| 82nd Infantry Division | |
|---|---|
| 82. Infanterie-Division | |
 | |
| Active | December 1939 – May 1944 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | Kamenets-Podolsky pocket |
The 82nd Infantry Division (German: 82. Infanteriedivision) was a German Army infantry division in World War II. The 82nd was part of the sixth Aufstellungswelle of German infantry divisions. [1]
The 82nd Infantry Division was raised in December 1939 and was first deployed into action the following May during the invasion of France and the low countries.
Returning to Germany in December 1940, they were redeployed into the Netherlands the following month. In May, the division was separated - elements of the 82nd were to remain as an occupational force in the Netherlands, while the rest were to invade the Soviet Union. In June 1941, in preparation for the then-upcoming invasion, Major General Josef Lehmann was promoted to Lieutenant General. [2] In December 1942, the occupational elements would move to the Eastern front.
In mid-January 1943, the Red Army launched a counteroffensive targeted on the city of Voronezh. During the Battle of Voronezh, Lieutenant General Alfred Bäntsch was killed; he was replaced by Lieutenant General Karl Faulenbach. [2]
In July 1943, the division took part in the Battle of Kursk as a component of General of the Infantry Erich Straube's XIII Corps, which in itself was a portion of the 2nd Army. [3] In December, Major General Hans-Walter Heyne was promoted to Lieutenant General. [2]
In early 1944, the division was encircled by Soviet Armed Forces near Kiev during the Battle of the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket. Although it managed to escape from the Soviets, it sustained such heavy casualties that it was reduced to being a designated "Division Group", absorbed by the 254th Infantry Division. [2]
The 27th Panzer Division was an incomplete armoured (Panzer) division of the German Wehrmacht during World War II. It began forming in the southern sector of the Eastern Front in late 1942, but was never completed due to the loss of its assets during the Soviet counteroffensives in the Battle of Stalingrad, and no further attempts were made to reconstitute the division.
The 164th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the German Army during World War II. Formed in November 1939, the division took part in the invasion of Greece in April 1941. In January 1942, consolidating the Axis seizure of the island during the Battle of Crete, the 164th was reorganized as Fortress Division Kreta (FDK). In mid-1942 the division was transferred to North Africa and re-designated as 164th Light Afrika Division. It surrendered in May 1943 in Tunisia at the end of the North African Campaign.
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 12th Panzer Division was an armoured division in the German Army, established in 1940.
The 12th Infantry Division – later known as the 12th Volksgrenadier Division – was a Wehrmacht military unit of Nazi Germany that fought during World War II. The division was formed in 1934. It participated in the invasion of Poland in 1939 and the 1940 campaign in France and the Low Countries. In the Soviet Union, the division joined Operation Barbarossa. The division was destroyed in the Soviet Operation Bagration in the summer of 1944. The division was re-activated in September 1944 and posted to the newly created Western Front.
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.
The 6th Luftwaffe Field Division was an infantry division of the Luftwaffe branch of the Wehrmacht that fought in World War II. It was formed using surplus ground crew of the Luftwaffe and served on the Eastern Front from late 1942 to June 1944 when it was destroyed during Operation Bagration.
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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.
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The 45th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Towards the end of the war, the division was reassembled into a second iteration, the 45th Volksgrenadier Division
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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.
The 85th Infantry Division was a Wehrmacht division used in the Second World War. It participated in the German defence in the Battle of Normandy, and took part in the German counter-offensive in the Ardennes.
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The 5th Luftwaffe Field Division was an infantry division of the Luftwaffe branch of the Wehrmacht that fought in World War II. It was formed using surplus Luftwaffe ground crew and served on the Eastern Front from late 1942 to mid 1944, when was disbanded.
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