104th Jäger Division was an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

division of the Germany Army in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was formed in April 1943, by the redesignation of the 704th Infantry Division, which was itself formed in April 1941. The division served in German-occupied

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

in May 1941 where it took part in anti-partisan and security operations in the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

. In April 1943, it was reorganized and redesignated the 104th Jäger Division and took part in the

Battle of the Sutjeska Case Black (), also known as the Fifth Enemy Offensive ( sh-Latn, Peta neprijateljska ofanziva) in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav historiography and often identified with its final phase, the Battle of the Sutjeska ( sh-Latn ...

in June 1943. Following the Italian surrender, elements from the division took part in the murder of thousands of Italians from the 33 Infantry Division Acqui in September 1943, on the

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island of

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in one of the largest-scale German atrocities to be committed by German Army troops instead of the

Waffen SS The (; ) was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's paramilitary ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with volunteers and conscripts from both German-occupied Europe and unoccupied lands. ...

. The division surrendered to the Yugoslav Army at

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in May 1945. Many of the division's survivors, including the commander General Friedrich Stephan, were executed by the Yugoslavs after they had surrendered.Mitchum, p. 251

Background

The main purpose of the German '' jäger'' divisions was to fight in adverse terrain where smaller, coordinated formations were more facilely combat capable than the brute force offered by the standard infantry divisions. The ''jäger'' divisions were more heavily equipped than the mountain divisions, but not as well armed as larger infantry formations. In the early stages of the war, they were the interface divisions fighting in rough terrain and foothills as well as urban areas, between the mountains and the plains. The ''jäger''s (it means ''hunters'' in German), relied on a high degree of training and slightly superior communications, as well as their not inconsiderable artillery support. In the middle stages of the war, as the standard infantry divisions were downsized, the Jäger structure of divisions, with two infantry regiments, became the standard table of organization.

Commanders

Generalmajor is the Germanic languages, Germanic variant of major general, used in a number of Central Europe, Central and Northern European countries. Austria Belgium Denmark is the second lowest general officer rank in the Royal Danish Army and R ...

Heinrich Borowski (22 April 1941 – 15 August 1942) *

Generalleutnant () is the German-language 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 ...

Hans Juppe (15 August 1942 – 20 February 1943) *Generalleutnant Hartwig von Ludwiger (20 February – 30 April 1943) *

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

Ludwig Steyrer (May 1943) * General der Infanterie Hartwig von Ludwiger (May 1943 – 29 April 1945) *Generalleutnant Friedrich Stephan (29 April – 8 May 1945)

Area of operations

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

(April 1941 – May 1941) *

(May 1941 – June 1943) *

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

(June 1943 – September 1944) *

(September 1944 – May 1945)

Order of battle

* Jäger Regiment 724 *Jäger Regiment 734 *Reconnaissance Battalion 104 *Artillery Regiment 654 *Pionier Battalion 104 *

Panzerjäger ''Panzerjäger'' (German: literally "armor hunter", more broadly "anti-tank") is a term used for an anti-tank vehicle (self-propelled anti-tank gun), as well as anti-tank units. The term was first used in the Wehrmacht (German armed forces, 19 ...

Battalion 104 *Signals Battalion 104 *Reserve Battalion 104 *Versorgungseinheiten 104

Background

Commanders

Area of operations

Order of battle

References

Notes

Bibliography

Further reading