711th Infantry Division
| 711th Infantry Division | |
|---|---|
Army | |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Division |
| Engagements | World War II |
The 711th Infantry Division (
Operational history
The 711th Infantry Division was raised in May 1941 as part of the
Generalleutnant (Major General)
D-Day
The division had been kept up all day on June 5 on an invasion alert, with the headquarters' guards company being dissolved a few days earlier in order to provide more men on the
Over the next few hours, little action took place. According to Reichert, occasional machine gun fire could be heard, with the headquarters' poorly trained and nervous staff inadvertently firing at returning reconnaissance patrols who had been sent out to look for more paratroopers, and found no one. It was during this event that the divisional staff were engaging in a telephone conversation with the 15th Army's commander, General Hans von Salmuth, who misunderstood the commotion for the genuine invasion and alerted Marshal Erwin Rommel's stand in, General Hans Speidel immediately. Deciding not to alert his superior, Speidel went back to bed.[1][2]
In constant contact with his battalions, Reichert found there to be minimal Allied presence in his sector, allowing him to reorganize forces looking towards the
Meanwhile, the men who had been stationed at the coast were largely safe in their newly built bunkers and pillboxes, with only a few casualties from enemy volleys from the sea. Two reserve battalions were ordered to mop-up Allied forces between the coast and the Saint-Arnoult-Varaville road, and from that road to Pont-l'Évêque. It was Reichert's intention to keep the roads free of Allied interference in order to maintain transport and communication routes.[1]
At 07:30, the Panzers began attacking the British units who had grouped together at Ouistreham, along the Orne, with the 711th Division defending the bridgehead. Defending the bridgehead was considered necessary in that it would provide the panzers with space in which to focus on attacking the Allied landings on the coast. Despite their neglected training, the division was commended by Reichert for their performance in repelling Allied forces from the bridgehead east of the Orne.[1]
This operation, also, was largely-completed by noon with the assistance of the 716th Static Division - sectored immediately to the east. Lieutenant General Reichert took advantage of the recently cleared roads to drive over to the 744th Regiment's command post to meet with its staff; on the way he saw a number of parachutes hanging from trees and telephone wires. From the regiment's post, they witnessed the coastal batteries based near Houlgate fire at Allied landing craft attempting to take the port of Ouistreham. Soon after, Reichert drove to Brucourt from where he could ascertain the extent of the airlandings between the Orne and Dives.[1]
By the evening, a total of 300 Allied soldiers had been taken prisoner, with the 711th Division suffering few casualties in comparison. Based on the interrogation of prisoners from the 1st English and 1st Canadian Battalions of the British 6th Airborne Division, the landing parties to the east of the Orne were not the vanguard of a larger offensive, and had simply been scattered from their intended drop point and subsequently mistaken the Orne and Dives rivers at Cabourg. However, the impact of the Sword Beach landing led to the LXXXI Corps staff's decision that the sealing off the landing sites to the west of the Orne was necessary, and that the bridgehead that had been defended earlier would have to be destroyed. Unfortunately, the 346th Infantry Division had suffered worse than the 711th, and were expected to provide forces to clear their side of the bridgehead as late as 11:00 the following morning.[1]
In mid-July, the 711th took part in
Hungary and Ukraine
The reason for this was the approaching
Launching an attack from Esztergom on January 9, the force trying to defend Hungary made their way to Budapest. They were stalled by Soviet shelling from the Danube, reaching as far as Dobogókő, which the 711th recaptured.[4]
Now part of the
Czechoslovakia
In a shake-up of the 8th Army, a detachment of the division, "Kampfgruppe 711. Infanterie-Division" was transferred into this unit along with LXXII Corps on April 12.
Lieutenant General Reichert ceased to command the division on 14 April when he was injured in an automobile accident.
Commanders
- Major General Dietrich von Reinersdorff-Paczensky und Tenczin (28 Apr 1941 – 1 Apr 1942)
- Major General Wilhelm Haverkamp (1 Apr 1942 – 15 July 1942)
- Lieutenant General Friedrich-Wilhelm Deutsch (15 July 1942 – 1 Apr 1943)
- Lieutenant General Josef Reichert (1 Mar 1943 – 14 Apr 1945)
- Colonel von Watzdorf (Apr 1945)
- Colonel Jobst von Bosse (Apr 1945)
Sources
- ^ a b c d e f g h Isby, David C. (2004). The German Army at D-Day: Fighting the Invasion. Stackpole Books. pp. 90, 145–150, 170, 175, 177–179, 221, 223–224, 247.
- ^ Mitcham, Samuel W. (2009). Defenders of fortress Europe: the untold story of the German officers during the Allied invasion. Potomac Books, Inc.
- ^ Moore, Perry (2005). Kursk in Normandy: Operation Goodwood 1944.
- ^ a b c Ungváry, Krisztián; Lukacs, John; Löb, Ladislaus (2006). The Siege of Budapest: One Hundred Days in World War II. Yale University Press.
- ^ Meyer, Hubert (2005). The 12th SS Volume Two: The History of the Hitler Youth Panzer Division. Stackpole Books.
- ^ a b Mitcham, Samuel W. (2007). German Order of Battle, Volume 2: 291st-999th Infantry Divisions, Named Infantry Divisions, and Special Divisions in World War II, Volume 2. Stackpole Books.