18th Panzer Division

Last updated

18th Panzer Division
18. Panzer-Division
Divisionsabzeichen der 18. Panzer-Division.jpg
Unit insignia
Active1940–43
CountryFlag of Germany (1935-1945).svg  Germany
Branch Army
Type Panzer
Role Armoured warfare
Size Division
Garrison/HQ Chemnitz
Engagements World War II
Commanders
Notable
commanders
Walther Nehring

The 18th Panzer Division (German : 18. Panzer-Division) was a German World War II armoured division that fought on the Eastern Front from 1941 until its disbandment in 1943.

Contents

Formation

The 18th Panzer Division was formed on 26 October 1940 at Chemnitz from parts of the 4th Infantry Division, 14th Infantry Division, and four battalions of submersible tanks. They had originally been intended for Operation Sea Lion (Seelöwe), the planned German invasion of United Kingdom. Of these four tank battalions, two formed the 18th Panzer Regiment and the other two the 28th Panzer Regiment of the 18th Panzer Division. In March 1941 the 18th Panzer Division was reorganized, the 28th Panzer Regiment was disbanded, one of its battalions became the third battalion of the 18th Panzer Regiment, the other battalion was transferred to the 3rd Panzer Division. [1] [2]

Service

The 18th Panzer Division first saw action during the German invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa, on 22 June 1941. The 18th Panzer Division fought as part of XLVII Panzer Corps, and over the next six months was involved in seizing Smolensk, Bryansk and the assault on Tula. The division suffered heavy losses in the first month of the war, losing half its tanks and a third of its manpower in June and July. With the start of the Soviet counter offensive in December 1941 the 18th Panzer Division was driven back to Oryol with heavy losses. [3]

In the summer of 1942, the 18th Panzer Division took part in the initial drive on Stalingrad, but was soon transferred to the central section of the front. The 18th Panzer Division took part in security warfare in the spring of 1943. In the summer of 1943, the division fought in the Battle of Kursk, and suffered heavy losses. After Kursk the 18th Panzer-Division suffered from poor morale and frequent desertions and was disbanded, with the division's personnel being used to build the 18th Artillery Division. [1] [4]

War crimes

According to Omer Bartov, the 18th Panzer Division was heavily engaged in the looting of food from Soviet civilians to the point that the latter starved to death. At the beginning of the invasion orders were given to execute wounded Soviet soldiers as these were seen as an unnecessary burden. In "bandit-fighting" operations, the division command gave out orders to shoot anybody suspected of supporting alleged partisans. Within the division, harsh measures were employed against any soldier found guilty of dissent or reluctant to fight, leading to a number of executions. [5]

Organization

Organization of the division: [6] [7]

Commanding officers

The commander of the division: [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panzergrenadier Division Großdeutschland</span> German army unit during World War II

The Panzergrenadier Division "Großdeutschland", also commonly referred to simply as Großdeutschland or Großdeutschland Division, was an elite combat unit of the German Army that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)</span> German army division during World War II

The 1st Panzer-Division was an armoured division in the German Army during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">16th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)</span> Infantry division of the Nazi German Army

The 16th Infantry Division of the German Army was formed in 1934. On 26 August 1939 the division was mobilized for the invasion of Poland (1939). It participated in the Battle of France in August 1940. The division was then split, resulting in two independent units: The 16th Panzer Division and the 16th Motorized Infantry Division. Then later, from 1944 onward, combined with other non 16th elements, was known as the 116th Panzer Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2nd Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)</span> German army division during World War II

The 2nd Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Heer, during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">29th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)</span> Military unit

The 29th Infantry Division was a unit of the German army created in the fall of 1936. It was based on the old Reichswehr 15th Infantry Regiment and drew its initial recruits from Thuringia. It was upgraded to 29th Motorized Infantry Division in the fall of 1937. The division was also known as the Falke-Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">9th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)</span> German army division during World War II

The 9th Panzer Division was a panzer division of the German Army during World War II. It came into existence after 4th Light Division was reorganized in January 1940. The division was headquartered in Vienna, in the German military district Wehrkreis XVII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6th Panzer Division</span> German army division during World War II

The 6th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Heer, during World War II, established in October 1939.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">12th Panzer Division (Wehrmacht)</span> German army division during World War II

The 12th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, established in 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4th Panzer Division</span> German army division during World War II

The 4th Panzer Division was an armored division in the Army of Nazi Germany.

The 3rd Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II.

The 11th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army during World War II, established in 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">20th Panzer Division</span> German army division during World War II

The 20th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army during World War II. It was created from parts of the 19th Infantry Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">17th Panzer Division</span> German army division during World War II

The 17th Panzer Division was a formation of the Wehrmacht in World War II. It was formed in November 1940 from the 27th Infantry Division. It took part in Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, and in the winter of 1941–42 participated in the Battle of Moscow. In November 1942, the division was sent to the southern sector of the Eastern Front where it participated in Operation Winter Storm, the failed attempt to relieve the surrounded troops at Stalingrad. The division was held in reserve during the Battle of Kursk in 1943, and thereafter retreated through Ukraine and Poland, before ending the war in Czechoslovakia.

The 19th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II. It was created from the 19th Infantry Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">14th Panzer Division</span> German army division during World War II

The 14th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army during World War II. It was created in 1940 by the conversion of the 4th Infantry Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karl Freiherr von Thüngen</span>

Karl Freiherr von Thüngen was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who was executed in 1944 after the failed 20 July Plot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">25th Panzergrenadier Division</span> Military unit

The 25th Infantry Division was a military unit of the German Wehrmacht. It was later reclassified to 25th Motorized Infantry Division, and in June 1943 to the 25th Panzergrenadier Division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">31st Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)</span> Military unit

The 31st Infantry Division was a German infantry division of the Army during World War II. It participated in the invasion of Poland in 1939 then the invasion of France and the Low Countries in 1940. As part of Panzergruppe 2. of Army Group Centre, it was involved in the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. After hard fighting throughout 1941 and 1942 it joined the 9th Army and fought in the Battle of Kursk in July and August 1943. Along with the rest of the 9th Army, the division conducted a fighting withdrawal for the remainder of 1943, during which it sustained heavy casualties. In the early stages of the Soviet Operation Bagration of June to August 1944, the 31st Infantry Division was destroyed, a fate which subsequently befell most of Army Group Centre. The division was officially disbanded on 18 July 1944.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">88th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht)</span> Military unit

The 88th Infantry Division was a major fighting formation of the German Army (Wehrmacht). It was created in December 1939, and first saw combat in the Battle of France, and was then posted to security duties. From December 1941, the division was shifted to the southern sector of the Eastern Front, where it fought until February 1944 when it was encircled near Cherkassy and virtually destroyed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">15th Panzer Division</span> German armored division during World War II

The 15th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, the Wehrmacht, during World War II, established in 1940.

References

  1. 1 2 "Organizational History of the German Armored Formation 1939–1945" (PDF). cgsc.edu. United States Army Command and General Staff College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2011. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  2. Mitcham, p. 143
  3. Mitcham, p. 144
  4. Mitcham, p. 145
  5. Omer Bartov, Hitler's Army: Soldiers, Nazis, and War in the Third Reich, Oxford Paperbacks, 1992
  6. German Order of Battle, Panzer, Panzer Grenadier, and Waffen SS Division in WWII. pp. 25 and 26.
  7. "14 Panzer-Division". ordersofbattle.com. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  8. Mitcham, p. 146–148

Bibliography