The 23rd Panzer Division ( en, 23rd Tank Division) was an

armoured division A division is a large military unit or 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 make up a corps. Historic ...

in the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

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 ...

. Formed in France in late 1941, the division spent its entire combat history on the Eastern Front.

History

The 23rd Panzer Division was established on the 21st of September 1941 in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It was built around the 101st Panzer Brigade and two infantry regiments and initially equipped with "booty tanks" which were soon after exchanged for German tanks. In March 1942, the division went to the Eastern Front near

Kharkov Kharkiv ( uk, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest city and municipality in Ukraine.

as a subdivision of the German Sixth Army. It was to remain within the

Army Group South Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group Sou ...

for the major part of its service. The division took part in the German advance to the Caucasus, but was subsequently sent north to

Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...

. It escaped encirclement when the 6th Army was trapped there, and took part in the subsequent failed relief attempt. At the end of its first year on the Eastern Front the 23rd Panzer Division had lost 90 percent of its tanks.Mitcham, p. 169 The 23rd Panzer Division was part of the German defence and retreat in the southern Ukraine, frequently being moved between crisis points. Between April and July 1944 it was a part of the 8th Army within the

Army Group South Ukraine __NOTOC__ Army Group South Ukraine (german: Heeresgruppe Südukraine) was a Wehrmacht, German army group on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front during World War II. Army Group South Ukraine was created on 5 April 1944 by renaming Army ...

defending the area to the north of Jassy. After being sent to Poland in mid-1944, the division returned to the southern sector during the collapse of the German frontline in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. After the retreat into

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

the division fought in defensive battles there. The majority of the division was trapped and destroyed in

Székesfehérvár Székesfehérvár (; german: Stuhlweißenburg ), known colloquially as Fehérvár ("white castle"), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the regional capital of Central Transdanubia, and the centre of Fejér ...

in March 1945. The remainder of the division surrendered to British forces in May 1945.

Commanders

The commanders of the division:Mitcham, p. 171–173 * Generalleutnant

Hans Reichsfreiherr von Boineburg-Lengsfeld Hans von Boineburg-Lengsfeld (9 June 1889 – 20 November 1980) was a German general in the ''Wehrmacht'' of Nazi Germany who commanded the 4th and 23rd Panzer Divisions during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the ...

(25 September – 16 November 1941) * Generalmajor Heinz-Joachim Werner-Ehrenfeucht (16–22 November 1941) * Generalleutnant

(22 November 1941 – 20 July 1942) * Generalmajor

Erwin Mack Erwin may refer to: People Given name * Erwin Chargaff (1905–2002), Austrian biochemist * Erwin Dold (1919–2012), German concentration camp commandant in World War 2 * Erwin Hauer (1926–2017), Austrian-born American sculptor * Egon Erwin Kisc ...

(20 July – 26 August 1942) * Generalleutnant

(26 August – 26 December 1942) * General der Panzertruppe

Nikolaus von Vormann __NOTOC__ Nikolaus von Vormann (24 December 1895 – 26 October 1959) was a German general who served in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany. General von Vormann was born in Neumark, West Prussia, German Empire. He joined the Prussian Army in 1914 and ...

(26 December 1942 – 25 October 1943) * Generalmajor

Ewald Kräber Ewald is a given name and surname used primarily in Germany and Scandinavia. It derives from the Germanic roots '' ewa'' meaning "law" and ''wald'' meaning "power, brightness". People and concepts with the name include: Surnames * Douglas Ewald ( ...

(25 October – 1 November 1943) * Generalmajor Heinz-Joachim Werner-Ehrenfeucht (1–18 November 1943) * Generalmajor

(18 November 1943 – 9 June 1944) * Generalleutnant

Joseph von Radowitz Joseph Maria Ernst Christian Wilhelm von Radowitz (6 February 1797 – 25 December 1853) was a conservative Prussian statesman and general famous for his proposal to unify Germany under Prussian leadership by means of a negotiated agreement a ...

(9 June 1944 – 8 May 1945)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 German panzer divisions Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945