The 217th Infantry Division (german: 217. Infanterie-Division) was an

infantry division A division is a large military unit or Formation (military), formation, usually consisting of between 6,000 and 25,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades; in turn, several divisions typically mak ...

of the German Heer 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 later became the Division Group 217. It is also listed as the 217th Volksgrenadier Division.

Operational history

The 217th Infantry Division, part of the third '' Aufstellungswelle'', was initially formed on 17 August 1939 as a training division in

Wehrkreis I The military districts, also known in some English-language publications by their German name as Wehrkreise (singular: ''Wehrkreis''), were administrative territorial units in Nazi Germany before and during World War II. The task of military distr ...

(

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

) in

Allenstein Olsztyn ( , ; german: Allenstein ; Old Prussian: ''Alnāsteini'' * Latin: ''Allenstenium'', ''Holstin'') is a city on the Łyna River in northern Poland. It is the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, and is a city with county rights. ...

. The division was upgraded to a full division on the day of German mobilization, 26 August 1939. It initially consisted of the Infantry Regiments 311, 346 and 389, as well as Artillery Regiment 217. At the beginning of the

Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

that started on 1 September 1939, the 217th Infantry Division served in the reserve of Georg von Küchler's 3rd Army under Fedor von Bock's

Army Group North Army Group North (german: Heeresgruppe Nord) was a German strategic formation, commanding a grouping of field armies during World War II. The German Army Group was subordinated to the ''Oberkommando des Heeres'' (OKH), the German army high comma ...

. It did not see heavy combat in the Poland campaign. After the conclusion of the campaign, the division was transferred to XXXV Army Corps on the border to the

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

-occupied part of Poland. During the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

1940, the 217th Infantry Division was part of the

OKH The (; abbreviated OKH) was the high command of the Army of Nazi Germany. It was founded in 1935 as part of Adolf Hitler's rearmament of Germany. OKH was ''de facto'' the most important unit within the German war planning until the defeat at ...

reserve, but again did not see significant action. In June 1940, the division was transferred to the I Army Corps under 4th Army. In July, the 217th was moved to the XXVI Army Corps under 18th Army, where it remained until April 1941. After a brief stay at II Army Corps in May 1941, it was transferred to XXVI Corps, where it would remain until early August. The division was transferred eastwards to its home in East Prussia in July 1940. After that, it participated in the

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

as part of XXVI Corps under Army Group North. It was mainly involved in coastal defense duties in the Baltic. At that time, under 18th Army, at times under XXVI Corps or under XXXXII Army Corps. Subsequently, it took part in the siege of the Red Army's

Oranienbaum Bridgehead The Oranienbaum Bridgehead ( in Russian) was an isolated portion of the Leningrad Oblast in Russia, which was retained under Soviet control during the siege of Leningrad in World War II. It played a significant role in protecting the city. Histo ...

from October 1941 to April 1942. After that, it joined the

Siege of Leningrad The siege of Leningrad (russian: links=no, translit=Blokada Leningrada, Блокада Ленинграда; german: links=no, Leningrader Blockade; ) was a prolonged military blockade undertaken by the Axis powers against the Soviet city of L ...

in May 1942 and fought there until February 1943. From March 1943 onwards, it held a sector near

Volkhov Volkhov (russian: Во́лхов) is an industrial town and the administrative center of Volkhovsky District in Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the river Volkhov east of St. Petersburg. Population: It was previously known as ''Zvanka ...

until July 1943. In fall 1943, the 217th Division suffered severe casualties in the

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

area. It was downgraded to become Division Group 217 of Corps Detachment C on 2 November 1943. The Division Group 217 was destroyed at

Brody Brody ( uk, Броди; russian: Броды, Brodï; pl, Brody; german: Brody; yi, בראָד, Brod) is a city in Zolochiv Raion of Lviv Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. It is located in the valley of the upper Styr River, approximately ...

in July 1944.

Noteworthy Individuals

Richard Baltzer Richard Baltzer ( Danzig, 1 June 1886 – Prague, 10 May 1945) was a German Lieutenant general during World War II who commanded several divisions. Biography In the summer of 1939, during the mobilization for World War II, he was appointed co ...

, divisional commander starting 26 August 1939. *

Friedrich Bayer Friedrich Bayer (born Friedrich Beyer, 6 June 1825 in Barmen now Wuppertal – 6 May 1880 in Würzburg) was the founder of what would become Bayer, a German chemical and pharmaceutical company. He founded the dyestuff factory ''Friedrich Bayer'' ...

, divisional commander starting 15 April 1942. *

Otto Lasch Otto Lasch (25 June 1893 in Pleß, Oberschlesien – 29 April 1971) was a German general in the ''Wehrmacht'' during World War II who commanded the LXIV Corps. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. Car ...

, divisional commander starting 27 September 1942. *

Walter Poppe __NOTOC__ Walter Fritz Rudolf Poppe (8 August 1892 – 17 August 1968) was a German general during the Second World War leading the 59th Infantry Division. On 12 January 1942, he succeeded Wilhelm Wetzel as command of the 255th Infantry Divisi ...

, divisional commander starting October 1943. * Lothar Freutel, commander of Artillery Regiment 217 from March 1941 to January 1943, later in service with the 156th Reserve Division and 290th Infantry Division.

References

{{Subject bar, portal1=Military of Germany, portal2=World War II Infantry divisions of Germany during World War II Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1944