212th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)
The 212th Infantry Division and later 578 people Grenadier Division or 212 people Grenadier Division was a major unit of the Army of the German Wehrmacht.
Division history
Areas of application:
- West Wall: September 1939 to May 1940
- France: May 1940 to November 1941
- Eastern front, northern sector: November 1941 to September 1944
The 212 ID was set up as a division of the third wave formation in August 1939 in Munich. Immediately thereafter, they were moved to Sigmaringen and then to Freudenstadt on the upper Rhine and placed under the 7th Army. At the start of the Western campaign, the division was ready for use on the military training area Heuberg. In the phase of the Battle of France, the 212th ID fought in association with the 16th Army at Nancy.
From July 1940 to February 1941, the division was inactive. In February 1941, the soldiers of the 212th ID were called again and had to carry out coastal protection November 1941 on the Channel coast.
In winter 1941, the 212th ID was turned off to the Eastern Front to Army Group North to take part in the siege of Leningrad. Your use of unallocated space was originally the eastern edge of the Oranienbaum bridgehead in the town of Peterhof. At the beginning of 1942, she was involved in the Battle of the Volkhov, before she returned to Oranienbaum boiler, where it was used in the attack on Fort Krasnaya Gorka. Later in the same year, she also fought in Leningrad encirclement before the fighting in January 1943, laid on Novgorod and in winter 1943/44, according to Tschudowo. There, the 212 ID had such great losses that they had only the strength of a battle group in February 1944. When the pressure of the Red Army was larger to finally liberate Leningrad, the 212 ID sat across the river Luga off to Pskov on the border with Estonia. From there, they had to retreat to the Narva over Lissino and body. The 212 ID was provided by the advancing Red Army at Lepel and had to hastily withdraw about Wilna to Olita, where it was destroyed. The official release was made on 15 September 1944. On September 17, 1944 the survivors of the Division were transferred to the 212 people Grenadier Division, which was erected on the military training area Schieratz Warthegau.
Division history of 578 or 212 people Grenadier Division
Areas of application:
- East Prussia: October to November 1944
- Germany: November 1944 to May 1945
In the training area Schieratz the 578 people Grenadier Division from the remains of the 212th ID was set up in September, the short time later renamed 212 people Grenadier Division. The staff was reinforced this division mainly from Bavaria. How many people Grenadier Divisions had the 212 VD hardly radio equipment and assault guns. On 16 December 1944, the 212th was VD together with the LXXX. Army Corps of 7th Army used in the Ardennes offensive on the Western Front. The commander of the 7th Army General of Panzer Troops Erich Brandenberger, classified the 212 VD one as one of his best associations and told her the southern flank of the operation area to secure. Over in Anglo-Saxon historians as "Battle Bulge often he " became known battle, pushed the 212 VD on the 4th U.S. Infantry Division. The 212 VD showed some initial successes, could not ultimately achieve their operational objectives, withdrew to the Rhine and surrendered when the war ended before the U.S. troops.
People
Structure
Changes in the structure of the 212 ID 1939-1943