The 9th Panzer Division was a

panzer division A Panzer division was one of the Division (military)#Armored division, armored (tank) divisions in the German Army (1935–1945), army of Nazi Germany during World War II. Panzer divisions were the key element of German success in the Blitzkrieg, ...

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. It came into existence after 4th Light Division was reorganized in January 1940. The division was headquartered 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 the German

military district Military districts (also called military regions) are formations of a state's armed forces (often of the Army) which are responsible for a certain area of territory. They are often more responsible for administrative than operational matters ...

Wehrkreis XVII. Originally raised from Austrian forces annexed into Germany before the war, the 9th Panzer Division was part of most of the German Army's early

Blitzkrieg ''Blitzkrieg'(Lightning/Flash Warfare)'' is a word used to describe a combined arms surprise attack, using a rapid, overwhelming force concentration that may consist of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations, together with ...

attacks into western Europe. Sweeping east, the division was then a component of

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 German attack on the

Soviet Union 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 ...

; it was badly mauled at the

Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk, also called the Battle of the Kursk Salient, was a major World War II Eastern Front battle between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in southwestern Russia during the summer of 1943, resulting in ...

. Returning to France to rebuild in 1944, the division was rushed to counter

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The ope ...

. It was destroyed several successive times by British and American forces as the German Army was pushed back across Europe. The division suffered massive casualties in armor and personnel until it finally collapsed in March 1945. The division's few survivors were pushed into the Ruhr Pocket where they surrendered to the Allies at the end of the war.

Organization

In 1942, the division was organized around three regiments. Its

tanks A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; t ...

were organized into the 33rd Panzer Regiment, which was supported by two regiments of

panzergrenadier (), abbreviated as ''PzG'' (WWII) or ''PzGren'' (modern), meaning ''Armoured fighting vehicle, "Armour"-ed fighting vehicle "Grenadier"'', is the German language, German term for the military doctrine of mechanized infantry units in armoured fo ...

s, or

mechanized infantry Mechanized infantry are infantry units equipped with Armoured personnel carrier, armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport and combat (see also armoured corps). As defined by the United States Army, me ...

. These were the 10th Panzer Grenadier Regiment and the 11th Panzer Grenadier Regiment. Also assigned to the division were the 102nd Panzer Artillery Regiment, the 9th Motorcycle Battalion, the 9th Panzer Reconnaissance Battalion, the 50th Panzer Jager Battalion, the 86th Panzer Pionier Battalion, the 81st Panzer Signal Battalion, the 287th Army Anti-Aircraft Battalion, and the 60th Panzer Divisional Supply Troops.Mitcham 2007, p. 25.

History

Following the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, ), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into Nazi Germany on 12 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a "German Question, Greater Germany") arose after t ...

annexation of

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 1938, the 4th Light Division was formed in

after converting a mobile division of the ''Bundesheer'' (the Austrian Army) in April of that year. It initially consisted of the 33rd Panzer Battalion, the 102nd Motorized Artillery Regiment, and the 10th and 11th Motorized Cavalry Regiments.Mitcham 2006, p. 93. In 1939, it fought in 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 ...

, on the right flank of

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 ...

, attacking out of

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

, pushing over the

San River The San (; ''Sian''; ) is a river in southeastern Poland and western Ukraine. It is a tributary of the river Vistula. With a length of , the San is the 6th-longest Polish river. It has a basin area of 16,877 km2, of which 14,426 k ...

on 10 September and capturing

Krakowiec Krakovets (, , also found on American immigration documents as and ) is a rural settlement in Yavoriv Raion, Lviv Oblast, in western Ukraine. It lies on the Polish-Ukrainian border, roughly halfway between Lviv in Ukraine and Kraków in Poland o ...

on 12 September. It then moved to establish a

bridgehead In military strategy, a bridgehead (or bridge-head) is the strategically important area of ground around the end of a bridge or other place of possible crossing over a body of water which at time of conflict is sought to be defended or taken over ...

over the

Bug River The Bug or Western Bug is a major river in Central Europe that flows through Belarus (border), Poland, and Ukraine, with a total length of .Krylow on 14 September. The division then turned west, blocking the escape of several units of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

. In the process the division took tens of thousands of prisoners. On 24 October, the division departed Salzberg, returning to Vienna by train. That winter, it was converted to the 9th Panzer Division and formally redesignated on 3 January 1940. It consisted of the 9th Rifle Brigade, the 33rd Panzer Battalion, the 102nd Panzer Artillery Regiment, and several other divisional units.

Early campaigns

Following a further reorganization increasing its strength to two tank battalions and three motorised infantry regiments, the division was sent to the Western Front to participate in the

Battle of the Netherlands The German invasion of the Netherlands (), otherwise known as the Battle of the Netherlands (), was a military campaign, part of Battle of France, Case Yellow (), the Nazi German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Neth ...

starting on 10 May 1940. Part of the 18th Army, which defeated The

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

in a grueling five days, 9th Panzer Division played an essential role in the German strategy. The division was the only German mechanized force allocated to 18th Army and was intended primarily to link up with airborne forces landed near

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

and

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. On 12 May, the division was launched in the south of The Netherlands to exploit a breakthrough by German infantry divisions, quickly advancing to the

Moerdijk Moerdijk () is a municipality and a town in the South of the Netherlands, in the province of North Brabant. History The municipality of Moerdijk was founded in 1997 following the merger of the municipalities of Fijnaart en Heijningen, Klunde ...

bridges, which had been captured by Student's paratroopers. Before that, near Breda, the division split up, sending one battalion north over the Moerdijk bridges to try and enter the Dutch

National Redoubt A national redoubt or national fortress is an area to which the (remnant) military forces of a nation can be withdrawn if the main battle has been lost or even earlier if defeat is considered inevitable. Typically, a region is chosen with a geogra ...

, Fortress Holland. On 13 May, however, during its first actual fighting of the campaign, the battalion suffered considerable losses in a failed assault on the centre of

Dordrecht Dordrecht (), historically known in English as Dordt (still colloquially used in Dutch, ) or Dort, is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Western Netherlands, lo ...

. On 14 May, the battalion stood ready to assault Rotterdam, but the Dutch surrendered the same day after a

carpet bombing Carpet bombing, also known as saturation bombing, is a large area bombardment done in a progressive manner to inflict damage in every part of a selected area of land. The phrase evokes the image of explosions completely covering an area, in t ...

of that city's civilian centre by the

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

. The other part of the division went south, after the retreating French 7th Army and the Belgian Army, towards

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

and

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

.Mitcham 2006, p. 94. Parts of 9th Panzer Division, along with SS ''Leibstandarte'', were tasked by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

to conduct an improvised triumphal march through the streets of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

to underscore the German victory over the Netherlands. Following the evacuation of Dunkirk, 9th Panzer Division was assigned to Panzer Group Guderian and 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 ...

. During this stage it was under the command of XXXIX Motorized Corps. It pushed through the Weygand Line towards Paris, crossing the

Oise River The Oise ( ; ) is a river of Belgium and France, flowing for from its source in the Belgian province of Hainaut, south of Chimay. It crosses the border with France after about , and flows into the Seine at Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, a north-wes ...

Aisne River The Aisne ( , , ; Picard: ''Ainne'') is a river in northeastern France. It is a left tributary of the Oise. It gave its name to the French department of Aisne. It was known in the Roman period as Axona. The river rises in the forest of A ...

Marne River The Marne (; ) is a river in France, an eastern tributary of the Seine in the area east and southeast of Paris. It is long. The river gave its name to the departments of France, departments of Haute-Marne, Marne (department), Marne, Seine-et-Ma ...

and

Loire River The Loire ( , , ; ; ; ; ) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône. It rises in the so ...

, taking thousands of prisoners in the process. By the time of the French surrender, the 9th Panzer Division was in

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 ...

. During the Western campaign, the division was credited with covering more ground than any other German division. The division returned to Vienna in July 1940. There, it continued to reorganize and grow, adopting the organization that it kept for most of the war with one tank regiment, two panzergrenadier regiments and one artillery regiment. In September, it was sent to Poland with the XL Panzer Corps. In the spring of 1941, 9th Panzer Division participated in the Balkans Campaign. It was shipped 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 ...

and was made the

armored spearhead An armoured spearhead (American English: armored spearhead) is a formation of armoured fighting vehicles, mostly tanks, that form the front of an offensive thrust during a battle. The idea is to concentrate as much firepower into a small front as ...

of the 12th Army. It managed some blitzkrieg tactics through 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 ...

, separating the

Greek Army The Hellenic Army (, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the land force of Greece. The term '' Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the largest of the three branches of the Hellenic Armed F ...

from the

Royal Yugoslav Army The Yugoslav Army ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugoslovenska vojska, JV, Југословенска војска, ЈВ), commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the principal Army, ground force of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. It existed from the establishment of ...

, then attacking into

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

itself. As part of the 12th Army, the 9th Panzer Division pushed back the main

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

, Greek and

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...

forces Once these armies were in retreat, the division was sent to Romania in preparation for

, the invasion of the

.Mitcham 2007, p. 26.

Operation Barbarossa

Once Operation Barbarossa was launched, the 9th Panzer Division, part of XIV Panzer Corps (Germany) of the Army Group South, pushed through

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

on 28 June, heading to

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, ...

after the

Battle of Brody (1941) The Battle of Brody (other names in use include Battle of Dubna, Battle of Dubno, Battle of Rovne, Battle of Rovne-Brody) was a tank battle fought between the 1st Panzer Group's III Army Corps and XLVIII Army Corps (Motorized) and five mec ...

. The division broke through the Stalin Line on 7 July, took part in the encirclement of

Uman Uman (, , ) is a city in Cherkasy Oblast, central Ukraine. It is located to the east of Vinnytsia. Located in the east of the historical region of Podolia, the city rests on the banks of the Umanka River. Uman serves as the administrative c ...

, and captured Krivoy Rog and Nikopol on 17 August. The 9th Panzer Division then captured the Dnieper River Dam at

Zaporizhia Zaporizhzhia, formerly known as Aleksandrovsk or Oleksandrivsk until 1921, is a city in southeast Ukraine, situated on the banks of the Dnieper River. It is the administrative centre of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Zaporizhzhia has a population of ...

on 25 August. From there, it was made the spearhead of Panzer Group Kleist, driving to Kiev from the south while Panzer Group Guderian drove behind the city from the north. The two groups linked up on 15 September, encircling five

field armies A field army (also known as numbered army or simply army) is a military formation in many armed forces, composed of two or more corps. It may be subordinate to an army group. Air armies are the equivalent formations in air forces, and fleets ...

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 ...

. The division was part of the force that captured 667,000 Soviet prisoners and 900 tanks in the city. Following the capture of Kiev, the 9th Panzer Division was made a part of Panzer Group Guderian for the advance on Moscow. The division then took part in the encirclement of

Bryansk Bryansk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Bryansk Oblast, Russia, situated on the Desna (river), Desna River, southwest of Moscow. It has a population of 379,152 at the 2021 census. Bryans ...

and, despite delays due to terrain, weather and Red Army resistance, captured

Kursk Kursk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur (Kursk Oblast), Kur, Tuskar, and Seym (river), Seym rivers. It has a population of Kursk ...

on 2 November. It was halted near the

Kursk Oblast Kursk Oblast (, ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Kursk. As of the 2021 Russian census, 2021 census, Kursk Oblast had a pop ...

settlement of Tim. From there, the division held a sector near Shchigry on the southern sector, facing the Soviet winter offensives of 1941 and 1942. The division remained on this sector until Soviet attacks abated in March 1942.

Case Blue

During Soviet offensive from the bridgehead north Voronezh on the west bank of the Don River against the German 7th Corps, the 9th Panzer Division was released from 2nd Army reserves to lead a counterattack and stabilize the front of the 7th Corps. On the evening the 9th Panzer Division counterattacked to stabilize the front of the 387th Infantry Division to open a relief of the encircled 542nd Infantry Regiment. The next day, July 24, 1942, the 9th Panzer Division along with the 385th Infantry Division, began an offensive aimed towards Lomovo to outflank Soviet “Group Chibisov” consisting of the 1st and 2nd Tank Corps. Bitter fighting ensued over the course of the next days with the commanding general, Johannes Bäßler, was seriously wounded and relieved of command. Heinrich-Hermann von Hülsen, commander of the 9th Panzer Grenadier Regiment then assumed command. The fighting to stabilize the front German northern flank around Zemlyansk, northwest of Voronezh continued until July 29, 1942 when the front of the 7th Corps was stabilized and the 9th Panzer Division was released.

Operation Mars

The 9th Panzer Division, commanded by General Walter Scheller, fought in the Second Rzhev-Sychyovka Offensive Operation also referred to as Operation Mars. After the initial Soviet breakthrough by the Soviet 20th Army on November 26, the 9th Panzer Division was ordered to form two kampfgruppen to attack up the Rzhev-Sychevka road to stem the advance of Soviet 20th Army to the west.

Operation Citadel

During a lull in hostilities in early 1943, the division was again reorganized and reequipped, sent to Orel and transferred to

Army Group Center Army Group Centre () 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 during the planning of Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the So ...

, where it participated in

Operation Citadel Operation Citadel () was the German offensive operation in July 1943 against Soviet forces in the Kursk salient, proposed by Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein during the Second World War on the Eastern Front that initiated the Battle of ...

and the Battle of Kursk in the summer of that year as a part of

XLVII Panzer Corps XLVII Panzer Corps (also: 47th Panzer Corps or XXXXVII. ''Panzerkorps'' or XXXXVII Panzer Corps) was a panzer corps of the German Army (Wehrmacht), German Army in World War II that was formerly designated as XLVII Corps. Various formations of the ...

, 9th Army. Fighting alongside the

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds, The Second, or (The) 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Minute and second of arc, ...

4th Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

and 20th Panzer divisions and the 6th Infantry Division, it tried unsuccessfully to break through the Soviet defensive belt. The division fought on the front for an extended period of time, suffering heavy casualties.Mitcham 2006, p. 95. In one engagement, the division lost 70 tanks to Soviet

Ilyushin Il-2 The Ilyushin Il-2 ( Russian: Илью́шин Ил-2) is a ground-attack plane that was produced by the Soviet Union in large numbers during the Second World War. The word ''shturmovík'' (Cyrillic: штурмовик), the generic Russian term ...

aircraft in just 20 minutes. After an advance of only 15 km and suffering heavy casualties, it abandoned its attempt to reach Kursk. Following the German defeat at

, the 9th Panzer Division was heavily engaged in the German retreat to the Mius-Front, a line of German fortifications along the

Mius River The Mius (; ) is a river in Eastern Europe that flows through Ukraine and Russia. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .Миус

. It covered the retreat of the

2nd Panzer Army The 2nd Panzer Army () was a German armoured formation during World War II, formed from the 2nd Panzer Group on October 5, 1941. Organisation Panzer Group Guderian () was formed on 5 June 1940 and named after its commander, general Heinz Gude ...

and the 9th Army, north of Orel and Kirov, then fought in a series of battles east of Bryansk at the end of August. The division participated in fights at

Stalino Donetsk ( , ; ; ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin, and Stalino, is an industrial city in eastern Ukraine located on the Kalmius River in Donetsk Oblast, which is currently occupied by Russia as the capita ...

, Zaporozhye,

Odessa ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...

, and

Dnieper 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 ...

. During the fights of late 1943 and early 1944 it suffered mounting losses, and by January 1944 it was reduced to 13 tanks (on 20 November 1943: 6 operational tanks out of 30 total; the fewest operational tanks out of any Army Group South panzer division) and substantially under-strength infantry and artillery formations. It continued a slow retreat across the Ingulez and the Ingul, until it was pulled out of the fighting in April.

Western Front

The division was subsequently sent to Nimes, France to rebuild, as many divisions mauled on the Eastern Front were. On 1 May 1944, it absorbed men and tanks of the 155th Reserve Panzer Division to return to its full strength. During this absorption it received 31

Panzer III The ''Panzerkampfwagen III (Pz.Kpfw. III)'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Nazi Germany, Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was List of Sd.K ...

s, 74

Panzer IV The IV (Pz.Kpfw. IV), commonly known as the Panzer IV, is a German medium tank developed in the late 1930s and used extensively during the Second World War. Its ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 161. The Panzer IV was the most numer ...

s, 20 assault guns, 15

Panther tank The Panther tank, officially ''Panzerkampfwagen V Panther'' (abbreviated Pz.Kpfw. V) with Sonderkraftfahrzeug, ordnance inventory designation: ''Sd.Kfz.'' 171, is a German medium tank of World War II. It was used in most European theatre of ...

s and 200 other vehicles. The division then conducted training exercises up until June of that year. It was reassigned to an area on the Rhone River for a time. It was in better shape than many of the other divisions in the area, which were refitting, forming, or lacked transportation to move effectively. Following the

D-Day landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

conducted by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

, the division was rushed to northern France to participate in the Battle of Normandy. At this time, its strength was up to 150 tanks and assault guns and 12,768 men. The division was sent to

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

, before being sent to support the collapsing 7th Army in Normandy. The division arrived just as the army was encircled by American, French, British, and Canadian forces at Falaise. In the subsequent furious battle, the division was almost completely destroyed escaping the

Falaise Pocket 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, c ...

. By late August, its strength was at around 1,500 organized in one infantry battalion, one artillery battalion, and 5 tanks. However, it continued to cover the escape of

Army Group G Army Group G () fought on the Western Front of World War II and was a component of OB West. History Army Group G was initially deployed as an '' Armeegruppe''-type formation on 28 April 1944, but was later upgraded to ''Heeresgruppe''-type on 1 ...

from Normandy. Following its near-destruction at Falaise, the division remained in the German

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 ...

where it fought several engagements, most notably the

Battle of Aachen The Battle of Aachen was a battle of World War II, fought by American and German forces in and around Aachen, Germany, between 12 September and 21 October 1944. The city had been incorporated into the Siegfried Line, the main defensive network ...

. Over the next month, it lost over 1,000 men, two-thirds of its combat strength. At the end of September 1944, the 9th Panzer Division was sent into

Army Group B Army Group B () was the name of four distinct German Army Group, army group commands that saw action during World War II. The first Army Group B was created on 12 October 1939 (from the former Army Group North) and fought in the Battle of France ...

's reserve and rehabilitated. It was given 11,000 more replacements and 178 armored vehicles, including 50 Panther tanks. It was to reinforce German units countering Operation Market Garden, but by the time it arrived at

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

, the Allied forces had been pushed back.Mitcham 2006, p. 96. The 9th Panzer Division was returned to the line around

Geilenkirchen Geilenkirchen (, Ripuarian: ) is a town in the district Heinsberg, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated near the border with the Netherlands, on the river Wurm, approx. 15 km (9.3 mi) north-east of Heerlen and 20 k ...

and Aachen, where it launched a spoiling attack against US forces in the Peel Marshes in November, but only succeeded in losing 30 tanks in the process. It then reassembled west of the Rur River with a strength of 10,000 men, 28 Panther tanks and 14 Panzer IV tanks. Along with elements of the 15th Panzer Grenadier Division, 9th Panzer fought a bitter six-day battle with the U.S. 2nd Armored Division in the Puffendorf-

Immendorf Rodenkirchen () is a southern borough (''Stadtbezirk'') of Cologne (Köln) in Germany. It has about 110,000 inhabitants and covers an area of . The borough includes the quarters Bayenthal, Godorf, Hahnwald, Immendorf, Marienburg, Meschenich, R ...

sector, knocking out 76 tanks and inflicting 1,300 casualties. Following this, the division was sent into the

OKW The (; abbreviated OKW ː kaːˈveArmed Forces High Command) was the supreme military command and control staff of Nazi Germany during World War II, that was directly subordinated to Adolf Hitler. Created in 1938, the OKW replaced the Re ...

reserve. It continued fighting to slow the progress of the

U.S. First Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...

pushing from the west, destroying its 2,325th enemy tank near Geilenkirchen. In December 1944, 9th Panzer was assigned to XLVII Panzer Corps again as part of the

5th Panzer Army 5th Panzer Army () was the name of two different German armoured formations during World War II. The first of these was formed in 1942, during the North African campaign and surrendered to the Allies at Tunis in 1943. The army was re-formed in F ...

, Army Group B and was one of the units participating 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 ...

. At this time sPzAbt 301 (equipped with Tiger I tanks) was attached to the division. The Corps was part of the central attack, pushing back the

First United States Army First Army is the largest OC/T organization in the U.S. Army, comprising two divisions, ten brigades, and more than 7,500 Soldiers. Its mission is to partner with the U.S. Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve to enable leaders and deli ...

. The division initially advanced quickly, but once the tide of the campaign turned in the Allies' favor, the division took extreme losses once again as

refused to allow the German forces in the campaign to retreat in a timely manner. It was eventually pulled back to the German lines.Mitcham 2007, p. 27. In early 1945, the division engaged the Allied in fighting around the

Eifel The Eifel (; , ) is a low mountain range in western Germany, eastern Belgium and northern Luxembourg. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Com ...

mountain range. It also participated in fighting around the Erft River in February, where its armored force was reduced to 29 tanks and 16 assault guns. Late in the month, it launched an attack on the Allied Remagen Bridgehead over the

Rhine River The Rhine ( ) is one of the 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 Swiss-Austrian border. From Lake Cons ...

, which failed to reach the Remagen Bridge. By the end of this fight, the division consisted of only 600 men and 15 tanks.

Destruction

The 9th Panzer Division's final combat assignment came in a battle near

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

on 6 March, as a part of the battered LXXXI Corps, alongside the 363rd Volksgrenadier Division and the 3rd Panzergrenadier Division which were in equally poor shape, and the entire corps was barely the strength of one division. Facing them was the US 3rd Armored Division. The division attempted to defend the town from attack, but was unable to make progress against American forces.Mitcham 2006, p. 97. After its unsuccessful attack, the shattered 9th Panzer Division was

counterattack A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in "Military exercise, war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objecti ...

ed by strong Allied forces. The division engaged the Americans in the city center of Cologne, but were quickly pushed back, and the divisional commander was killed. Remnants of the division attempted to flee across the Rhine River. In the fighting that followed, the weak formation finally collapsed. Most of the remains of the division were forced into the Ruhr Pocket, continuing to suffer staggering losses while holding lines on the south flank of Army Group B until they surrendered to American forces in April 1945. By this time, the demoralized soldiers of the division were entirely out of ammunition and gasoline, and remaining troops surrendering without a fight. The division continued to exist briefly afterward; Major Halle, the division's

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

, escaped the Ruhr encirclement with a small battle group, and joined the 11th Army in the

Harz Mountains The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a Mittelgebirge, highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The nam ...

. There, on 26 April 1945, German commanders of

OB West ''Oberbefehlshaber West'' ( German: initials ''OB West'') (German: "Commander-in-Chief n theWest") was the overall commander of the '' Westheer'', the German armed forces on the Western Front during World War II. It was directly subordinate to t ...

disbanded the 9th Panzer Division, absorbing its survivors into other units.

Commanding officers

The division was commanded by 11 people during its total history. This included General Friedrich Wilhelm von Mellenthin, who was acting division commander from December 1944 to February 1945 because General Harald Freiherr von Elverfeldt had been wounded in an Allied air attack.Mitcham, 2007. P. 28.

References

Sources

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