From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 16th Infantry Division of the German Army was created
in 1935 and participated in the
invasion of Poland (1939) and
France (1940) during World War II. The
division later split in 1940,
resulting in two independent lineages: The 16th Panzer Division and the 16th Motorized Infantry
Division. The latter, from 1944 onward, combined with other non
16th elements were known as the 116th Panzer Division.
Commanding
officers
- Generaloberst Gotthard Heinrici
- Generalleutnant Heinrich Krampf, 1 February 1940
- Generaloberst Hans-Valentin Hube, 1 June 1940
- General der Infanterie Friedrich-Wilhelm von Chappus, 1
November 1940
- General der Panzertruppen Sigfrid Henrici
- Generalleutnant Johannes Streich
- General der Panzertruppen Sigfrid Henrici, November 1941
- General der Panzertruppen Gerhard von Schwerin, 13 November
1942
- Generalmajor Wilhelm Crisollo, 20 May 1943
Panzer
Division
The 16th Panzer Division served as a reserve in Romania during the Balkans campaign in 1941. It
later participated in Operation Barbarossa with Army Group
South also in 1941. The 16th division was encircled and
ultimately destroyed at Stalingrad during the winter of
1942-1943.
It was rebuilt for a campaign in the west, and fought in Sicily and southern Italy during the Italian Campaign of
1943, and finally returning to the Russian Front
later in the year. Severely mauled near Kiev, they were withdrawn to Poland for rehabilitation in 1944. The 16th
Panzer Division returned to the east in 1945, and surrendered to
Soviets and Americans in Czechoslovakia.
Commanding
officers
- Generaloberst Hans-Valentin Hube, 1 November
1940
- Generalleutnant Günther Angern, 15 September 1942
- Generalmajor Burkhart Müller-Hillebrand, March 1943
- Generalmajor Rudolf Sieckenius, 5 May 1943
- Generalmajor Hans-Ulrich Back, 1 November 1943
- Generalleutnant Dietrich von Müller, 14 August
1944
- Oberst Theodor Kretschmer, March 1945
- Oberst Kurt Treuhaupt, 19 April 1945
Motorized
Division
The 16th Motorized Infantry Division, nicknamed
Windhund ("Greyhound"), participated in the Balkans campaign in 1941 along
with the 16th Panzer Division (see above). It took part in Operation
Barbarossa with Army Group South later in the year. It advanced
on the Caucasus, with
elements coming to within 20 miles of Astrakhan — in 1942; the most easterly point
reached by any German unit during the war, and participated in the
Battle
of Stalingrad. The 16th Motorized Infantry Division
participated in defensive operations after the Soviets broke up the
front of the southern sector. In 1943, it was upgraded to the 16th
Panzergrenadier Division. This upgraded unit suffered heavily in
the continuous retreats, and was transferred to France for rest and refitting.
It was reorganized as the 116th Panzer Division
(with the number changed since the 16th Panzer Division was already
taken by its sibling), absorbing the 179th Reserve Panzer Division
in the process in 1944. This new unit fought in the Battle of
Normandy, and was almost destroyed in the Falaise
Gap. It later defended the Siegfried Line at Aachen in that underpowered condition.
The 116th Panzer Division was withdrawn for refitting and then
recommitted, but failed to save the city of Aachen. It later
participated in the Battle of
Hurtgen Forest and then in the Battle of the Bulge, again
sustaining heavy casualties. It was caught in the Wesel Pocket, but
managed to escape across the Rhine, ultimately surrendering within the Ruhr Pocket in April,
1945.
See also
References
Note: The Web references may require you to
follow links to cover the unit's entire history.
 Heer Infantry
Divisions of the Wehrmacht |
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