The 352.Infanterie-Division
was an
infantry division in the German Wehrmacht
during World
War II serving on the Western Front. The
unit is best known for its defense of Omaha Beach during the D-Day
Invasion
on 6
June 1944.
|
Soldaten of
the 3532.ID in front
of a truck with the Division's
symbol |
The
352nd Infantry Division's symbol, shown above, is a Pegasus
leaping over a bridge.
There is no known information as to the history behind the
Division's
symbol or why
it was chosen.
The
picture to the right
shows Soldaten
in front of one of the few trucks belonging to the Division.
The Division's
crest
can be seen on the truck's door.
In
mythology, the Pegasus
was
sired by Poseidon and foaled by Medusa.
Wherever the Pegasus' hoof struck the earth, an inspiring
spring would burst forth. Bridges often represent strength.
The
Division
might have
chosen this symbol to represent their
primary responsibility
- a strong
defense of
the
beaches, and if an invasion did
come, to pour forth an inspired and mighty assault. |
 |
The 352.Infanterie-Division
(352nd
Infantry Division, 352.Inf.
Div.,
352.ID) was formed on 5
November 1943 at St. Lô under the
command of Generalleutnant
Dietrich Kraiß,
as part of the Wehrkreis XI
(Military
District XI), headquartered in Hannover. A majority of the
Division's
soldiers came
from decimated Divisions from the Ost
Front,
especially those in the battle at Kursk. The 352nd was placed
in Armeegruppe
B
under the command of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. Rommel
was in charge of protecting the
Atlantic coast from and Allied Invasion. Despite
the fact that much of
the German leadership believed
that the
main Allied invasion would take place at the Pas-de-Calais, Rommel was
convinced that Normandy would be the location of the invasion. Rommel
placed the 352nd at Normandy to
push any invading force back into the sea.
The cadre of the Division
were Ost
Front survivors.
The Division
was
initially filled out with approximately
2,000 recruits - most of them coming from Infantrie Ersatz und
Ausbildungs Bataillon 480 based
in Schlann. The rest of the Division was filled out
when it
was assigned to Wehrkreis XI
in Hanover. Initially, Officers and NCOs of the Division thought that
the Division's
destination
would be to the East Front, so training was
planned accordingly - they were trained to be outnumbered, out gunned,
surrounded, to never step back and to never surrender.
However, in
January 1944, the Division was placed on
defensive action in the area
around St. Lô.
Unlike the Division's
neighboring units - the 709th and 716th Infantry Divisions - the 352nd
was considered a combat unit. The 709th and 716th were
defensive "fortress" units, and were considered immobile. The
352.ID was
responsible for large areas of territory (almost unreasonably
large). It's primary missions were:
- Costal Artillery
and
Beach Defenses
- Reserve Division
for the
Army Corps
- One Regiment as
Tactical
Reserve for LXXXIV Corps
Because
most resources and support went to the Ost Front,
the 352nd had to deal with ration and supply problems from its
conception. |
The
Division
cadre were
formed
from the remnants of the following
units serving on the Ost Front:
268.Infanterie-Division
- Wehrkreis VII
(Munich)
- 468th,
488th and 499th Grenadier-Regiments
History:
- 1939:
Reserve Unit, activated
- 1939-1940:
Saar Front
- 1941
- 1943: Ost Front
- Battle
of Yelna Bend, Moscow, Rzhev and Kursk
- Elements
fought at Cholm and Demyansk
|
321.Infanterie-Division
- Wehrkreis XI
(Hannover)
- 588th,
589th and
590th Grenadier-Regiments
History:
- 1940:
Activated at Abberville
- December
1942: Ost Front
– Army Group Center
- Suffered
heavy losses at Kursk
|
546.Grenadier
Regiment
- Part
of 389.Infanterie-Division
- Wehrkreis XII
(Hesse)
History:
- 1941-1942:
Ost Front
- Winter
Drive across Don River, Volga River,
Stalingrad
|
The
survivors from the 546.Grenadier-Regiment
formed the cadre for the 1st
and 2nd
battalions of the 916.Grenadier-Regiment
of the 352.Infanterie-Division.
Because
most of the members of the 352nd were Ost
Front veterans, they were
hardened
soldiers - from the officers down to the Obergrenadiers.
A
large number of Volksdeutsch
recruits were also a part of the Division.
These Volksdeutsch
recruits
included Polish
and Czech Germans, Alsatians (French Germans), and Russians
(White-Russians, or
POA).
The
makeup of the 352 Infanterie-Division
was as follows:
- 3 Infantry Regiments
(9
Infantry Battalions total)
- 1 Artillery Regiment
- 1 Tank Destroyer
Battalion
- 1 Pioniere
Battalion
- 1 Light
Infantry/Recon
Battalion
- 1 Field Replacement
Battalion
At
the time of the Division's
formation, it had
12,021 men. Of that, only 6,800 men were combat troops.
The 352.ID
was a large
Division,
by German standards at the time, but it
was by no means a "crack" division. Cadre from the Ost Front
formed the leadership of
the Division and the bulk of
the Landsers
were young conscripts and foreign volunteers from the East.
The Division had
approximately 29% Russian volunteers, to
include Ukranians, Georgians and Bylorssians. Much of the
rest of
the Division's Landsers
were
young boys just out of high school, who suffered from malnourishment
from food rationing for the War effort.
An
organizational chart of the Division is shown
below.
INFANTERIE
 |
914.Grenadier-Regiment
-
2 x 15 cm sIG 33
- 6 x 7.5 cm leIG
- 3 x 7.5 cm PaK 40
|
915.Grenadier-Regiment
-
2 x 15 cm sIG 33
- 6 x 7.5 cm leIG
- 3 x 7.5 cm PaK 40
|
916.Grenadier-Regiment
-
2 x 15 cm sIG 33
- 2 x 7.5 cm leIG
- 3 x 7.5 cm PaK 40
|
The 352.ID
had three Infanterieregimenter
(infantry regiments), each with three Infanteriebataillone
(infantry battalions).
A
Regiment in a German Division was known as an Infanterie-Regiement,
or more
commonly at this time in the War as a Grenadier-Regiment.
The 352.ID
was considered a
large Division
because it
retained
the standard 9 battalions, while a majority of all other German
Divisions at the time had been reduced to 6 battalions.
All infantry battalions had 60 light machine
guns, 3
heavy
machine guns
and twelve 8 cm mortars. Each
infantry regiment
had one infantry gun (IG). The 914th and
915th Regiment’s IG company had two 15 cm and six 7,5 cm
infantry
howitzers. The 916th Regiment’s IG
company had two 15 cm and two 7,5 cm infantry howitzers.
Each Regiment had a PaK (Anti-Tank) company
with three 7,5 cm PaK 40 Anti-Tank guns.
916.Infanterie
Regiment
was
formed primarily by the survivors of Grenadier-Regiment
546 from the Ost
Front.
The rest of the Regiment was filled out with recruits coming
from Grenadier
Ersatz Bataillon 396,
stationed in Nordheim.
An
SS-Landser
in fighting around Caen in 1944. The MG-42 is configured in a light
support role, with folding bipod and detachable drum magazine |
Model
34 8 cm mortar and crew in action |
Grossdeutschland
Division artillerymen
loading a sIG
33 |
7,5 cm PaK 40
Anti-Tank Gun |
ARTILLERIE
 |
352.
Artillerie
Regiment
-
1-9.Batterie
- 36 x 10,5
cm leFH 16
- 10-12.Batterie
- 12 x
15 cm sFH 18
|
Batteries
1-9 of the Artillerie
Regiment
(artillery regiment) had four 10,5 cm leFH 16 howitzers each.
Batteries 10-12 had four 15 cm sFH 18 howitzers
each. None of these batteries were
motorized. The artillery all had one
basic load of ammunition. The 10,5 cm
guns had 225 rounds per gun, and the 15 cm guns had 150 rounds each.
10.5 cm leichte
Feldhaubitze 16 |
15 cm sFH
18 on
the Ost
Front
|
PANZERJÄGER
 |
352.
Panzerjäger Abteilung
-
14 x Marder
II and Marder
III variant Panzerjäger
- 10 x StuG III Ausf. G
assault guns
- 9 x FlaK Panzer 38
Self-Propelled Flak
|
The
Panzerjäger Abteilung
(tank
destroyers/tank hunter battalion)
had 14 Marder II and III (Marder on a Panzer II and 38(t) chassis,
respectively), 10 StuG III and 9 motorized 3,7 cm FlaK guns.
Marder III
Ausf.M
|
StuG
III Ausf G
|
Motorized
FlaK
3,7 |
PIONIERE
 |
352.
Pioniere
Battaillon
-
20 x Flammenwerfer
- 6 x 8 cm Granatwerfer
|
The
Pioniere Battaillon
(combat engineer
battalion) had
three companies, with 37
machine guns, 20 flame
throwers
and six mortars.
A Flammenwerfer
Pioniere in action in
Northern France, 1944 |
FÜSILIER
 |
352.
Füsilier Battaillon
-
1.
Kompanie bicycle
mounted
|
The Füsilier Battaillon was light
infantry/recon. The 1. Company of
the Füs.Btl
was
bicycle mounted.
This
battalion was located in the rear, away
from the beaches and was more mobile than a regular infantry
battalion. They were equipped
the same as a regular
infantry
battalion, with 60 light
machine guns, 3 heavy machine guns
and twelve 8 cm mortars.
In a defensive
position, like the
352.ID was, the Füsilier
Battaillon would most likely
protect the Division's
most
vulnerable flanks.
Bicycle
mounted Waffen-SS
Soldaten
ride towards Arnhem,
September 1944
|
FELDERSATZ
|
352.
Feldersatz Battaillon
-
6 x 8 cm Granatwerfer
34
- 1 x 5 cm PaK 38
- 1 x 7,5 cm PaK 40
- 1 x 10,5 cm Feldhaubitze
- 1 x Infanterie
Geschütz
- 2 x Flammenwerfer
|
The Feldersatz
Battaillon (field replacement
battalion) had five companies with
62 machine guns,
six 8 cm
mortars, one 5 cm PaK 38 AT gun, one 7,5 cm PaK 40 AT gun, one 10,5 cm
howitzer, one infantry howitzer and two flame throwers.
Soldaten
with their PaK
38
in Tunisia
|
 |
Field
Marshal Erwin Rommel
believed that the Atlantikwall
(Atlantic Wall) did not have enough defensive capability to withstand
an Allied invasion. Rommel, believing that any chance of
success
of an
Allied invasion would be decided on the beaches, made great strives to
increase the defenses of the Atlantikwall by increasing physical
barriers and bunkers, placing millions of mines, and increasing the
manpower on the Wall. |
The
352nd began its coastal duty
improving the defenses of the Atlantikwall,
as directed by Rommel. They placed beach obstacles, to
include
mined
stakes and anti-landing craft timbers. They cut the timber
from
the
woods, transported it to the beach, and drove it deep into the sand.
Rommel wanted over 10 million mines to cover the length of
the Atlantikwall,
but only 10,000 were available and laid before the Invasion.
Of
the
10,000 mines placed, many were not waterproofed, so by the time the
D-Day invasion occurred, many of those mines had rusted and corroded
because of the salt water, and no longer worked. |
 |
|
The
first row of beach obstacles were Belgian Gates and were about 250
yards from
the
high tide water line.
Belgian Gates (or
C-Elements) are heavy steel fences about three meters wide and two
meters high
used as anti-tank obstacles.
The
second row of obstacles was a band of mined stakes and log ramps, meant
to tip
or tear out the bottom of landing craft.
Finally,
the third row of defenses were Czech Hedgehogs– static
anti-tank
obstacle
defenses constructed of angled iron.
Further
up the beachhead, the 352nd
occupied slit trenches, eight large
concrete
bunkers, 35 pillboxes, six mortar pits, 35 Nebelwerfer
launch sites and
85
machine gun nests.
The main defenses
were clustered into strong points.
|
 |
|
Parts
of the 916.Grenadier-Regiment
was
located near Omaha Beach.
One battalion
from the 716.Infanterie-Division
was subordinated to the 916th. The 915.Grenadier-Regiment
was in
reserve southeast of Bayeux, and the 914.Grenadier-Regiment
was
deployed around Isigny.
Because most of the Wehrmacht’s
supplies were being sent to the
fight
on the Ost
Front, by March 1944, the
Divison's Landsers
only got to execute three
live
fire
events and
each Grenadier
was only able
to throw two live grenades in practice. Many
of the vehicles the Division
used were
foreign, so when they broke down, there were little, if any, spare
parts.
There was little
driver
training
because of a
shortage of available fuel. |
THE
352nd IN BATTLE IN FRANCE
|
Once
the D-Day invasion began on 6 June 1944, and the 352nd
realized it was
facing the brunt of the Invasion, it immediately absorbed
all
troops within is sector, to include Luftwaffe
Flak
troops and RAD (Labor
Service) personnel. Once
it became clear
that the main Allied invasion force was coming ashore at Normandy, all
available units were
rushed
to the front.
Hardened bunkers
(Winderstandsnest)
on or near the beach opened fire and continued to
fire until
they depleted their ammunition or all the men inside were dead. Artillery
Regiment 352
and 1275
had
pre-sighted every inch of the landing areas on the beach and rained
shells down
upon the landing Allied forces.
They,
too, continued to fire until they had run out of ammo or were in danger
from
being encircled.
The
following excerpts are from U.S. soldiers fighting the 352nd
in
Normandy: |
"...We
had a bad break tactically because the German 352nd Infantry Division
was on a
counter-attack training exercise at Omaha [Beach].
So
instead of a fortress
battalion -- you
know, with kind of second-rate troops -- we had a whole damned infantry
division in front of us. We
hit the
sand...behind the bodies of the amphibious engineers...and tried to
advance a
bit, but there was a large German bunker in front of us, and its
machine gun
fire hit us every time we tried to move. We
didn’t have any comm with the American
destroyer behind us because...the naval officer had been killed, his
driver
too, and the radio set destroyed...so we planned an assault. But
before we could get organized, there were
huge demolitions around the bunker. Thank
God we hadn’t moved out yet: an American destroyer had moved
in
and was firing
direct with 4-inch guns into the bunker." -Capt
Edward McGregor, US 1st Infantry Div
"Assault
units disintegrating. Very heavy losses. Enemy
fire prevents crossing
of the beach line.
Landing units bunching
up in
a very confined
area.
Engineers unable to
clear
paths
through minefields and cannot destroy beach obstacles.
Elements
of the...352nd
Infantry Division
identified."
-Battle
Report, US
5th Corps, 08:30a.m. June 6, 1944
"...The
Regiment started to
engage the enemy immediately behind the beach line defenses and
identified
units of the 726th Infantry Regiment of the 716th Infantry Division and
members
of the #17 Pioneer Battalion fighting as infantry. Also,
members
of the
#7 Company 915th Infantry Regiment of the 352nd Infantry Division and
the labor
battalion (Russian and Italian) attached to the 352nd Infantry were
identified...From
beach defenses to the Inundated Area the enemy action consisted mainly
of small
delaying groups and snipers from the 1714th Artillery Battalion, #17
Pioneer
Battalion, 12th Battery #IV Battalion, 352nd Infantry Division
Artillery...Crossing of inundated area was strongly opposed by German
defense
at eastern end, at COLOMBIERES and at BOIS de CALET at south of
causeway by
units of 914th, 915th and 916th Grenadier-Regiments. Snipers
and
small
delaying units were identified as Schnelle Brigade #30. 2nd Battalion
was
attacked at Le CARRETOUR by units of the 352nd Division Artillery...The
approach to, and the crossing of the Elle River was opposed by units of
three
(3) battalions of the Schnelle Brigade #30, units of the 352nd
Grenadier
Division and an unknown SP gun unit. Documents indicated that
parts of
the 5th Paratroop Regiment were in these defensive positions...The
following
units were identified from the Elle River to July 1st 1944.
914
Gr. Regts, 915 Gr. Regts and 916 Gr. Regts of the 352nd Infantry
Division.
II Bn
943 Gr Regt 353 Inf Div
Eng
Bn 353 of 353 Inf Div
9th
Regt of 3rd Parachute Div
513,
517, 518 Bns of Schnelle Brigade #30
353
Fu Bn" -ALFRED V.
EDNIE, Colonel, 115th Infantry Division After Action Report June 1944
Oberst
Ernst
Goth,
Commander, 916.Inf Reg |
The 352nd Infantry
Division took
heavy losses, both in causalities and by being captured, from the
oncoming
ground
attack as well as from enemy Jabos
(Fighter-Bombers). American and British Jabos would attack any daytime
ground
movement, even individual men unfortunate enough to be out in the open.
It became nearly impossible to move in the daylight, which
meant front-line units quickly ran out of food, ammunition and other
supplies. The front-line troops became exhausted from
constant
fighting and having no reinforcemets.
The 916.Grenadier-Regiment
saw action on D-Day opposing the 1st and 29th
U.S.
Divisions at Omaha Beach.
The 352nd
fought for several hours, inflicting many casualties, before being
overwhelmed
and overrun.
The 916th
retreated on the
morning of 7 June after Regiment Commander Oberst
Ernst Goth
couldn’t hold the
positions that they had just taken back on the previous
night.
The rest of the Division
saw
heavy fighting in the bocage
(hedgerow)
country while defending the area around St. Lô. |
|
According
to wartime documents, the losses suffered by the Division
on 6 June
were 200 killed, 500 wounded and 500 missing. The
Division
retreated
to
and
remained in the area
southeast of
Isigny.
Because
of constant fighting after
the invasion,
most of the Division
wasn’t
able to eat or sleep until 10 June. A
total absence of motorized
transport meant
that all movement was by foot or bicycle. By
the time the Allies had
put armor on the beaches and started
their
advance, there wasn’t much the 352nd
could do to stop it.
By
this time, most of the fighting ability of
the Division
was either
killed or captured. A
few isolated
units
continued to fight, or were absorbed into
other
neighboring units.
On
16 June, the Division
suffered 3,000 casualties.
From 6
–
24 June,
casualties were 5,407 officers and men. Despite
these heavy losses, the Division
kept
fighting, but continued to be beaten back and they continued to lose
men - The Allie's complete control of the air and their material
superiority were just too great. By
11 July, the 352nd
incurred
2,479 more casualties, and from 1
– 25
July, the Division
had 123
officers and men killed, 464 wounded, and 110 missing.
By
30 July, the Division
was in
very poor shape.
The Wehrmacht
declared
all battalions
of the 352nd abgekämpft
(no longer
combat worthy) on that date, which
means that each battalion had less than 100 combat-ready
men. By the time the Division
had been
disbanded,
it had subordinated the following units, all of which ended up worse
off than
the Division’s
original
units:
- Three
battalions from 266.Inf.-Div.
- Two
battalions from 353.Inf.-Div.
- One
battalion from 30.Brigade
- One
battalion from 275.Inf.-Div.
- One
battalion from 343.Inf.-Div.
- One artillery
battery
from 343.Inf.-Div.
- One
artillery battery from
"Autun"
artillery
battalion
Some
members
of the Division
ended up
being
caught in the Falaise Pocket at the end of July and the beginning of
August.
They, along with members of the 2.SS-Panzer
Division
inflicted heavy casualties on the Polish 1st Armored Division
while in the pocket, but were eventually beaten back. The
Pocket ultimately was sealed off. Approximately 15,000
Germans were killed in fighting in the Pocket and about 50,000 were
taken prisoner. The collapse of the Falaise Pocket was a
major
turning
point in the battle on the West Front - two major German Armies were
captured and destroyed in the pocket, severly depleting German strength
in the West.
|
|
|
| The Formation and close
of
the
Falaise Pocket, 8-17 August 1944 |
| After
the first of August, the 352nd Infantry Division was withdrawn to refit
in the area
southeast
of Alençon.
The 352nd
was only there for
a little over a week before
American
forces closed in. Elements of the Division
engaged in rear
guard
action along the axis of Le Mans and
Dreux. Generalleutnant
Dietrich Kraiß, the 352.ID
commander,
was injured in an attack on 4 August 1944. He died of his
injuries two days later. Oberst
Heyna was the interim
commander
of the Division
as they pulled
out of the front-line in
France. |
|
The
following
link provides an account of the 352nd
from its Chief of Staff, Oberstleutnant
Fritz Ziegalmann. Oberstleutnant
Ziegalmann wrote a history of the 352nd
in Normandy for
the United States War Department’s
Foreign
Military
Studies after the conflict as a Prisoner of War. Special
thanks
to Stewart Bryant for his work translating Oberstleutnant
Ziegalmann's
writing's and providing them on the internet.
|
|
Oberstleutnant Ziegalmann's
Account of the 352nd
|
THE
352nd IN BATTLE IN HOLLAND
|
Soldaten
moving near Arnhem
|
Despite
their condition and circumstances, the 352nd
fought
well in France against much larger and much better supplied Allied
Troops. Soldier for soldier, the German army was equal or
stronger than Allied armies, but the Ally's overwhelming air power and
material supperiority is what played a major role in defeating the
Germans in Normandy. The 352nd Infantry Division was sent to
southern Denmark
for refitting after being pulled out of the front lines in
France.
While
refitting, the 352nd
was
called back
into action when the Allies launched Market Garden. The
Division
was attached to the 10.SS
and the 363.Infanterie-Division.
They helped prevent the Allied
XXX
Corps from linking up with the British 1st Airborne Division, which
landed at
Arnhem, Holland. Elements of the 352nd
engaged the U.S. 101st Airborne
at
Nijmegen.
The
352.ID
was not a
completely refitted division while in Holland, and was
withdrawn to Germany to be refitted and reformed once again. |
Operation
Market Garden:
Nijmegen 1944
|
Nijmegen
after the
Battle, 28 September 1944
|
THE
352nd VOLKSGRENADIER DIVISION AND THE ARDENNES OFFENSIVE
Oberst
Erich
Schmidt,
Commander,
352.Volksgrenadier-Division |
The
remnants of the 352nd Infantry Division were merged with
the remnants of the 581.Volkgrenadier-Division
and a
few Marine
detachments (formerly coastal artillery) to form the 352.Volksgrenadier-Division
on 4
September 1944, under the command of Oberst
Erich
Schmidt.
Volksgrenadier-Divisions
are
slightly different than regular Infanterie-Divisions.
These Divisions had only six infantry battalions
instead of the standard nine battalions of a full Infanterie-Division;
this was already a common occurrence
in most other
Infantry
Divisions
at the time. Volksgrenadier-Divisions
emphasized defensive
strength rather than offensive strength. Standard infantry
weapons typically consisted of light machine guns, light automatic
weapons, and the Panzerfaust
(single shot anti-tank weapons). The Züge
(platoons) and Gruppen
(groups) of Volksgrenadier-Divisions were formed around
hardend
veterans to inspire and properly lead whatever personel was used to
fill out the Division. The bulk of these Divisions were
commonly filled out with "jobless" Wehrmacht personnel
from
the Kriegsmarine
(Navy) and Luftwaffe
(Air
Force),
wounded soldiers
returning to duty, as well as men and boys considered too old or young
for peacetime military service. |
Erich
Brandenberger
(left) with Erich von Manstein in North Russia, 1941 |
|
The 352.Volksgrenadier-Division
itself was made up of several "jobless" Kriegsmarinemänner
(Navy men). Their morale was high, but their limited
experience as infantry in ground operations showed in their poor
fighting and maneuvering ability. The newly reformed Division
had the same three Infanterieregimenter
- 914.,
915., and 916.
Grenadier-Regiements,
but with only six Infanteriebataillone
total.
This
newly reformed Volksgrenadier-Division was a part of LXXXV.
Armeekorps, and fell in with
the 7.Armee.
The 7.Armee
was
under the command of General der
Panzertruppe Erich
Brandenburger.
The 7.Armme
makeup
consisted of:
7.Armee
LXXXV.
Armeekorps
5.
Fallschirmjäger-Div.
352.
Volksgrenadier-Div.
LXXX.
Armeekorps
276.
Volksgrenadier-Div.
212. Volksgrenadier-Div.
LIII.
Armeekorps
Festungs
Infanterie-Battaillon 999
Festungs
MG Battaillon 44
|
7.Armee
Movement in the
Ardennes Offensive |
The 7.Armee
made the southern most push
during the Ardennes Offensive
(the Battle of the Bulge) towards Luxembourg. The main objective of the
southern push was to reach Luxembourg and protect the flank from any
Allied counterattacks. The
three Infantry
Divisions of 7.Armee
pushed
west 4 miles before meeting stiff
resistance from the U.S. VIII Corps. The 5.
Fallschirmjäger-Div.
managed to get 12 miles west on the
inner
flank of the push. There was no armored support for 7.Armee,
so the initial advance was stopped fairly easily by American troops.
The
352.Volksgrenadier-Division's
major engagements in the
Offensive occurred
in and around
Diekirch
and
Ettelbruck.
The
push in the south, although
stopped initially, managed to move
again by the second week of the offensive and posed a threat to Allied
lines. On 23 December 1944, there was heavy fighting in
Merzig and a large portion of the Division
was captured or
destroyed there. Only
when the U.S. 80th Infantry
Divison was reinforced with
armor
from the U.S. 702nd Tank Battalion were the Germans defeated on the
southern front of the Offensive.
Ultimately,
the Ardennes
Offensive as a whole failed, and again, the 352nd
was decimated by
losing men to casualties and being captured as
prisoners. |
Grenadiere
fighting in the Ardennes near Luxembourg
|
Grenadiere
from the 914.Inf-Reg. of the 352.Volksgrenadier
Div.
surrender in Merzig after the Ardennes Offensive comes to a
close.
24 December 1944
|
THE
352nd IN BATTLE IN GERMANY
After
the defeat in the Ardennes, the 352.Volksgrenadier-Division
was
recalled to Germany to be refit and resupplied. It was then
placed under the command of General
Bazing. It was refitted
with men from the 66th
Volksgrenadier-Regiment, 99th
Security Regiment
and what was left of the 9th Infantry Division. It's
next deployment
was
to defend the area around Trier (Germany) and Moselle
(France). Fighting and Allied bombing effectively destroyed
what was left of the Division
again by
mid-March 1945. Only a small remnant of
the Division
escaped across
the Rhine at Worms as American forces
advanced.
The
352nd
was partially
reconstructed one last time as a small battle
group in
mid-April and deployed to defend Darmstadt, south of Remagen.
It's last battles were during a part of the Rhineland
Campaign, as the Allies pushed in the south to reach the Elbe.
The 352nd Infantry Division's career as a fighting unit ended
in the Rhineland at the end of the War. They surrendered to
American forces near Nuremberg in May 1945.
|
The Friedensplatz
in Darmstadt, 1945
|
Amis
cross a bridge in Trier, 1945 |
SOURCES
|
