Encyclopedia
SA-Standarte Feldherrnhalle- - Luftlande-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- - Gruppe Eberhardt
- - 60.Infanterie-Division
- - 271.Grenadier-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
60.Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle- -13.Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle
Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 1- -Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 2
Panzerkorps FeldherrnhalleThe
Panzerkorps Feldherrnhalle was a
German panzer corps formed mostly of
SA recruits. The Panzerkorps
Feldherrnhalle fought on the Eastern Front during the
Second World War.
SA Standarte Feldherrnhalle - Concept
While the élite formations of the
Waffen SS,
Luftwaffe and Heer are well studied, the formations titled
Feldherrnhalle, although just as élite in status and combat achievements, remain relatively unknown.
The
Feldherrnhalle units were the combat formations which drew manpower from the
SA, tracing their history back to the days of the 1923 Beer Hall Putsch. The
Feldherrnhalle was the monument in
Munich where the attempted coup was crushed, and the units which bore the title were considered the élite formations of the SA.
The initial unit, the
SA-Standarte Feldherrnhalle was formed after the death of
Ernst Röhm on
Night of the Long Knives, when the SA's position as the major paramilitary formation of the
NSDAP was taken over by the
SS. It was made up of the most promising SA men drawn from SA units all over Germany. The Standarte was a not a combat unit, providing guard units for SA government offices, with headquarters in
Berlin and units stationed in Berlin,
Hannover, Hattingen, Krefeld,
Munich,
Ruhr,
Stettin and
Stuttgart.
In March 1938, men from the Standarte were among the first units which marched into
Austria during the
Anschluss. In September 1938, the
Feldherrnhalle was placed under the control of the
Wehrmacht, and the cadre of the unit was transferred to the
Luftwaffe, forming the
Luftlande-Regiment Feldherrnhalle, a part of the 7.Flieger-Division. The remainder of the regiment was transferred to the Heer, forming the
120.Infanterie-Regiment of the 60.Infanterie Division and
271.Infanterie-Regiment of the 93.Infanterie-Division.
Early Campaigns
60.Infanterie-Division
The cadre for the 60.Infanterie-Division came from
Gruppe Eberhardt . The Gruppe was a unit of
Ordnungspolizei and SA men, commanded by Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt, and SA commander. During the Polish September Campaign, Gruppe Eberhardt was responsible for the
capture of the Danzig Post Office, defended by the Polish postal workers commanded by a reserve officer. After fierce fighting, the Polish militia retreated to the cellar, however the SA men could not capture the building. The gruppe finally defeated the Poles and secured the building by forcing the Danzig
Fire Brigade to flood the cellar of the building with gasoline. When the militia surrendered, they were subjected to several days of continuous torture and humiliation and then executed.
After the Polish campaign, Gruppe Eberhardt was dissolved and the SA men were used to form the 60.Infanterie-Division , the majority of SA men joining the 120.Infanterie-Regiment . The division was not ready for the campaign in the West, and formed a part of the OKH Reserve during this period, being based in Lorraine .
In January 1941, the division was moved to
Romania. In April, the 60th took part in
Operation Marita, the invasion of the Balkans and Greece. The SA formation acquitted itself well in the fighting in
Serbia, and at the end of the campaign was moved back into Romania to join Army Group South, which was preparing for
Operation Barbarossa. On June 1941, the division crossed the Soviet border and began the advance towards
Crimea and eventually
Rostov on Don. During the
blitzkrieg campaign, the division again performed superbly, advancing as a part of
Panzergruppe 1. By the end of the campaign, the division had taken part in the capture of Rostov-on-Don before the Army Group was ordered to abandon the city and form defensive lines for the winter. Over the winter of 1941-1942 the division managed to hold its position despite terrible conditions and ceaseless Soviet counterattacks.
In 1942, the division took part in Fall Blau, the advance through the Don Basin towards
Stalingrad. As a part of
Generaloberst Paulus' 6.Armee, the division was involved in heavy fighting during the
Battle of Stalingrad. When Soviet offensives encircled Paulus' Army, the division continued resisting the Soviets until the final collapse of the German defence in February 1943.
The remnants of the division which had been on leave or convalescing were ordered to the south of France to begin reforming the division, to be upgraded as a panzergrenadier division and redesignated
60.Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle.
271.Infanterie-Regiment
The 271st Regiment fought with distinction during the
Battle of France, taking part in the assaults on the
Maginot Line and advancing south, crossing the
Seille River and the
Meurthe River in
Alsace-Lorraine. The regiment ended the campaign on the
Moselle River between
Nancy and
Epinal, advancing south where it ended near the region of the River Moselle between Nancy and Epinal on June 25th, 1940. The 93.Infanterie was stationed on the French Coast after the capitulation of France.
In March 1941, the regiment, along with the rest of the 93.Infanterie, was ordered to the East to take part in
Operation Barbarossa. The division was to form a part of Army Group North, tasked with advancing on
Leningrad. After the launch of the offensive on 22 June 1941, the regiment distinguished itself in heavy fighting during the advance.
At the end of the campaign, the division was stationed near Leningrad, and over the winter of 1941-1942 saw heavy fighting against fierce
Soviet counterattacks.
The division remained in combat near Leningrad throughout 1942. In August, the regiment was granted the title
Feldherrnhalle in honour of the outstanding performance it had shown during the battles in France and Russia. The regiment was redesignated
271.Grenadier-Regiment Feldherrnhalle. The regiment remained in action on the Northern front, fighting at the siege of
Cholm and the
Battle of Velikiye Luki. In the summer of 1943, the
Feldherrnhalle regiment was withdrawn from the division and sent back to Southern France to form join the remnants of the 120.Infanterie-Regiment which were in the process of reforming the 60.Infanterie-Division as the
60.Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle.
Vitebsk - Narva - Byelorussia
The new division spent the rest of the year forming and training in Southern France. In November, all the divisional units had their numbers removed and were granted the title
Feldherrnhalle. The 271.Grenaider-Regiment
Feldherrnhalle formed the Grenadier-Regiment
Feldherrnhalle and the reformed 120.Grenadier-Regiment
Feldherrnhalle became Füsilier-Regiment
Feldherrnhalle. In December, the division was ordered back to the eastern front, to join the 3.Panzer-Armee which was involved in heavy fighting near
Vitebsk in
Byelorussia. Arriving in early January 1944, the division fought exceptionally during the fierce battles around the city.
After executing a fighting withdrawal through Byelorussia, the division was transferred to the
Narva front, where SS-Obergruppenführer
Steiner's III. SS-Panzerkorps was involved in heavy fighting for the bridgehead over the Narva river. The division remained in combat on the Narva front, distinguishing itself in what would be known as the Battle of the European SS.
In May, the division was ordered south to bolster the forces of Army Group Centre, engaged near
Mogilev and Orscha. With the launch of the Soviet
Operation Bagration in June 1944, the division was pushed back towards
Minsk, where it was encircled. In late July, after heavy resistance and several failed breakout attempts, the division was annihilated near the city.
Reformation - Debrecen - Hungary
Again, all members of the division who had been absent were ordered to begin reforming, this time near Warthelager. The reforming began in September, 1944. Concurrently, the formation of several new
Feldherrnhalle formations began.
106.Panzer-Brigade Feldherrnhalle
The 106.Panzer-Brigade
Feldherrnhalle was formed from a cadre of SA men. The 106th boasted a strong consignment of the latest
Panther ausf G tanks, a fully mechanised Panzergrenadier battalion and a company of the brand new
Jagdpanzer IV/70s. The brigade was sent into action in Alsace-Lorraine against the American forces of General
Patton's US Third Army. The 106th fought well during the withdrawal into Germany. On 6 April 1945, the remnants of the brigade were assigned to the ad-hoc Panzer-Division
Clauswitz. The brigade's survivors surrendered to the Americans on 8 May, 1945.
110.Panzer-Brigade Feldherrnhalle
The 110.Panzer-Brigade
Feldherrnhalle was the second
Feldherrnhalle panzer brigade. Formed from a cadre of SA men, the 110th was strongly equipped with a battalion of Panthers and a battalion of mechanised infantry. The 110th was sent to Romania, where it supported the forces of Army Group South Ukraine during the withdrawal into Hungary. The brigade, along with the reformed Panzergrenadier-Division
Feldherrnhalle took part in the
Battle of Debrecen in October 1944, acquitting itself well. During these battles, the 110th fought alongside the
13.Panzer-Division. In November 1944, the brigade was disbanded and absorbed into the 13.Panzer. As a result, the 13.Panzer was renamed
13.Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle.
Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle
The Panzergrenadier-Division
Feldherrnhalle was only partially formed by September 1944, when it was ordered to the Front in Hungary to strengthen Armeegruppe
Fretter-Pico, which was threatening to collapse in the face of a major soviet offensive near
Oradea and Debrecen. The division, only the size of a brigade, was committed to battle in mid October, ordered to hold a major crossing point on the
Tisza River. When the Soviet spearhead threatened to encircle several panzer divisions near Debrecen, the division was thrown into battle in an ultimately successful attempt to cut off and annihilate the Soviet units. During the following battle, the division fought alongside both the 13.Panzer-Division
Feldherrnhalle and
schwere-Panzer-Abteilung 503 for the first time.
After enjoying major success of the
Battle of Debrecen, the division fought in co-operation with schwere-Panzer-Abteilung 503 and was soon involved in the withdrawal towards
Budapest. The Panzergrenadier Division, sPzAbt 503 and the 13.Panzer
Feldherrnhalle, by now exhausted and dangerously understrength, were pushed back into the city. On 21 December 1944, the sPzAbt 503 was renamed schwere-Panzer-Abteilung
Feldherrnhalle.
On December 31, the three formations were encircled along with IX.SS-Gebirgskorps. For the next month, the
Feldherrnhalle units desperately held out for rescue. After the failure of Operation Konrad, Armeegruppe
Balck's rescue attempts, the pocket collapsed and the divisions were destroyed on 12 February, 1945. Among those to escape the pocket was a group of several hundred
Feldherrnhalle men.
Panzerkorps Feldherrnhalle
After the annihilation of three
Feldherrnhalle units in Budapest, plans were made to not only reform the three units, but also for the creation of a Panzer Corps, along the lines of the
Panzerkorps Großdeutschland or the Fallschirm-Panzerkorps
Hermann Göring.
The survivors of the encirclement, along with large numbers of new SA recruits, were formed into three new units. The remnants of the Panzergrenadier-Division
Feldherrnhalle became
Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 1. Although not a full strength division, the unit was equipped with the latest equipment and well trained.
The 13.Panzer-Division
Feldherrnhalle became
Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 2. This division was virtually identical to the
Feldherrnhalle 1. It was commanded by the ace panzer commander
Generalmajor Dr.
Franz Bäke.
The remnants of the sPzAbt
Feldherrnhalle were reformed, although the detachment never reached its former strength.
The corps was activated at the end of February, with most of the combat units being sent into action at the end of March 1945.
The Panzerkorps executed a fighting withdrawal towards
Vienna and then into southern
Austria. Over the last months of the war, the corps saw heavy fighting and acquitted itself well. By the beginning of May 1945, the shattered remnants of the corps broke up and attempted to reach the American lines, where they surrendered on 9 May 1945.
Commanders
- Generalleutnant Otto Kohlermann
- Generalmajor Friedrich-Carl von Steinkeller
- Generalmajor Günther Pape
- General der Panzertruppen Ulrich von Kleemann
Orders of Battle
60.Panzergrenadier-Division Feldherrnhalle - October 1944 - Battle of Debrecen
- Division Stab'
- Füsilier-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Grenadier-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Panzer-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle
- Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle
- Artillerie Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- FlaK-Bataillon Feldherrnhalle
- Pionier-Bataillon Feldherrnhalle
- Nachtrichen-Kompanie Feldherrnhalle
Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 1 - February 1945, Budapest
- Division Stab
- Panzer-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Panzer-Battalion
- Panzergrenadier-Battalion
- schwere-Panzer-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle
- Panzergrenadier-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Panzerjäger-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle
- Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung Feldherrnhalle
- Pionier-Bataillon Feldherrnhalle
- Artillerie-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Nachtrichen-Kompanie Feldherrnhalle
Panzerkorps Feldherrnhalle - March 1945, Hungary
...
- 404.Artillerie-Regiment
- 404.Panzer-Pionier-Bataillon
- 44.Panzer-Nachtrichten-Bataillon
- Panzer-Feldersatz-Regiment Feldherrnhalle
- Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 1
- Panzer-Division Feldherrnhalle 2
References
- Sanchez, Alfonso Escuadra - Feldherrnhalle: Forgotten Elite
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