German 1st Mountain Division
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Mountain Brigade
1.Gebirgs-Division
The German 1st Mountain Division was created in April from the existing Mountain Brigade (Gebirgsbrigade or Gebirgs-Brigade in German), an unnumbered unit that was created in June 1935 as the sole asset for mountain operations in the original Wehrmacht. In recognition of the high standards of the World War I era mountain troops, the division was given the number "1" in order to start a series of mountain divisions outside the series of other infantry-type divisions. (See List of German divisions in WWII.)
The division fought in the Invasion of Poland (1939) and the Battle of France (1940). It was earmarked for assaults against England and Gibraltar, though neither operation was ever carried out. In the spring of 1941 the division took part in the Balkans Campaign, and in June it joined Army Group South for Operation Barbarossa. In 1942 it participated in the failed attempt to seize the Caucasus under Army Group A. In 1943 it was withdrawn to Montenegro and Greece where it was used for occupation and anti-partisan duties. In late 1944 it returned to the front line in Hungary.
During the Invasion of Poland in Poland soldiers of the division took an active part in round-ups for forced labour and executions of Jewish civilians in the city of Przemyśl [1]. This has been also documented in the photo album of the division. [2]
In September 1943, after Italy turned over to the Allies, the XXII Gebirgs-Armeekorps took part in the murder of between 4500 and 5300 Italian soldiers of Italian 33 Infantry Division Acqui on the Greek island of Cephalonia. Some of the solders murdered had their throats cut, while others were forced to dump bodies into the sea before being killed. [3] [4]
The division surrendered to the Americans in Austria at the end of the war.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
Note: The Web references may require you to follow links to cover the unit's entire history.
- Pipes, Jason. "1.Gebirgs-Division". Retrieved April 12, 2005.
- Wendel, Marcus (2004). "1. Gebirgs-Division". Retrieved April 12, 2005.
- "1. Gebirgs-Division". German language article at www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de. Retrieved April 12, 2005.
