Army Group B (German: ') was the title of three

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Army Groups that saw action 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 opposing ...

Operational history

Army Group B first took part in the Battle of France in 1940 in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The second formation of Army Group B was established when

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 So ...

was divided for the summer offensive of 1942 on the Eastern Front. Army Group B was given the task of protecting the northern flank of

Army Group A Army Group A (Heeresgruppe A) was the name of several German Army Groups during World War II. During the Battle of France, the army group named Army Group A was composed of 45½ divisions, including 7 armored panzer divisions. It was responsibl ...

, and included the 6th Army during the Battle of Stalingrad. In February 1943, Army Group B and

Army Group Don Army Group Don was a short-lived army group of the German Army during World War II. On 20 November 1942 Hitler again ordered the reorganization of the southern front in the Soviet Union. The order was following: "Between the Army Group A and B a ...

were combined to create a new

. A new Army Group B was formed in northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in July 1943. Its task was to secure Northern Italy after the overthrow of Mussolini and to disarm the Italian Army there as part of

Operation Achse Operation Achse (german: Fall Achse, lit=Case Axis), originally called Operation Alaric (), was the codename for the German operation to forcibly disarm the Italian armed forces after Italy's armistice with the Allies on 3 September 1943. ...

. After the stabilisation of the front on the

Winter Line The Winter Line was a series of German and Italian military fortifications in Italy, constructed during World War II by Organisation Todt and commanded by Albert Kesselring. The series of three lines was designed to defend a western section ...

south of Rome by Kesselring's

Army Group C Army Group C (in German, ''Heeresgruppe C'' or ''HGr C'') was an army group of the German Wehrmacht, that was formed twice during the Second World War. History Army Group C was formed from Army Group 2 in Frankfurt on 26 August 1939. It init ...

, and the creation of the Salo Republic in Northern Italy, Army Group B was moved to Northern France on 26 November 1943. Army Group B participated in the

Battle of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

. On 19 July 1944, Field Marshal

Günther von Kluge Günther Adolf Ferdinand von Kluge (30 October 1882 – 19 August 1944) was a German field marshal during World War II who held commands on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. He commanded the 4th Army of the Wehrmacht during the invasio ...

took command from the injured Rommel. During the Allied offensive in August when the Falaise Pocket threatened to completely encircle Army Group B Kluge was replaced by Field Marshal

Walter Model Otto Moritz Walter Model (; 24 January 1891 – 21 April 1945) was a German field marshal during World War II. Although he was a hard-driving, aggressive panzer commander early in the war, Model became best known as a practitioner of defen ...

on 17 August. Kluge was recalled to Berlin and on 19 August committed suicide out of fear he was implicated in the

July 20 plot On 20 July 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and other conspirators attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of Nazi Germany, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia, now Kętrzyn, in present-day Poland. The ...

against Hitler. Army Group B escaped across the Seine but lost around 60,000 troops and much of its equipment. Moving to the

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

, Model with his HQ located at Oosterbeek close to Arnhem, was surprised on 17 September by the start of Operation Market Garden. The army group also participated in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...

. The army group was isolated in the Ruhr Pocket in northern

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and after being divided up into smaller and smaller sections, the final section surrendered to the Allies on 21 April 1945. Model committed suicide the same day rather than be tried by the Soviets for war crimes committed on the Eastern Front.

Commanders

;Western Front ;Eastern Front ;Northern Italy/Northern France

Chiefs of Staff

* 12 October 1939 – 9 May 1941 General

Hans von Salmuth Hans Eberhard Kurt Freiherr von Salmuth (11 November 1888 – 1 January 1962) was a German general and war criminal during World War II. Salmuth commanded several armies on the Eastern Front, and the Fifteenth Army in France during the D-Day i ...

* 20 May 1941 General Hans von Greiffenberg Eastern Front * August 1942 – 20 May 1943 General

Georg von Sodenstern Georg von Sodenstern (15 November 1889 – 20 July 1955) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the 19th Army. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. It has been indicat ...

Order of battle

Notes

References

Bibliography

* {{Subject bar , portal1=Military of Germany , portal2=World War II B Military units and formations established in 1939 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943