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Army Group Centre
Army Group Centre (german: Heeresgruppe Mitte) was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created on 22 June 1941, as one of three German Army formations assigned to the invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). On 25 January 1945, after it was encircled in the Königsberg pocket, Army Group Centre was renamed Army Group North (), and Army Group A () became Army Group Centre. The latter formation retained its name until the end of the war in Europe on 11 May after VE Day. Formation The commander in chief on the formation of the Army Group Centre (22 June 1941) was Fedor von Bock. Order of battle at formation Campaign and operational history Operation Barbarossa On 22 June 1941, Nazi Germany and its Axis allies launched their surprise offensive into the Soviet Union. Their armies, totaling over three million men, were to advance in three geographical directi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fedor Von Bock
Moritz Albrecht Franz Friedrich Fedor von Bock (3 December 1880 – 4 May 1945) was a German who served in the German Army during the Second World War. Bock served as the commander of Army Group North during the Invasion of Poland in 1939, commander of Army Group B during the Invasion of France in 1940, and later as the commander of Army Group Center during the attack on the Soviet Union in 1941; his final command was that of Army Group South in 1942. Bock commanded Operation Typhoon, the ultimately failed attempt to capture Moscow during the autumn and winter of 1941. The Wehrmacht offensive was slowed by stiff Soviet resistance around Mozhaisk, and also by the , the season of rain and mud in Central Russia. The Soviet counteroffensive soon drove the German army into retreat, and Bock was subsequently relieved of command by Adolf Hitler. A monarchist, Bock was not heavily involved in politics. He did not sympathize with plots to overthrow Adolf Hitler, and never fil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
3rd Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
The 3rd Panzer Division ( en, 3rd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II. The division was one of the original three tank divisions established by Germany in 1935. The division participated in the Invasions of Poland, Belgium, France and the Soviet Union. From 1941 to 1945 it continuously fought on the Eastern Front. History Before World War II The 3rd Panzer Division was formed on 15 October 1935Battistelli 2007, p. 19. from elements of the 1st and 3rd Cavalry Division as well as a variety of other military and police units, and was headquartered in the German capital Berlin. It was one of three tank divisions created at the time, the other two being the 1st and 2nd Panzer Division.Battistelli 2007, p. 19. Germany had renounced the Treaty of Versailles earlier in the year which had forbidden the country, among other things, from having tank forces, a treaty Germany had violated almost from the start by secretly develo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
XII Army Corps (Wehrmacht)
XII Army Corps (German: ''XII. Armeekorps'') was a corps in the German Army during World War II. It was formed in the Wehrkreis XII recruitment and training district in Wiesbaden in October 1936 and was mobilized before the outbreak of war at the end of August 1939. At the start of World War II the corps were part of the 1st Army and based in the Saar region. In 1939 it fought with the 4th Army in Poland. In June 1940 they broke through the Maginot line to the Moselle near Nancy. In Operation Barbarossa in June 1941 the corps were attached to Panzer Group 2 for the attack on the stronghold of Brest-Litovsk. After advancing further into Russia they were held up by Soviet counter-attacks. Following Operation Bagration, the huge Soviet counter-attack in 1944, XII Corps were forced to retreat in bad condition and in July 1944 were finally destroyed in a pocket east of Minsk. General Müller was taken prisoner. The corps was reformed in April 1945 to defend the middle Rhine and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
167th Infantry Division (German)
The 167th Volksgrenadier Division (German: ''167. Volksgrenadierdivision''), formerly the 167th Infantry Division (German: ''167. Infanteriedivision'') was a German Army infantry division in World War II. Operational history Formation and France The 167th Infantry Division was formed in the Bavarian capital of Munich in November 1939, absorbing the 7th; 27th and 34th Field-Replacement Battalions from their respective divisions in January. It was also at this point that its commanding officer, Colonel Gilbert, was promoted to major general, shortly before his replacement by Lieutenant General Oskar Vogl. The division took part in the initial 1940 invasion of France with Army Group C, capturing Ouvrage Kerfent and Ouvrage Bambesch - two components of the Maginot Line - between 20–21 June. The division remained in occupied France until February 1941, when it returned to its garrison in Bavaria. In August 1940, Major General Hans Schönhärl took over as commanding officer, bei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
29th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)
The 29th Infantry Division was a unit of the German army created in the fall of 1936. It was based on the old Reichswehr 15th Infantry Regiment and drew its initial recruits from Thuringia. It was upgraded to 29th Motorized Infantry Division in the fall of 1937. The division was also known as the Falke-Division (Falcon Division). Operational history The division was mobilized in August 1939 and joined the XIV Corps of the German 10th Army for the invasion of Poland. It took part in the encirclement of Polish forces at Radom, Poland and committed the Massacre in Ciepielów. In December 1939 it was transferred to the west. During the invasion of France it joined the 16th Army. As a strategic reserve it was used during the drive for the English Channel. After the Dunkirk evacuation it joined Heinz Guderian's Panzer Group for an advance through eastern France. It was then employed in occupation duties until early 1941. Taking part in Operation Barbarossa it was attached to the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
18th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
The 18th Panzer Division (german: 18. Panzer-Division) was a German World War II armoured division that fought on the Eastern Front from 1941 until its disbandment in 1943. Formation The 18th Panzer Division was formed on 26 October 1940 at Chemnitz from parts of the 4th Infantry Division, 14th Infantry Division, and four battalions of submersible tanks. They had originally been intended for Operation Sea Lion (''Seelöwe''), the planned German invasion of United Kingdom. Of these four tank battalions, two formed the 18th Panzer Regiment and the other two the 28th Panzer Regiment of the 18th Panzer Division. In March 1941 the 18th Panzer Division was reorganized, the 28th Panzer Regiment was disbanded, one of its battalions became the third battalion of the 18th Panzer Regiment, the other battalion was transferred to the 3rd Panzer Division. Service The 18th Panzer Division first saw action during the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa, on 22 June 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
17th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
The 17th Panzer Division (german: 17. Panzer-Division) was a formation of the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was formed in November 1940 from the 27th Infantry Division. It took part in Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, and in the winter of 1941–42 participated in the Battle of Moscow. In November 1942, the division was sent to the southern sector of the Eastern Front where it participated in Operation Winter Storm, the failed attempt to relieve the surrounded troops at Stalingrad. The division was held in reserve during the Battle of Kursk in 1943, and thereafter retreated through Ukraine and Poland, before ending the war in Czechoslovakia. Operational history Formation The ''27th Infantry Division'' was formed in October 1936 in Augsburg, Bavaria, as a peacetime division of the new German Wehrmacht. The division was mobilised on 26 August 1939 and took part in the Invasion of Poland and the Battle of France. In 1943, a Nazi propaganda book wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joachim Lemelsen
Joachim Lemelsen (28 September 1888 – 30 March 1954) was a German general during World War II who rose to army-level command. During Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, troops of the XLVII Motorized Corps under his command executed the criminal Commissar Order, prompting Lemelsen to complain: "Soon the Russians will get to hear about the countless corpses lying along the routes taken by our soldiers (...). The result will be that the enemy will hide in the woods and fields and continue to fight--and we shall lose countless comrades". Early life Born in 1888 in Berlin, Lemelsen joined the army of Imperial Germany as an ''Fahnenjunker'' (officer cadet) in the artillery and later participated in World War I. Serving in the ''Wehrmacht'' of Nazi Germany, he commanded the Artillery ''Lehr'' Regiment in 1934 and from the following year taught at infantry school. In March 1938, Lemelsen was given command of the 29th Infantry Division. World War II Lemels ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
XLVII Panzer Corps (Germany)
XLVII Panzer Corps (also: 47th Panzer Corps or XXXXVII. ''Panzerkorps'' or XXXXVII Panzer Corps) was a panzer corps of the German Army in World War II that was formerly designated as XLVII Corps. Various formations of the corps fought in the French campaign of 1940, in the invasion of Soviet Union from 1941 to 1944, and on the Western Front from June 1944 until April 1945. Initial Formation The first formation of the XLVII Corps was on 20 June 1940, during the Campaign in France. This formation was shortly thereafter disbanded on 1 July 1940. The corps was formed again as a motorized corps on 25 November 1940 in Military Region XI. The new corps was initially stationed in Germany as part of Army Group C. Eastern Front In May 1941, the corps was subordinated to Panzer Group 2 (later 2nd Panzer Army) and took part in the invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa, in 1941. On 21 June 1942, the corps was retitled XLVII Panzer Corps. The corps remained on the Russian front ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich
The 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich (german: 2. SS-Panzerdivision "Das Reich") or SS Division Das Reich was an elite division of the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II, formed from the regiments of the '' SS-Verfügungstruppe'' (SS-VT). The division served during the invasion of France and took part in several major battles on the Eastern Front, including in the Battle of Prokhorovka against the 5th Guards Tank Army at the Battle of Kursk. It was then transferred to the West and took part in the fighting in Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge, ending the war fighting the Soviets in Hungary and Austria. The division committed the Oradour-sur-Glane and Tulle massacres along with others on the Eastern Front. Operational history In August 1939 Adolf Hitler placed the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler (LSSAH), later SS Division Leibstandarte, and the '' SS-Verfügungstruppe'' (SS-VT) under the operational command of the High Command of the German Army. The units' performan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heinrich Von Vietinghoff
Heinrich Gottfried Otto Richard von Vietinghoff genannt Scheel (6 December 1887 – 23 February 1952) was a German general (''Generaloberst'') of the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. Vietinghoff commanded the German troops in German-occupied Italy in 1945. Military career On 24 November 1938, Vietinghoff was appointed commander of the 5th Panzer Division and took part in the invasion of Poland under Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb. He was promoted to General in June 1940 after which he led the German XLVI Panzer Corps in the invasion of Yugoslavia. During Operation Barbarossa, his Corps was part of Army Group Centre under Field Marshal Fedor von Bock. As all commanders of the German corps on the Eastern Front during the invasion, Vietinghoff implemented the criminal Commissar Order. Vietinghoff also later served with General Heinz Guderian in the 2nd Panzer Army. From December 1941 to August 1943, he was Commander ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
XLVI Panzer Corps (Germany)
XXXXVI Panzer Corps (46th) was a tank corps of the German Army during World War II that participated in the invasion of Yugoslavia. The Corps was created as the XXXXVI Army Corps and converted to a Panzer Corps on 21 June 1942. The Panzer Corps took part in Operation Barbarossa and fought in Kiev, Putyvl, Vyazma and Volokolamsk. It later fought in Rusa-Volokolamsk, Rzhev, Vyazma and Yelnya before taking part in Operation Zitadelle (Kursk). It retired to the Svin area in September 1943 and to Mozyr in December. It was transferred to the southern sector in January 1944 and fought at Vinnitsa and later on the Dniester. It withdrew to Poland and ended the war in Pomerania by surrendering to British forces, by which point it only had the 547th Volksgrenadier Division and the 2nd Naval Division under its command. Commanders * 20 June 1940 - 11 June 1942 : Heinrich von Vietinghoff * 11 June 1942 - 20 November 1942 : Hans Zorn * 20 November 1942 - 20 June 1943 : Hans-Karl Freiherr v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
