56th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)
|
56th Infantry Division |
|
|---|---|
| active | August 26, 1939 to April 4, 1945 |
| Country |
.svg){kind=small} German Empire
|
| Armed forces | Wehrmacht |
| Armed forces | army |
| Branch of service | infantry |
| Type | Infantry Division |
| structure | structure |
| Installation site | Dresden |
| Nickname | Crossed sabers |
The 56th Infantry Division was a major unit of the army of the German Wehrmacht during World War II .
Division history
| August 26, 1939 | September 10, 1944 |
|---|---|
| Infantry Regiment 171 | Grenadier Regiment 171 |
| 192nd Infantry Regiment | Grenadier Regiment 192 |
| 234th Infantry Regiment | Grenadier Regiment 234 |
| - | Fusilier Battalion 156 |
| Artillery Regiment 156 | |
| Division units 156 | |
The 56th Infantry Division (ID) was set up on August 26, 1939 as a division of the 2nd wave of formation in Wehrkreis IV ( Dresden ). After the invasion of Poland , she was stationed in Geldern and took part in the western campaign to conquer Belgium in 1940. The staff of Infantry Regiment 234 was handed over to the 304th Infantry Division on October 25, 1940, together with the first battalion of Infantry Regiments 171, 192 and 234 .
During the attack on the Soviet Union , the 56th Infantry Division was part of Army Group South and the XVII. Army Corps subordinated. She was subsequently involved in the Battle of Kiev in August and September 1941. Then she was subordinated to Army Group Center and received security tasks in the rear area of the 2nd Army . Even in this early phase of the campaign in the east, the unit was involved in war crimes. In November 1941, parts of the division wiped out a village near Bryansk and then carried out the shooting of 60 children, known as the "Chozum child murder". With his behavior, the responsible artillery regiment is "at the beginning of a process of partial behavioral adjustment of the army to the Waffen-SS and Einsatzgruppen," judges the Federal Archives.
In July 1943 the 56th Infantry Division was withdrawn due to high losses and refreshed at Jelnja . In October 1943, the division had to be disbanded after heavy losses again. The divisional headquarters formed Corps Department D with survivors of the 56th Infantry Division until the 56th Infantry Division was re-established on September 10, 1944. In March 1945, most of the division in the Heiligenbeil pocket in East Prussia was destroyed; on April 4, 1945, the division was disbanded. The remaining troops, including the former commander Blaurock, were used to set up the Ulrich von Hutten infantry division .
Commanders
| From | To | Degree | commander |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 1, 1939 | August 1, 1940 | General of the Infantry | Karl Kriebel |
| August 1, 1940 | November 14, 1940 | Lieutenant General | Paul von Hase |
| November 15, 1940 | January 28, 1943 | General of the Infantry | Karl von Oven |
| January 28, 1943 | September 1, 1943 | Lieutenant General | Otto-Joachim Lüdecke |
| September 1, 1943 | October 1943 | Lieutenant General | Vincenz Muller |
| reformation | |||
| September 10, 1944 | March 24, 1945 | Lieutenant General | Edmund Blaurock |
literature
- Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS in World War II 1939–1945. Fifth volume. The Land Forces 31-70 . Mittler & Sohn publishing house , Frankfurt am Main [1965], pp. 203-209.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS in the Second World War 1939–1945. Fifth volume. The Land Forces 31-70 . Mittler & Sohn publishing house , Frankfurt am Main [1965], p. 204.
- ↑ Federal Archives: The Child Murder of Chozum - German soldiers in the abyss. Retrieved January 10, 2019 .
