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The 102nd Heavy SS Panzer Battalion (german: schwere SS-Panzerabteilung 102) was a
In April 1943, the Waffen-SS ordered the creation of a series of heavy tank battalions equipped with the new
Schwere SS-Panzer-Abteilung 102 unit history
{{Authority control German heavy tank battalions German units in Normandy Military units and formations established in 1943
German heavy tank battalion
A German heavy tank battalion (german: "schwere Panzerabteilung", short: "s PzAbt") was a battalion-sized World War II tank unit of the German Army (1935–1945), equipped with Tiger I, and later Tiger II, heavy tanks. Originally intended to fi ...
of the Waffen-SS during World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. It fought as part of the II SS Panzer Corps during the Battle of Normandy and was nearly destroyed. Renumbered as 502nd Heavy SS Panzer Battalion in late 1944, the unit was destroyed in the Halbe Pocket
The Battle of Halbe (german: Kesselschlacht von Halbe, russian: Хальбский котёл, Halbe pocket) was a battle lasting from April 24 – May 1, 1945 in which the German Ninth Army—under the command of General Theodor Busse—was dest ...
in Spring 1945.
Operational history
In April 1943, the Waffen-SS ordered the creation of a series of heavy tank battalions equipped with the new Tiger I
The Tiger I () was a German heavy tank of World War II that operated beginning in 1942 in Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent heavy tank battalions. It gave the German Army its first armoured fighting vehicle that mounted ...
tanks — for use in offensive actions on the Eastern Front. Each of the heavy tank battalions would be attached to a Corps of the Waffen SS. Upon formation, the 102nd was attached to the II SS Panzer Corps. Originally, each heavy tank battalion was composed of a single company of Tiger I's, attached to each respective SS Panzer Division in the Panzerkorps.Fey, p. 19 By July 1943, the predecessor of the 102nd — SS Panzer Regiment 2 of the SS 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-V ...
— was equipped with 14 Tiger I's.
The battalion was sent to Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
after the Allied D Day landings. The battalion was almost completely destroyed during the fighting in Normandy; in September 1944 it was pulled back to Germany to reform. Stationed in Sennelager the battalion was renumbered the 502nd Heavy SS Panzer Battalion on September 9th, 1944.Schneider, Tigers in Combat II, p. 271 Equipped with Tiger II tanks, the battalion took part in the defense against the Red Army at the Oder front. During the Battle of Berlin
The Battle of Berlin, designated as the Berlin Strategic Offensive Operation by the Soviet Union, and also known as the Fall of Berlin, was one of the last major offensives of the European theatre of World War II.
After the Vistula– ...
, the battalion was encircled in the Halbe Pocket
The Battle of Halbe (german: Kesselschlacht von Halbe, russian: Хальбский котёл, Halbe pocket) was a battle lasting from April 24 – May 1, 1945 in which the German Ninth Army—under the command of General Theodor Busse—was dest ...
in 1945 and destroyed.
See also
*Panzer division
A Panzer division was one of the armored (tank) divisions in the army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Panzer divisions were the key element of German success in the blitzkrieg operations of the early years of World War II. Later the Waffe ...
Footnotes
References
* Fey, William990
Year 990 ( CMXC) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Europe
* Al-Mansur, ''de facto'' ruler of Al-Andalus, conquers the Castle of Montemor-o-Velho (mode ...
(2003). ''Armor Battles of the Waffen-SS''. Stackpole Books.
* Ripley, Tim (2005). ''The Waffen-SS at War: Hitler's Praetorians 1925-1945''. Zenith Imprint.
* Schneider, Wolfgang (2005). ''Tigers in Combat II''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books.
External links
Schwere SS-Panzer-Abteilung 102 unit history
{{Authority control German heavy tank battalions German units in Normandy Military units and formations established in 1943
102 102 may refer to:
* 102 (number), the number
* AD 102, a year in the 2nd century AD
* 102 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC
* 102 (ambulance service), an emergency medical transport service in Uttar Pradesh, India
* 102 (Clyde) Field Squadron, Royal ...
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945