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Army Group North
Army Group North (german: Heeresgruppe Nord) was a German strategic formation, commanding a grouping of field armies during World War II. The German Army Group was subordinated to the ''Oberkommando des Heeres'' (OKH), the German army high command, and coordinated the operations of attached separate army corps, reserve formations, rear services and logistics, including the Army Group North Rear Area. Operational history The Army Group North was created on the 2 September 1939 by reorganization of the 2nd Army Headquarters. Commander in Chief as of 27 August 1939 was Field Marshal Fedor von Bock. Invasion of Poland The first employment of Army Group North was in the invasion of Poland of 1939, where in September it controlled: * 3rd Army * 4th Army * a reserve of four divisions ** 10th Panzer Division ** 73rd Infantry Division ** 206th Infantry Division ** 208th Infantry Division. The Army Group was commanded by Fedor von Bock for the operation. After the end of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fedor Von Bock
Moritz Albrecht Franz Friedrich Fedor von Bock (3 December 1880 – 4 May 1945) was a German who served in the German Army during the Second World War. Bock served as the commander of Army Group North during the Invasion of Poland in 1939, commander of Army Group B during the Invasion of France in 1940, and later as the commander of Army Group Center during the attack on the Soviet Union in 1941; his final command was that of Army Group South in 1942. Bock commanded Operation Typhoon, the ultimately failed attempt to capture Moscow during the autumn and winter of 1941. The Wehrmacht offensive was slowed by stiff Soviet resistance around Mozhaisk, and also by the , the season of rain and mud in Central Russia. The Soviet counteroffensive soon drove the German army into retreat, and Bock was subsequently relieved of command by Adolf Hitler. A monarchist, Bock was not heavily involved in politics. He did not sympathize with plots to overthrow Adolf Hitler, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
3rd Army (Wehrmacht)
The 3rd Army (german: 3. Armee) was a German field army that fought during World War II. Combat Chronicle The 3rd Army was activated on September 1, 1939, the day German forces invaded Poland. It was put under the command of General der Artillerie Georg von Küchler. Küchler later became commander of Army Group North in 1942 and also later became Generalfeldmarschall. At the start of the Polish Campaign the 3rd Army was part of Generaloberst Feodor von Bock's Army Group North, together with Generaloberst Günther von Kluge's 4th Army. The 4th Army was to capture the Polish Corridor and enter East Prussia, thus re-linking the two areas. The Third Army was to split into two and attack ''from'' East Prussia. One part of the 3rd Army was to advance southwards into Modlin, cross near the confluence of the Vistula and Bug rivers and take part in the attack on Warsaw. The other part of the 3rd Army was to attack near Narew, attack along the Bug River, and make a driv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Army Group Centre
Army Group Centre (german: Heeresgruppe Mitte) was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created on 22 June 1941, as one of three German Army formations assigned to the invasion of the Soviet Union (Operation Barbarossa). On 25 January 1945, after it was encircled in the Königsberg pocket, Army Group Centre was renamed Army Group North (), and Army Group A () became Army Group Centre. The latter formation retained its name until the end of the war in Europe on 11 May after VE Day. Formation The commander in chief on the formation of the Army Group Centre (22 June 1941) was Fedor von Bock. Order of battle at formation Campaign and operational history Operation Barbarossa On 22 June 1941, Nazi Germany and its Axis allies launched their surprise offensive into the Soviet Union. Their armies, totaling over three million men, were to advance in three geographical dir ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flanking Maneuver
In military tactics, a flanking maneuver is a movement of an armed force around an enemy force's side, or flank, to achieve an advantageous position over it. Flanking is useful because a force's fighting strength is typically concentrated in its front, therefore, to circumvent an opposing force's front and attack its flank is to concentrate one's own offense in the area where the enemy is least able to concentrate defense. Flanking can also occur at the operational and strategic levels of warfare. Tactical flanking The flanking maneuver is a basic military tactic with several variations. Flanking an enemy entails attacking from one or more sides, at an angle to the enemy's direction of engagement. There are three standard flanking maneuvers. The first maneuver is the ambush, where a unit performs a surprise attack from a concealed position. Units friendly to the ambushing unit may be hidden to the sides of the ambush site to surround the enemy, but care must be taken i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baltic Republics
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, and the OECD. The three sovereign states on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea are sometimes referred to as the "Baltic nations", less often and in historical circumstances also as the "Baltic republics", the "Baltic lands", or simply the Baltics. All three Baltic countries are classified as high-income economies by the World Bank and maintain a very high Human Development Index. The three governments engage in intergovernmental and parliamentary cooperation. There is also frequent cooperation in foreign and security policy, defence, energy, and transportation. The term "Baltic states" ("countries", "nations", or similar) cannot be used unambiguously in the context of cultural areas, national identity, or language. While the majority of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leningrad
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), is the second-largest city in Russia. It is situated on the Neva River, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea, with a population of roughly 5.4 million residents. Saint Petersburg is the fourth-most populous city in Europe after Istanbul, Moscow and London, the most populous city on the Baltic Sea, and the world's northernmost city of more than 1 million residents. As Russia's Imperial capital, and a historically strategic port, it is governed as a federal city. The city was founded by Tsar Peter the Great on 27 May 1703 on the site of a captured Swedish fortress, and was named after apostle Saint Peter. In Russia, Saint Petersburg is historically and culturally associated with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Prussia
East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label= Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's Free State of Prussia, until 1945. Its capital city was Königsberg (present-day Kaliningrad). East Prussia was the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast. The bulk of the ancestral lands of the Baltic Old Prussians were enclosed within East Prussia. During the 13th century, the native Prussians were conquered by the crusading Teutonic Knights. After the conquest the indigenous Balts were gradually converted to Christianity. Because of Germanization and colonisation over the following centuries, Germans became the dominant ethnic group, while Masurians and Lithuanians formed minorities. From the 13th century, East Prussia was part of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after Frederick Barbarossa ("red beard"), a 12th-century Holy Roman emperor and German king, put into action Nazi Germany's ideological goal of conquering the western Soviet Union to repopulate it with Germans. The German aimed to use some of the conquered people as forced labour for the Axis war effort while acquiring the oil reserves of the Caucasus as well as the agricultural resources of various Soviet territories. Their ultimate goal was to create more (living space) for Germany, and the eventual extermination of the indigenous Slavic peoples by mass deportation to Siberia, Germanisation, enslavement, and genocide. In the two years leading up to the invasion, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed political and economic pacts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
6th Army (Wehrmacht)
The 6th Army was a field army unit of the German Wehrmacht during World War II (1939–1945). It was widely remembered for being the most highly decorated German army unit until its defeat by the Red Army at the Battle of Stalingrad in the winter of 1942–1943. It also acquired a reputation for the war crimes (such as the massacre of more than 30,000 Jews at Babi Yar in September 1941) that it committed under the command of Field Marshal Walther von Reichenau during Operation Barbarossa. Western campaigns Originally numbered as the 10th Army, this Army formed on 10 October 1939 with General Walther von Reichenau in command. Its primary mission was to guard the western defenses of Germany against British and French attacks during the Polish campaign. During the invasion of the Low Countries the 6th Army saw active service linking up with paratroopers and destroying fortifications at Eben Emael, Liège, and Namur during the Battle of Belgium. The 6th Army was then involved in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Army Group B
Army Group B (German: ') was the title of three German Army Groups that saw action during World War II. Operational history Army Group B first took part in the Battle of France in 1940 in Belgium and the Netherlands. The second formation of Army Group B was established when Army Group South was divided for the summer offensive of 1942 on the Eastern Front. Army Group B was given the task of protecting the northern flank of Army Group A, and included the 6th Army during the Battle of Stalingrad. In February 1943, Army Group B and Army Group Don were combined to create a new Army Group South. A new Army Group B was formed in northern Italy under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in July 1943. Its task was to secure Northern Italy after the overthrow of Mussolini and to disarm the Italian Army there as part of Operation Achse. After the stabilisation of the front on the Winter Line south of Rome by Kesselring's Army Group C, and the creation of the Salo Republic in Northern It ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
208th Infantry Division (Germany)
The 208th Infantry Division, or 208.''Infanterie-Division'' in German, was a large military unit that served during World War II. Like most German infantry divisions, the bulk of its troops were foot-mobile infantry supported by horse-drawn artillery. The 208th Infantry Division was formed on 26 August 1939. it served in the invasion of Poland of 1939 as a reserve division of Army Group North and was commanded by General Moritz Andreas. During '' Fall Gelb'' it was a reserve division allocated to 18th Army and was mainly active in the occupation of northern Belgium. From January 1942 it fought continuously on the Eastern Front. Commanding officers *Generalleutnant Moritz Andreas, (1 September 1939 – 13 December 1941) * General der Infanterie Hans-Karl von Scheele, (13 December 1941 – 1 February 1943) *Generalleutnant Karl-Wilhelm von Schlieben, (1 February 1943 – ? April 1943) *Generalmajor Georg Zwade, (? April 1943 – 22 June 1943) *Generalleutnant Heinz Piekenbrock ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
206th Infantry Division (Germany)
The German 206th Infantry Division (German designation ''206. Infanterie-Division'', nickname ''Pique As'', 'Ace of spades', after the divisional emblem), was a military unit that served during World War II. Like most German infantry units it had no motorization, and relied on leg and horse mobility. History The 206th Infantry Division was raised on 17 August 1939 in Insterburg, East Prussia. It served during the invasion of Poland in 1939 as a reserve division for Army Group North. The 206th Infantry Division participated in Operation Typhoon as part of the XXIII Corps under the Ninth Army. At this time, the division was under the command of Lieutenant General Hugo Höfl. At the time of the Soviet Rzhev-Vyazma strategic offensive operation (8 January – 20 April 1942), Operation Mars, the division now led by Lieutenant General Alfons Hitter was again serving in XXIII Corps under the Ninth Army in the Molodoi Tud sector of the Rzhev salient. Here it came under attack by the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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