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57-638: XXXXII Army Corps (XXXXII. Armeekorps) was a corps in the German Army during World War II . The General Command XXXXII. Army Corps was created on 29 January 1940 in military district XIII. In 1940 the Corps took part in the western campaign. In June 1941, it was transported to the Eastern Front and added to 9th Army . Here it fought in the Baltics and participated in the conquest of Tallinn and

114-585: A more traditional organisational doctrine like the American one; while this was ultimately offset by the Allies' superior numerical and materiel advantage, Visser argues that it allowed the German Army to resist far longer than if it had not adopted this method of organisation and doctrine. Peter Turchin reports a study by US colonel Trevor Dupuy that found that German combat efficiency was higher than both

171-513: The 2nd Division of the Reichswehr. Wehrkreis III was headquartered at Berlin and contained roughly the territories of the modern-day German state of Brandenburg and the historic province of Neumark . Wehrkreis III was the home district of III Army Corps (after June 1942: III Panzer Corps), which was formed in October 1934 from the 3rd Division of the Reichswehr. Wehrkreis IV

228-527: The Battle of France also suggest that the actions of either Erwin Rommel or Heinz Guderian or both of them (both had contributed to the theoretical development and early practices of what later became Blitzkrieg prior to World War II), ignoring orders of superiors who had never foreseen such spectacular successes and thus prepared much more prudent plans, were conflated into a purposeful doctrine and created

285-773: The Normandy invasion when Allied air power devastated the French rail network north of the Loire . Panzer movements also depended on rail, since driving a tank long distances caused serious wear. Contrary to popular belief, the German Army in World War II was not a mechanised juggernaut as a whole. In 1941, between 60 and 70 percent of their forces were not motorised, relying on railroad for rapid movement and on horse-drawn transport cross country. The percentage of motorisation decreased thereafter. In 1944 approximately 85 percent of

342-741: The Operation Citadel , the German offensive at Kursk. After their failure, defense and retreat battles followed to the Dnieper. The corps was destroyed in early March 1944 in the Battle of the Korsun–Cherkassy Pocket . The remainder served to refresh the 88th Infantry Division . Reorganized on 15 March 1944, the XXXXII. Army Corps was again fully operational on 19 July 1944. It was subordinated to Army Group North Ukraine and fought in

399-628: The Operation Product that mounted by the Dutch East Indies , which caused Renville Agreement . The agreement forced Indonesian military commanders such as Sudirman , T. B. Simatupang , and Abdul Haris Nasution to abandon the traditional linear defense formation of their army; this was formalized in a "strategy command order" issued by Sudirman that same year, which formally adopted the Wehrkreis system, since they viewed

456-515: The Wehrkreis passed to the corps second-in-command at the outbreak of war. At the start of the war, there were fifteen Districts in Germany. Two Austrian Districts had been added after the Anschluss of 1938. During the war, four were added, and some Districts had territory added to them from other countries conquered by Germany. Wehrkreis I was headquartered at Königsberg and contained

513-587: The Wehrmacht 's ( Heer , Kriegsmarine , Luftwaffe , and the Waffen-SS ) operations. In practice, the OKW acted in a subordinate role to Hitler's personal military staff, translating his ideas into military plans and orders, and issuing them to the three services. However, as World War II went on, the OKW found itself exercising an increasing amount of direct command authority over military units, particularly in

570-425: The 1st through 7th Divisions of the Reichswehr, with the divisional ordinal number matching the cardinal number of the respective Wehrkreis). These seven (infantry) divisions were additionally joined by three cavalry divisions. In peacetime, the 13 Wehrkreise were the home to the army corps of the same number and all subordinate units of that formation. The corps commander also commanded the Wehrkreis . Command of

627-559: The Army was not motorised. The standard uniform used by the German Army consisted of a Feldgrau (field grey) tunic and trousers, worn with a Stahlhelm . Nazi propaganda had told German soldiers to wipe out what were variously called Jewish Bolshevik subhumans, the Mongol hordes, the Asiatic flood, and the red beast. While the principal perpetrators of the killings of civilians behind

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684-587: The Baltic islands. In October 1941 it was transferred to the Crimea, where it participated in the aftermath of the fighting on the peninsula. In the spring of 1942, it participated in the conquest of the fortress Sevastopol . From 19 August 1942 to April 1943, the Corps occupied the Crimea. By the end of April 1943, the corps was transferred to the Kharkov area. After heavy fighting in the upper Donets it participated in

741-603: The British and US armies – if a combat efficiency of 1 was assigned to the British, then the Americans had a combat efficiency of 1.1 and the Germans of 1.45. This would mean British forces would need to commit 45% more troops (or arm existing troops more heavily to the same proportion) to have an even chance of winning the battle, while the Americans would need to commit 30% more to have an even chance. The military strength of

798-606: The German North Sea coast, as well as parts of the Baltic Sea coast. Wehrkreis X was the home district of the X Army Corps , which was formed on 15 October 1935 from the Cavalry Corps. Wehrkreis XI was headquartered at Hanover . It contained territories in northern-central Germany, including large parts of what in the modern day is southeastern Lower Saxony and northern Saxony-Anhalt . Wehrkreis XI

855-485: The German Army focused on achieving high combat performance rather than high organisational efficiency (like the US Army). It emphasised adaptability, flexibility, and decentralised decision making. Officers and NCOs were selected based on character and trained towards decisive combat leadership. Good combat performance was rewarded. Visser argues this allowed the German Army to achieve superior combat performance compared to

912-652: The German Army was managed through mission-based tactics ( Auftragstaktik ) rather than detailed order-based tactics, and rigid discipline. Once an operation began, whether offensive or defensive, speed of response to changing circumstances was considered more important than careful planning and co-ordination of new plans. In public opinion, the German military was and is sometimes seen as a high-tech army, since new technologies that were introduced before and during World War II influenced its development of tactical doctrine. These technologies were featured by Nazi propaganda , but were often only available in small numbers or late in

969-585: The German military district system enabled the Defence in depth in response to the Dutch positional advantages in artificial line that covered in that agreement. General Simatupang noted that he use the term of Wehrkreise from a german book. The establishment of this doctrine resulted in the formation of five Wehrkreise districts in West Java . Historian Robert Elson rationalize that this strategy enabled

1026-536: The German military managed quick victories in the two initial years of World War II, a new style of warfare described as Blitzkrieg (lightning war) for its speed and destructive power. The Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was Nazi Germany's Army High Command from 1936 to 1945. In theory, the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW) served as the military general staff for the Reich's armed forces, co-ordinating

1083-543: The Indonesian army to conduct guerilla warfare in following conflict with Dutch army during Operation Kraai . General Nasution viewed the Wehrkreise system were important for each Indonesian army districts to mount resistance independently. Barry Turner has noted the similarities of Indonesian Wehrkreise implemented by Nasution with the Germans in aspect of dividing of tier forces between the mobile force units and

1140-635: The OKW adopted was to separate the Field Army (OKH) from the Home Command ( Heimatkriegsgebiet ) and to entrust the responsibilities of training, conscription, supply, and equipment to Home Command. The German Army was mainly structured in army groups ( Heeresgruppen ) consisting of several armies that were relocated, restructured, or renamed in the course of the war. Forces of allied states, as well as units made up of non-Germans, were also assigned to German units. For Operation Barbarossa in 1941,

1197-581: The area west of Lutsk. By the end of 1944, the corps had to withdraw to the Vistula, where it was involved in heavy fighting. In January 1945, the Corps was again destroyed and not rebuilt. German Army (Wehrmacht) Only 17 months after Adolf Hitler announced the German rearmament programme in 1935, the army reached its projected goal of 36 divisions . During the autumn of 1937, two more corps were formed. In 1938 four additional corps were formed with

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1254-669: The army forces were assigned to three strategic campaign groupings: Below the army group level forces included field armies – panzer groups, which later became army level formations themselves, corps, and divisions. The army used the German term Kampfgruppe , which equates to battle group in English. These provisional combat groupings ranged from corps size, such as Army Detachment Kempf , to commands composed of companies or even platoons . They were named for their commanding officers. The German operational doctrine emphasized sweeping pincer and lateral movements meant to destroy

1311-416: The concentrated "fast formations" was no longer possible to defend against the expected Allied invasion of France, because they could no longer move quickly enough to reach the threatened locations due to the expected interdiction of all routes by Allied fighter-bombers. He therefore suggested scattering these units across the front just behind the infantry. His commanders and peers, who were less experienced in

1368-399: The effect of Allied air power, disagreed vehemently with his suggestion, arguing that this would violate the prime principle of concentration of force. The infantry remained foot soldiers throughout the war, and artillery remained primarily horse-drawn. The motorized formations received much attention in the world press in the opening years of the war, and were cited as the main reason for

1425-551: The enemy forces as quickly as possible. This approach, referred to as Blitzkrieg , was an operational doctrine instrumental in the success of the offensives in Poland and France. Blitzkrieg has been considered by many historians as having its roots in precepts developed by Fuller, Liddel-Hart, and Hans von Seeckt , and even having ancient prototypes practised by Alexander the Great , Genghis Khan , and Napoleon . Recent studies of

1482-546: The first archetype of Blitzkrieg , which then gained a fearsome reputation that dominated the Allied leaders' minds. Thus 'Blitzkrieg' was recognised after the fact, and while it became adopted by the Wehrmacht , it never became the official doctrine nor got used to its full potential because only a small part of the Wehrmacht was trained for it and key leaders at the highest levels either focused on only certain aspects or even did not understand it. Max Visser argues that

1539-483: The following infantry, as the infantry were considered a prerequisite for protecting the fast formations' flanks and rear and enabling supply columns carrying fuel, petrol, and ammunition to reach them. In defensive operations the infantry formations were deployed across the front to hold the main defense line and the mobile formations were concentrated in a small number of locations from where they launched focused counterattacks against enemy forces which had broken through

1596-1130: The front lines amongst German armed forces were the Nazi German "political" armies (the SS-Totenkopfverbände , the Waffen-SS , and the Einsatzgruppen ), the army committed and ordered war crimes of its own (e.g. the Commissar Order ), particularly during the invasion of Poland and later in the war against the Soviet Union. The German Army was extensively promoted by Nazi propaganda. Military district (Germany) The military districts , also known in some English-language publications by their German name as Wehrkreise (singular: Wehrkreis ), were administrative territorial units in Nazi Germany before and during World War II . The task of military districts

1653-517: The inclusion of the five divisions of the Austrian Army after the annexation of Austria by Germany in March. During the period of its expansion under Hitler, the German Army continued to develop concepts pioneered during World War I , combining ground and air units into combined arms forces. Coupled with operational and tactical methods such as encirclements and " battle of annihilation ",

1710-408: The infantry defense belt. In autumn 1942, at El Alamein , a lack of fuel compelled the German commander, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, to scatter his armoured units across the front in battalion-sized concentrations to reduce travel distances to each sector, rather than hold them concentrated in one location. In 1944 Rommel argued that in the face of overwhelming Allied air power the tactic of employing

1767-565: The men marched on foot or rode bicycles . At the height of motorisation only 20 per cent of all units were fully motorised. The small German contingent fighting in North Africa was fully motorised (relying on horses in the desert was near to impossible because of the need to carry large quantities of water and fodder), but the much larger force invading the Soviet Union in June 1941 numbered only some 150,000 trucks and some 625,000 horses (water

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1824-623: The name Abwehr was changed to the Overseas Department/Office in Defence of the Armed Forces High Command ( Amt Ausland/Abwehr im Oberkommando der Wehrmacht ). Germany used a system of military districts (German: Wehrkreis ) in order to relieve field commanders of as much administrative work as possible and to provide a regular flow of trained recruits and supplies to the field forces. The method

1881-526: The number they had at the beginning of the campaign, to mechanical wear and tear and combat damage. Most of these were lost during the retreat in the face of the Soviet counteroffensive from December 1941 to February 1942. Another substantial loss was incurred during the defeat of the German 6th Army at Stalingrad in the winter of 1942–1943. These losses in men and materiel led to motorised troops making up no more than 10% of total Heer forces at some points of

1938-408: The partisan elements. He also noted the similarities of Nasution Wehrkreise with theterritorial warfare conducted by Josip Broz Tito. This system also served as basis for Indonesian army Military Regional Command or KODAM. Suharto , the second and longest serving president Indonesian republic, once serving as brigade commander under jurisdiction of Yogyakarta Wehrkreise III district during

1995-410: The path of the mobile formations, mopping-up, widening the corridor manufactured by the breakthrough attack and solidifying the ring surrounding the enemy formations left behind, and then gradually destroying them in concentric attacks. One of the most significant problems bedeviling German offensives and initially alarming senior commanders was the gap created between the fast-moving "fast formations" and

2052-674: The success of the German invasions of Poland (September 1939), Denmark and Norway (1940), Belgium , France , and the Netherlands (May 1940), Yugoslavia (April 1941), and the initial stages of Operation Barbarossa , the invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941). However, their motorised and tank formations accounted for only 20% of the Heer' s capacity at their peak strength. The army's lack of trucks and fuel to run them severely limited infantry movement, especially during and after

2109-646: The territory of the German exclave of East Prussia , making it also a coastal state on the Baltic Sea coast. Wehrkreis I was the home district of the I Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from the 1st Division of the Reichswehr . Wehrkreis I was expanded to include the Memel Territory after the German ultimatum to Lithuania (accepted by Lithuania on 23 March 1939); the Wehrkreis

2166-721: The thirteen original districts as well as the two Austrian districts being assigned an army corps of the matching ordinal number with its headquarters in that Wehrkreis), these numbers were skipped as they were taken up by the motorized corps ( XIV Army Corps , XV Army Corps , XVI Army Corps , XIX Army Corps ). The four corps were not inherently bound to one particular military district (but naturally ended up with some connections to their respective peacetime headquarters regardless). The concept of Wehrkreise were adopted in Indonesian military in 1948, during Indonesian National Revolution . The background of such formations were caused by

2223-514: The type Reichswehrgruppenkommando were created, as well as seven Wehrkreiskommando commands, each assigned to one of the seven initial Wehrkreise of the Weimar Republic (numbered I through VII). The Reichswehrgruppenkommandos (which combined under them several military units across Wehrkreis lines) were soon reduced in number from four to two. Each of the Wehrkreise was tasked to deploy one division by 1 October 1920 (resulting in

2280-405: The war, as overall supplies of raw materials and armaments became low. For example, lacking sufficient motor vehicles to equip more than a small portion of their army, the Germans chose to concentrate the available vehicles in a small number of divisions which were to be fully motorised. The other divisions continued to rely on horses for towing artillery, other heavy equipment, and supply wagons, and

2337-403: The war. In offensive operations the infantry formations were used to attack more or less simultaneously across a large portion of the front so as to pin the enemy forces ahead of them and draw attention to themselves, while the mobile formations were concentrated to attack only narrow sectors of the front, breaking through to the enemy rear and surrounding him. Some infantry formations followed in

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2394-585: The west. This meant that by 1942, the authority of the Army High Command (OKH) was limited to the Eastern Front . The Abwehr was the army intelligence organisation from 1921 to 1944. The term Abwehr (German for "defence", here referring to counterintelligence ) had been created just after World War I as an ostensible concession to Allied demands that Germany's intelligence activities be for defensive purposes only. After 4 February 1938,

2451-442: Was abundant and for many months of the year horses could forage, reducing the burden on the supply chain). However, the production of new motor vehicles by Germany, even with the exploitation of the industries of occupied countries, could not keep up with the heavy loss of motor vehicles during the winter of 1941–1942. From June 1941 to the end of February 1942 German forces in the Soviet Union lost some 75,000 trucks, approximately half

2508-425: Was also a Wehrkreis, with respective institutions being created in late 1942. The General Government was also a Wehrkreis, with respective institutions being created in 1943. Several cardinal numbers were not assigned to a particular Wehrkreis and skipped in the numbering. These were 14 (XIV), 15 (XV), 16 (XVI) and 19 (XIX). As the Wehrkreis system was initially tightly bound to the army corps (with each of

2565-603: Was formed in October 1934, initially disguised as "Heeresdienststelle Breslau". The corps was then given its proper designation as VIII Army Corps in 1935. After the Munich Agreement (1938), parts of northern Moravia were added to the district. After the German invasion of Poland (1939), the territory was further extended to include parts of East Upper Silesia . Wehrkreis IX was headquartered at Kassel and contained territories in central Germany, including parts of modern-day Hesse and Thuringia . Wehrkreis IX

2622-547: Was formed on 1 April 1938 with headquarters at Vienna. The district was expanded after the Munich Agreement (1938) to include parts of southern Bohemia. Wehrkreis XVIII was headquartered at Salzburg . It contained the southwestern and southeastern thirds of Austria , added to the German Reich after the 1938 Anschluss . Wehrkreis XVIII was the home district of XVIII Army Corps (after 1940: XVIII Mountain Corps), which

2679-488: Was formed on 1 April 1938 with headquarters in Salzburg. Wehrkreis XX was headquartered at Danzig . It contained the historic province of West Prussia , occupied by Germany in the 1939 Invasion of Poland . Wehrkreis XXI was headquartered at Posen . It contained the territories of the historic region by the same name , occupied by Germany in the 1939 Invasion of Poland . The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia

2736-479: Was formed on 1 October 1936 with headquarters at Wiesbaden. After the German victory over France (1940), Wehrkreis XII was expanded through the addition of parts of Lorraine (such as the Nancy area). Wehrkreis XIII was headquartered at Nuremberg . It contained the territories of the historic provinces of Franconia and Upper Palatinate in what is today the northern half of modern-day Bavaria . Wehrkreis XIII

2793-426: Was headquartered at Dresden and contained the territories of the modern-day German state of Saxony as well as some southern parts of modern-day Saxony-Anhalt . Wehrkreis IV was the home district of IV Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from the 4th Division of the Reichswehr. It was later expanded through the addition of parts of northern Bohemia after the Munich Agreement of 1938. Wehrkreis V

2850-417: Was headquartered at Munich and contained the south of the modern-day German state of Bavaria . Wehrkreis VII was the home district of VII Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from the 7th Division of the Reichswehr. Wehrkreis VIII was headquartered at Breslau and contained the territory of the historic province of Silesia . Wehrkreis VIII was the home district of VIII Army Corps , which

2907-464: Was headquartered at Münster and contained the historic province of Westphalia , much of the Lower Rhine , and parts of modern-day Lower Saxony . Wehrkreis VI was the home district of VI Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from the 6th Division of the Reichswehr. After the German occupation of Belgium (1940), parts of eastern Belgium were added to Wehrkreis VI. Wehrkreis VII

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2964-448: Was headquartered at Stuttgart , containing roughly the historic provinces of Baden , Württemberg , and Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (about equivalent to the modern-day German state of Baden-Württemberg ). Wehrkreis V was the home district of V Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from the 5th Division of the Reichswehr. After the German victory over France (1940), it was extended to include parts of Alsace. Wehrkreis VI

3021-665: Was later fed yet more territory in the form of the Bialystok District and the Sudauen region. Wehrkreis II was headquartered at Stettin and included the territories of the historic provinces of Mecklenburg and Pomerania , which also gave Wehrkreis II the largest share of the German Baltic Sea coast. Wehrkreis II was the home district of the II Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934 from

3078-432: Was the home district of XIII Army Corps , which was formed on 1 October 1937 with headquarters at Nuremberg. The district was expanded after the Munich Agreement (1938) to include parts of western Bohemia. Wehrkreis XVII was headquartered at Vienna . It contained the northeastern third of Austria , added to the German Reich after the 1938 Anschluss . Wehrkreis XVII was the home district of XVII Army Corps , which

3135-476: Was the home district of the IX Army Corps , which was formed in October 1934, initially disguised as "Heeresdienststelle Kassel". The corps was then given its proper designation as IX Army Corps in 1935. Wehrkreis X was headquartered at Hamburg . It contained the territories of modern-day Schleswig-Holstein and most of the north of modern-day Lower Saxony , placing Wehrkreis X exclusively in charge of

3192-542: Was the home district of the XI Army Corps , which was formed on 1 October 1936 with headquarters at Hanover. Wehrkreis XII was headquartered at Wiesbaden . Its territory was roughly equivalent to the modern-day German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland , with the addition of a small part of northern Baden (around Heidelberg ). Wehrkreis XII was the home district of the XII Army Corps , which

3249-636: Was the organization and the handling of reinforcements and resupplies for local military units. The Replacement Army ( Ersatzheer ) managed the districts. Responsibilities such as training, conscription , supply, and equipment were (at least partially) entrusted to the Ersatzheer. On 30 September 1919, much of the Imperial German Army was dissolved. The Reichswehr (of the Weimar Republic ) took its place, and four commands of

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