The 16th Infantry Division of the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

was formed in 1934. On 26 August 1939 the division was mobilized for the

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

(1939). It participated in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

in August 1940. The division was then split, resulting in two independent units: The 16th Panzer Division and the 16th Motorized Infantry Division. Then later, from 1944 onward, combined with other non 16th elements, was known as the

116th Panzer Division The 116th ''Panzer'' Division, also known as the "Windhund (Greyhound) Division", was a German armoured formation that saw combat during World War II. History Formation The 116th Division was constituted in the Rhineland and Westphalia areas ...

16th Panzer Division

The 16th Panzer Division served as a reserve in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

during the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

campaign in 1941. It then participated in

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

with

Army Group South Army Group South () was the name of one of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland, Army Group South was led by Ge ...

, also in 1941. A ''kampfgruppe'' of 16th Panzer Division, led by Count Strachwitz, reached the outskirts of Stalingrad on 23 August 1942, brushing aside the sole Soviet defences, anti-aircraft guns manned by female factory workers (possibly the

1077th Anti-Aircraft Regiment The 1077th Anti-Aircraft Regiment () was a unit of the Stalingrad Corps Region of the Soviet Air Defense Forces that participated in the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942. Under the leadership of Colonel Raiynin, the regiment operated within the Stali ...

). The 16th Panzer Division was encircled and ultimately destroyed at

Stalingrad Volgograd,. geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area o ...

during the winter of 1942–43. It was rebuilt for a campaign in the west, fought in

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

and southern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

during the Italian Campaign in 1943 and returned to the Russian Front later in the year. Severely mauled near

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, it was withdrawn to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

for rehabilitation in 1944. The 16th Panzer Division returned to the east in 1945, where it surrendered to the Soviets and Americans in

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

Motorized Division

The 16th Motorized Infantry Division, nicknamed ''Windhund'' ("Greyhound"), participated in the

campaign in 1941 along with the 16th Panzer Division (see above). It took part in

with Army Group South later in the year. It advanced on the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

with elements coming to within 20 miles of

Astrakhan Astrakhan (, ) is the largest city and administrative centre of Astrakhan Oblast in southern Russia. The city lies on two banks of the Volga, in the upper part of the Volga Delta, on eleven islands of the Caspian Depression, from the Caspian Se ...

on 14 September 1942 – the most easterly point reached by any German unit during the war. It also participated in the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad ; see . rus, links=on, Сталинградская битва, r=Stalingradskaya bitva, p=stəlʲɪnˈɡratskəjə ˈbʲitvə. (17 July 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, ...

. The 16th Motorized Infantry Division participated in defensive operations after the Soviets broke up the front of the southern sector. In June 1943, it was upgraded to 16th Division. This upgraded formation was depleted in the continuous retreats and was transferred to France for rest and refitting.

116th Panzer Division

In March 1944, it was reorganized as the

(with the number changed since the 16th Panzer Division was already taken by its sibling), absorbing the 179th Reserve Panzer Division in the process. This new formation fought in the

Battle of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the N ...

and was almost destroyed in the

Falaise Gap The Falaise pocket or battle of the Falaise pocket (; 12–21 August 1944) was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. Allied forces formed a pocket around Falaise, Calvados, in which German Army Group B, cons ...

. It subsequently defended the

Siegfried Line The Siegfried Line, known in German as the ''Westwall (= western bulwark)'', was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line, it stretched more than from Kleve on the border with the ...

Aachen Aachen is the List of cities in North Rhine-Westphalia by population, 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, 27th-largest city of Germany, with around 261,000 inhabitants. Aachen is locat ...

in an understrength condition. The 116th Panzer Division was withdrawn for refitting and then recommitted, but was unable to hold the city of Aachen. It later participated in the

Battle of Hurtgen Forest A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force c ...

then in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive or Unternehmen Die Wacht am Rhein, Wacht am Rhein, was the last major German Offensive (military), offensive Military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western ...

, again sustaining heavy casualties. It was caught in the Wesel Pocket, but got across the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

, ultimately surrendering within the Ruhr Pocket in April, 1945.

16th Volksgrenadier Division

In parallel, a 16th Volksgrenadier Division was created in October 1944, which defended the

Upper Rhine Upper Rhine ( ; ; kilometres 167 to 529 of the Rhine) is the section of the Rhine between the Middle Bridge, Basel, Middle Bridge in Basel, Switzerland, and the Rhine knee in Bingen am Rhein, Bingen, Germany. It is surrounded by the Upper Rhine P ...

until March 1945, when it was forced to retreat deeper into Germany.

War crimes

The 16th Motorized Infantry Division has been implicated in the San Clemente di Caserta massacre,

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

, on 4 October 1943, when 25 civilians were murdered.

Organization

Structure of the division: * Headquarters * 16th Reconnaissance Battalion * 60th Infantry Regiment * 64th Infantry Regiment * 79th Infantry Regiment * 16th Field Replacement Battalion * 16th Engineer Battalion * 16th Artillery Regiment * 16th Anti-Tank Battalion * 16th Signal Battalion * 16th Divisional Supply Group

Commanding officers

16th Infantry Division

* Generalleutnant Gerhard Glokke (October 1934 – 12 October 1937) * Generalleutnant

Gotthard Heinrici Gotthard Fedor August Heinrici (; 25 December 1886 – 10 December 1971) was a German general during World War II. Heinrici is considered to have been the premier defensive expert of the ''Wehrmacht''. His final command was Army Group Vistula, fo ...

(12 October 1937 – 31 January 1940) * Generalmajor Heinrich Krampf (1 February 1940 – 31 May 1940) * Generalmajor

Hans-Valentin Hube Hans-Valentin Hube (29 October 1890 – 21 April 1944) was a German general during World War II who commanded armoured forces in the invasions of Poland, France and the Soviet Union. In the course of the war, Hube led the 16th Infantry Divi ...

(1 June 1940 – 6 August 1940)

16th Motorized Infantry Division

* Generalleutnant

Friedrich-Wilhelm von Chappuis __NOTOC__ Friedrich-Wilhelm von Chappuis (13 September 1886 – 27 August 1942) was a German general in the ''Wehrmacht'' during World War II who commanded the XXXVIII Army Corps (Wehrmacht), XXXVIII Army Corps. After World War I he fought in the ...

(12 August 1940 – 15 March 1941) * Generalleutnant

Sigfrid Henrici __NOTOC__ General Sigfrid Henrici (10 May 1889 – 8 November 1964) was a German general during World War II. During the invasion of Poland in 1939, Henrici was the commander of the 16th Infantry Division (motorised). He commanded XXXX P ...

(15 March 1941 – Mid August 1941) * Generalleutnant

Johannes Streich Johannes Streich (16 April 1891 – 20 August 1977) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the 5th Light Division during the early stages of the North African Campaign. Sacked for his poor performance during the S ...

(Mid August 1941 – Mid November 1941) * Generalleutnant Sigfrid Henrici (Mid November 1941 – 13 November 1942) * Generalmajor Gerhard Graf von Schwerin (13 November 1942 – 20 May 1943) * Oberst

Wilhelm Crisolli __NOTOC__ Wilhelm Crisolli (20 January 1895 – 12 September 1944) was a German general in the Wehrmacht in World War II who commanded several divisions. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. Crisolli was kil ...

(20 May 1943 – 27 June 1943)

16th Panzergrenadier Division

* General der Panzertruppen Gerhard Graf von Schwerin (27 June 1943 – January 1944) * Generalmajor Günther von Manteuffel (January 1944 – March 1944) * Generalmajor Karl Stingl (March 1944)

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:16th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht) 0*016 Military units and formations established in 1934 1934 establishments in Germany 1*16 Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 Military units and formations of Germany in Yugoslavia in World War II