Formed in Wehrkreis I at Insterburg in August 1939 as part of the second mobilization wave, the 61. Infanterie-Division served as a frontline combat formation of the German Heer throughout the Second World War. Originally commanded by General der Infanterie Siegfried Haenicke, the division comprised Infanterie-Regiment 151, Infanterie-Regiment 162, and Infanterie-Regiment 176, supported by Artillerie-Regiment 161, Pionier-Bataillon 161, and auxiliary reconnaissance and anti-tank units. In September 1939, it crossed the frontier into Poland under I. Armeekorps, clashing intensely at the Battle of Mława, bridging the Narew River near Pułtusk, and finishing near Warsaw. Transferred west for the 1940 campaign, it advanced through Belgium, engaged Allied forces at Dunkirk, and performed occupation duties in Brittany before returning to East Prussia. During Unternehmen Barbarossa in June 1941, the formation pushed into the Baltic states with 18. Armee under Heeresgruppe Nord, capturing Tallinn, securing the Moonsund Archipelago, and advancing toward Leningrad and Tikhvin. Successive leadership fell to officers including Generalmajor Franz Scheidies, Generalleutnant Werner Hühner, and Generalleutnant Günther Krappe. Reorganized with Grenadier regiments and later redesignated as 61. Volksgrenadier-Division in late 1944, it endured grueling defensive warfare along the Volkhov, Narva, and Kurland fronts before shifting back to East Prussia. Trapped during the Soviet Heiligenbeil pocket battles in early 1945, the battered unit dissolved as its remnants were incorporated into 21. Infanterie-Division, with the divisional staff retreating to Königsberg before surrendering at war's end. Decorated extensively, its soldiers earned thirty-seven Knight's Crosses.
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EICHENLAUBTRÄGER
Oberst Hans-Gotthard Pestke (1914-2001) was born on 17 June 1914 in Preußisch-Stargard, West Prussia, and died on 30 April 2001 in Celle. After completing school at the Gymnasium Marienwerder, he entered the Infanterie-Regiment 45 on 1 November 1935. In 1936, as Gefreiter and Reserve-Offiziersanwärter, he transferred to the II. Bataillon of the Infanterie-Regiment 24, where he was promoted to Leutnant on 18 January 1938. At the outbreak of the Second World War he served as Zugführer in the 13. Kompanie of the Infanterie-Regiment 176 and took part in the Westfeldzug in Belgium and France; in 1940 he became Adjutant of the II. Bataillon. From June 1941, as Oberleutnant and Chef of the 3. Kompanie, Infanterie-Regiment 176 of the 61. Infanterie-Division, he fought on the Eastern Front. On 12 October 1941, acting on his own initiative near Hindu on the southwestern corner of the island of Dagö, he captured a Soviet artillery battery. This action eliminated the threat and allowed the 61. Infanterie-Division to bring reinforcements, especially artillery, across the Soela Sound from Soela to Soru without losses, contributing decisively to the rapid and relatively bloodless conquest of Dagö; for this feat he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 15 November 1941. Early in 1942 he became Regimentsadjutant and in autumn 1942 Kommandeur of the I. Bataillon of the Infanterie-Regiment 176 (later Grenadier-Regiment 176). On 15–16 September 1943, south of Lake Ladoga along both sides of a railway junction, his Bataillon repelled five determined Soviet attacks launched from Posselok and, through skillful counterattacks, regained the ground previously lost despite overwhelming enemy strength. For this leadership he was awarded the Eichenlaub (311st award) to the Ritterkreuz on 14 October 1943 as Hauptmann (promoted Major on 1 October 1943). He was subsequently posted to the Stab of the 16. Panzer-Division, attended the Kriegsakademie in Hirschberg, and served as Major i. G. in the Generalstab of the 12. Luftwaffen-Feld-Division. During the fighting for Danzig and West Prussia he was wounded for the fifth time and, while in hospital, fell into British captivity at the end of the war, from which he was released on 31 May 1947. After the war he worked as a master watchmaker before rejoining the Bundeswehr on 26 April 1956; he served until 30 September 1972 in various staff and command roles, including Chef des Stabes of the 1. Luftlandedivision, Kommandeur of the Luftlandebrigade 25 from December 1962 to April 1965, and finally as Oberst im Generalstab and Leiter der Studiengruppe des Heeres at the Führungsakademie.
Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/61st_Infantry_Division_(Wehrmacht)
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