The 2nd Mountain Division (german: 2. Gebirgs Division) was a ''

Gebirgsjäger ''Gebirgsjäger'' () are the light infantry part of the alpine or mountain troops (''Gebirgstruppe'') of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The word '' Jäger'' (meaning "hunter" or "huntsman") is a characteristic term used for light infantry in ...

'' division of the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

which served in World War II, mainly in the northernmost sector of the Eastern Front, near the Arctic. Formed in 1938, the division was disbanded at the end of the war in 1945.

Operational history

Following the ''

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

'', the annexation of Austria by

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 ...

in March 1938, the 2nd Mountain Division was formed on 1 April 1938, with personnel of the 6th Division of the

Austrian Army The Austrian Armed Forces (german: Bundesheer, lit=Federal Army) are the combined military forces of the Republic of Austria. The military consists of 22,050 active-duty personnel and 125,600 reservists. The military budget is 0.74% of nati ...

. Based at

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...

, part of Wehrkreis XVIII, most of its men were from the

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

and

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

region of Austria. Commanded by ''

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 O ...

'' (Lieutenant General)

Valentin Feurstein Valentin Feurstein (1 January 1885 – 8 June 1970) was an Austrian military officer who served in the Austrian and German armies. Feurstein joined the Austro-Hungarian Army in 1907, he served in World War I and in the Austrian Bundesheer in t ...

, it fought as part 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 Sou ...

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 aft ...

and then took part in

Operation Weserübung Operation Weserübung (german: Unternehmen Weserübung , , 9 April – 10 June 1940) was Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign. In the early morning of 9 Ap ...

, the Norwegian Campaign in 1940. It carried out a cross country march to rescue the 3rd Mountain Division, which was under siege from British forces during the

Battles of Narvik The Battles of Narvik were fought from 9 April to 8 June 1940, as a naval battle in the Ofotfjord and as a land battle in the mountains surrounding the north Norwegian town of Narvik, as part of the Norwegian Campaign of the Second World War. ...

. The division moved into Lapland as part of

Mountain Corps Norway Mountain Corps Norway (german: Gebirgskorps Norwegen) was a German army unit during World War II. It saw action in Norway and Finland. The corps was formed in July 1940 and was later transferred to Northern Norway as part of '' Armeeoberkommand ...

in 1941, to participate in ''

Operation Silberfuchs Operation Silver Fox (german: Silberfuchs; fi, Hopeakettu) from 29 June to 17 November 1941, was a joint German–Finnish military operation during the Continuation War on the Eastern Front of World War II against the Soviet Union. The objectiv ...

'' (Operation Silver Fox), the attack on the Soviet Arctic as part of

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 after ...

. It drove for

Murmansk Murmansk (Russian: ''Мурманск'' lit. "Norwegian coast"; Finnish: ''Murmansk'', sometimes ''Muurmanski'', previously ''Muurmanni''; Norwegian: ''Norskekysten;'' Northern Sámi: ''Murmánska;'' Kildin Sámi: ''Мурман ланнҍ'') i ...

but was unsuccessful in the face of strong

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

defence. It continued to serve in the Arctic region until late 1944, when the Finns negotiated the

Moscow Armistice The Moscow Armistice was signed between Finland on one side and the Soviet Union and United Kingdom on the other side on 19 September 1944, ending the Continuation War. The Armistice restored the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940, with a number of modi ...

with the Soviet Union. The division had to withdraw to Norway, fighting off Soviet forces as it did so. Back in mainland Europe, its depleted infantry regiments were brought back up to strength. In 1945, the division was transferred to the Western Front, where it fought in the Saar-Moselle Triangle against US troops. During this period, its commander, ''Generalleutnant'' Hans Degen, was wounded and had to be replaced by ''Generalleutnant'' Willibald Utz. While earlier in the war it was considered an elite unit, the 2nd Mountain Division was well below strength and combat effectiveness. It finished the war in

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

where Utz surrendered it to the Western Allies.

Commanding officers

The following officers commanded the division: * ''Generalleutnant''

(1 April 1938 – 4 March 1941) * ''Generalleutnant''

Ernst Schlemmer Ernst is both a surname and a given name, the German, Dutch, and Scandinavian form of Ernest. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Adolf Ernst (1832–1899) German botanist known by the author abbreviation "Ernst" * Anton Ernst (1975-) ...

(4 March 1941 – 2 March 1942) * ''Generalleutnant''

Georg Ritter von Hengl Georg Ritter von Hengl (21 October 1897 – 19 March 1952) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who commanded the XIX Mountain Corps. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. During World War I, ...

(2 March 1942 – 23 October 1943) * ''Generalleutnant'' Hans Degen (1 November 1943 – 6 February 1945) * ''

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 ...

'' (Colonel) Hans Roschmann (6 February 1945 – 9 February 1945) * ''Generalleutnant'' Willibald Utz (9 February 1945 – German capitulation)

Notes

References

* {{Authority control 2 2 Military units and formations established in 1938 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945