Ritterkreuzträger of schweres Panzerjäger-Regiment 656

Schweres Panzerjäger-Regiment 656 was a unique Heerestruppe formation of the Wehrmacht, the only heavy tank-destroyer regiment raised during the Second World War. It was established on 8 June 1943 in Sankt Pölten from the Stab of Panzer-Regiment 35 under the command of Oberstleutnant Baron Ernst von Jungenfeld. The regiment controlled three Abteilungen: I. Abteilung (schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung 653) and II. Abteilung (schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung 654), each equipped with 45 Ferdinand (later Elefant) tank destroyers mounting the 8,8 cm PaK 43/2, together with III. Abteilung (Sturmpanzer-Abteilung 216) under Major Bruno Kahl armed with Sturmpanzer IV Brummbär assault guns. Two Funklenk-Kompanien operating Borgward IV remote-controlled demolition vehicles were also attached. Deployed to the Eastern Front in June 1943, the regiment was subordinated to XXXXI. Panzerkorps of the 9. Armee for Operation Zitadelle. From 5 July it supported the 86. and 292. Infanterie-Divisionen along the Orel–Kursk railway, claiming hundreds of Soviet tanks and guns while suffering significant mechanical and combat losses. After the failure of the offensive the regiment remained in the Orel sector fighting defensive battles against the Soviet Operation Kutuzov before transferring south to the Zaporozhye and Nikopol bridgeheads. On 1 September 1943 the Abteilungen regained their independent designations, and the regimental structure was dissolved on 16 December 1943 near Nikopol; the remaining elements continued as separate units while the Stab was later used to form Panzer-Brigade 101.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EICHENLAUBTRÄGER


Oberstleutnant Bruno Kahl (1914-1999) was born on 23 November 1914 in Köln and died there on 27 February 1999. He entered military service in 1933 as Fahnenjunker with Kraftfahr-Abteilung 6 in Gießen, was commissioned Leutnant on 20 April 1935 and served as Nachrichten-Offizier with Panzerjäger-Abteilung 9. Promoted to Oberleutnant in 1938, he became Kompaniechef of Gebirgs-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 48 and took part in the campaigns in Polen and Norwegen. In autumn 1940 he volunteered for the Panzerwaffe and joined Panzer-Regiment 21 of the 20. Panzer-Division, rising to Hauptmann in June 1941 and later commanding its III. Abteilung. On 8 February 1943, as Hauptmann und Kommandeur of III./Panzer-Regiment 21, he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for distinguishing himself southeast of Toropez, where after three days of hard fighting his reinforced Abteilung sealed the last exit from a Soviet pocket through a bold thrust launched on his own initiative. In April 1943 he assumed command of Sturmpanzer-Abteilung 216, designated III./Panzerjäger-Regiment 656 within the newly formed schweres Panzerjäger-Regiment 656. For his outstanding leadership of this Brummbär-equipped unit in support of the 86. Infanterie-Division during the Battle of Kursk and the subsequent fighting around Orel, he was awarded the Eichenlaub (270th recipient) on 8 August 1943 as Major. After serving as an instructor with the Bulgarian army and commanding a Panther training course, he took over Panzer-Regiment Großdeutschland in late 1944, was promoted to Oberstleutnant on 1 January 1945, was wounded for the eighth time in April, and entered American captivity near Dachstein, from which he was released in June 1945. In civilian life he later became a director of Bayer AG.

Source :
http://www.old.axishistory.com/list-all-categories/154-germany-heer/heer-regimenter/4483-schwere-panzerjaeger-regiment-656
https://www.team-yankee.com/hobby.aspx?art_id=6387

Ritterkreuzträger of Panzerjäger (Tank Hunter)

German Panzerjäger, the specialized anti-tank forces of the Wehrmacht during World War II, evolved from towed anti-tank gun units known initially as Panzerabwehr into a critical component of combined-arms defense and mobile warfare, encompassing both motorized Panzerjäger-Abteilungen equipped with Pak guns such as the 3.7 cm Pak 36, 5 cm Pak 38, and powerful 7.5 cm Pak 40, as well as self-propelled tank destroyers like the Marder series, Nashorn, Jagdpanzer IV, Hetzer, and heavily armed Jagdpanther and Jagdtiger. Organized at divisional level as Panzerjäger-Abteilungen often including companies of towed guns, Sturmgeschütz assault guns, and later dedicated Jagdpanzer vehicles, or as independent battalions and brigades assigned to corps and armies for flexible deployment, these units were tasked with countering enemy armor by engaging from concealed positions, ambushes, or defilade, frequently cooperating with infantry and Panzer forces where tanks would draw fire to expose targets for flanking shots. Early successes in the Blitzkrieg campaigns of 1939-1941 relied on the light 3.7 cm Pak, but the shock of encountering superior Soviet T-34 and KV tanks during Operation Barbarossa in 1941 forced rapid adaptation, leading to up-gunned vehicles on captured chassis and the development of casemate-style tank destroyers that offered potent firepower at lower cost and silhouette than full turrets, though often at the expense of limited traverse, thin side armor, and crew vulnerability in open-top designs. By 1943-1945, Panzerjäger played increasingly defensive roles on the Eastern and Western Fronts, excelling in delaying actions, urban combat support with high-explosive rounds against bunkers and infantry, and elite heavy battalions like schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilungen that achieved remarkable kill ratios with vehicles such as the Ferdinand/Elefant and Jagdtiger, yet suffered from chronic shortages, mechanical unreliability, fuel constraints, and Allied air superiority that limited their mobility and effectiveness in the war's final desperate campaigns.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HEER


Oberstleutnant der Reserve Eberhard Zahn (1910-2010) was born on 2 January 1910 in Barmen and after completing his Abitur studied business administration, earning the degree of Diplom-Kaufmann before being awarded a doctorate as Dr. rer. pol. in 1933; he then worked for I.G. Farben AG and later for other industrial firms until the outbreak of war. Upon mobilisation he joined as a reservist the Panzerabwehr-Abteilung 33, took part in the French campaign and was promoted for bravery to Leutnant der Reserve on 1 June 1940. In late April 1941 his unit was transferred to North Africa under Erwin Rommel as part of the 15. Panzer-Division, where the formation was redesignated Panzerjäger-Abteilung 33. On 15 June 1941, during Operation Battleaxe, Leutnant der Reserve Zahn, serving as Zugführer in the 2. Kompanie, single-handedly manned a 5-cm Pak and repulsed a strong British armoured thrust advancing from Capuzzo toward Bardia, destroying six enemy tanks before his gun was knocked out; after offering fierce resistance he was taken prisoner yet soon escaped through determined action and returned to German lines, for which he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 30 June 1941. Promoted successively to Oberleutnant der Reserve and then Hauptmann der Reserve, he continued to distinguish himself in the desert fighting, including around El Alamein, and on 6 March 1943 was awarded the Eichenlaub (204th presentation) as Chef of the 2. Kompanie/Panzerjäger-Abteilung 33 for an action in early July 1942 when the southern wing of the division was struck by a sudden armoured assault: he rushed forward under heavy fire, rescued a severely wounded company commander, assumed command himself and, with only three remaining guns, succeeded in bringing the enemy attack to a halt. After the African campaign he commanded the schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung 88 on the Eastern Front, later led the Panzer-Brigade 101 and finally the Panzer-Regiment 9, rising to the rank of Oberstleutnant der Reserve. At the end of the war he was captured by Soviet forces during the Prague Offensive, escaped after several weeks, reached American lines and surrendered. In the postwar years he pursued a successful career as an industrial manager, serving among other posts as Vorstandsvorsitzender of the Ruhr-Stickstoff Aktiengesellschaft until his retirement, and he died on 7 February 2010 in St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut, Austria, at the age of one hundred.



Major Karl-Heinz Noak (1916-1978) was a highly decorated officer in the Wehrmacht during World War II who later served as an Oberst in the Bundeswehr. Born in Berlin, he joined the Panzerabwehr-Abteilung 3 in October 1936 and was commissioned Leutnant in Panzerabwehr-Abteilung 4 by April 1939, later serving as Zugführer in the 2./Panzerjäger-Abteilung 46 of the 44. Infanterie-Division. He earned the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 5 August 1940 for extraordinary bravery and prudent leadership during the Battle of France, when his actions were crucial in securing a bridgehead across the Loire River at Beaugency using the still-intact bridge. Under the heaviest enemy fire, Noak advanced metre by metre with his Pak gun across the bridge, then launched a bold thrust on the opposite bank with a strong patrol, capturing a bitterly defending French company along with numerous machine guns, anti-tank guns, and a field gun—an achievement of decisive importance for operations on the southern bank in mid-June 1940. Transferred to the Eastern Front with the 137. Infanterie-Division, Noak, now Oberleutnant and Chef of the 1./Panzerjäger-Abteilung 137, received the Eichenlaub (63rd award) on 16 January 1942 for his outstanding leadership on 26–27 June 1941 near Białowieża. Tasked with blocking the sole Soviet retreat road through dense forests with his lead company from Pionier-Bataillon 137, reinforced by troops from Infanterie-Regiment 448, his unit faced the main Soviet withdrawal alone due to a positioning error. Acting as a lone wave breaker amid the flow of retreating forces, Noak's company held firm in intense combat through his exemplary command, preventing the enemy breakout and contributing significantly to the division's advance. He later commanded schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung 654, earning the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 6 January 1945, and survived the war to continue his military career in the postwar Bundeswehr until his death in Koblenz.



Oberleutnant Heinrich Ochs (1915-1943)  was born on 19 April 1915 in Ettlingen, Baden, and entered military service in 1937 with the Panzerabwehr-Abteilung 35, taking part in the French campaign before transfer at the end of 1940 to the 101. Jäger-Division, with which he fought on the Eastern Front from June 1941. He received the Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse on 1 September 1940, the Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse on 30 October 1941, the Allgemeines Sturmabzeichen on 11 April 1942, the Ostmedaille and the Verwundetenabzeichen culminating in gold on 28 May 1943. As Oberfeldwebel and Zugführer in the 1./Panzerjäger-Abteilung 101 of the 101. Jäger-Division he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 2 June 1943 for an action on 6 April 1943 near Krymskaja in the Kuban bridgehead: although formally a Panzerjäger, he independently mustered a handful of men from his Zug and some Jäger, then launched a three-hour close-combat counter-attack that drove a much larger Soviet force back two kilometres, recaptured a strongpoint on the railroad embankment and prevented the isolation of the Bataillon z.b.V. 500 as well as the outflanking of other Kampfgruppen. Promoted Leutnant, he continued to distinguish himself during the defensive battles of his division between Zaporozhye and Melitopol in the Wassiljewka–Michailowka sector in October 1943, where his divisional commander described him as one of his best young officers; for these accomplishments the Eichenlaub (360th award) was conferred posthumously on 30 December 1943. Ochs fell in action at Michailowka on 21 October 1943 and was posthumously promoted to Oberleutnant, his final rank.

Source :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panzerj%C3%A4ger

Bio of SS-Oberführer Georg Bochmann (1913-1973)

Full name: Georg Heinz Bochmann  
Nickname: Schorsch  

Date of birth: 18 September 1913 - Albernau, Sachsen (German Empire)
Date of death: 8 June 1973 - Offenbach am Main, Hesse (West Germany)
Buried on: German War Cemetery Offenbach. Plot: II. Row: 4. Grave: 11/12

Service number: SS-Nr.: 122.362 // NSDAP-Nr.: 1.907.565 
Religion: Gottgläubig (believe in God)  
Parents: Gustav Bochmann and Anna Bochmann
Siblings: The third child
Spouse: married on 14.07.1944
Children: no data available

Promotions:
00.00.1933: SS-Anwärter
24.05.1934: SS-Mann
09.11.1934: SS-Sturmmann
00.12.1934: SS-Rottenführer
25.01.1935: SS-Unterscharführer
20.04.1936: SS-Untersturmführer
20.04.1937: SS-Obersturmführer
25.08.1939: SS-Hauptsturmführer
20.04.1942: SS-Sturmbannführer
09.11.1943: SS-Obersturmbannführer
09.11.1944: SS-Standartenführer
20.04.1945: SS-Oberführer RDA 01.03.1945

Career:
01.10.1930-02.05.1933: Hitlerjugend
14.03.1933: joined the NSDAP
14.03.1933-24.05.1934: joined the SS - SS-Sturm 2/ IV/ 7
SS-Mann, SS-Sonderkommando 'Sachsen' - Konzentrationlager Sachsenburg
24.05.1934-01.11.1934: 3. Hundertschaft / Politischen Bereitschaft Abteilung 'Sachsen'
01.11.1934-25.01.1935: 2./ III./ SS-Totenkopfsturmbann 'Sachsen'
25.01.1935: 15. Hundertschaft / SS-Totenkopfsturmbann 'Sachsen'
10.08.1935-14.12.1935: SS-Scharführer, Zugführer-Lehrgang - 11. Hundertschaft - SS-Wachtruppe 'Oberbayern'
20.08.1935-31.12.1935: 11. Sturm / SS-Wachtruppe 'Oberbayern' - Dachau
31.12.1935: SS-Haupscharführer proposed to be promoted to SS-Untersturmführer
31.12.1935-00.04.1936: Zugführer, 15. Hundertschaft / SS-Wachtruppe 'Sachsen'
00.04.1936-01.05.1937: Führer, 15. Hundertschaft / SS-Totenkopfsturmbann 'Sachsen'
01.05.1937-10.07.1937: Führer, 3. Hundertschaft / SS-Sturmbann I 'Oberbayern'
10.07.1937-01.11.1939: Führer, 2. Hundertschaft / I. Sturmbann / 1. SS-Totenkopfstandarte 'Oberbayern'
01.11.1939-27.03.1941: Chef, 14./ SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 1, SS-Totenkopf-Division
01.11.1939-14.11.1939: Panzerjäger, Pak Lehrgang - Infanterie-Schule Doberitz
01.11.1939-27.03.1941: SS-Hstuf, Kdr, 14./ SS (Panzerjäger) SS-Totenkopf Infanterie Regiment 1, SS-Totenkopf Division
Campaign in France
26.08.1940-03.09.1940: Lehrgang - 31. Infanterie-Division
26.11.1940-29.11.1940: Lehrgang - AOK 7
16.02.1941-16.03.1941: Lehrgang für Bataillons- und Abteilungsführer - Königsbrück
27.03.1941-00.06.1941: Chef, 2./ SS-Panzerjäger-Bataillon 3, SS-Totenkopf-Division
Campaign in Russia - Baltic to Leningrad
08.07.1941: WIA
00.06.1941-21.10.1942: Kommandeur, Panzerjäger-Abteilung / SS-Division 'Totenkopf'
00.08.1941: Lake Ilmen
00.01.1942: Demjansk Cauldron - contracted malaria
17.01.1942: WIA
14.04.1942-22.04.1942: Führer der SS-„Totenkopf"-Kampfgruppe 'Bochmann' - Demjansk
20.04.1942: WIA
21.10.1942-01.08.1943: SS-Stubaf, Kdr., II. (Stoß-)Bataillon / SS-Totenkopf-Schützen-Regimentes (mot.) 'Thule'
00.02.1943: Kommandeur, II. Abteilung / SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 'Totenkopf'
09.03.1943: strong reconnaissance unit sent to Katschalowka
10.03.1943: capture of the village of Krassnokutsk
17.03.1943: capture of the forest 3km southeast of Ssorokowka and of the villages Saroshnoje and Tetlega
01.08.1943-01.11.1943: Kommandeur, SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 'Totenkopf'
01.11.1943: severely WIA
10.02.1944-15.11.1944: SS-Ostubaf, Kommandeur, SS-Wirtschafts-Verwaltungs-Führerschule Arolsen
15.11.1944-20.11.1944: 2. SS-Panzer Division "Das Reich"
20.11.1944-03.01.1945: Kdr., SS-Panzer Regiment 9, 9. SS-Panzer Division 'Hohenstaufen'
03.01.1945-27.03.1945: Kdr., 18. SS-Panzergrenadier Division 'Horst Wessel' - Poland
09.03.1945: North of Ratibor
14.03.1945: ivo Langlieben, Kreuzlinden and Oberglaugau
19.03.1945: Deutsch-Mühlen
20.03.1945: Deutsch-Rasselwitz, Stubendorf and Hotzenplotz
27.03.1945: came into conflict with Generaloberst Schörner, refusing to lead what he deemed to be a suicidal attack, and he was stripped of his command
30.03.1945-08.05.1945: SS-Oberführer, Kdr., 17. SS-Panzergrenadier Division 'Götz von Berlichingen' - Bavaria
09.05.1945: surrendered to US troops in the Rottach-Egern region

Awards and Decorations:
DRL Sportabzeichen in Bronze
SA-Sportabzeichen in Bronze
SS-Ehrenring (Totenkopfring)
Ehrendegen des Reichsführers-SS (13 September 1936. Other sources give 20.04.1937)
SS-Dienstauszeichnung 4.Stufe (4 Jahre)  (1938)
Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 13. März 1938 (1939)
Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938 (1939)
Medaille zur Erinnerung an die Heimkehr des Memellandes (1939)
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (20 June 1940)
Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen in Silber
Allgemeines-Sturmabzeichen (1941)
Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Schwarz (July 1941. WIA 08.07.1941)
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (8 July 1941)
Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Silber (April 1942. WIA 08.07.1941 + 17.01.1942 + 20.04.1942)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (3 May 1942) as SS-Hauptsturmführer and Kommandeur SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung "Totenkopf" / SS-Totenkopf-Division (or commander of a Kampfgruppe/Bataillon in the Demyansk Pocket).
In early 1942, the Totenkopf Division was trapped in the brutal Demyansk Pocket (southeast of Lake Ilmen, Soviet Union), where roughly 100,000 German troops endured a months-long Soviet encirclement amid savage winter fighting, supply shortages, and constant Red Army assaults. On 21 April 1942, Bochmann led his assault battalion in a fierce attack as part of Gruppe Eicke’s efforts to link up with relieving forces from Gruppe von Seydlitz.
The fighting for the village of Nowo-Ramuschewo was intense and close-quarters. Bochmann’s men stormed the village under his personal leadership at the front, displaying independent initiative and outstanding bravery. In brutal hand-to-hand combat with “blank weapons” (bayonets and close-range fire), they overpowered Soviet defenders, capturing the settlement by evening. The haul included 13 anti-tank guns (2.2 cm caliber) and 6 tractors, along with other materiel. This success enabled the first direct visual contact between the pocket’s defenders and the advancing relief spearheads west of the Lovat River, helping to stabilize the link-up and prevent the collapse of the sector.
The recommendation highlighted Bochmann’s “outstanding share in the success” through personal dedication and bold leadership in the savage fighting. The award recognized both his personal courage under fire and the tactical impact of securing this key position in one of the Eastern Front’s grueling defensive cauldrons.
Medaille "Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42" (Ostmedaille) (6 August 1942)
Demjanskschild (1943)
Mentioned in Wehrmachtbericht (19 March 1943)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #246 (17 May 1943) as SS-Sturmbannführer and Kommandeur II.Abteilung / SS-Kradschützen-Regiment “Thule” / SS-Panzergrenadier-Division "Totenkopf". These actions occurred during and immediately after the Third Battle of Kharkov (February–March 1943), a major German counteroffensive that recaptured the city and blunted a Soviet winter offensive. Bochmann’s motorized/motorcycle infantry battalion played a key role in aggressive reconnaissance, rapid assaults, and flank security amid fluid, high-intensity mobile warfare against numerically superior Soviet forces.
9 March 1943: From a security line at Schelstowo, Bochmann personally led an armed reconnaissance raid deep into enemy territory toward Katschalowka (about 13 km ahead of friendly lines). The surprise attack caught Soviet forces off guard, inflicting heavy casualties, capturing 4 operational trucks and a 7.62 cm anti-tank gun, and destroying several guns, vehicles, and sledges—all without friendly losses.
10 March 1943: His battalion received orders to seize Krassnokutsk quickly. Bochmann drove with the point platoon, gaining real-time intelligence on enemy dispositions. As darkness fell, instead of risking a costly night street fight, he orchestrated a coordinated multi-sided assault. Personally directing the attack, his troops achieved a swift and total victory, with the enemy suffering numerous dead, lost guns, anti-tank rifles, and large amounts of equipment.
17 March 1943: The battalion had a two-part mission—first to capture a forested area 3 km southeast of Ssorokowka, then to take the villages of Saroshnoje and Tetlega in coordination with another battalion. Bochmann demonstrated exceptional bravery and tactical flair: after infantry cleared initial positions, he surged forward in his SPW (armored half-track) with a platoon, sowing panic and causing the Soviets to flee the woods in disorder. Exploiting the momentum, he pressed on to Tetlega. Entering the bitterly defended village with his 5th Company, he quickly assessed the situation, rolled up enemy positions from the flank, and secured the northern part of the village in short order while linking up with southern attackers.
These rapid, skillful thrusts disrupted Soviet movements, inflicted disproportionate losses, and helped secure the Totenkopf Division’s flanks during critical phases of the Kharkov operations and follow-on fighting. The recommendation praised his personal leadership from the front, bold decision-making, and ability to turn situations decisively in Germany’s favor.
Verwundetenabzeichen in Gold (1943. WIA 08.07.1941 + 17.01.1942 + 20.04.1942 + 01.11.1943)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #140 (26 March 1945) as SS-Standartenführer and Führer 18.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzer-Grenadier-Division "Horst Wessel". Bochmann’s award recommendation reads as follows:
“As per orders from the Supreme Commander of Heeresgruppe Mitte, Pz. AOK 1 is recommending the award of the Oakleaves with Swords to the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross for Standartenführer Bochmann, commander of the 18. SS-Freiw.Pz.Gr.Div. ‘Horst Wessel’.
1. On the 08.03.1945 Standartenführer Bochmann personally rallied and reenergized an attack by combat elements of his Division that had stalled under heavy enemy fire in the battle area north of Ratibor.
2. On the 12.03.1945 he personally led a night attack under the most difficult of conditions that resulted in the capture of VW. Annahof.
3. On the 14.03.1945 he directed the defense of Langlieben, a cornerstone of the German defense in the area, against the onslaught of an enemy that far outnumbered his forces in men and weapons. He achieved this through his personally led and boldly executed counterthrusts, and throughout the whole battle he fought from the foremost line and served as the soul of resistance for the troops that had been gathered under his command.
4. During the particularly heavy combat on the 16.03.1945 it was once again his personal intervention in the foremost line that ensured that Kreuzlinden (southwest of Oberglogau) was held. This in turn created the necessary conditions for he planned evacuation of the Cosel bridgehead.
5. On the 19.03.1945 it was once again his inspiring powers of leadership that resulted in the village of Deutsch-Mühlen being held against all enemy tank and infantry attacks. In doing so he laid the groundwork for the breakthrough of both Divisionen during the evening.
6. During the breakthrough on the 19./20.03.1945 along the route Deutsch-Rasselwitz—Stubendorf—Hotzenplotz he once again proved to be a shining example of inspiring leadership. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that, having endured a not insignificant injury on the 14.03.1945, he continued to remain with and in command of his troops despite all the medical advice to the contrary.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Georg Bochmann was a German officer in the Waffen-SS who rose to the rank of SS-Oberführer during World War II. Born on 18 September 1913 in Albernau in the Erzgebirge region of Saxony, he came from a modest family of textile workers. After completing his education, including attendance at the University of Leipzig, Bochmann joined the Hitler Youth and later the Nazi Party in 1933. The following year he entered the SS-Totenkopfverbände with service number 122362, initially serving in guard units and at the Dachau concentration camp before transitioning to combat roles as the Waffen-SS expanded.

Bochmann's early military career was closely tied to the 3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf. He participated in the 1940 campaign in the West, where the division saw action around Cambrai, Arras, and Dunkirk. Transferred to the Eastern Front with Operation Barbarossa in 1941, he commanded elements of the division's Panzerjäger battalion and was wounded multiple times in heavy fighting near Lake Ilmen. By early 1942, during the brutal encirclement in the Demyansk Pocket, Bochmann led a Kampfgruppe consisting of infantry, anti-tank guns, assault guns, and escort troops. In savage close-quarters combat amid freezing conditions and relentless Soviet assaults, his assault battalion stormed key positions such as the village of Nowo-Ramuschewo. Fighting with bayonets and grenades in hand-to-hand engagements, his men overpowered Soviet defenders, captured numerous anti-tank guns and vehicles, and helped establish contact between the trapped forces and relieving columns from outside the pocket. For this leadership and personal bravery under extreme conditions, Bochmann was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 May 1942.

Following his recovery and promotion, Bochmann continued to distinguish himself in mobile operations with motorized and motorcycle infantry units of the Totenkopf Division. During the German counteroffensive in the Third Battle of Kharkov in March 1943, he commanded the II Battalion of the SS-Kradschützen-Regiment Thule. In a series of bold reconnaissance raids and rapid assaults, his troops struck deep into Soviet lines, disrupting enemy movements and inflicting heavy casualties. On one occasion he personally led an armed probe 13 kilometers ahead of friendly positions, surprising Soviet forces and capturing trucks and an anti-tank gun without losses. In night fighting around Krassnokutsk and subsequent village assaults near Tetlega, Bochmann directed coordinated attacks from the front, using armored half-tracks to sow panic and roll up enemy flanks in bitter street and forest combat. These actions contributed significantly to stabilizing German lines and recapturing Kharkov, earning him the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross as the 246th recipient on 17 May 1943.

As the war intensified, Bochmann held various command positions, including leadership of armored units within the Totenkopf Division through the Battle of Kursk and subsequent defensive battles along the Mius River. He later served with other formations, including brief associations with divisions such as Das Reich and Hohenstaufen. By January 1945 he took command of the 18th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Horst Wessel in Poland, where the unit engaged in fierce rearguard actions against overwhelming Soviet advances. In desperate fighting north of Ratibor in Silesia, despite being wounded, Bochmann organized successful breakout operations and counterattacks that inflicted notable losses on pursuing enemy forces amid fuel shortages and collapsing supply lines. For his sustained command effectiveness and personal courage in these final defensive struggles on the Eastern Front, he received the Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves as the 140th recipient on 26 March 1945 and was promoted to SS-Oberführer.

In the last weeks of the war Bochmann assumed command of the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division Götz von Berlichingen in southern Germany and Bavaria. The division, already depleted from earlier campaigns in Normandy, the Ardennes, and Operation Nordwind, conducted tenacious delaying actions around Nuremberg and in Niederbayern as American and other Allied forces closed in. Elements under his overall direction were involved in the unusual Battle of Castle Itter in Austria, an engagement marked by rare cooperation between Wehrmacht defenders, American troops, and French VIP prisoners against attacking SS forces. On 9 May 1945 Bochmann surrendered part of his division to American forces near Rottach-Egern in Bavaria. He survived the war, evaded major prosecution during denazification, and lived quietly in West Germany despite suffering long-term effects from malaria contracted on the Eastern Front.

Georg Bochmann died of heart failure on 8 June 1973 at the age of 59 in Offenbach am Main, Hesse. His funeral in the Frankfurt area was attended by several former high-ranking Waffen-SS comrades. Throughout his career he was noted for aggressive leadership from the front, multiple wounds that earned him the Wound Badge in Gold, and a progression from battalion-level assaults in encircled pockets to divisional command in the war's final chaotic months. His decorations placed him among the most highly recognized officers in the Waffen-SS for combat leadership on both the Eastern and Western fronts.

Source :
http://www.2kompanie.org/georg-bochmann.html
https://charkow-43.ucoz.ru/photo/personalii/georg_bochmann/72
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/personenregister/b/bochmanng.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/georg_bochmann
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/28509/bochmann-georg-heinz-schorsch-waffen-ss.htm
https://rk.balsi.de/
https://www.unithistories.com/
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
https://www.geni.com/

Bio of SS-Sturmbannführer Adolf Pittschellis (1914-1945)

Adolf Hans Pittschellis

Date of Birth: 28.10.1914 - Homberg, Hesse-Nassau (German Empire)
Date of Death: 26.01.1945 - Vereb, Fejér (Hungary)
Buried: Deutsche Kriegsgräberstätte Veszprém (Plot: 5. Row: 20. Grave: 558)

NSDAP Number: 1 492 016 (04.11.1932)
SS Number: 52 819 (04.11.1932)

Promotions:
04.11.1932 SS-Anwärter
18.03.1933 SS-Mann
09.07.1934 SS-Sturmmann
15.10.1934 SS-Rottenführer
01.10.1936 SS-Scharführer
16.02.1937 SS-Hauptscharführer
20.04.1937 SS-Untersturmführer
09.11.1938 SS-Obersturmführer
09.11.1940 SS-Hauptsturmführer (Waffen-SS)
09.11.1943 SS-Sturmbannführer (Waffen-SS )

Career:
04.11.1932 Allgemeine SS
04.11.1932 NSDAP
00.00.1936 SS-Junkerschule Braunschweig
00.00.1938 SS-Totenkopf-Standarte 3 in Thüringen
00.05.1940 Chef 1.Batterie / SS-Artillerie-Regiment 3 "Totenkopf"
00.10.1941 Kommandeur IV.Abteilung (Schwere) / SS-Artillerie-Regiment 3 "Totenkopf"
00.00.1942 - 00.00.1943 7.Batterie / III.Abteilung / SS-Artillerie-Regiment 3 "Totenkopf"
00.01.1944 - 00.00.1944 Kommandeur SS-Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf"
00.00.1944 - 04.01.1945 Kommandeur SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf"
04.01.1945 - 26.01.1945 Kommandeur SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf"

Awards and Decorations:
00.00.1929 HJ-Ehrenzeichen
00.02.1934 Ehrenwinkel der Alten Kämpfer
00.00.1936 SS-Dienstauszeichnung IV.Stufe (4 Jahre)
00.00.193_ SS-Ehrenring
01.12.1937 DRL Sportabzeichen in Bronze
01.12.1937 SA-Sportabzeichen in Bronze
01.12.1937 Ehrendegen des Reichsführers-SS
26.01.1939 Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938
26.10.1939 Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 13. März 1938
31.05.1940 Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse
16.07.1941 Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse
20.12.1941 Allgemeines-Sturmabzeichen
00.00.1942 Dienstauszeichnung der NSDAP 10 Jahre
12.07.1942 Medaille "Winterschlacht im Osten 1941/42" (Ostmedaille)
23.10.1942 Deutsches Kreuz in Gold
31.08.1943 Verwundetenabzeichen in Gold
31.12.1943 Demjankschild
00.00.194_ Nahkampfspange in Bronze
23.08.1944 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, as SS-Sturmbannführer and Kommandeur SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf". Pittschellis’s Ritterkreuz recommendation reads as follows: “On the 19.07.1944 SS-Sturmbannführer Pittschellis received the order to assemble a force from his 7 available Sturmgeschützen and 2 Infanterie-Kompanien from the assembly area at Kielbaski. With this force he was to block the supply bridges over the Niemen that were supporting the enemy forces on the west side of the river and push the enemy towards the northwest. Despite heavy enemy pressure and a desperate defense, Sturmbannführer Pittschellis succeeded in fighting his way northwards from the Kielbaski area, and he used an Infanterie-Kompanie to block the supply bridge leading to the enemy forces that had infiltrated onto the west bank of the Niemen. In all this time he showed great battlefield skill. In spite of the darkness that had by now set in, Pittschellis decided to continue attacking towards the northwest towards Sopockinie on his own initiative with 7 Sturmgeschützen and an Infanterie-Kompanie. In a critical situation, and while operating in extremely difficult terrain conditions, Pittschellis inspired his weary soldiers forwards with his own outstanding example and fearless attacking spirit. He and his troops crushed a strong enemy Pakfront and threw back the enemy from the commanding heights on the eastern village edge southeast of Spockinie. At 00:30 they reported that the village was in friendly hands. With this the enemy forces that had fought their way to the west (in strength of 3 Guards cavalry divisions and 2 rifle divisions) were cut off from their rearward connections, and a further influx of enemy forces operating in the direction of Augustow was prevented. In the process numerous weapons and other war materiel was captured. I hold SS-Sturmbannführer Pittschellis as one who is worthy of being awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for his heroic devotion to duty and his decisive success.”

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the beginning of the 20th century, three family members of the Pittschellis family gradually came to Homberg from East Prussia. Ernst, Adolf's father, started things off. He came to Homberg at the end of the first decade of the 20th century. The Pittschellis in turn founded families here and also had their children in northern Hesse.

Adolf was the son of the cutter Ernst Franz Pittschellis (born February 25, 1886 in Groß Klingbeck, Heiligenbeil district) and his wife Martha Elisabeth, née Schlott, who married on April 15, 1911 in Homberg (born December 12, 1884 in Homberg). His grandparents were the court master Heinrich Pittschellis and Maria (Marie), née Klotzky (both of whom died when their parents married in Groß Klingbeck) as well as the master butcher Kraft Schlott and Marie Mathilde Friederike, née Breithut. He had several uncles and aunts, including Anna Auguste Blümke, née Pittschellis (1893–1956).

The Pittschellis brothers, Adolf and Ernst, were, like their father, committed National Socialists. The boys were in the Hitler Youth and joined the SS at the first opportunity. Ernst Junior survived the war and captivity, founded a butcher's shop in Bad Arolsen in 1950 (his son Reinhard Pittschellis took over in 1976, grandson Oliver Pittschellis has run the family business since January 1, 2000) and preserved the family history (including family registers) which continues by his daughter, Charlotte Brinkmann, née Pittschellis, who unfortunately commit suicide with her husband Klaus on January 22, 2015. In her last will, she gave the family history to the student council, where she has been a teacher at the Federal President Theodor Heuss School in Homberg/Efze since 2001 for the subjects of art, history, geography and Politics and economics, and also to historian and author Thomas Schattner (1964 in Wabern, in the Schwalm-Eder district, Hesse), who published it as a book in 2016.

Adolf Pittschellis fell at the head of his regiment on January 26, 1945 in Vereb in the Stuhlweiß district during the third relief attempt at the Battle of Budapest. The operation with the code name "Konrad 3" (January 12 to 27, 1945) was based in the Stuhlweißenburg area. He left behind his wife, whom he had married on May 26, 1939 in Meringhausen, and at least one child.

He rests in the war cemetery in Weißbrunn (Veszprem); Final grave location: Block 5, row 20, grave 558.

Adolf Pittschellis from Homberg as SS-Junker. Thomas Schattner photo collection.



Photograph of the Pittschellis family in the 1930s, at which time son Ernst (right) and Adolf (the latter Ritterkreuzträger) was already joined the SS. Father Ernst Franz Pittschellis was born on 25 February 1886 in Groß Klingbeck, Heiligenbeil district, and married with Martha Elisabeth Schlott (born 12 December 1884 in Homberg) on 15 April 1911 in Homberg. Ernst Senior was most recently a member of the Volkssturm and fell in the final battle for Germany when he died of his war wounds on 10 April 1945 in the Nordschule reserve hospital in Hersfeld, southeast of Homberg. More about Adolf Pittschellis family can be seen HERE.



Portrait of young Adolf Pittschellis, possibly in his SA-Sportabzeichen urkunde (document).

Rare picture of Adolf Pittschellis smiling, here as an SS-Scharführer (promoted 1 October 1936).

Adolf Pittschellis as SS-Untersturmführer (promoted 20 April 1937).



Adolf Pittschellis as SS-Obersturmführer (promoted 9 November 1938).



SS-Totenkopf-Artillerie-Regiment training in France in the late summer or early autumn 1940. Standing in the middle is probably SS-Sturmbannführer Dr.jur. Eduard Deisenhofer (Kommandeur I.Bataillon / SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 1), while the officer holding stick at right is SS-Obersturmführer Adolf Pittschellis (Chef 1.Batterie / SS-Totenkopf-Artillerie-Regiment). Other pictures from this sequence can be seen HERE.



SS-Hauptsturmführer Adolf Pittschellis with his wife and daughter.



SS-Sturmbannführer Adolf Pittschellis after he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 23 August 1944 as Kommandeur of SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf". Divisionskommandeur Karl Ullrich nominated him for the bravery medal on 25 July 1944 for an extraordinary feat of arms on the Eastern Front.



SS-Sturmbannführer Adolf Pittschellis and comrades.



Polish Front, January 1945: While holding a wolchowstock (the walking stick for German officers and non-commissioned officers typical of the Eastern Front), SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS Herbert Otto Gille (Kommandierender General IV. SS-Panzerkorps) chatted with SS- Brigadeführer und Generalmajor der Waffen-SS Hellmuth Becker (Kommandeur 3. SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf") who was under his command. Far left behind Gille is SS-Sturmbannführer Adolf Pittschellis (Führer SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 / 3.SS-Panzer-Division "Totenkopf") who would later be killed in battle on January 26, 1945, just a few days after this photo was taken! BTW, the Ärmelstreifen (cufftitle) attached to Becker's arm is different from the ärmelstreifen commonly worn by other Totenkopf Division personnel. The ärmelstreifen bearing the skull was a sign that the wearer was a former member of the SS-Totenkopfstandard "Oberbayern" in Dachau, and they were allowed to keep it on their arm even after moving to another unit as a form of pride in their old unit.

The last picture of SS-Sturmbannführer Adolf Pittschellis, in black Panzer uniform with all his awards, during his brief command of SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 "Totenkopf" in January 1945. The original was sent to his family by the photographer (which unfortunately unknown) after the war concluded. Mark C. Yerger photo collection.

The grave of Adolf Pittschellis at Deutsche Kriegsgräberstätte Veszprém (Weißbrunn), Plot: 5. Row: 20. Grave: 558. He fell at the head of his regiment (SS-Panzer-Regiment 3 "Totenkopf") on January 26, 1945 in Vereb in the Stuhlweiß district during the third relief attempt at the Battle of Budapest. The operation with the code name "Konrad 3" (January 12 to 27, 1945) was based in the Stuhlweißenburg area. He left behind his wife, whom he had married on May 26, 1939 in Meringhausen, and at least one child. Veszprém Communal Cemetery itself contains a German plot with 4,110 graves from the Second World War. Of these, 1500 were buried here during the Second World War. The other graves were brought here from the surroundings.



Pittschellis family in the book by Thomas Schattner: "Die Familie Pittschellis: Geschichten aus Homberg/Efze zur Zeit des Nationalsozialismus". From the author: The Pittschellis family members originally came from East Prussia. Ernst, Berta and Anna Auguste were born there at the end of the 19th century. Other family members remained in East Prussia. At the beginning of the 20th century, three family members gradually came to Homberg. Ernst was the first. He came to Homberg at the end of the first decade of the 20th century. The Pittschellis in turn founded families here and also had their children in northern Hesse. These were born between 1912 and 1920. The Pittschellis children experienced the National Socialist era as teenagers and young adults. Their biographies have had an impact up to the present day. On February 13, 2015, I received a letter from a lawyer for SOS Children's Villages in Munich with completely frightening news. Klaus and Charlotte Brinkmann from Bad Arolsen were no longer alive. They died on January 22, 2015, according to the contents of the letter. It also emerged from this that the two of them had left me a suitcase. A little later, contact was made with the couple's estate administrator. During conversations and phone calls, it quickly became clear that the two had left their lives voluntarily. Charlotte's family history probably played a major role in this suicide, because, firstly, none of Klaus and Charlotte's families wanted to attend her funeral. Only her executor and the author expressed interest in it. And when I was handed the suitcase in February and was able to open it, the contents spoke volumes. Secondly, this consisted of the two's Nazi library plus the family archive of Charlotte's ancestors including family books. I understood this legacy in such a way that I should publish about Charlotte's ancestors, from which the present book emerged. From the archive materials inherited from Klaus and Charlotte Brinkmann, who lived in Bad Arolsen until the beginning of the year (they had material from very different archives. Charlotte's ancestors were collected from the Federal Archives, the former Berlin Document Center, the Bad Arols City Archives, etc.) and three biographies could be developed in detail. These are the biographies of Ernst Senior (Charlotte's grandfather) and his sons Ernst Junior (Charlotte's father) and Adolf (Charlotte's uncle). These three not only came to terms with the National Socialists, but were deeply involved in them. Both sons had great careers in the SS. Ernst Senior and Adolf lost their lives at the end of the Second World War as convinced National Socialists. The biography of Ruth Pittschellis (Charlotte's aunt), a cousin of Ernst Junior and Adolf, was also added. This biography shows that members of the Pittschelli family, despite their sympathy for National Socialism, were always able to evade it to a certain extent. You can order the book HERE.

Adolf Pittschellis as a cover in the book "Totenkopf: The Structure, Development and Personalities of the 3.SS-Panzer-Division: Volume 2" by Mark C. Yerger and Ignacio Arrondo. In "Totenkopf" volume II Mark C. Yerger begins with a lengthy chapter on the SS officer and Waffen-SS combat arms schools. Especially relevant to the earliest divisions, many "Totenkopf" officers were trained by this system with divisional veterans found serving with their ever-changing faculties. Starting with the prewar Junkerschulen and their expansion, both the wartime created academies are included. Overlooked despite their significance, the arms schools that produced SS officers among their variety of specialist training programs from mid-1942 to nearly the end of hostilities are detailed. Facilities examined include the SS-Pionierschule "Hradsichko," SS-Panzergrenadierschule "Kienschlag," SS-Artillerieschule II, SS-Nachrichtenschule, and the assault gun school in Bukowan that became the SS-Panzerjäger(Sturmgeschütz)Schule "Janowitz." The final 53 German Cross in Gold recipients are examined next with unpublished details for all ranks. Among them are men also awarded the Knight's Cross, material being included from the personal photo albums of two such officer recipients with dozens of other new images along with over 30 proposal texts relating the combats resulting in these decorations. A chapter examines those entered in the Roll of Honor (later Honor Clasp holders), including narratives resulting in that distinction. With the most of any Waffen-SS division, the 33 Close Combat Clasp in Gold holders are detailed. A lengthy chapter on the formation preparing for Russia opens with text details on its essential but often overlooked support units. The March-April 1941 transfers and final component are added, in total showing all divisional command and staff personnel. Men found elsewhere are noted, with priority service specifics given for nearly 250 more officers of the division. That data includes specifics of officer school graduates, reflecting on the stated significance of the opening chapter. Rather than faceless statistics, the massive casualties in 1941-1942 that comprised individuals becomes humanly grasped as was the continued tenacity of the division in Demjansk despite those losses. Order of Battle charts are compared to actual composition of the division. An addendum adds to volume I with an index for the nearly 800 personnel within this volume. Lavishly illustrated with primarily unpublished photographs in larger size, other images that have been seen were traced to original prints and negatives for previously unseen reproductive clarity. Appendix, glossary and bibliography. 367 pages, 230 illustrations. You can order the book HERE.

Source :
Mark C. Yerger photo collection
Thomas Schattner photo collection
http://www.2kompanie.org/adolf-pittschellis.html
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2016/02/foto-hellmuth-becker.html
https://de.metapedia.org/wiki/Pittschellis,_Adolf
https://www.dws-xip.com/reich/biografie/52819.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=120230&hilit=pittschellis
https://www.muzej-nz.si/en/collections/fotographic-collections/927-The-German-Italian-Collection-1939-1945
https://reibert.info/media/adolf-pittschellis-jpg.356091/
https://www.seknews.de/2017/06/05/taeter-und-opferbiographien-in-norhessen/adolf-pitschellis-170605a/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/13772/Pittschellis-Adolf-Hans-Waffen-SS.htm
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/forum/wehrmacht-era-militaria/photos-and-paper-items-forum/658969-some-nice-photos-allgemeine-ss-waffen-ss#post5521213
https://ww2gravestone.com/people/pittschellis-adolf-hans/

Rudolf Bittner in Color

Unteroffizier Rudolf Bittner wearing a Sturmartillerie uniform, better known as StuG-wrap. Bittner (18 December 1921 - 21 January 1945) received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 28 November 1942 as Gefreiter and Richtkanonier in 2.Kompanie / Panzerjäger-Abteilung 561. He would later became a commander of Panzerjäger Marder.

Source :
http://alifrafikkhan.blogspot.com/2011/07/album-foto-berwarna-perwira-dan.html

Bio of Leutnant Johann Straub (1912-1996)

Johann Straub

Date of birth: June 6th, 1912 (Oberglashütte/Baden, Germany)
Date of death: July 12th, 1996 (Frickenhausen/Baden-Württemberg, Germany)

Promotions:
01.01.1943 Leutnant

Career:
00.00.19__ 3.Kompanie / Panzerjäger-Abteilung 7
00.00.19__ Panzerjäger-Ersatz-Abteilung 7
00.01.1944 Panzerjäger-Abteilung 7
00.10.1944 Panzerjäger-Ersatz-Abteilung 7

Awards and Decorations:
00.00.194_ Eisernes Kreuz II.Klasse
00.00.194_ Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse
00.00.194_ Allgemeines-Sturmabzeichen
00.00.194_ Verwundetenabzeichen in Silber
23.05.1944 Deutsches Kreuz in Gold
12.08.1944 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, as Leutnant and Zugführer / Panzerjäger-Abteilung 7 / 7.Infanterie-Division

Note:
This Warrior was a "Panzer Ace" who never commanded a Tiger or Panther tank. He was the platoon leader of an anti-tank battalion who commanded the Stug IV mobile assault gun that had no turret and lacked the fire power and thick armor of the heavy Panzer tanks. It took considerable skill and daring to knock out Russian tanks with the Stug IV assault gun. Johann Straub chose not to transfer to a Panzer Division (as successful Stug commanders often did), staying with his 7th Infantry Division. He survived the war and captivity and later joined the West German Bundeswehr with the last rank as a Major der Reserve. During World War II, he is credited with 18 tank kills.

Leutnant Johann Straub (6 June 1912 - 12 July 1996) is proud of his achievement and shows it off via the kill rings on his Geschütz (assault gun). He distinguished himself during the battle against the heavy Soviet offensive in the summer of 1944 and was awarded the Ritterkreuz (Knight's Cross) in 12 August 1944. He is the Zugführer (platoon leader) of 2.Kompanie (called Stu.Gesch.Abt.1007) / Panzerjäger-Abteilung 7 (7th Anti-Tank Battalion) / 7.Infanterie-Division. This photo was taken in that summer, between Pinsk and the River Bug

Source :
Jim Haley photo collection
Magazine "Achtung Panzer" No.5, Sturmgeschütz III, StuG.IV & SIG.33
https://www.facebook.com/groups/152986901863424
http://panzermaenner.blogspot.com/2016/01/leutnant-johann-straub-is-proud-of-his.html
http://www.ritterkreuztraeger.info/rk/s.html
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/19267/Straub-Johann-Panzerj%C3%A4ger-Abteilung-7.htm
https://www.valka.cz/Straub-Johann-t215886
https://www.wolfganghistorica.com/product/johann-straub-panzerjager-abteilung-7-sturmgeschutz-abteilung-1007/

Bio of Oberst Rudolf Lang (1898-1968)

Rudolf Heinrich Lang
*25.10.1898 Neustadt / Donau
+27.07.1969 Murnau

Vater: Heinrich Lang, Steueramtmann
Mutter: Maria Lang, geb. Nirschl
30.06.1928 Heirat mit Klothilde Fronhofer
2 Söhne (*1931/1935) [another son died at birth in 1929]

Promotions:
20.03.1918 Leutnant mit Patent vom 16.03.1918 (17)
01.05.1925 Polizei-Oberleutnant
01.04.1933 Polizei-Hauptmann
01.08.1935 Hauptmann mit RDA vom 01.05.1933 (2a)
18.01.1937 Major mit RDA vom 01.01.1937 (61)
01.06.1940 Oberstleutnant (36)
17.12.1941 neues RDA vom 01.04.1939 (13a) erhalten
01.02.1942 Oberst (75)

Career:
19.10.1916 Eintrtt in das Ersatzbataillon des [bayerischen] Infanterieregiments 22
23.07.1917 in der 4. (MG) / Infanterieregiment 22
20.03.1918 Zugführer in der 4. (MG) / Infanterieregiment 22
17.08.1918 Kompanieführer
23.08.1918 Ordonnanzoffizier im Stab des I. / Infanterieregiment 22
08.11.1918 Bataillonsadjutant
09.09.1919 Adjutant beim Stab des II. [bayerischen] Armeekorps
02.10.1919 bei der Abwicklungsstelle des Infanterieregiments 22
03.01.1920 Adjutant der Abwicklungsstelle
07.02.1920 in der Nachrichtenabteilung 23
30.09.1920 Übertritt zur bayerischen Landespolizei in die Polizeiabteilung Oberpfalz
09.10.1922 bei der Landespolizei Regensburg
30.04.1930 Führer der Fahrzeugabteilung der Kraftwagenwerkstatt Nürnberg
01.06.1932 Führer der Kraftfahrabteilung der Schutzpolizei Regensburg
01.10.1933 Chef der Sonderwagenstaffel bei der Landespolizei München
22.03.1935 Chef der 14. / Landespolizeiabteilung München
01.08.1935 Übertritt ins Heer
15.10.1935 Chef der 14. (PzAbw) / Gebirgsjägerregiment 99 (Augsburg)
10.11.1938 Kommandeur der Panzerabwehrabteilung 44 (München)
25.03.1942 mit der Führung des Gebirgsjägerregiments 99 beauftragt
10.04.1942 kommandiert zur Panzertruppenschule
15.05.1942 Kommandeur des Schützenregiments 69
01.07.1943 Führerreserve OKH (VII)
06.08.1943 Führerreserve Heeresgruppe Mitte
09.08.1943 Kommandeur des Panzergrenadierregiments 101
01.11.1943 Führerreserve OKH (VII)
16.11.1943 kommandiert zum 8. Divisionsführerlehrgang (bis 14.12.1943)
05.01.1944 mit der Führung der 3. Panzerdivision beauftragt
25.05.1944 Führerreserve OKH (VII)
15.08.1944 Kommandant von Marienburg
24.11.1944 Führerreserve OKH (VII)

Awards and Decorations:
15.11.1917 EK II
04.08.1918 Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz
01.10.1918 Bayerischer Militärverdienstorden 4. Klasse mit Schwertern
06.08.1919 EK I [?]
16.01.1924 Deutsches Turn- und Sportabzeichen in Bronze
01.12.1934 Ehrenkreuz für Frontkämpfer
02.10.1936 Dienstauszeichnung IV. bis II. Klasse
31.10.1939 Spange zum EK II
18.06.1940 Spange zum EK I
16.01.1941 Sturmabzeichen
23.08.1941 Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, as Oberstleutnant and Kommandeur Gebirgs-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 44 / 1.Gebirgs-Division
01.11.1941 Offizierskreuz mit Schwertern des Ordens Stern von Rumänien
xx.xx.1942 Kroatischer Kriegsorden der Krone des Königs Zvonimir I. Klasse mit Schwertern
28.07.1942 Order of the Star of Romania in the grade of officer with swords on the ribbon of the Cross for Military Virtue
11.08.1942 Ostmedaille
13.04.1943 Großoffizierskreuz von Tunesien
12.07.1943 Italienische Tapferkeitsmedaille in Silber
02.12.1943 Ärmelband Afrika

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Oberst Lang was probably the best known Oberst in the German army for a brief while. He wrote a two-part account of his combat experience in North Africa, which you can obtain at http://www.fold3.com: Oberst Rudolf Lang, “Battles of Kampfgruppe Lang in Tunisia (10. Pz.Div.) December 1942 to 15 April 1943, Part I” MS # D-173, not dated, National Archives. Oberst Rudolf Lang, “Report of the Fighting of Kampfgruppe Lang (10. Pz.Div.) in Tunisia from December 1942 to 15 April 1943,” MS # D-166, 6 June 1947, National Archives.

From the book "Fighting Patton" by Harry Yelde:
Rudolf Lang, 10. Panzer-Division, at that moment was in command of a Kampfgruppe attached to the 334. Infanterie-Division opposite the British to the north near Ksar Mezouar. Lang’s command was a small but powerful force including the regimental staff and I. Bataillon/Panzergrenadier-Regiment 69; I. Bataillon/Panzergrenadier-Regiment 86; a battalion of the 21. Panzer-Division’s Regiment 104; the Marsch-Bataillon 26 [March Battalion, Separate Infantry Battalion]; Kampfstaffel Rommel; an Italian infantry battalion and artillery battery; a 15cm field artillery battery from the Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment 90; a battery of 17cm guns; two batteries of 8,8; an antitank company; and the Tiger tanks of the 501st and some from the 504th Heavy Tank battalions.

Lang, a trim, bespectacled Bavarian, was born on 25 October 1898 in Neustadt an der Donau. He was a brave man, and he had been awarded the Knight’s Cross in the Caucasus while commanding the 44th Antitank Battalion, part of the 1. Gebirgs-Division. He probably became available for service elsewhere (namely Africa) because, try as it might, the mountain division had been unable to get its antitank guns through the mountain passes where it was fighting. The night of 22 March, Lang received orders to travel to the headquarters of Heeresgruppe Afrika south of Sousse and to report to Arnim personally to receive a new assignment. Arnim already knew Lang well and had personally witnessed the colonel’s tactical brilliance in the fighting against British and American forces at Longstop Hill in December. After a bitter and complex seesaw battle across the strategic heights near Medjez el Bab, Lang had personally led the main strike force in a counterattack on Christmas Day that had firmly established German control over the feature.

Arnim had summoned Lang because it appeared that the Italian defenses had collapsed before Patton’s northern thrust that day near Sened. The deployment of German combat echelons from the headquarters of Italian First Army could not stop the Americans, and the Axis line to the north of Sened was cut off and out of contact, along with four Italian infantry battalions. Arnim was painfully aware that “mobile American elements”—the 1st Armored Division—had reached Maknassy on 22 March and were poised to achieve a breakthrough to the coastal plain.

The very survival of Italian First Army was at stake. Only thirty-four miles separated American troops from the sea.

The morning of 23 March, Oberst Lang reported to Arnim. The Americans were threatening the rear of First Army, the general told him, and Brigadier Imperiali, commanding the Italian troops cut off by the attack, had fallen out of communication. Lang was to head to the crucial pass through the Eastern Dorsal near Maknassy to deal with the situation. He was nominally under the command of Imperiali, but Arnim made clear that the responsibility was his.

Lang set off, and his efforts to track down the Italian general proved fruitless. Italian troops were streaming to the rear in confusion. Lang found some energetic young officers from a German 8,8 cm Flak battalion and ordered them to see that not another additional man or vehicle fled eastward.

Lang proceeded toward the pass. American artillery crashed about his car, and he abandoned the vehicle and proceeded on foot, dripping with sweat, with only his adjutant. The pass was still in Axis hands, defended mainly by eighty men from Kampfstaffel Rommel’s Begleitkompanie (bodyguard company) under the command of Major Franz Medicus. The major had one 8,8cm gun and one antitank gun with which to hold off the 1st Armored Division. The detachment had already been fiercely engaged. The American tanks, thankfully, had run into a minefield. The enemy infantry had overrun one position, and the pass had seemed lost until the reserve—a mere half platoon of engineers and a few communicators—had counterattacked and chased the Americans off. A second breakthrough was stopped only after hand-to-hand fighting, and a third when a sergeant had jumped to man the antitank gun after the crew had fallen and fired into the American ranks. Medicus and his band were exhausted.
Lang ordered the men to hold a while longer and assured them that help was on the way. The man was in his element, a trained mountain fighter, who knew how to use high-velocity guns in such terrain, and who had to hold a pass. He turned back, found the flak officers, who had rounded up a considerable number of Italians, and organized a straggler line. He ordered two batteries of 8,8cms forward to provide antitank defense.

Vaerst, meanwhile, sent four infantry battalions supported by artillery toward the pass, plus fifteen Tiger tanks and two battalions of 8,8cm guns, all but the last of which already belonged to Lang’s own Kampfgruppe.

The first troops to join Lang were his two battalions from the Panzergrenadier regiments 69 and 86. Both battalions had already proved themselves in offensive and defensive operations. Lang sent Major Friedrich-Wilhelm Buschhausen’s 1st Battalion, Panzergrenadiers 69, to join Medicus in the pass and ordered Hauptmann Haut’s 1st Battalion, Panzergrenadiers 86, to form a line to the north of the pass as far as Wadi el Leben, a streambed that when dry provided a rough passage through the mountain chain. He radioed Arnim that the pass was still in friendly hands. Judging by American reports of battalion-sized enemy reinforcements appearing, these reinforcements entered the battle about 1800 hours.

Lang finally tracked down Imperiali, who as it turned out had been at the front under fire trying to rally his men. The arrival of two experienced German battalions stiffened the line, and by dusk the Axis troops had repulsed five American attacks.
Vaerst recalled:

[The arriving troops and] vigorous leadership of a regimental commander [Lang] stopped the enemy, who by this time was much superior in force. The fighting here developed along the lines of mobile warfare and was marked by frequent shifts in the tide of battle. In some places, the Kampfgruppe was attacking, but as a rule it was on the defensive, even with its tanks. Numerous enemy tanks were knocked out without our suffering any losses to speak of.
The enemy artillery fire was powerful and accurate. The Stuka Staffel intervened in the defensive action successfully—this probably being the last time aircraft took part in ground fighting in Africa. . . .
In constituting this Kampfgruppe, the Fifth Panzer Army used up its last reserves and weakened its western front by withdrawal of troops there. From this point on, Fifth Panzer Army had no freedom of maneuver.

The arrival of additional Tigers from the 501st Heavy Tank Battalion and Lang’s battery of 170mm guns, which could fire shells to a range of 27 kilometers, greatly aided Lang’s efforts. Kampfstaffel Rommel’s reconnaissance battalion arrived and set up to protect the north flank at Wadi el Leben. A “Tunisia Battalion”—a march battalion with no supporting heavy weapons—settled in on Lang’s left wing. As Vaerst indicated, a nearby airbase provided support from Stukas on request.

******************

Lang’s Kampfgruppe had become the centerpiece of the German effort to keep Patton trapped in front of the Eastern Dorsal range. American attacks all but ceased on 29 March, just as German ammunition was running out and one last hard bash would have broken through. The Tigers were sent to help the hard-pressed Division "Hermann Göring" farther north, and some of the 10th Panzer Division’s own tanks replaced them. Arnim transmitted his praise, and von Vaerst personally congratulated Lang. Kesselring paid him the high honor of visiting his command post. “All the credit for making it possible for the troops on the southern sector to fight without being threatened from the flanks or rear belongs to Oberst Lang,” recalled Kesselring. OKW noted Lang’s deeds in its war diary. Even the enemy knew he was important: intelligence officers at 18th Army Group knew his name and the approximate location of his headquarters.

Lang's career seemed on track until he was mFb 3. Panzerdivision in early 1944. Then Kirchner and Bayerlein intervened and wrote to Guderian, declaring Lang unfit for command. Bayerlein even made him responsible for the defeat in Tunisia. Schmundt agreed, and after a short stint as Kommandant von Marienburg, Lang disappeared in the Führerreserve, never to be reassigned or even promoted.

Translation of Bayerlein's comment:
"Based on my knowledge of his performance in Tunisia and in the East, I consider Oberst L. as unfit to command the 3. PzDiv. His lack of understanding for the Panzerwaffe in Tunisia led to a disaster among the subordinated tanks. The troops gave him the sobriquet of Panzer-Killer because his faulty deployment caused the loss of numerous tanks, particularly Tigers."

Oberst Lang lost seven Tigers in "Ochsenkopf" (and got several more badly damaged). The summarise of the events that Bayerlein was apparently referring to:

Lang's battle group had the most important mission in "Ochsenkopf", the capture of Beja. They set off at short notice without adequate reconnaissance. This was not Lang's fault.

On descending into a valley they met stiff British resistance at Sidi N'sir. There was artillery sited by the road ahead of them, but out of sight; and infantry on hilltops, spotting for the guns. Lang considered charging the British guns with his tanks, but torrential rain had set in and his tanks could not move quickly on the soft ground, which the British had mined. They could move only on the road, already blocked by destroyed Panzers.

So he had his medium tanks move off into the fields and around the hills to find positions where they could see the British guns. Meanwhile his troops attacked the British infantry on the hills; with the spotters gone, he would be free to move tanks up close to the British guns and prepare a charge.

But the capture of the hills took most of the day because they were determinedly defended by the artillery. The troops on the hills were able to call down precise strikes on the Germans attacking them.

As far as I can discover, Lang did not have his tanks open fire on the artillery when they found vantage points. Instead he had everybody hold fire until he could charge along the road, which in turn required him to capture the hills and clear them of spotters, which was a bottleneck that held him up all day. Meanwhile his battle group with 17 Tigers was stretched out for kilometers along the road behind him, unable to do anything.

When this plan came to fruition, and the British artillery was overrun, it was in the evening darkness under the rainstorm. The battle group settled down at Sidi N'sir for the night - nowhere near their objective, Beja. The element of surprise had been lost.

Could Lang have pushed through more quickly?

After this one-day delay should he have continued with the mission, which now required his tanks to follow a secondary road for 15km through a valley, with no opportunity to turn left or right, and the ground made near impassable by rain? It was prime terrain for an ambush. And indeed, the British had managed to set up an ambush at Kzar Mezouar. Here they had tanks, artillery and air support.

Lang lost a Tiger the next morning when his battle group arrived at the ambush site. And now he was in an even worse position than at Sidi N'sir. These guns were not sited by the road, vulnerable to his tanks; they were hidden on the hillsides all around. The terrain was bare rolling fields with almost no trees, nowhere to hide from aircraft. Lang's battle group were sitting ducks.

He tried to push through.

A fierce battle ensued for several days. The Germans could not make much progress. Continuous and very heavy artillery fire was the defining feature of the battle for them. But their worst enemy was the rain. Their vehicles were still confined to the road, only wide enough for two tanks. An immobilised Tiger could be an obstacle that could prevent the tanks in front of it from pulling back. Engineering crews risked their lives to clear the way. And it was to no avail because the way only led to more danger. From the relative safety of the final hill that hid them from view, the German force was able to thrust forward only two kilometers, subject to artillery fire every step of the way. The few tanks that achieved that distance, had to fall back only hours later. There was simply no possibility of breaking through into safer terrain.

Lang continued this fight until he had lost seven Tigers and many other tanks.

Oberst Rudolf Lang (Kommandeur Kampfgruppe Lang) is the one wearing glasses. To his left is Oberst Walter Barenthin (Kommandeur Luftwaffen-Jäger-Regiment "Barenthin"). This photo was taken during the battle of Sidi N'sir. Lang is in the hills 4km from the railway station, at the last point that is out of sight of the artillery spotters. Several Panzers took hull-down positions here, and two Italian Semovente were dumped here with mine damage. Hill 609 is visible behind him.

North Africa, Tunisia.- Officers at a briefing at a table with maps. Sitting is Oberst Rudolf Lang. The picture was taken by Kriegsberichter Hug of KBK Lw 6 (Kriegsberichter-Kompanie Luftwaffe 6).

Source :
Bundesarchiv photo collection
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=195821
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/29958/Lang-Rudolf.htm