German Order of Battle [03] German Order of Battle (3): Panzer, Panzer Grenadier, and Waffen SS Divisions in WWII by Jr. Samuel W. Mitcham

Author:Jr. Samuel W. Mitcham [Mitcham, Jr. Samuel W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Armed Services, Formations, World War 2
ISBN: 9780811745253
Amazon: B00Y2V56KC
Publisher: Stackpole Books
Published: 2007-10-10T04:00:00+00:00

An American Sherman tank (right) passes an abandoned Panzer Mark IV in the Ardennes, December 1944 or January 1945.

Notes and Sources: Carell 1966: 454; Keegan: 156; Kursietis: 259; MacDonald 1973: 250, 349–50; Pipes; Tessin, Vol. 3: 44–45; OB 43: 217-18; OB 44: 327; OB 45: 340; Yerger 1997: 101–2, 306; Yerger 1999: 15; Ziemke 1966: 159–60, 222–23, 292–93, 312.

7TH SS VOLUNTEER MOUNTAIN DIVISION “PRINZ EUGEN”

Composition: 13th SS Volunteer Mountain Infantry Regiment “Artur Phelps,” 14th SS Volunteer Mountain Infantry Regiment “Skanderberg,” 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Artillery Regiment, 7th SS Mountain Reconnaissance Battalion (Motorized), 7th SS Motorcycle Battalion, 7th SS Cavalry Battalion, 7th SS Tank Destroyer Battalion, 7th SS Mountain Engineer Battalion, 7th SS Mountain Signal Battalion, 7th SS Anti-Aircraft Battalion, 7th SS Field Replacement Battalion, 7th SS Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Serbia

The 7th SS Mountain Division (which was initially designated the SS Volunteer Mountain Division “Prince Eugen”) was formed in northern Serbia in October 1942. Its troops were Volksdeutsche (ethnic Germans) from Hungary, Romania, and Yugoslavia. Eventually, it grew to a stength of 15,000 men. In the spring of 1943, the 7th SS was transferred to Bosnia and the Dalmatian coast, where it operated against partisans. In October 1944 it was shifted to the Belgrade area to cover the eastern flank of the German withdrawal through Yugoslavia, where it suffered heavy losses. These casualties were made good near the end of the year when some of the more reliable elements of the disbanded 21st SS Mountain Division “Skanderberg” or “Albanian #1” were absorbed by the 7th SS. At this time, the 14th SS Mountain Infantry Regiment was given the honorary title “Skanderberg.” The division ended the war in the Balkans as part of Army Group F. It surrendered to the Yugoslavs in the Cilli vicinity at the end of the conflict.

Its commanders included SS Major General/SS Lieutenant General Artur Phelps (January 13, 1942), SS Major General Reichsritter Karl von Oberkamp (May 15, 1943), SS Colonel/SS Oberführer August Schmidhuber (November 28, 1943), Oberkamp (December 11, 1943), SS Major General Otto Kumm (January 30, 1944), and Schmidhuber (January 20, 1945).

Notes and Sources: The division’s motorcycle battalion was dissolved in the summer of 1943. Phelps was promoted to SS lieutenant general on April 20, 1942. August Schmidhuber was promoted to SS Oberführer on June 21, 1944. He was hanged by the Yugoslavians in Belgrade on February 19, 1947.

Keegen: 100, 158; Kursietis: 259; Lexikon; Stein: 170, 200, 204, 221, 274; Tessin, Vol. 3: 83–84; OB 43: 218; OB 44: 328; OB 45: 340; Yerger 1999: 201–3.

8TH SS CAVALRY DIVISION “FLORIAN GEYER”

Composition (1943): 15th SS Cavalry Regiment, 16th SS Cavalry Regiment, 17th SS Cavalry Regiment, 18th SS Cavalry Regiment, 8th SS Artillery Regiment, 8th SS Bicycle Battalion, 8th SS Tank Destroyer Battalion, 8th SS Assault Gun Battery, 8th SS Engineer Batallion, 8th SS Signal Battalion, 8th SS Anti-Aircraft Battalion, 8th SS Field Replacement Battalion, 8th SS Divisional Supply Troops

Home Station: Debica, General Gouvernement

Originally formed near Warsaw as an SS cavalry brigade in late 1941, this unit

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