Armored Division

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Tank divisions (Pz) are movable major units of Panzertruppe consisting of battle tanks -, motorized or armored infantry -, combat support and - guiding support associations exist. For the first time, the German Wehrmacht combined battle tanks into independent divisions , which gave the German Reich an operational and tactical superiority over most other states at the outbreak of World War II .

Development of the concept

The first attempts with units, which consisted mainly of tanks , took place on the Allied side during the First World War . The tanks were grouped into independent companies or battalions and deployed in a concentrated manner in breakthrough offensives (see also Royal Tank Regiment ). Examples of this are the Battle of Cambrai in 1917 and the Battle of Amiens in 1918. After the end of the war, the first brigade-size tank formations were set up. In the interwar period , mechanized and armored units began to be incorporated into the earlier cavalry divisions in many countries , which were finally completely replaced by armored divisions and mechanized infantry divisions (referred to in Germany as the Panzergrenadierdivision ).

The idea of ​​the tank as a military device can already be found in Galileo Galilei . The first motorized devices were designed and built in England in 1916 and then used in the First World War. The military at the time, however, disagreed on how to use the tanks. Several advocated the use of individual tanks exclusively within infantry companies at walking speed, while others called for independent tank companies / battalions. And few even saw any real sense in large tank formations.

The requirement that a tank formation must be of such a size that decisions can be made with it at the operational level goes back to Heinz Guderian . On October 15, 1935, three tank divisions were set up:

Panzer divisions in World War II

A German tank division of the Second World War consisted of two, later one tank regiment, one, later two motorized or partially mechanized rifle regiments, both of which were referred to as tank grenadiers from 1943 , as well as an artillery regiment with mostly drawn, and later partly also armored guns on self-propelled guns. The regiments were supported by tank destroyers , pioneers , anti-aircraft artillery , reconnaissance and intelligence forces, as well as medical , supply and repair units in departmental strength .

The divisions from the first years of the war up to 1941 suffered from inadequate manpower and tank equipment. For the Russian campaign , the number of tank divisions was doubled from 10 to 20, but this at the expense of the strength of existing divisions. These were each reduced by a tank regiment, which theoretically reduced their combat power. However, it had already been shown during the attack on Poland that the tank divisions were too heavy on armor. Instead, they lacked motorized infantry units to support them. For the reorganization, the associations were divided in order to equip new associations with experienced staff. As a result, the number of divisions doubled, but the tank divisions only increased by 40%. Since the tanks were also slightly changed within the departments, there was only an overall increase of around 30%. Furthermore, the divisions had a complex inventory of tank models, which was mainly due to the unsatisfactory performance of the German tank industry and the high number of "captured" tanks, for example from the destruction of the rest of the Czech Republic. Several divisions were only equipped with Czech or French captured tanks, which raised a number of logistical problems in the field. However, these were retrofitted with radio equipment and thus had a better combat command than the opposing formations.

The value of tank divisions was particularly evident in World War II where units could operate in depth or carry out far-reaching flank attacks. This showed the superiority of fully motorized and armored units of the Wehrmacht over the infantry, which can only be moved on foot, which until the end of the Second World War on the German side, due to the increasing lack of modern means of transport such as motor vehicles and the general transition to the defensive, threw itself back to traditional forms of combat saw. The military historian Martin van Creveld described this as the process of "de-motorizing" the Wehrmacht. This lack of mobility of the infantry then led to the great catastrophes in the Eastern campaign during the retreats.

However, the obvious disadvantages of armored divisions quickly became apparent: high resource consumption of fuel and spare parts, which the infantry divisions of the same army corps marching on foot could only slowly follow. The kettles formed by tanks could not be adequately sealed off and the infantry cleared them quickly enough. In 1941 the phenomenon of wandering kettles was already observed . In confusing terrain such as forest, towns or urban battlefields, the deployment of tank units without accompanying infantry against enemy anti-tank forces was problematic.

Panzer divisions after World War II

After World War II, armored divisions became the centerpiece of most modern armies . In particular, there was a massing of tank units on both sides of the inner-German border on German territory . They were mainly concentrated there because the north German lowlands were viewed as an ideal area of ​​application for tanks.

Due to the changed security situation since the end of the Cold War , large tank formations lost a lot of their importance. The reasons for this are their lack of global mobility, their limited use in anti-tank areas (forest, settlements, mountains) and the increased vulnerability of tanks due to great advances in missile, ammunition and reconnaissance technology. Despite this tendency, however, the last two Iraq wars (1991 and 2003) and Afghanistan (2001) reaffirmed the tank's great fighting power and protective effect. Countries that were already considering completely replacing armored weapons with lighter, more agile vehicles changed this plan again (Canada, for example, decided not to set up large Stryker units based on the US Army model and instead procured 20 Leopard 2 A6s for use in Afghanistan). The main battle tank will certainly continue to play a role in conflicts, but it will rather be used in small groups in close cooperation with the infantry .

German armored divisions

Wehrmacht

Armed SS

National People's Army (NVA)

armed forces

Australian armored divisions

British armored divisions

French armored divisions

French campaign

  • 1.Light Mechanized Division (1re DLM)
  • 2nd Light Mechanized Division (2nd DLM)
  • 3rd Light Mechanized Division (3rd DLM)
  • 1st Armored Division (1re DCr)
  • 2nd Armored Division (2nd DCr)
  • 3rd Armored Division (3e DCr)
  • 4th Armored Division (4e DCr)

After 1943

Italian armored divisions

Japanese armored divisions

Imperial Japanese Army

Ground Self-Defense Forces

Canadian armored divisions

  • 4th (Armored) Division
  • 5th (Armored) Division

Polish armored divisions

Soviet and Russian armored divisions

Second World War

  • 1st to 61st, 101st, 102nd, 104th, 105th, 107th to 112th Panzer Division

(After 1942, instead of tank divisions, the Soviet army deployed a total of 31 so-called tank corps , most of which consisted of three tank brigades as well as a motorized rifle brigade and support troops. Several of these units were designated as Guard units .)

After 1945

  • 4th Armored Guard Division
  • 5th Guards Armored Division
  • 9th Armored Division
  • 10th Guards Armored Division
  • 17th Armored Guard Division
  • 21st Armored Guard Division
  • 90th Armored Guard Division
  • 193rd Armored Division

South African armored divisions

  • 6th Armored Division

American armored divisions

Web links

Wiktionary: Panzer Division  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations