The 326th Infantry Division (326. Infanterie-Division) was formed on November 9, 1942 to serve as an occupation force in France. On May 5, 1943 the division was transformed into a static division. The 326th Infantry Division was destroyed during the Battle of Normandy

Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...

. A new 326th Volksgrenadier Division (326. Volksgrenadier-Division) was formed on September 4, 1944 in Galanta

Galanta

Galanta is a small town in Slovakia. It is situated 50 km due east from the Slovak capital Bratislava.-Geography:Galanta lies in the Danubian Lowland , the warm southern part of Slovakia...

 by redesignation of the new 579th Volksgrenadier Division of the 32nd mobilisation wave. In 1945 the division, separated into two groups, entered U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 captivity in the Ruhr Pocket

Ruhr Pocket

The Ruhr Pocket was a battle of encirclement that took place in late March and early April 1945, near the end of World War II, in the Ruhr Area of Germany. For all intents and purposes, it marked the end of major organized resistance on Nazi Germany's Western Front, as more than 300,000 troops were...

 and Harz

Harz

The Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...

 respectively.

Operational history

The 326th Infantry Division spent its entire operational history on the Western Front

Western Front (World War II)

The Western Front of the European Theatre of World War II encompassed, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, and West Germany. The Western Front was marked by two phases of large-scale ground combat operations...

, taking part in the Battles of Normandy

Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...

 under Army Group D

Army Group D

Army Group D was a German Army Group which saw action during World War II.Army Group D was formed on 26 October 1940 in France, its initial cadre coming from the disbanded Army Group C....

 (Heeresgruppe D) and the Ardennes

Battle of the Bulge

The Battle of the Bulge was a major German offensive , launched toward the end of World War II through the densely forested Ardennes mountain region of Wallonia in Belgium, hence its French name , and France and...

 under Army Group B

Army Group B

Army Group B was the name of three different German Army Groups that saw action during World War II.-Battle for France:The first was involved in the Western Campaign in 1940 in Belgium and the Netherlands which was to be aimed to conquer the Maas bridges after the German airborne actions in Rotterdam...

(Heeresgruppe B).

1942

• Grenadier-Regiment 751, I-III Battalions
• Grenadier-Regiment 752, I-III Battalions
• Grenadier-Regiment 753, I-III Battalions
• Artillerie-Regiment 326, I-III Battalions
• Schnelle-Abteilung 326
• Pionier-Bataillon 326
• Infanterie-Divisions-Nachrichten-Abteilung 326

1944

• Grenadier-Regiment 751, I and II Battalions
• Grenadier-Regiment 752, I and II Battalions
• Grenadier-Regiment 753, I and II Battalions
• Artillerie-Regiment 326, I-IV Battalions
• Divisions-Füsilier-Kompanie 326 (later expanded to Füsilier-Bataillon 26)
• Panzer-Jäger-Abteilung 326
• Pionier-Bataillon 326
• Infanterie-Divisions-Nachrichten-Abteilung 326