The 52nd Infantry Division () was an

infantry division A division is a large military unit or Formation (military), formation, usually consisting of between 10,000 and 25,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades; in turn, several divisions typically mak ...

of the German Heer 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 ...

, which would become the 52nd Field Training Division (52. Feldausbildungs Division) in December 1943 and then the 52nd Security Division (52. Sicherungs Division) in April 1944.

Operational history

The 52nd Infantry division was formed on 26 August 1939 in

Siegen Siegen () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the Arnsberg (region), Arnsberg region. The university town (n ...

in military district IX. In 1939, the 52nd ID received border security tasks in the

Saarpfalz Saarpfalz (''Saar-Palatinate'') is a Kreis (district) in the south-east of the Saarland, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from west clockwise) Saarbrücken, Neunkirchen, Kusel, Kaiserslautern, Südwestpfalz, district-free Zweibrücken, and th ...

and

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

area on the West Wall. It participated in operations on the Western Front in May 1940, advancing through Luxembourg and Belgium to Northern France under the 12th Army. Then it fought in France in battles on the Aisne, Champagne and Dijon. In June 1941, the division was moved to Poland to participate 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 ...

in which it advanced to Vilnius, Minsk and Moscow, where it was stopped at the

Protva The Protva () is a river in the Moscow and Kaluga oblasts in Russia. It is a left tributary of the Oka. It is long, and has a drainage basin of .Battle of Nevel The Battle of Nevel was fought during the Livonian War between the Kingdom of Poland and the Tsardom of Russia on August 19, 1562. After Russian forces took Nevel, Polish forces undertook a pillaging raid into the new Russian-held territory ...

and was dissolved on 1 November 1943. The division was recreated as ''52nd Training Division'' in December 1943 under command of Generalmajor Albert Newiger.
in April 1944, the division was again renamed as ''52nd Security Division'' still under command of Newiger.
The division was first stationed at

Baranavichy Baranavichy or Baranovichi is a city in the Brest Region of western Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Baranavichy District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has a population of 170,817. ...

and then in ''Festung Libau'' (

Liepāja Liepāja () (formerly: Libau) is a Administrative divisions of Latvia, state city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea. It is the largest city in the Courland region and the third-largest in the country after Riga and Daugavpils. It is an ...

in Latvia) in the

Courland Pocket The Courland Pocket was a Pocket (military), pocket located on the Courland Peninsula in Latvia on the Eastern Front (World War II), Eastern Front of World War II from 9 October 1944 to 10 May 1945. Army Group North of the ''Wehrmacht'' were ...

where it surrendered in May 1945.

Organisation

Organisation of the division was as follows; * 52nd Division Headquarters ** 152nd Protection Company ** 152nd Supply Company * 152nd Reconnaissance Company * 183rd Infantry Regiment (x3 Battalions) * 187th Infantry Regiment (x3 Battalions) * 205th Infantry Regiment (x3 Battalions) * 152nd Artillery Regiment (x3 Light, x1 Heavy Battalions) * 152nd Antitank Battalion (x3 Batteries) * 152nd Engineer Battalion * 152nd Divisional Transportation Battalion * 152nd Divisional Supply Troops

Commanders

* Generaloberst

Karl-Adolf Hollidt Karl-Adolf Hollidt (25 April 1891 – 22 May 1985) was a German army commander in World War II who was subsequently convicted of war crimes. He was a general (''Generaloberst'') in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany who commanded the 6th Army. Care ...

(26 Aug – 8 Sept 1939) * Generaloberst

Hans-Jürgen von Arnim Hans-Jürgen Bernard Theodor von Arnim (; 4 April 1889 – 1 September 1962) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded several armies and was the last commander of Axis forces in North Africa. He was a recipi ...

(8 Sept 1939 – 5 Oct 1940) * Generaloberst

Lothar Rendulic Lothar Rendulic (; 23 October 1887 – 17 January 1971)Rudolf Neck, Adam Wandruszka, Isabella Ackerl (ed.) (1980): ''Protokolle des Ministerrates der Ersten Republik, 1918–1938, Abteilung VIII, 20. Mai 1932 bis 25. Juli 1934''. Vienna: Verlag ...

(10 Oct 1940 – 1 Nov 1942) * Generalleutnant

Rudolf Peschel __NOTOC__ Rudolf Peschel (21 April 1894 – 30 June 1944) 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. Peschel was killed in action on 30 June 1944 during the Vite ...

(1 Nov 1942 – 1 Nov 1943) * Generalmajor Albert Newinger (10 Dec 1943 – 5 Sept 1944) * Generalleutnant

Albrecht Baron Digeon von Monteton Albrecht ("noble", "bright") is a given name or surname of German origin and may refer to: First name * Albrecht Agthe, (1790–1873), German music teacher * Albrecht Altdorfer, (c. 1480–1538) German Renaissance painter * Albrecht Becker, (190 ...

(5 Sept 1944 – 9 May 1945) : POW and executed in February 1946

References

Military units and formations established in 1939 0*052 1939 establishments in Germany Military units and formations disestablished in 1945 War crimes of the Wehrmacht {{Germany-WWII-stub