Group command
The group commands the Reichswehr , later as army group commands referred were, at the time of the Weimar Republic and even in the first years after the assumption of power of Adolf Hitler organizational combination of several major units of the regular army, the land forces of the army, then the army of the Wehrmacht , under a uniform group command.
history
As of October 1, 1919, the Provisional Reichswehr had four Reichswehr group commands
- Reichswehr Group Command 1 in Berlin
- Reichswehr Group Command 2 in Kassel
- Reichswehr Group Command 3 in Kolberg (Pomerania)
- Reichswehr Group Command 4 in Munich
With the reorganization of the Reichswehr on March 23, 1921, two group commands remained, one in Berlin ( group command 1 for North and East Germany) and one in Kassel ( group command 2 for West and South Germany). These group commands, which were directly subordinate to the Chief of Army Command , had more of the character of army high commands , since they were only subordinate to the following divisions :
- Group command 1
- 1st division in Königsberg (Prussia) , military district I
- 2nd division in Stettin , military district II
- 3rd Division in Berlin, Military District III
- 4th division in Dresden , military district IV
- 1st Cavalry Division in Frankfurt (Oder)
- 2nd Cavalry Division in Breslau
- Group command 2
- 5th division in Stuttgart , military district V
- 6th division in Munster , military district VI
- 7th (Bavarian) Division in Munich , Military District VII
- 3rd Cavalry Division in Weimar
This structure existed for the entire remaining time of the Weimar Republic and also after 1933. When the Reichswehr transferred to the Wehrmacht , Group Command 3 in Dresden in 1935 and Group Command 4 in Leipzig in 1937 were newly formed. The command area of the commandos was expanded with the armament of the Wehrmacht through the establishment of army corps , which were interposed between the divisions and the group commands . Since February 1938, they therefore carried the official name of Army Group Command. In 1938 Army Group Commands 5 were set up in Vienna and 6 in Hanover .
| Army group / group command |
headquarters | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berlin | created on September 30, 1919 |
| 2 | kassel | created on 30 September 1919 in July 1938 from Kassel to Frankfurt / Main relocated |
| 3 | Kolberg | existed from October 1, 1919 to March 23, 1921; reorganized in Dresden in April 1935 as an Army Group of the Wehrmacht |
| 4th | Munich | existed from October 1, 1919 to March 23, 1921; on April 1, 1937 in Leipzig as an Army Group of the Wehrmacht |
| 5 | Vienna | After the annexation of Austria on April 1, 1938, set up as an army group of the Wehrmacht |
| 6th | Hanover | set up on November 24, 1938 as an Army Group of the Wehrmacht |
The Army Group Commands of the Wehrmacht were all renamed when they were mobilized on August 26, 1939 or reclassified as Army High Command .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Federal Archives: The German Army Groups ( Memento of the original from March 10, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed April 28, 2016.
- ↑ According to Article 160 § 1 of the Peace Treaty of Versailles , a maximum of two group commands were allowed.
literature
- Rainer Wohlfeil , Hans Dollinger : The German Reichswehr. Pictures, documents, texts. On the history of the Hundred Thousand Man Army 1919–1933. Bernard and Graefe, Frankfurt am Main 1972, ISBN 3-7637-5109-2 .
- Edgar Graf von Matuschka: Organization of the Reichswehr. In: Military History Research Office (ed.): Handbook on German Military History 1648–1939, Volume 2, VI The Reichswehr 1918–1935. Bernard & Graefe Verlag für Wehrwesen, Munich 1975.
- HH Podzun (Hrsg.): Das Deutsche Heer 1939, structure, locations, staffing and list of all officers on January 3, 1939. Podzun Verlag, Bad Nauheim 1953.