The 1. Panzer-Division, one of the pioneering armored formations of the Wehrmacht, was officially established on 15 October 1935 in Weimar from elements of the 3. Kavallerie-Division as part of Germany's rapid rearmament following the renunciation of the Treaty of Versailles, initially commanded by General der Kavallerie Maximilian von Weichs and equipped with a mix of light Panzer I and Panzer II tanks alongside early models of the Panzer III and IV. Comprising the 1. Panzer-Brigade with Panzer-Regiment 1 and later Panzer-Regiment 2, the 1. Schützen-Brigade including Schützen-Regiment 1 and Schützen-Regiment 113 (later redesignated as Panzergrenadier regiments), Kradschützen-Bataillon 1, Artillerie-Regiment 73, and supporting units such as Panzerjäger-Abteilung 37 and Pionier-Bataillon 37, it embodied the combined-arms doctrine of Blitzkrieg with integrated tanks, motorized infantry, reconnaissance, and artillery. The division first saw action in the Anschluss of Austria and the occupation of the Sudetenland and Czechoslovakia in 1938-1939, then spearheaded the Invasion of Poland in September 1939 as part of Army Group South, advancing rapidly toward Warsaw. In the 1940 Western Campaign, it played a pivotal role in the breakthrough at Sedan under XIX. Armeekorps, raced to the English Channel, participated in the encirclement at Dunkirk, and pushed south to the Swiss border, capturing Belfort with relatively light casualties. Transferred east in 1941, it joined Panzer-Gruppe 4 in Operation Barbarossa, fighting fiercely toward Leningrad before redeploying to Army Group Center for the drive on Moscow, where it advanced to within 20 miles of the Soviet capital amid harsh winter conditions and heavy attrition. Throughout 1942-1943, it defended critical sectors like the Rzhev Salient, endured brutal attrition battles, and was refitted in France and Greece before returning to the Eastern Front with Panther tanks, distinguishing itself in mobile defensive operations around Kiev, Zhitomir, the Cherkassy pocket relief attempts, and the Kamenets-Podolsky encirclement. In its final campaigns, the 1. Panzer-Division fought in Hungary during the failed relief of Budapest, defensive actions around Lake Balaton, and the retreat into Austria and southern Bavaria, ultimately surrendering to American forces on 8 May 1945 near the demarcation line rather than to the Soviets, having earned a reputation as one of the Wehrmacht's most reliable and battle-hardened panzer formations across nearly the entire span of the European theater.
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EICHENLAUBTRÄGER
Oberstleutnant Dr.jur. Josef-Franz Eckinger (1904-1941) was a highly decorated Austrian-born German officer in the Heer during the Second World War who rose to prominence as a bold and resourceful battalion commander in the 1. Panzer-Division. Born in Steyr, he joined the Austrian Bundesheer as a Dragoner in 1924, advanced to Oberleutnant by 1933 while studying law, and was transferred into the Wehrmacht as Hauptmann in 1938, eventually becoming Chef of the 8. Kompanie in Schützen-Regiment 1. He participated in the Polenfeldzug and distinguished himself in the Westfeldzug of 1940 as Führer of the II./Schützen-Regiment 1, leading aggressive motorized assaults that contributed significantly to the rapid breakthroughs achieved by Guderian’s XIX. Armeekorps; for these actions he was promoted to Major on 1 January 1941 and awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 17 March 1941. Transferred to the Ostfront in June 1941, he assumed command of the I./Schützen-Regiment 113 (motorisiert) of the 1. Panzer-Division within XXXXI. Armeekorps of Panzer-Gruppe 4 on 1 September 1941, spearheading advances toward Leningrad and later toward Moscow in grueling defensive and offensive operations. His most celebrated feat occurred on 14 October 1941 near Kalinin, where, reinforced by artillery and elements of Panzer-Regiment 1, he executed a daring thrust that captured two intact Wolga bridges before Soviet forces could destroy them, securing a vital crossing for the continued German advance despite fierce resistance and difficult terrain. Tragically, just three days later on 17 October 1941, Major Eckinger fell in action at Mjednoje on the Wolga; he was posthumously promoted to Oberstleutnant and on 31 December 1941 became the 48th recipient of the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz, recognizing his repeated leadership in critical panzergrenadier assaults that exemplified the aggressive spirit of the early Blitzkrieg campaigns.
Generalleutnant Wend von Wietersheim (1900-1975) was born on 18 April 1900 in Neuland in the Kreis Löwenberg in Silesia as the son of a landowning family and entered military service near the end of the First World War as a Fähnrich in the Husaren-Regiment 4, being promoted to Leutnant in 1919. He continued in the Reichswehr as a cavalry officer, later transferring to motorized and panzer units, serving as Adjutant of the 3. Panzer-Division at the outbreak of the Second World War and then commanding the Kradschützen-Bataillon 1 of the 1. Panzer-Division during the campaign in the West. In July 1941 he took command of the Schützen-Regiment 113 (later redesignated Panzergrenadier-Regiment 113) of the 1. Panzer-Division and led it during Operation Barbarossa on the northern sector of the Eastern Front. On the night of 19–20 October 1941, west of Kalinin, when one of his weakened battalions was penetrated by superior Soviet forces threatening a vital railway bridge over the Volga, he personally gathered the remaining reserves and led a successful counterattack that sealed the breaches, for which he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 10 February 1942 as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur of Schützen-Regiment 113. Promoted to Oberst, he received the Eichenlaub on 12 January 1943 after leading a Kampfgruppe in a successful counterattack in the Toropez area at the end of November 1942 that threw back far numerically superior Soviet forces and averted an imminent breakthrough. In August 1943 he assumed command of the 11. Panzer-Division, known as the Gespensterdivision, was promoted to Generalmajor in November 1943 and later to Generalleutnant, and for his outstanding leadership of the division during the defensive and counteroffensive battles on the southern sector of the Eastern Front in late 1943 and early 1944 he was awarded the Schwerter on 26 March 1944 as Generalmajor and Kommandeur of the 11. Panzer-Division. The division later fought on the Western Front, including operations in the Rhône Valley and Lorraine, before Wietersheim briefly commanded the XXXXI. Panzerkorps in April 1945 and surrendered with remnants of his forces to American troops in May 1945. After the war he lived in West Germany and died on 19 September 1975 in Bad Honnef.
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RITTERKREUZTRÄGER
General der Panzertruppe Hermann Balck (1893-1982) was born on 7 December 1893 in Danzig-Langfuhr into a long-established military family as the son of Generalleutnant William Balck. He entered the Hannoversches Jäger-Bataillon Nr. 10 as a Fahnenjunker in April 1913 and attended the Kriegsschule Hannover before serving throughout the First World War on the Western, Eastern, Italian and Balkan fronts, rising to company command, being wounded seven times and receiving both classes of the Eisernes Kreuz as well as the Ritterkreuz des Königlichen Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern. Remaining in the Reichswehr after 1918, he transferred to the 18. Kavallerie-Regiment and later became a strong advocate of mechanised warfare while deliberately declining repeated offers of General Staff appointments. At the outbreak of the Second World War he served in the Oberkommando des Heeres before taking command of Schützen-Regiment 1 of the 1. Panzer-Division. On 3 June 1940, as Oberstleutnant und Kommandeur of that regiment, he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for the decisive breakthrough near Martelange, the rapid pursuit to Bouillon, the first crossing of the Maas, the penetration of the bunker line and subsequent successful defensive and pursuit actions that yielded several thousand prisoners and some thirty guns. After further service in Greece and staff duties he assumed command of the 11. Panzer-Division on the Eastern Front in May 1942. As Generalmajor und Kommandeur of the division he was awarded the Eichenlaub on 20 December 1942 for holding the Chir river line and successively destroying the corps of the Soviet 5th Tank Army. Promoted Generalleutnant, he received the Schwerter on 4 March 1943 for his decisive contribution to the destruction of Mobile Group Popov in the Barwenkowo area. Later, as General der Panzertruppe and stellvertretender Führer of the 4. Panzerarmee, he was granted the Brillanten on 31 August 1944 for conducting the first successful offensive-defensive battle along the Vistula that contained Soviet bridgeheads and stabilised the front. He subsequently commanded higher formations including the XXXXVIII. Panzerkorps, Army Group G and the 6. Armee before surrendering in Austria on 8 May 1945. Released from captivity in 1947, Balck lived quietly in West Germany until his death on 29 November 1982.
Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Panzer_Division_(Wehrmacht)
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