538th Frontier Guard Division | |
---|---|
Active | 9 December 1939 – 18 April 1941 |
Country | Nazi Germany |
Branch | Army |
Type | Infantry |
Role | Frontier Guard |
Size | understrength Division |
Garrison/HQ | Spittal, Klagenfurt and Graz |
Engagements | Invasion of Yugoslavia (World War II) |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Emmerich von Nagy |
The 538th Frontier Guard Division, also known as the Division z.b.V. 538. was a short-lived German division in World War II that participated in the invasion of Yugoslavia. It was disbanded immediately after the Yugoslav surrender.
The division was raised on 9 December 1939 in Klagenfurt within Wehrkreis XVIII using the 20th Border Defence Detachment which was stationed along the Reich-Italian border, and was commanded by Generalleutnant (Major General) Emmerich von Nagy. [1] It was called up for duty on 28 March 1941 for the invasion of Yugoslavia. [2] Along with the 1st Mountain Division, it was part of the XLIX Mountain Corps commanded by General der Infanterie (Lieutenant General) Ludwig Kübler. [3]
On the first day of the invasion, the division was stationed on the northwestern part of the border between the Reich and Yugoslavia, and seized important mountain passes, hills and tunnels on the Yugoslav side of the border. These successes enabled the spearheads of the 1st Mountain Division to quickly cross the border and push deep into Yugoslav territory. [3] The division was stood down after the invasion, and was disbanded on 18 April 1941. [2]
The division was created from the 20th Frontier Guard (German : Grenzschutz) Detachment, which included: [2] [1]
On 1 April 1941, immediately prior to the invasion of Yugoslavia, the primary units of the division were: [4]
Elements of both the 194th Infantry Regiment and 139th Mountain Regiment were detached and placed under command of the 1st Mountain Division. [5]
The 8th Panzer Division was a formation of the WehrmachtHeer. The division was formed by reorganising the 3rd Light Division in October 1939. It was transferred to the west and fought in the Battle of France, in May 1940, and the German invasion of the Balkans in April 1941. Soon after the division advanced towards Leningrad under Army Group North in Operation Barbarossa, and would remain on the eastern front for the remainder of the war. Staying on defensive fronts, it saw action in the relief of Kholm in 1942, Orel and the withdrawals of Army Group Centre in 1943, until transferred to Army group South. The division then fought in a series of retrograde movements, back through Ukraine, into Hungary and finally into Silesia and surrender in May 1945.
The Yugoslav Army, commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the land warfare military service branch of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. It existed from the Kingdom's formation in December 1918, until its surrender to the Axis powers on 17 April 1941. Aside from fighting along the Austrian border in 1919–20 related to territorial disputes, and some border skirmishes on its southern borders in the 1920s, the JV was not involved in fighting until April 1941 when it was quickly overcome by the German-led invasion of Yugoslavia.
The 25th Infantry Division was a military unit of the German Wehrmacht. It was later reclassified to 25th Infantry Division (mot.), and in June 1943 to the 25th Panzer Grenadier Division.
Ludwig Kübler was a German General der Gebirgstruppe who commanded the 1st Mountain Division, XXXXIX Mountain Corps, 4th Army and the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral during World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions commanding the 1st Mountain Division during the invasion of Poland in 1939. He also commanded the division during the invasion of France and the Low Countries before being appointed to command XXXXIX Mountain Corps. During his command of this corps it was involved in the invasion of Yugoslavia and the attack on the Soviet Union. In December 1941 he was appointed to command the 4th Army, but was dismissed from this post in January of the following year, and placed in the Führerreserve des Heeres. In September 1943 he was appointed as the commanding general of security troops for Army Group Centre on the Eastern Front, but the following month he was appointed to command the Operational Zone of the Adriatic Littoral, based at Trieste on the northern Adriatic coast. After being captured by Yugoslav forces at the end of the war, he was tried and executed for war crimes.
The 41st Infantry Division "Firenze" was an infantry division of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. The Firenze was formed on 15 September 1939 in Florence and named for the city. The division recruited primarily in Tuscany. After the announcement of the Armistice of Cassibile on 8 September 1943 the division resisted German attempts to disbanded it and on 28 September 1943 the division dissolved itself and formed partisan formations, which joined the Albanian National Liberation Army.
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The Yugoslav order of battle before the invasion of Yugoslavia includes a listing of all operational formations of the Royal Yugoslav Army, Royal Yugoslav Army Air Force and Royal Yugoslav Navy immediately prior to the World War II invasion of that country in April 1941.
The Axis order of battle for the invasion of Yugoslavia was made up of the various operational formations of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS, Italian Armed Forces and Hungarian Armed Forces that participated in the invasion of Yugoslavia during World War II, commencing on 6 April 1941. It involved the German 2nd Army, with elements of the 12th Army and a panzer group combined with overwhelming Luftwaffe support. The eighteen German divisions included five panzer divisions, two motorised infantry divisions and two mountain divisions. The German force also included two well-equipped independent motorised regiments and was supported by over 800 aircraft. The Italian 2nd Army and 9th Army committed a total of 22 divisions, and the Royal Italian Air Force had over 650 aircraft available to support the invasion. The Hungarian 3rd Army also participated, with support from the Royal Hungarian Air Force.
The 1st Army Group was a Royal Yugoslav Army formation mobilised prior to the German-led Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941 during World War II. It consisted of the 4th Army, 7th Army, and the 1st Cavalry Division, which was the army group reserve. It was responsible for the defence of northwestern Yugoslavia, with the 4th Army defending the eastern sector along the Yugoslav–Hungarian border, and the 7th Army defending the western sector along the borders with Germany and Italy. Like all Yugoslav formations at the time, the 1st Army Group had serious deficiencies in both mobility and firepower as well as internal friction among the different ethnic groups, particularly between Serbs and Croats.
The 4th Army was a Royal Yugoslav Army formation mobilised prior to the German-led Axis invasion of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia during World War II. It was drawn from the peacetime 4th Army District. When mobilised, it consisted of three divisions, a brigade-strength detachment, one horse cavalry regiment and one independent infantry regiment. It formed part of the 1st Army Group, and was responsible for defending a large section of the Yugoslav–Hungarian border, being deployed behind the Drava river between Varaždin and Slatina. Like all Yugoslav formations at the time, the 4th Army had serious deficiencies in both mobility and firepower.
The 5th Army was a Royal Yugoslav Army formation which commanded five divisions and two independent detachments during the German-led Axis invasion of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in April 1941 during World War II. It was commanded by General Vladimir Cukavac, and was responsible for the Romanian and Bulgarian borders between the Iron Gates and the Greek border.
The 7th Army was a Royal Yugoslav Army formation raised prior to the German-led Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, during World War II. It consisted of two divisions, two brigade-strength mountain detachments, and a brigade-strength infantry detachment. It formed part of the 1st Army Group, and was responsible for the defence of Yugoslavia's north-western frontier with Italy and Germany. Like all Yugoslav formations at the time, the 7th Army had serious deficiencies in both mobility and firepower.
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