121st Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)
|
121st Infantry Division |
|
|---|---|
| active | October 5, 1940 to May 1945 |
| Country |
.svg){kind=small} German Empire
|
| Armed forces | Wehrmacht |
| Armed forces | army |
| Type | Infantry Division |
| structure | structure |
| Installation site | Munsterlager military training area |
| Nickname | Eagle Shield Division |
| Second World War | Leningrad Blockade , Battle of the Volkhov , Third Ladoga Battle , Courland Basin |
| Commanders | |
| list of | Commanders |
The 121st Infantry Division (121st ID) was a major unit of the army of the German Wehrmacht in World War II .
Division history
- Germany : October 1940 to June 1941
- Eastern Front , Northern Section: June 1941 to January 1944
- East Prussia , Kurlandkessel : January 1944 to May 1945
The 121st Infantry Division was set up as a division of the 11th wave of deployment in October 1940 from parts of the 1st and 21st Infantry Division on the Munsterlager military training area near Munster in the Lüneburg Heath . In preparation for Operation Barbarossa , the division moved to East Prussia and was subordinated to Army Group North and the 16th Army . The division's first goal was to capture the city of Daugavpils in Latvia . Dünaburg was taken at the end of July 1941. In the winter of 1941/42, the 121st Infantry Division took part in the siege of Leningrad . From May 1942 to February 1944 the division fought almost continuously at the Volkhov position . In the spring of 1944, Army Group North had to give way to pressure from the Red Army , and the 121st Infantry Division withdrew to East Prussia via Luga , Pleskau and Livonia . In March 1944 a refresher was carried out by the Mielau shadow division . The 121st Infantry Division was destroyed in the Kurland Basin in May 1945 , the survivors were taken prisoner by the Soviets.
people
Commanders
| period of service | Rank | Surname |
|---|---|---|
| October 5, 1940 to May 5, 1941 | Major General / Lieutenant General | Curt Jahn |
| May 6 to July 3, 1941 | Major General / Lieutenant General | Otto Lancelle |
| July 8, 1941 to November 11, 1942 | General of the artillery | Martin change |
| November 11, 1942 to March 1944 | General of the Infantry | Hellmuth Priess |
| March 1st to June 1st 1944 | Major general | Ernst Pauer from Arlau |
| June 1 to 27, 1944 | Lieutenant General | Rudolf Bamler |
| June 27 to July 10, 1944 | General of the Infantry | Hellmuth Priess |
| July 10 to August 1, 1944 | Lieutenant General | Theodor Busse |
| August 1, 1944 to April 28, 1945 | Lieutenant General | Werner Ranck |
| April 29 to May 8, 1945 | Major general | Ottomar Hansen (in charge of the tour) |
General Staff Officers (Ia)
| period of service | Rank | Surname |
|---|---|---|
| October 5, 1940 to January 16, 1942 | major | Kurt Brandstädter |
| January 16, 1942 to December 10, 1943 | major | Henning Eppendorff |
| December 10, 1943 to September 20, 1944 | major | Fritz Hoefer |
| September 1944 to May 1945 | Lieutenant colonel | Dietmar Eckert |
Well-known members of the division
- Dietmar Eckert (1913–2002), was from 1968 to 1969, as Brigadier General of the Army of the German Armed Forces , a member of the Command Academy of the German Armed Forces
- Erwin von Lahousen (1897–1955), was active in the resistance movement of July 20, 1944
- Ottomar Hansen (1904–1993), was from 1961 to 1964, as major general of the Army of the German Armed Forces, commander in Defense Division IV
structure
- 405th Infantry Regiment
- 407th Infantry Regiment
- 408th Infantry Regiment
- Artillery Regiment 121
- Engineer Battalion 121
- Field Replacement Battalion 121
- Panzerjäger detachment 121
- Reconnaissance Department 121
- News Section 121
- Resupply Troops 121
literature
- Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS in World War II 1939–1945. Volume 6. The Land Forces 71-130 . 2nd Edition. Biblio-Verlag, Bissendorf 1979, ISBN 3-7648-1172-2 . ; P. 286 f.
Notes and individual references
- ↑ Cf. Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS in the Second World War 1939–1945. Volume 6. The Land Forces 71-130 . 2nd Edition. Biblio-Verlag, Bissendorf 1979, ISBN 3-7648-1172-2 . ; P. 286 f.
- ↑ Andris J. Kursietis: The Wehrmacht at War 1939-1945. The Units and Commanders of the German Ground Forces during World War II. Aspect 1999. ISBN 90-75323-38-7 . Pp. 136-137.
