Fourth Army (Germany)

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Insignia of 4th Army
Insignia of 4th Army

The German Fourth Army (German: 4. Armee Oberkommando) was a field army that fought in World War II.

The Fourth Army was activated on December 1, 1938 with Field Marshal Günther von Kluge in command. The Fourth Army first went into action during the Polish Campaign of September 1939 as part of Army Group North, which was under Field Marshal Feodor von Bock. The Fourth Army contained the II Corps and III Corps each with two infantry divisions, the XIX Corps with two motorized and one panzer divisions, the I Frontier Guard Corps with one infantry division, and two infantry divisions in reserve. It was tasked with capturing the Polish Corridor and thus re-linking mainland Germany with East Prussia. Under the brilliant Kluge, the Fourth Army completed its task without much difficulty. Part of the Fourth Army attacked south into Pomorze and joined other German forces at Warsaw.

During the attack on the Low Countries and France, the Fourth Army, as part of Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt's Army Group A, went into Belgium from the Rhineland. Along with other German armies, the Fourth Army penetrated the Dyle Line and completed the trapping of the Allied forces in France. Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, who was under Kluge, contributed immensely to his victories. Kluge, who had been general of artillery, was promoted to field marshal along with many others on July 19, 1940.

The Fourth Army took part in Operation Barbarossa in 1941 as part of von Bock's Army Group Center. Its initial aim was to trap as many Soviet troops as possible around Minsk. The Fourth Army performed well and took part in the capture of Smolensk. However, bad roads contributed to the stalling of the army group and the Fourth Army. On December 19, 1941, Kluge resigned along with von Bock and Field Marshal Walther von Brauchitsch. Kluge was replaced by General Ludwig Kübler.

After the launching of Operation Blue, the Fourth Army and the entire Army Group Center did not see much action, as troops were concentrated to the south. However, from 1943 on, as Army Group Center was in full retreat, the Fourth Army also had to move its troops backwards. Costly defeats took place during the Soviet Operation Bagration, and the Fourth Army saw many commanders come and go. On April 27, 1945, as the Red Army closed in on Berlin, the Fourth Army was disbanded. Its last commander was General Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller.

[edit] Commanders

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