The 1st Ski Division (german: 1. Skijäger-Division) was a mountain infantry unit of the German

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

trained to use

ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partia ...

s for movement during winter. It was created on the Eastern Front in the autumn of 1943 in preparation for upcoming winter operations. It was enlarged into a full division in the summer of 1944. The division fought exclusively on the Eastern Front as part of Army Group Centre, including an approach to the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

river and during the retreat into

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, southern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

and the

Czech lands The Czech lands or the Bohemian lands ( cs, České země ) are the three historical regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia. Together the three have formed the Czech part of Czechoslovakia since 1918, the Czech Socialist Republic since ...

(now the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

), where it surrendered to the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...

in May 1945.

Formation and organization

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-693-0286-03A, Russland, Funkpanzerwagen, Skijäger

The American writer and publisher George Nafziger states that the 1st ''Skijäger'' Division was formed on 2 June 1944 by expanding the 1st ''Skijäger'' Brigade, which had been initially formed in September 1943. As was usual for German formations at this point in the war, the division was formed around existing units which were strengthened with new recruits. Elements of the 19th ''

Panzergrenadier ''Panzergrenadier'' (), abbreviated as ''PzG'' (WWII) or ''PzGren'' (modern), meaning '' "Armour"-ed fighting vehicle "Grenadier"'', is a German term for mechanized infantry units of armoured forces who specialize in fighting from and in conjun ...

'' Brigade, the 65th Heavy Artillery Regiment, the 152nd ''

Panzerjäger ''Panzerjäger'' ( German "armour-hunters" or "tank-hunters", abbreviated to ''Pz.Jg.'' in German) was a branch of service of the German Wehrmacht during the Second World War. It was an anti-tank arm-of-service that operated self-propelled ...

'' Battalion and the 18th ''Werfer'' (Rocket) Battalion with the 615th ''Flak'' (anti-aircraft) Battalion which was used to expand the brigade into a division.

Structure

Structure of the division: * Division Headquarters * 1st Ski Jäger Regiment * 2nd Ski Jäger Regiment * 1st Heavy Ski Battalion * 152nd Artillery Regiment ''(eventually included the 18th Panzerwerfer Battalion)'' * 1st Ski Fusilier Battalion * 152nd Ski Tank Destroyer Battalion * 270th Assault Gun Battalion * 85th Ski Engineer Battalion * 152nd Ski Signal Battalion * 152nd Ski Field Replacement Battalion * 152nd Ski Division Supply Group

Commanding officers

* Günther von Manteuffel, 1 April 1943 – September 1943 *

Martin Berg __NOTOC__ Martin Berg (4 April 1905 – 2 April 1969) was a German general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Awards and decorations * German Cross in Gold on 21 F ...

, 13 May 1944 – 2 August 1944 *

Gustav Hundt __NOTOC__ Gustav Hundt (27 September 1894 – MIA 21 April 1945) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who commanded several divisions. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Hundt disappeared nea ...

, 3 October 1944 – 15 November 1944 * Emmanuel von Kiliani, 15 November – 7 December 1944 * Gustav Hundt, 8 December 1944 January 1945 *

Hans Steets Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi a ...

, January – February 1945 * Gustav Hundt, February – April 1945 * Bruno Weiler, April – May 1945

References

Sources

* Anderson, Thomas, ''Skijäger: une "nouvelle race" de guerriers, Batailles & Blindés n°40, décembre 2010–janvier 2011, éditions Caraktère''. * Georg Gunter: ''Die deutschen Skijäger bis 1945.'' Podzun-Pallas, Friedberg 1993, . * Gustav Fochler-Hauke: ''Schi-Jäger am Feind.'' Kurt Vowinckel Verlag, Heidelberg u. a. 1943, . * Mitcham, Samuel W. Jr. (2007). German Order of Battle. Volume Two: 291st – 999th Infantry Divisions, Named Infantry Divisions, and Special Divisions in WWII. PA; United States of America: Stackpole Books. S. 237+238, . * Georg Tessin: ''Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939–1945'', Band 2, Frankfurt/Main und Osnabrück, 1966, Seite 25 ff. * Gordon Williamson: ''German Mountain & Ski Troops 1939–45''. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2012. * H.Dv. 374/2 Ausbildungsvorschrift für die Gebirgstruppen (A.V.G.) – Heft 2: Der militärische Schilauf (Schivorschrift) – 1938, . * Merkblatt Nr. 25b/31 Hinweise für den winterbeweglichen Einsatz der Infanterie – 1943, . {{DEFAULTSORT:1st Ski Division (Wehrmacht) Military units and formations established in 1943 0*001 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945