The LXXXVI Army Corps (german: LXXXVI. Armeekorps) was an
army corps of the German
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 previous ...
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 was formed in 1942 and existed until 1945.
History
The LXXXVI Army Corps was formed on 19 November 1942 under the supervision of ''
Oberbefehlshaber West ''Oberbefehlshaber West'' (German: initials OB West), German for "high commander in the West") was the overall commander of the ''Westheer'', the German armed forces on the Western Front during World War II. It was directly subordinate to the Obe ...
'' (
Army Group D
Army Group D (''Heeresgruppe D'') was a German Army Group which saw action during World War II.
Army Group D was formed on 26 October 1940 in France, its initial cadre coming from the disbanded Army Group C.
On 15 April 1941, the status of Army ...
). The corps was initially headquartered at
Dax
Dax or DAX may refer to:
Business and organizations
* DAX, stock market index of the top 40 German companies
** DAX 100, an expanded index of 100 stocks, superseded by the HDAX
** TecDAX, stock index of the top 30 German technology firms
* Dax ...
in southwestern France.
The initial commander of the LXXXVI Army Corps was
Bruno Bieler __NOTOC__
Bruno Bieler (18 June 1888 – 22 March 1966) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany who commanded the XLII Corps during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
Awards and decorations
* Iron Cro ...
.
The corps was put under the supervision of the
1st Army First Army may refer to:
China
* New 1st Army, Republic of China
* First Field Army, a Communist Party of China unit in the Chinese Civil War
* 1st Group Army, People's Republic of China
Germany
* 1st Army (German Empire), a World War I field Army ...
in December 1942.
After the
Normandy landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
of 6 June 1944, the LXXXVI Army Corps was called away from the defensive position in the southwest to help the defense of
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
. The corps was assigned to the
5th Panzer Army
5th Panzer Army (german: 5. Panzerarmee) was the name of two different German armoured formations during World War II. The first of these was formed in 1942, during the North African campaign and surrendered to the Allies at Tunis in 1943. The a ...
under
Army Group B.
Subsequently, it was driven back by the Allied advance to the
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
area, where it served under the
15th Army in September.
The LXXXVI Army Corps was successively driven back to the
Venlo and the
Lower Rhine
The Lower Rhine (german: Niederrhein; kilometres 660 to 1,033 of the river Rhine) flows from Bonn, Germany, to the North Sea at Hook of Holland, Netherlands (including the Nederrijn or "Nether Rhine" within the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta); al ...
regions, where it served under the
1st Parachute Army
The German 1st Parachute Army (1. ''Fallschirm-Armee'') was formed in September, 1944, comprising 30,000 men.
History
Its first commander was Colonel General Kurt Student, the ''Wehrmacht''s airborne pioneer. During the Allied Operation Market ...
and again under the 5th Panzer Army.
The corps fought between December 1944 and May 1945 as part of the 1st Parachute Army under
Army Group H
Army Group H (''Heeresgruppe H''), Army Group Northwest (''Heeresgruppe Nordwest'') after March 1945, was a German army group in the Netherlands and in Nordrhein-Westfalen during World War II.
Army Group H (for Holland) was activated on 11 Nove ...
in Northwest Germany.
Its final commander before
German surrender
The German Instrument of Surrender (german: Bedingungslose Kapitulation der Wehrmacht, lit=Unconditional Capitulation of the "Wehrmacht"; russian: Акт о капитуляции Германии, Akt o kapitulyatsii Germanii, lit=Act of capit ...
was
Erich Straube.
Structure
Noteworthy individuals
*
Bruno Bieler __NOTOC__
Bruno Bieler (18 June 1888 – 22 March 1966) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany who commanded the XLII Corps during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
Awards and decorations
* Iron Cro ...
, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (16 November 1942 – 1 April 1943).
*
Erwin Jaenecke
__NOTOC__
Erwin Jaenecke (22 April 1890 – 3 July 1960), was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who commanded the 17th Army.
Jaenecke served on the Eastern Front as commander of the 389th Infantry Division and late ...
, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (1 April 1943 – 3 June 1943).
*
Gustav Fehn
__NOTOC__
Gustav Fehn (21 February 1892 – 5 June 1945) was a German general during World War II.
Fehn served in the Afrika Korps from November 1942 to January 1943, LXXVI Panzer Corps from July–August 1943, the XXI Army Corps from October 194 ...
, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (1 July 1943 – 25 August 1943).
*
Hans von Obstfelder
__NOTOC__
Hans von Obstfelder (6 September 1886 – 20 December 1976) was a German general ( General of the Infantry) in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.
I ...
, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (25 August 1943 – 30 November 1944).
*
Carl Püchler __NOTOC__
Carl Püchler (13 May 1894 – 5 February 1949) was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.
Awards and decorations
* Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 Dec ...
, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (30 November 1944 – 15 December 1944).
*
Erich Straube, corps commander of LXXXVI Army Corps (15 December 1944 – May 1945).
Notes
References
{{Subject bar, portal1=Military of Germany, portal2=World War II
Corps of Germany in World War II
Military units and formations established in 1942
Military units and formations disestablished in 1945