Panzer Legions: A Guide to the German Army Tank Divisions of World War II and Their Commanders PDF
Preview Panzer Legions: A Guide to the German Army Tank Divisions of World War II and Their Commanders
THE PANZER LEGIONS A Guide to the German Army Tank Divisions of World War II and Their Commanders Samuel W. Mitcham, Jr. 2 3 CONTENTS Preface PART I: THE PANZERWAFFE Chapter 1. The History of the Panzer Forces Chapter 2. The Wehrkreise PART II: THE PANZER DIVISIONS 1st Panzer 2nd Panzer 3rd Panzer 4th Panzer 5th Panzer 6th Panzer 7th Panzer 8th Panzer 9th Panzer 10th Panzer 11th Panzer 12th Panzer 13th Panzer 14th Panzer 15th Panzer 16th Panzer 17th Panzer 18th Panzer 19th Panzer 20th Panzer 21st Panzer 22nd Panzer 23rd Panzer 24th Panzer 25th Panzer 26th Panzer 27th Panzer 116th Panzer (Formerly 16th Panzer Grenadier) Division (130th) Panzer Lehr Division 155th Reserve Panzer (Formerly Replacement) Division 178th Panzer Replacement Division 4 179th Reserve Panzer Division 232nd Panzer Division 233rd Reserve Panzer (Later Panzer) Division 273rd Reserve Panzer Division Panzer Division Clausewitz Panzer Division Feldherrnhalle 1 Panzer Division Feldherrnhalle 2 Fuehrer Begleit Division Fuehrer Grenadier Division Panzer Division Holstein Panzer Division Jueterbog Panzer Division Kurmark Panzer Division Muencheberg Panzer Division Norway Panzer Division Silesia Panzer (Later Panzer Field Training) Division Tatra Panzer Grenadier Division Grossdeutschland Appendix I: Table of Equivalent Ranks Appendix II: The Higher Panzer Headquarters Appendix III: Chronology of the Second World War Appendix IV: Profiles of the Non-army Panzer Divisions Appendix V: German Staff Positions Bibliography Index: Individuals Unit Index 5 PREFACE Created in the 1930s, the German Panzer waffe (armored branch) revolutionized warfare for the rest of the 20th century, ending the era of the cavalry and nonmotorized infantry formation and replacing it with something far faster and more lethal. This era of mobile warfare is with us still: the advent of the helicopter was just another step in its logical development. Operation Desert Storm was a blitzkrieg campaign, and there will be others. This book provides a guide to the World War II German Army tank divisions from inception to destruction and surrender. The guide is divided into two parts. Part I provides a generalized history of the panzer force. This part also includes a section on the German military districts (Wehrkreise), which were largely responsible for creating the panzer divisions, generally along the lines specified by the Panzer Inspectorate. This information on the Wehrkreise is critical to an understanding of how the German military system worked in World War II. It functioned so smoothly and so unspectacularly that it has generally gone unnoticed by historians, but without it Hitler could never have won his victories. Also, without the Wehrkreise’s replacement and training system, it would have been impossible for Germany to have kept its divisions in the field for six years. Part II of the book provides entries, arranged chronologically, giving the history of each individual division and its commanders. Full entries are included on the German Army tank divisions. Although the focus of the book is on the Army tank divisions, the SS panzer divisions are covered briefly. These divisions were not created until 1943, when the German defeat was inevitable and Hitler’s distrust of his generals and the General Staff was such that he began to replace them with a Nazi Party organization (the SS). They had no effect on the evolution of the blitzkrieg. The German theories on employment of tank and mobile divisions was already fully in place by the time the first SS panzer division was created. This comment is not meant to minimize their importance; on the contrary, in the last two years of the war, the SS panzer divisions were exceedingly important, and they fought very well. Although the Waffen-SS (armed SS) fought side by side with the army, it was not part of it. The histories of the motorized and panzer grenadier divisions are also not discussed in detail in this book. One exception is made: the elite Grossdeutschland Panzer Grenadier Divisions is covered as if it were a panzer division. This is because it was a panzer division-in everything but name. Many authors have cited it as a panzer division, but it was never officially designated as such, even when it had more panzers than almost any other German Army division. At a time when all the other army tank divisions had one or two panzer battalions, Grossdeutschland had three, and they were at nearly full 6 strength. Also, the “G.D.” Division is sometimes referred to as an SS unit. This is a myth-it never belonged to the SS. The book also includes an index that should serve as a quick reference guide to individuals and panzer units. I would like to thank all of the people who helped me in the preparation of this volume, especially my long-suffering wife, Donna. I would also like to thank the staffs of the U.S. Center for Military History at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania; the U.S. National Archives; the Bundesarchiv; and the U.S. Air War College at Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. I would also like to thank Ms. Melinda Mathews and her interlibrary loan staff at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. Finally, thanks go to Dr. Heather Ruland Staines, military history editor at Greenwood, who is one of the best editors with whom I have had the privilege to work. 7 PART I 8 THE PANZERWAFFE 9 CHAPTER 1 10
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