3rd Panzerdivision S Totenkopf

The 3rd Panzerdivision S Totenkopf was one of 38 divisions of Waffen-SS during the Second world war. While waiting for the enrichment of the article, it can be useful to consult, to replace this unit in its context:

History

Division Totenkopf originated in the units of guard of the concentration camps, the SS-Totenkopfverbände (“units S with death's-head”). Those étatient directed by Theodor Eicke starting from July 4th, 1934, during its nomination as inspector of the concentration camps.

These units were organized in regiments based in various camps:

Standarte Oberbayern with Dachau.
Standarte Brandenburg with Oranienburg - Sachsenhausen.
Standarte Thüringen with Buchenwald.
Standarte V Ostmark with Mauthausen.

See also: List of the concentration camps Nazis

It is under the command of Eicke that begins the transformation from the SS-TV in order to make units ready of them to fight on the face. As of its taking of, Eicke mobilizes all its contacts within the S to ensure good equipment its division, in particular in terms of anti-tank weapons, to motorize it and equip it with a group of recognition. From this moment, Eicke starts a new career and does not have any more responsibilities in the organization of the concentration camps. The man changes function, but its convictions remain the same ones. Anti convinced catholic, it arrives, in 1940, with to convince a whole company of his division to give up the Christian religion, by doing it acter by an administrative court. Throughout its period of command, it takes care scrupulously of the respect of the drastic criteria of recruitment of Waffen-SS, not hesitating to return candidates however accepted but that it judges personally nonin conformity with the physical standards, racial or morals of the S and balks to see its officers leaving Totenkopf division to reinforce other units.

Joining Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler (regiment of guard of Adolf Hitler) and SS-Verfügunsgstruppe (literally troops S at disposal ), the Totenkopf units constitute one of the three pillars of future Waffen S. After the reorganization of the denomination and classification of let us divisisons S in 1942, it receives the official designation of 3 {{E}} panzerdivision S Totenkopf, at the sides, inter alia, of the 1 {{Re}} division S Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler and of the 2 {{E}} panzerdivision S Das Reich, resulting from Verfügunsgstruppe.

At the time of the countryside of Poland, three regiments of the units Totenkopf ( Oberbayern , Brandenburg and Thüringen with Buchenwald), in charge of actions of pacification and cleaning to the back of the face, assassinate the members of Polish intelligentsia and the Jews, attracting each other critical sharp of the general of the Wehrmacht Johannes Blaskowitz: “The feelings of the troop towards the S and the police force oscillate between the repulsion and hatred. All the soldiers are taken of dislike and loathing in front of the crimes committed in Poland”.

October 16th, 1939, Adolf Hitler authorizes the regrouping of the regiments Totenkopf to form a division S. This division is integrated into the 2nd Army during the operations of the countryside of France in May 1940.

As in Poland, during the countryside of France, Eicke and its division are characterized by their brutality without terminals and their war crimes, as with the massacre of the Paradise, on May 27th, 1940, during which, she assassinates a hundred British prisoners in France, under the orders of lieutenant Fritz Knöchlein, condemned to died and carried out for war crimes after the end of the conflict. and summary execution of troops sénégalaises and Morrocan women who tried to go, with Chasselay in the the Rhone.

For the release of invasion of the Soviet Union, Eicke insists that its division is equipped with military trucks designed for the transport of troops in the place of the various vehicles which it received: “Made Abstraction that we have the air of gipsies and that such an appearance sied not with the S, one cannot lead any war to the east with this kind of vehicles”. Its insistence enables him to obtain win.

In September 1941, in Finland, two regiments of division flee in front of a counter-offensive of the troops of the Red Army, attracting each other severe judgments of officers of Wehrmacht.

Under the command of Theodor Eicke, shot down at the time of an air recognition, then of its successors, division Totenkopf continues to show of an unequalled fanaticism and ferocity at the time of advanced in 1941, of the offensive of the summer 1942, the conquest of Kharkov, the battle of the pocket of Demyansk, and at the time of the defense of Warsaw then of Budapest beginning 1945. It shows remarkable aptitudes for the defensive action against the Red Army. On the face of the East, it is guilty assassination of prisoners and civilians in Soviet Union, destruction and plundering of many Russian villages.

Successive designations

SS-Totenkopf-Division (starting from the October 16th 1939) including/understanding:

SS-Totenkopf-Infantry-Regiment 1
SS-Totenkopf-Infantry-Regiment 2
SS-Totenkopf-Infantry-Regiment 3
SS-Totenkopf-Artillery-Regiment

schwere SS-Totenkopf-Artillery-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Aufklärungs-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Panzerabwehr-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Pioneer-Battalion
SS-Totenkopf-Nachrichten-Abteilung

SS-Panzergrenadier-Division Totenkopf (starting from the November 9th 1942) including/understanding:

SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 1 Totenkopf
SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 3 Totenkopf
Panzer-Regiment 3

SS-Totenkopf-Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Aufklärungs-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Kradschützen-Battalion
SS-Totenkopf-Panzerjäger-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Pioneer-Battalion
SS-Totenkopf-Flak-Abteilung
SS-Totenkopf-Nachrichten-Abteilung

3. SS-Panzer-division Totenkopf (starting from the November 22nd 1943) including/understanding:

S Panzer-Regiment 3 Totenkopf
S Panzer-Pomegranate-Regiment 5 Thule
S Panzer-Pomegranate-Regiment 6 Theodor Eicke
S Panzer-Artillery-Regiment 3

S Flak-Artillery-Abteilung 3
S Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 3
S Panzer-Aufklärungs-Abteilung 3
S Panzerjäger-Abteilung 3
S Panzer-Pioneer-Battalion 3
S Panzer-Nachrichten-Abteilung 3
S Versorgungs-Einheiten 3

List successive commanders

Theaters of operation

Battle of France - May 1940

Dunkirk

Operation Barbarossa - 1941-1942

Leningrad
Demjansk

Russia - 1943

Koursk - Kharkov
Baltic Basin of Donetz

and Romania - 1944
Hungary and Austria - 1945

Division destroyed with Vienna.

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