Panzergrenadiers 1942–1945

By Ian Baxter

Using 250 photographs, this addition to the Images of War series examines Hitler's elite armored infantry: the Panzergrenadiers.

The term Panzergrenadier was introduced in 1942 and applied equally to the infantry component of Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe and later Waffen-SS Panzergrenadiere divisions. As this classic new Images of War book describes, these elite divisions fought as mechanized infantry and escort for and in close cooperation with panzers and other armoured fighting vehicles. Trained to fight both mounted and on foot, their priority was to maintain the fast momentum of armoured troops on the battlefield. Using a wealth of rare, often unpublished, photographs with detailed captions and text, the author charts the fighting record of the Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe Panzergrenadiertruppe units. This includes their initial successes on the Eastern Front. But as defeat approached, they were forced on the defensive on all fronts including the bitter fighting in Italy and the Western Front. As well as describing their many actions, the book details the vehicles and weapons used and main personalities.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Jun 9, 2021
• ISBN: 9781399003759

Ian Baxter

Ian Baxter is a military historian who specialises in German twentieth-century military history. He has written more than fifty books. He has also reviewed numerous military studies for publication, supplied thousands of photographs and important documents to various publishers and film production companies worldwide, and lectures to various schools, colleges and universities throughout the United Kingdom and Southern Ireland.

Book preview

Introduction

The Panzergrenadiers

In 1942, the second year of the war on the eastern front, a reorganization of the German army was adopted. Infantry regiments were renamed ‘Grenadier’ regiments with the Schützen regiments (infantry in Panzer divisions were known as Schützen regiments) being redesignated as ‘Panzergrenadier’ regiments, along with the motorized (mot.) infantry units and the soldiers within them.

The use of Panzergrenadiers initially evolved from using motorized infantry divisions and upgrading them into the new Panzergrenadier (PzGren) Divisions. These new divisions retained their numerical designations. Often the divisions adopted a divisional symbol as a way of giving them a new identity on the battlefield and separating themselves from their mother infantry division.

The PzGren divisions were often organized with six battalions of lorry-mounted infantry organized into either two or three regiments, a battalion of Panzers, and a complement of reconnaissance, artillery, anti-tank (PaK), anti-aircraft (FlaK), and combat formations. All these would also be mechanized within the division and well equipped with PaK and FlaK units towed by trucks, heavy assault guns (one armoured regiment with three battalions of fourteen assault guns in each), and armoured personnel carriers, usually the Sd.Kfz.251 halftrack.

Theoretically a typical Panzergrenadier division had one tank battalion less than a Panzer division but two more infantry battalions. The composition of the division made it very powerful, almost as strong as a Panzer division.

The troops travelled by motor vehicle rather than on foot, as speed and penetration of enemy positions was paramount. Because of their mobility and the fact that they usually found themselves thrust into battle alongside armoured units, they were considered elite frontline formations. Sometimes they were known as Gummi Panzergrenadier (rubber Panzergrenadier) as they travelled in halftracks, which offered armour protection and mobility until they were close enough to attack enemy positions on foot. The use of motorized infantry was an example of rapid tactical deployment that would change the way that battles were fought forever. These troops were trained to always be on the move. They were often supported by advancing armour, protecting their flanks, and sometimes they were dropped into the middle of a battle which had just been won to mop up a bewildered and shocked foe.

Chapter One

Birth of the Panzergrenadiers

The German army was made up of heavy infantry, light (Schützen) units, security (Sicherung) or police units, and various types of Jäger formations. Although the standard infantry formation was paramount to the conduct of operations, often advancing in the wake of the Panzer divisions, by 1942 it was considered that techniques had to change in fighting against the Red Army on the eastern front.

As early as the Blitzkrieg years of 1939–41 it was realised how vital motorized infantry was. While the bulk of German infantry remained on foot, still using animals for its main form of transport, the armoured divisions were mechanized, using wheeled and tracked vehicles against their enemy. The integration of mobile units, equipment and tactics saw considerable success in the first half of the war. But as the time went on, it was necessary to adapt the motorized infantry into special independent mechanized infantry divisions. These new divisions would be ready to rush to the front lines at speed using trucks and halftracks as their main forms of transportation. Motorization provided no particular tactical advantage in small-unit combat, as trucks were vulnerable to both artillery and small arms fire. But in larger battles, motorized infantry provided the capability of moving units to critical sectors of the battlefield, allowing better response to enemy movements and the ability to outmanoeuvre the enemy. So in 1942 infantry and armour were combined as a single entity bringing Panzer and soldier together – the Panzergrenadier had been born.

In military history it had long been considered that a grenadier was a specialized soldier, first established with a distinct role in special assault operations. They were chosen for being physically the strongest soldiers, often riding into battle on horses, often leading the storming of breached fortifications.

In 1914 the Imperial German armies included a number of grenadier regiments. Five regiments of the Prussian Guard were designated as Garde-Grenadiers and there were an additional fourteen regiments of grenadiers amongst the infantry of the German Empire. They were considered elite troops and wore plumed helmets and braided uniforms in full dress.

But when the term Panzergrenadier was adopted in the Wehrmacht in 1942, it was purely to describe mechanized heavy infantry working in tandem with armoured formations. They operated as highly mobile elite shock troops, adapting between mounted and dismounted combat to maintain the momentum of armoured troops. Their versatility and reactivity enabled them to gain and maintain the initiative and quickly bring about successes.

One of the earliest Panzergrenadier divisions to see action derived from the 16th Motorized Infantry Division, nicknamed ‘Windhund’ (Greyhound). The division participated in the Balkans campaign in 1941 along with the 16th Panzer Division. It took part in operations in Army Group South in Russia a year later, and was also sent to fight in Stalingrad. In November 1942 it was formed from the 16th Motorized Infantry Division into the 16th Panzergrenadier Division. It continued to see extensive action on the