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19th Army (Wehrmacht)

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19th Army
German: 19. Armee
1944, anti-tank fortifications in Southern France
Active26 August 1943 – 21 April 1945
Country Germany
Branch German Army ( Wehrmacht)
TypeField army
Engagements

The 19th Army (German: 19. Armee) was a World War II field army of the German Army. Active from 1943 to 1945 on the Western Front, it was tasked with defending southern France and before being pushed back to the French–German border during Operation Dragoon and then into southern Germany.

History

[edit]

Formed in August 1943 in occupied southern France from Armeegruppe Felber (the LXXXIII. Armeekorps), the 19th Army defended southern France, the Vosges Mountains, Alsace, Baden and southern Württemberg during the Allied invasion of southern France and other large Allied military operations that had as their goal the liberation of southern France and the invasion of southern Germany.

Although nominally a field army, the 19th Army was under strength and consisted of third tier soldiers, wounded veterans, conscripts and Hiwis. Southern France in general was treated as a third tier theatre and given minimal attention by the OKW. The entire army was outfitted with damaged and obsolete equipment, with four of the 19th army's divisions designated "static divisions," meaning that they were stripped of all mobile assets and forbidden to move from their assigned positions. The Hiwis in particular proved unreliable and typically deserted or surrendered at the first opportunity. One of those units subordinated to the 19th Army was the 30th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, before it was withdrawn to Germany in December 1944 after sustaining heavy losses.

At the time of the Allied landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944, the 19th Army was headquartered at Avignon and subordinate to Army Group G at Toulouse.[1]: 442 

During Operation Dragoon, the 19th Army was trapped in an enormous encirclement, suffering 7,000 killed or missing, 20,000 wounded, 130,000-140,000 captured and was largely destroyed as a fighting force. However, its headquarters survived intact, retreated northwards and participated in the defense of the Rhine River.

Organization: 19th Army on July 17, 1944
Army Group Army Corps Division
G
Blaskowitz
19th Army
Wiese
LXII Corps
Neuling
148th Infantry Division
 
242nd Infantry Division
 
LXXXV Corps
Knieß
244th Infantry Division
 
338th Infantry Division
 
IV Luftwaffe Corps
Petersen
189th Infantry Division
 
198th Infantry Division
 
716th Infantry Division
 
Subordinated
to Army HQ
157th Reserve
(Mountain) Division

After the debacle in Southern France, the 19th Army was recreated with poorly trained conscripts and tasked with defending the west bank of the Rhine, and the city of Strasbourg. The 19th Army was again encircled and largely destroyed during the battle for the Colmar Pocket in January and February 1945. Once again its headquarters survived capture and was rebuilt largely from Volkssturm and hastily trained replacement troops in early 1945. With many of its best men and junior leaders dead or captured, the 19th Army's effectiveness was seriously impaired and it proved unable to parry the thrusts of its constant foe, the French First Army. Split by deep French armored thrusts into Baden, the Black Forest, and Württemberg, the 19th Army was destroyed in the area of Stuttgart and Münsingen in late April 1945, with remnants of the army surrendering as late as 8 May 1945. Formal surrender was accepted by Maj. General Edward H. Brooks, Commander of the U.S. Army's VI Corps.

19th Army (Wehrmacht) is located in Germany
XVIII SS
XVIII SS
LXIV
LXIV
LXXX
LXXX
Location of corps of the 19th Army
April 19, 1945
Organization: 19th Army on April 12, 1945
Army Group Army Corps Division
G
Schulz
19th Army
Brandenberger
XVIII SS Corps
Keppler
Baur Infantry Brigade
 
1005th Infantry Brigade
 
805th Infantry Division
 
405th Infantry Division
 
LXIV Corps
Grimmeiß
106th Infantry Division
 
257th Volksgrenadier Division
 
716th Infantry Division
 
LXXX Corps
Beyer
16th Volksgrenadier Division
 
47th Volksgrenadier Division
 
198th Infantry Division
 
559th Volksgrenadier Division
 
Subordinated
to Army HQ
189th Infantry Division
 

Commanders

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No. Portrait Commander Took office Left office Time in office
1
Georg von Sodenstern
Sodenstern, GeorgGeneral der Infanterie
Georg von Sodenstern
(1889–1955)
26 August 194329 June 1944308 days
2
Friedrich Wiese
Wiese, FriedrichGeneral der Infanterie
Friedrich Wiese
(1892–1975)
29 June 194415 December 1944169 days
3
Siegfried Rasp
Rasp, SiegfriedGeneral der Infanterie
Siegfried Rasp
(1898–1968)
15 December 194415 February 194562 days
4
Hermann Foertsch
Foertsch, HermannGeneral der Infanterie
Hermann Foertsch
(1895–1961)
15 February 194528 February 194513 days
5
Hans von Obstfelder
Obstfelder, HansGeneral der Infanterie
Hans von Obstfelder
(1886–1976)
1 March 194526 March 194525 days
6
Erich Brandenberger
Brandenberger, ErichGeneral der Panzertruppe
Erich Brandenberger
(1892–1955)
26 March 19456 May 194541 days

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Pöhlmann, Markus (2016). Der Panzer und die Mechanisierung des Krieges: Eine deutsche Geschichte, 1890 bis 1945 (in German). Ferdinand Schöningh. ISBN 9783506783554.

Further reading

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  • Tessin, Georg, (1976). Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939-1945 (Volume IV), Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück. ISBN 3-7648-1083-1.