20th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)
20th Panzer Division |
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Division numbers 1943–1945 |
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active | 1941 to 1945 |
Country | German Empire |
Armed forces | Wehrmacht |
Armed forces | army |
Branch of service | Armored force |
Type | Panzer Division |
structure | structure |
garrison | Erfurt |
Second World War | War against the Soviet Union 1941–1945 |
Commanders | |
list | Commanders |
insignia | |
Troop registration 1940–1943 |
The 20th Panzer Division was a major unit of the Wehrmacht in World War II . It was used on the Eastern Front throughout the war .
history
The 20th Panzer Division was set up from the end of 1940 mainly from parts of the 19th Infantry Division and various replacement units, which was completed on May 1, 1941. During the German-Soviet War, the division was mainly part of Army Group Center . The division ended the war in Silesia in May 1945 .
Commanders
Commanders or in charge of leadership (rank at this point in time) were from:
- November 13, 1940: Lieutenant General Horst Stumpff
- September 10, 1941: Colonel Georg von Bismarck
- October 14, 1941: Major General Wilhelm von Thoma
- July 1, 1942: Major General Walther Düvert
- October 1 or 10, 1942: Colonel Heinrich von Lüttwitz
- May 5 or 12, 1943: Major General Mortimer von Kessel
- January 1, 1944: Colonel Werner Marcks
- February 2 or 7, 1944: Lieutenant General Mortimer von Kessel
- November 6, 1944: Colonel Hermann von Oppeln-Bronikowski
structure
1941 | 1943 |
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Rifle Brigade 20 with
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Well-known members of the division
- Otto Carius (1922–2015), pharmacist and officer, as a gunner on a Panzer 38 (t)
- Josef Moll (1908–1989), was from 1966 to 1968, as Lieutenant General of the Army of the Bundeswehr, Inspector of the Army
literature
- 20th Panzer Division. In: Veit Scherzer (Ed.): German troops in the Second World War. Volume 5. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2009, ISBN 978-3-938845-22-6 , pp. 468-500.
- Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS in World War II 1939–1945. Volume 4. The Land Forces 15–30 . 2nd Edition. Biblio-Verlag, Osnabrück 1976, ISBN 3-7648-1083-1 .
Web links
- Organizational History of the German Armored Forces 1939 - 1945. (PDF; 292 kB) Retrieved September 15, 2011 (English).