1st Parachute Army (Wehrmacht)
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1st Parachute Army | |
---|---|
German: 1. Fallschirm-Armee | |
Active | September 1944 – 5 May 1945 |
Disbanded | 5 May 1945 |
Country | Nazi Germany |
Branch | Luftwaffe |
Size | 30,000 in September, 1944 |
Engagements | World War II |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Generaloberst Kurt Student |
The 1st Parachute Army (German: 1. Fallschirm-Armee) was formed in September, 1944, comprising 30,000 men.
History
Its first commander was
Student was transferred to the Eastern Front, and on 18 November 1944, command of the First Parachute Army passed to
The Canadian First Army and Lieutenant-General
Just before Operation Varsity, First Parachute Army had three corps stationed along the river;
- II Parachute Corpsto the north,
- LXXXVI Corps in the centre,
- LXIII Corps in the south.[2]
Of these formations, II Parachute Corps and LXXXVI Corps had a shared boundary which ran through the proposed landing-zones for the Allied airborne divisions, meaning that the leading formation of each corps would face the airborne assault — these being 7th Parachute Division and 84th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht).[3] After their retreat to the Rhine both divisions were under-strength and did not number more than 4,000 men each, with 84th Infantry Division supported by only 50 or so medium artillery pieces.[3] In the final days of the war, command passed once more to Student (10 April) and finally to Erich Straube.
Commanding officers
No. | Portrait | Commander | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Kurt Student (1890–1978) | Generaloberst1 March 1944 | 4 November 1944 | 248 days | |
2 | Alfred Schlemm (1894–1986) | General der Fallschirmtruppe4 November 1944 | 28 March 1945 | 144 days | |
3 | Günther Blumentritt (1892–1967) | General der Infanterie28 March 1945 | 10 April 1945 | 13 days | |
(1) | Kurt Student (1890–1978) | Generaloberst10 April 1945 | 28 April 1945 | 18 days | |
4 | Erich Straube (1887–1971) | General der Infanterie28 April 1945 | 8 May 1945 | 10 days |
Subunits
- German 1st Parachute Corps
- German 2nd Parachute Corps
References
- ^ Ryan, Cornelius A Bridge Too Far. 1974. p. 49
- ISBN 0-901627-57-7, p. 298
- ^ a b Otway, p. 299