4th Panzer Army (Wehrmacht)

It was formed in February 1941 on the basis of the headquarters of the 16th Motorized Corps as the 4th Panzer Group. The first commander is Colonel General Erich Göpner . As part of Army Group North, she took part in the attack on the USSR and the offensive on Leningrad . In September 1941, transferred to the Army Group Center for an attack on Moscow. She took part in the Vyazemsky battle and the Moscow battle . For unauthorized departure near Moscow, Army Commander E. Göpner was removed from command and dismissed in disgrace.

In January 1942, the group was renamed the 4th Panzer Army. The first commander is Colonel General Hermann Goth . She took part in the Kharkov battle in May 1942 and the subsequent attack on Voronezh and Rostov-on-Don .

Early in the morning of June 28, 1942, the German summer offensive began. On this day, the Weichs group struck at the junction of the 13th and 40th armies of the Bryansk Front. The main blow was dealt by the 4th Panzer Army of Colonel-General German Goth south of the Kursk - Voronezh railway with the task of reaching the Don . South of the 2nd Hungarian Army, under the command of Colonel-General Jani, they were eager for the Stary Oskol. To the north came the 55th Army Corps . Having thrown three tank ( 24 , 9, and 11th ), three infantry, and one motor divisions on a 45-kilometer stretch of front against three Soviet rifle divisions, the Germans easily broke through their defenses and, wedged 10-15 km, went to the Tim river, to the south cities of Livny .

During Operation Blau, it was originally part of Army Group A , advancing in the Caucasus, but then transferred to Group B in the Stalingrad direction. The 24th Panzer Division of the 4th TA, together with the 6th Army of Paulus, entered the Stalingrad boiler and was defeated and destroyed.

Having suffered a defeat in the area of Kotelnikovsky , the 4th Panzer Army retreated to the Morozovsk - Zimovniki line , intending to stop the advance of the troops of the Southern Front on it ^[1] .

In the Battle of Kursk, the 4th TA attacked from the south.

June 22, 1941

• 41st Motorized Corps (General of the tank forces G. Reingard )
  • 1st Panzer Division
  • 6th Panzer Division
  • 36th Motorized Division
  • 269th Infantry Division
• 56th Motorized Corps (infantry general E. von Manstein )
  • 8th Panzer Division
  • 3rd Motorized Division
  • 290th Infantry Division
• Reserve
  • 3rd Motorized SS Division “Dead Head” ”

July 10, 1941

• 41st Motorized Corps (General of the tank forces G. Reingard )
  • 1st Panzer Division
  • 6th Panzer Division
  • 36th Motorized Division
  • 269th Infantry Division
• 56th Motorized Corps (infantry general E. von Manstein )
  • 8th Panzer Division
  • 3rd Motorized Division
• Reserve
  • 3rd Motorized SS Division “Dead Head”

August 8, 1941

• 38th Army Corps (infantry general F. von Schappius)
  • 58th Infantry Division
• 41st Motorized Corps (General of the tank forces G. Reingard )
  • 1st Infantry Division
  • 1st Panzer Division
  • 6th Panzer Division
  • 8th Panzer Division
  • 36th Motorized Division
• 56th Motorized Corps (infantry general E. von Manstein )
  • 3rd Motorized Division
  • 269th Infantry Division
  • SS Police Division

September 9, 1941

• 41st Motorized Corps (General of the tank forces G. Reingard )
  • 36th Motorized Division
  • 1st Panzer Division
  • 6th Panzer Division
• 50th Army Corps (cavalry general G. Lindeman )
  • 269th Infantry Division
  • SS Police Division
• 28th Army Corps (infantry general M. von Quiz )
  • 96th Infantry Division
  • 121st Infantry Division
  • 122nd Infantry Division

October 2, 1941

• 57th Motorized Corps (General of the Tank Forces A. Kunzen )
  • 20th Panzer Division
  • 3rd Motorized Division
  • SS Division "Reich"
• 46th Motorized Corps (General of the tank forces G. von Fittinghof )
  • 5th Panzer Division
  • 11th Panzer Division
  • 252nd Infantry Division
• 40th Motorized Corps with (General of Tank Forces G. Stumme )
  • 2nd Panzer Division
  • 10th Panzer Division
  • 258th Infantry Division
• 12th Army Corps (infantry general V. Schrot )
  • 98th Infantry Division
  • 34th Infantry Division

January 2, 1942

• 7th Army Corps
  • 7th Infantry Division
  • 267th Infantry Division
  • 197th Infantry Division
  • 3rd Motorized Division
  • 255th Infantry Division
  • French regiment
• 9th Army Corps
  • 87th Infantry Division
  • 20th Panzer Division
  • 18th Infantry Division
  • 252nd Infantry Division
• 46th Motorized Corps
  • SS Division "Reich"
  • 10th Panzer Division (part)
  • 5th Panzer Division
  • 11th Panzer Division
• 5th Army Corps
  • 35th Infantry Division
  • 6th Panzer Division
  • 106th Infantry Division
  • 23rd Infantry Division

November 15, 1942

• • 16th Motorized Division
  • 29th Motorized Division
• 7th Romanian Army Corps
  • 8th Romanian Cavalry Brigade
  • 5th Romanian Cavalry Brigade
• 6th Romanian Army Corps
  • 4th Romanian Infantry Division
  • 1st Romanian Infantry Division
  • 2nd Romanian Infantry Division
  • 18th Romanian Infantry Division
• 4th Army Corps
  • 20th Romanian Infantry Division
  • 297th Infantry Division
  • 371st Infantry Division

• Colonel General E. Göpner (February 15, 1941 - January 7, 1942)
• Colonel General R. Ruoff (January 8, 1942 - May 31, 1942)
• Colonel General G. Goth (May 31, 1942 - November 10, 1943)
• Colonel General E. Routh (November 10, 1943 - April 21, 1944) ^[2]
• Colonel General J. Harpe (May 18, 1944 - June 28, 1944)
• General of the tank forces V. Nering (June 28, 1944 - August 5, 1944)
• General of the tank forces H. Balck (August 5, 1944 - September 21, 1944)
• General of the tank troops F.-G. Grezer (September 21, 1944 - May 8, 1945)

• Leningrad defensive operation
• Vyazemsky boiler
• Moscow battle
• Kharkov operation (1942)
• Battle of stalingrad
• Battle of Kursk

• www.axishistory.com (German)

1. ↑ Soviet tank troops 1941-1945. Military historical sketch . - M .: Military Publishing , 1973.
2. ↑ Erhard Raus . Panzer Operations. p. 352