The 239th Infantry Division (german: 239. Infanterie-Division) was an infantry division of the German

Heer Heer may refer to: People * Jeet Heer, Canadian author and journalist * Jeffrey Heer (born 1979), American computer scientist and entrepreneur * Kamal Heer (born 1973), Punjabi singer and musician * Oswald Heer (1809–1883), Swiss botanist and ...

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 ...

. The division was activated in 1939 and remained in active duty until December 1941. Its staff was formally dissolved in 1942.

Operational history

The 239th Infantry Division was created on 26 August 1939 as part of the third

Aufstellungswelle In the German Wehrmacht before and during World War II, infantry divisions were raised as part of a designated ''Aufstellungswelle'' (deployment wave) or ''Welle'' (wave), sometimes translated as "draft". The ''Aufstellungswelle'' system was adopte ...

Gleiwitz Gliwice (; german: Gleiwitz) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. The city is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Kłodnica river (a tributary of the Oder River, Oder). It lies approximately 25 km west from Katowice, the re ...

Wehrkreis VIII 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 ...

. The division initially consisted of the Infantry Regiments 372 ( Cosel), 372 (

Beuthen Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', german: Beuthen O.S.) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capita ...

) and 444 ( Oppeln), as well as the Artillery Regiment 239. The division's only commander throughout its lifespan was

Ferdinand Neuling Ferdinand Neuling (22 August 1885 – 20 February 1960) was a general of the Heer during World War II. In September 1939, German troops under his command occupied the Polish part of Upper Silesia and cities of Katowice, Mikołów, Chorzów, commi ...

. During 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 ...

, the 239th Infantry Division served on the border between

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 populous ...

and

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 ...

, but did not see any fighting. It was part of the reserves of Army Group South ( von Rundstedt), as part of VIII Army Corps ( Busch) under

14th Army Fourteenth Army or 14th Army may refer to: * 14th Army (German Empire), a World War I field Army * 14th Army (Wehrmacht), a World War II field army * Italian Fourteenth Army * Japanese Fourteenth Army, a World War II field army, in 1944 converted ...

( List). By November 1939, it had joined XXXIV Army Corps under ''Grenz-Abschnittskommando Süd'' along the German-Soviet demarcation line. In June 1940 the division stood by as part of the 7th Army's ( Dollmann) reserves under Army Group C ( von Leeb) 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 ...

. The 239th Infantry Division was dissolved in December 1941 while part of the 6th Army on the Eastern Front, as a result of irrecoverable casualties. The divisional personnel was distributed to neighboring divisions. The staff officers of the 239th Infantry Division remained on duty as a z.b.V. divisional staff with 6th Army. This z.b.V. staff was eventually dissolved on 26 March 1942 and its members integrated into the 294th Infantry Division, marking the end of the 239th Infantry Division as a military unit. The division's commander, Neuling, would go on to command the LXII Reserve Corps from September 1942 until its surrender in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

in August 1944.

Noteworthy individuals

, divisional commander from 1939 to 1942.

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 1942