Army Group South ( German Heeresgruppe Süd ) - the formation ( army group ) of the armed forces of the Third Reich ( Wehrmacht ) in World War II .
| Army Group South Heeresgruppe sud | |
|---|---|
 Meeting at the headquarters of Army Group "South" in Poltava on June 1, 1942 | |
| Years of existence | August 26, 1939 - October 8, 1939, June 22, 1941 - July 9, 1942, February 12, 1943 - April 4, 1944, September 23, 1944 - April 30, 1945 |
| A country |  Germany |
| Subordination | to the commander |
| Enters into | the armed forces of the Third Reich |
| Type of | army group |
| Number of | Union |
| Participation in | World War II : Operation "Weiss" Operation Barbarossa Plan "Blau" |
| Commanders | |
| Famous Commanders | Gerd von Rundstedt Walter von Reichenau Fedor von Bock Erich von Manstein Walter Model Johannes frisner Otto Wöhler Lothar Rendulich |
Content
Legend:
EK8 - number and route of the einsatz team;
SK4a - the number and route of the zandermande;
checkbox - location and name of the Einsatzgroup;
the solid line is the advance of the army group troops ;
the dotted line is the boundaries of the action of the Einsatzgroup.
Formed four times:
- August 26, 1939 (abolished on October 8, 1939);
- June 22, 1941 (abolished on July 9, 1942 );
- February 12, 1943 (abolished on April 4, 1944 );
- September 23, 1944 (abolished on April 30, 1945 ).
Timeline
1939
On August 24, 1939, the creation of the Army Group South began with the reorganization of the command of the 12th Army of Peacetime of the German Armed Forces .
From September 1, participates in the invasion of Poland together with the Army Group North under the command of Colonel-General von Bock , being the main striking force of the German armed forces ( Wehrmacht ).
After the end of the Polish campaign, it was reformed, transferred to the West European theater of operations and renamed into Army Group “A” .
1941
June 22, 1941 Army Group “A” receives the name Army Group “South” . At the initial stage of Operation Barbarossa (invasion of the USSR ), the group launched an offensive in the southern direction ( Lviv - Kiev - Sevastopol - Odessa - Rostov-on-Don ). In the first months of the war, the army group forces inflicted a series of heavy defeats on the Soviet forces. But near Rostov in November — December 1941, the German troops suffered a major defeat in the Rostov offensive operation of the Soviet troops.
1943
At the end of 1943, the headquarters of the group was the city of Krivoy Rog .
1944
1945
Army Group "South" ceased to exist during the Grats-Amstetten operation of the Soviet troops (April-May 1945), when part of it fled and capitulated to American troops, and about 122 thousand soldiers and officers were captured by the Red Army.
Composition
1939
- control
- 8th Army ( General Blaskowitz infantry )
- 10th Army ( General of Artillery Reichenau )
- 14th Army (Colonel General Liszt )
1941
In June - December 1941 ( commander - Rundstedt ) the group had the following composition (the only army group in the Wehrmacht, which included more than two field armies ):
- control
- 6th Army (Colonel-General Reichenau )
- 11th Army (Colonel General Schobert )
- 17th Army (General Infantry Stülpnagel until October 4, 1941, then Colonel General Got )
- 1st Panzer Group, from October 1st Panzer Army (Colonel General Kleist )
In addition, the group included Romanian troops :
- 3rd Army ( Petre Dumitrescu )
- 4th Army ( Nicolae Chuperka )
The rear areas of the army group guarded:
- 213rd guard division of the country [1] ;
- 444th security division of the country;
- 454th security division of the country.
In the front line of the group operated Ainzatsgruppa C .
The size of the Army Group South on June 22, 1941: 1,556,100 people, 16,008 guns, 1,190 tanks, 1,778 aircraft.
Commander
- Gerd von Rundstedt (08.24.1939 - 12.12.1941)
- Walter von Reichenau (December 1, 1941 - January 15, 1942)
- Fedor von Bock (01/18/1942 - 07/09/1942)
- Erich von Manstein (February 12, 1943 - 03/31/1944)
- Walter Model (03/31/1944 - 4/04/1944)
- Johannes Frisner (09/23/1944 - 12/22/1944)
- Otto Wöhler (12/28/1944 - 04/06/1945)
- Lothar Rendulich (04/06/1945 - 04/30/1945)
See also
- List of commanders of German army groups during World War II
Notes
- ↑ In military science, Russia is referred to as the rear guard division.