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40th Panzer Corps
XXXX Panzer Corps was a tank corps in the German Army during World War II. History The XXXX. Armeekorps was formed on 26 January 1940 in Lubeck in the Wehrkreis X. It took part in the invasions of France and Greece before being sent to the Eastern Front. On 15 September 1940 it was converted into a motorized corps under the name XXXX. Armeekorps (motorisiert) and was renamed XXXX. Panzerkorps on 9 July 1942. The XXXX Panzer Corps fought at Kharkov, the advance to the Don River, and to the Terek in the Caucasus. The corps later withdrew toward Rostov and later into Romania. The corps was transferred to East Prussia and withdraw toward Memel and ended the war in central Silesia. Commanders * 15.02.1940 - 14.01.1942 : Georg Stumme * 15.01.1942 - 16.01.1942 : Hans Zorn * 16.02.1942 - 09.07.1942 : Georg Stumme * 20.07.1942 - 30.09.1942 : Leo Freiherr Geyr von Schweppenburg * 30.09.1942 - 13.11.1942 : Gustav Fehn * 13.11.1942 - 01.10.1943 : Siegfried Henrici * 01.10.1943 - ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
German Army (1935-1945)
The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the German Air Force, ''Luftwaffe'' (German Air Force). , the German Army had a strength of 62,766 soldiers. History Overview A German army equipped, organized, and trained following a single doctrine and permanently unified under one command in 1871 during the unification of Germany under the leadership of Prussia. From 1871 to 1919, the title ''German Army (German Empire), Deutsches Heer'' (German Army) was the official name of the German land forces. Following the German defeat in World War I and the end of the German Empire, the main army was dissolved. From 1921 to 1935 the name of the German land forces was the ''Reichswehr, Reichsheer'' (Army of the Empire) and from 1935 to 1945 the name ''German Army (We ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split into two main subregions, Lower Silesia in the west and Upper Silesia in the east. Silesia has a diverse culture, including architecture, costumes, cuisine, traditions, and the Silesian language (minority in Upper Silesia). Silesia is along the Oder River, with the Sudeten Mountains extending across the southern border. The region contains many historical landmarks and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It is also rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. The largest city and Lower Silesia's capital is Wrocław; the historic capital of Upper Silesia is Opole. The biggest metropolitan area is the Upper Silesian metropolitan area, the centre of which is Katowice. Parts of the Czech city of Ostrav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Otto Von Knobelsdorff
Otto von Knobelsdorff (31 March 1886 – 21 October 1966) was a German general during World War II who led the 19th Panzer Division and then held a series of higher commands. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. Biography Born in Berlin in 1886 to a noble family, Knobelsdorff joined the army of Imperial Germany in 1905 as a ''Fahnen-junker'' (officer cadet) and served in the infantry. Twice awarded the Iron Cross during World War I, he later served in the '' Heer'' (Army) branch of the Wehrmacht. He was chief of staff of Corps Command XXXIII at the time of the outbreak of World War II. A ''generalmajor'', he was given command of the 19th Infantry Division on 1 February 1940 and led it through the Battle of France and during subsequent occupation duty. In October, the division was withdrawn to Germany for conversion to armour. It was re-designated the 19th Panzer Division and Knobelsdorff, promoted to ''Generalleutnant'' in late 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heinrich Eberbach
Heinrich Eberbach (24 November 1895 – 13 July 1992) was a German general during World War II who commanded the 5th Panzer Army during the Allied invasion of Normandy. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany. World War I and interwar years Heinrich Eberbach was born on 24 November 1895 in Stuttgart, in the German Empire. Eberbach graduated with his ''Abitur'' ( university-preparatory high school diploma) on 30 June 1914. On 1 July 1914, Eberbach joined the Army of Württemberg. With the outbreak of World War I, Eberbach's unit was deployed on the Western Front. On 16 October 1914, Eberbach was wounded in his thigh by artillery shrapnel. In September 1915, Eberbach was severely wounded, losing his nose, and was taken prisoner of war by French forces. During the 1920s Eberbach was a police officer; in 1935 he joined the Wehrmacht. In 1938 Eberbach became commander of a Panzer regiment, in the newly formed 4th Panzer Divisio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hermann Balck
Georg Otto Hermann Balck (7 December 1893 – 29 November 1982) was a highly decorated officer of the German Army who served in both World War I and World War II, rising to the rank of General der Panzertruppe. Early career Balck was born in Danzig - Langfuhr, present-day Wrzeszcz in Poland. He was the son of William Balck and his wife Mathilde, née Jensen. His family had a long military tradition, and his father was a senior officer in the Imperial German Army. On 10 April 1913 Balck entered the Hanoverian Rifle Battalion 10 in Goslar as a cadet. From 12 February 1914 he attended the Hanoverian Military College, where he remained until called up with the outbreak of the First World War in August. Balck served as a mountain infantry officer, and his unit played a key role in the Schlieffen Plan, leading the crossing at Sedan. He fought on the western, eastern, Italian and Balkan fronts. He served three years as a company commander, ending the war in command of a machine ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ferdinand Schörner
Ferdinand Schörner (12 June 1892 – 2 July 1973) was a German military commander who held the rank of ''Generalfeldmarschall'' in the ''Wehrmacht'' of Nazi Germany during World War II. He commanded several army groups and was the last Commander-in-chief of the German Army. Schörner is commonly represented in historical literature as a simple disciplinarian and a slavish devotee of Adolf Hitler's defensive orders, after Germany lost the initiative in the second half of World War II in 1942/43. More recent research by American historian Howard Davis Grier and German historian Karl-Heinz Frieser depicts Schörner as a talented commander with "astonishing" organizational ability in managing an army group of 500,000 men during the fighting in late 1944 on the Eastern Front. He was harsh against superiors as well as subordinates and carried out operations on his own authority against Hitler's orders when he considered it necessary, such as the evacuation of the Sõrve Peninsula. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siegfried Henrici
__NOTOC__ General Sigfrid Henrici (10 May 1889 – 8 November 1964) was a German general during World War II. During the invasion of Poland in 1939, Henrici was the commander of the 16th Infantry Division (motorised). He commanded XXXX Panzer Corps XXXX Panzer Corps was a tank corps in the German Army during World War II. History The XXXX. Armeekorps was formed on 26 January 1940 in Lubeck in the Wehrkreis X. It took part in the invasions of France and Greece before being sent to the Easte ... from November 1942 to October 1943, when he was severely wounded in Ukraine. He returned to service in 1944 and became again commander of the XXXX Panzerkorps in September, which he led until the end of the war. He was taken prisoner by the Red Army on 9 May 1945 and was released from Soviet captivity in 1955. He died on 8 November 1964. Awards * Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (14 September 1914) & 1st Class (24 December 1915)Thomas 1997, p. 268. * Clasp to the Iron Cross (19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gustav Fehn
__NOTOC__ Gustav Fehn (21 February 1892 – 5 June 1945) was a German general during World War II. Fehn served in the Afrika Korps from November 1942 to January 1943, LXXVI Panzer Corps from July–August 1943, the XXI Army Corps from October 1943 - July 1944 and then the XV Mountain Corps in the Balkans until his surrender to Yugoslav partisans, who shot him without trial on 5 June 1945. Awards * Iron Cross (1914) 2nd and 1st Class * Iron Cross ** 2nd Class (20 September 1939) ** 1st Class (12 October 1939) * Panzer Badge in Silver * German Cross in Gold (7 July 19 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ... on 5 August 1940 as '' Oberst'' and commander of Schützen-Regiment 33Scherzer 2007, p. 303. References Citations Biblio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leo Freiherr Geyr Von Schweppenburg
Leo Dietrich Franz Reichsfreiherr Geyr von Schweppenburg (2 March 1886 – 27 January 1974), was a German general during World War II, noted for his pioneering stance and expertise in the field of armoured warfare. He commanded the 5th Panzer Army (formalised as Panzer Group West) during the Invasion of Normandy, and later served as Inspector General of Armoured Troops. After the war he was involved in the development of the newly built German Army (Bundeswehr). Early life and career Freiherr von Geyr was born 1886 in Potsdam into the Prussian military aristocracy and descended from a family that produced two Prussian Field Marshals. He joined the German Army in 1904. In World War I he fought on several fronts and rose to the rank of captain. After the war, he remained in the army, becoming an Oberst in 1932, and a Generalmajor in 1935. From 1933 to 1937, he was a military attaché to the United Kingdom, Belgium and the Netherlands, residing in London. Promoted to Generalleutn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hans Zorn
__NOTOC__ Hans Zorn (27 October 1891 – 2 August 1943) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany. Zorn was killed on 2 August 1943 by Soviet airstrike during Operation Kutuzov. He was posthumously awarded the Oak leaves to his Knight's Cross on 3 September 1943. Awards and decorations * Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (23 October 1914) & 1st Class (29 January 1916)Thomas 1998, p. 476. * Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (14 May 1940) & 1st Class (26 May 1940) * German Cross in Gold on 14 June 1942 as ''General der Infanterie'' in the XXXXVI. Armeekorps (motorized) * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves ** Knight's Cross on 27 July 1941 as ''Generalmajor is the Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Georg Stumme
Georg Stumme (29 July 1886 – 24 October 1942) was a general in the of Nazi Germany during the Second World War who briefly commanded the Axis forces at the beginning of the Second Battle of El Alamein, and died during the Defence of Outpost Snipe. He had taken part in the Battle of France, the invasion of Yugoslavia and Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the highest award in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during the war. Second World War Stumme fought in the First World War and stayed with the after the war. After the Nazis came to power in 1933 he was promoted to (Colonel) in 1933 and (equivalent to a one-star or Brigadier General in Allied armies) in 1936. Stumme became commander of 2nd Light Division, which was formed on 10 November 1938. Stumme had achieved the rank of by the beginning of the war, and he commanded the 2nd Light Division in the Invasion of Poland in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Klaipėda
Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuania. The city has a complex recorded history, partially due to the combined regional importance of the usually ice-free Port of Klaipėda at the mouth of the river . Located in the region of Lithuania Minor, at various times, it was a part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Prussia and Germany until the 1919 Treaty of Versailles. As a result of the 1923 Klaipėda Revolt it was annexed by Lithuania and has remained with Lithuania to this day, except between 1939 and 1945 when it was occupied by Germany following the 1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania. The population has migrated from the city to its suburbs and hinterland. The number of inhabitants of Klaipėda city shrank from 202,929 in 1989 to 162,360 in 2011, but the urban zone ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
