The 4th ''Luftwaffe'' Field Division (german: 4.Luftwaffen-Feld-Division) was an infantry division of the ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' branch of the ''

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

'' that fought in World War II. It was formed using surplus ground crew of the ''Luftwaffe'' and served on the Eastern Front from late 1942 to June 1944 when it was destroyed during

Operation Bagration Operation Bagration (; russian: Операция Багратио́н, Operatsiya Bagration) was the codename for the 1944 Soviet Byelorussian strategic offensive operation (russian: Белорусская наступательная оп ...

Operational history

The 4th ''Luftwaffe'' Field Division, one of several

Luftwaffe Field Division The Luftwaffe Field Divisions (German: ''Luftwaffen-Feld-Divisionen'' or LwFD) were German military formations during World War II. History The divisions were originally authorized in October 1942, following suggestions that the German Army could ...

s of the ''Luftwaffe'' (German Air Force), was formed in mid-1942 in Gross-Born Troop Maneuver Area, under the command of ''

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

'' Rainer Stahel. Intended to serve as infantry, its personnel were largely drawn from surplus ''Luftwaffe'' ground crew. In November 1942, it was assigned to Army Group Centre on the Eastern Front. Posted to a sector near

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Viciebsk (russian: Витебск, ; be, Ві́цебск, ; , ''Vitebsk'', lt, Vitebskas, pl, Witebsk), is a city in Belarus. The capital of the Vitebsk Region, it has 366,299 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-largest c ...

, it defended this against Soviet operations. In November 1943, responsibility for the division was transferred to the

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 ...

and it was renamed 4th Field Division (L). Its Field ''Jager'' battalions became the 49th, 50th and 51st ''Jager'' regiments. Early the following year, it received some of the surviving personnel of the 3rd Field Division (L), which had just been disbanded. In the summer of 1944, the 4th Field Division (L) was still defending Vitebsk as part of the LIII Corps in the

3rd Panzer Army The 3rd Panzer Army (german: 3. Panzerarmee) was a German armoured formation during World War II, formed from the 3rd Panzer Group on 1 January 1942. 3rd Panzer Group The 3rd Panzer Group (german: Panzergruppe 3) was formed on 16 November ...

. When the Red Army began the Vitebsk–Orsha Offensive of

on 22 June 1944, the corps was surrounded within days. The division was encircled at Vitebsk and subsequently destroyed with its commander, ''

Generalleutnant is the Germanic variant of lieutenant general, used in some German speaking countries. Austria Generalleutnant is the second highest general officer rank in the Austrian Armed Forces (''Bundesheer''), roughly equivalent to the NATO rank of ...

'' Robert Pistorious, killed in action.

Commanders

* ''Oberst'' Rainer Stahel (September–November 1942); * ''Oberst''

Wilhelm Völk Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mount ...

(November 1942–April 1943); * ''Oberst''

Hans-Georg Schreder Hans-Georg is a given name. Notable people with the name include: * Hans-Georg Anscheidt (born 1935), Grand Prix motorcycle road racing World Champion * Hans Georg von Arnim-Boitzenburg (1583–1641), Field Marshal of Holy Roman Empire and the Elec ...

(April–November 1943); * ''Generalmajor''

Hans Sauerbrey 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 ...

(November 1943); * ''Generalmajor''

Ernst Klepp Dr. jur. Ernst Klepp (24 December 1889 – 18 August 1958), was an Austrian infantry general and jurist from Preßburg, Austria-Hungary who served in the Austro-Hungarian army and in the army of Nazi Germany. Career Klepp attended the Theresia ...

(November 1943–January 1944); * ''Generalleutnant'' Robert Pistorius (January 1944–June 1944).

Notes

Footnotes Citations

References

* * {{Luftwaffe Field Divisions 0*004 Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1944