senior regimental commander, reportedly briefly commanded the division in1945, probably while Heinz Fiebig took a short leave.Blumenson 1960: 21, 324, 552, 582; Bradley et al., Vol. 3: 466–67; Keilig; 90; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1890. 1900; Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: Map V;MacDonald 1973: 313; Nafziger 2000: 133–34; Tessin, Vol. 6: 75–76; Mehner, Vol. 12: 452; 75–76; RA: 100; OB 45: 168.

85TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1053rd Grenadier Regiment, 1054th Grenadier Regiment, 185th Artillery Regiment,

85th Fusilier Battalion, 185th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 185th Engineer Battalion, 185th SignalBattalion, 185th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Idar-Oberstein, Wehrkreis XIICreated on February 2, 1944 from the remnants of several disbanded units and elements of recently

organized infantry regiments, the 85th Infantry Division had six infantry battalions and two artillerybattalions to begin with. It trained at Troop Maneuver Area Doeberitz and was camped in the reararea of 15th Army in northern France on D-Day. Sent to Normandy in early August, it suffered heavylosses in the Battle of the Falaise Pocket and subsequent breakout and, by August 17, had beenreduced to a total strength of one and a half infantry battalions, two pieces of field artillery, and a fewmiscellaneous support troops. The 85th took part in the withdrawal from France while simultaneouslyreceiving reinforcements from miscellaneous army units and the remnants of two other infantrydivisions. In September it fought against Allied paratroopers in Operation Market-Garden. In Octoberand November 1944 the division (still only at battle group strength) took part in the Battle of theScheldt with the 15th Army in Holland. Later it fought in the defensive battles near Aachen (where itsuffered heavy losses) and north of Schmidt. It was disbanded on April 4, 1945 and its men wereused to form Division Potsdam. Its commander for most of its existence was Lieutenant General KurtChill. Major General Helmuth Bechler commanded it from February 5 to March 15, 1945, when hewas seriously wounded in the Huertgenwald.

Its last commander was apparently Colonel of Reserves Erich Lorenz.Sources: Blumenson 1960: 531, 582; Chant, Volume 14: 1855; Keilig: 24, 60, Kursietis: 128; Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: 124, 216–17; 599; Mehner, Vol. 12: 456;www.das-ritterkreuz.de; Tessin, Vol. 6: 80–81; RA: 41; OB 45: 168; also see Speidel: 41.

86TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 167th Infantry Regiment, 184th Infantry Regiment, 216th Infantry Regiment, 186th

Artillery Regiment, 186th Reconnaissance Battalion, 186th Anti-Tank Battalion, 186th EngineerBattalion, 186th Signal Battalion, 186th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Detmold, later Herford, Wehrkreis VIFormed in the general mobilization of 1939 around cadres provided by the 6th Infantry Division,

this Westphalian division first saw action in 1939 on the Saar Front, where it was lightly engaged.Later it fought in France and was on garrison duty there until July 1941, when it was sent to ArmyGroup Center in Russia. It fought at Vyasma and in the Battle of Moscow and suffered heavycasualties. It remained on the central sector of the Eastern Front, where it took part in the defensivebattles of the Rzhev salient in 1942–43, in the Rzhev withdrawal (1943), and in the Battle of Kursk,where it distinguished itself. It also suffered so many losses that the High Command decided todisband it, effective November 2, 1943. The Staff and the signal battalion were sent to Denmark toform the 361st Infantry Division. Most of the rest of the division was assigned to Corps Detachment Eas Division Group 86. The corps detachment fought in the Pripyet marshes and at Gomel and Warsawbefore being absorbed by the 251st Infantry Division in October 1944.

Divisional commanders of the 86th Infantry included Major General/Lieutenant General JoachimWitthöft (August 26, 1939) and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Helmuth Weidling(January 1, 1942–November 4, 1943). Colonel Martin Bieber was named commander of DivisionGroup 86.Notes and Sources: Witthöft was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1940. Weidling was promoted to major general on February 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on March 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 196, 357; Carell 1971: 26, 309; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 48–49; Keilig: 374; Tessin, Vol. 6: 86–87; OB 43: 140; OB 45: 169.

87TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 173rd Infantry Regiment, 185th Infantry Regiment, 187th Infantry Regiment, 187th

Artillery Regiment, 187th Reconnaissance Battalion, 187th Anti-Tank Battalion, 187th EngineerBattalion, 187th Signal Battalion

Home Station: Weissenfels, Wehrkreis IVThis division, which consisted mainly of Thuringian and Saxon reservists, was mobilized on

August 26, 1939, as part of the 2nd Wave. Its headquarters was the former Staff, Infantry Commander24, and its cadres were from the 14th Infantry, 24th Infantry and 1st Panzer Divisions. The newdivision first saw combat in Belgium and France as part of the 6th Army. It fought very well and wasgiven the honor of being the first German unit to enter Paris in June 1940. It was on occupation duty inFrance until March 1941, when it was sent to East Prussia. In June, it crossed into Russia with ArmyGroup Center, where it fought at the Bialystok, Smolensk, Vyasma, the Yelnya bend, and the Battle ofMoscow and against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, among others. The 87th spent most ofJune 1942 to February 1943 in the Rzhev salient. Meanwhile, its reconnaissance and tank destroyerbattalions were consolidated into a single schnelle (mobile) battalion. On November 16, 1943, thedivision was encircled near Malashkinki. It escaped on December 16, but only after it lost all of its

heavy equipment and weapons and was reduced to a strength of 5,000 men. Withdrawn from the line,it was rebuilt as a Type 44 division, with six grenadier battalions. In the spring of 1944 the 87thInfantry Division was transferred to Army Group North and was involved in the retreat through theBaltic States, the defense of the Narva, and the six battles of the Courland Pocket. While in Courland,the 185th Grenadier Regiment was disbanded. The division surrendered to the Soviets in westernLatvia in May 1945.

Leaders of the 87th Infantry included Major General/Lieutenant General Bogislav von Studnitz(assumed command August 26, 1939), Major General Walther Lucht (February 17, 1942), Studnitz(March 1, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Werner Richter (August 22, 1942), LieutenantGeneral Walter Hartmann (February 1, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Mauritz vonStrachwitz (November 20, 1943), Major General Gerhard Feyerabend (August 1944), Major GeneralHelmuth Walter (September 1944), and Strachwitz (January 16, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Studnitz was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1940. Richter became a lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. Strachwitz was promotedto lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. He died in a Soviet prison in 1953.Benoist-Mechin: 241; Carell 1966: 92, 330, 350; Carell 1971: 309; Horne: 563; Keilig: 336, 338; Kursietis: 128; Nafziger 2000: 137–38; RA: 72; OB 42: 83; OB 43:140; OB 45: 169.

The face of a tired German infantryman shows the strain of combat.HITM ARCHIVE

88TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 245th Infantry Regiment, 246th Infantry Regiment, 248th Infantry Regiment, 188th

Artillery Regiment, 188th Reconnaissance Battalion, 188th Anti-Tank Battalion, 188th EngineerBattalion, 188th Signal Battalion

Home Station: Erlangen, later Laun, Wehrkreis XIIIMade up mainly of Bavarian and Austrian reservists, this division was formed in Troop Maneuver

Area Grafenwoehr on December 1, 1939. Its 245th Infantry Regiment came from Wehrkreis XIII, its246th Infantry Regiment came from Wehrkreis VII, and Wehrkreis XVII contributed the 248th InfantryRegiment. Each Wehrkreise also contributed at least one battalion of artillery. Contrary to the normalGerman practice, the 13th Company in each infantry regiment was a heavy mortar unit. The divisiontook part in the last stages of the French campaign of 1940 and then spent a year and a half on garrisonduty, mainly in France. In January 1942, however, the 88th was rushed to the Russian Front, where itfought on the southern sector in the advances and retreats of 1942–43, including Kharkov, Kursk(1942), Voronezh (1942–43), and Sumy (1943).

The 188th Bicycle Squadron, meanwhile, was expanded into the 188th Ski Battalion during thewinter of 1942–43. The division suffered heavy losses in the withdrawal from Kiev and Zhitomir inthe fall of 1943 and on November 2, 1943, was reorganized to include the 245th and 248th GrenadierRegiments and included Division Group 323 (the former 323rd Infantry Division). The 246thGrenadier Regiment was disbanded. Even so, the 245th and 248th Regiments had only two battalionseach. The division was surrounded with General Wilhelm Stemmerman’s XI Corps at Cherkassy inFebruary 1944. Along with the 57th Infantry Division, the 88th formed the rearguard in the breakoutunder Stemmerman’s personal command; however, when he was killed by an anti-tank shell, all ordervanished. Perhaps half of the 88th Infantry escaped in the rout. The survivors were reorganized insouthern Poland and were back in action by June, but with only six weak grenadier battalions. Againbadly damaged by the Russian summer offensive of 1944, the Bavarian division rallied and was citedfor its tough defense of the Vistula bend. It absorbed the 1133rd Grenadier Brigade on August 15,1944, and continued to serve on the Eastern Front until January 1945, when it was destroyed in theSoviet breakout from the Baranov Bridgehead. The division was overrun and ceased to exist onJanuary 27, 1945. Its survivors were assigned to the 17th Infantry and 6th Volksgrenadier Divisions.

Commanders of the 88th included Major General Georg Lang (December 1, 1939), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Friedrich Gollwitzer (February 2, 1940), Major General Eduard Aldrian(October 1942), Gollwitzer (November 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General HeinrichRoth (March 10, 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Count Georg von Rittberg(November 12, 1943), and Colonel Carl Anders (January 12, 1945).Notes and Sources: Gollwitzer became a lieutenant general on October 1, 1941. Roth was promoted to major general on June 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general onOctober 1, 1943—a rapid promotion indeed. He was critically wounded on November 5, 1943 and died in Zhitomir the following day. Count von Rittberg promoted tomajor general on February 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. He was taken prisoner on the Eastern Front on January 13, 1945. His replacement,Colonel Anders, was captured on January 27, 1945 and was promoted to major general on January 30. Apparently word of his capture had not reached Berlin.Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 138–39; Tessin, Vol. 6: 98–100; RA: 116; OB 42: 83; OB 43: 141; OB 45: 169–70; Ziemke 1966: 230–38.

89TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1055th Grenadier Regiment, 1056th Grenadier Regiment, 189th Artillery Regiment,

89th Fusilier Battalion, 189th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 189th Engineer Battalion, 189th SignalBattalion

Home Station: Lüneburg, Wehrkreis X; 1945: NeumünsterKnown as the “Horseshoe Division” from its unit symbol, this division was created in Troop

Maneuver Area Bergen (near Celle) on January 15, 1944, from personnel in the reinforced infantryregiments of the Replacement Army. (Reinforced infantry regiments usually had an organic artillerybattalion., in addition to their three infantry battalions.) It trained in Norway from March to June1944, and returned to the European mainland about the time of the D-Day invasion. Initially postedwith the 15th Army in the Rouen-La Havre area, it was ordered to Normandy in late June andimmediately suffered heavy losses. At the same time, however, it added the 189th Fusilier Battalion,the 189th Field Replacement Battalion and a fourth artillery battalion. Near Falaise on August 8, itcollapsed under the pressure of heavy British air and ground attacks and had to be taken out of theline. It was encircled at Falaise (along with the bulk of the 5th Panzer and 7th Armies) and broke out,but with heavy losses. Both of its grenadier regiments were destroyed. The remnants of the divisionwere withdrawn to the Netherlands and reinforced with the 1063rd Grenadier Regiment (twobattalions). The Staffs, 1055th and 1056th Grenadier Regiments were reformed and, in Septemberand October, absorbed the V and XIV Landwehr Fortress Battalions, the 1403rd Fortress InfantryBattalion, the 18th, 37th, 58th, and 317th Infantry Replacement and Training Battalions, and the 253rdEngineer Replacement and Training Battalion. It now had three two-battalion regiments, but its tankdestroyer battalion had only one company.

Sent to join the 7th Army near Aachen, the 89th suffered heavy casualties in these early battles ofthe Siegfried Line and by the end of October was once again a complete wreck. One of its grenadierregiments was destroyed, and another had only 350 men, despite the fact that Colonel Roesler, thedivisional commander, had already incorporated his artillerymen, engineers, and service troops intothe infantry. Field Marshals von Rundstedt and Model both requested that the division be dissolved,but Hitler refused to allow it. Instead, in early November, it received some replacements and a flakcompany but, despite these additions, the strength of the 89th during the Ardennes offensive was notimpressive. Again fighting near Aachen in January 1945, the 89th Infantry faced the Alliedcounteroffensive that followed the Battle of the Bulge. It was smashed in the Eifel and retreated intosouthern Germany in March 1945. The few remnants of the division that survived continued to serveon the Western Front until the end of the war. At least part of the division was interned in Switzerlandon May 2, 1945.

Commanders of the 89th were: Lieutenant General Conrad-Oskar Heinrichs (assumed commandFebruary 10, 1944), Colonel Karl Roesler (September 8, 1944), Major General Walter Bruns(September 15, 1944), and Major General Richard Bazing (February 2, 1945).Notes and Sources: General Heinrichs as killed in action at Luettich on September 8, 1944. Roesler took charge of the division as senior regimental commander.Blumenson 1960: 324, 582; Chant, Volume 14: 1863; Cole 1965: 35; Gevert Haslob, Ein Blich zurueck im die Eifel-Schicksalsweg der 89. Infanterie-Division (2000);MacDonald 1963: 83, 359, 599; MacDonald 1973: Map III; Nafziger 2000: 139; Speidel: 41; Tessin, Vol. 6: 105–6; RA: 160; OB 45: 170.

91ST AIR LANDING DIVISIONComposition: 1057th Grenadier Regiment, 1058th Grenadier Regiment, 191st Mountain Artillery

Regiment, 91st Fusilier Company, 191st Tank Destroyer Company, 191st Engineer Battalion, 191stSignal Battalion, 191st Fla Company, 191st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Kaiserslautern, Wehrkreis XIIAlthough equipped as an air landing division, the 91st served as an infantry unit throughout its short

existence. Its most famous commander was Major General/Lieutenant General Wilhelm Falley.

Formed in the Baumholder and Bitsch Maneuver Areas from replacement center personnel and menfrom newly created reinforced infantry regiments, the 91st was assigned the task of guarding thewestern coast of the Cotentin peninsula against Eisenhower’s invasion. Although the Allies landed tothe east, the 91st Air Landing Division was engaged against elements of the U.S. 82nd and 101stAirborne Divisions from the first day. Wilhelm Falley became involved in a fire-fight with Americanparatroopers near his headquarters in the pre-dawn hours of June 6 and was hit by a burst of machinegun fire; he was the first German general killed on the reopened Western Front. The 91st Divisionsuffered tremendous casualties in the opening days of the invasion and was down to battle-groupstrength by the second week. Finally it became so small that it was attached to the 77th InfantryDivision and later to the 243rd Infantry Division for operational purposes. The bulk of the survivorsof the 91st Air Landing were killed or captured with Corps von Schlieben in the Battle of Cherbourg,but remnants of the division escaped to the south when the Americans cut LXXXIV Corps and theCotentin in half.

These units were reformed under the command of Colonel Eugen König in early July. Although the7th Army commander, SS General Hausser, listed the division as practically destroyed in late July,the High Command chose to rebuild rather than disband it. The 91st was sent to the Eifel (the GermanArdennes), reinforced with two replacement battalions and elements of the 172nd Reserve Division,and was sent back to the front. In early August 1944 it made a gallant stand at Rennes, denying the cityto Patton’s U.S. 3rd Army for three days. Although König managed to escape with most of his littlecommand as the city fell, Rennes was the last major battle of the division. After a brief stint on theSiegfried Line, in which it engaged in some minor skirmishing, the division was absorbed by the344th Volksgrenadier Division on November 5, 1944.

The commanders of the 91st Air Landing Division were Lieutenant General Bruno Ortner (January15, 1944), Falley (April 25, 1944), Klosterkemper (June 6, 1944), and König (June 10, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 6th Parachute Regiment was attached to the 91st Division for much of the Normandy campaign, including D-Day. Colonel BernhardKlosterkemper commanded the combined 91st and 243rd Divisions in Normandy in July 1944. Together they probably amounted to less than regimental strength.König was promoted to major general on September 1, 1944.Blumenson 1960: 58, 358, 442; Carell 1973: 48–49; Chant, Volume 14: 1850; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 173, 178; MacDonald 1963: 460; Nafziger 2000: 139–40;Tessin, Vol. 6: 117–18; RA: 188; OB 45: 170–71.

92ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1059th Grenadier Regiment, 1060th Grenadier Regiment, 192nd Artillery Regiment,

92nd Fusilier Battalion, 192nd Tank Destroyer, 192nd Engineer Battalion, 192nd Signal Battalion,192nd Field Replacement Battalion, 192nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mistelbach, Wehrkreis XVIIActivated in northern Italy on January 15, 1944, the 92nd was a composite of several replacement

battalions. Its personnel were Austrians, Germans, and Volksdeutsche (ethnic Germans fromoccupied countries). Initially stationed in the Grosseto-Orbetello area as a garrison and training unit,it was sent into action in May. Colonel General Mackensen, the 14th Army commander, was far fromsatisfied with its performance and reported it as unfit for intensive combat. Since the Italian Front inmid-1944 was no place for untrustworthy divisions, the 92nd was dissolved on June 20, 1944, shortlyafter the fall of Rome. Most of its personnel were incorporated into the 362nd Infantry Division.

Commanders of the 92nd were Colonel Baron de La Salle von Louisenthal (January 15 to February10, 1944) and Lieutenant General Werner Goeritz (February 10 to June 9, 1944).Notes and Sources: According to one account, this division was not dissolved until June 20, 1944.

Blumenson 1969: 361; Fisher: 232, 255; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 6: 122; RA: 220; OB 45: 171.

93RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1940): 270th Infantry Regiment, 271st Infantry Regiment, 272nd Infantry Regiment,

193rd Artillery Regiment, 193rd Bicycle Squadron, 188th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 188th EngineerBattalion, 188th Signal Battalion, 193rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Berlin, Wehrkreis IIIConsisting of Prussian reservists, this division was activated in Troop Maneuver Area Jueterbog

on September 17, 1939 after the German Army crossed into Poland, setting off World War II. The13th Company of each infantry regiment was a heavy mortar unit, instead of the normal infantry guncompany. Sent to the Saar Front, it broke through the Maginot Line fortifications near Saarbrucken inthe summer of 1940. After a brief period of garrison duty on the French coast, it was sent to Polandand invaded Russia as part of Army Group North in June 1941. The 93rd was involved in heavyfighting in the drive on Leningrad and by October was down to one-third of its authorized strength. Itnevertheless remained on the front line, opposing the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42. In early1942, the 271st Infantry Regiment, which was made up primarily of S.A. (Brownshirt) volunteers,was given the honorary title “Infanterieregiment Feldhernnhalle” in recognition of its outstandingconduct in action, and was assigned to the 60th Motorized Division.

In the spring of 1943 the 93rd Infantry Division was taken out of the line and sent to Poland to restand refit. In 1943, the 271st Infantry Regiment was taken from the division’s table of organization andsent to France, where it formed the nucleus of the 60th Panzer Grenadier Division, which replaced aunit destroyed at Stalingrad. The 93rd Division was given another grenadier regiment (the 273rd), butit, like the 270th and 272nd, had only two battalions, instead of the previous three (i.e., it was rebuiltas a Type 44 division). Meanwhile, the 93rd Infantry went back to Army Group North, which wastrying desperately to maintain the siege of Leningrad. The 93rd Infantry Division fought in theLeningrad withdrawal, in the retreat through the Baltic states, and in the battles of the CourlandPocket, from which it was evacuated in early 1945. The 93rd Infantry was shipped to Samland in EastPrussia, where it was smashed by the Soviets in March 1945. The remnants of the divisionsurrendered in the Hela peninsula at the end of the war.

Commanders of the division included Lieutenant General Otto Tiemann (September 1, 1939),Colonel Gottfried Weber (May 1, 1943), Tiemann (May 31, 1943), Colonel Horst von Mellenthin(September 1943), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Loewrick (October 1, 1943),Lieutenant General Erich Hofmann (June 20, 1944), Colonel Hermann (July 27, 1944), and ColonelKurt Domansky (September 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Loewrick was promoted to major general on December 1, 1943 and to lieutenant general on June 1, 1944. Domansky left the 93rd on October 1,1944, to assume command of the 50th Infantry Division. The last commander of the 93rd Infantry Division was probably Colonel Hermann, the senior regimentalcommander.Hartmann: 20; Keilig: 222; Lexikon; Mellenthin 1977: 138; Nafziger 2000: 140–41; Salisbury: 351; Tessin, Vol. 6: 126–27; Rudolf Treffer, Geschichte des Artillerie-Regiment 193 im Verband der 93. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1988); OB 42: 83; OB 43: 141; OB 45: 171–72.

94TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 267th Infantry Regiment, 274th Infantry Regiment, 276th Infantry Regiment, 194th

Artillery Regiment, 194th Reconnaissance Battalion, 194th Anti-Tank Battalion, 194th EngineerBattalion, 194th Signal Battalion, 194th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Naumberg, later Bautzen and Zwickau, Wehrkreis IV

Composed of reservists from Saxony and the Sudetenland, this division was mobilized in TroopManeuver Areas Zeithain and Königsbrück on September 18, 1939, shortly after the beginning of thewar. It was issued Czechoslovakian equipment and sent to the Saar sector in December. The next yearit took part in the French campaign, where it was involved in the 6th Army’s river crossing operationon the Somme and then remained in France on occupation duty until June 1941.

It took part in the invasion of Russia in August 1941, including the Battle of Kiev, the sweep acrossthe Ukraine and the Donetz, and the subsequent Soviet counteroffensive of the winter of 1941–42. Ithad to disband only one of its grenadier battalions after these battles, although the tank destroyer andreconnaissance battalions had to be combined into the 194th Schnelle Battalion. In May 1942, thedivision was involved in the Izyum-Kharkov fighting, in the drive across the Don, and in the Battle ofKalack, which opened the route to the Volga. In November 1942, the 94th Infantry Division wassurrounded at Stalingrad, where it initially held a sector in the northeastern corner of the pocket; thedivisional headquarters, however, was outside of the encirclement and was cut off from its combatunits. The divisional staff was attached to the XXXXVIII Panzer Corps of the hastily formed ArmyDetachment Hollidt of Army Group Don, where it controlled miscellaneous units under LieutenantGeneral Georg Pfeiffer (1942–43). Meanwhile, the combat troops of the division were assigned tothe 24th Panzer and 16th Panzer Divisions and were captured when Stalingrad fell in early February1943.

A second 94th Infantry Division was formed in the Lorient area of France in April 1943, under itsold staff and using its old regimental designations. Although incompletely trained and not ready foraction, it was sent to Italy after the collapse of Mussolini’s government left Germany’s southern flankexposed. In August 1943, it occupied the Mount Cenis Pass and was on coastal defense duty in theGenoa area later that month. It was reorganized into a Type 44 division on October 1, 1943, whentwo of its grenadier battalions were transferred to the 361st Infantry Division and its III/194thArtillery Regiment was assigned to the 275th Infantry Division. Its grenadier regiments now had onlytwo battalions each. By November 1943, the division was in combat on the Bernhard Line. Althoughinitially listed by the 10th Army’s chief of staff as inexperienced and poorly trained, the 94th fought inall the major battles of the Italian campaign. It participated in the Gustav Line battles, suffered heavycasualties in the withdrawal to Rome, and took part in the defense of the Po River Valley.

In the summer of 1944 it was briefly taken out of the line, withdrawn to the Udine area, and gave upmost of its personnel to the 305th Infantry Division; simultaneously, it received massive replacementsfrom the Infantry Division Schlesien (Silesia). The 94th Infantry returned to the front soon after andwas more or less continuously engaged until the end of the war in Italy. By February 1945, thedivision was down to a strength of fewer than 2,600 combat effectives. Two months later it opposedthe U.S. 5th Army’s spring offensive and was overrun. When the XIV Panzer Corps fell back, theremnants of the 94th covered its retreat and were cut off on the south side of the Po River. On April22, Lieutenant General Bernard Steinmetz, who had led the 94th Infantry Division for most of theItalian campaign, surrendered the remnants of his division to the Americans.

The division commanders of the 94th included General of Infantry Hellmuth Volkmann (September25, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Georg Pfeiffer (August 21, 1940), Colonel ErichGrosse (November 1942), Pfeiffer (March 1, 1943), and Steinmetz (January 2, 1944).Notes and Sources: Volkmann, a former commander of the German Condor Legion in Spain, had previously been a general of fliers. He was critically injured in anautomobile accident on August 4, 1940 and died in a hospital in Berlin-Gatow on August 21. Georg Pfeiffer, his permanent replacement, was promoted to lieutenantgeneral on June 1, 1942. Bernard Steinmetz became a lieutenant general on June 1, 1944.Benoist-Mechin: 241; Blumenson 1969: 224; Carell 1966: 612; Fisher, 18, 46, 442, 472–74, 494; Garland and Smyth: 294; Keilig: 215; Kriegstagebuch des OKW,

Volume III: 4; Kursietis: 131; Manstein: 553; Mellenthin 1956: 225; Nafziger 2000: 141–42; Tessin, Vol. 6: 131–32; RA: 72; OB 42: 84; OB 43: 141; OB 45: 172.Also see Harry R. Fletcher, “Legion Condor: Hitler’s Military Aid to Franco,” unpublished Master’s Thesis, University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1961.

95TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 278th Infantry Regiment, 279th Infantry Regiment, 280th Infantry Regiment, 195th

Artillery Regiment, 195th Reconnaissance Battalion, 195th Anti-Tank Battalion, 195th EngineerBattalion, 195th Signal Battalion, 195th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Frankfurtam Main, later Cologne-Muelheim, Wehrkreis IXThe 95th Infantry Division consisted of Westphalians and Thuringian reservists who were

reinducted into the army in the Wildflecken and Hammelburg Troop Maneuver Areas in September1939, just after the war started. It was outfitted with Czechoslovakian-made equipment. Officiallyactivated on September 25, it was on the Saar Front in 1939–40, where it “showed initiative anddash” in skirmishes with the French, according to Allied intelligence documents. It was on furlough atChristmas 1940 and, after fighting against the Maginot Line, was on occupation duty in northernFrance until June 1941, when it was sent to Poland. The 95th Infantry Division was in more or lesscontinuous action on the southern sector of the Russian Front from July 1941 until late 1942, fightingat Kiev, the Ukraine, Bryansk and Kursk (1941–42). Most of the guns of its 195th Artillery Regimentwere lost when the Soviets cut into the rear of the 2nd German Army in mid-December 1941.

What was left of the division continued to oppose the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42 and wasinvolved in the initial drives on the Volga. Transferred to Army Group Center in late 1942, it tookpart in the Rzhev withdrawal and later formed part of 4th Army’s line at Gomel and west of Smolenskin the summer fighting of 1943. It suffered heavy losses in the Bryansk attack that summer. During thewinter of 1943–44, it was reorganized as a Type 44 division and each of its grenadier regiments wasreduced to two battalions. In July 1944, the 95th was the only division in the 3rd Panzer Army’sreserve when the huge Russian summer offensive began. Thrown into action, it was quicklyoverwhelmed near Vitebsk. Its divisional commander, Major General Michaelis, was captured andonly remnants of his unit escaped. Nevertheless, the 95th was reformed as a Volksgrenadier division(with the same unit numbers) from Corps Detachment H and was sent back into action on the centralsector in October. It fought at Memel(where it was smashed), was evacuated by the German Navy toSamland and, at battle group strength, opposed the Soviet invasion of East Prussia. It was trappednear Pillau and destroyed on April 16, 1945.

Commanders of the 95th included Major General/Lieutenant General Hans-Heinrich Sixt vonArnim (September 1939), Colonel Eduard Aldrian (February 8, 1942), Sixt (March 1, 1942),Lieutenant General Friedrich Zickwolff (May 10, 1942), Colonel Friedrich Karst (September 6,1942), Major General Eduard Aldrian (October 1, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General EdgarRoehricht (October 3, 1942), Major General Gustav Gihr (December 9, 1943), Colonel/MajorGeneral Herbert Michaelis (February 27, 1944), and Colonel/Major General Joachim-Friedrich Lang(June 30, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 13th Company in the division’s infantry regiments was a heavy mortar unit, instead of the standard infantry gun company. Sixt von Arminwas promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1940. Roehricht was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. Michaelis, who was promoted to major generalon April 1, 1944, was a Soviet POW until 1955. Lang was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944. He was killed in the Battle of Pillau on April 16, 1945.Carell 1971: 309, 597; K. Knoblauch, Kampf und Untergang einer Infanterie-Division: Die 95. Infanterie-Division (1991), 2 Volumes; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 142–43;Seaton: 224; Tessin, Vol. 6: 136–37; OB 42: 84; OB 43: 142; OB 44b: 69. Also see Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1127; Volume IV: 1897.

96TH INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 283rd Infantry Regiment, 284th Infantry Regiment, 287th Infantry Regiment, 196thArtillery Regiment, 196th Reconnaissance Battalion, 196th Anti-Tank Battalion, 196th EngineerBattalion, 196th Signal Battalion, 196th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, Wehrkreis XIStationed in Hanover and raised from recruits from all over north and west Germany, this division

(which had Czech equipment) was activated at the Bergen Troop Maneuver Area near Celle onSeptember 21, 1939, and joined the 7th Army on the Upper Rhine in December. It first saw combat ineastern France in 1940, and remained in northern France on occupation duty until June 1941. SentEast in July, it spent the next four years on the Russian Front. It fought at Novgorod and Lake Ilmen,and in the early stages of the siege of Leningrad and at Starja Russa in 1941. Here it suffered so manycasualties that a third of its infantry battalions had to be disbanded.

Remaining on the northern sector through 1943, it took part in the Second Battle of Lake Ladoga,the Battle of the Volkhov, and the Battle of the German Corridor east of Leningrad. During thisperiod, its tank destroyer and reconnaissance battalions were combined to form the 196th SchnelleBattalion. Despite its losses, the 96th Infantry (which now had only six grenadier battalions instead ofits original nine) remained on the line until January 1944, when it was transferred to the southernsector of the Eastern Front, where it fought in the battles of the northern Ukraine, including Tarnopoland Brody. In the summer of 1944, while part of the LIX Corps, the division was overwhelmed by theSoviet attack that eventually led to the encirclement of the 1st Panzer Army. Although there is noevidence that it was rebuilt, the remnants of the 96th were nevertheless sent back into combat. In late1944, it was fighting the Russians in Slovakia, was involved in the Hungarian campaign, and, in1945, it was still resisting north of Vienna when the war ended. Part of the division surrendered to theRussians on the lower Danube on May 8, 1945; the rest surrendered to the Americans.

German infantrymen.HITM ARCHIVE

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Erwin Vierow(September 15, 1939), Lieutenant General Wolf Schede (August 1, 1940), Colonel/Major GeneralBaron Joachim von Schleinitz (April 10, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant GeneralFerdinand Noeldechen (October 10, 1942), Colonel Hermann Noack (March 1943), Noeldechen(March 1943), Noack (June 1943), Colonel Gottfried Weber (July 1943), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Richard Wirtz (July 28, 1943), Major General Johann-Albrecht von Blücher (December 1,1943), Colonel Fischer (January 1944), Wirtz (January 1944), Major General Werner Duerking(September 1, 1944), Colonel Heinz Kobolt (September 12, 1944), Wirtz (October 3, 1944), andColonel/Major General Hermann Harrendorf (November 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Vierow was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1940. Schleinitz was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and was killed in anaccident near Tossno on April 10, 1942. Noeldechen was promoted to major general on November 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on May 1, 1943. Wirtz became alieutenant general on January 1, 1944. General Duerking was mortally wounded at Sanok on September 11, 1944, and died the following day in the hospital atHumenne. Harrendorf was promoted to major general on January 30, 1945.Carell 1966: 251, 261, 272, 421; Carell 1971: 242, 255, 510; Keilig: 38; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1145; Volume III: 1158; Volume IV: 1895; HartwigPohlmann, Geschichte der 96. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1959); Tessin, Vol. 6: 142–43; Salisbury: 275; RA: 172; OB 42: 84–85; OB 43: 142; OB 45: 173.

97TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 97th Jäger Division (Volume Two).

98TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1942): 282nd Infantry Regiment, 289th Infantry Regiment, 290th Infantry Regiment,

198th Artillery Regiment, 198th Reconnaissance Battalion, 198th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 198thEngineer Battalion, 198th Signal Battalion, 198th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hof, Wehrkreis XIIIBuilt with reserve personnel from Bavaria, Franconia, and the Sudetenland, the 98th Infantry was

issued former Czechoslovakian Army equipment and was mobilized on September 18, 1939, in theGrafenwoehr Troop Maneuver Area, shortly after the outbreak of the war. It was sent to the SaarFront in December 1939, and after seeing action in the Western campaign of 1940, the divisionremained in France until July 1941, when it was sent to the Russian Front as part of Army GroupSouth. It was on the northern wing of von Rundstedt’s army group during the Battle of Kiev in August,where it lost seventy-eight officers and 2,300 men in the struggle for the key position of Korosten,which it eventually carried.

After the fall of Kiev, the 98th was transferred to the central sector and fought in the battles aroundMoscow. After its 600 mile-march through the Ukraine, it fought at Vyasma, after which it pushed onto Maloyaroslavets, only sixty miles from the Russian capital. Its supply lines were virtually cut bythe mud; nevertheless, the division took the important Chernishay Heights in late October, only to bethrown off again when attacked by T-34 tanks. Elements of the 289th and 290th Infantry Regimentspanicked but were soon rallied. By now the 98th’s infantry companies were down to twenty meneach, commanded by second lieutenants and sergeants. The soldiers had not changed clothes inmonths and were tormented by lice and mud. Despite its poor condition, the 98th remained on thefront line, opposed the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, and took part in the defensive battles ofArmy Group Center in 1942 and 1943, including Juchnov, Gshatsk and Spass-Demensk. Three of itsgrenadier battalions were disbanded in 1942, along with the Headquarters, 289th GrenadierRegiment.

After fighting in the Rzhev withdrawal in March 1943, the 98th was involved in anti-partisanoperations (May–June 1943) and was then sent back to the southern zone of the Eastern Front andserved in the Kuban and Crimean campaigns, where it distinguished itself. The 98th suffered suchheavy losses in the Kuban, in the Kerch Peninsula of the Crimea, and in the retreat to Sevastopol inApril and May 1944, that the 282nd Infantry Regiment had to be disbanded. Its other regiments werealso shattered. (These included the 615th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, which had beenassigned to the division in March.) The 290th Grenadier, for example, only had 200 men left onOctober 29, 1943—hardly 10 percent of its June 1941 strength. The remnants of this veteran divisionwere evacuated from Sevastopol by the German Navy shortly before the city fell.

Transferred to the Zagreb area of Yugoslavia to rest and refit in the summer of 1944, the 98threceived a substantial number of poorly trained replacements from the Home Army and alsoincorporated the Lehr Grenadier Brigade and elements of the recently disbanded 111th InfantryDivision into its table of organization as the 117th Grenadier Regiment. The 98th Infantry Divisionreturned to combat in Italy in September 1944, where it fought at San Savino and in the Battle of theRimini Line; however, its former combat effectiveness was gone, and the 14th Army staff rated it asunreliable. No significant reinforcements were then available for the Italian Front, however, so the98th continued in the line. Although still in the combat zone in December , it absorbed the GrenadierDemonstration (Lehr) Brigade, which explains why the 117th Regiment was renamed 117th Lehr

Regiment in late 1944. Apparently the raw recruits the division received in late 1943 had gainedexperience and skill by early 1945, for the 98th Infantry never broke under the strain of almostconstant Allied pressure. In January it was fighting northeast of Bologna, and a month later (nowdesignated a Volksgrenadier division) the 98th formed part of the LXXVI Panzer Corps in theApennines. It fought in the Po River campaign and ended the war on the Italian Front, surrendering tothe Americans in theAlps on May 8, 1945.

Its commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Erich Schröck (September 18, 1939),Major General Herbert Stimmel (April 11, 1940), Schröck (June 10, 1940), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Martin Gareis (December 31, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralAlfred Reinhardt (February 1, 1944), and Major General Otto Schiel (April 11, 1945).Notes and Sources: Schröck was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1941. He fell ill on December 31, 1941 and had to be replaced. Gareis was promoted tomajor general from February 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. He later wrote the history of the 98th Infantry Division. Reinhardt was promotedto lieutenant general on September 1, 1944.Carell 1966: 123, 151; Carel1 1971: 309, 538–56; Fisher: 353, 441; Martin Gareis, Kampf und Ende der Frankish-Sudetendeutschen 98. lnfanterie Division (1956);Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1148; Volume III: 6; Seaton: 187–88, 429; RA: 204; OB 43: 142–43; OB 44b: D70; OB 45: 173.

100TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 100th Jäger Division (Volume Two).

101ST INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 101st Jäger Division (Volume Two).

102ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1941): 232nd Infantry Regiment, 233rd Infantry Regiment, 235th Infantry Regiment,

104th Artillery Regiment, 102nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 102nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 102ndEngineer Battalion, 102nd Signal Battalion, 102nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Diedenhofen; 1944: Casel, Wehrkreis VIIIFormed in the Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area in 12th mobilization wave in October 1940, the

102nd Infantry was activated on December 15, 1940. It took part in the Russian invasion of June1941, where it formed part of Army Group Center and fought at Smolensk, Vyasma, and Rzhev. InDecember it suffered heavy losses in the vicinity of Moscow during the Russian winter offensive of1941–42. The next month the 102nd was encircled south of Lake Volga with the XXIII Corps, but waslater rescued by the 9th Army. In February 1942 it was withdrawn to Germany to rest and refit. Whilethere, the 235th Infantry Regiment was dissolved, and the 84th Infantry Regiment of the 8th InfantryDivision was assigned to replace it. Returning to the central sector of the Russian Front in April1942, the division took part in the Rzhev withdrawal and later fought in the battles of Kursk andGomel.

By October it was at battle group strength. The 102nd absorbed the remnants of the 216th InfantryDivision, which had been shattered at Kursk. Its TOE (Table of Organization and Equipment) nowincluded the 84th and 232nd Grenadier Regiments (two battalions each), Division Group 216 (withthe 348th and 396th Regimental Groups), the 102nd Fusilier Battalion, and the normal divisionaltroops. (The 233rd Grenadier Regiment and the II/104th Artillery Regiment had meanwhile beendisbanded.) Back at the front in January 1944, the 102nd Infantry Division was assigned to the 2ndArmy and was sent to the Pripjet (Pripyet) marshes sector. It thus escaped the disaster that overtookmost of Army Group Center in June and July 1944. The 102nd, meanwhile, fought at Brest-Litovsk

and Navel. By February 1945, it was in the East Prussian Pocket and surrendered at Hela as the ThirdReich passed into history.

Commanders of the 102nd Infantry Division included Major General John Ansat (December 10,1940), Colonel/Major General Horst Grossmann (December 10, 1941), Ansat (January 7, 1942),Major General Albrecht Baier (February 1, 1942), Colonel Werner von Raesfeld (March 10, 1942),Major General/Lieutenant General Johannes Friessner (May 1, 1942), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Otto Hitzfeld (January 19, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralWerner von Bercken (November 10, 1943), and Colonel Dr. Fritz Ludwig (April 5, 1945).Notes and Sources: Grossmann was promoted to major general on January 1, 1942. Friessner was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Hitzfeld waspromoted to major general on April 1, 1943 and to lieutenant general on October 1, 1943. Bercken became a lieutenant general on August 1, 1944. Division Group 216was so depleted by casualties that it was dissolved at the end of 1944. Dr. Ludwig normally commanded the 104th Artillery Regiment.Carell 1966: 359, 393–94; Carell 1971: 26, 309; Keilig: 12, 16, 28; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Lexikon; Franz Meyer, Tapfere Schlesier: Mit der 102.Infanterie-Division in Russland (1983); Nafziger 2000: 144–45; Scheibert: 231; Tessin, Vol. 6: 177–78; OB 43: 143; OB 45: 174.

106TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 239th Infantry Regiment, 240th Infantry Regiment, 241st Infantry Regiment, 106th

Artillery Regiment, 106th Reconnaissance Battalion, 106th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 106th EngineerBattalion, 106th Signal Battalion, 106th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mülheiman der Ruhr, Wehrkreis VI; 1944: AachenActivated on November 22, 1940, in Troop Maneuver Area Wahn, this division was built around

regimental sized unit cadres supplied by the 6th and 26th Infantry Divisions and two battalionsprovided by the 250th Infantry Division. Its III/241st Infantry Regiment was sent to Africa in May1941, and was not replaced for a year. Meanwhile, the division went to Russia with Army GroupCenter in 1941, fought at Vilna, Smolensk, Vyasma and Klin, and suffered heavy casualties in the finalthrusts toward Moscow and in the subsequent Soviet counteroffensive that winter. In January 1942 thedivision’s infantry strength was down to 500 men, and it had hardly any of its original leaders left.Sent to St. Omer in northern France to rest and rebuild that spring, it did not return to the EasternFront until the spring of 1943. The 106th fought in the Battle of Kharkov in May 1943, and in theKrementschug and Kirovograd fighting in the second half of that year. The 106th Infantry had beenreduced to Kampfgruppe (battle group) strength by October. It was rebuilt in November 1943 andnow included the 239th and 240th Grenadier Regiments (each with two battalions) and DivisionGroup 39 (with Regimental Groups 113 and 114). It also added the 107th Field ReplacementBattalion. Still understrength, it absorbed the infantry of Shadow Division Milowitz at the end ofFebruary 1944. Meanwhile, the division took part in the withdrawal behind the Dnepr (January–March 1944) and the successful defense of Pruth, Romania in April. Caught up in the disaster thatbefell 6th Army in the autumn of 1944, the 106th was encircled and destroyed at Kishinev, Romania,in August 1944.

A second, much-reduced 106th Infantry Division, which included some survivors of the original,was assembled at Oberheim, Germany, on March 24, 1945. It was sent to southwestern Germany andended the war in the Black Forest with the 19th Army on the Western Front. It surrendered to theAmericans in May 1945.

Commanders of the division included: Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst Dehner (October28, 1940), Colonel/Major General Alfons Hitter (May 3, 1942), Colonel Arthur Kullmer (November1, 1942), Lieutenant General Werner Forst (January 1, 1944), Colonel/Major General Siegfried vonRekowski (February 20, 1944), and Colonel Rintenberg (March 1945–end).

Notes and Sources: The III/241st Infantry Regiment became the I/155th Rifle Regiment. Dehner was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Hitterbecame a major general on August 1, 1942. Rekowski reached the rank of major general on May 1, 1944. Somehow he evaded capture in Romania.Carell 1966: 177; Carell 1971: 39, 218; Keilig: 273; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1147; Volume II: 1365; Volume IV: 1904; Nafziger 2000: 147–48; Seaton: 232;Tessin, Vol. 6: 205; RA: 100; OB 43:143, OB 45:174.

110TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 252nd Infantry Regiment, 254th Infantry Regiment, 255th Infantry Regiment, 120th

Artillery Regiment, 110th Reconnaissance Battalion, 110th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 110th EngineerBattalion, 110th Signal Battalion, 110th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Oldenburg, Wehrkreis X; 1944: LüneburgFormed in northern Germany on December 10, 1940, the 110th Infantry was built around

regimental-sized cadres supplied by the 12th and 30th Infantry Divisions and the 400th InfantryRegiment from the Home Army. It was soon sent to the General Gouvernement (formerly centralPoland). The III/255th Infantry Regiment was sent to North Africa in May 1941, and was notreplaced. The division was with Army Group Center in the initial attack on the Soviet Union and,after a number of desperate battles (including Vilna, Smolensk, Vyasma, and Klin), penetrated to theVolga in December 1941. Pushed back by the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42, it remained onthe central sector of the Eastern Front for the rest of its existence. In 1942, the III/252nd InfantryRegiment and the I/254th Infantry Regiment were disbanded. After taking part in the defensive battlesof 1942, where it suffered significant losses, it participated in the defense of Rzhev and thesubsequent withdrawal from the Rzhev salient in March 1943. It suffered heavy losses at Bryansk inthe summer of that year and the 252nd Grenadier Regiment had to be disbanded; the 321st DivisionalGroup, however, was attached to the 110th Infantry Division. Remaining in the line, it was destroyednear Bobruisk in the Russian summer offensive of 1944. The division’s last commander, LieutenantGeneral Eberhard von Kurowski, was taken prisoner when the division was smashed.

Commanders of the 110th Infantry included Lieutenant General Ernst Seifert (December 12, 1940),Lieutenant General Martin Gilbert (February 1, 1942), Kurowski (June 1, 1943), Colonel AlbrechtWüstenhagen (September 25, 1943), Kurowski (December 1, 1943), Major General Gustav Gihr(May 11, 1944), and Kurowski (May 15, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: General Seifert either fell ill or was wounded on January 24, 1942. In any case, he did not return to limited active duty until May and never heldanother field command. The senior regimental commander led the division from January 24 to February 1, 1942. Kurowski remained in Russian prisons until October1955.Ernst Beyersdorff, Geschichte der 110. Infanterie-Division (1965): 1 ff.; Carell 1966: 196, 357; Carell 1971: 309; Keilig: 321; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I:1132; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 148–50; Tessin, Vol. 6: 224–25; RA: 160; OB 43: 143; OB 45: 175.

111TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 50th Infantry Regiment, 70th Infantry Regiment, 117th Infantry Regiment, 111th

Artillery Regiment, 111th Reconnaissance Battalion, 111th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 111th EngineerBattalion, 111th Signal Battalion, 111th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hildesheim, Wehrkreis XIIThis Saxon division was created in October 1940, when the 3rd and 36th Infantry Divisions were

converted into two-regiment motorized units and gave up the 50th and 70th Infantry Regiments,respectively. The 111th Division was officially activated on November 6. The 117th InfantryRegiment was formed separately (from fortress units) and incorporated into the 111th. The divisionfought in the early campaigns of Army Group South in 1941, including Zhitomir, Kiev and the Donetz,

and took part in the Caucasus campaign and subsequent withdrawal (1942–43), including both battlesfor Rostov.

The 111th Infantry also fought in the Kuban campaign, including the Battle of Novorossiysk, wherean ambitious Soviet amphibious landing was checked in fierce fighting. Later transferred to the Miussector, it took heavy losses in the Battle of Taganrog and fought in the battles of the lower Dnieper,where it performed exceptionally well. Meanwhile, it was reorganized as a Type 44 division in late1943. Sent to the Crimea in early 1944, it was trapped when the Russians overran the peninsula. The117th Infantry Regiment managed to escape by sea with the 50th Infantry Division, but the rest of the111th was lost when its transport ships failed to arrive. When Sevastopol fell Major General ErichGruner tried to surrender the division but was brutally murdered by the Russians, along with many ofhis men.

The commanders of the 111th were Major General/Lieutenant General Otto Stapf (November 5,1940), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Hermann Recknagel (January 1, 1942), MajorGeneral Werner von Bülow (August 15, 1943), and Gruner (November 1, 1943).Notes and Sources: The 111th Ukrainian Construction Battalion was assigned to the division, probably in 1943. Stapf was promoted to lieutenant general onFebruary 1, 1941. Recknagel was promoted to major general on March 1, 1942 and lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. General von Bülow was reported as missing inaction near Obronoje on August 30, 1943, and was never heard from again. Gruner was killed on May 12, 1944, the day the division ceased to exist.Carell 1971: 142, 151, 538–39, 559–60; Hartmann: 21; Keilig: 55; Nafziger 2000: 150–51; Tessin, Vol. 6: 231–32; RA: 172; OB 43: 144; OB 44b: D71; OB 45: 175.

112TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 110th Infantry Regiment, 256th Infantry Regiment, 258th Infantry Regiment, 86th

Artillery Regiment, 120th Reconnaissance Battalion, 112th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 112th EngineerBattalion, 112th Signal Battalion, 112th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mannheim, Wehrkreis XIIActivated on December 12, 1940, in Troop Maneuver Area Baumholder, the 112th received the

110th Infantry Regiment from the veteran 33rd Infantry Division, which was being converted into the15th Panzer Division. Other cadres (about one-third of the division) were provided by the 34thInfantry Division at Koblenz. In May 1941, the III/256th Infantry Regiment was sent to North Africaand became II/155th Rifle Regiment. The new division took part in the Russian invasion as part ofArmy Group Center and was involved in the battles of Bobruisk, Kiev, Bryansk, and Moscow, whereit suffered terribly from the extreme cold. Utterly unequipped for winter, the 112th Infantry reported400 cases of frostbite in each regiment as early as November 17.

Despite its casualties the 112th Infantry fought on, opposing the 1941–42 Russian winter offensiveas well as fighting in the defensive battles on the central sector in 1942 and early 1943, especiallyaround Bryansk and Orel. It suffered heavy casualties during the Kursk offensive and was caught up inthe retreats after the defeat of Operation “Citadelle,” including the battles of Belgrod and Kiev(1943). Classified as a Kampfgruppe as early as August 1943, it was officially downgraded tobecome Division Group 112 on November 2, 1943. The division headquarters became Staff, CorpsDetachment B, which included the 112th, 255th and 332nd Divisional Groups. It was largelydestroyed at Cherkassy (Korsum) in February 1944 and was dissolved shortly thereafter. Its remnantswere absorbed by the 57th and 88th Infantry Divisions.

Leaders of the 112th Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Friedrich Mieth (December 10,1940), Colonel/Major General Albert Newiger (November 10, 1942), Lieutenant General RolfWuthmann (June 20, 1943), and Lieutenant General Theobald Lieb (September 3, 1943).

Notes and Sources: Newiger was promoted to major general on January 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 162; Chant 1979: 96; Hartmann: 21; Keilig: 227; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 152–53; Tessin, Vol. 6: 239–40; RA: 188; OB 43: 144; OB 45: 176; Ziemke1966: 230–38.

113TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 260th Infantry Regiment, 261st Infantry Regiment, 268th Infantry Regiment, 87th

Artillery Regiment, 113th Reconnaissance Battalion, 113th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 113th EngineerBattalion, 113th Signal Battalion, 113th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Passau, Wehrkreis XIII; later PragueFormed in Troop Maneuver Area Grafenwoehr on December 10, 1940, this 12th Wave division

was built around regimental-sized cadres provided by the 15th and 24th Infantry Divisions. Itremained in Germany until July 1941, when it was sent to the 6th Army on the Russian Front. Afterfighting in the Battle of Kiev, however, it was sent to the Balkans to perform occupation duties. TheIII/268th Infantry Regiment was sent to the Afrika Korps in May 1942 and became the III/155th RifleRegiment. Meanwhile, in early 1942, the rest of the 113th Infantry Division was transferred back tothe southern sector of the Russian Front. It was with the 6th Army in the battles around Taganrog(February 1942), Kharkov-Izyum (May–June), the Don Bend battles (July) and in the Stalingrad streetfighting beginning in August 1942. It was surrounded with General Paulus at Stalingrad in November1942. The 113rd Infantry Division was destroyed on January 20, 1943.

A new 113th Infantry was created in Brittany in the spring of 1943. It was sent to Army GroupCenter that summer but did not prove to be a particularly effective combat division. In the autumn of1943, it suffered heavy casualties in the Dnieper withdrawal and was broken up on November 2,1943. About one-third of the unit was assigned to the 337th Infantry Division, while the rest was usedto form Division Group 113 of Corps Detachment G. This unit was destroyed at Bobruisk in July1944. The 113th Infantry Division, meanwhile, officially ceased to exist on November 2, 1943.

Commanders of the division included Major General Ernst Guentzel (December 10, 1940), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Friedrich Zickwolff (June 4, 1941), Lieutenant General Hans-HeinrichSixt von Arnim (May 10, 1942), and Major General Friedrich-Wilhelm Prüter (March 15, 1943).Notes and Sources: General Zickwolff was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1941. Sixt was captured in Stalingrad on January 20, 1943 and died in aSoviet prison camp in 1952. Keilig: 263, 325; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 733; Mellenthin 1956: 225; Nafziger 2000: 153–54; Tessin, Vol. 6: 247–48; OB42: 86; OB 43: 144; OB 45: 176.

121ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 405th Infantry Regiment, 407th Infantry Regiment, 408th Infantry Regiment, l21st

Artillery Regi-ment, 121st Reconnaissance Battalion, 121st Tank Destroyer Battalion, 121st EngineerBattalion, 121st Signal Battalion, 121st Field Replacement Battalion, 121st Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Altbunzlau, later Schröttersburg, Wehrkreis X; 1944: Augstovo, later Allenstein,Wehrkreis I

This division was mobilized in the Munsterlager Troop Maneuver Area, Wehrkreis X on October5, 1940. It was formed from regimental-sized cadre units provided by the 1st and 21st InfantryDivisions. It was attached to Army Group North in June 1941, and spent the rest of the war on thenorthern sector of the Russian Front. It was part of von Manstein’s LVI Panzer Corps in early July1941, when it smashed the Soviet 27th Army northeast of Dvinsk. The next month the 121st took partin the Battle of Mga with the 16th Army; later it fought in the Battle of Volchov. By October it wasdown to 40 percent of its authorized strength but remained in action during the drive on Leningrad andthe subsequent Russian attempts to break the siege of that city. Meanwhile, three of its infantrybattalions had to be disbanded due to high casualties. By September, the 121st Infantry was fighting inthe Lake Ladoga sector and remained there for some time. In 1944 the division was involved in theretreat from Leningrad through the Baltic states, fought in the Battle of Pskov that June, and—at battlegroup strength—retreated to the western coast of Latvia in September. The burned-out divisionremained in the Courland Pocket until the end of the war.

Commanders of the 121st included Major General/Lieutenant General Curt Jahn (October 5, 1940),Major General Otto Lancelle (May 6, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Martin Wandel (July8, 1941), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Hellmuth Priess (November 11, 1942), MajorGeneral Ernst Pauer von Ariau (March 1944), Priess (May 1944), Lieutenant General Rudolf Bamler(June 1, 1944), Priess (June 27, 1944), Lieutenant General Theodor Busse (July 10, 1944),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Werner Rank (August 1, 1944), and Major GeneralOttomar Hansen (April 29, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 121st Infantry Division absorbed part of Shadow Division Mielau in March 1944. Curt Jahn was promoted to lieutenant general onNovember 1, 1941. General Lancelle was killed in action at Smerdy (near Dvinsk) on July 8, 1941. Wandel was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942.Priess became a major general on January 1, 1943 and a lieutenant general on July 1, 1943. Bamler was captured on June 27, 1944. Rank was promoted to major generalon October 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on April 20, 1945. Hansen was a Russian prisoner until 1955.Bradley et al., Vol. V: 109–10; Carell 1966: 265; Keilig: 20; Kriegstagebuch des OKW: Volume IV: 1877; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 154–55; Salisbury: 165, 275, 351;Friedrich Christian Stahl et al., Geschichte der 121. ostpreussischen Infanterie-Division, 1940–1945 (1970): ff.1; Tessin, Vol. 6: 286–87; RA: 20; OB 45: 176.

122ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 409th Infantry Regiment, 411th Infantry Regiment, 414th Infantry Regiment, 122nd

Artillery Regiment, 122nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 122nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 122ndEngineer Battalion, 122nd Signal Battalion, 122nd Field Replacement Battalion, 122nd DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Köslin, Wehrkreis IIFormed in the Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area on October 7, 1940, this division consisted of

personnel from Mecklenburg and Pomerania. Cadre units were supplied by the 32nd and 258thInfantry Divisions, each of which provided the equivalent of one-third of the division. The divisioncompleted its training in March 1941, was sent to East Prussia, and took part in the invasion ofRussia with Army Group North. It fought in the Battles of Kovno, Novgorod, Lake Ilmen, and Mga,and in the siege of Leningrad. In the early spring of 1942 it took part in the attempt to rescue II Corps(encircled at Demyansk), and on May 5 it broke the Siege of Kholm and rescued Combat GroupScherer, which had been surrounded for more than three months. Meanwhile, each grenadier regimentwas reduced to two battalions, although each added a (15th) bicycle company. In July 1942, the122nd was again fighting in the Demyansk sector, until the II Corps was finally freed in February1943. Later that year it was committed to the Staraja Russa sector and in November to the Battle ofNevel with Army Group Center. Returned to Army Group North in March 1944, it was transferred to

Helsinki, Finland, in July but was ordered back to the Russian Front on July 29, two days after thefall of Narva. Its departure alarmed Finnish Marshal Carl Mannerheim and was a factor in thatcountry’s defection from the Axis war effort several weeks later. Meanwhile, the 122nd Infantryretreated through Estonia and was cut off in the Courland Pocket in western Latvia by October 1944.It fought in the six battles of the Courland Pocket and was still there when the war ended.

A German mortar crew takes a cigarette break in the snow.HITM ARCHIVE

Commanders of the 122nd Infantry Division included Major General/Lieutenant General SigfridMachholz (October 5, 1940), Lieutenant General Friedrich Bayer (December 8, 1941), Machholz(February 17, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Chill (August 1, 1942),Colonel Gustav Hundt (October 10, 1942), Chill (October 14, 1942), Colonel Adolf Westhoff(December 1, 1942), Colonel Adolf Trowitz (January 8, 1943), Major General Alfred Thielmann(May 15, 1943), Chill (June 27, 1943), Major General Johann-Albrecht von Blücher (February 1,1944), Colonel/Major General Hero Breusing (February 4, 1944), Lieutenant General FriedrichFangohr (August 25, 1944), and Colonel/Major General Bruno Schatz (January 20, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Machholz was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1942. Kurt Chill was promoted to major general on December 1, 1942 and to lieutenantgeneral on June 1, 1944. He seriously wounded in 1943. Hero Breusing became a major general on May 1, 1944. Schatz became a major general on April 20, 1945. Hewas a Soviet prisoner until 1955.Carell 1966: 251, 256, 258, 427–31, 434–38; Carell 1971: 288; Keilig: 60, 213, 369; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 155–56; Plocher 1943: 319; Salisbury: 275; Tessin, Vol. 6:

292–93; OB 42: 88; OB 44: 202; OB 45: 177; Ziemke 1959: 286; Ziemke 1966: 387.

123RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 415th Infantry Regiment, 416th Infantry Regiment, 418th Infantry Regiment, 123rd

Artillery Regiment, 123rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 123rd Anti-Tank Battalion, 123rd EngineerBattalion, 123rd Signal Battalion, 123rd Field Replacement Battalion, 123rd Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Crossen, Wehrkreis IIIThis Brandenburg unit was formed in Troop Maneuver Area Regenwurmlager on October 5, 1940,

with regimental-sized cadre units supplied by the 23rd and 257th Infantry Divisions. The 3rdMotorized Division also provided units and the 18th Infantry Division contributed a cavalrysquadron. The division completed its training in April 1941, was posted to East Prussia, and went toRussia with Army Group North in June 1941. It fought at Dvinsk and a number of other battles in thedrive on Leningrad in 1941. In early January 1942, it formed the southern flank of the army groupduring the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42. Because of the shortage of German troops and thevastness of the territory, the division had to cover fifty miles of frontage and was badly overextended.In this exposed position it was attacked and crushed by four Soviet armies. The remnants of the 123rdwere all but finished off at Lake Seliger on January 9, although some elements managed to escape tothe Demyansk and Kholm pockets. Not freed until February 1943, the reunited and reformed division(which now had only six surviving infantry battalions and a combined tank destroyer/reconnaissancebattalion) re-emerged in combat later that year in the Battle of Zaporozhe on the southern sector of theEastern Front. In February 1944, the 123rd Infantry suffered such heavy losses in the withdrawal fromthe lower Dnieper bend that it was downgraded to a divisional group and was assigned to CorpsDetachment F on March 1, 1944. The corps detachment was merged with the 62nd Infantry Divisionon July 20, 1944, and Division Group 123 ceased to exist.

The commanders of the 123rd Infantry Division/Division Group were Lieutenant General WaltherLichel (October 5, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Erwin Rauch (August 6, 1941),Lieutenant General Erwin Menny (October 17, 1943), Rauch (November 1, 1943), andColonel/Major General Louis Tronnier (January 15, 1944).Notes and Sources: General Lichel was so seriously wounded on August 5, 1941, that he remained in various hospitals until autumn 1944. Rauch was promoted tolieutenant general on November 1, 1942. Tronnier was promoted to major general on April 1, 1944. He commanded Corps Detachment F and then the 62nd InfantryDivision, which was overrun in Romania in August 1944. Tronnier was captured there and died in a Soviet prison in 1952.Carell 1966: 376–77, 427, 434–38; Carell 1971: 288; Keilig: 349; Lexikon; Manstein: 184; Nafziger 2000: 156–57; Tessin, Vol. 6: 298–99; OB 43: 145; OB 44: 203;OB 45: 177.

125TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 419th Infantry Regiment, 420th Infantry Regiment, 421st Infantry Regiment, 125th

Artillery Regiment, 125th Reconnaissance Battalion, 125th Tank Destroyer Baltalion, 125th EngineerBattalion, 125th Signal Battalion, 125th Field Replacement Battalion, 125th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Ulm, Wehrkreis VMade up of troops from Baden and Württemberg, the 125th Infantry was created in the Münsingen

Troop Maneuver Area in September 1940 and was activated on October 16. Cadre units wereprovided by the 5th and 260th Infantry Divisions (each of which contributed about one-third of adivision) and the 25th Motorized Division, which provided small elements. The 125th Infantry

Division first saw action in Yugoslavia in the spring of 1941. Three months later it was in Russiawith Army Group South and fought in the Ukraine and the Crimea, including the battles of Uman andKiev. Later it took part in the capture of Rostov, the Caucasus campaign, and the Battle ofNovorossiysk in the Kuban. The divisional commander and his staff—temporarily designatedCommand Staff for Special Purposes von Foerster—served as the military administrators of theKuban for a time in the fall of 1942, controlling parts of the 125th Infantry and 13th Panzer Divisions,as well as most of the 3rd Romanian Mountain Division and part of the 10th Rumanian MountainDivision. Reunited in late 1942, the 125th Infantry distinguished itself in the Kuban fighting during thewinter of 1942–43. Later in 1943 the division was transferred to the lower Dnieper sector by way ofthe Crimea and took such heavy casualties in the withdrawal from the lower Dnieper bend and in theNikopol Bridgehead that it had to be downgraded to Divisiongruppe 125 on March 3, 1944. It wasassigned to the 302nd Infantry Division and became the 420th Grenadier Regiment on August 14,1944. Later that month it was destroyed in Romania.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Willi Schneckenburger (October 5,1940) and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Helmuth Friebe (December 24, 1942–March1944).Notes and Sources: Schneckenburger was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1942. Friebe became a major general on March 1, 1943, and a lieutenant general onSeptember 1, 1943. Senior regimental commander Colonel Alfred Reinhardt apparently was briefly in command of the division in early 1943.Helmut Breymayer, Das Wiesel—Geschichte der 125. Infanterie-Division, 1940 bis 1944 (1982); Carell 1966: 535, 559–60; Carell 1971: 156–57, 186; Hartmann: 21;Keilig: 92, 96; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 731; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 6: 307–8; RA: 86; OB 42: 88; OB 44b: D73; OB 45: 178.

126TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 422nd Infantry Regiment, 424th Infantry Regiment, 426th Infantry Regiment, 126th

Artillery Regiment, 126th Reconnaissance Battalion, 126th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 126th EngineerBattalion, 126th Signal Battalion, 126th Field Replacement Battalion, 126th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Osnabrück, Wehrkreis VIFormed in the Sennelager Troop Maneuver Area near Paderborn on October 18, 1940, from

regimental-sized cadres supplied by the 11th and 253rd Infantry Divisions, this Rhinelander-Westphalian division completed its training in Apirl 1941 and went into battle on the northern sectorof the Russian Front in June 1941. It remained on the northern sector for the rest of the war. In 1941, itfought at Lake Ilmen, on the Mshaga River and before Leningrad, and in early 1942 it was heavilyengaged in the Battle of the Volkhov. It suffered such heavy casualties that it had to be reduced to asix grenadier battalion unit, although each of its three infantry regiments added a 15th (Bicycle)Company. Only four of its six grenadier battalions, however, were near full strength by autumn, andits reconnaissance and tank destroyer battalions had been combined into the 126th Schnelle (Mobile)Battalion. It fought in the defensive battles of Army Group North from 1942 to 1945, it took part in therelief of Demyansk in early 1943 and the withdrawal from Leningrad in early 1944, where it sufferedheavy casualties. These were partially made good in February 1944, when it absorbed part of the 9thLuftwaffe Field Division. Finally pushed back to the west coast of Latvia, the division (now atregimental strength) remained isolated in the Courland Pocket until the end of the war. It had astrength of seventy officers and 3,000 men when it surrendered to the Red Army near Libau on May 8,1945. The 422nd Grenadier Regiment, however, had just boarded one of the last ships headed for thewest and thus avoided Soviet captivity.

Commanders of the 126th Infantry Division included Major General/Lieutenant General Paul Laux,

Colonel Kurt Chill (October 10, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Harry Hoppe(October 14, 1942), Major General Friedrich Hofmann (April 25, 1943), Hoppe (July 27, 1943),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Gotthard Fischer (November 7, 1943), andColonel/Major General Kurt Haehling (January 5, 1945).Notes and Sources: Laux was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1941. Hoppe became a major general on December 1, 1942, and a lieutenant general onJune 1, 1943. Fischer was promoted to major general on March 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on September 1, 1944. Haehling became a major general on January30, 1945. He was a Soviet prisoner until 1951.Guenther Braake, Bildchronik der 126. rheinischwestfaelischen 126. Infanterie-Division (1985); Carell 1966: 20, 248, 251, 420–21; Carell 1971: 288–89;Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Lexikon; Gerhard Lohse, Geschichte der rheinisch-westfälischen 126. Infanterie-Division (1957). Tessin, Vol. 6: 313–14;OB 42:88; OB 43: 146; OB 44: 204; OB 45: 178.

129TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 427th Infantry Regiment, 428th Infantry Regiment, 430th Infantry Regiment, 129th

Artillery Regiment, 129th Reconnaissance Battalion, 129th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 129th EngineerBattalion, 129th Signal Battalion, 129th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Fulda, Wehrkreis IXOn October 20, 1940, this Hessian-Thuringian division was activated in the Hanau area, around

cadre units supplied by the 9th and 251st Infantry Divisions, each of which provided about one-thirdof a division. It also inherited the horse-drawn elements of the 33rd Infantry Division, which was inthe process of converting into the 15th Panzer Division. It completed its training in April 1941, andwas sent to East Prussia. It first saw action in Russia in June, fighting at Bialystok, Smolensk,Vyasma, and other battles in the central sector. The 129th helped establish the Kalinin bridgehead onthe upper Volga in October and held it against repeated counterattacks. During these battles, two of itsgrenadier battalions suffered such heavy losses that they were reorganized as bicycle companies.Later that year it faced the Russian winter offensive as part of the 9th Army, Army Group Center.During this fighting, it absorbed the II and III/329th Infantry Regiment and the 236th ArtilleryRegiment from the 162nd Infantry Division. Remaining on the central sector, the 129th InfantryDivision took part in the defensive battles around Rzhev in 1942 and in the Rzhev withdrawal ofearly 1943. That autumn and winter it fought in the battles of Bryansk, Mogilev, and Vitebsk.

In the spring of 1944, it absorbed the 566th Grenadier Regiment of the 390th Field TrainingDivision. It escaped destruction in the Russian summer offensive of 1944, but with high casualties,and was smashed between Bobruisk and Baranowitschi. In August 1944, it was defending on theVistula, and did so well that it was officially commended; however, the 129th had suffered suchheavy personnel and equipment losses during three years on the Eastern Front that, after the retreatfrom Narev, it was withdrawn from the battle and disbanded as a combat division. Its men weredispersed among the divisions of the 4th Army, and most of them fought their last battles in the EastPrussian Pocket. Its headquarters, however, remained extant, and was serving as the Kommandanturof the Frische Haff in East Prussia in March 1945.

Commanders of the 129th Infantry Division included Major General/Lieutenant General StephanRittau (October 1, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Albert Praun (August 24, 1942),Colonel/Major General Karl Fabiunke (September 25, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHeribert von Larisch (February 15, 1944), and Colonel Bernhard Ueberschär (February 11, 1945).Notes and Sources: The Frische Haff is now named the Prochladny Zaliv. Rittau was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1941, and was killed in action nearRzhev on August 22. Praun was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1943. Fabiunke became a lieutenant general on December 1, 1943. Larisch reached thesame rank on October 1, 1944. Ueberschär was promoted to major general on April 15, 1945.Heinrich Boucsein, Halten oder Sterben: Die hessisch-thüringische 129. Infanterie-Division in Russlandfeldzug und Ostpreussen, 1941–1945 (1999); Carell 1966: 154–

55, 196; Carell 1971: 309; Keilig: 278; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Kursietis: 138; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 160–61; Tessin, Vol. 6: 326–27; RA: 144;OB 42: 88; OB 43: 146; OB 44: 204; OB 45: 178.

131ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 431st Infantry Regiment, 432nd Infantry Regiment, 434th Infantry Regiment, 131st

Reconnaissance Battalion, 131st Tank Destroyer Battalion, 131st Engineer Battalion, 131st SignalBattalion, 131st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, Wehrkreis XIFormed in Troop Maneuver Area Bergen (near Celle) on October 5, 1940, with two-thirds of the

division provided by the 31st and 269th Infantry Divisions, this division also inherited the horse-drawn elements of the 19th Infantry Division, which was in the process of becoming the 19th PanzerDivision. The 131st Infantry completed its training in April 1941, and was sent to Warsaw. In June,the 131st Infantry took part in the invasion of Russia, fighting at Brest-Litovsk, Bialystok, Gomel,Kiev, Bryansk, and Moscow. It remained on the Eastern Front for four years, fighting in most of themajor battles in the central sector. It suffered heavy casualties during the Soviet winter offensive of1941–42, and the 432nd Grenadier Regiment had to be disbanded, along with three grenadierbattalions. The division then fought in the Spass-Demyansk, Bryansk and Mogilev battles (1942–1943), as well as at Vitebsk and Kovel in 1944. Later that year the 131st was smashed in the giganticRussian summer offensive of 1944 although—unlike most of the divisions of Army Group Center—itescaped total destruction. Its losses were partially made good on August 11, 1944, when it absorbedthe 196th Infantry Division. The remnants of the division remained on the Eastern Front until the end,fighting in the retreats through western Russia and Poland. In March 1945, it was fighting in EastPrussia, with the 10th Bicycle Jäger Brigade attached, and was still in Prussia on April 16, 1945,when the burnt-out 131st Infantry Division was finally dissolved. The remnants of the division’scombat units were absorbed by other divisions of the Army of Prussia. The divisional staff was sentto Swinemünde, where it became Staff, 4th RAD (Reich Labor Service) Division.

Commanders of the 131st included Major General/Lieutenant General Heinrich Meyer-Buerdorf(October 1, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Weber (January 10, 1944),Colonel/Major General of Reserves Werner Schulze (October 28, 1944), and Colonel Nobiz(January 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 432nd Grenadier Regiment was dissolved on February 1, 1943. It was reformed on May 1, 1944, when the division absorbed the 565thGrenadier Regiment of the 52nd Field Training Division. Even then, its other grenadier regiments had to be reduced from three battalions to two. The new regiment wasthe former 565th Field Training Regiment of the 52nd Field Training Division. Meyer-Buerdorf became a lieutenant general on October 1, 1941, and Friedrich Weberreached the same rank on July 1, 1944. Schulze was promoted to major general of reserves on January 1, 1945.Carell 1966: 196; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 162–63; Tessin, Vol. 7: 1–2; RA: 172; OB 43: 146; OB 44: 204; OB 45: 179;Ziemke 1966: 279.

132ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 436th Infantry Regiment, 437th Infantry Regiment, 438th Infantry Regiment, 132nd

Artillery Regiment, 132nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 132nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 132ndEngineer Battalion, 132nd Signal Battalion, 132nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Landshut, Wehrkreis VII; later Darmstadt, Wehrkreis XIIOriginally formed in Landshut on October 5, 1940, this eleventh-wave Bavarian division was built

around cadres provided by the 263rd and 268th Infantry Divisions, each of which transferred about athird of a division to the 132nd Infantry. The 132nd was later transferred to the XII Military District

for replacement and training purposes. After completing its training, the division was sent toYugoslavia (April–June 1941) and crossed into southern Russia in July 1941. The division fought inthe drive to the Dnieper, in the huge Battle of Kiev, in the push to the Crimea, and in the siege ofSevastopol. It later took part in the assault that caused the fall of this giant Soviet naval fortress in thesummer of 1942, occupied the Kertsch peninsula in August, and was subsequently shifted to thenorthern sector of the Eastern Front in October 1942. It remained with the 18th Army of Army GroupNorth for the next two and a half years.

In late 1943 or early 1944, it was reorganized as a Type 44 division, with three grenadierregiments of two battalions each. It fought in the siege of Leningrad, in the subsequent retreat from thecity, and in the defense of the Narva River. In July 1944, the 132nd Infantry suffered heavy casualtiesin the Russian summer offensive and was forced into the Courland Pocket in September 1944. It tookpart in the six battles of the Courland Pocket, where all Soviet attempts to crush Army Group Northwere checked. It suffered such heavy losses in these battles, however, that the 437th GrenadierRegiment and the III/132nd Artillery Regiment had to be disbanded. The division was still inCourland when the war ended. It surrendered on May 8, 1945.

The 132nd’s divisional commanders included Major General Rudolf Sintzenich (October 5, 1940),Major General Fritz Lindemann (January 11, 1942), Major General Herbert Wagner (August 12,1943), Colonel of Reserves Werner Schulzen (late 1944), and Major General Rudolf Demme(January 8, 1945).Notes and Sources: The Staff, 437th Grenadier Regiment, as well as II/437th Grenadier Regiment and II/436th Grenadier Regiment, were dissolved in December 1944.Sintzehich was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1941, Lindemann reached the same rank on January 1, 1943, and Wagner became a lieutenant general onJune 1, 1944. The exact dates Schulzen served as acting commander of the division are unclear. Demme was a Soviet prisoner until 1955.Carell 1966: 304, 503; Kriegstagebuch des OKW: Volume III: 1888; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 163–64; Manstein: 243; Salisbury: 538; Tessin, Vol. 7: 7–8; RA: 188; OB42: 89; OB 43: 146; OB 45: 89.

133RD FORTRESS DIVISIONComposition: 212th Panzer Battalion, 733rd Grenadier Regiment, 746th Grenadier Regiment,

832nd Security Battalion, 833rd Security Battalion, 619th Artillery Regiment, Engineer BattalionKreta (Crete), 133rd Signal Battalion, 133rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Zittau, Wehrkreis IVThis division was formed on the island of Crete in the eastern Mediterranean in the winter of

1943–44 when Fortress Brigade Crete was upgraded. The grenadier regiments of the 133rd hadpreviously been part of the 713rd (Static) Infantry Division, which included men from the older agegroups. In the spring of 1944, the 733rd Grenadier Regiment was evacuated to the mainland andincorporated into the 41st Infantry Division. In late December 1944 or January 1945, the division wasdissolved as such and redesignated 133rd Fortress Area. The elements of the division still on Crete—which included the 832nd and 833rd Security Battalions, Artillery Regiment Crete and EngineerBattalion Crete—surrendered to the British at the end of the war.

Commanders of the 133rd Fortress Division/133rd Fortress Area included Colonel ChristianWittstatt (February 1, 1944), Major General/Lieutenant General Dr. Ernst Klepp (March 15, 1944),and Lieutenant General Georg Benthack (October 9, 1944–June 1945).Notes and Sources: Kleep was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1944.Keilig: 28, 172; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1882; Kursietis: 140; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 12–13; OB 45: 179–80.

134TH INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 439th Infantry Regiment, 445th Infantry Regiment, 134th Artillery Regiment, 134thReconnaissance Battalion, 134th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 134th Engineer Battalion, 134th SignalBattalion, 134th Field Replacement Battalion, 134th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Zittau, Wehrkreis IVThis division was formed in the Grafenwöhr Troop Maneuver Area on October 15, 1940. A third

of the division was transferred to it from the 252nd Infantry Division and another third came from the255th Infantry Division. It also received the horse-drawn elements of the 10th Motorized (formerlyInfantry) Division. The new division finished its training in March 1941, was sent to the East, andwas more or less continuously engaged on the central sector of the Russian Front from June 1941 untilit was destroyed in July 1944. It fought at Bialystok, Bobruisk, Kiev, and Bryansk, and was with the2nd Army in the battles around Orel (south of Moscow). It suffered heavy casualties when it wasoverrun near Livny in December 1941. The division lost much of its artillery when the Russiansbroke into the rear of the 2nd Army, and on December 12, General Halder, the chief of the ArmyGeneral Staff, reported it unfit for combat because of a lack of supplies. It nevertheless remained inthe line and fought in the Orel sector until the spring of 1943. In March 1944, it absorbed what wasleft of the 390th Field Training Division. It took part in the defensive battles around Gomel andBryansk in the summer and autumn of 1943. It was on the front line in June 1944, when the Sovietsummer offensive smashed Army Group Center. The 134th was encircled near Bobruisk and wasdestroyed there, along with much of the 9th Army, on June 29, 1944. Lieutenant General ErnstPhilipp, the last division commander, committed suicide rather than surrender to the Russians.

A happy (and possibly inebriated) member of the Afrika Korps takes a drink, 1941. The tropical helmets were soon discarded in favor ofthe soft service cap.HITM ARCHIVE

Commanders of the 134th Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Conrad von Cochenhausen(October 5, 1940), Colonel Hans Schlemmer (December 13, 1941), Colonel Rudolf Bader (February1943), Schlemmer (July 1943), Colonel Rudolf Bader (February 1944), and Philipp (June 1, 1944).Sources: General von Cochenhausen committed suicide on December 13, 1941. Schlemmer was promoted to major general on February 10, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral January 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 344; Carell 1971: 597; Halder, Kriegstagebuch, Volume III: 340; Hartmann: 22; Werner Haupt, Geschichte der 134. Infanterie-Division (1971); Keilig: 17,61; Kursietis: 140; Nafziger 2000: 165–66; Lexikon; Seaton: 224; Tessin, Vol. 7: 16–17; OB 43: 147; OB 44: 205; OB 45: 180.

SPECIAL EMPLOYMENT DIVISION STAFF 136Composition: I and II Battalions, directly under Staff, 136th Infantry DivisionHome Station: Paris (?), FranceThis unit was created in France on April 25, 1944, from the staff of Ostruppen 721. It was a

special field administrative staff with responsibility for helping control and support eight companiesof German troops with stomach problems. The 136th was sent to the Antwerp area in late May, whereit was given the task of defending a sector of the Belgian coast with two battalions of troops—eachwith two companies each. All the infantrymen were limited duty soldiers suffering from stomach

ailments. In September 1944, it retreated into Holland, where it was taken out of the line anddisbanded on October 30, 1944.

The commander of Special Employment Division 136 for most of its existence was Major GeneralCount Christoph zu Stolberg-Stolberg (April 25, 1944–September 4, 1944).Notes and Sources: Count zu Stolberg-Stolberg also served as commandant of Antwerp. He was captured by the British on September 4, 1944.Keilig: 335; Nafziger 2000: 165; Tessin, Vol. 7: 23; OB 45: 180.

137TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 447th Infantry Regiment, 448th Infantry Regiment, 449th Infantry Regiment, 137th

Artillery Regiment, 137th Reconnaissance Battalion, 137th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 137th EngineerBattalion, 137th Signal Battalion, 137th Field Replacement Battalion, 137th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Krumau, Wehrkreis XVIICreated in Troop Maneuver Area Doellersheim on October 10, 1940, this division was formed

around regimental-sized cadre units provided by the 44th and 262nd Infantry Divisions. The 18thInfantry Division also sent smaller elements. The new division completed its unit training in March1941, and was sent to Poland in April. It crossed into Russia with Army Group Center in June 1941and remained with that army group throughout its existence. It fought in the battles of the Bialystok,Smolensk, and the Yelnya Bend, in the final drive on Moscow, and against the 1941–42 Russianwinter offensive, where it suffered such heavy casualties that its 449th Infantry Regiment had to bedisbanded. Later it fought at Juchnow (1942), Spass-Demensk (1942), Kursk (1943), and the battlesof the central Dnieper. Badly understrength after over two years of almost continuous action, duringwhich five of its original nine infantry battalions had suffered such heavy losses that they had to bedisbanded, the 137th was withdrawn from combat in late 1943, and was downgraded toDivisiongruppe 137 on November 2. The staff of the division became Staff, 271st Infantry Division.Division Group 137 was assigned to Corps Detachment E and remained on the Eastern Front untilDecember 16, 1943, when it was disbanded.

The commanders of the 137th Infantry Division/Corps Detachment E included Lieutenant GeneralFriedrich Bergmann (October 8, 1940), Colonel Siegfried Heine (December 21, 1941), Colonel KurtMuhl (December 28, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Kamecke (January 5, 1942),Heine (February 2, 1942), Colonel Dr. Kurt Rüdiger (February 12, 1942), Colonel Paul Mahlmann(February 25, 1942), Kamecke (June 1, 1942), and Major General Egon von Neindorff (October 20,1943).Sources: General Bergmann was killed in action on December 21, 1941. Colonel Heine was apparently wounded in action on December 30, 1941. General Kameckewas either wounded or fell ill on February 2, 1942. Kamecke was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943, and was killed in action at Kolpen on October 15,1943. The senior regimental commander commanded the division from October 15 to October 20, 1943, when General von Neindorff arrived. He commanded CorpsDetachment E until it was disbanded.Carell 1966: 92, 196; Kursielis: 140; Lexikon; Wilhelm Meyer-Detring, Die 137. Infanterie-Division im Mittelabschnitt der Ostfront (1962); Nafziger 2000: 166–67;Tessin, Vol. 7: 26–27; RA: 220; OB 42: 89; OB 43: 147; OB 45: 181.

DIVISION NUMBER 140 Z.B.V.Composition: 139th Mountain Jäger Regiment, 3rd Jäger Battalion, 931st Artillery Regiment Staff

z.b.V. (with the 124th Mountain Artillery Battalion and the 424th Light Assault Gun Battalion),divisional engineer and signal companies

Home Station: see below

The 140th was a z.b.V. (“for special purposes”) division created on September 7, 1944, to controlmiscellaneous units during the German retreat from northern Finland. After the 20th Mountain Army’ssuccessful withdrawal, the division was stationed in the Narvik vicinity of northern Norway until thelast week of the war. It was absorbed into the 9th Mountain Division on May 5, 1945 and becameDivision Group 140.

Colonel/Major General Mathias Kräutler commanded the 140th throughout its existence.Notes and Sources: Kräutler formed Division Group Kräutler on March 1, 1944. This was the forerunner of Division Staff 140 z.b.V. Kräutler was promoted tomajor general on October 1, 1944.Keilig: 183; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1889, 1899; Nafziger 2000: 168; Tessin, Vol. 7: 39.

141ST RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (1944): 1st Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 61st Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 206th

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 11th Reserve Artillery Battalion, 1st Reserve Engineer BattalionHome Station: Insterburg, Wehrkreis ICreated from the I Replacement Troop Command on December 8, 1939 as the 141st Replacement

Division (Division Nr. 141), this East Prussian unit had the mission of training recruits for WehrkreisI and providing replacements for the military district’s affiliated infantry divisions. It was also known(in English) as the 141st Mobilization Division. Initially, it included the 1st, 21st, 206th, and 491stReplacement Infantry Regiments, the 1st Replacement Artillery Regiment, the 1st ReplacementCavalry Regiment, the 1st Replacement Engineer Battalion, the 1st Replacement Signal Battalion, andthe 1st Replacement Driver Battalion. In September 1940, it was transferred to Prague with itssubordinate units but returned to Germany in July 1941. In September 1942, it was redesignated areserve division, gave up its replacement units, and was sent to Minsk in White Russia. It conductedtraining and anti-partisan operations from 1942 to 1944. The 141st Reserve was dissolved onFebruary 19, 1944 and its men were used to construct the 24th Wave (shadow) divisions. Its 1stReserve Grenadier Regiment was redesignated 506th Grenadier Regiment and became part of the291st Infantry Division.

Commanders of the 141st Division were Major General/Lieutenant General Ulrich von Waldow(December 8, 1939), Lieutenant General Heinz Hellmich (April 1, 1942), and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Otto Schoenherr (December 10, 1942).Notes and Sources: Insterburg, East Prussia, is now Cherniakhovsk, Russia. The I Replacement Training Command was formed on August 26, 1939. Waldow waspromoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1941. Schoenherr was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1943.Nafziger 2000: 549; Tessin, Vol. 7: 43–44; RA: 5, 20, 22; OB 45: 181.

143RD REPLACEMENT (LATER RESERVE) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 68th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 76th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 208th

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 68th Reserve Engineer Battalion, 257th Reserve Artillery Battalion.Home Station: Frankfurt-on-the-Oder (later Crossen), Wehrkreis IIIEstablished on November 28, 1939, shortly after the invasion of Poland, the 143rd was born as a

replacement division (Division Nr. 143) under Wehrkreis III. It initially controlled the 3rd, 68th,208th and 257th Replacement Regiments, the 3rd Artillery Replacement Regiment (five battalions),the 9th Cavalry Replacement Battalion, the 43rd Tank Destroyer Replacement Battalion, the 68thEngineer Replacement Battalion, the 1st Railroad Engineer Replacement Battalion, the 3rd DriverReplacement Battalion, the 23rd Motorcycle Replacement Battalion, and the 3rd Railroad

Construction Battalion. In August 1942, it was reorganized as a reserve division and was sent to theLuck area in northwestern Ukraine, along with its training units. Its subordinate replacement unitsreverted back to Wehrkreis control. Redesignated 143rd Reserve Division on September 18, 1942, itnow consisted of the 68th Reserve Grenadier Regiment (three battalions) at Brest-Litovsk; the 76thReserve Grenadier Regiment (four battalions) at Luzk; the 208th Reserve Grenadier Regiment (threebattalions) at Kovel; the 257th Reserve Artillery Battalion at Bereza-Kartuska; and the 68th ReserveEngineer Battalion at Plozk. In April 1943, the 143rd was reported as being in Poland and in theUkraine by July 1943. Meanwhile, the 394th Field Training Division was established on October 23,1943, and it assumed the mission of the 143rd and 147th Reserve Divisions. The Staff, 143rdReserve Division was officially dissolved at Zuellichau on February 18, 1944. Its units weretransferred to various commands in Army Group North Ukraine.

Its commanders were General of Flak Artillery Karl von Roques (December 1, 1939) and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Paul Stoewer (May 14, 1940–end).Notes and Sources: Karl von Roques retired from the army as major general (with an honorary promotion to lieutenant general) in early 1933. He joined theLuftwaffe in 1936 and retired as an honorary general of flak artillery on July 1, 1939. He returned to active duty in the army on December 1, 1939. Stoewer waspromoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1942.Keilig: 282, 335; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 736, 1161; Tessin, Vol. 7: 43–44; RA: 5; OB 43: 147; OB 45: 181.

147TH REPLACEMENT (LATER RESERVE) DIVISIONComposition (1943): 212th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 268th Reserve Grenadier Regiment,

27th Reserve Artillery Battalion, 27th Reserve Engineer BattalionHome Station: Augsburg, Wehrkreis VIIThe 147th was activated as a replacement division in the Bavaria-Palatinate-Swabia region of

southern Germany on April 1, 1940. It continued to furnish trained replacements for the VII MilitaryDistrict’s associated infantry divisions until October 1942, when it merged with the 407thReplacement Division to form the 147th Reserve. It was sent to the Ukraine and operated in theZwiahel, Kiev, and Korosten sectors. Early in 1944 it was committed to battle in Russia, where itwas quickly destroyed, largely because its men were only partially trained. Its survivors weretransferred to the 394th Field Training Division, the 363rd Infantry Division and other units.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Held (March 1, 1940),Lieutenant General Rudolf Sintzenich (April 1, 1942), Colonel/Major General Paul Mahlmann(December 25, 1942), Major General Paul Hoffmann (August 1, 1943), and Lieutenant General OttoMatterstock (September 17, 1943).Notes and Sources: General Held was a “retread,” having first retired in 1931. He was recalled to active duty to command the 147th and promoted to lieutenantgeneral on February 1, 1941. Mahlmann was promoted to major general on January 1, 1943.Keilig: 134, 146, 218; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 736, 1161; Nafziger 2000: 550; Tessin, Vol. 7: 61; RA: 116, 118; OB 43: 148; OB 45: 182.

148TH INFANTRY (FORMERLY RESERVE) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 281st Grenadier Regiment, 285th Grenadier Regiment, 286th Grenadier

Regiment, 1048th Artillery Regiment, 148th Fusilier Battalion, 1048th Tank Destroyer Battalion(with only one tank destroyer company), 1048th Engineer Battalion, 1048th Signal Battalion, 1048thFla Company, 1048th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Gleiwitz, Wehrkreis VIIIFormed on December 1, 1939 as a replacement division to control replacement-training units in

Silesia, this division was transferred to Metz in the Lorraine region of France in early 1941 alongwith its subordinate units. On October 1, 1942, the 148th became a reserve division and wasreorganized to include the 8th and 239th Reserve Grenadier Regiments, the 8th Reserve ArtilleryRegiment (two battalions), the 8th Reserve Engineer Battalion, the 1048th Reserve Tank DestroyerCompany, the 1048th Bicycle Squadron, and the 8th Reserve Signal Battalion. All these units hadbeen transferred elsewhere or redesignated by late 1944. Meanwhile, the 148th took part in theoccupation of Vichy France in November 1942, garrisoned the Toulouse area on the Mediterraneancoast in late 1942, and guarded the Franco-Italian frontier later that year.

Subordinate to Army Group G in August 1944, it was upgraded to full combat status as an infantrydivsion on September 18, 1944. The 148th first saw action against the American invasion of southernFrance as a part of the 19th Army. It was in action from the first day of the campaign but with littlesuccess. Later that month it was sent to the Esterel massif and was positioned to prevent theAmericans from penetrating through the French Alps and taking Kesselring’s armies in Italy in therear. Later it formed part of Army Group C and guarded the Alpine passes. Never considered a first-class division, the 148th was nevertheless sent to the front in early 1945. It was fighting on theTyrrhenian coast in early 1945 and then took part in the Po River Valley campaign. It was still innorthern Italy when Army Group C collapsed. The 148th surrendered to the Americans on April 28,1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General Konrad Stephanus (December 1, 1939),Lieutenant General Hermann Boettcher (February 7, 1940), Lieutenant General Hubert Gercke(February 10, 1942), Boettcher (April 2, 1942), Lieutenant General Friedrich-Wilhelm von Rothkirchund Panthen (April 1, 1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Otto Fretter-Pico (September 25,1943), and Lieutenant General Otto Schoenherr (March 20, 1944).Notes and Sources: Fretter-Pico was promoted to lieutenant general on October 9, 1944.Chant, Volume 14: 1914–21, 1928; Fisher: 303, 406; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 42, 95, 104, 142, 310; Kursietis: 142; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Tessin, Vol. 7: 147–49;RA: 5, 132; OB 42:21; OB 43: 148; OB 44b: D119; OB 45: 182.

149TH FIELD TRAINING DIVISIONComposition: 1301st Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1302nd Grenadier Field Training

Regiment, 1303rd Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1449th Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Wehrkreis VIThis unit was established by OB West in the Netherlands on March 12, 1945. Greatly

understrength, it had only one fully formed regimental staff, three infantry battalions and an artilleryregiment on March 21. It was nevertheless assigned to LXXXVIII Corps (25th Army) in April anddefended a sector of the front until the Third Reich surrendered. Its commander throughout its briefexistence was Lieutenant General Fritz Kuehlwein.Sources: Keilig: 191; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Tessin, Vol. 7: 70

150TH FIELD TRAINING DIVISIONComposition: 1304th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1305th Grenadier Field Training

Regiment, 1306th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1450th Artillery Field Training Regiment,1450th Engineer Field Training Battalion, 1450th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VILike its sister division, the 149th, this unit was activated on March 12, 1945. Nine days later, it

had a strength of three grenadier battalions and an engineer battalion. OB West sent it six battalions ofinfantry in April, but the 150th apparently never received any artillery. It was still in OB West’sreserve when the war ended. Lieutenant General Wolfgang Lange commanded the division at the endof the war.Sources: Keilig: 197; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Tessin, Vol. 7: 73.

151ST FIELD TRAINING DIVISIONComposition: 1307th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1308th Grenadier Field Training

Regiment, 1309th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1451st Artillery Field Training Regiment,1451st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis XII (?)OB West began organizing this division in April 1945. The process had barely begun, however,

when Berlin fell and the war ended. Major General Julius Coretti was the division’s onlycommander.Sources: Keilig: 61; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Tessin, Vol. 7: 77.

151ST RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (1939): 11th Infantry Replacement Regiment, 21st Infantry Replacement Regiment,

61st Infantry Replacement Regiment, 228th Infantry Replacement Regiment, 11th ArtilleryReplacement Regiment, 206th Engineer Replacement Battalion, 311th Engineer ReplacementBattalion, 1st Tank Destroyer Replacement Battalion, 1st Driver Replacement Battalion, 1stMotorcycle Replacement Battalion

Home Station: Allenstein, Wehrkreis IFormed at Allenstein on December 1, 1939, as the 151st Replacement Division, this unit was

responsible for controlling replacement-training units in East Prussia. From September 1940 to July1941, it was stationed in the Protectorate (and headquartered at Budweis, Bohemia) and later in thePrague area. Returning to East Prussia for a year, it was upgraded to a reserve division on September25, 1942, and was sent to Vilna, Lithuania. On February 2, 1944, it was disbanded and its men weresent to Troop Maneuver Area Mielau, where they were used to form Shadow Division Mielau.

Its commanders were Colonel/Major General Leopold von Reibnitz (October 15, 1939),Lieutenant General Helmuth Castorf (April 1, 1942), and Lieutenant General Wolf Schede (July 1,1942).Notes and Sources: Allenstein is now Olsztyn, Poland. Reibnitz was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942.Keilig: 270; Kursietis: 142; Tessin, Vol. 7: 77; RA: 5, 20, 22; OB 43: 148; OB 44b: D 119; OB 45: 183.

152ND FIELD TRAINING DIVISIONComposition: 1310th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1311th Grenadier Field Training

Regiment, 1312th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1452nd Artillery Field Training Regiment,1452nd Tank Destroyer Replacement and Training Battalion, 1452nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VThe 152nd Field Training Division was activated on March 12, 1945 in the Upper Rhine region, in

the rear of OB West. By March 21, it had two grenadier battalions, the 56th Jäger Replacement andTraining Battalion, and a tank destroyer battalion. Two days later, the order was issued disbanding

the division. It had been in existence less than two weeks.Sources: Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 552; Tessin, Vol. 7: 81.

152ND REPLACEMENT DIVISIONComposition: 75th Grenadier Training Regiment, 207th Grenadier Training Regiment, and other

miscellaneous training unitsHome Station: Deutsch-Krone, Wkr.IICreated in Stettin upon mobilization (August 26, 1939), this unit was originally designated II

Replacement Troop Command. It became the 152nd Replacement Division on November 9. The152nd supervised replacement-training units in Wehrkreis II (Pomerania and Mecklenburg). Initially,it was very large, controlling six infantry replacement training regiments (one of them motorized), twoartillery replacement-training regiments, and assorted smaller units. Half of the division, however,was used to form the 192nd Replacement Division. After June 10, 1940, it controlled only the 2ndMotorized Infantry Replacement Regiment at Stettin (5th, 25th and 92nd Battalions); the 332ndInfantry Replacement Regiment at Kolbenz (4th, 94th and 374th Battalions); the 2nd ArtilleryReplacement Regiment at Stettin (four artillery replacement battalions plus the 2nd ForwardObserver Replacement Battalion); the 5th Cavalry Replacement Battalion; the 2nd Tank DestroyerReplacement Battalion; the 2nd Engineer Replacement Battalion; and the 2nd MotorcycleReplacement Battalion.

In late 1941, the division was transferred to Graudenz, Wehrkreis XX (formerly Poland), andremained there until late 1944. In the latter part of 1942, it lost its replacement units and gained thetraining elements of the 192nd Mobilization Division (Replacement Division Staff 192). The 152ndbecame, in fact, a field training division, although it never officially received this designation. Thedivision was organized as a battle group on January 6, 1945, and included the 75th GrenadierTraining Regiment, the 478th Grenadier Training Battalion, the 32nd Artillery Training Battalion, andthe 12th Engineer Training Battalion. It fought in Poland and eastern Germany and, in April 1945, wasabsorbed by the 83rd Infantry Division.

German soldiers get a haircut in the field. This photo was probably taken in Poland after the surrender of Warsaw, 1939.

The 152nd’s divisional commanders included Major General Hermann Franke (August 26, 1939),Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Windeck (December 1, 1939), and Lieutenant General KarlGuembel (March 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Deutsch-Krone is now Walcz, Poland. Windeck was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1942.Nafziger 2000: 552; Tessin, Vol. 7: 81; RA: 32, 34; OB 43: 148; OB 45: 183.

153RD FIELD TRAINING (LATER GRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1945): 715th Grenadier Regiment, 716th Grenadier Regiment, 717th Grenadier

Regiment, 453rd Artillery Regiment, 153rd Fusilier Battalion, 153rd Engineer Battalion, 153rdSupport (Versorgung) Regiment

Home Station: Potsdam, later Berlin-Spandau, Wehrkreis IIIThe 153rd began as a replacement division, which was activated upon mobilization on August 26,

1939, and was upgraded to reserve division status on September 11, 1942. It remained in the IIIMilitary District during this entire period. Sent to the Crimea in late 1942, it controlled the 23rd,76th, and 257th Reserve Grenadier Regiments until the following spring, when it was converted intoa field training unit. As such, it was no longer part of the Replacement Army, but came under thedirect control of Army Group A and later Army Group South. In early 1944, as the Soviets neared the

Crimea, the 153rd Field Training was evacuated to the lower Dnieper and became involved incombat southwest of Odessa. It remained on the line, fighting as an infantry division, and inSeptember was routed near Bucharest, Romania, suffering heavy casualties in the process.

Later the 153rd fought in Hungary and on December 14 was reorganized into the compositionshown above. Its artillery regiment, however, had only one battalion. Later that month, the 153rdGrenadier was trapped, along with the 1st and 23rd Panzer Divisions, between the Danube and LakeBalaton. The 153rd held the town of Szekesfehervar for several days but was finally overrun onDecember 24, 1944. Remnants of the division escaped to form a battle group of approximatelyregimental strength. It was redesignated 153rd Grenadier Division in February 1945, and was stillresisting as a part of the 1st Panzer Army (in the Deutsch-Brod Pocket and surrounded by the RedArmy) when the war ended.

Commanders of the 153rd included Lieutenant General Curt Schönheinz (August 26, 1939),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Otto Schröder (December 1, 1939), Lieutenant GeneralDiether von Boehm-Bezing (June 1, 1942), Lieutenant General Rene de l’Homme de Courbiere(January 15, 1943), Major General Kurt Gerok (June 8, 1943), Lieutenant General Friedrich Bayer(June 15, 1944), Major General Hermann Winkler (September 11, 1944), and Lieutenant GeneralKarl Edelmann (April 10, 1945).Notes and Sources: Schröder was promoted to major general on September 1, 1940, and to lieutenant general on December 1, 1941. Bayer was captured on theEastern Front on September 11, 1944, and died in a Soviet prison in 1953. Winkler was named commander of the division the day Bayer was captured but apparentlydid not assumed command until October. Edelmann escaped the Deutsch-Brod Pocket and surrendered to the Americans.Chant, Volume 15: 2057; Keilig: 23, 78, 372; Kursietis: 143; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume II: 1392; Volume III: 3, 731; Nafziger 2000: 168, 554;Tessin, Vol. 7: 85–87; RA: 5, 46, 72–74; OB 43: 148; OB 45: 183–84.

154TH RESERVE (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition (1943): 56th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 223rd Reserve Grenadier Regiment,

255th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 24th Reserve Artillery Battalion, 24th Reserve EngineerBattalion

Home Station: Dresden, Wehrkreis IVThis unit was originally formed in Potsdam on August 26, 1939, as the III Replacement Troop

Command. Reorganized as Replacement Division 154 (Division Nr. 154 ) on November 10, 1939,this unit consisted of Saxon and Sudeten Germans. Initially, it included the 4th, 223rd, 255th, and256th Infantry Regiments, the 4th Replacement Artillery Regiment, the 4th Replacement ForwardObserver Battalion, the 10th Replacement Reconnaissance Battalion, the 1st Replacement BridgeEngineer Battalion, the 24th Replacement Engineer Battalion, the 4th Replacement TransportationBattalion, and the 4th Driver Replacement Battalion. Three years later (on September 15, 1942), itwas redesignated a reserve division and sent to the Lancut area of northern Poland, where itcontinued to train soldiers for the IV Military District.

Elements of the 154th were in combat as early as March 1944, and, after the collapse of ArmyGroup Center in July and August 1944, the entire division was committed to battle on the centralsector of the Eastern Front. It fought in the Ukraine, White Russia, and southern Poland, where it waswithdrawn from the line in the fall of 1944 to reorganize. Redesignated the 154th Field TrainingDivision on October 1, 1944, it now included the 562nd, 563rd and 564th Grenadier Field TrainingRegiments, the 1054th Field Training Artillery Battalion, and assorted divisional troops. It wasredesignated an infantry division in April 1945 and was in eastern Germany when the Sovietslaunched their last offensive on April 16. The 154th Infantry Division was overrun near Oderberg the

next day and ceased to exist. Almost all of the men of the 154th were killed or ended up in Sovietcaptivity.

Commanders of the 154th Division were Major General/Lieutenant General Arthur Boltze(assumed command September 27, 1939), Major General Franz Landgraf (May 1, 1942), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Dr. Friedrich Altricher, Ph.D. (May 31, 1942), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Alfred Thielmann (April 20, 1944), and Altrichter again (December 19, 1944–end).Sources: Boltze was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1942; Altrichter became a lieutenant general on April 1, 1943; and Thielmann reached the samerank on June 1, 1944. Altrichter was captured on or about April 17, 1945, and died in a Soviet prison in 1949.Keilig: 78, 196; Kreigstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume III: 1883; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 554; Tessin, Vol. 7: 85–87; RA: 5, 72–74; OB 43: 37; OB 45:184.

155TH FIELD TRAINING (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 1227th Field Training Regiment, 1228th Field Training Regiment, 1229th

Field Training Regiment, 155th Artillery Field Training Battalion, 155th Fusilier Field TrainingBattalion, 630th Signal Battalion, 155th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VIIThe 155th was formed in northern Italy on November 2, 1944, to train recruits and rear-area

personnel for Army Group C. Part of its cadre came from the 20th Luftwaffe Field Division, and the630th Signal Battalion was the former 20th Luftwaffe Field Signal Battalion. In January 1945,elements of the division were variously reported in the Belluno, Verona, and Treviso areas of Italy. Itcarried on its training mission until February 1, 1945, when it was redesignated an infantry division.It was in the process of reorganizing when the German southern front collapsed in April 1945. Thedivision fought in the Po River campaign and went into American captivity near Belluno at the end ofthe war. This division should not be confused with the 155th Reserve Panzer Division, which iscovered in Volume Three.

Its commander throughout its existence was Major General Georg Zwade.Sources: Keilig: 384; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1148; Volume IV: 1892, 1902; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 92–93; OB 45: 185.

155TH REPLACEMENT DIVISIONComposition: 5th Replacement Infantry Regiment, 25th Replacement Infantry Regiment, 35th

Replacement Infantry Regiment, 25th Replacement Artillery Regiment, 18th Replacement CavalryRegiment, 5th Replacement Tank Destroyer Battalion, 35th Replacement Engineer Battalion, 5thReplacement Forward Observer Battalion, 5th Driver Replacement Battalion

Home Station: Prague, later Stuttgart, Wehrkreis VOriginally formed in Prague on August 26, 1939, as the V Replacement Troop Command, this

Württemberger-Baden unit became the 155th Replacement Division on November 9, 1939, with thecomposition shown above. It was posted to Ulm in September 1940, and to Stuttgart on August 23,1941; by May 10, 1942, however, it was headquartered at Ludwigsburg, when it became the 155thMotorized Replacement Division (Division [motorisiert] Nr. 155 ). On April 5, 1943, it became the155th Panzer Replacement Division.

The commanders of the 155th Replacement/Motorized Replacement Division were LieutenantGeneral Otto Tscherning (November 9, 1939), and Major General/Lieutenant General Franz Landgraf(May 1, 1942).

See also 155th Reserve Panzer Division (Volume Three).Notes and Sources: Tscherning was commander of V Replacement Troop Command. Landgraf was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1942.Keilig: 196, 350; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 4: 384; Tessin, Vol. 7: 92–94.

156TH FIELD TRAINING (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition: 1313th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1314th Grenadier Field Training

Regiment, 1315th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1456th Artillery Regiment, 1456th EngineerBattalion, 1456th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis IIIThis division was activated in the Berlin area on March 12, 1945, to support Army Group Vistula.

(Apparently this process had begun on February 22.) On April 15, 1945, the day before the Russiansbegan their final offensive, the division was upgraded to an infantry division and was sent to the front.It was destroyed during the Battle of Berlin, although at least part of it succeeded in escaping to theWest. Its commander throughout its existence was Lieutenant General Siegfried von Rekowski.Sources: Keilig: 273; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Tessin, Vol. 7: 99.

156TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (1943): 26th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 227th Reserve Grenadier Regiment,

254th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 26th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 1056th Bicycle Squadron,1056th Tank Destroyer Company, 1056th Reserve Engineer Company, 1056th Reserve SignalCompany, 1056th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Cologne, Wehrkreis VIActivated in Muenster on August 26, 1939 as VI Replacement Troop Command (Kommandeur,

Ersatztruppen VI), the 156th initially controlled replacement and training units in Westphalia(Wehrkreis VI). It was redesignated Division Nr. 156 (the 156th Replacement Division) onNovember 15. After a tour of occupation duty in northern Poland (November 1939 to September1940), the division returned to the VI Military District, but was transferred to Spa, Belgium, in July1941. It remained there until it was upgraded to a reserve division on October 5, 1942, and wastransferred to the English Channel. By February 1943, it was located at Calais, France. By late 1943,the 156th was reportedly a full-fledged combat division, but its formal conversion to a static infantryunit did not take place until February 1944, when it was redesignated 47th Infantry Division.

The 156th’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Max Noack (August 26,1939), Lieutenant General Richard Baltzer (August 15, 1942), Colonel/Major General JohannesNedtwing (July 8, 1943), Baltzer (returned August 15, 1943), and Lieutenant General Otto Elfeldt(December 27, 1943).

See also 47th Infantry Division.Notes and Sources: Noack was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1941. Nedtwig was promoted to major general on August 1, 1943.Keilig: 243; Nafziger 2000: 555–56; Tessin, Vol. 7: 97–98; RA: 6, 102, 104–5; OB 42: 21; OB 43: 30; OB 45: 185.

157TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (late 1942): 7th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 157th Grenadier Regiment, 1st

Reserve Mountain Grenadier Regiment, 7th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 7th Reserve EngineerBattalion, 1057th Reserve Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Munich, Wehrkreis VIIThis division began its life as Kommandeur der Ersatztruppen VII in Munich on August 26, 1939.

It became the 157th Replacement Division on December 1, 1939, and the 157th Reserve Division onOctober 1, 1942. Simultaneously, the newly formed 467th Replacement Division took over the 157thReserve’s duties in Bavaria. The 157th was sent to the Grenoble sector of the French Alps, where itconducted training and anti-partisan operations. It was in combat against the Americans in August1944 and was pushed into Italy by the U.S. Army. On October 1, 1944, it was upgraded to 157thMountain Division. Later it became the 8th Mountain Division, which fought in Italy until the end ofthe war.

Commanders of the 157th Replacement/Reserve/8th Mountain Division included LieutenantGeneral Karl Graf (assumed command August 26, 1939), Lieutenant General Hans Schönhärl(December 27, 1941), Graf (January 20, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Pflaum(September 20, 1942), and Major General/Lieutenant General Paul Schricker (September 1, 1944).

See also 8th Mountain Division (Volume Two).Notes and Sources: Pflaum was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1943. Schricker was promoted to lieutenant general on March 16, 1945.Keilig: 255, 312; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 103–04.

158TH FIELD TRAINING DIVISIONComposition: 1316th Jäger Field Training Regiment, 1317th Grenadier Field Training Regiment,

1318th Grenadier Field Training Regiment, 1458th Artillery Regiment, 1458th Signal Battalion,1458th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VIIIThis unit was formed by Army Group Center in March 1945 from the 528th Grenadier

Replacement and Training Regiment, the I/8th Landeschützen Training Battalion and the 8th SignalBattalion. It was immediately sent into action in the Troppau sector as part of the 1st Panzer Armyand surrendered in Czechoslovakia at the end of the war (May 8, 1945). Its only commander wasLieutenant General August Schmidt.Notes and Sources: Schmidt was a POW until 1955. The War Diary of the High Command of the Armed Forces lists the 158th as an infantry division on April 30,1945.Keilig: 304; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Nafziger 2000: 558; Tessin, Vol. 7: 109–10.

158TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition: 18th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 213th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 221st

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 18th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 1058th Bicycle Squadron, 213thReserve Engineer Battalion, 1058th Reserve Tank Destroyer Company, 1058th Reserve SignalCompany, 1058th Reserve Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Liegnitz, Wehrkreis VIIIFormed as the VIII Replacement Troop Command on August 27, 1939, it became Division 158 on

November 10, 1939, and was upgraded to replacement division status on January 6, 1940. It directedreplacement and training forces in Silesia until November 1940, when it was transferred to Alsace.On October 1, 1942, it was upgraded to a reserve division and its replacement elements returned toSilesia and were placed under other divisions. Headquartered at Strasbourg when Eisenhower landedin French North Africa in November 1942, the 158th took part in the occupation of Vichy (southern)

France and remained on the Bay of Biscay near La Rochelle on occupation duty for more than a year.On August 5, 1944, the soldiers of the 158th Reserve were combined with the survivors of theshattered 16th Luftwaffe Field Division to form the 16th Infantry Division and, as such, went intoaction in central France.

The commanders of the 158th Replacement/Reserve Division were Major General/LieutenantGeneral Wilhelm Russwurm (August 26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst Haeckel(May 1, 1942), Colonel Edgar Arndt (May 9, 1943), and Haeckel (May 31, 1943–end).

See also 16th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division (#2).Notes and Sources: Russwurm was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1940.Keilig: 121, 289; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 557–58; Tessin, Vol. 7: 108–9; RA: 5, 132; OB 42: 20; OB 43: 149; OB 45: 186.

159TH INFANTRY (FORMERLY RESERVE) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 1209th Grenadier Regiment, 1210th Grenadier Regiment, 1211th Grenadier

Regiment, 1059th Artillery Regiment, 1059th Fusilier Battalion, 1059th Tank Destroyer Battalion,1059th Engineer Battalion, 1059th Signal Battalion, 1059th Field Replacement Battalion, 1059thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: FrankfurtamMain, Wehrkreis IXThis division was originally formed as the IX Replacement Troop Command in Kassel on August

26, 1939. It was upgraded and redesignated 159th Replacement Division on November 9. It includedfrom units in Thuringia and neighboring districts. The division remained in Germany until autumn1942, when the Home Army’s replacement and training functions were divided. Renamed the 159thReserve Division on October 1, 1942, it was sent west and took part in the occupation of VichyFrance in November 1942. At that time it included the 9th, 52nd, and 251st Reserve GrenadierRegiments, the 9th Reserve Artillery Regiment, and the 15th Reserve Engineer Battalion.

In early 1944, the 159th was performing garrison duties in the Arcachon area, on the Bay of Biscaycoast, and was subsequently at Bordeaux, where it was stationed on D-Day. Moved into the interiorof France after the Allied landings, the division was in combat by September. Soon all trainingfunctions ceased, the division was upgraded to full combat infantry status on October 9, and itssubordinate elements received their 1944 designations. Meanwhile, the 159th was heavily engaged inthe Belford Gap fighting (September 1944) and in the Mulhouse area of Alsace (November 1944–January 1945). It held together well, despite heavy losses. In March 1945 it was part of the German7th Army and was reported in “fairly presentable strength,” although it suffered heavy losses againstthe American attacks in the Saar-Palatinate battles. It escaped to the east bank of the Rhine and late inMarch 1945 was with the XII (Provisional) Corps in southern Germany. Although burned-out bymonths of continuous action, it was still one of the strongest divisions in Army Group G at that time. Itwas finally destroyed in the Alsace on April 20, 1945. Most of the survivors of the 159th wererounded up by the Western Allies at the end of the war.

The division’s commanders included Lieutenant General Albert Fett (August 26, 1939), MajorGeneral Friedrich-Karl von Wachter (January 22, 1942), Lieutenant General Karl Sachs (March 1,1942), Lieutenant General Hermann Meyer-Rabingen (September 20, 1942), Major General AxelSchmidt (June 20, 1944), Lieutenant General Albin Nake (September 8, 1944), Colonel of ReservesFriedrich-Wilhelm Dernen (October 10, 1944), and Major General Heinrich Bürcky (November 15,1944).

Notes and Sources: Axel Schmidt was killed in action near Basancon on September 8, 1944. General Bürcky was captured on April 20, 1945.Harrison: Map VI; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: 248, 292; Tessin, Vol. 7: 114–15; RA: 6,144, 146; OB 43: 33; OB 45: 186.

160TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition: 58th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 225th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 290th

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 20th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 202nd Fusilier Battalion, 30thReserve Engineer Battalion, 280th Army Anti-Aircraft Replacement and Training Battalion, 1060thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hamburg, Wehrkreis XOriginally activated on August 26, 1939, as X Replacement Troop Command, the 160th was

reorganized on November 8, 1939, as a replacement division by the X Military District (theSchleswig-Holstein regions of north-central Germany) to control its replacement and training units. In1940, it was sent to Denmark and remained there until the end of the war. Initially it was stationed inCopenhagen but was sent to the Jutland peninsula region in early 1943. It became strictly a trainingdivision in the latter part of 1942, when it gave up its replacement elements and absorbed the trainingbattalions of the 180th and 190th Replacement Divisions. It was redesignated 160th Reserve Divisionon November 7, 1943. The 160th was variously reported at the Horsens and Henne areas in theJutland region of Denmark in 1944, and was one of the very few units in Hitler’s armed forces tohave a noncombat assignment in early 1945. It was redesignated 160th Infantry Division on March 9,1945. It now included the 657th, 658th, and 659th Grenadier Regiments (two battalions each), the1060th Artillery Regiment (two weak battalions), the 160th Fusilier Company and the 1060thEngineer Battalion. The division, however, remained in Denmark until “Final Victory.”

Commanders of the 160th were: Major General/Lieutenant General Otto Schuenemann (August 26,1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Horst von Uckermann (May 1, 1942), Colonel CountChristoph zu Stolberg-Stolberg (July 1, 1943), Uckermann (August 1, 1943), and Lieutenant GeneralFriedrich Hofmann (July 10, 1944).Notes and Sources: Schuenenmann was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1941. Uckermann was promoted to lieutenant general on September 1, 1944.Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1899; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 4: 384; Nafziger 2000: 159–60; Tessin, Vol. 7: 118–19; RA: 6, 160; OB 43: 34; OB 44b: D121;OB 45: 187.

161ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (late 1939): 336th Infantry Regiment, 364th Infantry Regiment, 371st Infantry

Regiment, 241st Artillery Regiment, 241st Reconnaissance Company, 241st Tank DestroyerBattalion, 241st Engineer Battalion, 241st Signal Battalion, 241st Field Replacement Battalion, 241stDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Allenstein, Wehrkreis IThis 7th Wave division was formed in Troop Maneuver Area Arys on December 1, 1939, from

replacement-training units in East Prussia. It initially included the 336th and 364th Infantry Regiments(three battalions each) and the 241st Light Artillery Battalion. On December 28, it absorbed the 1st,11th and 21st Field Replacement Battalions. It was in France in 1940, but remained in reserve andwas transferred back to East Prussia in July. It first saw action in the invasion of Russia in June 1941,fighting at Bialystok, Smolensk, Vjasma, Klin, and Rzhev, and suffered heavy casualties against theRussian winter offensive before Moscow. It remained in the Rzhev salient until October 1942, beforebeing withdrawn to northern France to rest and refit in the winter of 1942–43.

Returning to action on the southern zone of the Eastern Front after the fall of Stalingrad, it fought atKharkov (1943) and again sustained heavy losses at Dnepropetrovsk in the autumn of 1943, where itwas reduced to battle group strength. It nevertheless took part in the withdrawal from the lowerDnieper Bend. On November 10, 1943, the Staff of the 161st Infantry Division became Staff, CorpsDetachment A and assumed control of the remnants of the 161st, 293rd, and 355th Infantry Divisions(which were now designated division groups). Corps Detachment A was redesignated 161st InfantryDivision on July 27, 1944. The new division included the 50th, 371st, and 866th GrenadierRegiments (two battalions each), the 241st Artillery Regiment, and the 241st Fusilier Battalion. Theother divisional units bore the number 161. All of these units were destroyed in the vicinity of Jassy,Romania, in August and September 1944.

Commanders of the 161st included Colonel/Major General Hermann Wilck (December 1, 1939),Major General/Lieutenant General Heinrich Recke (September 17, 1941), Colonel Otto Schell(August 15, 1942), Major General Karl Albrecht von Groddeck (August 22, 1942), andColonel/Major General Paul Dreckmann (August 28, 1943).Notes and Sources: The division’s reconnaissance and tank destroyer battalions were merged to form the 161st Schnelle Battalion in 1942 or 1943. Wilck waspromoted to major general on July 1, 1940. Recke was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1942. He was reported as missing in action on the Eastern Front onAugust 15, 1942. General von Groddeck was wounded in action on August 28, 1943. Medically evacuated back to Breslau, he died of his wounds on January 10, 1944.Dreckmann assumed command of Corps Detachment A when the 161st was downgraded.

A battle-hardened German officer, 1942. He wears the Wounded Badge in Silver, indicating that he has already been wounded in actionthree or four times. This lieutenant is serving as a forward observer during the drive to the Volga and Stalingrad.

Carell 1966: 196; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 170; Tessin, Vol. 7: 124–25; RA: 20; OB 43: 149; OB 44: 206; OB 45: 187.

162ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 303rd Infantry Regiment, 314th Infantry Regiment, 329th Infantry Regiment, 236th

Artillery Regiment, 236th Reconnaissance Battalion, 236th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 236th EngineerBattalion, 236th Signal Battalion, 236th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Rostock, Wehrkreis IIThis unit was originally formed in the Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area by grouping a number of

Pomeranian and Mecklenburger replacement-training units under the newly formed divisionalheadquarters on December 1, 1939. It absorbed the 12th, 32nd and 24th Field Replacement Battalionson January 10, 1940. It was sent to Darmstadt in western Germany in May 1940, and was in France inJune 1940, but was only lightly engaged. It was sent to East Prussia in July. The 162nd took part inthe first campaigns in Russia and was continuously engaged from June 1941 until the first winteroffensive was checked in early 1942, fighting at Bialystok, Smolensk, Vjasma, and Rzhev, amongother battles. The 162nd suffered serious losses at Kalinin (near Moscow) in December 1941, andcontinued to serve on the central sector of the Eastern Front until the spring of 1942.

At this point, the 162nd Infantry Division was taken out of the line and partially disbanded. Most ofits survivors were transferred to the 129th Infantry Division. The divisional staff, however, was sentto Stettin, where it was placed in charge of volunteers from the former Soviet Union. Its commanderat this time was Major General Professor Doctor Oscar Ritter von Niedermayer, a well-knownspecialist in foreign affairs. Perhaps for this reason the 162nd was selected to train Ost (Eastern)battalions, which were established by the order of the High Command in late 1941. These troops—including people from Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazak, Turkestan, Iran, Afghanistan, and others—all volunteered to fight in German service against communism. After they left the 162nd, thesebattalions (collectively called “Turks”) were sent to other active divisions. The 162nd was reformedas a combat unit on May 21, 1943, when it was designated the 162nd (turkestan) Infantry Division. Itinitially set up training operations in Poland in August 1943, but was soon was transferred toSlovenia, where it simultaneously conducted training and anti-partisan operations along theLjubljana-Trieste railroad.

Early in 1944, the division was transferred to Army Detachment von Zangen in northern Italy andwas given the mission of guarding the Ligurian coast. By this time most of its personnel were non-Germans, and its veterans of the Russian Front had been transferred to other units. In June 1944, itwas briefly committed to action on the Italian Front but was withdrawn due to its poor performance.It was again sent into action in October and was withdrawn again for the same reason. The divisionspent the rest of the war fighting partisans in the mountains northeast of La Spezia and later in theTavo Valley, Italy. The 162nd surrendered to the British in 1945. Many of its personnel were turnedover to the Russians after the war and disappeared.

The 162nd Infantry’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Hermann Franke(December 1, 1939), von Niedermayer (May 13, 1942), and Major General/Lieutenant General Ralphvon Heygendorff (May 21, 1944).Notes and Sources: Hermann Frank was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1941. Heygendorff was promoted to lieutenant general on January 20, 1945. Dr.von Niedermayer was handed over to the Soviets, who murdered him in 1945.Carell 1966: 196, 357; Fisher: 19, 233; Hartmann: 22–23; RA: 32; OB 42: 90; Keilig: 242; Nafziger 2000: 173–75; Tessin, Vol. 7: 130–31; OB 43: 149–50; OB 44: 207;OB 45: 188.

163RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 307th Infantry Regiment, 310th Infantry Regiment, 324th Infantry Regiment, 234th

Artillery Regiment, 234th Reconnaissance Battalion, 234th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 234th EngineerBattalion, 234th Signal Battalion, 234th Field Replacement Battalion, 234th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Frankfurt/Oder; 1942: Berlin-Spandau, Wehrkreis IIIFormed in Troop Maneuver Areas Doeberitz and Jueterbog from Brandenburgers and Prussians on

November 18, 1939, the 163rd absorbed the 3rd, 23rd, and 5th Field Replacement Battalions onJanuary 1, 1940. It was sent to Norway three months later and suffered heavy casualties in the initialattempt to take the Norwegian capital. Most of the divisional staff and many of its men were killedwhen Norwegian coastal batteries sank the heavy cruiser Blücher south of Oslo. The division spentthe next year on garrison duty in Norway and joined Mountain Corps Norway for the invasion ofRussia in June 1941. Because of German diplomatic pressure, the Swedish government allowed the163rd to go to Finland by way of Stockholm, thus causing an international incident. The 163rd foughtin northern Russia and Finland for the next three years and, in the winter of 1944–45, withdrew tonorthern Norway after destroying the Kolosyoki Nickel Works. After the Lapland retreat, the divisionwas sent back across the Baltic and defended Kolberg, where it put up a desperate resistance. Whenthe Russians finally stormed the city in March the 163rd was virtually annihilated on March 8, 1945.Elements of the division, however, did escape to Stargard; they were sent to the rear, where theywere used as the cadres around which the 3rd Marine Division was formed. The division itself wasofficially disbanded on April 1, 1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant Generals Erwin Engelbrecht(October 1, 1939), Colonel Werner Wachsmuth (January 5, 1942), Major General Anton Dostler(June 15, 1942), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Rübel (December 29, 1942).Notes and Sources: Initially this division was not up to Finnish standards but adapted to fighting in the thick, depressing forests. Engelbrecht was promoted tolieutenant general on October 1, 1939. Colonel Willi Heinrich, the commander of Mountain Arko 109, briefly served as acting commander of the division in early 1943and from June 23 to July 15, 1943. He was killed in action commanding Arko 148 on November 16, 1943. Rübel was promoted to major general on March 1, 1943, andto lieutenant general on March 1, 1944. He was killed in action on March 8, 1945.Bradley et al., Vol. V: 82–83; Chant, Volume 16: 2235; Tessin, Vol. 7: 136–37; OB 42: 90; OB 43: 150; OB 44: 207; OB 45: 188; Ziemke 1959: 139, 304; Ziemke1966: 399.

164TH INFANTRY DIVISIONSee 164th Light Afrika Division (Volume Two).

165TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition: 205th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 215th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 260th

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 5th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 9th Reserve Engineer Battalion,1065th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VThis unit was formed in Olmütz, Moravia, as Replacement Division 165 on November 10, 1939,

just after the invasion of Poland. Its Staff came from V Replacement Troop Command. During itsearly career it was responsible for training and replacement functions in the Wuerttemberg-Badenregion. The division was stationed in the Protectorate (formerly Czechoslovakia) from November1939 until September 1940, when it returned to the Third Reich. In early 1942, the 165th was

transferred to the Epinal area of eastern France with only its training elements; as such it was theforerunner of the reserve division system, which was adopted throughout the army in the fall of thatyear. The division took part in the occupation of Vichy France in November 1942. It remained atVesoul, southern France, for a time, before transferring to the Vlissingen area of southern Holland,where it was stationed until it was disbanded on July 17, 1944. Its personnel were sent to variousdivisions on the Western Front; the divisional staff was used to form the 70th Infantry Division.

The 165th’s commanders included Lieutenant General Baron Sigmund von Schacky und Schonfeld(May 1, 1941) and Major General Wilhelm Daser (February 1, 1944).Sources: Harrison: Map VI; Tessin, Vol. 7: 144; RA: 6, 88, 90; OB 42: 20; OB 43: 150; OB 45: 189.

166TH RESERVE (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 6th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 69th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 86th

Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 1066th Reserve Artillery Regiment, 26th Reserve Engineer Battalion,166th Tank Destroyer Company, 1066th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bielefeld, Wehrkreis VIThe 166th was formed as a replacement division by the VI (Westphalian) Military District on

November 15, 1939, shortly after the war began. Other than a period of occupation duty in northernPoland (November 1939 to September 1940) when it was headquartered in Bromberg, WehrkreisXX, the 166th spent the first four years of the war in Germany. Transferred to Copenhagen, Denmark,in January 1943, the unit became a reserve division on October 26, 1943. In early 1944, it wastransferred to the Lemvig area on the Jutland peninsula and remained there until the end of the war.The 166th was upgraded to infantry division status on March 9, 1945, with the 660th, 661st, and662nd Grenadier Regiments (the former 6th, 69th, and 86th Reserve Grenadier Regiments,respectively), but remained in Denmark and never engaged in heavy fighting.

The division’s commanders included Lieutenant General Walter Behschnitt (November 15, 1939),Major General Otto Schellert (May 1, 1940), Major General Christian Friedrich, genannt FritzWillich (March 15, 1941), Lieutenant General Helmuth Castorf (June 1, 1942), Lieutenant GeneralEberhard von Fabrice (July 10, 1944), Major General Helmuth Walter (March 28, 1945), andFabrice (March 31, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Schellert was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1941. Willich reached the same rank on February 1, 1941.Keilig: 159; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: 355, 360; Mehner, Vol. 4: 318; Tessin, Vol. 7: 148–49; RA: 6, 102, 105; OB 43: 30.

167TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 315th Infantry Regiment, 331st Infantry Regiment, 339th Infantry Regiment, 238th

Artillery Regiment, 167th Fusilier Battalion, 238th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 238th EngineerBattalion, 238th Signal Battalion, 238th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Kempten; later Brannenburg; later Reichenhall, Wehrkreis VIIFormed in Munich from Bavarian replacement-training units on November 26, 1939, this seventh-

wave division absorbed the 7th, 27th, and 34th Field Replacement Battalions on January 12, 1940. Itfirst saw action in France and remained there until February 1941, when it returned to Bavaria. It wassent to Warsaw in June before going into Russia in July. It took part in the Battle of Gomel inSeptember and was with Guderian’s 2nd Panzer Army in the final thrusts toward Moscow. Afterhelping check the Russian winter offensive, the 167th was sent to the Haarlem sector of Holland to

rest and refit and remained on occupation duty until early 1943, when it was sent back to the EasternFront. As part of the 4th Panzer Army, it fought at Kharkov and remained in reserve until the Kurskoffensive failed and the Russian counterattacks began. About three weeks later, on August 3, it wasattacked northwest of Belgorod by the entire Soviet 6th Guards Army. The division was utterlyshattered, being reduced “to a scattering of odds and ends” by nightfall on the first day of theoffensive. Because of the critical condition on the southern sector, however, the remnants of the 167thremained in action and took part in the Dnieper withdrawal (fall 1943). On February 1, 1944, it wasdowngraded to Division Group 167 and was attached to the 376th Infantry Division. It was crushed atKrementschug and practically wiped out in the Cherkassy encirclement later that month. Shortlyafterwards the unit was officially disbanded. Its remnants were absorbed by the 376th InfantryDivision.

A second 167th was formed in Hungary in late October 1944. Designated the 167th VolksgrenadierDivision, it consisted of the recruits from the partially formed 585th Volksgrenadier Division and theremnants of the 17th Luftwaffe Field Division, and some miscellaneous replacements. Like allVolksgrenadier divisions, its three grenadier regiments (the 331st, 339th and 387th) had only twobattalions each. It also included the 167th Artillery Regiment and the standard infantry divisionsupport units, which were all numbered 167. In November it was transferred to Slovakia to completeits training and was hurriedly sent to Belgium in January 1945, where it took part in the latter stagesof Hitler’s Ardennes campaign. The division remained on the Western Front until February 1945,when it was crushed by the U.S. 3rd Army in the Eifel (Siegfried Line) battles. Two of its threeregimental commanders and a large number of its men were taken prisoner. The remnants of the 167thVolksgrenadier, however, continued to resist as a part of Army Group B until April 4, 1945, when itwas used to form Division Scharnhorst.

Commanders of the 167th Infantry Division included Colonel/Major General Martin Gilbert(December 1, 1939), Major General Oskar Vogl (January 10, 1940), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Hans Schönhärl (August 2, 1940), Major General Werner Schartow (August 11, 1941),Major General/Lieutenant General Wolf Trierenberg (August 11, 1941), Colonel Hans Huettner(November 25, 1943), and Lieutenant General Hanskurt Höcker (October 1944).Notes and Sources: Gilbert was promoted to major general on January 1, 1940. Schönhärl was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1940. Trierenbergbecame a lieutenant general on January 1, 1942.Carell 1966: 111, 196; Carell 1971: 71; Cole 1965: 623; Keilig: 294, 309; Kursietis: 149; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: 109; Franz Mayrhofer, Geschichte des Grenadier-Regiment 315 der bayrischen 167. Infanterie-Division-Almhütten-Division-1939–1945 (1975); Nafziger 2000: 177–79; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Tessin,Vol. 7: 151–52; RA: 116; OB 42: 91; OB 43: 150–51; OB 44: 208; OB 45: 190.

168TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 417th Infantry Regiment, 429th Infantry Regiment, 442nd Infantry Regiment, 248th

Artillery Regiment, 248th Reconnaissance Battalion, 248th Anti-Tank Battalion, 248th EngineerBattalion, 248th Signal Battalion, 248th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Tarnowitz, later Kattowitz, Wehrkreis VIIIMobilized in the Goerlitz area on December 1, 1939, the 168th included previously existing

replacement-training units grouped under a new divisional headquarters. It abosrbed the 8th, 18th and45th Field Replacement Battalions the following month. It was sent the Saar in June 1940, to Polandin July, and to the Eastern Front in June 1941. It remained there for the rest of the war. The 168thfought at Zhitomir, Kiev, Romny, Belgorod (1941), Kharkov (1942), Voronezh (1942), and in theBelgorod sector (1943), where it suffered heavy losses in the retreat from Kursk and in the battles

east of Kiev. The division remained in the line and was with the 4th Panzer Army in the Battle ofZhitomir in December. (Meanwhile, it abosrbed the remnants of the combat units of the 223rd InfantryDivision on November 2, 1943.) In February 1944, the 168th Infantry was on the northern flank ofArmy Detachment Kempf, defending Akhtyrka (in the rear of Kharkov) against heavy Russian attacks.A few days later, it was encircled near Cherkassy, where it was badly shot up and practically ceasedto exist. The soldiers who managed to break out of the pocket linked up with 1st Panzer Army. InMarch 1944 they were surrounded in the “Hube Pocket” but managed to reach German lines. Theywere then sent to Poland, where they were allowed to rest and where the division was rebuilt;however, it never again exceeded battle group strength. A few weeks later, the 168th was returned tosouthern Russia, where it fought at Tarnopol, in the Carpathians and in the withdrawals to Poland.The division fought in the battles on the Vistula in early 1945, including the Baranov bridgehead,where it was smashed. It ended the war in remnants in Silesia, on the central sector of the EasternFront, and surrendered to the Russians at Glatz in May 1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General Wolf Boysen (December 1, 1939), LieutenantGeneral Dr. Hans Mundt (January 11, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Dietrich Kraiss (July8, 1941), Colonel/Major General Walter Chales de Beaulieu (March 9, 1943), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Werner Schmidt-Hammer (December 1, 1943), Colonel Carl Anders(September 8, 1944), Schmidt-Hammer (December 9, 1944), Colonel Dr. Maximilian Rosskopf(January 6, 1945), Schmidt-Hammer (February 19, 1945), and Colonel Hansen (May 1945).Notes and Sources: In August 1942, the division’s artillery regiment added a V Battalion—a rocket launcher unit. Its tank destroyer and reconnaissance battalionswere combined to form a schnelle battalion in 1942. Kraiss was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Chales became a major general on June 1, 1943.Schmidt-Hammer was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1944. The Colonel Hansen who surrendered the division in 1945 may have been Walter Hansen, whocommanded the 555th Grenadier Regiment in 1943, but this is not made clear by the records.Hartmann: 24; Keilig: 306; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume IV: 1896; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Nafziger 2000: 179–82; Tessin, Vol. 7: 157–58;Scheibert: 138; RA: 130; OB 43: 151; OB 45: 100.

169TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 378th Infantry Regiment, 379th Infantry Regiment, 392nd Infantry Regiment, 230th

Artillery Regiment, 230th Reconnaissance Battalion, 230th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 230th EngineerBattalion, 230th Signal Battalion, 230th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: FrankfurtamMain, Wehrkreis IXThe Hessian 169th Infantry was created in the Offenbach area on or about October 25, 1939, from

already existing replacement-training units. It absorbed the 9th, 15th and 35th Field ReplacementBattalions in January 1940. After serving in France in June 1940, it remained there on occupationduty until May 1941, when it was sent to Finland by way of Norway, and was with the XXXVI Corpson the initial drive on Murmansk. After being repulsed here, the 169th remained in Lapland for morethan two years and engaged in numerous actions against the Russians, although the strategic port ofMurmansk was never taken. After Finland made a separate peace with the Soviets, the 169th Infantrytook part in the retreat to Norway and was sent to Denmark in January 1945, where it wasreorganized as a Type 45 division. It was then sent to 9th Army on the Oder, where it was destroyedin April 1945 as the Soviets drove on Berlin.

The staff of the German 1st Army surrenders to the Americans south of Munich, May 4, 1945. The commander, General of InfantryHerman Foertsch, wears the Knight’s Cross around his neck. He previously commanded the 21st Infantry Division on the Eastern Front.U.S. ARMY PHOTO

Commanders of the division included Colonel Philipp Mueller-Gebhard (October 25, 1939),Colonel/Major General Heinrich Kirchheim (December 1, 1939), Major General Kurt Dittmar(February 1, 1941), Lieutenant General Hermann Tittel (September 29, 1941), and Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Georg Radziej (June 22, 1943).Notes and Sources: The 230th Reconnaissance and 230th Tank Destroyer Battalions were merged in 1943 to form the 230th Mobile (Schnelle) Battalion. Kirchheimwas promoted to major general on July 1, 1940. Radziej became a major general on September 1, 1943, and a lieutenant general on September 1, 1944.Carell: 1966: 454; Kriegstagebuch des OKW: Volume IV: 1899; Nafziger 2000: 182–83; Tessin, Vol. 7: 161–62; OB 43: 151; OB 44: 209; OB 45: 191; Ziemke 1959:312; Ziemke 1966: 401.

170TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 391st Infantry Regiment, 399th Infantry Regiment, 40lst Infantry Regiment, 240th

Artillery Regiment, 240th Reconnaissance Battalion, 240th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 240th EngineerBattalion, 240th Signal Battalion, 240th Field Replacement Battalion, 240th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Hamburg-Wandsbek, Wehrkreis XCreated in the Munsterlager Troop Maneuver Area on December 1, 1939, from previously existing

replacement-training units, the 170th absorbed the 28th and 30th Field Replacement Battalions thefollowing month. The division first fought in Denmark five months later, when it captured Aalborgand dealt with the Danish frontier positions. It was sent to the Lille area of France in July, but saw noaction in the Western Campaign of 1940. The next spring it was sent to Romania and took part in theadvance across the Ukraine and southern Russia. It fought at Odessa in July and August, and inOctober attacked across the Tartar trench and the Perekop Isthmus, pursued the Russians across the

Crimea, and took part in the Siege of Sevastopol.In July 1942, the 170th participated in the attacks that resulted in the fall of this Soviet naval

fortress. That summer, as part of von Manstein’s 11th Army, the 170th Infantry was transported to thenorthern sector of the Eastern Front for the attack on Leningrad but was tied down in heavy defensivefighting instead. Later it faced the Russian winter offensive of 1942–43 and successfully defended asector of the German corridor east of Leningrad against heavy Soviet attacks. The following month,the division absorbed the remnants of the 9th and 10th Luftwaffe Field Divisions. The divisionremained with Army Group North throughout 1943 and suffered heavy losses when the Russiansfinally broke the siege of Leningrad in January 1944. After the retreat through Estonia, the 170th wasshifted to the central sector of the Eastern Front in July and helped check the Soviet summer offensiveof 1944, although it was unable to help the major portions of the German 4th and 9th Armies, whichwere encircled in White Russia. The 170th Infantry, meanwhile, was returned to Army Group Northand took part in the Battle of Narva and the retreat through Latvia. It absorbed the 1065th GrenadierRegiment and the 1034th March Battalion in October, but still had only six under-strength grenadierbattalions. At battle group strength, it was sent to East Prussia, where it ended up on the Helapeninsula, across from Danzig. The division finally surrendered to the Soviets in May 1945, when thewar ended. Elements of the 170th had been evacuated by sea to Kiel, however, and these surrenderedto the British on May 11.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Wittke (October 1,1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Erwin Sander (January 8, 1942), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Walther Krause (February 15, 1943), Colonel Franz Griesbach (February 15, 1944), andColonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Siegfried Hass (February 16, 1944).Notes and Sources: Wittke was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1941, Sander on January 1, 1943, and Krause on September 1, 1943. Colonel Griesbachwas seriously wounded on his second day as division commander. He was promoted to major general in August 1944 but was still in the hospital on April 27, 1945,when it was captured by the Russians. He was a prisoner until 1949. Hass was promoted to major general on June 1, 1944, and lieutenant general on December 1,1944. He surrendered to the British.Carell 1966: 32, 509; Carell 1971: 242, 249, 577–92; Keilig: 114; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Hennecke Kardel, Die Geschichte der 170. Infanterie-Division (1953); Kursietis: 150; Lexikon; Manstein: 244, 260; Nafziger 2000: 183–84; Salisbury: 538; Tessin, Vol. 7: 165–66; RA: 160; OB 42: 91; OB 43: 151; OB44: 209; OB 45: 191; Ziemke 1959: 35.

171ST RESERVE DIVISIONComposition: 19th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 71st Reserve Grenadier Regiment 216th Reserve

Grenadier Regiment, 252nd Reserve Artillery Regiment, 1071st Reserve Bicycle Squadron, 1071stReserve Tank Destroyer Company, 1071st Reserve Engineer Battalion, 1071st Reserve SignalCompany, 1071st Reserve Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, Wehrkreis XIInitially formed as a replacement division in Hanover from the XI Replacement Troop Command

on August 26, 1939, the 171st remained in Hanover for the first three years of the war, conductingtraining and supplying replacements for the divisions affiliated with the XI Military District (whichincluded Hanover, Anhalt and Brunswick). In autumn of 1942, the 171st lost its replacement units andwas sent to the English Channel with its training elements. Posted in the Epinal area, it was a staticunit, lacking in all categories of motorized vehicles. On February 6, 1944, it lost its training missionand was renamed the 48th Infantry Division.

Commanders of the 171st Reserve included Major General/Lieutenant Eugen Schlenther (August26, 1939) and Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Fürst (September 20, 1942).

See also 48th Infantry Division.Notes and Sources: Schlenther was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1941. Fürst reached the same rank on October 1, 1942.Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 169–70; RA: 6, 172–74; OB 43: 152; OB 45: 192. The 31st Reserve Grenadier Regiment was reportedly attached to the division in early 1944(OB 44b: D 122).

172ND RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (1939): 33rd Infantry Replacement Regiment, 34th Infantry Replacement Regiment,

36th Infantry Replacement, 125th Frontier Guard Infantry Replacement Regiment, 33rd ArtilleryReplacement Regiment, 14th Machine Gun Replacement Battalion, 6th Cavalry ReplacementBattalion, 33rd Tank Destroyer Replacement Battalion, 33rd Engineer Replacement Battalion, 12thMotorcycle Replacement Battalion, 172nd Reserve Supply Company

Home Station: Maim, Wehrkreis XIIThe 172nd was activated on November 7, 1939, as a replacement division. From November 1939

to September 1940, it was stationed in the Gneseu area of Poland (Wehrkreis XXI), where itconducted training and replacement operations. It returned to Germany in 1940 and remained there forfour years. It was still directed replacement and training units for XII Military District until the fall of1944. It was upgraded to reserve division status on November 23, 1944, but it apparently onlyengaged in combat as a unit in the Eifel (West Wall) in September, October, and November 1944. OnNovember 23, 1944, the combat elements of the 172nd were transferred to the 36th and 347th InfantryDivisions. The Staff was redesignated Special Administrative Division Staff 172 (Div. Stab. z.b.V.172) and was sent to Friesland (the northern coast of the Netherlands) and remained there until theregion was overrun in late March 1945.

Commanders of the 172nd Division included Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Fischer(November 7, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Eberhard von Fabrice (December 31, 1942),Lieutenant General Helmut Castore (July 10, 1944), Major General Martin Baltzer (January 14,1945), and Lieutenant General Dr. Hans Boelsen (March 1945).Notes and Sources: The 172nd was initially formed from elements of the XII Replacement Troop Command. Fischer was promoted to lieutenant general on February1, 1942. Fabrice became a lieutenant general on March 1, 1944. General Boelsen was captured on March 29, 1945, the day the division ceased to exist.Keilig: 59; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 173–75; RA: 190, 192; OB 43: 152; OB 45: 192.

173RD RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (July 1943): 17th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 231st Reserve Grenadier Regiment,

10th Reserve Artillery Battalion, 46th Reserve Engineer Battalion, 873rd Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Nuremberg, Wehrkreis XIIICreated on November 9, 1939 from the XIII Replacement Troops Command (which had been

organized upon mobilization on August 26, 1939), this division was initially designated 173rdReplacement Dvision. It controlled replacement and training units in northern Bavaria until July 16,1943. At that time it lost its replacement units, was converted into a reserve division, and sent toBelgrade. Later it was transferred to Croatia. On January 12, 1944, the High Command ordered the173rd Reserve disbanded. Its troops were placed back under the jurisdiction of the Home Army,which used it to form shadow divisions of the 24th Wave. This process was completed in February;the 173rd officially ceased to exist on April 1.

Its commanders were Major General Kurt Sieglin (September 1, 1939), Colonel/Major GeneralKurt Pflugradt (March 10, 1940), and Lieutenant General Heinrich von Behr (December 15, 1940–

end).Notes and Sources: Pflugradt was promoted to major general on April 1, 1940.Keilig: 256; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 173–75; OB 44b: D122; OB 45: 192.

174TH RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (December 1943): 24th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 209th Reserve Grenadier

Regiment, 266th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 14th Reserve Artillery Battalion, 14th ReserveEngineer Battalion

Home Station: Chemnitz, Wehrkreis IVOrganized as the 174th Replacement Division (from elements of the 154th Replacement Division),

this unit controlled replacement-training units in Saxony and the Sudetenland from June 10, 1940 untilthe fall of 1942, although much of the division was posted to Prague and the Protectorate in August1941. On September 15, 1942, it was remustered as a reserve division in Bohemia, and itsreplacement units were sent home. Its training elements remained under divisional control and weresent to northern Poland in 1943. On July 27, 1944, the division was absorbed by the 26th InfantryDivision, which was being rebuilt after being mauled at Kovel. The survivors of the 174th wouldsoon be in action on the Western Front.

Commanders of the 174th included Major General/Lieutenant General Konrad Guhl (June 10,1940), Lieutenant General Kurt Renner (April 1, 1942), and Lieutenant General Friedrich-GeorgEberhardt (August 26, 1943).Notes and Sources: Guhl was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1941. Kurt Renner was killed on August 26, 1943.Keilig: 76, 273; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 182; RA: 6, 204–6; OB 42: 26; OB 43: 37; OB 45: 192.

176TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (December 1944): 1218th Grenadier Regiment, 1219th Grenadier Regiment, l220th

Grenadier Regiment, 1176th Artillery Regiment, 176th Fusilier Battalion, 1176th Tank DestroyerBattalion, 1176th Engineer Battalion, 1176th Signal Battalion, 1176th Field Replacement Battalion,1176th Supply Regiment

Home Station: Bielefeld, Wehrkreis VIThe Westphalian-Rhineland 176th was formed as a replacement division on January 26, 1943. It

absorbed the replacement elements of the 156th and 166th Reserve Divisions when they left the Reichfor France and Denmark, respectively. In return the 176th gave up its own training battalions. In 1944the subordinate elements of the 176th were reexpanded into replacement-training units—a processwhich had begun more than a year earlier. Later that year, with the Western Front on the verge ofcollapse, the 176th was hurried to the Albert Canal zone in the Low Countries. In September, thedivision had a strength of 7,000 men; however, most of these were trainees, convalescents, and semi-invalids. The division also included two Luftwaffe battalions and an “ear” battalion of men withserious hearing problems. The 176th fought in the Battle of Maastricht against Montgomery and wasforced to abandon both the city and the island. It also took part in the Arnhem campaign, where ithelped delay forces trying to relieve the British 1st Airborne Division. In mid-November, it was inaction against the U.S. 9th Army in the Siegfried Line campaign and fought holding actions in the RoerRiver sector. It was redesignated an infantry division on November 11, 1944, and absorbed thesupport troops from the 49th Infantry Division. The 176th did not take part in the Battle of the Bulgebut was apparently resting and rebuilding at that time. This process was not complete in early 1945,

when the division occupied a sector of the Roer River. As part of Army Group B, it was surroundedin the Ruhr Pocket and destroyed near Duisburg.

Major General/Lieutenant General Berthold Stumm (January 26, 1943 to October 31, 1944) andColonel/Major General Christian-Johannes Landau (November 1, 1944–end) commanded thedivision.Sources: Lexikon; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1900; MacDonald 1963: 100, 108, 188, 519; MacDonald 1973: 353–61; Nafziger 2000: 566–67; Tessin, Vol.7: 186–87; RA: 100, 102–3; OB 45: 193.

177TH REPLACEMENT DIVISION*

Composition (late 1939): 4th Panzer Replacement Battalion, 44th Infantry Replacement Regiment,82nd Rifle Replacement Regiment, 131st Infantry Replacement Regiment, 262nd InfantryReplacement Regiment, 44th Artillery Replacement Regiment, 262nd Artillery ReplacementRegiment, 44th Forward Observer Replacement Battalion, 11th Cavalry Replacement Battalion, 80thEngineer Replacement Battalion, 17th Construction Engineer Replacement Battalion, 33rd RailroadEngineer Replacement Battalion, 17th Signal Replacement Battalion, 17th Driver ReplacementBattalion

Home Station: Vienna, Wehrkreis XVIIThe 177th was formed on November 4, 1939, from the XVII Replacement Troop Command, and

remained headquartered at Vienna for virtually the entire war. Elements of the division werereportedly stationed in Moravia (the eastern district of the Protectorate, as the Nazis calledCzechoslovakia) in 1941, but these were not the major components. The division ceased to exist inApril 1945, when the Russians overran the former Austrian capital. The 177th was not with the 6thSS Panzer Army during the defense of the city, so it was no doubt dissolved before the battle beganand its men incorporated into combat units of other divisions on the Eastern Front.

The 177th Replacement’s commanders included General of Flak Artillery Franz von Roques(September 26, 1939), Major General Otto Ottenbacher (June 1, 1940), Major General Rudolf vonBuenau (October 25, 1940), Lieutenant General Hermann von Gimborn (June 1, 1941), MajorGeneral Joseph Reichert (September 20, 1941), and Colonel/Major General Erich Muller-Derichsweiler (January 1, 1943).Notes and Sources: Roques (1880–1949) retired from the army in early 1933 and joined the Luftwaffe in 1936. He retired from the Luftwaffe in 1939 and rejoinedthe army. He retired for the final time in 1943. Mueller-Derichsweiler was promoted to major general on February 1, 1945.Peter Hoffmann. The History of the German Resistance, 1933–1945 (1977): 275–76 (hereafter cited as “Hoffmann”); Keilig: 283; Kriegstagebuch des OKW. Volume I:1145; Tessin, Vol. 7: 191; RA: 222; OB 42: 27; OB 45: 194.

178TH REPLACEMENT DIVISIONSee 178th Panzer Replacement Division (Volume Three).

179TH REPLACEMENT DIVISIONSee 179th Reserve Panzer Division (Volume Three).

180TH INFANTRY (FORMERLY REPLACEMENT) DIVISIONComposition (October 1944): 1221st Grenadier Regiment, 1222nd Grenadier Regiment, 1223rd

Grenadier Regiment, 180th Artillery Regiment, 180th Fusilier Battalion, 1180th Tank DestroyerCompany (later Battalion), 1180th Engineer Battalion, 1180th Signal Company , 1180th Divisional

Supply RegimentHome Station: Oldenburg, Wehrkreis XFormed as a replacement division by the X Military District on November 25, 1939, this unit

conducted replacement and training operations in north-central Germany until September 1944. Atthat time it had 8,475 men. It was hastily sent to Holland to oppose the Allied armored-airborneassault, Operation Market-Garden. It succeeded in delaying the British XXX Armored Corps longenough to significantly contribute to the German victory at Arnhem. It remained on the northern sectorof the Western Front, primarily with the 1st Parachute Army, for the rest of the war. On October 31,1944, it was upgraded to full infantry division status. The 180th was engaged in the Venlo area fromDecember 1944 to January 1945. In March 1945, the division absorbed Infantry Division Hamburg.Later that month, it opposed the Allied drive through western Germany and fought against the British2nd Army in the Battle of Wesel. At the end of the month it was crushed in Operation Varsity, a jointairborne-ground offensive. The division’s morale was broken after this defeat. A few weeks later theremnants of the division were forced into the Ruhr Pocket, where they were destroyed.

The division’s commanders were Major General Kurt Woytasch (December 1, 1939), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Martin Gilbert (January 10, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHerbert Lemke (January 24, 1942), Colonel Bernhard Klosterkemper (September 27, 1944), andGilbert (second tour, October 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Gilbert was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1942. Lemke became a lieutenant general on August 1, 1944.Chant, Volume 17: 2312; Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: Map V; MacDonald 1973: 306–11, 315, 370; Tessin, Vol. 7: 204; RA: 160, 162; OB 45: 195.

181ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1945): 334th Fusilier Grenadier Regiment, 359th Grenadier Regiment, 363rd

Grenadier Regiment, 222nd Artillery Regiment, 220th Bicycle Battalion, 222nd Tank DestroyerBattalion, 222nd Engineer Battalion, 222nd Signal Battalion, 222nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, later Hameln, Wehrkreis XICreated in Brunswick as a replacement division on December 1, 1939, from replacement-training

units in Brunswick, Anhalt, and Hanover, and from the 19th and 31st Field Replacement Battalions,this division originally consisted of the 334th and 349th Infantry Regiments. The 359th InfantryRegiment was added in January 1940. In April 1940, the division took part in the Norwegiancampaign, where it was lightly engaged. It remained on occupation duty in the Dombaas area untilautumn 1943, when it was transferred to the lower Adriatic coast of Montenegro (Yugoslavia). It leftthe 349th Regiment in Norway and acquired the newly formed 363rd Grenadier Regiment when itarrived in the Balkans. The division suffered heavy losses in the withdrawal from Montenegro toSarajevo but remained in the line. It fought on the southern sector of the Eastern Front (in Croatia andSteiermark) from late 1944 until the end of the war. It surrendered to the Yugoslavs in the Cilli areaon May 9, 1945. Most of the survivors of the division were then murdered by the Communists.

The 181st’s leaders included Colonel Peter Bielfeld (December 1, 1939), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Kurt Woytasch (January 10, 1940), Lieutenant General Friedrich Bayer(March 1, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Hermann Fischer (March 24, 1942),and Lieutenant General Eugen Bleyer (October 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Woytasch was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1941. Fischer was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942 and to lieutenantgeneral on April 1, 1943. Bleyer was tried by the Communists as a war criminal and was sentenced to death. This sentence was commuted to eighteen years in 1950and he was released under an amnesty in 1952.

Keilig: 37, 91; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1145; Volume IV: 1903; Mehner, Vol. 12: 453; Nafziger 2000: 184–85; Tessin, Vol. 7: 207–8; RA: 172; OB 43:153; OB 44: 210; OB 45: 195; Ziemke 1959: 33–34, 263, 330.

182ND RESERVE DIVISIONComposition (1942): 79th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 112th Reserve Grenadier Regiment,

263rd Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 342nd Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 34th Reserve ArtilleryBattalion, 1082nd Bicycle Company, 1082nd Tank Destroyer Company, 34th Reserve EngineerBattalion, 14th Machine Gun Battalion, 1082nd Signal Company, 1082nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Koblenz, Wehrkreis XIIThe 182nd began forming as a replacement (mobilization) division in Lodz (Litzmannstadt) on

November 7, 1939, from elements of the XII Replacement Troop Command. It was stationed in theLitzmannstadt area of the Generalgouvernement (German-occupied Poland) until September 1940,when it was sent to Nancy in eastern France. Here it became known as the “Nanzig” (Nancy, France)division. In autumn 1942, its replacement units returned to Germany, and the 182nd was converted toa reserve division on July 10. Following reorganization, it was transferred to the Channel coast ofBrittany, where it headquartered at Cassel in northern France.

In early 1944, the 263rd Reserve Grenadier Regiment was dissolved. In mid-May 1944, the 182ndwas still being used as a training unit. It consisted of seven poorly trained battalions, four of whichwere soon transferred to other divisions. There were only four guns in its four infantry guncompanies. Its artillery only had two issues of ammunition, and its line units only had one issue perman. For these reasons, it was not committed to heavy combat during the French campaign of 1944.The division was sent east in late 1944 and by the end of November was stationed in Slovakia. It wasreorganized as an infantry division on April 1, 1945 (although one source says March 1) and includedthe 663rd, 664th, and 665th Grenadier Regiments (the former 79th, 112th, and 342nd ReserveGrenadier Regiments, respectively). All three had two battalions each. Simultaneously, the 1082ndReserve Artillery Battalion was upgraded to 1082nd Artillery Regiment (two battalions). Fightingagainst the Russians, it sustained heavy heavy casualties in Czechoslovalera in the spring of 1945 butwas still resisting—albeit at battle group strength—when the war ended.

Divisional commanders of the 182nd Reserve included Major General Friedrich Bayer (October19, 1939), Major General Hans von Basse (April 24, 1940), Lieutenant General Franz Karl (May 30,1941), Major General Karl Gumbel (June 5, 1942), Karl (returned August 3, 1942), Major GeneralPaul Lettow (September 27, 1942), Major General Otto Schilling (December 5, 1942), andLieutenant General Richard Baltzer (March 25, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: General Baltzer was killed in Prague on May 10, 1945—about two days after he had surrendered.Bradley et al., Vol. 2: 184–85; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 20, 163; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume IV: 1893; Nafziger 2000: 569; Friedrich Ruge,Rommel in Normandy, 1979: 161 (hereafter cited as “Ruge”); Speidel: 41; Tessin, Vol. 7: 213–14; RA: 6, 190, 193; OB 43: 153; OB 45: 196.

183RD INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 330th Infantry Regiment, 343rd Infantry Regiment, 351st Infantry Regiment, 219th

Artillery Regiment, 219th Reconnaissance Battalion, 219th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 219th EngineerBattalion, 219th Signal Battalion, 219th Field Replacement Battalion, 219th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Weiden, Wehrkreis XIIIThis northern Bavarian division was formed in Troop Maneuver Area Meunsingen from previously

existing replacement and training units on November 28, 1939. It absorbed the 10th, 17th and 46thField Replacement Battalions in January 1940. It was in France in June 1940, where it apparentlyengaged in mopping up operations but was not involved in heavy fighting. It was transferred to theProtectorate in July and took part in the Balkans campaign of 1941, where it fought in Yugoslavia. Itwas sent to Poland in July and to Lithuania in August, but was not involved in heavy fighting on theEastern Front until October, when it took part in the Battle of Vyasma. The 183rd was also engaged infierce combat in the latter stages of the advance on Moscow. It remained on the central sector untilafter the Rzhev withdrawal, fighting in the defensive battles of 1942 and the first eight months of1943. It suffered so many casualties that its 343rd Grenadier Regiment had to be disbanded.

Transferred to the southern zone of operations in September 1943, the division suffered heavylosses in the Kiev fighting that autumn and on November 2, 1943, its Staff was redesignated CorpsDetachment C (Korps-Abteilung C). It controlled the former 183rd, 217th, and 339th InfantryDivisions (now Division Groups 183, 217, and 339), as well as the 219th Artillery Regiment, 219thTank Destroyer Battalion, 219th Engineer Battalion, 219th Signal Battalion, and 219th FieldReplacement Battalion. The new command fought at Zhitomir, Tarnopol, and the Brody Pocket inBelorussia (July 1944). Here it broke out of the pocket and most of its survivors escaped. Withdrawnfrom the combat zone after Brody, the 183rd was rebuilt at the Döllersheim Maneuver Area(Wehrkreis XVII, formerly Austria) as a Volksgrenadier unit. Most of its personnel wereinexperienced, poorly trained Austrians from the 564th Grenadier Division. It absorbed ShadowDivision Doellersheim on August 3 and was officially activated on September 15, 1944. The fightingcaliber of the 183rd declined considerably after that, although it continued to achieve creditableresults. (Its subordinate units retained their old numbers, although the grenadier regiments werereduced from three to two battalions.)

The 183rd Volksgrenadier Division was transferred to the Western Front that fall, where itsuffered heavy losses in the battles of the Siegfried Line and at Aachen. In late November, it opposedthe U.S. 9th Army’s Roer River offensive, where the 330th Grenadier Regiment was virtuallyannihilated near Geilenkirchen. The division was still opposing the U.S. 9th Army when it managedto cross the Roer in February 1945. As part of Army Group B, the 18th Volksgrenadier wassurrounded in the Ruhr Pocket in April. Divisional commander Lieutenant General Wolfgang Lange,who had commanded Corps Detachment C at Brody, surrendered it to the Americans at Gummersbachlater that month.

A German soldier examines the graves of some of his comrades who were killed in action in Normandy, 1944. The markers indicate thatthe dead were members of an infantry replacement battalion.U.S. ARMY PHOTO

The divisional commanders of the 183rd Infantry/Volksgrenadier included MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Benighus Dippold (November 1, 1939), Major General Richard Stempel(October 4, 1941), Dippold (October 25, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General August Dettling(January 20, 1942), and Lieutenant General Wolfgang Lang (September 15, 1944).Notes and Sources: Dippold was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1941. He was wounded in action on October 4, 1941, and returned to duty on October25. Stempel was acting division commander in his absence. Dettling was elevated to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943.

Carell 1966: 191; Carell l971: 309; Hartmann: 24; Keilig: 69, 362; Kursietis: 153–54; WolfgangLange, Korpsabteilung C (1961); MacDonald 1963: 111, 530; MacDonald 1973: 153; Nafziger 2000:186–87; Ernst Schnabel, Weg und Schicksal der 183. Infanterie-Division. Geschichte derfränkischesudetendeutschen 183. Infanterie-Division. Divisionsgruppe 183 in der Korps-AbteilungC. 183. Volks-Grenadier-Division, 1939–1945 (1988); Seaton: 446–49; Tessin, Vol. 7: 219–20; RA:204; OB 42: 92; OB 43: 153; OB 44: 210; OB 45: 196.

187TH RESERVE DIVISIONSee 42nd Jäger Division (Volume Two).

189TH RESERVE (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition (late 1944): 1212th Grenadier Regiment, 1213th Grenadier Regiment, 1214th

Grenadier Regiment, 1089th Artillery Regiment, 1089th Fusilier Battalion, 1089th Tank DestroyerCompany, 1089th Engineer Battalion, 1089th Signal Battalion, 1089th Field Replacement Battalion,1089th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Siegen, Wehrkreis IXThis division was born as the 189th Reserve Division at Friedberg, Hessen on September 26,

1942. It conducted training operations in Hessen and Thuringia until December 6, 1942, when it wasupgraded to infantry division status and was sent to central France with the 15th and 214th ReserveGrenadier Regiments. It also absorbed the 28th Reserve Grenadier Regiment and the 28th ReserveArtillery Battalion from Wehrkreis VIII but lost its replacement units. It was officially designated189th Infantry Division (B). (The “B” stood for “Brunhilde,” which meant that it was a smalldivision.) It had only two grenadier regiments, only two light artillery batteries, one engineercompany, two tank destroyer companies, two cavalry squadrons, and two signal companies. (InNovember, elements of the division reportedly took part in the occupation of Vichy France andheadquartered in the Clermont- Ferrand area. The rest of the division followed in December.) The189th remained in France until February 10, 1943, when it was dissolved and its Staff was used toform Staff, 356th Infantry Division.

A new 189th Reserve Division was created in central France on May 20, 1943. It included the 15thand 28th Grenadier Regiments, the 28th Reserve Artillery Battalion, and assorted divisional troops.Gradually it was expanded into the composition shown above. In the spring of 1944, it wastransferred to southwestern France, where it formed part of Army Group G’s reserve. After D-Day,the 189th Division ceased training altogether and was involved in combat in southern France byAugust. During the retreat to Germany, it was upgraded to full infantry division status (effectiveOctober 10, 1944), although it was never considered a first-rate combat unit. It was in remnants bySeptember and was fighting in southern Alsace. It absorbed the remnants of the 242nd InfantryDivision on November 3. The division was in the Colmar bridgehead in Alsace by January 1945. Itwas virtually destroyed here on February 4. It is unclear whether or not any sizable parts of the 189thescaped the bridgehead’s collapse, but the division headquarters did and was sent to the upper Rhine(Oberrhein) to rebuild the remnants under the general supervision of the 19th Army. Thisheadquarters, however, obviously gave up on this task and the division was dissolved on April 8,1945. Its remnants were absorbed by the 805th Replacement Division.

Commanders of the 189th Reserve/Infantry included Major General Paul Bauer (October 25,1939), Colonel/Major General Egon von Neindorff (June 1, 1942), Lieutenant General Count Richardvon Schwerin (October 1, 1943), Colonel/Major General Ernst von Bauer (September 25, 1944),Major General Degener (October 27, 1944), Colonel Eduard Zorn (November 15, 1944), andColonel Mellwig (February 4, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: On January 21, 1945, the division absorbed the 1007th and 1021st Security Battalions, the 1181st Artillery Battalion and the 806th SS MachineGun Battalion. All four of these units were already in remnants. Egon von Neindorff was promoted to major general on December 1, 1942. Bauer was promoted tomajor general on October 1, 1944. Colonel Zorn was killed in action at Colmar on February 4, 1945. Keilig: 22, 319, 382; Mehner, Vol. 12, 453; Nafziger 2000: 189;Tessin, Vol. 7: 247; RA: 6, 144, 146; OB 43: 33; OB 45: 197–98. Also see MacDonald 1973.

190TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (November 1944): 1224th Grenadier Regiment, 1225th Grenadier Regiment, 1226th

Grenadier Regiment, 890th Artillery Regiment, 190th Fusilier Battalion, 1190th (later 190th) TankDestroyer Battalion, 1190th Engineer Battalion, 1190th Signal Battalion, 1190th Field ReplacementBattalion

Home Station: Neumünster, Wehrkreis XThe 190th Infantry was created in Hamburg on June 6, 1940 as a replacement division. It operated

in Denmark that summer, but in October returned to the Schleswig-Holstein area, controllingreplacement-training units for the X Military District. In mid-September 1944 it was hastilymobilized and sent to the Western Front, where it clashed with the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division nearNijmegen. Its strength at this time was 9,607 men. It remained on the northern flank of the WesternFront and on November 4 became one of the few units to be upgraded directly from replacement tofull infantry division status, skipping the reserve division phase; however, it was still strictly amakeshift unit with very little artillery support or anti-tank protection. After spending five months inthe Holland-northwest Germany region (where it fought in the Goch, Kleve, the Reichswald andVenlo sectors), the 190th was sent south in late March 1945 to oppose the big Alliedground/parachute offensive north of the Rhine. On April 4, however, the division was absorbed bythe recently created Infantry Division Ulrich von Hutten and officially ceased to exist. The divisionstaff, however, continued to operate until April 13, 1945, when its commander, Lieutenant GeneralErnst Hammer, was captured in the Ruhr Pocket.

Commanders of the 190th Replacement/Infantry Division included: Major General Kurt Wolff(May 17, 1940), Major General Emil Markgraf (April 15, 1942), Lieutenant General Justin vonObernitz (June 22, 1942), Colonel Albert Newiger (November 1, 1942), and Hammer (November 10,1942).Sources: Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: Map V; MacDonald 1973: 317, 370; Tessin, Vol. 7: 251–52; RA: 160, 162; OB 43: 154; OB 45: 198.

191ST RESERVE DIVISIONComposition: 31st Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 267th Reserve Grenadier Regiment, 4th Reserve

Engineer Battalion, I/211th Artillery Regiment, 1091st Reserve Bicycle Squadron, 1091st ReserveTank Destroyer Company, 1091st Reserve Engineer Battalion, 1091st Reserve Signal Company,1091st Reserve Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Brunswick (Braunschweig), Wehrkreis XIEstablished as a replacement division on June 6, 1940, the 191st remained in the Brunswick

district until the fall of 1942, when it lost its replacement mission and was sent to France with itstraining elements. It became a reserve division as of October 1. It stayed in the Mons area of northernFrance until February 1, 1944, when it was upgraded and redesignated 49th Infantry Division. Later itwas destroyed on the Western Front.

Its commanders included Colonel/Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Neumann (December 1,1939), Major General Richard Veith (November 15, 1940), Major General Karl von Dewitz gennantvon Krebs (December 18, 1941), Lieutenant General Siegfried Macholz (March 1, 1943), andLieutenant General Erich Baessler (January 1, 1944).

See also 49th Infantry Division.Notes and Sources: Neumann was promoted to major general on February 1, 1940.Keilig: 240; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 257–58; RA: 6,172,174; OB 43: 154; OB 45: 198–99.

192ND REPLACEMENT DIVISIONComposition (January 1945): 1st Mounted Infantry Replacement and Training Regiment, 32nd

Grenadier Training Regiment, 121st Grenadier Replacement and Training Regiment, 121st ArtilleryReplacement and Training Battalion

Home Station: Rostock, Wehrkreis II

Activated in Rostock, Pomerania, on June 6, 1940, the 192nd was sent to Gneseu, XX MilitaryDistrict (southern Poland) in September 1942. It controlled replacement and training units until theHome Army divided those functions in the fall of 1942. By 1944, the division was essentially atraining unit. By January 1945, the 192nd Replacement Division had been withdrawn to Pomerania.Later that month, it was sent to the front lines near Frankfurtan der Oder, where it was destroyed bythe Red Army on February 3.

Its commanders were Major General Sigfrid Macholz (June 10, 1940), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Hans Petri (October 5, 1940), and Lieutenant General Erich Schröck (April 1, 1942).Notes and Sources: Petri was promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1942, and to general of infantry on April 1, 1942. This promotion, which took place theday he retired, was largely honorary.Keilig: 254, 312; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 7: 261–62; RA: 32; OB 43: 154; OB 45: 199.

193RD REPLACEMENT DIVISIONComposition (1943): 10th Infantry Replacement and Training Regiment, 46th Infantry Replacement

and Training Regiment, 296th Infantry Replacement and Training Regiment, 13th MotorizedReplacement and Training Battalion, 10th Artillery Replacement and Training Regiment, 17thEngineer Replacement and Training Battalion, 13th Driver Replacement and Training Battalion

Home Station: Regensburg, Wehrkreis XIIIThe 193rd Replacement (or Mobilization) Division was activated in northern Bavaria on

November 9, 1939. It controlled replacement-training units from 1939 until the fall of 1942, trainingunits from late 1942 to 1944, and replacement-training units again from 1944 until the end of the war.It was posted in Bohemia in October 1941, and headquartered at Pilsen and later at Prague, where itremained until the Russians overran Czechoslovakia. The division itself was attached to a temporaryformation, Korps Group General of Artillery Moser, and was fighting as part of Panzer Corps“Grossdeutschland” of the 4th Panzer Army when the war ended. The troops of the 193rd surrenderedto the Russians on May 8, 1945.

The commanders of the 193rd Replacement Division included Major General Friedrich Gollwitzer(October 25, 1939), Colonel/Major General Werner Sanne (February 2, 1940), Major General PaulLoehning (May 1, 1940), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Behrens (June 1, 1942), and Major GeneralEckkard von Geyso (June 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 10th Infantry Replacement Training Regiment was originally designated the 10th Replacement Regiment (motorized). It lost its motorizedfunction in early 1944. Sanne was promoted to major general on April 1, 1940. General von Geyso fell into Russian hands and was a POW until 1955.Keilig: 291; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1147; Tessin, Vol. 7: 265; RA: 204, 206, 260; OB 43: 37; OB 45: 199.

196TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 340th Infantry Regiment, 345th Infantry Regiment, 362nd Infantry Regiment, 233rd

Artillery Regiment, 233rd Reconnaissance Company, 233rd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 233rdEngineer Battalion, 233rd Signal Battalion, 233rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Graudenz, later Aachen and Bonn, Wehrkreis VIAfter being formed in the Danzig area on November 27, 1939, the new Rhineland-Westphalian

infantry division absorbed the 6th, 16th and 26th Field Replacement Battalions in January 1940. Ittook part in the invasions of Denmark and Norway in April 1940. Elements of the 196th tookCopenhagen, the Danish capital, almost without loss. It remained in Drontheim, Norway, as part ofthe Army of Norway’s reserve, from September 1940 to December 1943. The 196th Infantry was then

replaced in Norway by the 14th Luftwaffe Field Division; however, it left the 345th Infantry Regimentbehind under the control of the 199th Infantry Division. As a two-regiment division, most of it wassent to Russia in July 1944, where it was part of Army Group Center. It suffered heavy losses in thefighting in Belorussia (White Russia) and Poland. The High Command disbanded the burned-outdivision on September 15, 1944. Its survivors were divided between the 131st and 361st InfantryDivisions.

The commanders of the 196th Infantry included Lieutenant General Richard Pellengahr (November27, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Dr. Friedrich Franek (March 1, 1942), Colonel KurtMoehring (December 23, 1943), Colonel Klinge (February 1944), and Major General Friedrich vonUnger (June 1944).Notes and Sources: The 233rd Reconnaissance Battalion and part of the 233rd Artillery Regiment remained in Norway. Pellengahr was promoted to lieutenantgeneral on June 1, 1940. Franek was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943.Keilig: 94; Kursietis: 156; Nafziger 2000: 190; RA: 100; OB 42: 92; OB 43: 154; OB 44: 211; OB 45: 199. The 196th was absent from Army Group Center’s Order ofBattle as early as September 16, 1944 (Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume Volume IV: 1874–83).

197TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 321st Infantry Regiment, 332nd Infantry Regiment, 347th Infantry Regiment, 229th

Artillery Regiment, 229th Reconnaissance Battalion, 229th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 229th Engineer,Battalion, 229th Signal Battalion, 229th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Kalisch, later Idar-Oberstein, Wehrkreis XII

Raised in the middle Rhineland, Hesse and Saar from existing replacement-training units, it wasactivated in the Posen area of Wehrkreis XXI on December 1, 1939. It absorbed the 183rd LandwehrRegiment on January 8, 1940. It was with Army Group C opposite the Maginot Line during theconquest of France. The 197th Infantry was on garrison duty in the Netherlands until February 1941,when it returned to Kalisch. On May 7, 1941, its III/347th Infantry Regiment was detached from thedivision and sent to Africa, where it became the I/200th Rifle Regiment of the 90th Light Division.The 197th Infantry Division, meanwhile, was sent to the central sector of the Russian Front in July1941, and remained there throughout the rest of its existence. It fought at Smolensk, played aprominent role in the minor battle of encirclement at Roslavl in August, defended a sector nearVyasma in September, and took part in the battles around Moscow in December 1941 and January1942. Engaged in skirmishing and the defensive battles of Army Group Center in 1942, the 197th alsotook part in the Rzhev withdrawal in early 1943. By April 30, it was down to four grenadierbattalions, and the 321st Grenadier Regiment had been disbanded. The division was involved in thefighting west of Smolensk in the fall of 1943, and most of it was destroyed in the huge Sovietoffensive in the summer of 1944. The division broke up that July near Vitebsk, along with much of the3rd Panzer Army and the bulk of the 4th Army. The last commander of the 197th Infantry Division,Colonel Hans Hahne, is still missing and was presumably killed. The divisional staff, however, waspulled out of the battle after Hahne disappeared on June 24 and was used to form Staff, CorpsDetachment H.

Divisional commanders of the 197th include Major General/Lieutenant General Hermann Meyer-Kabingen (December 1, 1939), Lieutenant General Ehrenfried Boege (April 1, 1942), Major GeneralEugen Wössner (November 5, 1943), and Hahne (March 14, 1944).Notes and Sources: Corps Detachment H became the 95th Infantry Division in September 1944. Meyer-Kabingen was promoted to lieutenant general on November1, 1941. Hahne was promoted to major general on July 1, 1944.Carell 1966: 66, 330, 350; Carell 1971: 309, 597; Keilig: 226; F. W. Kueppers, Taten und Schicksal der mittelrheinisch-hessisch-saarpfälzischen 197. Infanterie-Division (1969); Tessin, Vol. 7: 281–82; RA: 188; OB 42: 92; OB 43: 155; OB 44: 211; OB 45: 200.

198TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 305th Infantry Regiment, 308th Infantry Regiment, 326th Regiment, 235th Artillery

Regiment, 235th Reconnaissance Battalion, 235th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 235th EngineerBattalion, 235th Signal Battalion, 235th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Konstanz, Wehrkreis VMobilized on December 1, 1939, in the Prague and Pilsen areas of Bohemia-Moravia, the 198th

consisted mainly of previously existing replacement-training units. It also incorporated the former35th Landwehr Regiment, which included a large number of thirty-five to forty-five year-old men,into its organization as the 326th Infantry Regiment in January 1940. The division was involved in theinvasion of Denmark and helped occupy the capital of Copenhagen on April 9, 1940. It was sent toFrance in July of that year but did not see any action in the Western campaign. It was on occupationduty in eastern France until March 1941, when it was ordered to Romania.

It took part in the invasion of Greece on April 5, 1941, and invaded Russia as a part of ArmyGroup South that summer. It fought west of the Dnieper, at Dnepropetrovsk, on the Mius, at Rostov,and in the winter battles of 1941–42, during which it retreated back to the Mius. Two of its infantrybattalions had been disbanded due to casualties by mid-August 1941. It helped retake Rostov in thesummer of 1942, and fought in the Caucasus and Kuban campaigns of 1942–43. The division took partin the capture of Novorossiysk, a major Russian naval base on the Black Sea, in the summer of 1942,

served in the rearguard of the 17th Army on the retreat back into the Kuban, and was involved in theSiege of Novorossiysk, beginning shortly after the Russian amphibious landing there in February1943. Later that year the 198th fought in battles of Isjum (June–July 1943), and Kharkov (August),where it suffered heavy losses and was reduced to kampfgruppe strength. It also took part in theretreat to the Dnieper (fall 1943). The 198th Infantry was encircled at Cherkassy in February 1944,and although it managed to break out and escape, it suffered heavy losses in men and equipment.

After retreating into Romania, the division was pulled out of the line in March 1944, and wasreformed at Milowitz, using elements of the temporary Shadow Division Bohemia (Bohmen). It alsoabsorbed the 1432nd Fortress Infantry Battalion, the 8th Ships Cadre Battalion from the navy, part ofa security battalion, and assorted other remnants and odds and ends. Subsequently transferred toNarbonne on the French Mediterranean coast, it faced the Allied invasion of southern France inAugust 1944, and suffered heavy casualties once again in the withdrawal to the Vosges Mountains andsouthern Alsace. Almost continuously engaged for seven months, the 198th was part of Himmler’sabortive attempt to take Strasbourg in January 1945. By the end of the month it was down to a strengthof 6,891 men, about half its normal establishment. In March 1945, the division was crushed when theColmar bridgehead was overrun; however, remnants of the 198th managed to escape across the Rhineand continued to serve on the Western Front until the end of the war a few weeks later. Theywithdrew to the Necker, where they surrendered to the Americans.

The 198th’s divisional commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Otto Röttig(January 10, 1940), Colonel/Major General Albert Buck (April 10, 1942), Major General LudwigMuller (September 6, 1942), Colonel/Major General Hans-Joachim von Horn (February 5, 1943),Major General Otto Richter (June 1, 1944), Lieutenant General Kurt Oppenländer (August 1, 1944),Colonel Alfred Kuhnert (August 5, 1944), Richter (returned August 1944), Lieutenant Colonel Baronvon Finck (August 28, 1944), Colonel/Major General Schiel (September 3, 1944), Major GeneralKonrad Barde (January 18, 1945), and Lieutenant General Helmut Staedke (April 26, 1945).Notes and Sources: Roettig was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1941. Buck was promoted to major general on July 1, 1942. He was killed in action onSeptember 6, 1942. Horn was promoted to major general on April 1, 1943. He was relieved of his command on May 31, 1944, for submitting too honest a report. OttoRichter was captured by the Allies on August 28, 1944. Baron von Finck was seriously injured in an accident in September. Schiel was promoted to major general onOctober 1, 1944. He was apparently wounded on January 17, 1945.Air University Files SRGG 1106 (c); Carell 1966: 31, 559–60; Carell 1971: 159, 186; Chant, Volume 14: 1914; Volume 17: 2274, 2277; Gerhard Graser, ZwischenKattegat und Kaukasus: Weg und Kämpfe der 198. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1961); Keilig: 281; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1147; Lexikon; Manstein:488; Nafziger 2000: 193–94; Tessin, Vol. 7: 285–86; OB 43: 155; OB 45: 200–201; Ziemke 1959: 61.

199TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1943): 341st Infantry Regiment, 357th Infantry Regiment, 410th Infantry Regiment,

199th Artillery Regiment, 199th Reconnaissance Battalion, 199th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 199thEngineer Battalion, 199th Signal Battalion, 199th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Goldap, Wehrkreis IThis division was formed in Norway on November 1, 1940, from previously mobilized Landwehr

(older age group) regiments and elements of the 69th, 163rd, 181st, 196th and 214th InfantryDivisions. Apparently the 199th was judged unfit for prolonged combat because of the age of its men;however, it was kept in existence as an occupation force. In late 1940, the division was sent to Oslo,Norway, and from June 1941 to February 1945 was on garrison duty in the Narvik sector, in thenorthern part of the country. Meanwhile, it was reorganized into a Type 44 (six grenadier battalion)division. Earmarked for the Eastern Front, it was sent to Oslo in March 1945, and then to Denmark in

April. Part of the division fought against the Russians in Brandenburg; the rest of the 199thsurrendered to the Americans at Havelberg in May 1945.

Its commanders included Lieutenant General Hans von Kempski (November 1, 1940),Colonel/Major General Wilhelm Raithel (April 1, 1942), Major General Walter Wissmath (August 1,1943), and Lieutenant General Hellwig Luz (June 20, 1944).Notes and Sources: Raithel was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942.Keilig: 267; Kursietis: 157; Nafziger 2000: 195; Tessin, Vol. 7: 289–90; RA: 100; OB 42: 92–93; OB 43: 155; OB 45: 201.

200TH REPLACEMENT DIVISIONComposition: 201st Field Recruit Regiment, 202nd Field Recruit Regiment, 200th Artillery

Battalion, 200th Engineer BattalionThis division was formed in Poland on June 1, 1940, as part of an effort to recruit men from the Eastfor the German Army. It was dissolved on August 9, 1940, after the fall of France.Source: Nafziger 2000: 574.

201ST SECURITY DIVISIONComposition: 406th Grenadier Regiment, 601st Security Regiment, III/213rd Artillery Regiment,

466th Fusilier Company, 201st Ost Cavalry Squadron, 466th Engineer Company, 201st SignalCompany, 466th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanau, later FrankfurtamMain, Wehrkreis IXThis division began its existence as the 201st Replacement Brigade, which was formed at Fulda on

June 15, 1941. It included the 601st, 609th and 611th Infantry Replacement Regiments. The brigadewas sent to Poland in July 1941, and by the end of the year was engaged in sending march(replacement) battalions to Army Group North. The headquarters itself was sent White Russia(Belorussia), where it was redesignated 201st Security Brigade on February 5, 1942. Its mission wasto protect rear area installations and lines of communications for Army Group Center. It initiallyincluded the 663rd and 824th Landesschützen Battalions. Later it added the 724th Secret PoliceGroup and several other Landesschützen battalions. It was upgraded to divisional status on June 1,1942. Several other units were attached to the division at various times, although they were notorganic to it. These included Staff, 64th Special Purposes Security Regiment; at least fiveindependent security battalions; the 61st and 67th Panzer Platoons (equipped with captured Russiantanks); and the 7th and 27th Field Gendarmerie Companies. In February 1943, the division was sentto the front lines. Back in the rear area by April 1944, it nevertheless suffered heavy casualties nearMinsk, where the bulk of the 9th Army was destroyed. The Staff and small elements of the 201stSecurity Division escaped to the north and spent the rest of the war in the rear area of Army GroupNorth (later Courland), in the Courland Pocket. By January 1945, the 201st Security was basically aheadquarters without any combat elements. It was disbanded shortly thereafter.

German signals troops lay a telephone line on the Western Front, 1940. Early in the war, almost every German combat division had asignals battalion, although this was replaced by a signals company in many units later in the war.

The commanders of the 201st Replacement/Security Brigade/Division included Major GeneralErnst Schellmann (June 17, 1941), Major General Eugen Demoll (April 10, 1942), MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Alfred Jacobi (May 20, 1942), Major General Martin Berg (October 13,1944), and Colonel/Major General Anton Eberth (October 20, 1944).Notes and Sources: Jacobi was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. Eberth became a major general on January 30, 1945.Carell 1971: 577–97; Keilig: 77; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Tessin, Vol. 8: 2–3; OB 43: 212; OB 45: 201.

203RD SECURITY (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition: 608th Security Regiment, 613th Security Regiment, 930th Security Regiment, 507th

Artillery Battalion, 203rd Fusilier Company, 203rd Tank Destroyer Battalion (later Company), 203rdEngineer Company, 203rd Signal Company, 1/203rd Ost Battalion, 2/203rd Ost Cavalry Troop,203rd Ost Battery, 203rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Landsberg/Wartha, later Brandenburg, Wehrkreis IIIThis unit began its career was the 203rd Replacement Brigade, which was formed in Potsdam on

June 14, 1941. Initially it controlled the 603rd, 608th, and 613rd Infantry Replacement Regiments. InJuly, it was transferred to the Generalgouvernement, where it headquartered at Kielce and performedline of communications duties for Army Group Center. It was redesignated 203rd Security Brigade onDecember 24, 1941, and was expanded into the 203rd Security Division on June 1, 1942. Thecreation of this and other security divisions and brigades reflect the growing concern of the HighCommand for the rear areas of their eastern armies, then plagued by partisan activity. (The 202nd and204th Security Brigades, however, were never upgraded to divisions.) Still assigned to Army GroupCenter, the 203rd protected rear area installations and conducted anti-partisan operations until thesummer of 1944, when it ended up on the front lines. It suffered heavy losses against the Soviet

summer offensive in July 1944. Nevertheless, it continued in action on the Eastern Front. It wasredesignated 203rd Infantry Division on October 21, 1944, and its security regiments became two-battalion grenadier regiments. Its artillery battalion was expanded into a regiment of four battalions.The new division fought on the Narev (in the Lomza vicinity) and at Danzig, where it was smashed.The remnants of the division joined 2nd Army on the Vistula, while the Staff retreated to the Helapeninsula. It was still there when the war ended.

Commanders of the 203rd Replacement/Security/Infantry Brigade/Division were Major GeneralGottfried Barton (June 18, 1941), Lieutenant General Rudolf Pilz (January 1, 1943), LieutenantGeneral Max Horn (August 19, 1944), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Thomas (November 18, 1944),and Major General Fritz Gaedicke (December 26, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Gaedicke was a POW in Russia until 1949.Keilig: 257; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1898; Kursietis: 157–58; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 18–19; RA: 46; OB 43: 213; OB 45: 202.

205TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 335th Infantry Regiment, 353rd Infantry Regiment, 358th Infantry Regiment, 205th

Artillery Regiment, 205th Reconnaissance Company, 205th Anti-Tank Battalion, 205th EngineerBattalion, 205th Signal Battalion, 205th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Ulm, Wehrkreis VThis Württemberg-Baden unit was activated as the 14th Landwehr Division on August 26, 1939.

Later, most of its older personnel were replaced by younger men. It was redesignated 205th InfantryDivision on January 1, 1940, and faced the French on the Maginot Line in June 1940. The 205th wason garrison duty in France in 1941, but was hurriedly sent to the Russian Front after the Soviet winteroffensive began. With Army Group Center it held positions north of the Moscow-Smolensk Highwayagainst heavy Communist attacks. The 205th remained with the 9th Army, Army Group Center,throughout 1942 and much of 1943, holding a sector near Yelikije-Luki. It was transferred to ArmyGroup North that autumn. Meanwhile, three of its grenadier battalions were so depleted by casualtiesthat they had to be disbanded. Their soldiers were transferred to other battalions within the division.The 205th Infantry Division fought at Nevel, Polozh, and Dümberg and in the retreat to Latvia, andproved to be an excellent defensive division in all its engagements. In Latvia in 1944, for example, itheld off five Soviet Guard divisions for four days, and destroyed forty-one enemy tanks in theprocess. It was isolated in the Courland Pocket after the retreat through the Baltic States that fall. Itfought in the six battles of the Courland Pocket but remained isolated in western Latvia for the rest ofthe war.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst Richter (August 26, 1939),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Paul Seyffardt (March 1, 1942), Colonel EdmundBlaurock (July 15, 1943), Seyffardt (returned August 15, 1943), Colonel Ernst Michael (November 5,1943), Major General/Lieutenant General Horst von Mellenthin (December 1, 1943), Colonel ErnstBiehler (October 20, 1944), and Colonel/Major General Karl Giese (November 15, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Richter was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1939. Seyffardt was promoted to major general on June 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on January 1, 1943. Horst von Mellenthin became a lieutenant general on July 1, 1944. Karl Giese reached the rank of major general on April 1, 1945.Carell 1966: 385, 390; Hartmann: 24–25; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 121–22; Keilig: 34, 36, 107, 222; Lexikon; Mellenthin 1977: 140–41; Mehner, Vol. 11: 364; Tessin,Vol. 8: 18–19; RA: 86; OB 42: 93; OB 43: 156; OB 45: 202.

206TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 301st Infantry Regiment, 312th Infantry Regiment, 413th Infantry Regiment, 206th

Artillery Regiment, 206th Reconnaissance Battalion, 206th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 206th EngineerBattalion, 206th Signal Battalion, 206th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Insterburg, later Bialystok, Wehrkreis IFormed on August 17, 1939, this East Prussian unit initially consisted of a high portion of older

(Landwehr) personnel. Later, an infusion of younger troops gave the division’s soldiery a normal agedistribution. It served in Poland in 1939, remained there as part of OKH’s eastern reserve in 1940,was in East Prussia (1940–41) and was involved in the Russian campaign from the beginning. Itfought at Duenaberg, Velikije-Luka and Kalinin, and, along with the 26th Infantry Division, tookRzhev on the Volga River between Moscow and Leningrad in October 1941; however, the divisionwas shattered by Russian counterattacks near Moscow from December 22, 1941 to January 4, 1942.Later that month it was briefly surrounded, along with the XXIII Corps, south of Lake Volga.

In the spring of 1942, the 312th Infantry Regiment was disbanded, along with three infantrybattalions, and the 206th Tank Destroyer and 206th Reconnaissance Battalions were combined toform a single schnelle battalion. The division remained with Army Group Center for the rest of itsexistence, taking part in the defensive battles around Rzhev (1942–43), the Rzhev withdrawal inMarch 1943, and the Battle of Smolensk (August 1943), among others. The 312th Grenadier Regimentwas reconstituted in April 1944 (from elements of the 52nd Security Division), but the othergrenadier regiments were reduced to two battalions each. As part of LIII Corps, 3rd Panzer Army, thedivision was crushed by the massive Soviet summer offensive of 1944. Encircled at Vitebsk andordered to stay there by Adolf Hitler himself, the divisional commander, Lieutenant General AlfonsHitter, ordered a breakout on his own responsibility. Only a few of the division’s 12,000 menmanaged to escape, however; the division was overwhelmed and destroyed on June 28. GeneralHitter was among those taken prisoner. On July 18, 1944, the demobilization office officiallydeclared the historic East Prussian 301st, 312th, and 413th Grenadier Regiments disbanded and the206th Infantry Division dead.

Commanders of the 206th included: Major General Hugo Hoefl (August 26, 1939), Colonel BaronAlbrecht Digeon von Monteton (April 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General AlfonsHitter (May 3, 1942), Colonel Carl Andre (July 13, 1943), and Hitter (returned July 15, 1943).Notes and Sources: A few days before Hitter’s breakout attempt at Vitebsk, the rest of the LIII Corps also attempted to break out of the encirclement. Like the206th Infantry, few of its men escaped. Hugo Hoefl was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1941. Hitter was promoted to major general on August 1, 1942, andto lieutenant general on March 1, 1943. He remained in Soviet prisons until 1955.Carell 1966: 357, 360–62, 394; Carell 1971: 305, 309, 586, 597; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 64–65; Keilig: 143, 144; Kennedy: 74; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I:1122; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 197–99; Ernst Payk, Die Geschichte der 206. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1944 (1952); Tessin, Vol. 8: 23–24; Seaton: 438–39; OB 43:156; OB 44: 212; OB 45: 202–3.

207TH INFANTRY (LATER SECURITY) DIVISIONComposition (early 1942): 322nd Security Regiment, 374th Security Regiment, 207th Bicycle

Squadron, 207th Tank Destroyer Company, 207th Engineer Company, 207th Signal Company, 207thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Stargard, Wehrkreis IIFormed as an infantry division in the summer of 1939, the 207th fought in Poland, where it attacked

from Pomerania toward Danzig and played a major role in cutting the Polish corridor in the first weekof the war. At this time, it included the 322nd, 368th, and 374th Infantry Regiments. Not involved inthe French campaign (as it was part of OKH’s eastern reserve in Poland), the 207th was sent to theGross-Born Troop Maneuver Area in Pomerania and was converted to a security division in the

winter of 1940–41. It was stripped of one of its three infantry regiments (the 368th), itsreconnaissance battalion (which became a bicycle squadron [company]), and all its artillery. Duringthe Russian campaign the division performed line of communications and security operations forArmy Group North, although it did see action as a “mopping-up” unit, particularly in the Lake Ladogaarea. Meanwhile, it added the 821st Signal Battalion (December 1941) and the 207th CavalryBattalion (April 1942) to its establishment. It headquartered at Tartu, Estonia, for much of the 1941–44 period.

The 207th Security was reorganized more like a combat division in the fall of 1942 and, by the endof October, included the 374th Grenadier Regiment, the 94th Security Regiment (three battalionseach), the II Battalion/9th Police Regiment, the 207th Ost Cavalry Battalion, the 207th PanzerCompany (equipped with captured Russian tanks), and the 207th Artillery Battalion. In the spring of1944, it added an artillery battalion (II/13th Luftwaffe Field Artillery Regiment) and the Staff, 207thArtillery Regiment. The 207th Security Division was thrown into the main battle line against theRussian offensive near Lake Peipus in April 1944 and suffered such heavy casualties by August that itwas at kampfgruppe strength and its 374th Regiment had to be disbanded. The division itself ceasedto exist as a combat unit in November 1944, when its combat elements were disbanded and their mentransferred to other commands. The division staff was assigned to 16th Army and sent to the northerncoast, where it became the 207th Special Purposes Division Staff (Div. Stab z.b.V. 207 ). Here itperformed security and rear area tasks until the end of the war. It surrendered on May 9, 1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Karl von Tiedemann(September 1, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Erich Hofmann (January 1, 1943), MajorGeneral Count Bogislav von Schwerin (November 1943), Major General Martin Berg (September17, 1944), and Major General Johannes-Oskar Brauer (January 28, 1945).Notes and Sources: Tiedemann was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1939. Hofmann became a lieutenant general on September 1, 1943. Bogislav vonSchwerin was killed in action at Dorpat on September 17, 1944.Carell 1971: 260; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 67–68; Keilig: 346; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1122; Kursietis: 158; Lexikon; Tessin,Vol. 8: 28–32; OB 42: 114; OB 43: 114; OB 45: 203.

208TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 309th Infantry Regiment, 337th Infantry Regiment, 338th Infantry Regiment, 208th

Artillery Regiment, 208th Reconnaissance Company, 208th Anti-Tank Battalion, 208th EngineerBattalion, 208th Signal Battalion, 208th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Lübben, Wehrkreis IIIThis third-wave division was formed upon mobilization on August 26, 1939. It consisted mainly of

Prussian Landwehr (ages thirty-five to forty-five) in the beginning. It was lightly engaged in Polandand France and remained in the Calais area of northern France and Belgium until December 1941.During this time it incorporated a large number of young men into its ranks, and its age structurebecame normal. Rushed to Russia in an emergency situation in the winter of 1941–42, it was initiallysplit up, with one infantry regiment going to the 4th Army and the remaining two joining the 9th Army.The 208th was later reunited around Shisdra (near Orel) and remained on the Eastern Front for therest of the war. It fought at Kursk in July and August 1943, and suffered heavy losses in the northernUkraine. Three of its nine grenadier battalions had been destroyed or disbanded by August and therest of its units were seriously depleted by casualties. Although at kampfgruppe strength, the 208thcontinued to fight at Kiev (October–November), Vinniza (December 1943–February 1944), andTarnopol (March 1944), and in the Hube Pocket (March–April 1944). It was fighting in southern

Poland in autumn 1944. The 208th later fought at Gorlice, in Slovakia and in Silesia, and ended thewar in the pocket near Hohenelbe-Turnau in May 1945. It went into Soviet captivity.

The divisional commanders of this unit were Major General/Lieutenant Generals Moritz Andreas(August 26, 1939), Major General Hans-Karl von Scheele (December 13, 1941), Lieutenant GeneralEdgar Hielscher (September 28, 1942), Scheele (returned November 21, 1942), Colonel Karl-Wilhelm von Schlieben (February 1, 1943), Colonel Georg Zwade (April 1943), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hans Piekendrock (June 22, 1943), Colonel Lothar Berger (March 30,1945), and Piekendrock (April 6, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Andreas was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1942. Piekendorck was promoted to major general on August 1, 1943, and to lieutenantgeneral on March 1, 1944. He was a Russian prisoner until 1955.Carell 1966: 408–09, Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 69–70; Keilig: 11; Kennedy: 74; Nafziger 2000: 201–2; RA: 46; Tessin, Vol. 8: 33–34; OB 42: 92; OB 43: 156; OB 45:203. Also see Heinz Hohne, Canaris, 1979, for the story of Lieutenant General Piekenbrock’s intelligence service career (hereafter cited as “Hohne 1979”).

209TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 304th Infantry Regiment, 394th Infantry Regiment, 414th Infantry Regiment, 209th

Artillery Regiment, 209th Reconnaissance Battalion, 209th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 209th EngineerBattalion, 209th Signal Battalion, 209th Field Replacement Battalion , 209th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Komotau, Wehrkreis IVOrganized upon mobilization on August 26, 1939, the 209th consisted of Saxon personnel from the

older age groups. Most of its men came from Landwehr Command Chemnitz (Landwehr-Kommandeur Chemnitz). The division was sent to the Saar (opposite the Maginot Line) inSeptember, but was sent back east in November, where it was part of Frontier Guard Sector Center inwhat was formerly Poland. After the French campaign, it was disbanded on July 24, 1940. The Staffs,304th and 394th Infantry Regiments, were used to form the Staffs, 304th and 394th Rifle (later PanzerGrenadier) Regiments of the 2nd and 3rd Panzer Divisions, respectively. The Staff, 209th ArtilleryRegiment became Staff, 88th Artillery (later Panzer Artillery) Regiment, 18th Panzer Division. Oneof the division’s artillery battalions remained intact and joined the 18th Panzer, as did most of the209th Engineer and 209th Signal Battalions.

The commanders of the 209th Infantry Division were Major General Hans Stengal (August 26,1939) and Major General/Lieutenant General Wolf Schede (January 7, 1940).Notes and Sources: The order disbanding the 209th was issued on July 24, 1940, and had been carried out by August 24. Schede was promoted to lieutenant generalon July 1, 1940.Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 71; Keilig: 295; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1123; Nafziger 2000: 202; Tessin, Vol. 8: 39; RA: 72; OB 42: 94; OB 45: 204.

210TH INFANTRY DIVISION (COASTAL DEFENSE)Composition (1942): 661st Fortress Battalion, 662nd Fortress Battalion, 663rd Fortress Battalion,

664th Fortress Battalion, 665th Fortress Battalion, 37th Army Coastal Defense Artillery Regimentz.b.V. (with the 448th, 478th, 480th and 773rd Army Coastal Defense Artillery Battalions), 3./67thMountain Signal Battalion (later designated 210th Signal Company), 210th Divisional Supply Troops.The 9th Motorcycle Battalion was attached later.

Home Station: Aschaffenburg, Wehrkreis IXThe divisional headquarters of the 210th was created in Kassel on July 7, 1942, and was sent to

Norway to assume control of five fortress battalions on the Arctic coast. The 388th Infantry Regiment

of the 214th Infantry Division was also attached to the 210th. It was soon sent to Lapland in northernFinland/Russia and remained there until the Finnish capitulation in the fall of 1944. Its mission was toprevent an Allied amphibious assault in the rear of the 20th Mountain Army. It took part in the retreatback to Norway with the XIX Mountain Corps. Posted at Trondheim in central Norway (with FortressBrigade Lofoten attached), the 210th was still on coastal defense duty when the Third Reich fell.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Wintergerst (July 7, 1942),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Ebeling (February 1, 1944), and Lieutenant GeneralKarl Hernekampf (March 10, 1945).Notes and Sources: Wintergerst was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. Eberling was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on April 1, 1943.Keilig: 87, 373; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1899; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 202–3; Tessin, Vol. 8: 43; OB 43: 158; OB 44: 214; OB 44b: 81; OB 45: 204;Ziemke 1959; 230, 245, 303; Ziemke 1966: 399.

211TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 306th Infantry Regiment, 317th Infantry Regiment, 365th Infantry Regiment, 211th

Artillery Regiment, 211th Reconnaissance Battalion, 211th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 211th EngineerBattalion, 211th Signal Battalion, 211th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bonn, Wehrkreis VI; 1944: CologneActivated upon mobilization, this division was made up of Landwehr personnel from Cologne. It

was immediately sent to the Eifel (the German Ardennes) and remained there until the Wehrmachtinvaded France. It was in Brittany, France on occupation duty in 1941, where its personnel agestructure was made normal. In January 1942, it was sent to Russia, where the Soviet winter offensivehad created a major crisis, and held a sector near Bryansk from February 1942 to July 1943.Meanwhile, three of its grenadier battalions were disbanded due to high casualties. It was involved inheavy fighting at Kursk (July 1943), Dorogobusch (August–November), Nevel (December 1943),Vitebsk (January–February 1944), at Kovel and in White Russia in the summer of 1944. The divisionwas pulled out of the line in late 1944 and was reformed as a Volksgrenadier unit on November 25,but was back in action (at battle group strength) on the southern sector of the Eastern Front in January1945. It participated in the Hungarian campaign and was in lower Austria when Germanysurrendered. Part of the division surrendered to the Americans and part went into Russian captivity.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Kurt Renner (August 26,1939), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Richard Müller (February 4, 1942), andColonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Heinrich Eckhardt (July 11, 1943–end).Notes and Sources: Renner was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1940. Müller was promoted to major general on March 1, 1942, and to lieutenant generaleffective January 1, 1943. Eckhardt was promoted to major general on October 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1944. Sources differ as to the exact day heassumed command. One places it as late as July 17, 1943. Both Renner and Mueller were later killed in action on the Eastern Front.Rudolf Grube, Unternehmen Erinnerung: Eine Chronik über den Weg ünd den Einsatz des Grenadier-Regiment 317 in der 211. Infanterie-Division, 1935–1945 (1961);Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 72–73; Keilig: 77, 233, 273; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1145; Nafziger 2000: 205–6; Tessin, Vol. 8: 46–47; RA: 100; OB 42: 94;OB 43: 157; OB 45: 204.

212TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 316th Infantry Regiment, 320th Infantry Regiment, 423rd Infantry Regiment, 212th

Artillery Regiment, 212th Bicycle Company, 212th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 212th EngineerBattalion, 212th Signal Battalion, 212th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Neuberg, later Augsburg, Wehrkreis VII

Initially consisting of southern Bavarians from the older age groups, this division was mobilized onAugust 26, 1939, and was on the Saar Front while the bulk of the German Army overran Poland in1939. The next year it took part in the French campaign with the 16th Army. It was sent back toBavaria in July but was returned to France in March 1941, where it held a sector on the Channelcoast. Its older personnel were largely replaced by younger men before the 212th was sent to thenorthern sector of the Russian Front in the winter of 1941–42. In November 1941, it joined ArmyGroup North, took part in the siege of Leningrad, and repulsed several heavy Soviet attacks in theSecond Battle of Lake Ladoga in early 1943. It defended a sector near Volchov from March 1943 toJanuary 1944, and suffered heavy casualties in the retreat through Lithuania in the summer of 1944.

A German artillery piece in action on the Eastern Front.

Completely shattered by autumn, the 212th was withdrawn to Poland and rebuilt as aVolksgrenadier division with recruits from Upper Bavaria. (It officially became a Volksgrenadierdivision on September 17.) Its new personnel were better than average for the fifth year of the war,but the rebuilt 212th still had too high a proportion of seventeen-year-olds. The division returned toaction on the Western Front, fought at Trier and Echternach, and took heavy losses in the Battle of theBulge. It lost about 4,000 men in this operation in December 1944 and January 1945; the average riflecompany’s strength was reduced to twenty-five to thirty men. In February 1945, the 212thVolksgrenadier was smashed by the U.S. 3rd Army in the West Wall battles but remained in action tothe end, resisting the Allied sweep through southern Germany and Franconia at the last. It surrenderedto the Americans near Baumholder in May 1945.

The division’s commanders included Major General Walter Friedrichs (August 26, 1939),Lieutenant General Theodor Endres (September 15, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHellmuth Reymann (October 1, 1942), Colonel Herbert Wagner (June 30, 1943), Reymann (returnedAugust 11, 1943), Colonel/Major General Dr. Karl Koske (October 1, 1943), Major

General/Lieutenant General Franz Sensfuss (May 1, 1944), Major General Eugen Theilacker (January1945), Sensfuss (February 1945), Major General Max Ulich (April 1, 1945), and Major GeneralBaron Jobst von Buddenbrock (April 21, 1945).Notes and Sources: Reymann was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. Karl Koske was promoted to major general on January 1, 1944. He was killedduring an Allied bomber attack on Vienna while he was home on leave, May 8, 1944. Sensfuss was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944.Bradley et al., Vol. 2: 324–25; Carell 1971: 280; Cole 1965: 214, 507; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Keilig: 54, 322, 351; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, VolumeI: 1147; Volume III: 1158; Lexikon; MacDonald 1973: 100, 105; Mehner, Vol. 12: 457; Tessin, Vol. 8: 52–53; RA: 116; OB 42: 94; OB 43: 158; OB 45: 205.

213TH INFANTRY (LATER SECURITY) DIVISIONComposition (1942): 53rd Landesschuetzen Regiment, 318th Reinforced Infantry Regiment, 254th

Reinforced Infantry Regiment, 703rd Wach (Guard) Battalion, I/213th Artillery Regiment, 213thCyclist Company, 213th Engineer Battalion, 213th Signal Company, 213th Cavalry Battalion, 213thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Bunzlau, Wehrkreis VIIIThe 213th was formed as an infantry division in the Breslau area in June 1939, and included the

318th, 354th, and 406th Infantry Regiments and the 213th Artillery Regiment. Mobilized on August26, it played a minor role in the Polish campaign and did not see action in France. In the winter of1940–41 it was converted into a security division, losing two infantry regiments and three artillerybattalions in the process. It did, however, add the Staff, 57th Landesschützen (later Security)Regiment. Officially designated 213th Security Division on March 15, 1941, it followed 6th Armyinto the Ukraine in June and performed line of communications duties in the rear areas of ArmyGroups South, B, Don, and South again, in July 1943. Elements of the division were on the front linesas early as April 22, 1942, when one regiment was used to support the Italian “Celere” InfantryDivision on the southern sector of the Russian Front. In the fall of 1943, the entire division was on thefront line (half attached to the 75th Infantry Division and half to the 88th Infantry Division), where itfought in the Battle of Kiev. Later the 213th Security suffered very heavy losses at Zhitomir(November–December 1943), Vinniza (January-February 1944), and Kovel. It was nevertheless backin action on the central sector in July 1944, after the bulk of the 4th and 9th Armies was encirclednear Minsk and Vitebsk. It was dissolved on September 17, 1944.

The 213th Security’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Rene de l’Hommede Courbiere (August 26, 1939) and Major General/Lieutenant General Alexander Goeschen (August18, 1942–end).Notes and Sources: Homme was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1940. Goeschen was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1943.Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 77–78; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1359–60, 1374, 1387; Volume III: 4, 258, 1156; Tessin, Vol. 8: 62–63; RA: 130; OB 42: 114; OB 43: 213; OB 44: 215; OB 45: 205.

214TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1940): 355th Infantry Regiment, 367th Infantry Regiment, 388th Infantry Regiment,

214th Artillery Regiment, 214th Reconnaissance Battalion, 214th Anti-Tank Battalion, 214thEngineer Battalion, 214th Signal Battalion, 214th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanau, Wehrkreis IXOn August 26, 1939, this division was mobilized as part of the 3rd Wave. Its headquarters was the

former Staff, Landwehr Commander Hanua. It was made up of older personnel from theFrankfurtamMain area. They served on the Saar Front in 1939 and took part in the Norwegiancampaign in 1940. Remaining in Scandinavia, its 388th Infantry Regiment (with the I/214th Artillery

Regiment and part of the engineer battalion) was transferred to the 210th Infantry Division in northernFinland in September 1941. In February 1944, this two-regiment division was sent to the EasternFront and was with Army Group North in the retreat from Leningrad and in the Battle of the Narva.The division was reorganized on February 13, 1944. It absorbed the Shadow Division Mielau’s568th Grenadier Regiment, the 311th Reserve Grenadier Battalion, and a battalion of Mielau’sartillery, as well as an artillery battalion from the defunct 255th Infantry Division. This left the 214thInfantry Division with six grenadier battalions. In the spring of 1944, it was transferred to Poland,where it fought as a part of Army Group North Ukraine at Kovel and on the Vistula in the autumn of1944. It helped contain the Baranov Bridgehead in January 1945, where it was virtually destroyed.The remnants of the 214th Infantry were sent back to Silesia, where they were disbanded in February.Its men were sent to other units on the Eastern Front.

Commanders of the 214th included Major General/Lieutenant General Theodor Groppe (August26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Max Horn (January 30, 1940), Major General CarlWahle (January 1, 1944), Horn (February 15, 1944), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHarry von Kirchbach (March 28, 1944).Notes and Sources: Groppe was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1939. Horn was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1941. Kirchbach waspromoted to major general on May 1, 1944, and to lieutenant general on November 9, 1944. He was captured when the Russians broke out of the Baranov Bridgeheadin late January 1945, and remained a Soviet prisoner until 1955. Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 79–80; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1875, 1886; Kursietis: 160;Nafziger 2000: 209–10; Tessin, Vol. 8: 65–66; RA: 144; OB 43: 158; OB 45: 206; Ziemke 1959: 85, 267.

215TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 380th Infantry Regiment, 390th Infantry Regiment, 435th Infantry Regiment, 215th

Artillery Regiment, 215th Reconnaissance Battalion, 215th Anti-Tank Battalion, 215th EngineerBattalion, 215th Signal Battalion, 215th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Heilbronn, Wehrkreis VCreated upon mobilization in 1939, this third wave division consisted of older men from Baden

and Württemberg. Its headquarters was formed by the former Staff, Landwehr Commander Heilbronn.Later its age structure was made normal by troop transfers. It played a minor part in the Frenchcampaign and stayed in France until the first crisis developed on the Russian Front in November1941. It fought in the Battle of the Volkhov south of Leningrad from December 1941 to March 1942,and remained on the northern sector of the Eastern Front until the end of the war. It fought in the siegeof Leningrad, the Battle of Luga, the Battle of the Narva, the retreat through the Baltic States, and thesix battles of the Courland Pocket. During the course of 1943, three of its grenadier battalions weredisbanded and its tank destroyer and reconnaissance battalions were consolidated into a singleschnelle battalion. The division was cited for its conduct in the defeat of the Soviet attempts tooverrun the Courland Pocket in late 1944. The 215th was still in western Latvia until February 22,1945, when it boarded ships and sailed to West Prussia. It fought at Tucheler Heide and Gotenhafen(where it was largely destroyed) and then was sent to Swinemuende where, on April 6, 1945, it wasdisbanded. The headquarters was used to form Staff, Infantry Division Theodor Koerner (the 3rdRAD Division) and the other survivors of the 215th were transferred to the new unit. They foughttheir final battle south of Berlin later that month and managed to surrender to the Americans in May1945.

Its commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Baptist Kniess (August 26, 1939) andColonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Bruno Frankewitz (November 12, 1942–end).Notes and Sources: Gotenhafen is now Gdynia, Poland. Some sources list the date the 215th Infantry Division was dissolved as April 4, 1945. Kniess was promoted

to lieutenant general on July 1, 1940. Frankewitz was promoted to major general on January 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on July 1, 1943. He later commandedInfantry Division “Theodor Koerner.”Carell 1966: 420–21, 423; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 97–98; Keilig: 94; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 456; Hans Mehrle and Walter Schelm, Von den Kämpfen der 215.Württembergisch-badischen Infanterie-Division (1954); Nafziger 2000: 210–11; Vivian Rowe, The Great Wall of France: The Triumph the Maginot Line, 1967: 273,304 (hereafter cited as “Rowe”); Tessin, Vol. 8: 71–72; RA: 86; OB 42: 95; OB 43: 158; OB 44: 215; OB 45: 206; Konrad Zeller, Hans Mehrle and Theodor Glauner,Weg und Sichicksal der 215. Württembergisch-badischen Infanterie-Division, 1936–1945: Eine Dokumentation in Bildern (1980).

216TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1939): 348th Infantry Regiment, 396th Infantry Regiment, 398th Infantry Regiment,

216th Artillery Regiment, 216th Reconnaissance Battalion, 216th Anti-Tank Battalion, 216thEngineer Battalion, 216th Signal Battalion, 216th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hameln, Wehrkreis XIMade up of Landwehr personnel from Hanover, the lower Saxon 216th Infantry Division was

mobilized on August 26, 1939, and was sent to the Saar sector (opposite the Maginot Line) inSeptember. It was on the lower Rhine that winter and took part in the conquest of Belgium in May1940. It was posted to Antwerp as an occupation force in June and held a sector of the EnglishChannel coast from July 1940 to December 1941. In the meantime, its age structure was made normal.In late 1941 it was transferred to Russia. Part of the division was sent to the 2nd Panzer Army atBryansk, part to the 9th Army at Rzhev, and part to the 4th Army at Juchnov. On January 3, 1942, onebattle group was disembarking from the trains at Sukhinitchi—one of 4th Army’s main ammunitiondumps—when it was surrounded by the Soviet 10th Army. This force included the divisionalheadquarters, one and a half battalions of the 396th Infantry Regiment and one battalion of the 348thInfantry Regiment. With only 4,000 divisional troops and 1,000 supply troops and Soviet volunteers,the 216th under divisional commander Lieutenant General Baron von und zu Gilsa held the town formonths against repeated enemy attacks in one of the most heroic stands of the war.

Later rescued, the division was reunited at Bryansk in July 1942. (Meanwhile, the divisionsuffered so many casualties that its 395th Grenadier Regiment was disbanded in June.) It remainedwith Army Group Center, fought in the defensive battles of 1942, took part in the Rzhev withdrawal(March 1943) and suffered very heavy losses at Kursk and Orel in July and August 1943. Againheavily engaged in the winter of 1943–44, it took so many casualties at Bryansk and Gomel that it hadto be downgraded to a division group on November 17, 1943. This meant that it now had the statusand the combat strength of a regiment. Division Group 216 was attached to the 102nd InfantryDivision, which served on the Eastern Front until the end of the war. The divisional staff and thestaffs of the 348th Grenadier Regiment and the 216th Artillery Regiment were used to form the 272ndInfantry Division.

The division’s commanders included Lieutenant Generals Hermann Boettcher (August 26, 1939),Major General Kurt Himer (September 8, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Wernervon und zu Gilsa (April 1, 1941), Colonel/Major General Friedrich-August Schack (May 7, 1943),Major General Egon von Neindorff (October 5, 1943), and Major General Gustav Gihr (October 20,1943).Notes and Sources: Gilsa was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1942. Schack was posted to major general on July 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 411; Carell 1971: 26, 30; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 99–100; Martin Jenner, Die 216/272. niedersächsische Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1964); Keilig:239; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 6: 540; Nafziger 2000: 210–11; Seaton: 237; Tessin, Vol. 8: 77–79; OB 43: 159; OB 44: 216; OB 45: 206.

217TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 311th Infantry Regiment, 346th Infantry Regiment, 389th Infantry Regiment, 217th

Artillery Regiment, 217th Reconnaissance Battalion, 217th Anti-Tank Battalion, 217th EngineerBattalion, 217th Signal Battalion, 217th Field Replacement Battalion, 217th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Allenstein, later Ortelsburg, Wehrkreis IThe 217th Infantry was formed on August 17, 1939, and mobilized on August 26, 1939, from

Landwehr personnel in East Prussia. It crossed into Poland with the 3rd Army in September 1939 butwas not heavily engaged. It was part of OKH’s reserve in France (1940) but was not committed toaction. It returned to East Prussia in July 1940 and was in the initial invasion of Russia in June 1941,but was mainly involved in coastal defense duties for Army Group North. Meanwhile, its agestructure was made normal. It took part in the sieges of Oranienburg (October 1941–April 1942) andLeningrad (May 1942–February 1943) and later held a sector near Volchov (March–July 1943).During the winter of 1942–43, three of its grenadier battalions had to be disbanded. Sent to thesouthern sector of the Eastern Front in the fall of 1943, it suffered heavy losses in the battles aroundKiev. It was downgraded to Division Group 217 of Corps Detachment C on November 2, 1943, andwas subsequently destroyed at Brody in White Russia in July 1944.

Commanders of the 217th Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Richard Baltzer (August26, 1939), Lieutenant General Friedrich Bayer (April 15, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralOtto Lasch (September 27, 1942), and Lieutenant General Walter Poppe (October 1943).Notes and Sources: Sources differ as to the exact date Bayer assumed command. One places it as early as February 15, 1942; Keilig and Kursietis place it in April.Lasch was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943.Chant, Volume 14: 1914; Volume 15: 2057; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 101–2; Lange: 9–116; Keilig: 20, 23; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kursietis: 162; Nafziger 2000:213–14; Seaton: 446–49; Tessin, Vol. 8: 82–83; RA: 20; OB 42: 96; OB 43: 159; OB 44: 216; OB 45: 207.

218TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 323rd Infantry Regiment, 386th Infantry Regiment, 397th Infantry Regiment, 218th

Artillery Regiment, 218th Reconnaissance Battalion, 218th Anti-Tank Battalion, 218th EngineerBattalion, 218th Signal Battalion, 218th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Berlin-Spandau, Wehrkreis III; reportedly also Berlin-RuhlebenThis Berlin Landwehr division was mobilized in August 1939, and served in northern Poland

(1939) and France (1940), both in a secondary role. (In June 1940, it was on the upper Rhine with the7th Army.) It was on occupation duty in Denmark from April 1941 to January 1942, during which itsage structure was made normal. Sent to Russia in February 1942, it fought in all the major campaignsof Army Group North from then until the end of the war. From its arrival in Russia until the earlywinter of 1942–43, elements of the division were attached to a variety of other units, and the entiredivision was not reunited under its own headquarters until December 1943. Much of the 218th wasencircled at Kholm from January 28 to May 5, 1942, before being rescued. Elements of the division,including the 218th Artillery Regiment, took part in the relief of the Kholm garrison that spring. The397th Infantry Regiment, meanwhile, was with the II Corps in the Demjansk salient. Two of itsgrenadier battalions were disbanded due to heavy casualties in June 1942, and a third was dissolvedshortly thereafter. After the siege of Leningrad was broken in late January 1944, the 218th Infantryfought in the retreat across Estonia and was cited for distinguished conduct in the defense of the SaareIsland (Osel) in October 1944. The division was in remnants by November, and the 397th GrenadierRegiment was disbanded the following month. The 218th nevertheless fought against the six Sovietattempts to crush the Courland Pocket. It ended the war there in western Latvia and surrendered to the

Red Army on May 8, 1945.Divisional commanders of this unit included Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Woldemar

Grote (August 26, 1939), Colonel/Major General Baron Horst von Uckermann (January 1, 1942),Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Viktor Lang (March 20, 1942), Major General Ingo vonCollani (December 25, 1944), and Lieutenant General Werner Ranck (May 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: Grote was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1939. Uckermann was promoted to major general on February 1, 1942. Viktor Langwas promoted to major general on July 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943.Carell 1966: 435; Hartmann: 25; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 102–3; Keilig: 116, 268, 351; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1144; Volume II: 1358, 1368–69, 1375–76, 1388–89; Volume III: 7, 260; Volume IV: 1888; Kursietis: 162; James Lucas, War on the Eastern Front, 1941–1945, (1979): 197, 200; Nafziger 2000: 214–15;Tessin, Vol. 8: 88–89; RA: 46; OB 42: 96; OB 43: 159; OB 45: 207.

219TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 177th Grenadier Regiment, 493rd Grenadier Regiment, 604th Grenadier Regiment,

219th Fusilier BattalionThis division was activated in the Den Helder fortified area of the Netherlands on March 22, 1945.

Its staff was the former Staff, 88th Fortress Cadet Regiment. Its 177th Grenadier Regiment was theformer 822nd Georgia Battalion, its 493rd Grenadier Regiment was the former 803rd North CaucasusBattalion, and its 604th Grenadier Regiment was the former 4th Ships Cadre Regiment. It alsoincluded the 219th Fusilier Battalion, which was the former 6th Ships Cadre Battalion. Its formationwas not completed when the war ended. Part of the purpose of declaring it a division was to deceivethe Allies into thinking that it was larger than it actually was. It never received any artillery. It was inOB Netherland’s reserve when Berlin fell.Sources: Lexikon; Nafziger 2000:, 214; Tessin, Vol. 8: 93.

221ST INFANTRY (LATER SECURITY) DIVISIONComposition: 45th Landesschützen Regiment, 350th Reinforced Infantry Regiment, I/221st

Artillery Regiment, 701st Guard Battalion, I/8th Police Regiment, 1st Fusilier Battalion (Cyclist),221st Tank Destroyer Company, 221st Engineer Company, 221st Signal Company, 221st CavalrySquadron (added in 1942), 221st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Breslau, Wehrkreis VIIIFormed upon mobilization from Silesian personnel, the 221st Infantry Division included the 350th,

360th and 375th Infantry Regiments, the 221st Artillery Regiment, and the usual divisional troops. Itcrossed into Poland in 1939, but was not heavily engaged. It remained in Poland until April 1940,when it was sent to the Upper Rhine sector. As part of the German 7th Army, it may have been lightlyengaged in skirmishing against the Maginot Line in June 1940, although it was certainly not heavilyengaged. After a Christmas furlough in 1940, it returned to Wehrkreis VIII and began converting into asecurity division, losing two of its infantry regiments, three of its four artillery battalions, and some ofits supporting units. Its 360th Infantry Regiment and II/221st Artillery Regiment formed the nucleus ofthe 444th Security Division, and the 375th Infantry Regiment and III/221st Artillery Regiment madeup the core of the 454th Security Division. The 221st Security, meanwhile, also added several units(see Composition). Assigned to line of communications duties on the central sector of the RussianFront in 1941, elements of the division were involved in front-line combat as early as January 1942.The 221st Security fought in the retreat from Moscow but was involved exclusively in security andline of communications duties from April 1942 to September 1943. It fought against the Red Army atGomel in October, but was sent back to White Russia in November. It was smashed at Minsk on June

28, 1944, during the Russian summer offensive. The remnants of the 221st Security Division weretransferred to other security units.

The commanders of the division were Major General/Lieutenant Generals Johann Pflugbeil(August 26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Hubert Lendle (July 5, 1942), Major GeneralKarl Böttger (August 1, 1943), Lendle (returned September 5, 1943), Major General Count Bogislavvon Schwerin (March 1944), and Lendle (April 28, 1944).Notes and Sources: Pflugbeil was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1939. Lendle became a lieutenant general on June 1, 1943.Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 105–6; Keilig: 43, 201; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1123, 1127; Volume II: 1356, 1369, 1374, 1387–88;Volume III: 7,259,733, 1157; Volume IV: 1888–89; Nafziger 2000: 215–16; Tessin, Vol. 8: 103–4; RA: 130; OB 42: 114; OB 43: 214; OB 45: 208.

223RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 344th Infantry Regiment, 385th Infantry Regiment, 425th Infantry Regiment, 223rd

Artillery Regiment, 223rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 223rd Anti-Tank Battalion, 223rd EngineerBattalion, 223rd Signal Battalion, 223rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Dresden, Wehrkreis IVCreated from older (Landwehr) personnel in August 1939, this Saxon division’s headquarters

came from the Staff, Landwehr Commandant Dresden. It was sent to the Saar Front in September. Itwas on occupation duty in the Posen area of Wehrkreis XXI (formerly Podzun, Poland) until March1940, when it was transferred to the 6th Army. The 223rd fought in Belgium and France in May 1940,and remained in France (mainly in Bordeaux) until late 1941. During this period, the divisionunderwent massive personnel transfers and its age structure was made normal. Sent to Army GroupNorth in November 1941, it fought against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, in the Siege ofLeningrad, and in the Battle of Lake Ladoga (August–September 1942). Two of its infantry battalionswere disbanded in June 1942, and a third was disbanded during the winter of 1942–43. Shifted to thesouthern sector in the summer of 1943, it was heavily engaged from the outset. It fought at Velikije-Luki and Kharkov, and was virtually destroyed in the Battle of Kiev. It was dissolved on November23, 1943, and most of its survivors were incorporated into the 275th Infantry Division.

The commanders of the 223rd Infantry Division were Major General/Lieutenant General Paul-Willi Körner (August 26, 1939), Lieutenant General Rudolf Lüters (May 6, 1941), andColonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Christian Usinger (October 20, 1942).Notes and Sources: Körner was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1939. Usinger was promoted to major general on December 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on September 1, 1943. Hartmann: 26; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 107–8; Keilig: 352–53; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II; Nafziger 2000: 216–17; Tessin,Vol. 8: 110–11; RA: 72; OB 42: 96; OB 43: 57, 160; OB 45: 208.

225TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 333rd Infantry Regiment, 337th Infantry Regiment, 376th Infantry Regiment, 225th

Artillery Regiment, 225th Reconnaissance Battalion, 225th Anti-Tank Battalion, 225th EngineerBattalion, 225th Signal Battalion, 225th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hamburg, Wehrkreis XThis division was formed upon mobilization on August 26, 1939, from Landwehr personnel of the

Greater Hamburg area. It was immediately sent to Aachen on the west German frontier and first sawaction in 1940, when it was involved in the drive on Amsterdam. On occupation duty in Belgium andFrance from 1940 until the end of 1941, it was one of several divisions hurriedly sent to the RussianFront in January 1942. By this time its personnel age configuration had been made normal. It was

subordinated to Army Group North (later Courland), and except for a brief attachment to Army GroupCenter in July 1944, it remained under this headquarters until the end of the war. The divisionopposed the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42 and 1942–43, fought at Volchov, took part in thesiege of Leningrad, was heavily engaged in the Battle of Demyansk (November 1942–February 1943)and on Lake Ilmen (March–May 1943). Meanwhile, its 333rd Grenadier Regiment was heavilyengaged in the Battle of the Oranienbaum Pocket, where it lost 448 men killed, 1,050 wounded, and89 missing between May 1 and June 15, 1942. This regiment was disbanded in January 1943, but itsother units also suffered severe casualties. Meanwhile, the 225th Infantry Division absorbed much ofthe defunct 9th Luftwaffe Field Division on February 20, 1944. The 225th was involved in the retreatthrough the Baltic States in 1944 and fought in the six battles of the Courland Pocket (October 1944–April 1945). By the beginning of these battles, it had lost five of its nine grenadier regiments due tocasualties. It ended the war in western Latvia (Courland).

Commanders of the 225th Infantry Division were Lieutenant General Ernst Schaumburg (August 26,1939), Major General Friedrich-Karl von Wachter (July 1, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant GeneralHans von Basse (June 1, 1941), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst-Walther Risse(September 25, 1942–end).Notes and Sources: Hans von Basse was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1942. He was relieved of his command on September 25,1942, and was dismissedfrom the army for reasons not made clear. He obtained reinstatement in mid-1943 but he never held a field command. Risse was promoted to major general onNovember 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. He was a Russian POW until 1955.Carell 1971: 287; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 109–10; Keilig: 22, 278; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Walter Miehe, Der Weg der 225. Infanterie-Division (1980); Nafziger 2000:218–19; Tessin, Vol. 8: 117–18; RA: 160; OB 43: 160; OB 45: 209. Also see Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II.

226TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1040th Grenadier Regiment, 1041st Grenadier Regiment, 1042nd Grenadier

Regiment, 226th Artillery Regiment, 226th Fusilier Battalion, 226th Tank Destroyer Company, 226thEngineer Battalion, 226th Signal Battalion, 226th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VIIIThe 226th was a 27th Wave division hastily formed in the Neuhammer Maneuver Area on June 26,

1944, just after the Normandy Front was on the verge of collapse. Its headquarters was the formerStaff, 111th Infantry Division, which had been destroyed at Sevastopol in April. Most of its personnelwere men on furlough from the Russian Front. They were rushed to France in August and fought in theBattle of Le Havre, during which Paris’s ocean port fell to the Allies. In the subsequent withdrawalnorthward, the 1041st Grenadier Regiment was virtually destroyed at Calais and the rest of thedivision was surrounded at Dunkirk and remained there—at battle group strength—until the end of thewar. The fragment not at Dunkirk (including the Staff, 1041st Grenadier Regiment) was trapped inCalais. The 226th Infantry was one of several units cut off in western France by the rapid Alliedadvances in 1944, and continued to exist in complete isolation until Germany fell.

German horses being off-loaded in Norway, 1940. The belief that the German Wehrmacht was a highly motorized organization is a myth.Of the approximately 140 divisions that fought in the French campaign of 1940, for example, only ten were armored, and a few otherswere motorized; the vast majority were “marching” infantry. In its campaigns in the East, Germany used more than two million horses.NATIONAL ARCHIVES

Its commanders included Lieutenant General Wolfgang von Kluge (July 6–September 9, 1944).Notes and Sources: Wolfgang von Kluge was named Fortress Commander Dunkirk. He was the brother of Field Marshal Günther von Kluge, who knew of the anti-Hitler plot and who committed suicide near Metz on August 19, 1944. Because of this connection, he was relieved of his command. Rear Admiral Frisius then becamefortress commander. Because of his (Frisius’s) relatively low rank, the position of commander, 226th Infantry Division was apparently left vacant, leaving the admiralas the ranking officer in the pocket.Keilig: 174; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1901; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Nafziger 2000: 220; RA: 130; OB 45: 209.

227TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 328th Infantry Regiment, 366th Infantry Regiment, 412th Infantry Regiment, 227th

Artillery Regiment, 227th Reconnaissance Battalion, 227th Anti-Tank Battalion, 227th EngineerBattalion, 227th Signal Battalion, 227th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Düsseldorf, Wehrkreis VIThis Westphalian Landwehr division was mobilized at Krefeld on August 26, 1939. It was

immediately sent to the Eifel and remained there until the French campaign began. It fought in theNetherlands and Belgium in 1940, and was stationed in northeastern France from July 1940 untilDecember 1941. Sent to Russia in late 1941, it fought on the northern sector of the Eastern Front fromthen until almost the end of the war. The 227th took part in the Battle of Volchov, participated in theSiege of Leningrad, suffered heavy casualties in the Battle of Lake Ladoga (August–September 1942),and was encircled by the Soviet 2nd Strike and 67th armies in the next Battle of Lake Ladoga thefollowing January. The Westphalians managed to hedgehog, rally, and break-out of the pocket—atestimony to their skill and toughness. Three of the division’s grenadier battalions, however, were so

badly mauled that they had to be disbanded. Their men, as was usually the case, were transferred toother grenadier battalions in the division.

In 1944, the 227th Infantry Division sustained heavy losses in the Leningrad withdrawal and was inheavy combat in the Courland Pocket in October 1944. Well below strength but a proven combatdivision, the 227th Infantry was withdrawn from Russia by the German Navy and attached to the 2ndArmy, Army Group Vistula. It was cut off in northeastern Germany in the last campaign in the Eastand was finally dissolved on March 27, 1945. The surviving men were incorporated into the 83rdInfantry Division. They were on the Hela peninsula and surrendered to the Russians at the end of thewar. The divisional headquarters became the Staff, Baltic (Ostsee) Panzer Troop Unit on April 16,1945.

The division’s leaders included Colonel/Major General Friedrich Zickwolff (August 26, 1939),Major General Friedrich-Karl von Wachter (May 6, 1940), Zickwolff (July 1, 1940), LieutenantGeneral Friedrich von Scotti (April 12, 1941), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Berlin (June 7, 1943),and Colonel of Reserves/Major General of Reserves Maximilian Wengler (May 11, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: The division was reorganized into a six grenadier battalion unit in mid-1944. The division headquarters was used to form the HQ of PanzerTraining Verbände Baltic Sea in April 1945. Zickwolff was promoted to major general on October 1, 1939. Wengler was promoted to major general of reserves in 1945.He became commander of the 83rd Infantry Division on March 27 and was killed in action on April 26.Carell 1971: 235, 250, 264; Chant, Volume 16: 2235; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 111–12; Keilig: 367; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1898; Lexikon; Nafziger2000: 221–22; Tessin, Vol. 8: 126–27; RA: 100; OB 43: 160–61; OB 45: 209–10.

228TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 325th Infantry Regiment, 356th Infantry Regiment, 400th Infantry Regiment, 228th

Artillery Regiment, 228th Reconnaissance Battalion, 228th Anti-Tank Battalion, 228th EngineerBattalion, 228th Signal Battalion, 228th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Elbing, Wehrkreis IThe 228th Infantry Division was made up of East Prussians from the older age groups. Organized

in August 1939, it distinguished itself in northern Poland in September. The division was sent toWarsaw in November and remained in Poland until May 1940, when it was transferred to theMunsterlager Troop Maneuver Area; however, in September 1940 it was disbanded. The reason forthis action probably stemmed from the age of its soldiers. The divisional staff became Headquarters,16th Motorized Infantry (later 16th Panzer) Division.

The 228th Infantry’s commanders were Major Generals Hans Suttner (August 26, 1939) and Karl-Ulrich Neumann-Neurode (March 1, 1940–end).Sources: Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 113–14; Kennedy: 74 and Map 7; Lexikon; Kursietis: 164; Nafziger 2000: 164; Tessin, Vol. 3: 131; RA: 20; OB 42: 97; OB 43:161; OB 45: 210.

230TH INFANTRY DIVISION (COASTAL DEFENSE)Composition (1942): 349th Grenadier Regiment, 859th Fortress Grenadier Regiment, 930th

Artillery Battalion, 930th Tank Destroyer Company, 930th Engineer Company (later Battalion), 930thSignal Company, 930th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis VIIIThis division was formed on April 15, 1942, from Coastal Defense Formation Alta in Norway. Its

mission was to control a number of miscellaneous coastal defense units under the Army of Norway.The 230th remained in the northern part of that country until the end of the war. It surrendered on May

9, 1945. Except for an occasional air raid, it never saw combat.Its commanders were Major General Otto Schönherr (April 15, 1942), Major General/Lieutenant

General Konrad Menkel (October 10, 1942), Lieutenant General Albrecht Baier (January 10, 1944),Menkel (February 20, 1944), and Major General Bernhard Pampel umbennannt in Pamberg (October1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Menkel was promoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1943.Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1370; Volume III: 734; Volume IV: 1878; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 5: 331; Tessin, Vol. 8: 138; RA: 130; OB 45: 210.

231ST INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 302nd Infantry Regiment, 319th Infantry Regiment, 342nd Infantry Regiment, 231st

Artillery Regiment, 231st Reconnaissance Battalion, 231st Anti-Tank Battalion, 231st SignalBattalion, 231st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Nuremberg, Wehrkreis XIIICreated upon mobilization in August 1939, from Landwehr personnel in the Nuremberg area, this

division helped man the Saar Front opposite France while the German Army conquered Poland in1939. After Warsaw fell, the division was sent to Poland, where it formed part of Frontier GuardCommand South. Its mission was to delay the Soviets if Stalin attacked while the main Germanarmies were engaged in the West. This, of course, did not happen. On July 31, 1940, after the Frenchsurrendered, the 231st Infantry Division was disbanded. Its men, who were from the older agegroups, were either transferred to other units or sent home. The 231st was never involved in activecampaigning.

Major General Hans Schönhärl commanded it throughout its existence.Sources: Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 114; Keilig: 309; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1123; Tessin, Vol. 8: 142–43; RA: 204; OB 43: 161; OB 45: 210.

232ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 1043rd Grenadier Regiment, 1044th Grenadier Regiment, 1045th Grenadier

Regiment, 232nd Artillery Regiment, 232nd Fusilier Battalion, 232nd Tank Destroyer Battalion,232nd Engineer Battalion, 232nd Signal Battalion, 232nd Field Replacement Battalion, 232ndDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Friedberg, Wehrkreis IXActivated on June 26, 1944, in the Wildflecken Maneuver Area from older men and convalescents

en route back to the Russian Front, this static division was intended for rear-area duties only. Its Staffand men came mainly from Shadow Division Wildflecken. It was originally sent to Genoa, Italy, butwas committed to combat southwest of Bologna in October and remained in action on the Italian Frontfor the rest of the war. By February 1945, it was defending the Apennines as part of the LI MountainCorps, 10th Army, but was down to less than 2,600 effectives. On April 25 it was with ItalianMarshal Graziani’s Ligurian Army when it was cut off by the Americans. The 232nd was the onlydivision of that army to escape; however, a week later it also surrendered, along with the rest of theremnants of Army Group C.

Its commander throughout its existence was Lieutenant General Baron Eccard von Gablenz.Sources: Fisher: 428, 442, 506; Hartmann: 26; Keilig: 99; Tessin, Vol. 8: 147–48; RA: 144; OB 45: 210–11.

237TH INFANTRY DIVISION

Composition: 1046th Grenadier Regiment, 1047th Grenadier Regiment, 1048th GrenadierRegiment, 237th Artillery Regiment, 237th Fusilier Battalion, 237th Tank Destroyer Company, 237thEngineer Battalion, 237th Signal Battalion, 237th Field Replacement Battalion, 237th DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Jermer, Wehrkreis XIIIThis division consisted of men pulled off furlough and convalescents intercepted on their way from

the hospital to the Eastern Front. Activated in Bohemia on July 25, 1944, it was sent to Italy inSeptember, where it was assigned line of communications duties between Pola and Trieste. The237th was a static division (i.e., it had very few motorized vehicles) and operated in the rear area formost of the rest of the war, although it was involved in front-line fighting in Italy in March 1945. Itwas transferred to the Balkans sector of the Eastern Front in the last weeks of the war and was therewhen the surrender came. It surrendered to the Yugoslavs near Fiume in May 1945.

Its commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Hans von Graevenitz (July 7, 1944) andColonel Karl Falkner (April 7, 1945).Notes and Sources: Graevenitz was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1944.Keilig: 112; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1903; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 165; RA: 207; OB 45: 211.

239TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 327th Infantry Regiment, 372nd Infantry Regiment, 444th Infantry Regiment, 239th

Artillery Regiment, 239th Reconnaissance Battalion, 239th Engineer Battalion, 239th SignalBattalion, 239th Field Replacement Battalion, 239th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Gleiwitz, later Diedenhofen, Wehrkreis VIIIThe 239th was formed in Oppeln in the summer of 1939 and activated when Nazi Germany

mobilized for war on August 26, 1939. It was on the Polish-Slovakian border on September 17, 1939,but apparently did not see any fighting. The infantry regiments did not receive their machine guncompanies until November 1941 and the division did not get its tank destroyer battalion untilDecember. It was sent to Army Group C (opposite the Maginot Line) in June 1940 but was onlylightly engaged. Posted to the Bohemia-Moravia region of the Protectorate (formerly Czechoslovakia)in late 1940 and to Romania in May 1941, it crossed into Russia in July and took part in the battles inthe Ukraine. It was especially heavily engaged at Kharkov. The 239th was disbanded on January 1,1942, because of the excessive age of its men and the casualties it suffered in Russia.

Its commander was Major General/Lieutenant General Ferdinand Neuling (1939–42).Notes and Sources: Neuling was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1940. The 239th Infantry Division was formed from Landwehr Command Oppeln.Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 115–16; Keilig: 240; Kennedy: 74 and Map 10; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1123; Tessin, Vol. 8: 171–72; RA: 130; OB 43: 161;OB 45: 212.

DIVISION STAFF 240 Z.B.V.Composition (May 1942): 82nd Infantry Division, 167th Infantry Division, 719th Infantry

Division, plus miscellaneous General Headquarters (GHQ) troopsHome Station: Bielefeld, Wehrkreis VIThis special purposes headquarters (z.b.V.= zur besondere Verwendung : “for special

employment”) was formed on April 16, 1942 to control units under the Commander of GermanTroops in the Netherlands. As the reader can see from its composition, it was really a corps

headquarters. On June 15, 1942, it was formally upgraded to corps level and redesignated LXXXVIIICorps.

Its only commander was Lieutenant General Joseph Lehmann.Sources: Keilig: 200; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I, 1371, 1377; Tessin, Vol. 8: 176.

242ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1944): 765th Grenadier Regiment, 917th Grenadier Regiment, 918th Grenadier

Regiment, 242nd Artillery Regiment, 242nd Fusilier Battalion, 242nd Engineer Battalion, 242ndSignal Battalion, 242nd Field Replacement Battalion, 242nd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Stargard, later Wismer, Wehrkreis IIFormed on July 9, 1943 in the Gross-Born Maneuver Area in northeastern Germany, this static

division initially consisted of the 917th, 918th, and 919th Grenadier Regiments. Most of its troopsformerly served with the 298th Infantry Division in Russia or with depot units in Belgium. It had noseparate tank destroyer battalion, but each of its grenadier regiments had a Panzerjäger company. InAugust it was transferred to Liege, Belgium, where it performed occupation and training duties. Itreceived its artillery units in September; they were equipped with captured Italian guns. Meanwhile,the 919th Grenadier Regiment and an artillery battalion were transferred to the 709th InfantryDivision at Cherbourg in late September. The 242nd itself was soon sent to southern France and spentthe rest of its career on the Mediterranean coast. Late October 1943, it incorporated the 765thGrenadier Regiment from the 376th Infantry Division into its ranks.

Later, in April 1944, it was given three battalions of Eastern (Ost) troops. On August 15, 1944,American troops began the invasion of southern France, and the 242nd was soon heavily engaged.The next day Army Group G began its retreat but ordered the 242nd to stay behind and defend Toulonto the end. Ten days later (August 26), the divisional commander, Lieutenant General JohannesBässler, surrendered the remnants of the 242nd to the Allies. One reason the division was sacrificedwas its lack of transport. It might not have been able to escape Allied armored and motorizedformations even if it had been allowed to withdraw. As things worked out, it provided other elementsof Army Group G with an opportunity to escape. Part of the division staff did evade the Americansand was assigned to the Staff, 189th Infantry Division.Notes and Sources: Bässler commanded the 242nd Infantry Division throughout its existence. He was wounded in Toulon and died of his wounds on November 9,1944. He had been promoted to lieutenant general on February 1, 1944.Chant, Volume 14: 1918–21, 1928, 1945; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 18; Lexikon; Ruge: 65; Tessin, Vol. 8: 182–83; RA: 32; OB 44b: D85; OB 45: 212.

243RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 920th Grenadier Regiment, 921st Grenadier Regiment, 922nd Grenadier Regiment,

243rd Artillery Regiment, 243rd Fusilier Battalion, 243rd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 243rd EngineerBattalion, 243rd Signal Battalion, 243rd Field Replacement Battalion, 243rd Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Wehrkreis XVIIIn June and July 1943, this unit was created as Division “B” in the Doellersheim Troop Maneuver

Area in northeastern Austria. It became the 243rd Infantry Division on July 9. Its artillery regimenthad only three battalions, and all of these were equipped with captured Soviet guns. It was sent toBrittany in October but was still not up to strength on D-Day. As of January 1944, one of its threeregiments was equipped with horse-drawn vehicles, one was outfitted with bicycles, and the third

was motorized, but not completely formed. All of its regiments had two battalions each and some ofthese had sent companies to the Eastern Front. The 243rd was in combat from the beginning, coveringa sector on the western Cotentin peninsula. Its capable divisional commander, Lieutenant GeneralHeinz Hellmich, was killed by a fighter-bomber on June 17. Under almost constant ground attack andair and naval bombardment, the 243rd was down to battle group strength by June 20. Most of thedivision was destroyed in the Battle of Cherbourg later that month. Remnants of the 243rd, however,managed to escape to the south, join the rest of Army Group B, and continue fighting against theAmerican advance on St. Lo. By late July SS General Hausser, the commander of the German 7thArmy, listed the division as practically destroyed. It was temporarily combined with the remnants ofthe 91st Air Landing Division and fought the hedgerow battles of the western Cotentin. In August, thefew survivors of the 243rd were finally pulled out of the line and sent to the Somme River–St.Quentin area to rest and rehabilitate; the division itself was disbanded on September 12 and its troopssent to other commands.

The commanders of the 243rd were Major General Hermann von Witzleben (August 1, 1943),Lieutenant General Heinz Hellmich (January 10, 1944), and Colonel Bernhard Klosterkemper (June17, 1944).Sources: Blumenson 1960: 72–76, 442, 582; Carell 1973: 186; Chant, Volume 14: 1850; Keilig: 134, 173, 375; Nafziger 2000: 228–29; Tessin, Vol. 8: 186–87; RA:220; OB 45: 212.

244TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 932nd Grenadier Regiment, 933rd Grenadier Regiment, 934th Grenadier Regiment,

244th Artillery Regiment, 244th Fusilier Battalion, 244th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 244th EngineerBattalion, 244th Signal Battalion, 244th Field Replacement Battalion, 244th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Bischofsburg, Wehrkreis IActivated in Antwerp, Belgium on September 8, 1943, this static division was soon transferred to

the French Mediterranean coast, where it formed the garrison for the city of Marseilles. Many of itsmen came from the 39th Infantry Division, which had been destroyed on the Russian Front. When theAmericans landed in southern France on August 15, 1944, divisional commander Lieutenant GeneralHans Schaeffer was ordered to defend the city until the end. The siege of Marseilles began the nextday and ended on August 28. The 244th Infantry Division was completely destroyed.

The commanders of the 244th were were Lieutenant General Martin Gilbert (September 1, 1943)and Schaeffer (April 14, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 244th was originally designated Division “E.”Air University Files, SRGG-1108; Chant, Volume 14: 1928,1945; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 293; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 190; RA: 20; OB 45: 218.

245TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 935th Grenadier Regiment, 936th Grenadier Regiment, 937th Grenadier Regiment,

245th Artillery Regiment, 245th Fusilier Battalion, 245th Tank Destroyer Battalion (added July1944), 245th Engineer Battalion, 245th Signal Battalion, 245th Field Replacement Battalion, 245thDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mülhausen, Alsace, Wehrkreis VFormed in Rouen, France in August and September 1943, and activated on September 8, most of its

men came from Division “D,” which had been formed in June 1943. The 245th was a static division.Stationed near Fecamp, northern France (on the English Channel), it remained idle during theNormandy campaign but was heavily engaged as the Allies drove on the Low Countries. In September1944, it opposed Montgomery’s abortive effort to take Arnhem. From October 2 to November 8, itfought in the Battle of the Scheldt as part of 15th Army. Briefly withdrawn to refit, it was back inaction against the U.S. 3rd Army before the end of the year. Later it was engaged in northern Alsaceand was in OB West reserve on March 1, 1945. Sent to northern Germany to rebuild, it surrendered tothe British in Schleswig-Holstein at the end of the war.

Its commanders were Lieutenant General Erwin Sander (September 8, 1943) and Major GeneralKuno Dewitz (April 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: The men of Division “D” came primarily from the 323rd Infantry Division, which had been smashed on the Russian Front in 1943.Cole 1950: 521; Harrison: Map VI; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1147–48; Volume IV: 1900; MacDonald 1963: 125, 216–17; Tessin, Vol. 8: 193–94; RA: 86;OB 45: 213.

246TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1941): 313th Infantry Regiment, 352nd Infantry Regiment, 404th Infantry Regiment,

246th Artillery Regiment, 246th Reconnaissance Company (later Battalion), 246th Anti-Tank (laterTank Destroyer) Battalion, 246th Engineer Battalion, 246th Signal Battalion, 246th FieldReplacement Battalion, 246th Divisional Supply Troops

A tired and sweaty German infantryman in the Balkans, 1941.NATIONAL ARCHIVES

Home Station: Worms, Wehrkreis XII; later Trier (Luxembourg), Wehrkreis XIIThe 246th Infantry—a third-wave Hessian unit—was mobilized on August 26, 1939, and served on

the Saar Front (1939–40). It fought in France in May and June 1940, when it attacked the MaginotLine with some success. After the fall of Paris, it was on garrison duty in northwestern France untillate December 1941, when it left for the Russian Front. Prior to its departure it exchanged the 313thInfantry Regiment for the 689th Infantry Regiment of the 337th Infantry Division. The 246th fought onthe central sector of the Eastern Front against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, where it heldback large parts of the Russian 22nd Army at Belyy (Bjeloje) on the northern flank of Army GroupCenter. Later it was engaged in the Rzhev salient (1942–43), in the Rzhev withdrawal (March 1943),at Yelnja (1943), in the Battle of Smolensk (September 1943), at Vitebsk (1943–44), and against thehuge Soviet summer offensive of 1944, in which Army Group Center was overwhelmed. The 246thInfantry, which was down to battle group strength as early as October 1943, was encircled anddestroyed at Vitebsk in late June 1944.

A second 246th was formed in Prague as a Volksgrenadier division on September 15, 1944. Itincluded former Luftwaffe personnel, a few survivors of the original division, and men formerlyassigned to the 565th Grenadier Division, which it absorbed. The 246th Volksgrenadier Divisionincluded the 352nd, 404th, and 689th Grenadier Regiments, as well as the 246th Artillery Regiment,the 246th Fusilier Company, and the 246th Tank Destroyer, Engineer and Signal Battalions. It wassent into action in western France in late September. It was at nearly full strength (it had 8,000 of itsauthorized 10,000 soldiers) when it relieved the 116th Panzer Division at Aachen on October 7. Twoweeks of heavy fighting later, its commander, Colonel Gerhard Wilck, surrendered the city, a largesegment of the division, and most of the garrison to the Americans. The remnants of the 246th werereformed under Colonel Peter Korte and absorbed the remnants of the defunct 49th Infantry Divisionand several independent battalions, which brought its strength to 11,141.

Again sent into action east of Aachen in November, it was scheduled to take part in the Battle ofthe Bulge but was so heavily engaged in the Battle of the Huertgen Forest that the plan was cancelled.By the end of November, not one of its eight infantry battalions had 100 survivors, but the U.S. unitsthat attacked it were also decimated. Taken out of the line, the 246th Volksgrenadier incorporated asizable number of Luftwaffe replacements into its ranks and was hurriedly thrown back into action onthe Western Front due to Allied pressure. It was in battle east of Monschau in January 1945, as partof the 5th Panzer Army, but was sent to the 7th Army the next month after Patton’s breakthrough atPruem. By March, the 246th was fighting in the Eifel area and was only one of the two divisions in7th Army that was considered to be in reasonably good shape by 1945 standards. It ended the war onthe southern sector of the Western Front and surrendered to the Americans near FrankfurtamMain inMay 1945.

Commanders of the 246th Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included Major General/LieutenantGeneral Erich Denecke (August 26, 1939), Major General Maximilian Siry (December 13, 1941),Major General Konrad von Alberti (May 16, 1943), Colonel Heinz Fiebig (September 12, 1943),Colonel/Major General Wilhelm Falley (October 5, 1943), Major General Claus Mueller-Bülow(June 27, 1944), Colonel Gerhard Wilck (August 1944–October 21, 1944), Colonel/Major GeneralPeter Körte (November 1944), Colonel List (January 1, 1945), Colonel/Major General Dr. Walter

Kühn (January 2, 1945), and Colonel Emil Heinrich Rentschler (April 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: Denecke was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1939. Siry was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Falley became amajor general on December 1, 1943. General Mueller-Bülow was captured at Vitebsk on June 27, 1944. Colonel Wilck was captured in Aachen on or about October 21,1944. Körte was promoted to major general on January 1, 1945 and reported himself ill the following day. He was still ill when the British captured him in a Hamburghospital on May 5, 1945. He died in early 1947. Dr. Kühn was promoted to major general on January 30, 1945.Bradley et al., Vol. 7: 74–75; Carell 1966: 385, 391; Carell 1971: 309, 584–96; Cole 1965: 87; Hartmann: 26; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 117–18; Keilig: 178;Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1147; MacDonald 1973: 115, 198; Rowe: 273; Tessin, Vol. 8: 197–98; OB 43: 162; OB 45: 213–14; Charles Whiting, BloodyAachen, 1976.

249TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: See below.This division was activated on March 22, 1945, in the Hoek van Holland sector on the Dutch coast,

after it was declared a fortress by Adolf Hitler. The division included the 197th Grenadier Regiment(formerly the II/31st Parachute Regiment) and the 623rd Grenadier Regiment (formerly IV/31stParachute Regiment). The division was authorized to form the 709th Grenadier Regiment butapparently never did so, probably due to a lack of troops. The 249th Infantry also controlled the 249thFusilier and 949th Tank Destroyer Battalions, so it actually had the strength of a weak regiment. Itwas designated a division in an attempt to deceive the Allies into thinking that it was stronger than itactually was. Who commanded it is not mentioned in the records. It surrendered to the Western Alliesin May 1945.Notes and Sources: The divisional supply troops also bore the number 249.

Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Nafziger 2000: 231; Tessin, Vol. 8: 207.

250TH INFANTRY DIVISION (SPANISCHE)Composition: 262nd Infantry Regiment (span.), 263rd Infantry Regiment (span.), 269th Infantry

Regiment (span.), 250th Artillery Regiment (span.), 250th Reconnaissance (later Fusilier) Battalion(span.), 250th Tank Destroyer Battalion (span.), 250th Engineer Battalion (span.), 250th SignalBattalion (span.), 250th Field Replacement Battalion (span.), 250th Divisional Supply Troops (span.)

Home Station: Hof, Wehrkreis XIII, and SpainThis division consisted of Spanish soldiers who volunteered to fight for Germany against the

communists. It was 14,000 strong when it was mustered in at the Grafenwoehr Troop Maneuver Areain July 20, 1941. Quickly sent into action at Novgorod on the northern sector of the Russian Front, theso-called “Blue Division” fought very well in all of its engagements. In the Novgorod–Leningrad–Lake Ilmen battles of late 1941–early 1942, the Spanish Fascist volunteers played a major role inturning back the Russian winter offensive in the northern sector but lost 8,000 men killed, wounded,captured, or incapacitated by frostbite. After receiving replacements from Spain, it continued inaction with Army Group North, fought at Volchov, and lost another 3,200 men in the Second Battle ofLake Ladoga in January and February 1943. Here its Fusilier battalion lost 90 percent of its soldiers,but the division again held its positions against massive Soviet attacks. The 250th continued to servein northern Russia and in the siege of Leningrad until October 1943. At that time Spanish dictatorFranco requested that the division be returned to Spain; however, about half of its veteran warriorsvolunteered for service in the Waffen-SS and continued to fight against the Russians until the end ofthe war. The Blue Division was officially disbanded on October 20, 1943.

Its commanders were General of Division Munoz Grandes (July 1941) and General of DivisionEmilo Esteban-Infantes (spring 1942), both of whom were Spanish officers.

Notes and Sources: Carell 1966: 421; Carell 1971: 278–80; Chant, Volume 4: 520; Emilio Esteban-Infantes, Die Blaue Division (1958); Hartmann: 27; Mehner, Vol.4: 379; OB 43: 162; OB 44; 221; OB 45: 214; Ziemke 1966: 265. Also see Salisbury.

251ST INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 451st Infantry Regiment, 459th Infantry Regiment, 471st Infantry Regiment, 251st

Artillery Regiment, 251st Reconnaissance Battalion, 251st Anti-Tank (later Tank Destroyer)Battalion, 251st Engineer Battalion, 251st Signal Battalion, 251st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Eisenach, later Fulda, Wehrkreis IXThe 251st was a 4th Wave division activated in Hersfeld on August 26, 1939, from men already

serving in reserve units. It was sent to the Eifel sector (the German Ardennes) the following month.Except for a drive through Belgium with Army Group B in 1940, it spent its entire combat career onthe Eastern Front, where it served on the central sector and was almost continuously in the line frommid-1941 until November 1943. During these years, it took part in the drive on Moscow (1941),(including the battles of Dünaburg, Nevel, and Kalinin), the defensive battles of the Rzhev salient(1942–43), the Rzhev withdrawal (1943), the Battle of Kursk (1943), and the middle Dnieperwithdrawal (1943). It was so reduced by casualties in the Desna retreat and in the Battle of Gomelthat it only had the strength of a regiment. It was then withdrawn from the front, downgraded toDivision Group 251 (effective November 2, 1943), and was assigned to Corps Detachment E, whichincluded the former 86th, 137th, and 251st Infantry Divisions.

A new 251st Infantry Division was created from Corps Detachment E on September 27, 1944. Itincluded the 184th Grenadier Regiment (formerly Division Group 86), the 448th Grenadier Regiment(formerly Division Group 137) and the 451st Grenadier Regiment (formerly Division Group 251)—all with two grenadier battalions each. It also included the 251st (formerly 186th) Artillery Regimentand the 251st Reconnaissance, Engineer, Tank Destroyer, and Signal Battalions. The 251st wasimmediately sent to Poland, where it defended the Warka Bridgehead west of the Vistula (nearWarsaw) against the Red Army from October 1944 to January 1945. It took part in the withdrawalsfrom the Vistula, Poland, and East Prussia, and was crushed near Warka, Poland, in January 1945,when the Soviets broke out of the bridgehead there. The remnants of the 251st were in Swinemünde,West Prussia on March 4, 1945. On that day, the 251st Infantry Division and its Staff were used toform the 2nd RAD (Reich Labor Service) Division “Friedrich Ludwig Jahn.” The 251st ceased toexist.

The division, which had earned special distinction as a defensive fighting force, was commandedby Lieutenant General Hans Kratzert (assumed command August 26, 1939), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Karl Burdach (August 6, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Maximilian Felzmann(March 10, 1943), Colonel Eugen König (April 1943), Felzmann (April 1943–November 15, 1943),and Major General Werner Heucke (October 10, 1944–March 4, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 251st Infantry Division spent June 1940 in Lille, France, and the period July 1940 to April 1941 in Brittany. It was sent to East Prussia inMay 1941. Corps Detachment E fought in the Pripjet marshes, at Gomel, in the retreat to the Vistula and the successful counteroffensive at Warsaw. Burdach waspromoted to lieutenant general on November 1, 1942. As commander of Corps Detachment E, Felzmann was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1943.Heucke commanded Corps Detachment E in the fall of 1944.Carell 1966: 359; Carell 1971: 309; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 125–27; Keilig: 139; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1122; Nafziger 2000: 235–36; Tessin, Vol. 8:212–13; RA: 144; OB 42: 98; OB 43: 162; OB 44: 221; OB 45: 214.

252ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1941): 452nd Infantry Regiment, 461st Infantry Regiment, 472nd Infantry Regiment,

252nd Artillery Regiment, 252nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 252nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 252nd

Engineer Battalion, 252nd Signal Battalion, 252nd Divisional Supply TroopsHome Station: Jauer, later Schweidnitz, Wehrkreis VIIIThis 4th Wave division was formed from Silesians already serving in reserve units on August 26,

1939. It served in northern Poland later that year (although only in a secondary role), on the SaarFront in 1939–40, and in France in 1940, where it distinguished itself in the successful attack on theMaginot Line. Sent back to Poland in July 1940, it took part in the invasion of Russia in 1941, andwas more or less continuously engaged on the Eastern Front for the rest of the war. It fought atBialystok, Vyasma, and the Battle of Moscow, along others. On November 11, 1941, the 452ndInfantry Regiment was disbanded, but the division simultaneously incorporated the 7th InfantryRegiment from the 28th Infantry Division into its table of organization.

From January 1942 to January 1943, the 252nd held a sector near Gshatsk, and from February toOctober 1943 defended around Yelnja. On August 6, 1943, the 252nd Infantry Division was attackedby nine Soviet divisions and two armored brigades. The Reds fired 50,000 shells into the divisionalsector (or more than five shells for each German soldier) in 2.5 hours. They only achieved localpenetrations. The men of the 7th Infantry Regiment alone counted 3,000 dead Russians in its sector.Almost 100 Soviet tanks were destroyed by the division. German losses were also high. BetweenAugust 6 and the end of 1943, the 7th Infantry Regiment lost thirty-seven of its forty officers killed orwounded, and all three of its battalion commanders were killed in action.

The division was transferred north to the 3rd Panzer Army in November 1943, and fought at Nevelthat spring. On April 4, 1944, the division underwent a massive reorganization. All of its originalinfantry units were consolidated under Staff, 7th Grenadier Regiment, and the 461st and 472ndGrenadier Regiments were disbanded. It also received the 70th Grenadier Regiment (the remnants ofthe 73rd Infantry Division) and the 544th Grenadier Regiment (the remnants of the 389th InfantryDivision). The 252nd Artillery Regiment and the 252nd Fusilier Battalion also absorbed the artilleryand reconnaissance troops of the defunct 73rd and 389th Infantry Divisions. Thus reinforced, the252nd faced the Russian summer offensive of 1944. Here it escaped after desperate fighting againstvastly superior Soviet tank and mechanized formations. The High Command officially commended thedivision for its conduct during this operation. Meanwhile, in July 1944, the grenadier regiments wererenumbered 7, 461, and 472. Later, the 252nd Infantry Division took part in the retreat acrossLithuania, Poland, and East Prussia. It was finally smashed at Danzig in late March and ended the waron the Hela peninsula in East Prussia. It surrendered to the Soviets on May 8, 1945.

The commanders of the 252nd Infantry Division were Lieutenant General Diether von Böhm-Bezing (August 26, 1939), Colonel/Major General Hans Schaefer (February 5, 1942), Colonel/MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Walter Melzer (January 23, 1943), Lieutenant General Paul Dreckmann(October 9, 1944), and Colonel Georg von Unold (March 24, 1945).Notes and Sources: The 252nd Infantry Division also absorbed the 1072nd and 1039th March Battalions in October 1944. Schaefer was promoted to major generalon April 1, 1942. Melzer was promoted to major general on February 1, 1943, and to lieutenant general on August 1, 1943. Colonel von Unold died in Soviet captivityin 1953.Carell 1966: 140, 350; Carell 1971: 309, 583–84; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 128–29; Keilig: 222; Kennedy: Map 10; Lexikon; Walter Melzer, Geschichte der 252.Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1960); Armin Scheiderbauer, Adventures in My Youth: A German Soldier on the Eastern Front, 1941–1945, C. F. Colton, trans., 2003:viii, ix, 54, 77; Tessin, Vol. 8: 218–19; RA: 130; OB 43: 162–63; OB 45: 215.

253RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 453rd Infantry Regiment, 464th Infantry Regiment, 473rd Infantry Regiment, 253rd

Artillery Regiment, 253rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 253rd Anti-Tank Battalion, 253rd Engineer

Battalion, 253rd Signal Battalion, 253rd Field Replacement Battalion, 253rd Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Aachen, Wehrkreis VIThis Westphalian division was created in the mobilization of August 26, 1939, from men already

serving in reserve units. It was sent to the Eifel in September and the Lower Rhine in December. Itfirst saw heavy action in Belgium and northern France in 1940 and remained there until the spring of1941, when it was sent to East Prussia. It crossed into the Soviet Union in June 1941 and took part inthe drive on Moscow, fighting in Lithuania, at Velikje Luki, Kalinin and at Rzhev in the process. Itdefended against the Russian winter offensive of 1941–42, during which it was surrounded south ofLake Volga in January. Breaking out with heavy casualties, the division spent the next year in theRzhev salient. It fought on the central sector of the Russian Front from June 1941 until May 1945 andwas involved in all the major battles of the 9th Army except Kursk, when it was in 4th Army’sreserve. Its 473rd Grenadier Regiment was disbanded due to heavy casualties on April 17, 1943. Thedivision took part in the defeat of the Soviet fall offensive of 1943, and the retreat through thenorthern Ukraine and Poland. It fought at Kovel (April–May 1944) and Kholm (June–July 1944),escaped destruction in Stalin’s summer offensive of 1944, took part in the retreat to the Vistula,suffered heavy losses fighting in the Beskiden sector with 1st Panzer Army (November 1944–January1945) and, at battle group strength, retreated into Upper Silesia with the bulk of Army Group Center.It ended the war in the Deutsch-Brod pocket east of Prague.

The 253rd Infantry’s commanders included Lieutenant General Fritz Kühne (August 26, 1939),Lieutenant General Otto Schellert (March 7, 1941), Colonel Carl Becker (January 18, 1943), MajorGeneral Hans Junck (June 17, 1944), Becker (returned June 28, 1944), Colonel Emmanuel vonKiliani (December 8, 1944), Becker (returned December 30, 1944), and Major General JoachimSchwatlo-Gesterding (May 5, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Becker was promoted to major general on April 1, 1943 and to lieutenant general on October 1, 1943. He and Schwatlo-Gesterding were Sovietprisoners until 1955.Benoist-Mechin: 133; Carell 1966: 359, 376–77, 384–85, 394; Carell 1971: 309; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 130–31; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1127; VolumeIII: 733; Volume IV: 1875; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 223–24; RA: 130; OB 42: 98; OB 43: 163; OB 44: 222; OB 45: 215.

254TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 454th Infantry Regiment, 474th Infantry Regiment, 484th Infantry Regiment, 254th

Artillery Regiment, 254th Reconnaissance Battalion, 254th Anti-Tank Battalion, 254th EngineerBattalion, 254th Signal Battalion, 254th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Detmold, later Düsseldorf, Wehrkreis VIRaised from Rhinelanders serving in reserve units on August 26, 1939, the 254th was sent to the

Lower Rhine in October and fought in Holland, Belgium, and northern France in 1940. It was onoccupation duty at Rouen until April 1941. Sent to Russia in June 1941, it formed part of Army GroupNorth during the sweep through the Baltic States, the battles of Riga and Reval, and drive on andsiege of Leningrad. During this period it was heavily engaged east of Leningrad and at Demyansk. Itfought on the northern sector of the Eastern Front, mainly around Volchov (October 1941–January1943), Demjansk (February), and Staraja Russa (March), and in the siege of Leningrad (April–December 1943). The 474th Grenadier Regiment and the III/254th Artillery Regiment suffered somany casualties at Demjansk that they had to be disbanded and the reconnaissance battalion wasreduced to a bicycle company; however, Division Group 82 (the remnants of the 82nd Infantry

Division) was added to the table of organization of the 254th Infantry Division in the spring of 1944.Meanwhile, in early 1944, the division was sent to the Ukraine and took part in the subsequentretreats on the southern sector. It was surrounded (along with the rest of the 1st Panzer Army) inFebruary 1944, and formed part of the “Hube Pocket,” which reached German lines in early April.The 254th fought in the Tarnopol sector in July and in the Carpathian Mountains in the fall of 1944. Itdefended a sector near Kaschau, Slovakia from November 1944 to January 1945. Later, it retreatedinto Silesia and Upper Silesia, and ended the war in the Deutsch-Brod Pocket in Czechoslovakia. Itsurrendered to the Red Army on May 8, 1945.

A German infantryman, who appears to be part of a machine-gun crew, takes a break and supplements his rations in the Crimea, 1942.

The 254th’s commanders included Major General Fritz Koch (August 26, 1939), LieutenantGeneral Walter Behschnitt (April 30, 1940), Colonel Count Gerhard von Schwerin (July 20, 1941),Behschnitt (August 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Koechling (April 10, 1942),Colonel/Major General Hellmuth Reymann (September 5, 1942), Koechling (returned November 19,1942), Major General Alfred Thielmann (August 16, 1943), and Colonel/Major General RichardSchmidt (December 31, 1944–end).Notes and Sources: Who commanded the division from March 20 to December 31, 1944, is not known. Koechling was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1,1943. Reymann became a major general on October 1, 1942. Richard Schmidt was promoted to major general on March 1, 1945.Carell 1971: 287; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 132–33; Keilig: 305–6; 344; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 11: 364; Tessin, Vol. 8: 229–30; RA: 102; OB 43: 163; OB 45: 215–16.

255TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 455th Infantry Regiment, 465th Infantry Regiment, 475th Infantry Regiment, 255th

Artillery Regiment, 255th Reconnaissance Battalion, 255th Anti-Tank Baltalion, 255th EngineerBattalion, 255th Signal Battalion, 255th Field Replacement Battalion, 255th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Lobau, Wehrkreis IVThis unit, known as the “Green Dot” division because of its unit emblem, was formed mainly from

Saxon reservists, with a minority of Sudeten Germans. Organized in the summer of 1939 andactivated on August 26, it was in the Protectorate until April 1940, when it was sent to the WesternFront. It first saw action in the Netherlands and Belgium in May 1940. The 255th Infantry Divisionwas on occupation duty in Belgium (June), Nantes (July–August) and Bordeaux (September–February1941), before being sent to Poland in March 1941. It crossed into Russia in June, fought at Brest-Litovsk, Pinsk, Gomel, Smolensk, and Vyasma, and in the drive on Moscow, and helped check theSoviet winter offensive of 1941–42. It fought in the defensive battles around Gshatsk on the centralsector in 1942 before being transferred to the southern zone of the Eastern Front after the fall ofStalingrad. The division fought in the defense of Kharkov and was part of the 4th Panzer Army duringOperation Citadel, Hitler’s last major offensive in the East. It absorbed the survivors of the 332ndInfantry Division in August. In the subsequent retreat through the Donets and to the Dnieper, the 255thsuffered such heavy casualties (especially at Kiev) that it had to be taken out of the line. It wasdowngraded to Division Group 255 on November 2, 1943, and was incorporated into CorpsDetachment B, which was destroyed at Cherkassy (Korsun) in February 1944. The survivors of the255th ended up in the 88th and 57th Infantry Divisions.

The commanders of the 255th Infantry were Major General/Lieutenant Generals Wilhelm Wetzel(August 26, 1939) and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Poppe (January 12, 1942–end).Notes and Sources: Wetzel was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1940. Poppe was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on January 1, 1943. Carell 1971: 17, 50; Hartmann: 28; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 134–35; Keilig: 369; Tessin, Vol. 8: 234–35; OB 43: 1943; OB 45: 216.

256TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 456th Infantry Regiment, 476th Infantry Regiment, 481st Infantry Regiment, 256th

Artillery Regiment, 256th Reconnaissance Battalion, 256th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 256th EngineerBattalion, 256th Signal Battalion, 256th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Glauchau, Wehrkreis IVInitially consisting of Saxon, Bavarian and Sudeten reservists from Wehrkreise IV and XIII, this

division was formed in Dresden in the general mobilization of 1939. Its replacements came fromWehrkreis IV, so it became more and more a Saxon division as the war wore on. It was sent to theProtectorate (formerly Czechoslovakia) in September but was transferred to Lippstadt, westernGermany, that spring, as part of OKH’s reserve. The 256th took part in the Dutch and Belgiancampaigns of 1940, was back in OKH reserve at Dunkirk in June, and was on occupation duty inBrittany from July 1940 to February 1941. It was sent to Poland in March, and in June 1941, invadedRussia, where it was almost continuously engaged for the next three years. It fought at Bialystok,Nevel, Velikije Luki, Kalinin, and Rzhev (December 1941–January 1942). In the last ten days ofDecember 1941, it held its line near Moscow against odds of ten to one or even higher odds. A month

later it was instrumental in saving the XXIII Corps, which the Soviets had surrounded west of Rzhev.Remaining on the central sector of the Russian Front, it held a defensive sector east of Smolensk andtook part in the Rzhev withdrawal, but apparently was not present at the Battle of Kursk. The 256thsuffered heavy losses at the Battle of Smolensk in the autumn of 1943 and, as part of the 3rd PanzerArmy, was destroyed at Vitebsk by the Soviet summer offensive of 1944. The remnants of thedivision became Divisiongruppe 256 of Corps Detachment H on July 21. They later ended up in the280th Grenadier Regiment of the 95th Infantry Division.

A second 256th Division was created as a Volksgrenadier unit at the Koenigsbrueck TroopManeuver Area in Saxony in September 1944, with personnel from the recently formed 568thGrenadier Division, along with some veterans from the Eastern Front. Its regiments received the samenumbers as the original 256th. It was first in action against the British in southern Holland in October,where it fought in the Battle of the Schelde (October 2–November 8, 1944). Later in November, itwas fighting in eastern France. The 256th Volksgrenadier took part in the battles in the Saar, northernAlsace, Bitche, and the Battle of the Saar-Moselle Triangle (February 1945). Its survivors were stillresisting in southern Germany when the war ended. It surrendered to the Americans in Württemberg inMay 1945.

Commanders of the 256th Infantry included Major General Joseph Folttmann (August 26, 1939),Major General/Lieutenant General Gerhard Kauffmann (January 10, 1940), Colonel Friedrich Weber(January 4, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Paul Danhauser (February 14, 1942),Major General Albrecht Wüstenhagen (November 24, 1943). The commanders of the 256thVolksgrenadier Division were Colonel/Major General Gerhard Franz (September 1944) and MajorGeneral Fritz Warnecke (April 9, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Kaufmann was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1941. Danhauser was promoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and to lieutenantgeneral on March 1, 1943. General Wüstenhagen was killed in action at Vitebsk. At least one source says that he committed suicide. Franz was promoted to majorgeneral on December 1, 1944. He was captured at Bitburg on April 8, 1945.Carell 1966: 359–62, 400–402; Carell 1971: 309, 597; Cole 1950: 521; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 136–37; Keilig: 377; Kursietis: 169; Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: 216–17; MacDonald 1973: 126; Tessin, Vol. 8: 240–41; RA: 72; OB 42: 99; OB 43: 164; OB 44: 223; OB 45: 216–17.

257TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition: 457th Infantry Regiment, 466th Infantry Regiment, 477th Infantry Regiment, 257th

Artillery Regiment, 257th Reconnaissance Battalion, 257th Anti-Tank Battalion, 257th EngineerBattalion, 257th Signal Battalion, 257th Field Replacement Battalion, 257th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Landsberg, Warthe, Wehrkreis IIIThe 257th was formed in Berlin/Karlshorst upon mobilization in 1939, and consisted of Prussians

and Berliners. It was sent to Krakau, Poland in September 1939, to the Saar in December, and topositions opposite the Maginot Line in June 1940. Transferred back to Poland in July 1940, the 257thwas continuously engaged in southern Russia from June 1941 until the summer of 1942. Here it foughtin the Battles of the Uman and Kiev Pockets, where hundreds of thousands of Russians were takenprisoner, as well as in the Donetz and other battles, including the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42.In March 1942, it held Slavyansk against massive Soviet attacks. Two months later it fought in theBattle of Kharhov (Isjum), where the division suffered heavy losses. After the battles of Voronezhand Kalach, during the drive to Stalingrad, the 257th was sent to the Brittany peninsula of France inthe fall of 1942 to rest and refit. It returned to southern Russia in April 1943, and was heavilyengaged at Dnepropetrovsk, Krivoy Rog, and the battles on the Dnieper bend. In early 1944, it

suffered heavy losses in the retreat from the Dnieper and in the encirclement near Kishinev, Romania,in August, where it was virtually destroyed. The division was officially dissolved on October 9. Thefew men who survived (i.e., who were away from the division when disaster struck) were transferredto Shadow Division Gross-Görschen.

A second 257th—this one a Volksgrenadier division—was created at the Wandern TroopManeuver Area on October 27, 1944, when it absorbed the 578th Volksgrenadier Division andShadow Division Gross-Görschen. It was sent into battle in Alsace and in the Saar, fighting atZweibrücken and at Bitche. Later it unsuccessfully defended Karlsruhe on the Rhine River. Thebattered division was still in action on the Western Front when the war ended. It surrendered to theAmericans near Fuessen in May 1945.

Commanders of the 257th Volksgrenadier/Infantry Division included Lieutenant General Max vonViebahn (August 26, 1939), Lieutenant General Karl Sachs (March 1, 1941), Major General KarlGümbel (May 1, 1942), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Carl Püchler (June 1, 1942),Major General Baron Anton Reichard von Machenheim von Bechtoldsheim (November 5, 1943),Major General Friedrich Bluemke (July 2, 1944), and Colonel/Major General Erich Seidel (October1, 1944).Notes and Sources: Püchler was promoted to major general on July 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. Bluemke was mortally wounded in a low-levelair attack on August 24, 1944. He died on September 4 in a Soviet prisoner of war facility in Odessa. Some sources list the date of his death as September 2. Seidel waspromoted to major general on January 30, 1945. He was killed in action at Dobeln on April 11, 1945.Carell 1966: 121, 472, 490, 493; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 138–39; Keilig: 219; Kursietis: 169–70; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 247; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December1944; Tessin, Vol. 8: 245–46; RA: 46; OB 42: 98; OB 43: 165; OB 44: 224; OB 45: 217.

258TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 458th Infantry Regiment, 478th Infantry Regiment, 479th Infantry Regiment, 258th

Artillery Regiment, 258th Reconnaissance Battalion, 258th Anti-Tank Battalion, 258th EngineerBattalion, 258th Signal Battalion, 258th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Rostock, Wehrkreis IICreated from Prussian reservists in the summer of 1939, this division was activated on August 26,

and was sent to the Saar later that year. In 1940, it took part in the assaults on the Maginot Line thathelped seal the doom of French Army Group Number Three in June. Sent to Poland in July 1940, itcrossed into Russia in mid-1941, and fought and at Brest, Bialystok, Bobruisk, Yelnja, and Vyasma-Bryansk as well as in the battles around Moscow. The 258th continued to serve with Army GroupCenter until late summer 1943, and took part in the defensive battles at Jucknov, Gshatsk and Orel. Itwas also involved in the Kursk offensive. During the retreat from Kursk and Orel, the divisiondefended 9th Army’s supply depot at Kromy against heavy odds, withstood fifteen major Sovietattacks, and frustrated the Russian attempt to seize the depot. Later in the year the Prussian divisionwas transferred to the southern sector of the Eastern Front. It took part in the Mius and Dnieperretreats and was at battle group strength by October 1943. It fought in the Nikopol Bridgehead andwas routed in March 1944, during the withdrawal from the lower Dnieper bend, where three of itsgrenadier battalions were destroyed. That August, it was encircled west of the lower Dnieper andwas virtually destroyed at Jassy, Romania, in early September. Those few soldiers who managed toescape were sent to Division Group 387, and the 258th Infantry was disbanded.

Commanders of the division included Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Wollmann (August26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Dr. Waldemar Henrici (August 15, 1940), MajorGeneral Karl Pflaum (October 2, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Hans-Kurt Höcker

(January 19, 1942), Lieutenant General Eugen Bleyer (October 1, 1943), and Colonel RudolfHielscher (September 4, 1944).Notes and Sources: Wollmann was promoted to lieutenant general on August 1, 1940. Henrici reached the same rank on October 1, 1941. He was wounded in actionthe next day. Hoecker was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Hielscher was captured in September 1944.Carell 1966: 140; Carell 1971: 26; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 140–41; Keilig: 37; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1155; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 248–49; Plocher1943: 106; Tessin, Vol. 8: 251–52; RA: 32; OB 42: 99–100; OB 44: 221; OB 45: 217.

260TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1939): 460th Infantry Regiment, 470th Infantry Regiment, 480th Infantry Regiment,

260th Artillery Regiment, 260th Reconnaissance Battalion, 260th Anti-Tank Battalion, 260thEngineer Battalion, 260th Signal Battalion, 260th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Karlsruhe, Wehrkreis VThe 260th was one of several fourth-wave divisions formed from men serving in reserve units in

the general mobilization of August 26, 1939. Its soldiers came from the Baden and Württembergregions. The division was sent to the Upper Rhine in October 1939, and spent most of the Frenchcampaign in OKH reserve. It remained on occupation duty in France until July 1941; then it was sentto Russia shortly after the invasion began and was heavily and almost continuously engaged from thenuntil the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42 finally petered out. In the process, the division fought atBrest-Litovsk, Bobruisk, Kiev, Bryansk, Moscow, Juchnov, and Ugra, among other battles. The 260thInfantry remained with Army Group Center for the rest of its existence. It fought in the defensivebattles around Spass-Demensk (May–August 1942), Mogilev (September 1943–May 1944) andOrscha (June 1944). Its 470th Grenadier Regiment was disbanded due to heavy casualties in thesummer of 1943. The 260th Infantry Division was surrounded and destroyed near Minsk on July 9,1944, along with the bulk of the 4th Army. The remnants of the division not destroyed (wounded andmen on leave) were assigned to Division Group 57.

Its division commanders included Major General/Lieutenant Generals Hans Schmidt (August 26,1939), Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Walter Hahm (January 1, 1942), Colonel/MajorGeneral Dietrich von Choltitz (August 27, 1942), Hahm (October 6, 1942), Major General RobertSchlüter (November 9, 1943), Colonel Alexander Conrady (April 21, 1944), and Colonel/MajorGeneral Günther Klammt (May 1, 1944).Notes and Sources: The 470th Grenadier Regiment suffered such heavy losses that it had to be disbanded in the summer of 1943. A new 470th was created in April1944, but only by reducing the division’s other grenadier regiments to two battalions each. Schmidt became a lieutenant general on September 1, 1940. Hahm waspromoted to major general on April 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. Choltitz was promoted to major general on September 1, 1942. Schlueter wasseverely wounded on April 21, 1944. Klammt was promoted to major general on June 1, 1944. He was captured on July 9, 1944 and remained in Soviet prison campsuntil 1955.Carell 1966: 196; Carell 1971: 309, 597; Werner Haupt, Die 260. Infanterie-Division, 1940–1944 (1970); Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 142–43; Kriegstagebuch des OKW,Volume II: 1368, 1387; Nafziger 2000: 249; Tessin, Vol. 8: 257–58; OB 42: 100; OB 43: 165; OB 44: 225; OB 45: 218.

262ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 462nd Infantry Regiment, 482nd Infantry Regiment, 486th Infantry Regiment, 262nd

Artillery Regiment, 262nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 262nd Anti-Tank Battalion, 262nd EngineerBattalion, 262nd Signal Battalion, 262nd Field Replacement Battalion, 262nd Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Vienna, Wehrkreis XVIIThis division was raised from Austrian reservists and was mobilized on August 26, 1939. It served

on the Saar Front while Hitler overran Poland and remained there, opposite the Maginot Line, until

after the fall of France in June 1940. It was sent to Poland in September and crossed into Russia withArmy Group South in June 1941, but was with the central army group by September, following theadvance through the Ukraine. It fought at Brody, Zhitomir, Kiev, Bryansk, the Battle of Moscow, andthe subsequent winter retreat under heavy Soviet pressure. It took part in the relatively minordefensive actions on the central sector in 1942 and fought in the Battle of Kursk (July 1943), where itsuffered heavy casualties. Caught up in the ensuing retreats, the 262nd Infantry was listed as inremnants by October 1943, and was placed under the operational control of the 26th Infantry Divisionin November. It was downgraded to Division Group 262 and placed under Corps Detachment D,which continued to fight on the Eastern Front until September 10, 1944, when it was absorbed by the56th Infantry Division.

The commanders of the 262nd Infantry Division were Lieutenant Generals Edgar Theisen (August26, 1939), Major General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Karst (September 15, 1942), andColonel/Major General Eugen Wösnner (July 19, 1943).Notes and Sources: Karst was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. Wössner was promoted to major general on October 1, 1943.Hartmann: 28; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 144–45; Keilig: 375; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1157; Tessin, Vol. 8: 264–65; RA: 220; OB 42: 100; OB 43: 165;OB 45: 218

263RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 463rd Infantry Regiment, 483rd Infantry Regiment, 485th Infantry Regiment, 263rd

Artillery Regiment, 263rd Reconnaissance Battalion, 263rd Anti-Tank Battalion, 263rd EngineerBattalion, 263rd Signal Battalion, 263rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Idar-Oberstein, Wehrkreis XIIConsisting of Palatinate Bavarians already serving in the reserves, this division was mobilized on

August 26, 1939, and spent the fall and winter of 1939–40 in the Aachen sector. The next year itdistinguished itself in France and remained on occupation duty around Bordeaux from July 1940 toApril 1941. Sent to Poland in May, it invaded Russia in June and fought in the battles of Bialystok,Smolensk, Vjasma, and Moscow, among others. It suffered heavy losses in the Soviet winteroffensive of 1941–42, but remained at or near the front for the rest of the war. It fought in the Juchnovand Spass-Demensk sectors from January 1942 to February 1943, when it was sent to the northernflank of Army Group Center. It held a sector of the line near Velish (Welish) from February throughSeptember 1943. It lost three infantry battalions in 1942, and the 483rd Grenadier Regiment wasdisbanded in April 1943. Transferred to Army Group North in October, the division took part in thedefense of Nevel (October 1943–January 1944), the retreat from Leningrad, the defense of the Narva,and the retreat through the Baltic States. Isolated in the Courland Pocket in October 1944, it held asector of the line during the six unsuccessful Soviet attempts to crush the pocket, and was still therewhen the war ended. It surrendered to the Soviets on May 9, 1945.

Commanders of the 263rd Infantry included Major General Franz Karl (August 26, 1939), MajorGeneral Ernst Haeckel (November 14, 1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Traut (April25, 1942), Lieutenant General Werner Richter (April 1, 1943), Major General Rudolf Sieckenius(May 21, 1944), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Alfred Hermann (June 3, 1944).Notes and Sources: Traut was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943. General Richter was seriously wounded on May 21, 1944 and died in Riga on June3. Hermann was promoted to major general on October 1, 1944 and to lieutenant general on April 20, 1945. He was a Soviet prisoner until 1955.Carell 1966: 92; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 146–47; Keilig; 135, 163; Heinz F. Krueger, Bildband der rheinisch-pfälzischen 263. Infanterie-Division, 1939–1945 (1962);Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Tessin, Vol. 8: 262; RA: 188; OB 42: 100; OB 43: 165–66; OB 45: 219.

264TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 891st Grenadier Regiment, 892nd Grenadier Regiment, 893rd Grenadier Regiment,

264th Artillery Regiment, 264th Fusilier Battalion, 264th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 264th EngineerBattalion, 264th Signal Battalion, 264th Field Replacement Battalion, 264th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Muelheim/Ruhr, Wehrkreis VIFormed in Belgium on May 20, 1943, this division was not a first-class fighting unit. It was sent to

Croatia in October, and then to the Dalmatian coast, where it fought partisans and served on guardduty. In December 1944, the 264th was pitted against regular Soviet troops in northern Yugoslaviabut was smashed at Knin. It was soon transferred to Denmark, where it was reorganized as a “Type45” infantry division and each of its grenadier regiments lost its III Battalion. It remained in Denmarkuntil the end of the war and ceased to exist on or about May 7, 1945.

Commanders of the 264th included Major General/Lieutenant General Albin Nake (June 1, 1943),Lieutenant General Otto Lüdecke (April 18, 1944), Lieutenant General Martin Gareis (May 15,1944), Major General Paul Hermann (September 25, 1944), and Major General Alois Windisch(October 9, 1944).Notes and Sources: Nake was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1943. Lüdecke was seriously wounded in May 1944.Bradley, et al., Vol. 7: 642; Keilig: 211; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1904; Tessin, Vol. 8: 274; RA: 102; OB 44: 226; OB 45: 219.

265TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 894th Grenadier Regiment, 895th Grenadier Regiment, 896th Grenadier Regiment,

265th Artillery Regiment, 265th Fusilier Battalion, 265th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 265th EngineerBattalion, 265th Signal Battalion, 265th Field Replacement Battalion, 265th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Halberstadt, Wehrkreis XIThe 265th was formed on May 20, 1943, in the Bergen Troop Maneuver Area as a static (non-

motorized) division. Its staff came from the 403rd Security Division Headquarters, which hadpreviously served on the Russian Front. Its artillery regiment was equipped with captured Russianguns, and its grenadier regiments had only two battalions each. Later, it added the Staff, 896thGrenadier Regiment, and the 634th Ost and 800th Turkish Battalions. The 265th Infantry was sent toQuimper, Brittany, in the summer of 1943, where it exchanged personnel with the regiments of the65th Infantry Division. Unit integrity was not a consideration in the employment of the 265th. In thefall of 1943, two of its battalions (one from the 894th and one from the 895th Grenadier Regiment)were sent to Russia; later, a battle group from the division fought in Normandy and was destroyedthere. Other elements of the division were reported as fighting in the siege of Brest, where they werealso destroyed when the city fell in mid-September 1944. The bulk of the division, however, wassurrounded at Lorient on the Brittany peninsula during Patton’s dash to Brest. Not wishing to undergoanother siege like Brest, which was costly in terms of both men and time, the Allies were content topost observation troops around the area, which held the 265th in total isolation until the end of thewar.

The division’s commanders included Lieutenant General Walther Duvert (June 1, 1943) and MajorGeneral/Lieutenant General Hans Junck (July 27, 1944).Notes and Sources: Junck was promoted to lieutenant general on January 30, 1945.

Blumenson 1960: 58, 372; Chant, Volume 14: 1861; Harrison: Map VI; Kursietis: 172; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 254–55; RA: 172; OB 45: 219–20.

266TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 897th Grenadier Regiment, 898th Grenadier Regiment, 899th Grenadier Regiment,

266th Artillery Regiment, 266th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 266th Engineer Battalion, 266th SignalBattalion, 266th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Mülhausen/Alsace, Wehrkreis VFormed in the Müsingen Maneuver Area on May 20, 1943, this static division consisted partially

of veterans from the Eastern Front. Five of its battalions, however, were later filled out mainly withEastern troops, which Admiral Ruge assessed as having “very little combat value.” All the 266th’sunits lacked heavy weapons, and its artillery units were equipped with captured Russian guns. It wason coastal watch duty in Brittany from August 1943 until the Normandy Front collapsed in August1944. Not having enough vehicles to effect a rapid retreat, it was easy game for the U.S. 4th ArmoredDivision as it swept up the Brittany peninsula later that month. Most of the division was captured ator near St. Malo, as was its commander, Lieutenant General Karl Sprang, who led it throughout itsexistence. Remnants of the 266th did manage to escape to Brest, where they defended against theAllied siege, and were destroyed by September 19.Notes and Sources: Each grenadier regiment of the 266th had only two battalions.Blumenson 1960: 384; Chant, Volume 14: 1861; Harrison: Map VI: Nafziger 2000: 256–57; Ruge; 94; Tessin, Vol. 8: 281; RA: 86; OB 45: 220.

267TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 467th Infantry Regiment, 487th Infantry Regiment, 497th Infantry Regiment, 267th

Artillery Regiment, 267th Reconnaissance Battalion, 267th Anti-Tank Battalion, 267th EngineerBattalion, 267th Signal Battalion, 267th Field Replacement Battalion, 267th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Blankenburg, Wehrkreis XICalled the Horsehead Division because of the symbol on its unit emblem, the 267th was formed

from reservists in the Hanover-Burnswick area of Lower Saxony. Activated on August 26, 1939, itwas immediately sent to the Eifel sector of the Western Front, where it remained until May 1940,when it pushed into Belgium. The 267th held a sector on the English Channel coast until May 1941,when it was sent east for the invasion of the Soviet Union. Here it fought at Brest-Litovsk, Bialystok,Bobruisk, Yelnja, Vyasma, and north of Moscow. It suffered greatly in the Soviet winter offensive of1941–42. The division had lost so many horses from the cold, the lack of supplies, and lack of fodderthat when it did have to retreat on December 17, 1941, it had to leave all of its artillery behind. Itnevertheless remained in the line and fought in the defensive battles of Gshatsk, Juchnov and Spass-Demensk in 1942. It remained in the Spass-Demensk sector until August 1943, when it was sent backto Bryansk in September. From October 1943 to June 1944, it defended Mogilev and fought in all themajor battles of Army Group Center until July 1944. At that time it was encircled and smashed nearMinsk, along with the bulk of the 4th Army. The remnants of the division were finally destroyed nearMemel on August 13. Its last commander, Lieutenant General Otto Drescher, was killed that day. TheHorsehead Division was officially declared dissolved shortly afterwards.

Its commanders were Lieutenant General Ernst Fessmann (August 26, 1939), Major GeneralFriedrich Karl von Wachter (June 1, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Robert Martinek(November 10, 1941), Colonel/Major General Karl Fischer (January 2, 1942), Colonel/Major

General/Lieutenant General Friedrich Stephan (January 25, 1942), Fischer again (February 26,1942), Stephan again (March 31, 1942), and Major General/Lieutenant General Drescher (June 8,1943).Notes and Sources: Memel is now Klajpeda, Lithuania. Like most German infantry divisions, the 267th became a six grenadier battalion unit in early 1944. By 1941,the 267th Tank Destroyer Battalion was equipped with captured French 47mm guns. Martinek was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1941. Fischer waspromoted to major general on March 1, 1942. He was killed in action on the Moscow sector on March 31, 1942. Friedrich Stephan was promoted to major general onAugust 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on April 1, 1943. General Drescher was posthumously promoted to lieutenant general.Carell 1966: 175; Carell 1971: 309, 597; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 148–49; Nafziger 2000: 257–58; Seaton: 210–11; Tessin, Vol. 8: 284–85; OB 43: 166; OB 45: 220.

268TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 468th Infantry Regiment, 488th Infantry Regiment, 499th Infantry Regiment, 268th

Artillery Regiment, 268th Reconnaissance Battalion, 268th Anti-Tank Battalion, 268th EngineerBattalion, 268th Signal Battalion, 268th Field Replacement Battalion, 268th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Füssen/Allgau, Wehrkreis VII

Formed on August 26, 1939, from reservists in the VII and XVII Military Districts, this Wave 4division served on the Saar Front in 1939–40, was sent to Poland in September 1940, invaded Russiaon June 22, 1941, and spent the rest of its career on the Russian Front. Here it fought in the Brest-Litovsk sector, at Bialystok, Smolensk, in the Battle of the Yelnya Bend, at Vyasma, before Moscow,against the Soviet winter offensive of 1941–42, in the defensive actions of 1942, and in the Rzhevwithdrawal. In the summer of 1943 it suffered such heavy losses in the Battle of Kursk and theassociated retreat (including the battles of Bryansk and Mogilev) that it was down to battle groupstrength by October. It was downgraded to Division Group 268 on November 2, 1943.Simultaneously, it was attached to the 36th Motorized Division. Some elements of the 268th werereportedly used to form the 352nd Infantry Division, which later distinguished itself in Normandy onD-Day.

The 268th’s commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Erich Straube (August 26, 1939)and Major General/Lieutenant General Heinrich Greiner (January 6, 1942).Notes and Sources: Straube was promoted to lieutenant general on June 1, 1941. Greiner was promoted to lieutenant general on January 1, 1943.

A German light anti-aircraft gun, mounted on a panzer chassis, in the Caucasus campaign of 1942.U.S. WAR COLLEGE PHOTO

Carell 1966: 196; Carell 1971: 309; Hartmann: 29; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 150–51; Keilig: 114, 336; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1157; Tessin, Vol. 8:289–90; RA: 116; OB 42: 101; OB 43: 166; OB 44: 227; OB 45: 220.

269TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 469th Infantry Regiment, 489th Infantry Regiment, 490th Infantry Regiment, 269th

Artillery Regiment, 269th Reconnaissance Battalion, 269th Anti-Tank Battalion, 269th EngineerBattalion, 269th Signal Battalion, 269th Field Replacement Battalion, 269th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Delmenhorst, Wehrkreis XThis division was formed in the general mobilization of 1939 from men already serving in North

German reserve units. It was posted to the Lower Rhine in October. In 1940 it saw action in northernFrance and spent August 1940 to March 1941 on occupation duty in Denmark. Meanwhile, itsartillery regiment was partially equipped with captured French, Polish and Dutch guns. Sent to EastPrussia in April 1941, it crossed into Russia with Army Group North on June 22 and played a major

role in the XXXX Panzer Corps’ annihilation of the Russian III Armored Corps on the Dubysa. Thedivision was down to 40 percent of its authorized strength by October, but still fought well in theBattle of the Volkhov, southeast of Leningrad, in early 1942. Meanwhile, it disbanded its III/469th,III/489th and II/490th Infantry Battalions.

In the winter of 1942–43, the 269th was sent to Norway to rest and refit and remained onoccupation duty at Bergen for more than a year and a half. In October 1944, it returned to theEuropean mainland via Denmark and fought in the Vosges Mountains and in the Battle of the ColmarBridgehead on the Western Front, where it was again reduced to battle group strength. In January1945, it was transferred to southern Poland. (By now its 490th Grenadier Regiment had beendisbanded and the other two regiments had only two battalions each.) The 269th Infantry fought inSilesia and was in the vicinity of Dresden as the only division in 4th Panzer Army’s reserve whenBerlin fell. A sizable number of its survivors thus managed to surrender to the Western Allies insteadof to the Russians.

Commanders of this veteran unit included Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst-Eberhard Hell(August 26, 1939), Colonel/Major General Elder Herr und Baron Wolfgang von Plotho (August 12,1940), Major General/Lieutenant General Ernst von Leyser (April 1, 1941), Lieutenant General KurtBadinski (September 1, 1942), and Colonel/Major General/Lieutenant General Hans Wagner(November 25, 1943).Notes and Sources: Hell was promoted to lieutenant general on July 1, 1940. Plotho became a major general on September 1, 1940. Leyser was promoted tolieutenant general on October 1, 1942, and Badinski reached the same rank on March 1, 1943. Hans Wagner was promoted to major general on February 1, 1944, and tolieutenant general on December 1, 1944.Benoist-Mechin: 133; Carell 1966: 24, 421; Haupt, Infanterie, Vol. 2: 152–53; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Volume IV: 1896; Keilig: 134; Lexikon;Mehner, Vol. 12: 439; Nafziger 2000: 261–63; Helmut Roemhild, Geschichte der 269. Infanterie-Division (1967); Salisbury: 351; Tessin, Vol. 8: 294–95; RA: 160; OB43: 167–68; OB 44: 228; OB 45: 221; Ziemke 1959; 261.

270TH INFANTRY DIVISION (COASTAL DEFENSE)Composition (1944): 341st Grenadier Regiment, 856th Fortress Regiment, 270th Artillery

Battalion, 270th Tank Destroyer Company, 270th Engineer Company, 270th Signal Battalion, 1./199thSignal Battalion, 270th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hamburg, Wehrkreis XThe original 270th Infantry Division was formed on May 22, 1940 and was dissolved on July 1,

1940, after the fall of France. It included the 565th, 566th and 557th Infantry Regiments and the 270thArtillery Battalion. It never left northern Germany.

A second Headquarters, 270th Infantry Division was organized in Hamburg on April 21, 1942;however, instead of receiving infantry regiments to direct, as apparently was the original plan, theHQ was sent to Tromsoe in central Norway, where it took charge of a variety of fortress battalionsand coastal defense artillery batteries as a coastal defense unit. The 270th remained in centralNorway from the summer of 1942 until the end of the war, except for a brief tour of duty in northernFinland (May to October 1944), when parts of the division guarded the rear of the 20th MountainArmy from a possible Soviet amphibious attack.

The division’s commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Rolf Sodan (April 1942)and Lieutenant General Hans Brabänder (August 17, 1943–end).Notes and Sources: Sodan was promoted to lieutenant general on December 1, 1942. The second 270th Artillery Battalion was the former III/199th ArtilleryRegiment. Keilig: 326; Kursietis: 173; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 299; RA: 160; OB 44: 228; OB 45: 221.

271ST INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 977th Grenadier Regiment, 978th Grenadier Regiment, 979th Grenadier

Regiment, 271st Artillery Regiment, 271st Fusilier Battalion, 271st Tank Destroyer Battalion, 271stEngineer Battalion, 271st Signal Battalion, 271st Field Replacement Battalion, 271st DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Wehrkreis XIIIThe original 271st Infantry was formed in northern Austria (Wehrkreis XVII) from older age men

on May 22, 1940, when it looked as if the French campaign might be a long one. It included the562nd, 563rd, and 564th Infantry Regiments, the 271st Artillery Battalion, and the 271st TankDestroyer, Engineer and Signal Companies. France fell in six weeks, and the 271st Infantry wasdissolved on July 22. It never saw combat.

The second 271st Infantry Division began forming in west-central Germany in late 1943, under theformer Headquarters, 137th Infantry Division. Many of the division’s soldiers had come from the137th, which had just been dissolved after two years of fighting on the Russian Front. Other elementscame from the 102nd and 113th Infantry Divisions. The division also absorbed the 97th, 302nd,342nd, and 480th Training Battalions. The 661st and 681st Ost Battalions were added later. The newdivision (which was activated on November 17) was soon transferred to Holland, where itcompleted its formation in early 1944. It was on the Mediterranean coast in early June 1944, but wasstill considerably understrength. Nevertheless the 271st was sent to Normandy, where it replaced thedebilitated 10th SS Panzer Division in the front line near Caen on July 17. The division fought wellbut was encircled with much of the rest of Army Group B at Falaise and was virtually destroyed.Elements did break out; divisional commander Lieutenant General Paul Danhauser was among thosewho escaped. Enough remained of the original division to form a nucleus around which aVolksgrenadier division was organized in Holland on September 17, 1944, by absorbing the 576thVolksgrenadier Division. In November, the new division was sent to Czechoslovakia and byDecember it was in action in Hungary. It fought at Stuhlweissenburg, Budapest and Gran, and endedthe war in the pocket east of Prague. Part of the division (about 1,000 men, six guns and four assaultguns) was trapped in the Hungarian capital when the Red Army surrounded Budapest (including theStaff, 978th Grenadier Regiment) and was destroyed when the city fell on February 12.

The division’s commanders included Danhauser (December 10, 1943) and Colonel/Major GeneralMartin Bieber (September 3, 1944).Notes and Sources: When the division was created, the 137th Infantry Division provided the divisional staff and the men of the 979th Grenadier Regiment; the 113thInfantry Division supplied the men of the 977th Grenadier Regiment, the 271st Artillery Regiment and the 271st Fusilier Battalion, while the 102nd Infantry Divisiontransferred the soldiers of the 978th Grenadier Regiment to the new division. Bieber was promoted to major general on January 1, 1945. He was a Russian POW until1955.Blumenson 1960: 225, 556; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 33–34; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Nafziger 2000: 264–66; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December1944; Tessin, Vol. 8: 302–3; RA: 204; OB 43: 167; OB 44b: D92; OB 45: 222.

272ND INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 980th Grenadier Regiment, 981st Grenadier Regiment, 982nd Grenadier

Regiment, 272nd Artillery Regiment, 272nd Fusilier Battalion, 272nd Tank Destroyer Battalion,272nd Engineer Battalion, 272nd Signal Battalion, 272nd Field Replacement Battalion, 272ndDivisional Supply Troops

Home Station (1943): Hameln, Wehrkreis III

The original 272nd Infantry Division was formed in the tenth wave on May 22, 1940, in the Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area near Stettin, Pomerania, and was disbanded two months later, after thefall of France. It consisted of older men who were called up for home service during the Frenchcampaign. As soon as the armistice with France was reached they were released back into civilianindustry. The original division included the 541st, 542nd, and 543rd Infantry Regiments (atKoenigsberg. Stettin and Danzig, respectively), the 272nd Artillery Battalion and the 272nd TankDestroyer, Engineer and Signal Companies.

Another 272nd Infantry began to organize in Germany on November 17, 1943 and completed itstraining near Antwerp, Belgium, in early 1944. It also absorbed the 250th, 481st, 483rd and 485thTraining Battalions. Its Staff came from the defunct 216th Infantry Division. This twenty-second-wavedivision was sent to the Lyon area of France later that year and was engaged in training at Perpignannear the Spanish frontier in June. Still badly understrength, it was nevertheless sent to the NormandyFront, where it replaced the exhausted 1st SS Panzer and 12th SS Panzer Divisions on the front lineon July 13. The 272nd suffered heavy casualties in the Normandy/Falaise battles of July and August1944, and was sent back to the III Military District to completely rebuild. This program took place atthe Doeberitz Troop Maneuver Area, just west of Berlin. Redesignated a Volksgrenadier division onSeptember 17, the 272nd absorbed the 575th Volksgrenadier Division and was transferred back to theWestern Front in November. It fought in the Battles of the Huertgen Forest, the Bulge, and the RoerRiver Dams, as well as in the Eifel campaign. Burned-out after January 1945, the division wasvirtually destroyed on April 18, 1945. The remnants surrendered to the Americans in the HarzMountains (Hesse province) in May. General of Infantry Hans Petri commanded the original 272nd.

The commanders of the 272nd Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included Lieutenant GeneralFriedrich August Schack (November 17, 1943), Colonel Georg Kossmala (September 4, 1944), andMajor General/Lieutenant General Eugen König (December 13, 1944).Notes and Sources: Petri was a “retread” (i.e., he had retired before the war began and was recalled to active duty). His promotion to general of infantry washonorary. König was promoted to lieutenant general on March 16, 1945. The post of division commander of the 272nd was vacant on April 30, 1945 and apparentlyhad been vacant since General Koenig was captured on April 18.Blumenson 1960: 225, 582; Chant, Volume 14: 1863; Volume 16: 2133; Harrison: Map VI; 454; Martin Jenner, Die 216./272. niedersaechsische Infanterie-Division,1939–1945 (1964); Keilig: 178, 182, 292; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1900; Lexikon; MacDonald 1963: 460, 599, 601; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Nafziger2000: 266–67; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Tessin, Vol. 8: 307–8; RA: 172; OB 42: 101; OB 43: 167; OB 45: 222.

273RD INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 544th Infantry Regiment, 545th Infantry Regiment, 546th Infantry Regiment, 273rd

Artillery Battalion, 273rd Tank Destroyer Company, 273rd Engineer Company, 273rd SignalCompany, 273rd Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Berlin, Wehrkreis IIIFormed from older personnel in the III Military District in the 10th mobilization Wave (May 22,

1940), the original 273rd was dissolved on July 1, 1940, after the fall of France.A second 273rd was formed in the last month of the war. Apparently very much understrength, it

was sent to the Eastern Front, where the remnants of the 16th Hungarian Infantry Division wereattached to it. The 273rd ended the war in Czechoslovakia.Sources: “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944. Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume I: 1146; Tessin, Vol. 8: 312; OB 43: 167; OB 44b: D92.

274TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 862nd Grenadier Regiment, 865th Grenadier Regiment, 274th Artillery Regiment,

274th Fusilier Battalion, 274th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 274th Engineer Battalion, 274th SignalBattalion, 274th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Braunsberg, later Tilsit, Wehrkreis IThis static (bodenständige) unit was organized in Norway on May 26, 1943. It was created from

previously existing divisions. The 862nd Grenadier Regiment, for example, had three battalions: onecame from the 214th Infantry Division, one from the 269th Infantry Division, and third was from the710th Infantry Division. The three battalions of the 865th Grenadier Regiment became from the 181st,196th, and 199th Infantry Divisions. The 230th, 269th, and 181st Infantry Divisions each contributedan artillery battalion to the 274th Artillery Regiment. The new unit was classified as static because ofits lack of motorized vehicles. It spent its entire existence guarding the southwest coast of Norwayaround Stavenger. It surrendered to the British in May 1945.

Its commanders were Lieutenant General Wilhelm Russwurm (May 26, 1943) and LieutenantGeneral Kurt Weckmann (October 27, 1944).Sources: Chant, Volume 13: 1704; Keilig: 268, 364; Kursietis: 174; Nafziger 2000: 268; Tessin, Vol. 8: 315–16; RA: 32; OB 45: 223.

275TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 983rd Grenadier Regiment, 984th Grenadier Regiment, 985th Grenadier Regiment,

275th Artillery Regiment, 275th Fusilier Battalion, 275th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 275th EngineerBattalion, 275th Signal Battalion, 275th Field Replacement Battalion, 275th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Böhmisch-Leipa, Wehrkreis IVActivated in western France on November 17, 1943, this 22nd Wave division included the former

Staff and surviving elements of the recently disbanded 223rd Infantry Division, which had beenlargely destroyed on the Eastern Front. The divisional also absorbed the 190th, 234th, 425th, and475th Reserve Grenadier Battalions of the 158th Reserve Division. For some reason, the newdivision was initially designated the 352nd Infantry Division, but became the 275th Infantry Divisionon December 10. Sent to Brittany, it was still forming in mid-February 1944, when it consisted of thedivisional staff, one regimental staff, one artillery unit, two battalions of “old men,” and little else.The 275th conducted training operations in Brittany until June 1944, when it replaced the exhaustedPanzer Lehr Division in the line in Normandy. It was smashed in the American Cobra offensive ofJuly 25–27, 1944, when it was subjected to repeated saturation attacks by heavy bomber groups. Thesurvivors of Cobra suffered further severe casualties in the breakout from the Falaise pocket inAugust, and the division was listed as practically destroyed by SS Colonel General Hausser,commander of the 7th Army, shortly afterward. The remnants of the 275th fought at Aachen and weredown to a strength of 800 men before the division was taken out of the line later that month.

On October 1, 1944, the 275th absorbed some miscellaneous local defense troops and twoLuftwaffe fortress defense battalions. Its total strength on October 3 was 5,000 men, thirteen 105mmhowitzers, one 210mm howitzer and six assault guns. Thus, even after rebuilding, the 275th had onlyabout one-third of the strength of a 1941-type division—a situation fairly typical in the German Armyin the fifth year of the war. Despite its poor condition, it returned to the Aachen sector in November,and fought in the Battle of the Hürtgen Forest, where it was virtually destroyed. The remnants of the275th were temporarily absorbed by the 344th Infantry Division, and the divisional staff wasevacuated to Germany. In early 1945, it was stationed at Flensburg in northern Germany and was

engaged in helping form a new Volksgrenadier division. The 275th Infantry reappeared in combat inCzechoslovakia in early March 1945, and was finally destroyed (along with most of the 9th Army) inthe Halbe Pocket (near Guben, southeast of Berlin) on or about April 29.

Its commander throughout its existence was Lieutenant General Hans Schmidt, except for the periodOctober 11 to November 22, 1944, when Colonel Helmut Bechler was acting divisional commander.Notes and Sources: The Germans identified the commander of this division as “Hans Schmidt, (geb. 1895)” (Hans Schmidt, born 1895) to distinguish him from otherHans Schmidts, including General of Infantry Hans Schmidt, geb. 1877.Blumenson 1960: 226, 247, 273, 372, 442; Harrison: 257, Map VI; Keilig: 304–05; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1896; MacDonald 1963: 91, 99, 103, 226,273, 330, 465; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Nafziger 2000: 270; Ruge: 79; Tessin, Vol. 8: 318–19; RA: 72; OB 45: 223–24.

276TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 986th Grenadier Regiment, 987th Grenadier Regiment, 988th Grenadier

Regiment, 276th Artillery Regiment, 276th Fusilier Battalion, 276th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 276thEngineer Battalion, 276th Signal Battalion, 276th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Hanover, later Göttingen, Wehrkreis XIOne of the divisions containing older men, the original 276th Infantry was formed in Posen

(Poznan), XXI Military District, on May 22, 1940. It included the 559th, 560th, and 561st InfantryRegiments (from Berlin, Dresden, and Posen, respectively), the 276th Artillery Battalion, and the276th Tank Destroyer, Engineer, and Signal Companies. It was dissolved two months later, when thefall of France made its continued existence unnecessary. It never left Germany.

The second 276th Infantry Division was activated in Germany on November 17, 1943, and wasstationed in Dax in southwestern France in January 1944, to complete its training. It was sent intobattle in Normandy in mid-June and was virtually destroyed in the Battle of the Falaise Pocket inAugust. Its commander, Lieutenant General Curt Badinski, was among those taken prisoner.Reorganized in Troop Maneuver Area Gruppe in West Prussia on September 4, 1944, as aVolksgrenadier division, the 276th absorbed the partially formed 580th Volksgrenadier Division. Itreturned to action in the Battle of the Bulge that December. Here it lost 2,000 men and its divisionalcommander, Major General Kurt Moehring, was killed. In January 1945, the division—now led byColonel Hugo Dempwolff—was fighting north of Luxembourg. Two months later, as it opposedAmerican attempts to cross the Rhine, the 276th had a strength of only 400 grenadiers and 10howitzers. Finally, it was smashed south of Remagen and collapsed altogether in late March. Theremnants of the 276th retreated into the Ruhr Pocket, where they were captured in April 1945.

The commanders of this division included Badinski (November 1943), Moehring (September 4,1944), Colonel/Major General Dempwolff (December 18, 1944), Colonel Werner Wagner (January18, 1945), and Dempwolff (March 1, 1945).Notes and Sources: After General Badinski was captured on August 21, the post of commander of the 276th was vacant until September 4. Moehring was relieved ofhis command on December 18, 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge. On his way back to 7th Army Headquarters, he was ambushed by American infantrymen andkilled. Dempwolff was wounded in action on January 18, 1945. He apparently returned to command of the division on March 1, 1945, the day he was promoted tomajor general.Blumenson 1960: 551, 582; Bradley et al., Vol. 3: 73; Chant, Volume 16: 2133; Cole 1965: 228–32, 507; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 67; MacDonald 1973: 250–51, 275,349; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; Tessin, Vol. 8: 321–22; RA: 172; OB 45: 224.

277TH INFANTRY (LATER VOLKSGRENADIER) DIVISIONComposition (1944): 989th Grenadier Regiment, 990th Grenadier Regiment, 991st Grenadier

Regiment, 277th Artillery Regiment, 277th Fusilier Battalion, 277th Tank Destroyer Company, 277thEngineer Battalion, 277th Signal Battalion, 277th Field Replacement Battalion, 277th Divisional

Supply TroopsHome Station: Znaim, Wehrkreis XVIIThe original 277th Infantry Division was formed in Munich, Bavaria on May 22, 1940. It consisted

of the 553rd, 554th, and 555th Infantry Regiments (all had three battalions each) from Dresden,Munich, and Nuremberg, respectively; the 277th Artillery Battalion; and the 277th Engineer, TankDestroyer and Signal Companies. Like the other tenth-wave divisions, the 277th was disbanded onJuly 22, 1940, after the fall of France. Its men—mostly from the older age groups—returned to thecivilian economy.

The second 277th was a twenty-second-wave unit formed in Croatia on November 17, 1943. It wasorganized elements of several existing and recently disbanded divisions, including the 141st ReserveDivision, the 187th Reserve Division, the 262nd Infantry Division and the 71st Infantry Division.Most of its replacements after the initial organization were Austrians. In February 1944, it wastransported to Narbonne in southern France. Sent to Normandy in mid-June, the 277th replaced thebattered 9th SS Panzer Division in the front line. As part of the II SS Panzer Corps, it fought wellagainst the British in the Battle of Caen (July 8–9) but was crushed in the Battle of the Falaise Pocketthe following month. After the battle, Colonel Wilhelm Viebig (the division commander) couldassemble only 2,500 men, and only 1,000 of these were combat troops. The 277th was sent toBudapest, Hungary, where it absorbed the 574th Grenadier Division and was rebuilt as aVolksgrenadier division. It returned to the Western Front in November, in time to fight in the Battle ofthe Bulge, and was part of the XXXXVII Panzer Corps during the early part of the last campaign.Viebig was captured on the Western bank of the Rhine, when his command post was overrun onMarch 9, 1945. The remnants of the 277th Infantry apparently assigned to other divisions. They weretrapped in the Ruhr Pocket and surrendered to the Americans in April 1945.

Lieutenant General Karl Graf commanded the original 277th Infantry Division throughout itsexistence. The commanders of the 277th Infantry/Volksgrenadier Division included LieutenantGeneral Helmuth Huffmann (November 1943), Lieutenant General Albert Praun (April 4, 1944), andColonel/Major General Viebig (August 10, 1944).Notes and Sources: Wilhelm Viebig was promoted to major general on January 1, 1945.Air University Files, SRGG 1153; Blumenson 1960: 225, 551; Chant, Volume 14: 1914; Cole 1965: 83, 95–96; Harrison: Map VI; Keilig: 262; Kriegstagebuch desOKW, Volume IV: 1900; “Frontnachweiser,” 15 December 1944; MacDonald 1973; 69; Tessin, Vol. 8: 326–27; RA: 220; OB 42: 22; OB 45: 224–25.

278TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition (1944): 992nd Grenadier Regiment, 993rd Grenadier Regiment, 994th Grenadier

Regiment, 278th Artillery Regiment, 278th Fusilier Battalion, 278th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 278thEngineer Battalion, 278th Signal Battalion

Home Station: Schwerin/Warthe, Wehrkreis IIIFormed on May 22, 1940 from Landwehr (older) reservists, the first 278th Infantry Division was a

composite unit with Silesian, Austrian and Württemberger-Baden elements. It included the 547th,548th, and 549th Infantry Regiments, the 278th Artillery Battalion, and the 278th Engineer, TankDestroyer, and Signal Companies. It was dissolved after the fall of France. It never saw combat.

The second 278th was created in Belgium on November 17, 1943. It was formed around theremnants of the 333rd Infantry Division, which had been destroyed in southern Russia. It was sent tonortheastern Italy in December 1943. Here it formed part of Army Detachment von Zangen, a

collection of mediocre and ill-equipped formations. By May, however, the division was on the frontline, opposing the British advance up the Adriatic coast. It took part in the battles of the Gothic Linethat September and fought in every major battle in Italy after that. It was redesignated 278thVolksgrenadier Division on April 6, 1945. On April 22, it covered the retreat of the I ParachuteCorps south of the Brenner Pass. The corps escaped, but the bulk of the 278th was cut off andcaptured. Even those who got away surrendered to elements of the 5th and 7th U.S. Armies nearBelluno a few days later.

The commander of the original 278th Infantry Division was Lieutenant General Hubert Gercke. Thecommander of the second 278th Infantry Division was Lieutenant General Harry Hoppe (November17, 1943–end). Colonel Paul Bornscheuer commanded the division from January 28 to March 5,1944, when Hoppe was absent on leave.Sources: Fisher: 19, 278, 302, 494; Hartmann: 30; Harry Hoppe, Die 278. Infanterie-Division in Italien, 1944/45 (1953); Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 273; Tessin, Vol. 8:331–32; RA: 46; OB 45: 225.

279TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 550th Infantry Regiment, 551st Infantry Regiment, 552nd Infantry Regiment, 279th

Artillery Battalion, 279th Engineer Company, 279th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 279th SignalCompany, 279th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Kassel, Wehrkreis IXThis composite division was formed in the 10th Wave on May 22, 1940. It was disbanded on July

1, 1940, after the fall of France. Its infantry regiments came from Kassel (Wehrkreis IX), Hamburg(Wehrkreis X), and Hanover (Wehrkreis XI), respectively. The division never left Germany.

Its commander was Major General/Lieutenant General Herbert Stimmel.Notes and Sources: A “retread,” Stimmel was promoted to lieutenant general (honorary rank) on June 1, 1940. He became a lieutenant general (full rank) on June 1,1941.Keilig: 335; Kursietis: 175; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 8: 335.

280TH INFANTRY DIVISION (COASTAL DEFENSE)Composition (1945): Panzer Company Bergen, 645th Fortress Battalion, 655th Fortress Battalion,

658th Fortress Battalion, 666th Fortress Battalion, 1015th Fortress Battalion, Fortress Battalion A,280th Tank Destroyer Company, 280th Signal Company, 8th Motorcycle Replacement Battalion,280th Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Wohlau, Wehrkreis VIIIThe original 280th was formed in Danzig, Wehrkreis XX on May 22, 1940, from East Prussian,

Pomeranian, Rhinelander and Westphalian replacement troops. It included the 556th, 557th and 558thInfantry Regiments, the 280th Artillery Battalion, and the 280th Engineer, Tank Destroyer and SignalCompanies. It was disbanded in July 1940, after the surrender of France.

The second 280th Infantry Division was a coastal defense unit formed on April 22, 1942, inStavenger, southwestern Norway, from Coastal Defense Formation Stavanger, which had existedsince April 1940. Its headquarters remained in Stavanger until September 1944, when it moved tonearby Bergen. The division had no reconnaissance, tank destroyer or field replacement battalions,and its artillery consisted of four captured French 100mm guns. It surrendered on May 9, 1945,without ever having engaged in ground combat.

Its commanders were Major General/Lieutenant General Karl Beeren (April 27, 1942) andLieutenant General Johann der Boer (November 10, 1944).Notes and Sources: Beeren was promoted to lieutenant general on May 1, 1943.Keilig: 25, 138; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1357; Volume III: 8, 1158; Volume IV: 1878; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 274; Tessin, Vol. 8: 338; OB 43: 167; OB44: 230; OB 45: 225.

281ST SECURITY (LATER INFANTRY) DIVISIONComposition: 107th Security Regiment, 368th Security Regiment, II/207th Artillery Regiment,

281st Fusilier Company, 281st Ost (Eastern) Cavalry Battalion, 368th Tank Destroyer Company,368th Engineer Company, 281st Signal Company, 281st Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Deutsch Krone, Wehrkreis IIFormed in the Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area on March 15, 1941, this division served behind

the northern sector of the Russian Front in 1941. After major Russian breakthroughs in the winteroffensive in 1941–42, the 281st was encircled at Kholm on January 28, 1942. Its commander, MajorGeneral Theodor Scherer, became commandant of the “fortress” and held it against overwhelmingodds with only 5,000 men until May 5, when it was relieved. Remarkably, he performed this taskwithout artillery of any kind, although he did rely heavily on air support when weather permitted. The281st Security was engaged in line of communications duties for Army Group North during the nextfew weeks, but its 368th Security (now Grenadier) Regiment was again in action in the battles ofDemyansk from November 1942 until February 1943.

The following autumn, the 281st was again heavily engaged against the Russians on the northernsector of the front and was finally smashed by the Soviet summer offensive of 1944. It rebuilt as aninfantry division at the end of the year. As of January 1945 (when it became the 281st Infantry), thedivision consisted of the 322nd, 368th, and 418th Grenadier Regiments (two battalions each), the281st Artillery Regiment, the 281st Fusilier Company, the 281st Tank Destroyer Company (equippedwith captured tanks), the newly-formed 281st Engineer Battalion, the 822nd Signal Battalion, and the281st Field Replacement Battalion. The new infantry division, meanwhile, was withdrawn fromCourland and was sent to the Vistula. It fought in the withdrawal from West Prussia and Pomerania,and ended up on the Oder River. Along with the rest of the 3rd Panzer Army, it surrendered to theWestern Allies in May 1945. Contrary to its supposed rear-area mission, the 281st spent much of itstime on the front line, rather than in the communications zone.

The commanders of the 281st Security/Infantry Division were Lieutenant General Friedrich Bayer(March 14, 1941), Major General Theodor Scherer (October 1, 1941), Major General/LieutenantGeneral Wilhelm-Hunold von Stockhausen (June 20, 1942), Major General Bruno Schultetus(December 1942), Stockhausen (May 10, 1943), Lieutenant General Bruno Ortner (July 27, 1944),Major General Alois Windisch (July 30, 1944), Ortner (returned to duty September 19, 1944), andColonel Schmidt (April 25, 1945–end).Notes and Sources: Deutsch Krone is now Walcz, Poland. Stockhausen was promoted to lieutenant general on April 1, 1944. Colonel Friedrich Wilhelm Rübesamenwas reportedly acting commander of the division for part of 1944, but the dates are not clear.Keilig: 335; Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume II: 1376, 1396–97; Volume III: 260; Volume IV: 1888; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 12: 454; Tessin, Vol. 9: 1–4; RA: 32; OB43: 214; OB 45: 226.

282ND INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 848th Grenadier Regiment, 849th Grenadier Regiment, 850th Grenadier Regiment,

282nd Artillery Regiment, 282nd Bicycle Squadron, 282nd Tank Destroyer Battalion, 282nd

Engineer Battalion, 282nd Signal Battalion, 282nd Field Replacement Battalion, 282nd DivisionalSupply Troops

Home Station: Karlsruhe, Wehrkreis VOrganized in Cherbourg, northern France in the winter of 1942–43, and activated on March 1,

1943, this division was built around unit cadres provided by the 165th and 182nd Reserve Divisions.The 282nd was more or less continuously engaged on the southern sector of the Russian Front fromApril 1943 until August 1944, fighting at Kharkov, in the Dnieper retreat (fall 1943), at Kirovograd,and on the Bug. The 282nd had no anti-tank unit until the fall of 1943, when the 905th Assault GunBattalion was attached to it. The division was already down to battle group strength by October 1943.It finally was encircled and destroyed at Jassy, Romania, west of the lower Dnestr, in August 1944.Its few survivors were transferred to the 76th Infantry Division.

Commanders of the 282nd Infantry Division included Major General Wilhelm Kohler (March 1,1943) and Major General Hermann Frenking (August 15, 1943).Notes and Sources: Frenking was captured by the Russians on August 20, 1944 and remained a POW until 1955. Bradley et al., Vol. 4: 74; Keilig: 179;Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume III: 1156; Lexikon; Nafziger 2000: 275; Tessin, Vol. 9: 5; RA: 86; OB 44: 230; OB 45: 230.

285TH SECURITY DIVISIONComposition (late 1942): 285th Beute Panzer Company, 113th Landesschuetzen (later Security)

Regiment, 322nd Grenadier Regiment, I/9th Police Regiment, III/207th Artillery Regiment, 285thFusilier Company, 322nd Tank Destroyer Company, 322nd Engineer Company, 322nd SignalCompany, 322nd Divisional Supply Troops. The term Beute indicates that the unit was equipped withtanks of foreign manufacture.

Home Station: Kolberg, Wehrkreis IIThe 285th Security was formed in Troop Maneuver Area Gross-Born on March 15, 1941. It

absorbed a third of the 207th Infantry Division in the process. (The 207th was itself in the process ofconverting to a security division.) Its Staff apparently came from Staff, Landwehr CommanderStargard. The new division spent most of its career on rear-area and line of communications duty forArmy Group North. In December 1941, it added the 823rd Signal Battalion to its table oforganization, and it added the 285th East (Ost) Cavalry Battalion in May 1942. Elements of the 285thwere besieged in Kholm from January to May 1942, along with parts of the 281st Security Division.In the rear area for the next two years, the 285th was involved in anti-partisan operations and in theLeningrad withdrawal. It opposed the Soviet summer offensive of 1944, during which it wassmashed. In August 1944, the remnants of the 285th Security were under the operational control of the20th SS Grenadier Division. Its Staff was used to form Group Kleffel (later XVI Corps). It wasdisbanded on August 15.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Elder Herr und Baron Wolfgang vonPlotho (March 15, 1941), Colonel Traut (May 1942), Plotho (returned June 1, 1942), and LieutenantGeneral Gustav Adolph-Auffenberg-Komarow (September 5, 1942).Notes and Sources: Plotho was promoted to lieutenant general on October 1, 1941.Kriegstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1877; Kursietis: 176; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol. 4: 385; Tessin, Vol. 9: 14–15; OB 43: 214, OB 45: 227.

286TH SECURITY DIVISIONComposition: 354th Reinforced Infantry Regiment, 61st Security Regiment, 122nd Security

Regiment, III/8th Police Regiment, II/213th Artillery Regiment, 286th Fusilier Company, 286th Tank

Destroyer Company, 286th Engineer Company, 286th Signal Company, 354th Divisional SupplyTroops Command

Home Station: Altkirch/Upper Alsace, Wehrkreis VIIIThis division was formed on March 15, 1942, from the remains of the 213th Infantry Division, a

recently disbanded Landwehr unit. (The 286th received those personnel still on active duty.) Thedivision served with Army Group Center throughout the rest of the war. It was used primarily in therear area, protecting important installations and conducting anti-partisan operations. Its main basewas Orscha, which was also its headquarters. It saw front-line duty against the Russian summeroffensive of 1944, and suffered heavy casualties. At battle group strength, it fought in Narev, Memel,and Samland and on the Oder. On December 17, 1944, it was reorganized and redesignated the 286thInfantry Division. It now included the 926th, 927th and 931st Grenadier Regiments (two battalionseach), the 286th Artillery Regiment (three battalions), the 286th Signal Battalion and the 286th FieldReplacement Battalion. On April 17, 1945, it was reorganized yet again. The combat units of thedivision were sent to Swinemuende and placed under the command of Staff, Division Raegener, an adhoc unit which was now renamed the 286th Training Division (Ausbildung-Division 286). Theformer staff of the 286th remained in Samland and became Special Administrative Division Staff 619.The 286th, meanwhile, joined the 9th Army on the Oder and took part in the defense of Berlin. It wasdestroyed when the Russians captured the city (April 25–May 3, 1945).

Divisional commanders of the 286th Security included Lieutenant General Kurt Mueller (born1882) (March 15, 1941), Major General/Lieutenant General Johann-Georg Richert (June 15, 1942),Major General Hans Oschmann (November 1, 1943), Lieutenant General Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt(August 5, 1944), Lieutenant General Wilhelm Thomas (December 26, 1944), Colonel Willi Schmidt(January 26, 1945), and Major General Emmo von Roden (January 31, 1945). The 286th was unusualfor a security division in that it had three security regiments as opposed to the normal total of two perdivision.Notes and Sources: The II/213th Artillery was initially part of the 354th Reinforced Infantry Regiment. Richert was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1,1943. General von Roden was reported as missing in action in Berlin on May 3, 1945.Keilig: 279; Kreigstagebuch des OKW, Volume IV: 1897; Kursietis: 177; Lexikon; Tessin, Vol. 9: 16–17; OB 43: 214; OB 45: 227.

290TH INFANTRY DIVISIONComposition: 501st Infantry Regiment, 502nd Infantry Regiment, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 290th

Artillery Regiment, 290th Reconnaissance Battalion, 290th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 290th EngineerBattalion, 290th Signal Battalion, 290th Field Replacement Battalion, 290th Divisional SupplyTroops

Home Station: Luebeck, later Schleswig, Wehrkreis XThe 290th was an eighth-wave division, formed in the Münsterlager Troop Maneuver Area from

newly trained north German personnel in March and April 1940. It was officially activated onFebruary 5, 1940, completed its unit training on April 30, and took part in the last stages of the Battleof France. On the French Atlantic coast until February 1941, the division was sent to East Prussia inMarch and invaded the Soviet Union with the LVI Panzer Corps of Army Group North in June 1941. Itwas an effective fighting unit. The 290th Infantry spearheaded the initial attack into Russia and playeda major role in the capture of Dvinsk. In August it fought in the First Battle of Lake lImen and wassurrounded in the Demyansk Pocket in January 1942. The division’s freedom of action was notrestored until February 1943. It then fought at Dno, Lake Ladoga, and the Battle of Nevel that winter.

By the fall of 1943, the division was down to six grenadier battalions and its tank destroyer andreconnaissance battalions had been consolidated into a single schnelle battalion. The divisionsuffered heavy losses in the Leningrad withdrawal and was isolated in the Courland Pocket byOctober. Its 503rd Grenadier Regiment was disbanded that fall, and it was down to four grenadierbattalions and three artillery battalions. It remained in the Courland Pocket, holding off several Sovietattacks, until March 1945, when it boarded ships and was sent to Neutief on the Frische Nehrung inEast Prussia. It both inflicted and suffered heavy casualties in the last Soviet attempts to crush theArmy of East Prussia. The 290th Infantry Division remained isolated in East Prussia until the end ofhostilities and surrendered to the Red Army in May 1945.

Its commanders included Major General/Lieutenant General Max Dennerlein (February 1940),Major General/Lieutenant General Baron Theodor von Wrede (June 8, 1940), Major General HelgeAuleb (September 19, 1940), Wrede (returned October 14, 1940), Colonel/Major General/LieutenantGeneral Conrad-Oskar Heinrichs (May 1, 1942), Major General Gerhard Henke (February 1, 1944),Colonel Rudolf Goltzsch (July 1, 1944), Major General Hans-Joachim Baurmeister (August 18,1944), Major General Carl Henke (April 24, 1945), and Lieutenant General Bruno Ortner (April 27,1945–end).Notes and Sources: Dennerlein was promoted to lieutenant general on March 1, 1940. He was wounded in action on June 8. Baron von Wrede was promoted tolieutenant general on March 1, 1941. He was badly wounded on May 1, 1942, and held no further assignments. He was discharged from the service in late 1944.Heinrichs was promoted to major general on July 1, 1942, and to lieutenant general on February 1, 1943. General Henke was killed in action on April 27, 1945—hisfourth day in command. It was reported that he shot himself with his last bullet as the Russians overwhelmed his position. Bradley et al., Vol. 5: 307–9, Carell 1966:21, 248, 288, 365, 375, 427; Keilig: 133, 135, 204, 377; Lexikon; Mehner, Vol 12: 440, 454; Nafziger 2000: 276–77; Berndt von Bock und POLACH and Hans Grene,Weg und Schicksal der bespannten 290. Infanterie-Division (1986); Tessin, Vol. 9: 27–28; OB 42: 102; OB 43: 167–68; OB 44: 230; OB 45: 227–28.

* Included infantry, as well as reserve, replacement, air landing, assault, Sturm (assault), Volksgrenadier, grenadier, marine, coastal defense, security, and specialpurpose (“z.v.B.”) divisions, as well as administrative divisional staffs and field training divisions. Those divisions that fought under more than onedesignation are usually listed under their last designation. Exceptions are noted in the text.

* Also referred to as the 177th Replacement Division and the 177th Mobilization Division. German units of this type were primarily involved in training and inimplementing the German draft.

IndexAbraham, Erich, 129, 131Ahlmann, Hans, 50Alberti, Konrad von, 291Aldrian, Eduard, 148, 158Altrichter, Friedrich, 35, 107, 202–3Anders, Carl, 148–49, 221Andre, Carl, 45, 254Andreas, Moritz, 257Ansat, John, 165anti-tank battalions, 3, 6–7Apell, Georg von, 47Arlau, Ernst Pauer von, 44, 173Armin, Hans-Juergen von, 102Arndt, Edgar, 208Arnim, Hans-Heinrich Sixt von, 158, 172Arning, Karl, 124, 127artillery regiments, 3, 5–6Auffenberg-Komarow, Gustav Adolph, 333Auleb, Helge, 42, 123, 336Aulock, Andreas von, 136Baade, Ernst Guenther, 116Babel, Ottomar, 57Bacherer, Rudolf, 132Bader, Rudolf, 188Badinski, Kurt, 317–18, 325, 326Baentsch, Alfred, 139Baessler, Erich, 98, 241Baessler, Johannes, 285Baier, Albrecht, 165, 280Baltzer, Richard, 205, 235, 270Bamler, Rudolf, 52, 173, 174Barde, Konrad, 247Barth, Otto, 76Barton, Gottfried, 252Basse, Hans von, 76, 235, 275–76Bassewitz-Levetzow, Werner von, 38Bauer, Ernst von, 239Bauer, Paul, 239Baurmeister, Hans-Joachim, 35, 336Bayer, Friedrich, 176, 201, 233, 235, 270, 331Bazing, Richard, 150Bechler, Helmuth, 143, 324Beck, Ludwig, 28Becker, Carl, 298Beeren, Karl, 330Behlendorff, Hans, 81Behr, Heinrich von, 228Behrens, Wilhelm, 243Behschnitt, Walter, 56, 218, 300Beisswaenger, Hugo, 124Benthack, Georg, 186Bentivegni, Franz-Eccard von, 138

Bercken, Werner von, 165, 166Berg, Martin, 250, 256Berger, Lother, 128, 257Bergmann, Friedrich, 190Berlin, Wilhelm, 107, 279Berner, Erhard-Heinrich, 129, 131Berthold, Gerhard, 77, 78Betz, Paul, 99, 100Beukemann, Helmuth, 127Beyer, Franz, 89Beyse, Friedrich, 64Bieber, Martin, 144, 320Biegeleben, Arnold von, 42, 43Biehler, Ernst, 253Bieler, Bruno, 126Bielfeld, Peter, 233Bissing, Wilhelm-Mortiz von, 131Blaurock, Edmund, 104, 253Bleckwenn, Wilhelm, 37Bleyer, Eugen, 233, 306Bluecher, Johann-Albrecht von, 111, 161, 176Bluemke, Friedrich, 305Bluemm, Oskar, 105, 106Bock, Fedor von, 93Bock, Max, 49Boeckh-Behrens, Hans, 79, 80Boeckmann, Herbert von, 49Boege, Ehrenfried, 245Boehm-Bezing, Diether von, 201, 296Boehme, Franz, 75, 79Boehme, Hermann, 125, 126Boelsen, Hans, 227Boemers, Hans, 116Boettcher, Hermann, 195, 269Boettger, Karl, 273Bohnstedt, Wilhelm, 79Boltze, Arthur, 202Bork, Max, 96Bornemann, Karl, 44Bornscheuer, Paul, 329Both, Hans-Kuno von, 64, 65Botsch, Walter, 63Boysen, Wolf, 221Brabaender, Hans, 318Brandt, Friedrich-Wilhelm “Fritz,” 56, 133Brauer, Johannes-Oskar, 256Braun, Georg, 118Breusing, Hero, 176Briesen, Kurt von, 75, 76Britzelmayr, Karl, 64Bruecker, Otto-Hermann, 43, 47, 61, 129Bruns, Walter, 150Buch, Albert, 247Buddenbrock, Jobst von, 263Buelow, Werner von, 170

Buenau, Rudolf von, 126, 231Buercky, Heinrich, 209Burdack, Karl, 49, 294Buschenhagen, Erich, 56, 57Busse, Theodor, 173Casper, Lieutenant General, 97Castorf, Helmuth, 197, 218, 227Chappuis, Friedrich-Wilhelm von, 56, 57Chill, Kurt, 143, 176, 180Choltitz, Dietrich von, 307, 308Cochenhausen, Conrad von, 188Collani, Ingo von, 271Conrady, Alexander, 43, 307Coretti, Julius, 196Danhauser, Paul, 303, 319, 320Daniel, Richard, 91, 92Daniels, Alexander von, 42Daser, Wilhelm, 120, 217de Angelis, Maximilian, 129de Beaulieu, Walter Chales, 70, 221de Boer, Johann, 74, 330de Chevallerie, Kurt von, 140de Courbiere, Rene de l’Homme, 201, 264de Gaulle, Charles, 105de Leyen, Ludwig von, 52Deboi, Heinrich, 89Degener, Major General, 239Dehner, Ernst, 167Demme, Rudolf, 185Demoll, Eugen, 250Dempwolff, Hugo, 326Denecke, Erich, 291Dennerlein, Max, 336Dernen, Friedrich-Wilhelm, 209Dettling, August, 237–38Dewitz, Kuno, 289Dewitz von Krebs, Karl von, 241Diestel, Erich, 114, 127Dippold, Benighus, 237Dittmar, Kurt, 222Division Number 140 Z.B.V., 190–91Division Staff 240 Z.B.V., 283–84divisional units, 6–8

anti-tank battalions, 6–7engineer battalions, 8fusilier battalions, 8reconnaissance battalions, 6signal battalions, 8tank destroyer battalions, 7–8

Doenitz, Karl, 36, 37Domansky, Kurt, 100, 154Dostler, Anton, 105, 216Dreckmann, Paul, 212, 296Drescher, Otto, 84, 314Duerking, Werner, 161

Duvert, Walther, 312Ebeling, Kurt, 259Eberding, Kurt, 85, 115Eberhardt, Friedrich-Georg, 85, 229, 335Eberth, Anton, 250, 251Eckhardt, Heinrich, 260–63Edelmann, Karl, 2018th Infantry Division, 4518th Infantry Division, 6218th Volksgrenadier Division, 62–6380th Infantry Division, 13781st Infantry Division, 137–3882nd Infantry Division, 138–3983rd Infantry Division, 139–4184th Infantry Division, 141–4285th Infantry Division, 142–4386th Infantry Division, 143–4487th Infantry Division, 144–4788th Infantry Division, 147–4989th Infantry Division, 149–5011th Infantry Division, 48–4911th Marine Division, 49–50Elfeldt, Otto, 96, 205Elfeldt, Paul, 64Endres, Theodor, 263Engel, Gerhard, 51, 52Engel, Joachim, 91, 92Engelbrecht, Erwin, 216engineer battalions, 3, 8Esteban-Infantes, Emilo, 293Ewringmann, Hugo, 94Fabiunke, Karl, 182Fabrice, Eberhard von, 218, 227Falkenhorst, Nikolaus, 79Falkenstein, Hans von, 71, 91, 92Falkner, Karl, 282Falley, Wilhelm, 151, 152, 291Fangohr, Friedrich, 176Faulenbach, Karl, 139Felzmann, Maximilian, 294Fessmann, Ernst, 314Fett, Albert, 209Feyerabend, Gerhard, 49, 145Fiebig, Heinz, 142, 2915th Infantry Division, 395th Light Division, 4015th Infantry Division, 55–5750th Infantry Division, 98–10052nd Infantry (later Field Training and Security) Division, 101–256th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 102–457th Infantry Division, 104–658th Infantry Division, 106–759th Infantry Division, 107–8Finck, Baron von, 2471st Grenadier Division East Prussia, 33

1st Infantry Division, 33–361st Light Division, 371st Marine Division, 36–37Fischer, Colonel, 161Fischer, Gotthard, 180–81Fischer, Hermann, 233Fischer, Karl, 314Fischer, Kurt, 227Floerke, Hermann, 77Foerster, Sigismund von, 71, 74Foertsch, Hermann, 64Folttmann, Joseph, 303Forst, Werner, 1674th Infantry Division, 394th Light Division, 394th Viennese Regiment, 8814th Infantry Division, 5314th Landwehr Division, 53–5541st Fortress (later Infantry) Division, 86–8744th Infantry Division “Hoch und Deutschmeister,” 88–9045th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 90–9246th Infantry Division, 92–9447th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 94–9648th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 96–97, see also 171st Reserve Division49th Infantry Division, 97–98, see also 191st Reserve DivisionFranco (Spanish dictator), 293Franek, Friedrich “Fritz,” 89, 126, 244Franke, Hermann, 200, 215Frankewitz, Bruno, 267Franz, Gerhard, 303Frenking, Hermann, 332Fretter-Pico, Otto, 105, 106, 195Friebe, Helmuth, 68, 179Friedrich, Christian, 218Friedrich, Rudolf, 113Friedrichs, Walter, 263Friessner, Johannes, 165–66Frisius, Rear Admiral, 277Fromm, Friedrick “Fritz,” 28Frommberger, Colonel, 74Fuerst, Friedrich, 81, 226Fullriede, Fritz, 39fusilier battalions, 8Gablenz, Eccard von, 44, 45, 79, 282Gaedicke, Fritz, 252Gallenkamp, Curt, 133Gareis, Martin, 164, 311Gebb, Werner, 47Geissler, Erich, 134Gercke, Hubert, 195, 329German Division

artillery regiments, 5–6divisional units, 6–8infantry line regiments, 3–5jaeger (light) divisions, 13

light divisions, 13Luftwaffe units, 14–15miscellaneous, 14motorized (panzer grenadier) divisions, 12–13mountain divisions, 13panzer divisions, 11–12security divisions, 14SS divisions, 15staff, 1–3support units, 8–11type 44 divisions, 11Volksgrenadier divisions, 11

Gerok, Kurt, 201Geyso, Eckkard von, 243Giese, Karl, 253Gihr, Gustav, 45, 84, 91, 158, 168, 269Gilbert, Martin, 168, 219, 220, 232, 287Gilsa, Baron von und zu, 268, 269Gimborn, Hermann von, 231Goeritz, Werner, 153Goeschen, Alexander, 264Goetz, Heinrich, 64, 65, 140, 141Gollwitzer, Friedrich, 148, 243Goltzsch, Rudolf, 336Graevenitz, Hans von, 282Graf, Karl, 206, 327Graffen, Karl von, 107Grandes, Munoz, 293Grase, Martin, 35Greiner, Heinrich, 316Griesbach, Franz, 225Grimme, Colonel, 119Groddeck, Karl-Albrecht von, 49, 212Groppe, Theodor, 265, 266Grosse, Erich, 156Grossmann, Horst, 43, 165Grote, Woldemar, 271Gruner, Erich, 113, 126, 169–70Guembel, Karl, 200, 235, 305Guentzel, Ernst, 61, 172Guhl, Konrad, 229Gurran, Paul, 70Haccius, Ernst, 93, 94Haeckel, Ernst, 59, 208, 310Haehling, Kurt, 126, 180, 181Haenicke, Siegfried, 111Hahm, Walter, 307, 308Hahne, Hans, 245Halder, Franz, 44, 45, 188Hammer, Ernst, 127, 128, 240, 241Hansen, Ottomar, 173, 174Harrendorf, Hermann, 161Harteneck, Gustav, 124Hartmann, Alexander von, 42, 121, 122Hartmann, Hans, 37

Hartmann, Otto, 44, 45Hartmann, Walter, 145Hartmann, Werner, 38Hase, Paul von, 93, 94, 104Hass, Siegfried, 225Hasse, Wilhelm, 76Hassenstein, Erich, 91, 92Hauffe, Arthur, 93Haus, Georg, 61, 100Hauser, Wolfgang-Rudiger, 87Hausser, SS General, 132, 151, 286, 324headquarters, 10Heine, Siegfried, 190Heinrichs, Conrad-Oskar, 150, 336Heinrici, Gotthard, 58Held, Karl, 194Hell, Ernst-Eberhard, 56, 317Hellmich, Heinz, 192, 286Henke, Carl, 336Henke, Gerhard, 76, 336Henrici, Waldemar, 306Henze, Albert, 76Heopner, Eric, 70Hermann, Alfred, 310Hermann, Colonel, 154Hermann, Paul, 311Hernekamp, Karl, 52, 79Hernekampf, Kurt, 259Herrlein, Friedrich, 122Heucke, Werner, 294Heulsen, Botho von, 113Heun, Wilhelm, 140–41Heunert, Iwan, 107Heuttner, Hans, 220Heygendorff, Ralph von, 215Heyne, Walter, 43, 139Hielscher, Edgar, 257Hielscher, Rudolf, 306Higher Artillery Command, 3Hilpert, Karl, 49Himer, Kurt, 92–93, 269Himmler, Heinrich, 28Hippel, Ferdinand, 81Hirschfield, Hans von, 134Hirt, Rudolf, 56, 57Hitter, Alfons, 167, 254, 255Hitzfeld, Otto, 165, 166Hobe, Cord von, 136Hochbaum, Friedrich, 81Hoecker, Hans-Kurt, 220, 306Hoefl, Hugo, 86, 254, 255Hoffmann, Colonel, 89Hoffmann, Helmuth, 113Hoffmann, Paul, 194Hoffmann-Schoenborn, Colonel/Major General, 63

Hoffmeister, Edmund, 45Hofmann, Erich, 154, 256Hofmann, Friedrich, 47, 180, 210Hohn, Hermann, 124Hollidt, Karl Adolf, 100, 102Hollweg, Carl, 60Hoppe, Harry, 180, 329Horn, Hans-Joachim von, 247Horn, Max, 252, 265, 266Hossbach, Friedrich, 77, 139Hube, Hans Valentin, 58Huehner, Werner, 111Huenten, Maximilian, 86Huffmann, Helmuth, 327Hummel, Kurt, 136Hundt, Gustav, 176Ilgen, Max, 79infantry anti-tank companies, 5infantry battalions, 4infantry howitzer companies, 4–5infantry line regiments, 3–5

anti-tank battalions, 3anti-tank companies, 5artillery, 3engineer battalions, 3howitzer companies, 4–5infantry battalions, 4machine gun companies, 4reconnaissance battalions, 3signal battalions, 3tank destroyer companies, 5

Jacobi, Alfred, 250, 251jaeger (light) divisions, 13Jahn, Curt, 52, 173–74Jordan, Hans, 45Juettner, Arthur, 113Junck, Hans, 298, 312Kaempfe, Rudolf, 77, 78Kaestner, Robert, 59Kalkowski, Walter, 330Kalmuekoff, Kurt, 77, 78Kamecke, Hans, 190Kampfhenkel, Werner, 124Karl, Franz, 235, 310Karst, Friedrich, 158, 309Kauffmann, Gerhard, 303Kegler, Gerhard, 97Keiner, Walter, 113Keinitz, Werner, 71Keitel, Wilhelm, 42Kempski, Hans von, 248Keonig, Eugen, 151–52Keuhne, Gerhard, 68Kiliani, Emmanuel von, 298Kirchbach, Harry von, 266

Kirchheim, Heinrich, 222Kittel, Friedrich, 113Klammt, Guenther, 43, 307, 308Klasing, Fritz, 107Klepp, Ernst, 186Klinge, Colonel, 244Klosterkemper, Bernhard, 152, 232, 286Kluge, Guenther von, 277Kluge, Wolfgang von, 277Kniess, Baptist, 267Kobolt, Heinz, 161Koch, Fritz, 300Koechling, Friedrich, 300Koenig, Ernst, 77Koenig, Eugen, 294, 321, 322Koenig, Major General, 51, 52Koerner, Gerhard, 91Koerner, Paul-Willi, 274Koetz, Karl, 64Kohler, Wilhelm, 332Kokott, Heim, 74Kolb, Werner, 47Korte, Peter, 290, 291Kortzfleisch, Joachim von, 35Koske, Karl, 263Kossack, Siegfried, 142Kossmala, Georg, 79, 321Kraeutler, Mathias, 191Kraiss, Dietrich, 221Krampf, Heinrich, 58Krappe, Guenther, 111Kratzert, Hans, 294Krause, Walther, 225Krech, Frank, 87Kreipe, Heinrich, 68, 136Kriebel, Karl, 93, 94, 104Krosigk, Ernst-Anton von, 35, 71Kuechler, Georg von, 35Kuehlwein, Fritz, 91, 92, 196Kuehn, Walter, 291Kuehne, Fritz, 73, 298Kuhnert, Alfred, 247Kullmer, Arthur, 167Kuntze, Walter, 42, 43Kurowski, Eberhard von, 168, 169Labonne, Roger, 44Laengenfelder, Hans, 57Lamey, Hubert, 64Lancelle, Otto, 173, 174Landau, Christian-Johannes, 230Landgraf, Franz, 202, 204Lang, Georg, 148Lang, Joachim-Friedrich, 158Lang, Major (General Staff), 125Lang, Viktor, 271

Lange, Wolfgang, 196, 237Langhaeuser, Rudolf, 52Larisch, Heribert von, 134, 182Lasch, Otto, 270Laux, Paul, 180Le Suire, Karl von, 93Leeb, Emil von, 56Lehmann, Josef, 139, 284Lemke, Herbert, 232Lendle, Hubert, 273Lettow, Paul, 235Leyser, Ernst von, 317Lichel, Walther, 177–78Lieb, Theobald, 81, 171Liegmann, Friedrich-Wilhelm, 43light divisions, 13Lindemann, Fritz, 185List, Colonel, 291Lock, Herbert, 61Loehning, Paul, 243Loeper, Friedrich Wilhelm von, 138Loeweneck, Ludwig, 86Loewrick, Karl, 154Lorenz, Erich, 143Lorenz, Wilhelm, 52Louisenthal, La Salle von, 153Lucht, Walther, 145Ludwig, Fritz, 165, 166Luebbe, Vollrath, 138Luedecke, Otto, 104, 311Luedke, Erich, 47Lueters, Rudolf, 274Luetzow, Kurt-Juergen von, 52Luftwaffe units, 14–15Luz, Hellwig, 248Machenheim von Bechtoldsheim, Anton Reichard von, 305machine gun companies, 4Macholz, Siegfried, 96, 98, 176, 241, 242Mackensen, Colonel General, 152Mahlmann, Paul, 86, 190, 194Mannerheim, Carl, 176Manstein, Field Marshal von, 68Markgraf, Emil, 133, 240Martinek, Robert, 314Materna, Friedrich, 91Mattenklott, Franz, 123, 124Matterstock, Otto, 194Matzky, Gerhard, 64, 65medical units, 8–10Meiners, Ernst, 138Meissner, Robert, 118Mellenthin, Friedrich William “F.W.”, 70Mellenthin, Horst von, 70, 154, 253Mellwig, Colonel, 239Melzer, Walter, 296

Menkel, Konrad, 280Menny, Erwin, 124, 142, 178Merker, Ludwig, 84Meuller, Kurt, 335Meyer-Buerdorf, Heinrich, 183, 184Meyer-Kabingen, Hermann, 209, 245Michael, Ernst, 253Michaelis, Herbert, 158Mieth, Friedrich, 135, 171Model, Field Marshal, 150Moeckel, Alexander, 59Moehring, Kurt, 244, 325–26Monteton, Albrecht Digeon von, 102, 254motorcycle messenger platoons, 10–11motorized (panzer grenadier) divisions, 12–13motorized mapping detachments, 10, 11mountain artillery regiments, 5mountain divisions, 13Mueller, Friedrich-Wilhelm, 68Mueller, Gerhard, 52Mueller, Richard, 260, 263Mueller, Vincenz, 104, 105Mueller-Buelow, Claus, 291Mueller-Gebhard, Philipp, 123, 124, 222Muhl, Kurt, 190Muller, Ludwig, 247Muller-Derichsweiler, Erich, 231Mundt, Hans, 221Nake, Albin, 209, 311Nedtwig, Johannes, 126, 205–6Neibelschuetz, Guenther von, 49Neidermayer, Oscar Ritter von, 214, 215Neindorff, Egon von, 43, 190, 239, 269Neuling, Ferdinand, 283Neumann, Friedrich Wilhelm, 241Neumann-Neurode, Karl-Ulrich, 280Newiger, Albert, 102, 171, 2419th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 45–4819th Infantry Division, 6319th Volksgrenadier Division, 63–6491st Air Landing Division, 150–5292nd Infantry Division, 152–5393rd Infantry Division, 153–5494th Infantry Division, 154–5795th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 157–5996th Infantry Division, 159–6197th Infantry Division, 16198th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 162–64Noack, Hermann, 161Noack, Max, 205Nobiz, Colonel, 183Noeldechen, Ferdinand, 161Obernitz, Justin von, 71, 241Ochsner, Wilhelm, 77, 78Oecker, Hans Kurt, 108

Olbricht, Friedrich, 71100th Infantry Division, 164101st Infantry Division, 164102nd Infantry Division, 164–66106th Infantry Division, 166–67110th Infantry Division, 167–69111th Infantry Division, 169–70112th Infantry Division, 170–71113th Infantry Division, 171–72121st Infantry Division, 172–74122nd Infantry Division, 174–76123rd Infantry Division, 177–78125th Infantry Division, 178–79126th Infantry Division, 179–81129th Infantry Division, 181–82131st Infantry Division, 182–84132nd Infantry Division, 184–85133rd Fortress Division, 185–86134th Infantry Division, 186–88137th Infantry Division, 189–90141st Reserve Division, 191–92143rd Replacement (later Reserve) Division, 192–93147th Replacement (later Reserve) Division, 193–94148th Infantry (formerly Reserve) Division, 194–95149th Field Training Division, 195–96150th Field Training Division, 196151st Field Training Division, 196151st Reserve Division, 197152nd Field Training Division, 197–98152nd Replacement Division, 198–200153rd Field Training (later Grenadier) Division, 200–1154th Reserve (later Infantry) Division, 201–3155th Field Training (later Infantry) Division, 203155th Replacement Division, 203–4156th Field Training (later Infantry) Division, 204–5156th Reserve Division, 205–6157th Reserve Division, 206158th Field Training Division, 206–7158th Reserve Division, 207–8159th Infantry (formerly Reserve) Division, 208–9160th Reserve Division, 209–10161st Infantry Division, 211–12162nd Infantry Division, 212–15163rd Infantry Division, 215–16164th Infantry Division, 216165th Reserve Division, 216–17166th Reserve (later Infantry) Division, 217–18167th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 218–20168th Infantry Division, 220–21169th Infantry Division, 222170th Infantry Division, 224–25171st Reserve Division, 225–26172nd Reserve Division, 226–27173rd Reserve Division, 227–28174th Reserve Division, 228–29

176th Infantry Division, 229–30177th Mobilization Division, see 177th Replacement Division177th Replacement Division, 230–31178th Replacement Division, 231179th Replacement Division, 231180th Infantry (formerly Replacement) Division, 231–32181st Infantry Division, 232–33182nd Reserve Division, 234–35183rd Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 235–38187th Reserve Division, 238189th Reserve (later Infantry) Division, 238–40190th Infantry Division, 240–41191st Reserve Division, 241192nd Replacement Division, 241–42193rd Replacement Division, 242–43196th Infantry Division, 243–44197th Infantry Division, 244–45198th Infantry Division, 245–48199th Infantry Division, 248Opelt, Kurt, 71operational groups, 1–2Oppenlaender, Kurt, 247Oriola, Ralph von, 124Ortner, Bruno, 89, 119, 152, 332, 336Oschmann, Hans, 335Osswald, Erwin, 47Ott, Eugen, 44Ottenbacher, Otto, 231Oven, Karl von, 104Overbeck, Egon, 35Pampel Pamberg, Bernhard von, 104, 280Pampel Papenau, Bernhard von, 122panzer divisions, 11–12Pawel, Bronislaw, 56Pellengahr, Richard, 244personnel groups, 2Peschel, Rudolf, 102Petri, Hans, 242, 321, 322Pfeiffer, Georg, 116, 155, 156–57Pfeiffer, Hellmuth, 116Pflaum, Karl, 206, 306Pflieger, Kurt, 77, 78Pflugbeil, Johann, 273Pflugradt, Kurt, 228Philipp, Ernst, 188Piekendrock, Hans, 257–58Pilz, Rudolf, 252Plotho, Wolfgang von, 317, 333, 334Polster, Colonel, 114Poppe, Walter, 108, 132, 270, 301–2Praun, Albert, 182, 327Priess, Hellmuth, 173, 174Prueter, Friedrich-Wilhelm, 172Puechler, Carl, 305Raapke, Wilhelm, 122

Raatz, Helmuth, 140Rabenau, Friedrich von, 126Rademacher, Wilhelm, 45Radziej, Georg, 222Raesfeld, Werner von, 165Raithel, Wilhelm, 248Ranck, Werner, 173, 174, 271Rappard, Fritz-Georg von, 45, 140Rasp, Siegfried, 134Rauch, Erwin, 178Recke, Heinrich, 212Recknagel, Hermann, 170reconnaissance battalions, 3, 6Reibnitz, Leopold von, 197Reichenau, Walther von, 93Reichert, Joseph, 231Rein, Siegfried, 119Reinhard, Hans Wolfgang, 84Reinhardt, Alfred, 164Reinherr, Colonel, 136Rekowski, Siegfried von, 129, 131, 167, 205Rendulic, Lothar, 102Renner, Kurt, 229, 260, 263Rentschler, Emil Heinrich, 291Replacement Army, 28–29Reuss, Richard-Heinrich von, 113Reuter, Erich, 94Reymann, Colonel, 136Reymann, Hellmuth, 49, 263, 300Ribert, Colonel, 100Ribstein, Hugo, 138Richert, Johann-Georg, 84, 335Richter, Ernst, 55, 253Richter, Otto, 247Richter, Werner, 145, 310Rintenberg, Colonel, 167Risse, Ernst-Walther, 275, 276Rittau, Stephan, 182Rittberg, Georg von, 148Roden, Emmo von, 335Roehricht, Edgar, 52, 158Roepke, Kurt, 93, 94Roesler, Karl, 150Roettig, Otto, 247Rohr, Guenther, 52Roman, Rudolf von, 84Roques, Franz von, 231Roques, Karl von, 193Rosenburg, Karl, 128, 129–31Roske, Fritz, 122Rosskopf, Maximilian, 221Rost, Hans-Guenther von, 89Roth, Heinrich, 148Rothkirch und Panthen, Friedrich-Wilhelm, 195Ruebel, Karl, 216

Ruebesamen, Friedrich Wilhelm, 332Ruediger, Kurt, 190Ruge, Admiral, 312Rundstedt, Field Marshal, 150Rupprecht, Wilhelm, 116Russwurm, Wilhelm, 208, 323Sachs, Karl, 209, 305Sachsenheimer, Max, 61, 62Sander, Erwin, 225, 289Sanne, Werner, 81, 243Schack, Friedrich-August, 269, 321Schacky und Schonfeld, Sigmund von, 217Schaeffer, Hans, 287, 296Scharenberg, Colonel, 64Schartow, Werner, 219Schatz, Bruno, 176Schaumburg, Ernst, 275Schede, Wolf, 161, 197, 258Scheele, Hans-Karl von, 257Scheidies, Franz, 111Schell, Otto, 212Schellert, Otto, 218, 298Schellmann, Ernst, 250Schellwitz, Friedrich von, 70Scherer, Theodor, 81, 140, 331Scheuerpflug, Paul, 118Scheurlen, Ernst, 38Schiel, Otto, 164, 247Schilling, Otto, 235Schirmer, Hans, 70Schittnig, Hans, 35Schleinitz, Siegmund von, 47Schleinitz, Joachim von, 161Schlemmer, Hans, 188Schlenther, Eugen, 226Schlieben, Karl-Wilhelm von, 257Schlieper, Franz, 79, 126Schlieper, Fritz, 91, 92Schlueter, Robert, 307, 308Schmidt, August, 100, 207Schmidt, Axel, 209Schmidt, Colonel, 332Schmidt, Friedrich, 100Schmidt, Hans, 118, 307, 308, 324, 325Schmidt, Richard, 300Schmidt, Willi, 335Schmidt-Hemmer, Werner, 221Schneckenburger, Willi, 179Schoenhaerl, Hans, 206, 219, 220, 281Schoenheinz, Curt, 201Schoenherr, Otto, 192, 195, 280Schoerner, Colonel General, 70Scholz, Arnold, 97Schopper, Erich, 138Schrank, Max, 122

Schreiber, Alfred, 56Schricker, Paul, 206Schroeck, Erich, 164, 242Schroeder, Otto, 201Schroth, Walter, 35Schubert, Albrecht, 52, 89Schuckman, Eberhard von, 122Schuenemann, Otto, 210Schultetus, Bruno, 331Schultz, Harald, 71, 72Schulze, Werner, 183, 184, 185Schwatlo-Gesterding, Joachim, 298Schwerin, Bogislav von, 256, 273Schwerin, Gerhard von, 300Schwerin, Richard von, 136, 239Scotti, Friedrich von, 2792nd Grenadier Division East Prussia, 372nd Infantry Division, 382nd Light Division, 382nd Marine Division, 38security divisions, 14Seeckt, Hans von, 69Seeher, Colonel, 136Seidel, Erich, 305Seifert, Ernst, 168–69Senior Artillery Commander, 2–3Sensfuss, Franz, 64, 2637th Infantry Division, 43–5417th Infantry Division, 60–6270th Infantry Division, 12071st Infantry Division, 121–2272nd Infantry Division, 122–2473rd Infantry Division, 124–2674th Infantry Division, 126–2775th Infantry Division, 127–2876th Infantry Division, 128–3177th Infantry Division, 131–3278th Infantry (later Assault) Division, 132–3479th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 134–36Seydlitz-Kurzbach, Walter von, 52Seyffardt, Paul, 253Siebert, Friedrich, 89, 105Sieckenius, Rudolf, 310Sieglin, Kurt, 228Siewert, Curt, 107signal battalions, 3, 8Sintzenich, Rudolf, 185, 194Sinzinger, Adolf, 140Siry, Maximilian, 291Sixt, Friedrich, 99, 1006th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 40–4316th Infantry Division (#1), 57–5816th Infantry Division (#2), 58–5916th Marine Division, 6060th Infantry Division, 110

61st Infantry Division, 110–1162nd Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 111–1463rd Infantry Division, 11464th Infantry Division, 114–1565th Infantry Division, 115–1768th Infantry Division, 117–1869th Infantry Division, 118–19Sodan, Rolf, 318Sorsche, Konrad, 100Souchay, Curt, 124Special Employment Division Staff 136, 188–89Sperl, Rudolf, 57, 111Sponeck, Hans von, 66, 68, 93, 94Sponheimer, Otto, 64, 65Sprang, Karl, 313SS divisions, 15SS panzer divisions, 15Stachwitz, Mauritz von, 145, 146Staedke, Helmut, 247staff, divisional, 1–3

operational groups, 1–2special, 2–3

staff companies, 10Stapf, Otto, 170Stauffenberg, Claus von, 28Stegmann, Major General, 132Steinmetz, Bernard, 156, 157Stemmermann, Wilhelm, 123, 148Stempel, Richard, 237Stengal, Hans, 258Stephan, Friedrich, 314Stephanus, Konrad, 195Stimmel, Herbert, 164, 329Stockhausen, Wilhelm-Hunold von, 331, 332Stoewer, Paul, 193Stolberg-Stolberg, Christoph zu, 189, 210Stolzmann, Hans-Joachim von, 77, 78Straube, Erich, 316Strauss, Adolf, 68Strecker, Major General/Lieutenant General, 136Studnitz, Bogislav von, 145, 146Stumm, Berthold, 230Stumpfeld, Hans-Joachim von, 42supply groups, 1supply troops, 10support units, 8–11

headquarters, 10medical, 8–10motorcycle messenger platoons, 10–11motorized mapping detachments, 10, 11staff companies, 10supply troops, 10veterinary companies, 10

Suttner, Hans, 280tactical groups, 1

tank destroyer battalions, 7–8tank destroyer companies, 510th Infantry Division, 48Tettau, Hans von, 71, 72Thadden, Henning von, 35Theilacker, Eugen, 263Theisen, Edgar, 309Thielmann, Alfred, 79, 176, 202, 203, 3003rd Infantry Division, 383rd Light Division, 383rd Marine Division, 3913th Infantry Division, 5330th Infantry Division, 74–7631st Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 76–7832nd Infantry Division, 78–8033rd Infantry Division, 8034th Infantry Division, 80–8335th Infantry Division, 83–8536th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 8538th Infantry Division, 8539th Infantry Division, 86Thomas, Wilhelm, 252, 335Thomaschki, Siegfried, 49Tiedemann, Karl von, 256Tiemann, Otto, 154Tillessen, Colonel, 59Tippelskirch, Kurt von, 76Tittel, Hermann, 119, 222Traut, Colonel, 333Traut, Hans, 133–34, 310Trierenberg, Wolf, 220Trompeter, Friedrich, 59Tronnier, Louis, 113–14, 178Trowitz, Adolf, 106, 176Tscherning, Otto, 44, 20412th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 50–5320th Infantry Division, 6421st Infantry Division, 64–6522nd Infantry (later Air Landing) Division, 65–6823rd Infantry Division (#1), 6923rd Infantry Division (#2), 69–7024th Infantry Division, 70–7225th Infantry Division, 7226th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 72–7427th Infantry Division, 7428th Infantry Division, 7429th Infantry Division, 74200th Replacement Division, 249201st Security Division, 249–51203rd Security (later Infantry) Division, 251–52205th Infantry Division, 252–53206th Infantry Division, 253–55207th Infantry (later Security) Division, 255–56208th Infantry Division, 256–58209th Infantry Division, 258–59

210th Infantry Division (Coastal Defense), 259211th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 260–62212th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 262–63213th Infantry (later Security) Division, 263–65214th Infantry Division, 265–66215th Infantry Division, 266–67216th Infantry Division, 267–69217th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 269–70218th Infantry Division, 270–71219th Infantry Division, 272221st Infantry (later Security) Division, 272–73223rd Infantry Division, 273–74225th Infantry Division, 274–76226th Infantry Division, 277227th Infantry Division, 278–79228th Infantry Division, 279–80230th Infantry Division, 280–81232nd Infantry Division, 281–82237th Infantry Division, 282239th Infantry Division, 283242nd Infantry Division, 284–85243rd Infantry Division, 285–86244th Infantry Division, 286–87245th Infantry Division, 287–89246th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 289–91249th Infantry Division, 291–92250th Infantry Division, 292–93251st Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 293–95252nd Infantry Division, 295–97253rd Infantry Division, 297–98254th Infantry Division, 298–300255th Infantry Division, 300–2256th Infantry Division, 302–3257th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 304–5258th Infantry Division, 305–6260th Infantry Division, 307–8262nd Infantry Division, 308–9263rd Infantry Division, 309–10264th Infantry Division, 310–11265th Infantry Division, 311–12266th Infantry Division, 312–13267th Infantry Division, 313–14268th Infantry Division, 314–16269th Infantry Division, 316–18270th Infantry Division (Coastal Defense), 318–19271st Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 319–20272nd Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 320–22273rd Infantry Division, 322274th Infantry Division, 322–23275th Infantry Division, 323–25276th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 325–26277th Infantry (later Volksgrenadier) Division, 326–28278th Infantry Division, 328–29279th Infantry Division, 329280th Infantry Division (Coastal Defense), 329–30

281st (later Infantry) Division, 330–32282nd Infantry Division, 332–33285th Security Division, 333–34286th Security Division, 334–35290th Infantry Division, 335–36type 44 divisions, 11Uckermann, Horst von, 210, 271Ueberschaer, Bernhard, 182Ulex, Wilhelm, 51Ulich, Max, 263Unger, Friedrich von, 244Unold, Georg von, 296Usinger, Christian, 274Veith, Richard, 241Versock, Kurt, 71, 72veterinary companies, 10Viebahn, Max von, 305Viebig, Wilhelm, 327, 328Vierow, Erwin, 47, 161Voelker, Kaspar, 119Voelkers, Paul, 133, 134Vogl, Oskar, 219Volkmann, Hellmuth, 156Volksgrenadier divisions, 11Wachsmuth, Werner, 216Wachter, Friedrich-Karl von, 209, 275, 279, 314Wagner, Hans, 317, 318Wagner, Herbert von, 71, 185, 263Wagner, Werner, 326Wahle, Carl, 96, 266Waldow, Ulrich von, 192Walter, Helmuth, 147, 218Wandel, Martin, 173, 174Warnecke, Fritz, 113, 303Weber, Alois, 134Weber, Erich, 136Weber, Friedrich, 183, 184, 303Weber, Gottfried, 111, 138, 154, 161Weckmann, Kurt, 323Wegener, Wilhelm, 79–80Wehrkreise System, 17–31

commanders in 1942, 27deputy components, 26–28XV, 281st Wave divisions, 25–26XIV, 28Replacement Army, 28–292nd Wave divisions, 26XVI, 28tactical components, 263rd Wave divisions, 26

Weidling, Helmuth, 144Weikersthal, Walther Fischer von, 84Weinknecht, Friedrich-August, 136, 139Weisenberger, Karl, 122

Weiss, Walter, 74Wengler, Maximilian, 140, 141, 279Westhoff, Adolf, 176Westphal, Siegfried, 116Wetzel, Wilhelm, 301Wickede, Thomas-Emil von, 76Wiese, Friedrich, 74Wilck, Gerhard, 290, 291Wilck, Hermann, 212Wilhelm of Prussia, Prince, 34Willich, Fritz, 218Windeck, Hans, 200Windisch, Alois, 311, 332Winkler, Hermann, 201Winter, Paul, 76Wintergerst, Karl, 259Wissmath, Walter, 64, 71, 248Witthoeft, Joachim, 144Wittke, Walter, 225Wittstatt, Christian, 186Witzleben, Hermann von, 39, 286Woessner, Eugen, 245, 309Wolff, Kurt, 240Wolff, Ludwig, 68Wollmann, Walter, 306Woytasch, Kurt, 232, 233Wrede, Theodor von, 336Wuestenhagen, Albrecht, 168, 303Wuthmann, Rolf, 171Zangen, Gustav-Adolf von, 61–62Zickwolff, Friedrich, 158, 172, 279Ziegler, Wolfgang, 122Ziehlberg, Gustav Heistermann von, 116Zimmer, Richard, 61, 62Zorn, Eberhard, 59Zorn, Eduard, 239–40Zuelow, Alexander von, 140Zwade, Georg, 203, 257

Discover more History books, eBooks, and drama from the front lines!

From Gettysburg to D-Day to Iraq, muskets to panzers, foxholes to headquarters—real battles, realsoldiers, real stories come alive in Stackpole’s History titles.

Visit

Stackpole Books History webpage