18th volksgrenadier division

Although the Germans were quick to build up beyond the Our River after the American withdrawal, they made no immediate moves against the new American line. Volksgrenadier-Division. As a result of 7th Armoreds earlier regrouping, Rodt was the junction point between CCA of the 7th Armored under the command of Colonel Rosebaum and General Clarkes CCB. 47. Cole, Hugh M. The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge. A mobile battalion of the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was already moving on Andler to seize the Schoenberg bridge and the road to St. Vith. It consisted of the 136th 138th and 139th Mountain Replacement Regiments and the 112th Artillery The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18. The U.S. 9th Armored Division arrived in the European Theater of Operations in late October 1944 as a reserve for Maj. Gen. When a particularly heavy onslaught was launched against 7th Armored, near 9th Armoreds left flank, Company A, 14th Tank Battalion shifted its mediums to fire directly on Breitfield in support of its armored neighbor to the north. The attacks made east of St. Vith on 18 December were carried by a part of the 294th Infantry [German], whose patrols had been checked by the 168th Engineers [US] the previous day. St. Vith is built on a low hill surrounded on all sides by slightly higher rises. Also no Ferdinand/Elefant recorded to have seen combat on Western Front. I mention it for the sake of completeness as I suspect that the whole thing is a myth. Schneider, Wolfgang. It saw action in France before taking part in the fighting in the Ardennes where it suffered heavy losses, it continued fighting on the western front until the end . Dragon 1629 1/16th Feldwebel 352nd Volksgrenadier Division R 275.00. This version is also attributed to Captain Anstey and is nearly the exact same as his original version of the story as well as being plagued by the exact same issues. . General Lucht hurried to Winterspelt to get the 62nd Volksgrenadier moving to the Our. Hoge and Clarke agreed that Hoges entire command should be withdrawn west of the railroad tracks. By dark, just as General Hoges command was getting underway from Faymonville, Kittels mobile battalion and infantry from the 190th Regiment were closing in on Winterspelt. Because Ridgway was not in total agreement with the withdrawal and to get a feel for the real situation on the ground, he and Hasbrouck made their way to General Clarke at Commanster. Olson states that, on the 18th of December 1944, one of the armored cars opened fire with its 37 mm gun on a German tank at range of 800 yards [732 meters]. As far as Im aware no Ferdinands (all upgraded to Elefants at the stage of Ardennes Offensive) were used in the Ardennes and better yet all Elefants were in Eastern Front with the 614.sPzJgK (formerly 2./653.sPzJgAbt) after August 1944. On his way to St. Vith, General Hoge stopped in Faymonville to alert his command to be prepared to move immediately. The earliest known mention can be found in the December 18th, 1944 morning report and record of events entry of Troop E, 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron which briefly states that an M-8 atchd [attached] to A Tr [Troop A] knocked out one Tiger tank. Eventually retreating through Germany until the end of the war, when it surrendered. Amazing discounts for bundles. The foot elements of the 27th AIB were then to move out with Company B, 482nd Antiaircraft Artillery and some light tanks from Company D, 14th Tank Battalion following behind Company B, 27th AIB. The ground was frozen solid. Volksgrenadier-Division. which, in principle, is comparable to the 37 mm American gun. 1/18th Scale Cars; 1/24th Scale Assembly Kits; 1/24th Scale Cars; 1/43rd Scale Cars; . Colonel Alexander D. Reid, commander of the 424th Infantry Regiment, had reason to fear encirclement. 10 Apr. They were sometimes misidentified as Tiger HIs. Ten tanks, numerous supply vehicles, armored cars, and jeeps were lost to enemy action. Although the 62nd Volksgrenadier Division drove the American defenders from Winterspelt, all was not going well for the Germans. The colonel ordered the troop east along the road to Schoenberg to delay a German tank and infantry team approaching St. Vith from that direction. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Hunnicutt, R. P. Armored Car A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles. Given that the rear hull armor of a Tiger II is 80 mm of RHA angled at 30 degrees, it is essentially impossible for the M8 Greyhounds 37 mm M6 gun to penetrate the rear hull armor of the Tiger II. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571.Volksgrenadier-Division.Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field . There is no comparison to Tiger. He is being outflanked and is retiring west another 2,000 yards refusing both flanks. CCBs new position blocked the main Winterspelt-St. Vith highway and the valley of the Braunlauf Creek, a second natural corridor leading to St. Vith. It is stated as being reported to Major Boyer by one Captain Walter Henry Anstey of Company A of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, who is said to have been a witness to the event. At CCB, 9th Armored Divisions headquarters in Faymonville, General Hoge was just finishing up his briefing for his commands move to the Losheim Gap and Manderfeld when the call came through from General Jones informing him of 9th Armoreds new Winterspelt mission. Its population in 1944 was about 2,000, and its citizens were very much pro-German. By 1245, the original line was restored, and the antitank guns of Company A, 811th Tank Destroyers were recovered. EN. The StuG III was a turretless assault gun based on the Panzer III. The Seventh Armored Division in the Battle of St. Vith. I wanted to focus on the M8 vs Tiger story, I already noticed the Ferdinand claim, but decided not to mention it. Although General Jones was deeply worried about his two regiments on the Schnee Eifel, he was also highly concerned about the German advances in the Winterspelt area where his 424th Infantry Regiment was defending. Attacking the rear of a Tiger when you had no way of knowing if it was supported by one or more others is extremely unlikely. The northern prong of the horseshoe was composed of CCB, 7th Armored Division from Poteau and Vielsalm. What Jones did not tell Hoge was that in one of those regiments his own son was serving at regimental headquarters. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. The division, which was under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, absorbed . December, 1944 By Greg Moore gregpanzerblitz.com December, 2008 Battalion I x 5 x 4 x 1 x 2 x 12 293rd Volks- . This leads to a second candidate, the StuG III. Osprey Publishing, 2003. Schiffer Publishing, 1997. General Hoge set up his command post in the Belgian village of Faymonville, approximately 12 miles north of the town of St. Vith, unaware of the pivotal role his command was to play in a very different battle. Hoge could not see much sense in making an attack, taking ground, and then turning right around and coming back, especially if the attack was successful. 3. To execute this maneuver, Hoges entire command would have to move all the way up to St. Vith and back down again. The village of St. Vith lay approximately 12 miles behind the front lines on December 16, 1944, the day the offensive code-named Operation Watch on the Rhine began. What he claimed was that the fight wasnt as easy as it is presented here. To cover this dangerous gap in the line C Company, 27th AIB was ordered to the Our between Troop D, 89th Recon and Company A, 27th AIB. The stubborn defenders of St. Vith played a major role in defeating the final German offensive of World War II in Western Europe. Adding to the slowdown of operations against St. Vith, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division was still using two of its three regiments and all but one of its artillery battalions against the two trapped 106th Infantry Division regiments on the Schnee Eifel. Ridgway answered, Bill, we can and we will. The withdrawal plan called for a general pullback west of the Salm River to an assembly area in the zone controlled by the 82nd Airborne Division in the vicinity of Lierneux. The original story, if there even was one, was told and retold and distorted until everyone and their brother claimed to know the guys that did it. No reinforcements were expected. 19454 Those factors dictated that at least another 24 hours would be needed before a major assault on St. Vith could begin. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division(18th VGD) was a volksgrenadierdivision of the German Army(Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Stackpole Books, 2015. The event that Lieutenant Olson recounts does bare a resemblance to the M8 Greyhound versus Tiger story, with both events taking place at or near St. Vith on the 18th of December 1944 and involving an American armored car from the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron knocking out a German tank by shooting it in the rear. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. Zaloga, Steven. Since St. Vith should have been taken on December 16 or the 17th at the latest, he decided to leave his command post at Waxweiler and spend the night with the 18th Volksgrenadier Division at Schoenberg. Ridgways plan was premised on the assumption that that the American forces in this goose egg-shaped defense could be supplied by air; however, whoever drew up the plan was thinking in terms of supply requirements for the lighter airborne divisions, not for fuel-hungry and shell-reliant armored forces. Jentz, Thomas, and Hilary Doyle. The southernmost battle group of the 18th Volksgrenadier would also undertake a mobile thrust and, finally, the 62nd Volksgrenadier would break loose at Heckhuscheid and drive for the Our River Valley. The most startling difference however is the range at which this engagement occurred, with Lieutenant Olsons version having the engagement take place at 800 yards (732 meters), compared to the original storys 25 yards (23 meters)! Combat Interviews of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient and Manhay, December 17-23, 1944. The division had lost four companies of armored infantry. Sometime later that Monday morning, General Hoge sent his liaison officer to St. Vith to learn the dispositions of CCB, 7th Armored Division. General Clarke again called on the 9th Armored for assistance to help stiffen his line, and Hoge responded by sending the 3rd Battalion, 424th Regimental Combat Team. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. Hoge managed to stop the stragglers, and soon a provisional company of men from the 424th was formed to reinforce the 27th AIB on its march toward the Our. The situation on Reids left flank was unclear, and the Germans were attacking in considerable force against his right flank. . Which specific Tiger II this was is unknown. . Infanterie-Division . I am weighing toward a stray Panzer IV or maybe a SP gun like the one you described. Its possible that the M8 took out an late production Panzer IV, but even that is unlikely due to the danger of more troops coming from behind with Panzerfausts or even a 20 millimeter. Armored Champion, The Top Tanks of World War II. No one knew what was happening. Cole, Hugh M. The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge. The Seventh Armored Division in the Battle of St. Vith. Panzertruppen Volume 2 The Complete Guide to the Creation & Combat Deployment of The German Tank Forces 1943-1945. Should 7th Armored lose St. Vith, 9th Armored would be unable to withdraw on its own axis. After that mornings enemy assaults, the line of the 27th AIB was reestablished west of Neubruck. The German tank then stopped dead in its tracks and shuddered; there was a muffled explosion, followed by flames which billowed out of the turret and engine ports. Josef Theissen, the fifteen-year-old who had seen the Germans arrive on Sunday, December 17, watched the soldiers every move with the fascination for things military . Attack on Panther PzKw V and Tiger PzKw VI. The commanders were at the center of the Foret Domaniale du Grand Bois. 'poor shape' in a sentence. The corps consisted of two infantry divisions. At about 2130, General Clarke phoned General Hoge to tell him that the enemy was entering St. Vith from the north and that his forces were withdrawing to form a new line northwest of the city. Before departing, however, Hoge gave orders to Lt. Col. Leonard E. Engeman, commander of the 14th Tank Battalion, to get a strong force ready to move out to assist 7th Armored should it become necessary. Maurice Delaval Papers Collection of the Military History Institute in Carlisle, PA. Such was not the case, however, and by the evening of the December 20, the Germans were feeling the growing negative effects of the St. Vith salient. August 18th, 1989 Kalb, Herbert Kalbhenn, Heinrich * February 3rd, 1915 more Kaldeway, x Kalesse, Gerhard (Grenadier-Regiment 689) * July 15th, 1918 October 23rd, 2011 Kaletsch, Georg * October 16th, 1914 March 6th, 1944 Kaletsch, Wilhelm Kalinowski, Josef (Panzergrenadier-Regiment "GD") * January 23rd, 1916 April 5th, 1944 Grave: UNK 4 Grosstraktor to Panzerbefehlswagen IV. 8 Sturmgeschuetz s.Pak to Sturmmoerser. After learning of the attack by the Fhrer Escort Brigade, Brig. This left General Clarke with only one full company of armored infantrymen. General Hoge received his order to pull CCB, 9th Armored out at 0605 on December 23. It can be safely assumed that the armored car that Lieutenant Olson is talking about in his story is an M8 Greyhound due to the fact that the only armored cars that the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron fielded were M8 Greyhounds. The 18th Volksgrenadier Division (18th VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. 1940 194111. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. Sell, buy or rent Panzers in Winter: Hitler's Army and the Battle of the Bulge (Praeger Security I 9780275971151 0275971155, we buy used or new for best buyback price with FREE shipping and offer great deals for buyers. It contained the 293., 294. and 295. grenadier regiments, Panzerjger-Bataillon 1818, Pionier-Bataillon 1818, Fsilier-Bataillon 1818 and Artillerie-Regiment 1818.[1]. A two-day rest was planned for everyone. None of these Tiger IIs were lost at St. Vith and from photographic evidence at least three are recorded to have no burn damage and/or holes in the rear. The next version of this story can be found in a 1947 book by Major Donald P. Boyer of the 38th Armored Infantry Battalion titled St. Vith, The 7th Armored Division in the Battle of the Bulge, 17-23 December 1944: A Narrative After Action Report. War Department Technical Manual TM 9-1904 Ammunition Inspection Guide. The division's intelligence officer, Lieutenant Colonel Robert P. Stout, noted that the division faced two known enemy divisions, the 18th Volksgrenadier Division and the 26th Volksgrenadier Division. The last Tiger II belonged to Schwere Panzer Abteilung 506 (Heavy Tank Battalion 506) and was lost to enemy fire on the Lentzweiler road in Luxemburg. By this time the Germans had essentially closed the trap on the two infantry regiments on the Schnee Eifel. Together they broke up the attack. CCB, 9th Armored was linked on its left with CCB, 7th Armored and what was left of the 424th Infantry Regiment on its right. To this end, General Hoge was in the town of Monschau to check on the possibility of getting his command across in that area. Schneider, Wolfgang. It is possible that, as part of the attacks on the line held in part by Troop B of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, a lone StuG III was used to probe out the American line, as had been done on the previous day, and was subsequently knocked out by an M8 Greyhound. Aside from the cold and mud, there was also the enemy to contend with. Combat Interviews of the 87th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron, 7th Armored Division: The St. Vith Salient, December 17-23, 1944. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. He also hoped the 3rd Armored Division soon might attack to remove all threat of encirclement. Unable to advance, it pulled back to the nearest high ground and dug in. Perrin told General Hoge, You can continue this attack on towards this back country, but you must be back on this side of the river by nightfall.. The Germans were now on the high ground north of Eigelscheid overlooking the road to Winterspelt. In this version the M8 is replaced by an M5 Stuart from the 17th Tank Battalion of the 7th Armored during the retreat from St. Vith, that somehow miraculously ended up behind a Tiger when they thought they were following a Sherman. General Luchts plan for December 17 was simple. 45 mm. 1964. Manteuffel met near Wallerode with Model and Lucht that day. He also said that they got a new Greyhound. Could an M8 Greyhounds 37 mm M6 gun even penetrate the rear hull armor of a Tiger I? Volksgrenadier Division 5. At approximately 0530 on December 16, eight German armored divisions and 13 infantry divisions launched their all-out attack on five divisions of the U.S. First Army. Instead of the M8 Greyhound firing three shots into the Tigers rear, the M8 Greyhound in Lieutenant Olsons version of events fired two shots. The division was formed in Denmark, in September 1944, by redesignating 571. Contents 1 Allied Forces 1.1 12th Army Group 1.1.1 U.S. First Army 1.1.1.1 V Corps 1.1.1.2 VII Corps 1.1.1.3 XVIII Airborne Corps 1.1.2 U.S. Third Army 1.1.2.1 III Corps 1.1.2.2 VIII Corps 1.1.2.3 XII Corps The 294th Volksgrenadier Regiment was a unit of the larger 18th Volksgrenadier Division. VGD) was a volksgrenadier division of the German Army (Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945.. Chamberlain, Peter, et al. German reports are also far from subtlety. VGD) was a volksgrenadierdivision of the German Army(Heer) during the Second World War, active from 1944 to 1945. Infanterie-Division 19398 . Daniel P. Kneeland, Grafton, Ma. As stated above, a 37mm cant penetrate the armor of an Tiger tank. War Department Field Manual FM 2-20 Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop Mechanized. First Edition, Presidio Press, 2002. The lumbering heavy tank continued moving towards the American line before turning north towards the town of Hunningen, Belgium, passing the armored car. Armour Plate Porforation [sic: Perforation] of Tank and Anti Tank Guns. Looking at German records The Fhrerbegleit Brigade with one Panzerabteilung of four companies of Pzkw IV and a Sturmgeschutzabteilung with four batteries of StuG III were in reserve assembled in the area around Daun on the 17th and not yet in action only beginning to move up at 1600H on the 18th. An assault on Thommen forced out the troops holding the town, and efforts to retake it failed. 1940. Darlington Productions Inc., 2000. The troops request for armored support was denied by General Hoge because his tank companies sent north to help the 7th Armored had not yet returned and no reserve was on hand. With the enemy inside Steinebruck and excellent direct fire by the German artillery, what was left of 2nd Platoon, 89th Recon withdrew along the St. Vith road. Based upon this fairly optimistic view, Ridgway, shortly after midnight, ordered the entire St. Vith force to withdraw from its current positions and form a defensive ring west of St. Vith and east of the Salm River. There was little they could do other than vow to get the attack moving early on the 20th. History. Osprey Publishing, 2003. Under cover of automatic weapons fire from a platoon of light tanks, Sergeant Eugene Dorland and two other men from the engineers went into the cold, bullet-splattered water carrying three cases of TNT and placed their charges on the south abutment of the bridge. This moment marked the beginning of the famous Battle of the Bulge, Germanys last major offensive on the Western Front in World War II. At about 0930, the enemy attacked St. Vith from Hunningen to the north, apparently in an effort to envelop Clarkes left flank. Both assault groups suffered heavy casualties. Fifth Panzer was to attack from Prum in the north down to Bitburg and Bastogne in the south. Manteuffel had hoped for considerably more on the 19th. However, this version of Captain Ansteys account has one key difference: it was not a Tiger I that was knocked out, but rather a Tiger II, almost analogous to the fisherman whose fish gets bigger each time he tells the tale of his catch. At 0600 Im going to start to move.. Early on the 19th, the Germans made reconnaissance probes. The town was also in Fifth Panzer Armys area of advance. Under the command of Gnther Hoffmann-Schnborn, the new division absorbed elements of the 18th Luftwaffe Field Division. Additionally, the M8s 37 mm M6 gun is more than capable of penetrating the rear hull and rear casemate armor of the StuG III. As the offensive steam came to an end in the Ardennes, the division went on the defensive, and there they would stay. Staff officers were casualties. Rather than reaching the Meuse and driving on to Antwerp, the offensive stalled and eventually was turned back. On top of the contradictions and ambiguity of Troop Es entry, there is also the curious fact that Troop A does not make any mention of this event in its morning report and record of events entry for the 18th of December, 1944. VGD division was absorbed into the 26. Although it was beaten off, the attacking Germans were identified as new to the area, soldiers of the 9th SS Panzer Division, a cause for considerable concern at this point in the battle. The Americans knew that their only hope in doing any sort of damage to this beast was to get as close as possible to it and shoot its weaker rear armor. Lever het aan! This story has gained a good deal of attention in recent years, especially on the internet thanks to videos such as The Tank Duel at St. Vith, Belgium by Lance Geiger The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered, which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views. One Day at Stavelot, a Tale of Two Archives The Tiger II vs US Tank Destroyers in the Ardennes. The same story is retold in A Colonel in the Armored Divisions A Memoir, 19411945 by William S. Triplet, and like a game of telephone it gets even more distorted. Im going to guess that they just created this all up in their head. At about 1700, the enemy attacked along the Schoenberg road from the east; at 1830, they came down the Malmedy road from the north, and at 2000, an attack started from the southeast along the Prum road. Although the 62nd Volksgrenadier captured Winterspelt, its losses were high and its left regiment had made little headway in the Heckhuschied sector. Panzer Tracts No. The hardest hit, though, were the armored infantrymen of the 27th AIB with nearly 300 battle casualties. 194311 The failure to capture St. Vith was preventing the linkup of the Fifth and the Sixth Panzer Armies. 1945) English PDF (18 MB) Jan B-627 Volkssturm (Oct. 1944-Apr. Ministry of Supply, 1945. 560th Volks Grenadier Division (15-29 Dec. 1944) and 12th VGD (1-28 Jan. 1945). The 18th Volksgrenadier Division would use these assault guns in small probing attacks on the American lines east of St. Vith that same day. Late in the day, the Germans launched three major attacks, each directed along a main road leading into the town. However, by noon on December 18 it was quite apparent to Hoge that the Germans infiltrating across the river were converging on the bridge in such numbers that it had to be blown.

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