The 13th Panzer Division () was a unit 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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, established in 1940. The division was organized under the code name Infantry Command IV (''Infanterieführer IV'') in October 1934. On October 15, 1935, following Germany's open rejection of terms of the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

restricting Germany's military, the division was designated the 13th Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division''). The division was motorized during the winter of 1936–1937, and was accordingly renamed the 13th Motorized Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division (motorisiert)'') on October 12, 1937. The 13th Motorized Infantry Division participated in the campaigns against Poland (1939) and western Europe (1940). Following the

Fall 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 German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Net ...

in June 1940, on October 11, 1940, the division was reorganized as the 13th Panzer Division (''13. Panzer-Division''). It 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 ...

(the invasion of the USSR) in 1941 and the advance 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 ...

in 1942. The division suffered heavy losses in the retreats of 1943 and 1944. It was partially refitted in

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, where it was encircled and destroyed by Red Army in the winter of 1944–1945. The formation was reformed as

Panzer Division Feldherrnhalle 2 Panzer Division Feldherrnhalle 2 was a late World War II German Wehrmacht panzer division. Commanded by Franz Bäke, it was formed in March 1945 of the remnants of other divisions and stationed with a home base at Wehrkreis XX. It was moved to ...

in the spring of 1945 and surrendered in May 1945. During the invasion of Poland, the troops of the division committed war crimes, including reprisal killings, using civilians as human shields, and destroying a medical column.

Operational history

The 13th Motorized Infantry Division participated in the invasion of Poland, as part of the southern thrust, and 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 ...

, advancing through Belgium towards

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

and on to

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

.Mitcham (2000), p. 112. The 13th Panzer Division was formed in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in October 1940 from the 13th Motorized Infantry Division and was immediately sent to

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 ...

but was not part of the Balkan campaign. It served in

as part of ''Panzer'' Group 1 (

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 ...

), and it contributed to the successful encirclements of the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

forces at

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, ...

. At the end of 1941, it was positioned at

Rostov Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...

; however, it was forced to retreat due to fierce Soviet counter-attacks.Mitcham (2000), p. 113. In 1942 and 1943, the division formed part of the

First Panzer Army The 1st Panzer Army () was a German tank army that was a large armoured formation of the Wehrmacht during World War II. When originally formed on 1 March 1940, the predecessor of the 1st Panzer Army was named Panzer Group Kleist (''Panzergruppe ...

(

Army Group A Army Group A () was the name of three distinct army groups of the ''German Army (1935–1945), Heer'', the ground forces of the ''Wehrmacht'', during World War II. The first Army Group A, previously known as "Army Group South", was active from Oct ...

); it was involved in the battles for the

oil fields and at the

Kuban Kuban ( Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; ) is a historical and geographical region in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated fr ...

Peninsula after 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, ...

. In the fall of 1943, it was withdrawn to Western Ukraine, where it fought defensive battles near the river

Dniepr The Dnieper or Dnepr ( ), also called Dnipro ( ), is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. Approximately long, with ...

. On 20 November, the 13th Panzer Division possessed 32 tanks (of which 15 were operational). The offensive of the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

pushed the Germans to their starting positions of June 1941. The 13th Panzer Division was attached to

Army Group South Ukraine Army Group South Ukraine (, ) was a joint German-Romanian group on the Eastern Front during World War II. Army Group South Ukraine was created on 5 April 1944 by renaming Army Group A. This army group saw action during the Jassy-Kishinev Operat ...

, which had orders to stop the Soviets from capturing the Romanian oil fields. The division was reformed in July 1944 and it received modern equipment, including the

Panther Panther may refer to: Large cats *Pantherinae, the cat subfamily that contains the genera ''Panthera'' and ''Neofelis'' **''Panthera'', the cat genus that contains tigers, lions, jaguars and leopards ***Jaguar (''Panthera onca''), found in Sout ...

G tank and the

Jagdpanzer IV The ''Jagdpanzer'' IV / Sd.Kfz. 162, was a German tank destroyer based on the Panzer IV chassis and built in three main variants. As one of the casemate-style turretless Jagdpanzer (tank destroyer, literally "hunting tank") designs, it was devel ...

. The Red Army offensive of August 1944 resulted in the deaths or imprisonment of most of the division. In the

Battle of Debrecen The Battle of Debrecen, called by the Red Army the ''Debrecen Offensive Operation'', was a battle taking place from 6 to 29 October 1944 on the Eastern Front in Hungary during World War II. The offensive was conducted by the 2nd Ukrainia ...

, the division helped to annihilate three Soviet

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was formally introduced March 1, 1800, when Napoleon ordered Gener ...

; however, it was encircled in Budapest at the end of 1944 and destroyed in January 1945.Mitcham (2000), p. 114. In the spring of 1945, the division was reformed under the name ''Feldherrnhalle 2''. The last engagements with the Soviets were fought on the Austro-Hungarian border. The division surrendered in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

in May 1945.

War crimes

During the invasion of

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 ...

, the division used civilians as human shields in the battle with the retreating Polish

Prusy Army The Prusy Army () was one of the Polish armies to fight during the Invasion of Poland in 1939. Created in the summer of 1939 as the main reserve of the Commander in Chief, it was commanded by Gen. Stefan Dąb-Biernacki. The word ''Prusy'' in the ...

and on September 8, 1939, attacked a medical column marked with the

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

signs near Odrzywół. A day later, soldiers from the division took part in the revenge killing of 11 civilians and two Polish priests including Dean Stanisław Klimecki in the nearby town of

Drzewica Drzewica is a town in Opoczno County, Łódź Voivodeship, Poland, with 3,778 inhabitants as of December 2021. From 1975 to 1998 the town was a part of Radom Voivodeship. Located on the Drzewiczka river (a tributary to the Pilica (river), Pilica) ...

in retaliation for their own military losses. Killings have also been reported in nearby settlements of

Gielniów Gielniów is a town in Przysucha County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Gielniów. It lies northern part of historic Lesser Poland, approximately west of Przysucha ...

, Kamienna Wola,

Klwów Klwów is a village in Przysucha County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Klwów. It lies in historic Lesser Poland, approximately north of Przysucha and south of Wa ...

, Ossa,

Przysucha Przysucha is a town in south-central Poland. Located in historic Lesser Poland, it is part of the Masovian Voivodeship, about southwest of Warsaw and west of Radom. It is the capital of Przysucha County, and the town 6,762 inhabitants (2004). ...

, Potok,

Rozwady Rozwady is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Gielniów, within Przysucha County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies approximately west of Przysucha and south of Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City ...

and Zarzęcin. lso in: /ref> On 24 May 1940 troops of the division executed roughly 50 wounded

Senegalese tirailleurs The Senegalese Tirailleurs () were a corps of Troupes coloniales, colonial infantry in the French Army. They were initially recruited from Saint-Louis, Senegal, the initial colonial capital city of French West Africa and subsequently throughout W ...

of the French '' 24e Regiment de Tirailleurs Sénégalais'' after capturing the village of Aubigny on the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France * Somme, Queensland, Australia * Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), ...

Commanders

The commanders of the division:Mitcham (2000), pp. 114–117. Infantry Command IV (''Infanterieführer IV''), 13th Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division''), and 13th Motorized Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division (motorisiert)'') *''Generalleutnant'' (1 October 1934 – 20 August 1939) 13th Motorized Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division (motorisiert)'') *''Generalleutnant'' Moritz von Faber du Faur (21 August 1939 – 6 September 1939) *''Generalleutnant'' Paul Otto (7 September – 31 October 1939) 13th Motorized Infantry Division (''13. Infanterie-Division (motorisiert)''), and 13th Panzer Division (''13. Panzer-Division'') *''Generalleutnant''

Friedrich-Wilhelm von Rothkirch und Panthen __NOTOC__ Friedrich-Wilhelm von Rothkirch und Panthen (16 February 1884 – 24 December 1953) was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. Rothkirch und Panthen retired from a ...

(1 November 1939 – 13 June 1941) 13th Panzer Division (''13. Panzer-Division'') *''Generalleutnant''

Walter Düvert Walter Düvert (2 October 1893 – 4 February 1972) was a general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Düvert retired from active duty on 30 November 1944. Awards and ...

(14 June 1941 – 28 November 1941) *''General der Panzertruppe''

Traugott Herr Traugott Herr (16 September 1890 – 13 April 1976) was a German general during World War II who commanded the 14th Army and the 10th Army of the Wehrmacht. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. ...

(29 November 1941 – 1 November 1942) *(acting) ''Oberst'' Walter Kuehn (1 October 1942 – 31 October 1942) *''Generalleutnant'' Hellmut von der Chevallerie (1 November 1942 – 30 November 1942) *''Generalmajor''

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 ...

(1 December 1942 – 14 May 1943) *''Generalleutnant'' Hellmut von der Chevallerie (15 May 1943 – 31 August 1943) *''Generalleutnant'' Eduard Hauser (1 September 1943 – 22 December 1943) *''Generalleutnant'' Hans Mikosch (23 December 1943 – 17 May 1944) *''Oberst'' Friedrich-Erdmann von Hake (18 May 1944 – 24 May 1944) *''Generalleutnant'' Hans Tröger (25 May 1944 – 8 September 1944) *''Generalmajor'' Gerhard Schmidhuber (9 September 1944 – 11 February 1945) *''Oberstleutnant d.R.'' Wilhelm Schöning (12 February 1945 – )

Organisation

The organisation of the division in October 1944: *''Panzer-Regiment 4'' *''Panzer-Grenadier-Regiment 66'' *''Panzer-Grenadier-Regiment 93'' *''Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment 13'' *''Feldersatz-Battalion 13'' *''Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 13'' *''Heeres-Flak-Artillerie-Abteilung 271'' *''Panzerjäger-Abteilung 13'' *''Panzer-Pionier-Battalion 4'' *''Panzer-Nachrichten-Abteilung 13'' *''Panzer-Versorgungstruppen 13''

References

Bibliography