The German 385. Infanterie-Division, also known as the Rheingold Division, was a Wehrmacht infantry formation raised on 10 January 1942 at the Truppenübungsplatz Bergen/Fallingbostel as part of the 18. Welle from replacement troops drawn primarily from Wehrkreise VI, X and XI, consisting of three infantry regiments (Infanterie-Regiment 541, 542 and 543), an artillery regiment (Artillerie-Regiment 385) and supporting units including Panzerjäger-Abteilung 385, Pionier-Bataillon 385 and Nachrichten-Abteilung 385. Under the initial command of Generalmajor Karl Eibl, who was soon promoted to Generalleutnant, the division completed hasty training before deployment to the Eastern Front in April 1942, where it took up positions in the Roslavl area and engaged in defensive and offensive operations around Fomino before being transferred to the Don River sector as part of the Italian 8. Armee in the framework of Heeresgruppe B. In the summer and autumn of 1942 it participated in the fighting along the Don and near Woronesch, suffering mounting casualties as it held exposed positions in the great Don bend; during the Soviet Ostrogozhsk–Rossosch Offensive launched in mid-January 1943 the division faced overwhelming attacks by Soviet tank corps and infantry, repelling multiple breakthrough attempts in brutal close-quarters combat amid freezing conditions but ultimately becoming encircled together with elements of the XXIV. Panzerkorps and the Italian Alpini-Korps between 15 and 26 January. Commanded successively by Eibl until his mortal wounding on 21 January 1943 and then by Generalmajor Eberhard von Schuckmann, the 385. Infanterie-Division was virtually annihilated in the chaotic retreat northwest of Stalingrad with the loss of most of its personnel and equipment, its remnants being officially disbanded in February-March 1943 and absorbed into the reformation of the 387. Infanterie-Division, marking one of the many Wehrmacht divisions destroyed in the catastrophic winter battles on the southern sector of the Eastern Front.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SCHWERTERTRÄGER
General der Infanterie Karl Eibl (1891-1943) was an Austrian-born general in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany during World War II who rose from service as an officer in the k.u.k. Landwehrregiment 21 during the First World War to become one of the most highly decorated commanders on the Eastern Front. Having been absorbed into the Wehrmacht after the Anschluss as a Major and later Oberstleutnant commanding III./Infanterie-Regiment 131 of the 44. Infanterie-Division, he earned the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 15 August 1940 as Oberstleutnant for his personal leadership in storming the heavily fortified French strongpoint at Chuignolles during the Westfeldzug, an action that broke through determined resistance and enabled the continued German advance toward Proyart. Transferred to command Infanterie-Regiment 132 of the same division for Operation Barbarossa, Eibl distinguished himself further in the battles around Schitomir and Uman, leading his regiment in decisive successes at the Zwiahel bridgehead that earned him the Eichenlaub on 31 December 1941 as Oberst. Promoted to Generalmajor on 1 February 1942 and given command of the newly formed 385. Infanterie-Division, he led the unit through intense fighting along the Don and at Woronesch as part of the 6. Armee; during the defensive battles in the Rossosch area amid the Soviet Operation Little Saturn in late 1942, Eibl’s division repelled overwhelming enemy attacks for weeks despite heavy losses, holding the line against breakthrough attempts in the great Don bend and securing his award of the Schwerter on 19 December 1942 as the 21st recipient overall and the second soldier of the Heer after Erwin Rommel, while simultaneously being promoted to Generalleutnant. Shortly afterward, on 20 January 1943, Eibl assumed temporary command of the XXIV. Panzerkorps northwest of Stalingrad following the suicide of Generalleutnant Arno Jahr, but the next day he was mortally wounded by hand-grenade fragments from Italian Alpini troops who mistook his vehicle for a Soviet armored car in a snowstorm; he succumbed to his injuries after an emergency amputation at a casualty collection point in Kravzoka near Rossosch and was posthumously promoted to General der Infanterie on 1 March 1943.
Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/385th_Infantry_Division
No comments:
Post a Comment