The 213th Security Division (''213. Sicherungs-Division''), initially known as the 213th Infantry Division (''213. Infanterie-Division''), was a rear-security division in 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 ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. The unit was deployed in German-occupied areas of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

, in the

Army Group South Rear Area Army Group South Rear Area (''Rückwärtiges Heeresgebiet Süd'') was one of the three Army Group Rear Area Commands, established during the 1941 German invasion of the Soviet Union. Commanded by General Karl von Roques, it was an area of milita ...

Operational history

The 213th Infantry Division was formed 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 adop ...

''. It was raised in the 8th military district (

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...

) and initially consisted of the Artillery Regiment 213 as well as the Infantry Regiments 318, 354 and 406. Its recruits hailed from the Breslau area. The division's initial commander was Rene de l’Homme de Courbiere. 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 af ...

, the 213th Infantry Division served in the reserves of

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 ...

(

Gerd von Rundstedt Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt (12 December 1875 – 24 February 1953) was a German field marshal in the '' Heer'' (Army) of Nazi Germany during World War II. Born into a Prussian family with a long military tradition, Rundstedt entered th ...

). It did not play a significant role in the Poland campaign. After the campaign, the division served under XXXV Army Corps. In June 1940, the 213th Infantry Division was moved to the 7th Army in the

Upper Rhine The Upper Rhine (german: Oberrhein ; french: Rhin Supérieur) is the section of the Rhine between Basel in Switzerland and Bingen in Germany, surrounded by the Upper Rhine Plain. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometres 170 to 529 (the sc ...

area, but did not see action in 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 German invasion of France during the Second Wor ...

. It was sent on vacation to its home military district in July 1940. It was not reactivated as an infantry division, and instead prepared to be reformed into the 213th, 286th and 403rd Security Divisions starting in March 1941. The 213th Security Division was formed on 15 March 1941 in the Neuhammer area, prior the German invasion of the Soviet Union,

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named afte ...

. Courbiere was replaced as the divisional commander by

Alexander Goeschen Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

on 18 August 1942. This would remain the division's only replacement of the commander, as Goeschen held command until the division's dissolution. The division operated in the occupied Ukraine and

Southern Russia Southern Russia or the South of Russia (russian: Юг России, ''Yug Rossii'') is a colloquial term for the southernmost geographic portion of European Russia generally covering the Southern Federal District and the North Caucasian Feder ...

regions behind

's front lines. The division's duties included security of

communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

and

supply lines Military supply-chain management is a cross-functional approach to procuring, producing and delivering products and services for military materiel applications. Military supply chain management includes sub-suppliers, suppliers, internal inf ...

, economic exploitation and combatting irregular fighters ( partisans) in the Wehrmacht's rear areas. Along with other security and police forces in the occupied territories, the division participated in war crimes against prisoners of war and the civilian population. The division was subordinated to

Karl von Roques Karl von Roques (7 May 1880 – 24 December 1949) was a German general and war criminal during the Second World War, who commanded the Army Group Rear Area behind Army Group South. Following the war, Roques was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment ...

, commander of

. Similar to 454th Security Division, it coordinated its actions with Friedrich Jeckeln, the Higher SS and Police Leader for

Noteworthy individuals

* Rene de l’Homme de Courbiere, divisional commander starting 26 August 1939. *

, divisional commander starting 18 August 1942.

Operational history

Noteworthy individuals

See also

References

Further reading