5th SS Panzer Division Wiking
Encyclopedia
The 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking was one of the elite Panzer
divisions of the thirty eight Waffen SS divisions. It was recruited from foreign volunteers, from Scandinavia
, Finland
, Estonia
, The Netherlands
, and Belgium
under the command of German officers. During the course of World War II
, the division progressed from a motorised infantry
division to a Panzer division
and served on the Eastern Front
during World War II
. It surrendered in May 1945 to the advancing American forces in Austria.
, Belgium
, the Netherlands
, Sweden
, and Norway
, a decision was made to form a volunteer division of the Waffen SS under the command of German officers.
This unit, originally organized as the Nordische Division (Nr.5), was to be made up of Nordic
volunteers mixed with ethnic German Waffen SS veterans. To this end, the SS Infantry Regiment Germania in the SS Verfügungstruppe Division was transferred in late 1940 and used as the cadre for a new division . In December 1940, the new SS motorized formation, was to be designated SS-Division (mot.) Germania. but during its formative period, the name was changed, to SS-Division (mot.) Wiking. in January 1941.
The division was formed around three motorised infantry regiments: Germania, formed mostly from ethnic Germans; Westland, consisting mainly of Dutch and Flemish volunteers; and Nordland, composed mostly of Danes, Swedes and Norwegians. Command of the newly formed division was given to Brigadeführer
Felix Steiner
, the former commander of the Verfügungstruppe SS Regiment Deutschland.
After formation the division was sent to Heuberg in Germany
for training and by April 1941, SS Division Wiking was deemed ready for combat. It was ordered east in June 1941, to take part with Army Group South's
advance into the Ukraine
during Operation Barbarossa
.
In June 1941 the Finnish Volunteer Battalion of the Waffen-SS was formed from Finnish
volunteers. After training, this unit was attached to the SS Regiment Nordland in January 1942. About 430 Finns who were veterans of the Winter War
served within the SS Division Wiking division since the beginning of Operation Barbarossa
. In spring 1943, the Finnish battalion was withdrawn and was replaced by the Estonian "Narwa" (Narva) infantry battalion.
, the division held the line. Against stiffening resistance, the division continued its advance towards Rostov-on-Don
. It took part in the heavy fighting for Rostov before being ordered back to the Mius River
line in November. During 1941, the Heer
officers in charge of the deployment of the SS Division Wiking were skeptical of its fighting abilities and so were hesitant to commit it to any major actions. As the division proved itself again and again in combat, it began to earn the grudging respect of the Heer commanders.
After successfully holding the line over the winter of 1941–42, SS Division Wiking was ordered to retake Rostov-on-Don and advance into the Caucasus
, securing the region's vital oilfields. This attack was known as Operation Maus, and formed a part of Army Group South's offensive Case Blue, aimed at capturing Stalingrad and the Baku
oilfields. Launched at the height of summer, the offensive was unexpectedly successful. Within six weeks, Rostov and the entire Don region had been recaptured, and SS Division Wiking was advancing deep into the Caucasus.
. Working in cooperation with General der Panzertruppen Traugott Herr's
13.Panzer-Division, a plan was arranged to capture the city. As they reached the Terek River, the Soviet defences solidified. Several obstacle belts had to be breached before the Georgian Road
(along which American supplies were transported) could be reached. Realising the difficult situation, Felix Steiner
divided his division into four columns, each with separate objectives, but all aimed at breaching the Soviet defences and opening a road to the Caspian Sea
.
The SS Regiment Nordland was to attack along the Kurp River to Malgobek
. The SS Panzer battalion Wiking, with elements of the SS Regiment Germania, was to breach the main line of defence and establish a bridgehead. The SS Regiment Westland was to capture the town of Sagopshin, and the division's engineer component, along with the rest of SS Regiment Germania was to advance along the Kurp.
The attack got underway on the night of 25/26 September 1942. SS Regiment Nordland's assault soon bogged down, as they realized that not only were they outnumbered by the Red Army, but the latter were also well entrenched in prepared positions. Within thirty minutes, almost half of the men of regiment had fallen. Despite this, they still captured the hill, and its commander Fritz von Scholz
was awarded the Knight's Cross
for his actions during the battle. The division finally captured Malgobek on 6 October, however the objective of seizing the capital and opening a road to the Caspian was not achieved. The closest point to Grozny, Hill 701, was captured by the Finnish volunteers (III (finn.) Battalion SS Regiment Nordland. During this operation, SS Division Wiking lost over 1,500 men. Several combat units were reduced to only dozens of men, and as a veteran later wrote, "Casualties weren't counted any more, just men left alive."
In the first week of November 1942, the division was transferred from the Terek bend to the Urukh-Alagir sector to participate in the renewed attack eastwards, which was attempted in the direction of Ordzhonikidze rather than via Grozny. It ended up arriving just in time to extricate the 13th Panzer Division from encirclement at Gisel, after which it took up defensive positions behind the Fiagdon river. The encirclement of the 6.Armee at Stalingrad meant that the Caucasus was relegated to a secondary theater, and when the attempt to relieve Stalingrad failed in the face of further Soviet advances, the entire Caucasian position itself began to come under threat. SS Division Wiking was one of the first formations to be withdrawn to bolster the retreating 4th Panzer Army, entraining from 24 December for transport to Remontnaya, arriving there on 31 December. The division fell back through Zimovniki, Proletarskaya (holding open the bridge over the Manych), Zelina and Yegorlykskaya towards Bataisk and Rostov, finally escaping through the Rostov gap on 4 February.
II.SS-Panzerkorps
, and now the scene of fierce fighting for its recapture.
Erich von Manstein
, the new commander of Army Group South, threw 5 SS Wiking and the 11th Panzer-Division
into action against the Soviet Mobile Group Popov, which was threatening to break through to the vital rail line. 5 SS Wiking had great difficulty dealing with the armour heavy Soviet formation. The Panzergrenadier regiments of 5 SS Wiking were exhausted and understrength from the fighting in the Caucasus, and the Panzer Battalion lacked sufficient armour to counter the Soviet force. Despite this, the division held off the Soviet assault, protecting the vital rail line and helping bring about the destruction of Mobile Group Popov. After the recapture of Kharkov
, 5 SS Wiking was pulled out of combat to be refitted as a Panzergrenadier division.
Thanks to Heinrich Himmler
's and Paul Hausser
's efforts, it had been decided that all Waffen SS Panzergrenadier divisions were to have a regiment of Panzers, rather than only a battalion. This meant that the SS Panzergrenadier formations were full sized Panzer divisions in all but name. With the upgrade to Panzergrenadier
status, the division received SdKfz 251
halftracks for one battalion of infantry and an additional panzer Battalion began forming on 28 February 1943. It would be over a year before the new battalion would receive its baptism of fire at Kovel.
During mid 1943, 5 SS Wiking underwent a major transformation. Steiner, now an Gruppenführer
, was transferred to command of the III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps
, currently forming in Croatia
. His replacement was Herbert Otto Gille
, who was to prove himself Steiner's equal. The remnants of the veteran SS Regiment Nordland, along with its commander Fritz von Scholz, were removed from the division and used as the nucleus of the new 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland
. Also, the Finnish Volunteer Battalion of the Waffen-SS was disbanded, as the agreed two years' service of the Finnish volunteers had expired.
In an attempt to offset the loss of the Finns and the Nordland regiment, the newly formed Estonia
n volunteer formation Estonian Volunteer Panzergrenadier Bataillon Narwa
was attached to the division.
. The reorganization was completed by late June, and the division was moved to Izyum where it, along with the 23.Panzer-Division was to form the reserve force for Manstein's Army Group during the approaching Operation Citadel. While the operation was in effect, several Soviet formations attacked towards Orel
and Kharkov simultaneously. The 5 SS Wiking was engaged against the forces near Kharkov, with the Estonians acquitting themselves well, destroying around 100 Soviet tanks over several days. When Citadel was canceled, the division was still involved in halting Soviet attacks.
Further to the south, on the Mius-Front
, a major Soviet offensive, Operation Rumyantsev, threatened to break the German lines. 5 SS Wiking was joined by the 3rd SS Panzergrenadier Division Totenkopf and 2nd SS Panzergrenadier Division Das Reich and sent to the Mius-Bogodukhov sector to halt the Soviet attacks. In subsequent fighting, the SS divisions defeated two Soviet tank armies (totaling over 1,000 tanks) and destroyed over 800 tanks. At no time did the SS divisions have any more than 50 panzers in working order. In October, the division was again pulled back out of the line, this time to be restructured as a panzer division, the 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking.
volunteer unit 5th SS-Sturmbrigade Wallonien
was attached to the division, under command of Leon Degrelle
. They were the subject of ridicule from many Wiking veterans until they proved their worth in the fighting for a forest near Teklino, at the head of a salient
into the Soviet lines. A second panzer Battalion was also ordered to begin formation in Germany
.
While the 5 SS Wiking was engaged near Teklino, several Red Army
tank formations had advanced along the side of the salient and succeeded in encircling the German forces of XLII and XI Army Corps
near Korsun
.
During the battle of the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket
, 5 SS Wiking defended against Soviet attacks on the eastern side of the pocket. While General of Artillery Wilhelm Stemmermann
, the overall commander of the pocket, moved his forces to the west in readiness for an attempt to breakout, 5 SS Wiking, along with the 5th SS Sturmbrigade were ordered to act as the rearguard. After repulsing all Soviet attempts to break through near the town of Novaya-Buda, the 5 SS Wiking rearguard split up and began withdrawing one platoon at a time, under cover of darkness. Advancing through Hell's Gate, the 5 SS Wiking came under heavy fire. The division suffered heavy losses in men and materials during the carnage of the Korsun Pocket. Gille the Divisional commander, had proven his loyalty to his men, fighting alongside them and remaining in action until all survivors had escaped. He was one of the last to cross the Gniloy Tikich river to safety. After the end of this battle, the 5th SS Sturmbrigade Wallonien brigade was withdrawn from the division.
, which was under threat from a strong Soviet force. Gille led his men towards the town and began setting up a defensive perimeter, which was soon encircled by the Red Army. The II.Battalion, SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking, newly equipped with Panther Tank
s, along with the III.Battalion, SS Panzergrenadier Regiment Germania, newly equipped and up to strength, arrived at the front from Germany and began to form a relief unit.
The unit was under the command of Obersturmführer
Karl Nicolussi Leck, commander of 8.Company, II.Battalion, SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking. Nicolussi Leck immediately launched an attack with five tanks. Soon after beginning the attack, he received a radio message from the besieged commander to halt his attack and withdraw. Nicolussi Leck ordered his radio operator to ignore the call, and continue with the attack. Risking court martial, Nicolussi-Leck proceeded to fight his way though the Red Army encirclement, destroying several tanks in the process. His Panther tank was the first vehicle to break the encirclement, for his actions he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
.
After the relief force had established a corridor to the trapped forces, the withdrawal began. Unlike the previous encirclement at Korsun, they managed to escape with most of their equipment intact.
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In late August 1944, the division was ordered back to Modlin Fortress
on the Vistula River line near Warsaw
where it was to join the newly formed Army Group Vistula
. Fighting alongside the Luftwaffe's
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
, the division annihilated the Red Army 3rd Tank Corps. The advent of the Warsaw Uprising
brought the Soviet offensive to a halt, and relative peace fell on the front line as in Warsaw Higher SS and Police Leader Erich von dem Bach Zelewski destroyed Warsaw with its civilians and Home Army. The division remained in the Modlin area for the rest of the year, grouped with the 3 SS Division Totenkopf as IV SS Panzer Corps
. Gille was promoted to command of the new SS Panzer Corps, and after a brief period with Oberführer
Dr. Eduard Deisenhofer
in command, Standartenführer
Johannes Mühlenkamp
, commander of the SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking, took command. Heavy defensive battles around Modlin followed for the rest of the year, and in October, Mühlenkamp was replaced by Oberführer Karl Ullrich
. Ullrich would lead the division for the rest of the war.
In late December 1944, the German forces, including 9th SS Mountain Corps, defending Budapest
were encircled and the IV.SS-Panzer Corps was ordered south to join Hermann Balck's
6th Army (Army Group Balck), which was mustering for a relief effort, codenamed Operation Konrad
.
, only 28 kilometres from Budapest. Gille pulled the 5th SS out of the line and moved it to the south of Esztergom
, near the Danube
bend. The second relief attempt, to be known as Operation Konrad II, got under way on 7 January.
In atrocious conditions, the 5th SS advanced southwards towards Budapest. By 12 January, the Westland SS Panzergrenadier Regiment had reached Pilisszentkereszt
, barely 20 kilometers from Buda
. That morning the panzergrenadiers spotted the church spires and turrets of the distinctive Budapest skyline poking through the morning fog. Despite its success, they had overextended and were vulnerable to attack, unable to exploit its breakthrough and eventually ordered to pull back and regroup. Hitler was furious at the lack of progress, and called the operation 'utterly pointless'.
A third attempt, Operation Konrad III, launched in cooperation with the veteran III Panzer Corps took place 100 kilometers to the south. This attack resulted in a 15 mile wide gap in the Soviet lines and the destruction of the 135th Rifle Corps. Only the quick redeployment of more troops by the Soviets prevented a German breakthrough. By the end of January the 5th SS Wiking and the 3rd SS Totenkopf had suffered almost 8,000 casualties, including over 200 officers.
At the beginning of February, the besieged forces capitulated, and the 5th SS was ordered west to Lake Balaton
where Obergruppenführer
Sepp Dietrich's 6th SS Panzer Army was preparing for another offensive.
. West of Budapest in more defensive operations, moving into the area of Czechoslovakia. Gille's corps was too depleted to take part in Operation Frühlingserwachen
near Lake Balaton
, and instead remained as a support to the 6th SS Panzer Army during the beginning of the Operation.
5 SS Division Wiking performed a holding operation on the left flank of the offensive, in the area between Velenczesee-Stuhlweissenberg. As Frühlingserwachen progressed, the division was heavily engaged preventing Soviet efforts to outflank the advancing German forces.
As the offensive stalled, the Soviets launched a major offensive, the Vienna Operation, on 15 March. Attacking the border between the 3 SS Division Totenkopf, stationed to the north of 5 SS Division Wiking, and the Hungarian 2nd Armoured Division, contact was soon lost between these formations. Acting quickly, Balck recommended moving the I.SS Panzer Corps north to plug the gap and prevent the encirclement of the IV.SS Panzer Corps. Despite this quick thinking, a Führer Order authorising this move was slow in coming, and when the divisions finally began moving, it was too late. On 22 March, the Soviet encirclement of the 3 SS Division Totenkopf and 5 SS Division Wiking was almost complete. Desperate, Balck threw the veteran 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen into the area to hold open the small corridor. In the battle to hold open the Berhida Corridor, the Hohenstaufen bled itself white, but Gille's corps managed to escape.
On 24 March, another Soviet attack threw the exhausted IV.SS Panzer Corps back towards Vienna
, all contact was lost with the neighboring I.SS Panzer Corps and any semblance of an organised line of defence was gone. The 5 SS Division Wiking executed a fighting withdrawal into Czechoslovakia. By early May, they were within reach of the American forces, to whom the division officially surrendered near Fürstenfeld
, Austria
on 9 May.
2 July 1941 near Lviv 36 Jews were shot
Members of the division's bakery column, led by Obersturmführer
Braunnagel and Untersturmführer
Kochalty, assisted Einsatzgruppe A in rounding up Ukrainian Jews. Witnesses report that the Jewish victims were forced to run a gauntlet formed by soldiers who would beat them as they passed, and when they reached the end of the gauntlet, Einsatzgruppen officers murdered them and their bodies were pushed into a bomb crater. The German 1st Mountain Division
is also suspected of being involved. Between 50 and 60 Jews were killed in this manner, as a part of the larger Einsatzgruppe operation which resulted in over 700 murders
In addition historian Eleonore Lappin from the Institute for the History of Jews in Austria has documented several cases of war crimes committed by members of the 5 SS Division Wiking in her work The Death Marches of Hungarian Jews Through Austria in the Spring of 1945.
On March 28, 1945, eighty Jews from evacuation column, though fit for the journey, were shot by three members of the Waffen SS division Wiking and five military policemen. On April 4, twenty members of another column that left Graz tried to escape near Eggenfeld, not far from Gratkorn. Soldiers from the 5 SS Division Wiking that were temporarily stationed there apprehended them in the forest near Mt. Eggenfeld and then herded them in a gully, where they were shot. On April 7 and 11, 1945 members of the division executed another eighteen escaped prisoners.
, served with the SS Division Wiking during its early campaigns. According to all accounts, he performed the normal duties of a combat medic
, even being awarded the Iron Cross
for saving two wounded men from a tank. After being wounded, Mengele was deemed unfit for combat and was absorbed into the SS Nazi concentration camp system, where he gained his infamy. Mengele was very proud of his Waffen SS service and his front-line decorations. As the true horrors of the concentration camp system came to light, his former comrades attempted to have his name removed from the division's roll of veterans.
.
Panzer
A Panzer is a German language word that, when used as a noun, means "tank". When it is used as an adjective, it means either tank or "armoured" .- Etymology :...
divisions of the thirty eight Waffen SS divisions. It was recruited from foreign volunteers, from Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, The Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
under the command of German officers. During the course of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the division progressed from a motorised infantry
Motorised infantry
In NATO and most other western countries, motorised infantry is infantry which is transported by trucks or other motor vehicles. It is distinguished from mechanized infantry, which is carried in armoured personnel carriers, infantry combat vehicles, or infantry fighting vehicles...
division to a Panzer division
Panzer Division
A panzer division was an armored division in the army and air force branches of the Wehrmacht as well as the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II....
and served on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It surrendered in May 1945 to the advancing American forces in Austria.
Formation and training
After the success of the Infanterie-Regiment (mot.) Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler, SS-Verfügungstruppen-Division and the SS-Division Totenkopf during the early war campaigns in Poland and the West, it was decided to expand the number of Waffen SS divisions. Due to the influx of foreign volunteers, particularly from DenmarkDenmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, and Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, a decision was made to form a volunteer division of the Waffen SS under the command of German officers.
This unit, originally organized as the Nordische Division (Nr.5), was to be made up of Nordic
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
volunteers mixed with ethnic German Waffen SS veterans. To this end, the SS Infantry Regiment Germania in the SS Verfügungstruppe Division was transferred in late 1940 and used as the cadre for a new division . In December 1940, the new SS motorized formation, was to be designated SS-Division (mot.) Germania. but during its formative period, the name was changed, to SS-Division (mot.) Wiking. in January 1941.
The division was formed around three motorised infantry regiments: Germania, formed mostly from ethnic Germans; Westland, consisting mainly of Dutch and Flemish volunteers; and Nordland, composed mostly of Danes, Swedes and Norwegians. Command of the newly formed division was given to Brigadeführer
Brigadeführer
SS-Brigadeführer was an SS rank that was used in Nazi Germany between the years of 1932 and 1945. Brigadeführer was also an SA rank....
Felix Steiner
Felix Steiner
Felix Martin Julius Steiner was a German Reichswehr and Waffen-SS officer who served in both World War I and World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
, the former commander of the Verfügungstruppe SS Regiment Deutschland.
After formation the division was sent to Heuberg in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
for training and by April 1941, SS Division Wiking was deemed ready for combat. It was ordered east in June 1941, to take part with Army Group South's
Army Group South
Army Group South was the name of a number of German Army Groups during World War II.- Poland campaign :Germany used two army groups to invade Poland in 1939: Army Group North and Army Group South...
advance into the Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
during Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
.
In June 1941 the Finnish Volunteer Battalion of the Waffen-SS was formed from Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
volunteers. After training, this unit was attached to the SS Regiment Nordland in January 1942. About 430 Finns who were veterans of the Winter War
Winter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
served within the SS Division Wiking division since the beginning of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
. In spring 1943, the Finnish battalion was withdrawn and was replaced by the Estonian "Narwa" (Narva) infantry battalion.
Operation Barbarossa
The division was not ready for combat until 29 June 1941, seven days after the launch of the operation. During its first action, near Tarnopol in Galicia, Ukraine, the division acquitted itself well. In August, SS Division Wiking was ordered to establish a defensive perimeter around a bridgehead across the Dniepr river. Despite determined attacks by the Red ArmyRed Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
, the division held the line. Against stiffening resistance, the division continued its advance towards Rostov-on-Don
Rostov-on-Don
-History:The mouth of the Don River has been of great commercial and cultural importance since the ancient times. It was the site of the Greek colony Tanais, of the Genoese fort Tana, and of the Turkish fortress Azak...
. It took part in the heavy fighting for Rostov before being ordered back to the Mius River
Mius River
Mius is a river in Eastern Europe that flows through Ukraine and Russia. It starts in the Donets Range of Donetsk Oblast and flows through Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine and Rostov Oblast, Russia into the Mius Firth of the Sea of Azov, west of Taganrog...
line in November. During 1941, the Heer
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
officers in charge of the deployment of the SS Division Wiking were skeptical of its fighting abilities and so were hesitant to commit it to any major actions. As the division proved itself again and again in combat, it began to earn the grudging respect of the Heer commanders.
After successfully holding the line over the winter of 1941–42, SS Division Wiking was ordered to retake Rostov-on-Don and advance into the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
, securing the region's vital oilfields. This attack was known as Operation Maus, and formed a part of Army Group South's offensive Case Blue, aimed at capturing Stalingrad and the Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
oilfields. Launched at the height of summer, the offensive was unexpectedly successful. Within six weeks, Rostov and the entire Don region had been recaptured, and SS Division Wiking was advancing deep into the Caucasus.
The Caucasus
By late September 1942, SS Division Wiking was in a position to launch an assault to capture the vital city of GroznyGrozny
Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
. Working in cooperation with General der Panzertruppen Traugott Herr's
Traugott Herr
Traugott Herr was a German general of Panzer troops who served during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
13.Panzer-Division, a plan was arranged to capture the city. As they reached the Terek River, the Soviet defences solidified. Several obstacle belts had to be breached before the Georgian Road
Georgian Military Road
The Georgian Military Road is the historic name for a major route through the Caucasus from Georgia to Russia. Alternative routes across the mountains include the Ossetian Military Road and the Transkam.-Route:...
(along which American supplies were transported) could be reached. Realising the difficult situation, Felix Steiner
Felix Steiner
Felix Martin Julius Steiner was a German Reichswehr and Waffen-SS officer who served in both World War I and World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
divided his division into four columns, each with separate objectives, but all aimed at breaching the Soviet defences and opening a road to the Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
.
The SS Regiment Nordland was to attack along the Kurp River to Malgobek
Malgobek
Malgobek is a town in the Republic of Ingushetia, Russia, located northwest of the republic's capital Magas. Population: Malgobek was founded in 1935 as a settlement for workers at then recently discovered oilfields, on the territory of former Ingush villages of Malgobek-Balka and Chechen-Balka...
. The SS Panzer battalion Wiking, with elements of the SS Regiment Germania, was to breach the main line of defence and establish a bridgehead. The SS Regiment Westland was to capture the town of Sagopshin, and the division's engineer component, along with the rest of SS Regiment Germania was to advance along the Kurp.
The attack got underway on the night of 25/26 September 1942. SS Regiment Nordland's assault soon bogged down, as they realized that not only were they outnumbered by the Red Army, but the latter were also well entrenched in prepared positions. Within thirty minutes, almost half of the men of regiment had fallen. Despite this, they still captured the hill, and its commander Fritz von Scholz
Fritz von Scholz
Fritz von Scholz, Edler von Rerancze, known as Fritz von Scholz was an Austrian Austro-Hungarian Army and later German Waffen SS officer who served in both the First and Second World Wars....
was awarded the Knight's Cross
Knight's Cross
Knight's Cross refers to a distinguishing grade or level of various orders that denotes bravery and leadership on the battlefield....
for his actions during the battle. The division finally captured Malgobek on 6 October, however the objective of seizing the capital and opening a road to the Caspian was not achieved. The closest point to Grozny, Hill 701, was captured by the Finnish volunteers (III (finn.) Battalion SS Regiment Nordland. During this operation, SS Division Wiking lost over 1,500 men. Several combat units were reduced to only dozens of men, and as a veteran later wrote, "Casualties weren't counted any more, just men left alive."
In the first week of November 1942, the division was transferred from the Terek bend to the Urukh-Alagir sector to participate in the renewed attack eastwards, which was attempted in the direction of Ordzhonikidze rather than via Grozny. It ended up arriving just in time to extricate the 13th Panzer Division from encirclement at Gisel, after which it took up defensive positions behind the Fiagdon river. The encirclement of the 6.Armee at Stalingrad meant that the Caucasus was relegated to a secondary theater, and when the attempt to relieve Stalingrad failed in the face of further Soviet advances, the entire Caucasian position itself began to come under threat. SS Division Wiking was one of the first formations to be withdrawn to bolster the retreating 4th Panzer Army, entraining from 24 December for transport to Remontnaya, arriving there on 31 December. The division fell back through Zimovniki, Proletarskaya (holding open the bridge over the Manych), Zelina and Yegorlykskaya towards Bataisk and Rostov, finally escaping through the Rostov gap on 4 February.
Battles for Kharkov - Panzergrenadier Division
In late November 1942 the division was redesignated the 5th SS Panzergrenadier Division Wiking.. By now the division had gained a reputation as an elite formation. In early 1943, the division was ordered to fall back to the Ukraine south of Kharkov, recently abandoned by Paul Hausser'sPaul Hausser
Paul "Papa" Hausser was an officer in the German Army, achieving the high rank of lieutenant-general in the inter-war Reichswehr. After retirement from the regular Army he became the "father" of the Waffen-SS and one of its most eminent leaders...
II.SS-Panzerkorps
II SS Panzer Corps
The II SS Panzer Corps was a Nazi German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during World War II.- Formation - Kharkov :...
, and now the scene of fierce fighting for its recapture.
Erich von Manstein
Erich von Manstein
Erich von Manstein was a field marshal in World War II. He became one of the most prominent commanders of Germany's World War II armed forces...
, the new commander of Army Group South, threw 5 SS Wiking and the 11th Panzer-Division
German 11th Panzer Division
The 11.Panzer Division was a German Panzer division which saw action on the Eastern and Western Fronts during the Second World War. The unit emblem of the 11'th Panzer was a ghost...
into action against the Soviet Mobile Group Popov, which was threatening to break through to the vital rail line. 5 SS Wiking had great difficulty dealing with the armour heavy Soviet formation. The Panzergrenadier regiments of 5 SS Wiking were exhausted and understrength from the fighting in the Caucasus, and the Panzer Battalion lacked sufficient armour to counter the Soviet force. Despite this, the division held off the Soviet assault, protecting the vital rail line and helping bring about the destruction of Mobile Group Popov. After the recapture of Kharkov
Third Battle of Kharkov
The Third Battle of Kharkov was a series of offensive operations on the Eastern Front of World War II, undertaken by the German Army Group South against the Red Army, around the city of Kharkov , between 19 February and 15 March 1943...
, 5 SS Wiking was pulled out of combat to be refitted as a Panzergrenadier division.
Thanks to Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler was Reichsführer of the SS, a military commander, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. As Chief of the German Police and the Minister of the Interior from 1943, Himmler oversaw all internal and external police and security forces, including the Gestapo...
's and Paul Hausser
Paul Hausser
Paul "Papa" Hausser was an officer in the German Army, achieving the high rank of lieutenant-general in the inter-war Reichswehr. After retirement from the regular Army he became the "father" of the Waffen-SS and one of its most eminent leaders...
's efforts, it had been decided that all Waffen SS Panzergrenadier divisions were to have a regiment of Panzers, rather than only a battalion. This meant that the SS Panzergrenadier formations were full sized Panzer divisions in all but name. With the upgrade to Panzergrenadier
Panzergrenadier
is a German term for motorised or mechanized infantry, as introduced during World War II. It is used in the armies of Austria, Chile, Germany and Switzerland.-Forerunners:...
status, the division received SdKfz 251
SdKfz 251
The Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track was an armored fighting vehicle designed and first built by Hanomag company during World War II. The largest and best armored of the wartime half-tracks, the Sd.Kfz. 251 was designed to transport the panzergrenadiers of the German mechanized infantry corps into battle....
halftracks for one battalion of infantry and an additional panzer Battalion began forming on 28 February 1943. It would be over a year before the new battalion would receive its baptism of fire at Kovel.
During mid 1943, 5 SS Wiking underwent a major transformation. Steiner, now an Gruppenführer
Gruppenführer
Gruppenführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA.-SS rank:...
, was transferred to command of the III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps
III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps
The III SS Panzer Corps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on the Eastern Front during World War II. The The III (Germanic) SS Panzer Corps (III. (germanische) SS-Panzerkorps) was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on the Eastern Front during World War II. The...
, currently forming in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. His replacement was Herbert Otto Gille
Herbert Otto Gille
Herbert Otto Gille was a German general, and as a winner of the Knight's Cross with Oakleaves, Swords and Diamonds and of the German Cross in Gold, the most highly decorated member of the Waffen SS during World War II...
, who was to prove himself Steiner's equal. The remnants of the veteran SS Regiment Nordland, along with its commander Fritz von Scholz, were removed from the division and used as the nucleus of the new 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland
11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland
The 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland, also known as Kampfverband Waräger, Germanische-Freiwilligen-Division, SS-Panzergrenadier-Division 11 or 11. SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nordland, was a Waffen SS, Panzergrenadier division recruited from foreign volunteers...
. Also, the Finnish Volunteer Battalion of the Waffen-SS was disbanded, as the agreed two years' service of the Finnish volunteers had expired.
In an attempt to offset the loss of the Finns and the Nordland regiment, the newly formed Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n volunteer formation Estonian Volunteer Panzergrenadier Bataillon Narwa
Estonian Legion
The Estonian Legion was a military unit within the Combat Support Forces of the Waffen SS Verfügungstruppe during World War II, mainly consisting of Estonian soldiers.-Creation:...
was attached to the division.
Kursk: battles on the Mius
While the division was refitting, it was involved in minor skirmishes with partisansPartisan (military)
A partisan is a member of an irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation by some kind of insurgent activity...
. The reorganization was completed by late June, and the division was moved to Izyum where it, along with the 23.Panzer-Division was to form the reserve force for Manstein's Army Group during the approaching Operation Citadel. While the operation was in effect, several Soviet formations attacked towards Orel
Oryol
Oryol or Orel is a city and the administrative center of Oryol Oblast, Russia, located on the Oka River, approximately south-southwest of Moscow...
and Kharkov simultaneously. The 5 SS Wiking was engaged against the forces near Kharkov, with the Estonians acquitting themselves well, destroying around 100 Soviet tanks over several days. When Citadel was canceled, the division was still involved in halting Soviet attacks.
Further to the south, on the Mius-Front
Mius-Front
Mius-Front was a heavily fortified defensive line created by the Germans in October 1941 under direction of General Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist along the Mius River during World War II. By summer 1943 the Mius-Front consisted of three defense lines with total depth of the Mius defense range of...
, a major Soviet offensive, Operation Rumyantsev, threatened to break the German lines. 5 SS Wiking was joined by the 3rd SS Panzergrenadier Division Totenkopf and 2nd SS Panzergrenadier Division Das Reich and sent to the Mius-Bogodukhov sector to halt the Soviet attacks. In subsequent fighting, the SS divisions defeated two Soviet tank armies (totaling over 1,000 tanks) and destroyed over 800 tanks. At no time did the SS divisions have any more than 50 panzers in working order. In October, the division was again pulled back out of the line, this time to be restructured as a panzer division, the 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking.
Korsun Pocket
To bolster the strength of the division, the WalloonWalloons
Walloons are a French-speaking people who live in Belgium, principally in Wallonia. Walloons are a distinctive community within Belgium, important historical and anthropological criteria bind Walloons to the French people. More generally, the term also refers to the inhabitants of the Walloon...
volunteer unit 5th SS-Sturmbrigade Wallonien
5th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade Wallonien
The 28th SS Volunteer Grenadier Division Wallonien was formed from the 5th SS Volunteer Sturmbrigade Wallonien which was a Belgian Waffen SS volunteer brigade comprising volunteers of Walloon background...
was attached to the division, under command of Leon Degrelle
Léon Degrelle
Léon Joseph Marie Ignace Degrelle was a Walloon Belgian politician, who founded Rexism and later joined the Waffen SS which were front-line troops in the fight against the Soviet Union...
. They were the subject of ridicule from many Wiking veterans until they proved their worth in the fighting for a forest near Teklino, at the head of a salient
Salients, re-entrants and pockets
A salient is a battlefield feature that projects into enemy territory. The salient is surrounded by the enemy on three sides, making the troops occupying the salient vulnerable. The enemy's line facing a salient is referred to as a re-entrant...
into the Soviet lines. A second panzer Battalion was also ordered to begin formation in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
While the 5 SS Wiking was engaged near Teklino, several Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
tank formations had advanced along the side of the salient and succeeded in encircling the German forces of XLII and XI Army Corps
XI Army Corps (Germany)
-Commanders:* Artillery General Emil Leeb, 1 September 1939 – 1 March 1940* Infantry General Joachim von Kortzfleisch, 1 March 1940 – 6 October 1941...
near Korsun
Korsun
Korsun may refer to:People*Nikolai Georgiyevich Korsun , a Soviet military historian*Nikolai Nesterovich Korsun , a Soviet army officer and Hero of the Soviet Union...
.
During the battle of the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket
Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket
The Korsun–Shevchenkovsky Offensive led to the Battle of the Korsun-Cherkassy Pocket which took place from 24 January to 16 February 1944. The offensive was part of the Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive...
, 5 SS Wiking defended against Soviet attacks on the eastern side of the pocket. While General of Artillery Wilhelm Stemmermann
Wilhelm Stemmermann
Wilhelm Stemmermann was a highly decorated General der Artillerie in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the XI Armeekorps. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves...
, the overall commander of the pocket, moved his forces to the west in readiness for an attempt to breakout, 5 SS Wiking, along with the 5th SS Sturmbrigade were ordered to act as the rearguard. After repulsing all Soviet attempts to break through near the town of Novaya-Buda, the 5 SS Wiking rearguard split up and began withdrawing one platoon at a time, under cover of darkness. Advancing through Hell's Gate, the 5 SS Wiking came under heavy fire. The division suffered heavy losses in men and materials during the carnage of the Korsun Pocket. Gille the Divisional commander, had proven his loyalty to his men, fighting alongside them and remaining in action until all survivors had escaped. He was one of the last to cross the Gniloy Tikich river to safety. After the end of this battle, the 5th SS Sturmbrigade Wallonien brigade was withdrawn from the division.
Kovel encirclement
After a brief period of rest and refit, the 5 SS Wiking was sent to assist in the defence of KovelKovel
Kovel is a city located in the Volyn Oblast , in northwestern Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Kovelskyi Raion , the city itself is also designated as a separate raion within the oblast. The current estimated population is around 65,777.Kovel gives its name to one of the...
, which was under threat from a strong Soviet force. Gille led his men towards the town and began setting up a defensive perimeter, which was soon encircled by the Red Army. The II.Battalion, SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking, newly equipped with Panther Tank
Panther tank
Panther is the common name of a medium tank fielded by Nazi Germany in World War II that served from mid-1943 to the end of the European war in 1945. It was intended as a counter to the T-34, and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV; while never replacing the latter, it served alongside it as...
s, along with the III.Battalion, SS Panzergrenadier Regiment Germania, newly equipped and up to strength, arrived at the front from Germany and began to form a relief unit.
The unit was under the command of Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
Karl Nicolussi Leck, commander of 8.Company, II.Battalion, SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking. Nicolussi Leck immediately launched an attack with five tanks. Soon after beginning the attack, he received a radio message from the besieged commander to halt his attack and withdraw. Nicolussi Leck ordered his radio operator to ignore the call, and continue with the attack. Risking court martial, Nicolussi-Leck proceeded to fight his way though the Red Army encirclement, destroying several tanks in the process. His Panther tank was the first vehicle to break the encirclement, for his actions he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
.
After the relief force had established a corridor to the trapped forces, the withdrawal began. Unlike the previous encirclement at Korsun, they managed to escape with most of their equipment intact.
Warsaw battles
Modlin
Modlin may refer to:* Modlin , a village until 1961, now a district of Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki* Modlin Army, a Polish army during the invasion of Poland in 1939* Battle of Modlin, a battle during the Polish September Campaign...
on the Vistula River line near Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
where it was to join the newly formed Army Group Vistula
Army Group Vistula
Army Group Vistula was an Army Group of the Wehrmacht, formed on January 24, 1945. It was put together from elements of Army Group A , Army Group Centre , and a variety of new or ad-hoc formations...
. Fighting alongside the Luftwaffe's
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring
The Fallschirm-Panzer-Division 1. Hermann Göring was an élite German Luftwaffe armoured division. The HG saw action in North Africa, Sicily, Italy and on the Eastern front...
, the division annihilated the Red Army 3rd Tank Corps. The advent of the Warsaw Uprising
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance Home Army , to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany. The rebellion was timed to coincide with the Soviet Union's Red Army approaching the eastern suburbs of the city and the retreat of German forces...
brought the Soviet offensive to a halt, and relative peace fell on the front line as in Warsaw Higher SS and Police Leader Erich von dem Bach Zelewski destroyed Warsaw with its civilians and Home Army. The division remained in the Modlin area for the rest of the year, grouped with the 3 SS Division Totenkopf as IV SS Panzer Corps
IV SS Panzer Corps
The IV.SS-Panzerkorps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on the Eastern Front and in the Balkans during World War II.The Panzerkorps was formed in August, 1943 in Poitiers, France...
. Gille was promoted to command of the new SS Panzer Corps, and after a brief period with Oberführer
Oberführer
Oberführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party dating back to 1921. Translated as “Senior Leader”, an Oberführer was typically a Nazi Party member in charge of a group of paramilitary units in a particular geographical region...
Dr. Eduard Deisenhofer
Eduard Deisenhofer
Dr. Eduard Deisenhofer was an officer and commander in the German Waffen-SS who served with several combat divisions on both the eastern and western fronts, earning several high grade distinctions, such as the Close Combat Clasp, and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
in command, Standartenführer
Standartenführer
Standartenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in the so-called Nazi combat-organisations: SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK...
Johannes Mühlenkamp
Johannes Mühlenkamp
Johannes-Rudolf Mühlenkamp was a Standartenführer in the Waffen-SS during the World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on September 21, 1944.-Early life:...
, commander of the SS Panzer Regiment 5 Wiking, took command. Heavy defensive battles around Modlin followed for the rest of the year, and in October, Mühlenkamp was replaced by Oberführer Karl Ullrich
Karl Ullrich
Karl Adolf Ullrich was an Oberführer in the Waffen-SS, who was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oakleaves during World War II.-Early life:...
. Ullrich would lead the division for the rest of the war.
In late December 1944, the German forces, including 9th SS Mountain Corps, defending Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
were encircled and the IV.SS-Panzer Corps was ordered south to join Hermann Balck's
Hermann Balck
Hermann Balck was a career German army officer who served in both World War I and World War II, rising to the rank of General der Panzertruppe. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds...
6th Army (Army Group Balck), which was mustering for a relief effort, codenamed Operation Konrad
Operation Konrad
Operation Konrad was the German-Hungarian effort to relieve the encircled garrison of Budapest during the Battle of Budapest in January 1945. The operation was divided into three parts:...
.
Budapest relief efforts
As a part of Operation Konrad I, the 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking was committed to action on 1 January 1945, fighting alongside the 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf. Near Tata, the advance columns of 5th SS attacked the Fourth Guards Tank Army. A heavy battle ensued, with the 5th SS and the 3rd SS saw many of the Red Army tanks destroyed. In three days their panzer spearheads had driven 45 kilometers over rugged terrain, over half the distance from the start point to Budapest. The Soviets maneuvered forces to block the advance, and they barely managed to halt the advance at BicskeBicske
Bicske is a town in Fejér county, Hungary.-History:According to a document dating from 1306, Botond’s sons János and Péter were granted the permission to levy toll in the locality of Bicske as well. Bicske was written Bykche, Biccke, Bykcze, Biczke, Bitske ...
, only 28 kilometres from Budapest. Gille pulled the 5th SS out of the line and moved it to the south of Esztergom
Esztergom
Esztergom , is a city in northern Hungary, 46 km north-west of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom county, on the right bank of the river Danube, which forms the border with Slovakia there....
, near the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
bend. The second relief attempt, to be known as Operation Konrad II, got under way on 7 January.
In atrocious conditions, the 5th SS advanced southwards towards Budapest. By 12 January, the Westland SS Panzergrenadier Regiment had reached Pilisszentkereszt
Pilisszentkereszt
- History :The territory of Pilisszentkereszt and the surrounding lands were inhabited in the prehistoric times, living in the nearby caves, but later they left the area. During the Roman times logging was common in the nearby woods....
, barely 20 kilometers from Buda
Buda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
. That morning the panzergrenadiers spotted the church spires and turrets of the distinctive Budapest skyline poking through the morning fog. Despite its success, they had overextended and were vulnerable to attack, unable to exploit its breakthrough and eventually ordered to pull back and regroup. Hitler was furious at the lack of progress, and called the operation 'utterly pointless'.
A third attempt, Operation Konrad III, launched in cooperation with the veteran III Panzer Corps took place 100 kilometers to the south. This attack resulted in a 15 mile wide gap in the Soviet lines and the destruction of the 135th Rifle Corps. Only the quick redeployment of more troops by the Soviets prevented a German breakthrough. By the end of January the 5th SS Wiking and the 3rd SS Totenkopf had suffered almost 8,000 casualties, including over 200 officers.
At the beginning of February, the besieged forces capitulated, and the 5th SS was ordered west to Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton is a freshwater lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the largest lake in Central Europe, and one of its foremost tourist destinations. As Hungary is landlocked , Lake Balaton is often affectionately called the "Hungarian Sea"...
where Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer
Obergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
Sepp Dietrich's 6th SS Panzer Army was preparing for another offensive.
Final battles
After the failure of Konrad III, the 5 SS Division Wiking began defensive operations, falling back into CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. West of Budapest in more defensive operations, moving into the area of Czechoslovakia. Gille's corps was too depleted to take part in Operation Frühlingserwachen
Operation Frühlingserwachen
Operation Frühlingserwachen was the last major German offensive launched during World War II. The offensive was launched in Hungary on the Eastern Front...
near Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton is a freshwater lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the largest lake in Central Europe, and one of its foremost tourist destinations. As Hungary is landlocked , Lake Balaton is often affectionately called the "Hungarian Sea"...
, and instead remained as a support to the 6th SS Panzer Army during the beginning of the Operation.
5 SS Division Wiking performed a holding operation on the left flank of the offensive, in the area between Velenczesee-Stuhlweissenberg. As Frühlingserwachen progressed, the division was heavily engaged preventing Soviet efforts to outflank the advancing German forces.
As the offensive stalled, the Soviets launched a major offensive, the Vienna Operation, on 15 March. Attacking the border between the 3 SS Division Totenkopf, stationed to the north of 5 SS Division Wiking, and the Hungarian 2nd Armoured Division, contact was soon lost between these formations. Acting quickly, Balck recommended moving the I.SS Panzer Corps north to plug the gap and prevent the encirclement of the IV.SS Panzer Corps. Despite this quick thinking, a Führer Order authorising this move was slow in coming, and when the divisions finally began moving, it was too late. On 22 March, the Soviet encirclement of the 3 SS Division Totenkopf and 5 SS Division Wiking was almost complete. Desperate, Balck threw the veteran 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen into the area to hold open the small corridor. In the battle to hold open the Berhida Corridor, the Hohenstaufen bled itself white, but Gille's corps managed to escape.
On 24 March, another Soviet attack threw the exhausted IV.SS Panzer Corps back towards Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, all contact was lost with the neighboring I.SS Panzer Corps and any semblance of an organised line of defence was gone. The 5 SS Division Wiking executed a fighting withdrawal into Czechoslovakia. By early May, they were within reach of the American forces, to whom the division officially surrendered near Fürstenfeld
Fürstenfeld
Fürstenfeld is a town and a district in southeastern Austria. It is situated within the Austrian federal state of StyriaAccording to the 2005 census, Fürstenfeld has 5,986 citizens within its communal area, the larger urban area of Fürstenfeld includes approximately 20% more citizens.Fürstenfeld...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
on 9 May.
War crimes
After the death of SS Colonel Hilmar WäckerleHilmar Wäckerle
Hilmar Wäckerle was a German soldier in both the German Imperial Army and the Waffen-SS and the first commandant of Dachau concentration camp.-War service:...
2 July 1941 near Lviv 36 Jews were shot
Members of the division's bakery column, led by Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer
Obersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the Nazi party that was used by the SS and also as a rank of the SA. Translated as “Senior Assault Leader”, the rank of Obersturmführer was first created in 1932 as the result of an expansion of the Sturmabteilung and the need for an additional rank in...
Braunnagel and Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer
Untersturmführer was a paramilitary rank of the German Schutzstaffel first created in July 1934. The rank can trace its origins to the older SA rank of Sturmführer which had existed since the founding of the SA in 1921...
Kochalty, assisted Einsatzgruppe A in rounding up Ukrainian Jews. Witnesses report that the Jewish victims were forced to run a gauntlet formed by soldiers who would beat them as they passed, and when they reached the end of the gauntlet, Einsatzgruppen officers murdered them and their bodies were pushed into a bomb crater. The German 1st Mountain Division
German 1st Mountain Division
The 1st Mountain Division was an elite formation of the German Wehrmacht during World War II.It was created on 9 April 1938 in Garmisch Partenkirchen from the Mountain Brigade which was itself formed on 1 June 1935...
is also suspected of being involved. Between 50 and 60 Jews were killed in this manner, as a part of the larger Einsatzgruppe operation which resulted in over 700 murders
In addition historian Eleonore Lappin from the Institute for the History of Jews in Austria has documented several cases of war crimes committed by members of the 5 SS Division Wiking in her work The Death Marches of Hungarian Jews Through Austria in the Spring of 1945.
On March 28, 1945, eighty Jews from evacuation column, though fit for the journey, were shot by three members of the Waffen SS division Wiking and five military policemen. On April 4, twenty members of another column that left Graz tried to escape near Eggenfeld, not far from Gratkorn. Soldiers from the 5 SS Division Wiking that were temporarily stationed there apprehended them in the forest near Mt. Eggenfeld and then herded them in a gully, where they were shot. On April 7 and 11, 1945 members of the division executed another eighteen escaped prisoners.
Josef Mengele
The notorious Dr. Josef MengeleJosef Mengele
Josef Rudolf Mengele , also known as the Angel of Death was a German SS officer and a physician in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. He earned doctorates in anthropology from Munich University and in medicine from Frankfurt University...
, served with the SS Division Wiking during its early campaigns. According to all accounts, he performed the normal duties of a combat medic
Medic
Medic is a general term for a person involved in medicine, especially emergency or first-response medicine, such as an emergency medical technician, paramedic, or a military member trained in battlefield medicine. Also the term is used toward a Nurse in pre-hospital care and/or emergency...
, even being awarded the Iron Cross
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
for saving two wounded men from a tank. After being wounded, Mengele was deemed unfit for combat and was absorbed into the SS Nazi concentration camp system, where he gained his infamy. Mengele was very proud of his Waffen SS service and his front-line decorations. As the true horrors of the concentration camp system came to light, his former comrades attempted to have his name removed from the division's roll of veterans.
Commanders
- SS-ObergruppenführerObergruppenführerObergruppenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the SA and until 1942 it was the highest SS rank inferior only to Reichsführer-SS...
Felix SteinerFelix SteinerFelix Martin Julius Steiner was a German Reichswehr and Waffen-SS officer who served in both World War I and World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
(1 December 1940 - 1 May 1943) - SS-GruppenführerGruppenführerGruppenführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party, first created in 1925 as a senior rank of the SA.-SS rank:...
Herbert Otto GilleHerbert Otto GilleHerbert Otto Gille was a German general, and as a winner of the Knight's Cross with Oakleaves, Swords and Diamonds and of the German Cross in Gold, the most highly decorated member of the Waffen SS during World War II...
(1 May 1943 - 6 August 1944) - SS-StandartenführerStandartenführerStandartenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in the so-called Nazi combat-organisations: SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK...
Eduard DeisenhoferEduard DeisenhoferDr. Eduard Deisenhofer was an officer and commander in the German Waffen-SS who served with several combat divisions on both the eastern and western fronts, earning several high grade distinctions, such as the Close Combat Clasp, and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
(6 August 1944 - 12 August 1944) - SS-StandartenführerStandartenführerStandartenführer was a Nazi Party paramilitary rank that was used in the so-called Nazi combat-organisations: SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK...
Johannes MühlenkampJohannes MühlenkampJohannes-Rudolf Mühlenkamp was a Standartenführer in the Waffen-SS during the World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on September 21, 1944.-Early life:...
(12 August 1944 - 9 October 1944) - SS-OberführerOberführerOberführer was an early paramilitary rank of the Nazi Party dating back to 1921. Translated as “Senior Leader”, an Oberführer was typically a Nazi Party member in charge of a group of paramilitary units in a particular geographical region...
Karl UllrichKarl UllrichKarl Adolf Ullrich was an Oberführer in the Waffen-SS, who was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oakleaves during World War II.-Early life:...
(9 October 1944 - 5 May 1945)
SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Wiking", February 1943
- SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment "Germania"
- SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment "Westland"
- SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment "Nordland" (Withdrawn 1943)
- SS-Panzer-Abteilung "Wiking"
- SS-Artillerie-Regiment "Wiking"
- SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung "Wiking"
- SS-Aufkärungs-Abteilung "Wiking"
- SS-Sturmgeschütz-Batterie "Wiking"
- SS-Flak-Abteilung "Wiking"
- SS-Pionier-Battalion "Wiking"
- SS-Nachrichten-Abteilung "Wiking"
- SS-Feldersatz-Battalion "Wiking"
- SS-Versorgungseinheiten "Wiking"
- Finnisches Freiwilligen-Battalion der Waffen-SS (Withdrawn 1943)
5. SS-Panzer-Division "Wiking", April 1944
- SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 9 "Germania"
- SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 10 "Westland"
- SS-Panzer-Regiment 5
- SS-Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment 5
- SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Bataillon "Narwa" (Withdrawn 1944)
- SS-Sturmbrigade "Wallonien" (Withdrawn 1944)
- SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 5
- SS-Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 5
- SS-Flak-Abteilung 5
- SS-Werfer-Abteilung 5
- SS-Panzer-Nachrichten-Abteilung 5
- SS-Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 5
- SS-Panzer-Pionier-Battalion 5
- SS-Instandsetzungs-Abteilung 5
- SS-Nachschub-Abteilung 5
- SS-Wirtschafts-Battalion 5
- SS-Sanitäts-Abteilung 5
- SS-Feldlazarett 5
- SS-Kriegsberichter-Zug 5
- SS-Feldgendarmerie-Trupp 5
- SS-Feldersatz-Battalion 5
Manpower strength
| June 1941 | 19,377 |
| Dec 1942 | 15,928 |
| Dec 1943 | 14,647 |
| June 1944 | 17,368 |
| Dec 1944 | 14,800 |
Popular Culture
5th SS Panzer Division Wiking appears in the Swedish vampire film Frostbite, where a sole survivior of a partly Swedish unit bring the vampiric curse to his homeland starting a series of events that eventually leads to the fall of NorrlandNorrland
Norrland is one of the three lands of Sweden , the northern part, consisting of nine provinces. The term Norrland is not used for any administrative purpose, but it is common in everyday language, e.g...
.
See also
- List of Knight's Cross Recipients 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking
- Panzer divisionPanzer DivisionA panzer division was an armored division in the army and air force branches of the Wehrmacht as well as the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany during World War II....
, Division (military)Division (military)A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
, Military unit, List of German divisions in WWII - Waffen-SSWaffen-SSThe Waffen-SS was a multi-ethnic and multi-national military force of the Third Reich. It constituted the armed wing of the Schutzstaffel or SS, an organ of the Nazi Party. The Waffen-SS saw action throughout World War II and grew from three regiments to over 38 divisions, and served alongside...
, SS - Final Battle, destruction, of SS Germania, 15-16 SEP 1939 (Polish language)
- Battle of JaworowBattle of JaworowThe Battle of Jaworów , was a World War II battle held from the 14th to the 16th of September 1939. The battle was fought by the Germans and elements of the Polish "Małopolska" Army which were trying to force their way to Lwów.-Before the Battle:Under orders from General Kazimierz Sosnkowski, the...
shorter English version under construction of the Polish--language article