The II SS Panzer Corps was formed from 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich and 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen in July 1942 in Bergen, Netherlands as "SS-Panzer-Generalkommando". Originally formed on October 19, 1939 as the "Verfugungs" Division, this unit was redesignated as the 2nd SS Panzer Division ("Das Reich") in late 1943. 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Between 20 September and 20 of November 1943 the corps conducted operations against Yugoslav Partisans in order to establish a connection with Army Group F in the Balkans and to secure communications east and northwards from Trieste and Rijeka. The II SS Panzer Corps was formed from SS Division Leibstandarte, SS Division Das Reich and SS Division Totenkopf in July 1942 as the SS Panzer Corps. His division, now renamed 2nd SS Division Das Reich, spearheaded Operation Typhoon to capture of the Soviet capital, but took severe damage and lost over ten thousand men. Armageddon: The Battle for Germany 1944-1945 Alfred A Knopf, New York NY 2004 p.197. The II SS Panzer Corps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during World War II. The Journal of Slavic Military Studies, p. 228. The corps was involved in fighting against the British 1st Airborne Division in the Battle of Arnhem and also against the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division and British XXX Corps in Nijmegen. The 2nd SS Division, “Das Reich,” was a battlefront mainstay for Nazi Germany throughout WWII—from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the final surrender in May 1945. The elements of the corps surrendered to the U.S. Army on 8 May 1945. The II SS Panzer Corps – Arnhem Posted on September 23, 2017 The formation that played the critical role in defeating the Allies in Market Garden was II SS Panzer Corps, consisting of the 9th Waffen-SS Division Hohenstaufen and the 10th Waffen-SS Division Frundsberg. The focus of the attack was the Sixth Panzer Army, which would attack toward the Elsenborn ridge and then press on to Antwerp. After the Soviets captured the city, the corps broke up and individual units attempted to break out to the American forces to the west. The corps' combat divisions suffered heavy losses in the battles against the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions. The Journal of Slavic Military Studies, p. 235. In August, it was sent to northern France before taking part in the Case Anton, the occupation of Vichy France in November, during which it captured Toulon. After the northern assault stalled, the corps was transferred south to take part in the attack on Bastogne. Army panzer divisions had only four panzergrenadier battalions, unlike those of the Waffen-SS, which had six. [3] In November, 1943, Leibstandarte returned to the Soviet Union, with the corps remaining in Slovenia, Istria and northern Italy. The corps' three SS panzergrenadier divisions were involved in mammoth tank battles around Prokhorovka, pushing deeper into the salient than any other unit. The corps played a decisive role in the defeat of the Allied offensive. The corps was committed to major action near St. Vith on 21 December 1944. After the operation was canceled, the corps was ordered to the Italian front. [1] [2] Thus the SS-Panzer-Division could field two panzer battalions which reinforced by one assault gun battalion and a total of six panzergrenadier battalions, two of them were equipped with SdKfz 251 SPW . This corps distinguished itself in Normandy, Arnhem, the Ardennes and finally in the East against the Soviet tide. Panzer Divisions 1935-1939 - Panzer Divisions 1940-1945 Waffen SS Panzer Divisions 1943-1945 Wehrmacht Panzer Division (mid-1942) - Wehrmacht Panzer Division (1944) In June 1944, the corps was ordered west to take part in the defence of Normandy. Formation - Kharkov. In the remaining weeks of February, the SS Panzer Corps was almost entirely responsible for the destruction of Mobile Group Popov, the major Soviet attacking force. After the failure of the offensive, the corps returned to the defensive, seeing action against American forces in the Eifel region. Between 20 September and 20 of November 1943 the corps conducted operations against Slovene and Croat partisans in order to establish firm connection with Army Group F in the Balkans and to secure vital communications east and northwards from Trieste and Rijeka. In August 1944, the corps participated in the battles in and around the Falaise Pocket. The 2nd SS Panzer Corps performed exceptionally well but was hampered by the inability of the 3rd Panzer Corps and the 48th Panzer Corps to protect its flanks. In preparation for the Ardennes Offensive, the corps was placed in reserve of 6th SS Panzer Army and committed on 21 December 1944 near St. Vith. In these operations, according to the Corps Headquarters' Medical Department, the corps suffered total losses of 936 men. During this period, SS-Obergruppenführer Wilhelm Bittrich, veteran commander of the Hohenstaufen, was placed in command of the corps. In early February 1943, the corps, under the command of SS-Gruppenführer Paul Hausser, was attached to Army Group South in Ukraine and participated in the Third Battle of Kharkov.[1]. The corps' three SS divisions were involved in the Battle of Prokhorovka at the edge of the German penetration into the salient. In November, 1943, the Leibstandarte returned to Russia, with the corps remaining in Slovenia, Istria and northern Italy. XLVIII Panzer Corps: 3rd Panzer Division, 11th Panzer Division, 167th Infanterie Division, Großdeutschland Division. The ratio between panzer and panzergrenadier in such unit raised to (2+1) : 6 at the battalion level. In July 1943, the corps took part in the failed Operation Citadel, spearheading 4th Panzer Army's attack in the southern sector. In these operations, according to the Corps Headquarters' Medical Department, the corps suffered total losses of 936 men. SS-Divisions. LII Corps: 57th Infanterie Division, 255th Infanterie Division, 332nd Infanterie Division. The corps then retreated across France. Posts about 2nd ss panzer corps written by padresteve. However, the Red Army had prepared defenses there and the relief operation ultimately failed. Dupay, Trevor N. Hitler’s Last Gamble: The Battle of the Bulge December 1944-January 1945Harper Collins Publishers, New York NY 1994 p.2. The troops that played the most important role in the offensive were three divisions of the Waffen-SS. The 2nd Panzer Group (German language: Panzergruppe 2) was formed in November 1940 from Panzer Group Guderian. The 2nd SS Panzer Division ‘Das Reich’ had their 8th Company comprised of Tigers and thus numbered their vehicles starting with ‘S’ for Schewere (Heavy). On 17 September 1944, the allies launched Operation Market Garden, an airborne offensive aimed at capturing the Rhine bridge at Arnhem. On its left was the Fifth Panzer Army with the rest of the panzer force, including the regular-army panzer divisions. [1] Only one division, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ended up being transferred, along with the corps personnel. The corps served as a skeletal formation, overseeing the reorganization and restructure of Waffen SS combat divisions in the area of Toulon, France. After regrouping, the SS Panzer Corps became the Schwerpunkt of Manstein's counter-offensive and distinguished itself in the fighting to recapture the city and surrounding area, advancing as far as Belgorod. The 2nd SS Division, “Das Reich,” was a battlefront mainstay for Nazi Germany throughout WWII—from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the final surrender in May 1945. In early February 1943, the corps was ordered to join Generalfeldmarschall Manstein's Army Group South in Ukraine where it was to become known very simply as the "SS Panzer Corps". The whole business of 2nd Panzer counterattacking in the Villers-Bocage area on the 13th is a myth. The corps was renamed II SS Panzer Corps in June 1943,[1] after the I SS Panzer Corps was created during that same month. 2nd SS Panzer Division. The II.SS-Panzer-Korps was formed in 7.42 in Bergen (Holland) as ssPanzer-Generalkommando. This corps comprised the three most controversial divisions of the Second World War: Leibstandarte, Das Reich, and Totenkopf. Expanding the battle beyond Prokhorovka, the total number of tanks fielded by the 2nd SS Panzer Corps and the Soviet 5th Guards Tank Army at and near the battle amounted to … The coup which deposed Italian dictator Benito Mussolini caused much confusion, and only one division, the 1st SS Panzer Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler ended up being transferred, along with the corps personnel. Kursk is often labeled the “Greatest Tank Battle in History.” The Wehrmacht fielded a total of just 120 Tiger tanks during the engagement, including 35 from the 2nd SS Panzer Corps. SS-Panzerkorps was formed June 1942 at Truppenübungsplatz Bergen-Belsen as SS-Panzer-Generalkommando, before being transferred to France to take control of the Waffen-SS divisions refitting there. Commanders. This army contained the majority of the panzer force, including two entire SS panzer corps. In January 1944, the corps was ordered to France to refit, before being sent back into action on the Eastern Front. After the operation's failure, the corps returned to the defensive, seeing action against American forces in the Eifel region. So they’d go S11, S12, S13, and so forth. It was involved in heavy fighting against Field Marshal Montgomery's British 21st Army Group in the area around Caen. 9th SS Hohenstaufen from Arnhem to the end. 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf. He then was given command over the 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen effective February 1943 until 1 July 1944. After the launch of Operation Totalize and the forming of the Falaise pocket, the corps managed to escape encirclement and took part in operations to hold open the escape route for other divisions trapped in the kessel. II SS Panzer Corps: 1st SS PzGren Division, 2nd SS PzGren Division, 3rd SS PzGren Division. In January of 1944 the division was sent to southern France in order to reform after its actions in Russia. Hitler was unwilling to u… It took part in the efforts to relieve Generaloberst Hans-Valentin Hube's encircled 1st Panzer Army. Das Reich served during the invasion of France and took part in several major battles on the Eastern Front, including in the Battle of Prokhorovka against the 5th Guards Tank Army at the Battle of Kursk. It was ready for action 8.42, and in 6.43it was renamed as tje Generalkommando II.SS-Panzerkorps. In October 1941 it was renamed the 2nd Panzer Army. After rescuing the better part of the 1st Panzer Army, the corps then participated in the attempt to de-blockade the trapped German garrison of the 4th Panzer Army in the town of Tarnopol, which was declared to be fortress (Festung) by the Germans. The II SS Panzer Corps was a German Waffen-SS armoured corps which saw action on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during World War II. The 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich was a division of the Nazi Waffen-SS during World War II.It was one of the thirty-eight divisions fielded by the Waffen-SS. After the Soviet forces captured the city, individual units attempted to break out to the west. The II SS Panzer Corps was formed from 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich and 9th SS Panzer Division Hohenstaufen in July 1942 in Bergen, Netherlands as "SS-Panzer-Generalkommando". 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