German Panzer Division Müncheberg
Encyclopedia
Panzer-Division Müncheberg was a German
panzer
division
which saw action on the Eastern Front
around Berlin
during World War II
.
, Germany
. The majority of the division's staff and panzer troops were drawn from the 103.Panzer-Brigade, which had been dissolved three days before. Major General of the Reserve (Generalmajor der Reserve) Werner Mummert
, the commander of the 103rd Panzer Brigade and a highly decorated veteran, was placed in command of the division.
Despite its being severely understrength and an ad-hoc formation, the Müncheberg Division eventually received small amounts of the latest in supplies and equipment, including several Panther (Type G) tanks
equipped with Sperber Infrared
(IR) systems, as well as a company of Panzergrenadier
s equipped with Sperber IR systems.
In addition, the division received several of the superheavy Jagdtiger
s, as well as several Tiger II Ausf. Bs, and the last five Tiger 1 Ausf. Es to be sent to the front. By 12 March the division's strength was still only 6,836 men. On 18 March the men from an infantry battalion of the 1.SS-Panzer-Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler were used to bolster the division's strength.
As the advancing Soviet forces neared Müncheberg, the partly formed Müncheberg Division was ordered to move east as the mobile reserve for Infantry General (General der Infanterie) Theodor Busse
's Ninth Army
. The Ninth Army represented a significant part of Colonel General (Generaloberst) Gotthard Heinrici
's Army Group Vistula
(Heeresgruppe Weichsel).
Panzer-Division Müncheberg arrived at the front in Cottbus
on 22 March.
lies roughly 70 km to the east of Berlin
. German dictator Adolf Hitler
had declared that the town was to be a fortress (Festung
). Unlike other so-called fortress towns and cities, Festung Küstrin actually was a fortress. Frederick the Great had been imprisoned there by his father in the 1720s. The forces of Marshall Vasily Chuikov
had reached the outskirts of Küstrin
on 31 January and had immediately been committed in efforts to secure a bridgehead across the Oder
. Bridgeheads were established to the north and south of Küstrin, but the Soviets could not consolidate their bridgehead until Küstrin was captured. The Soviets, hesitant to attack the well defended fortress, began attempts to surround Küstrin and thereby render it impotent.
Despite repeated Soviet attacks, the narrow strip of land between Busse's 9. Armee and Küstrin, dubbed the Küstrin Corridor was kept open. On 22 March, as the Müncheberg reached the front, a major Soviet effort to sever the corridor went into action. The Soviet plan was complicated, consisting of an inner and outer encirclement. The inner encirclement succeeded quickly, and the corridor was cut. Müncheberg went into action on 22 March alongside General der Panzertruppen Karl Decker
's XXXIX.Panzerkorps. Over the next three days, Müncheberg, together with the 25.Panzergrenadier-Division
was to claim 200 enemy tanks destroyed. Despite this, by 25 March the outer encirclement was completed, trapping several German units including a platoon from the Müncheberg.
On 27 March, the Germans launched a counter-offensive aimed at re-opening the Küstrin Corridor. Müncheberg was subordinated to XXXIX.Panzerkorps for the attack. Despite inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy, the corps was unable to break through to the city. A Soviet counter-attack hit the 20.Panzergrenadier-Division and soon the attack was in disarray, with elements of the 20.Panzergrenadier falling back in a disorganised rout. The Soviet artillery caused heavy casualties among the retreating Germans.
After the failure of the Küstrin counter-attack, the exhausted Müncheberg was pulled out of the line to be refitted.
at Wünsdorf to be refitted with the Sperber-IR equipment. The formations were returned to the division on 7 April 1945. By now, the Müncheberg was dug in at the 'Hardenberg Positions' on Seelow Heights
.
The IR equipped company, I./29.Panzer-Regiment under the command of Oberleutnant Rasim, together with the supporting IR capable panzergrenadiers under Hauptmann Steuer, launched a night attack towards Soviet troops entrenched on the Reitwein Spur. This was one of the first uses of Infrared in combat and the attack, although limited, was a resounding success.
On 16 April Marshall Georgi Zhukov launched a massive assault across the Alte Oder aimed at capturing Berlin
. From this date until the end of the war, Müncheberg was in constant combat. Zhukov, launching his attack at night, had set up searchlights which were to illuminate the German positions in the pre-dawn darkness. Instead, they silhouetted the advancing Soviet tanks and men, and enabled the entrenched Germans to hold the heights for several days. The division, equipped with several self-propelled 8.8 cm and 12.8 cm anti-tank guns, caused heavy casualties on the advancing Soviets in what was to be known as the Battle of Seelow Heights.
Over the next few days, Zhukov threw thousands of troops and tanks against the entrenched Germans, who managed to rebuff each assault. On 19 April the 9.Fallschirmjäger-Division, on the Müncheberg's right, finally cracked and the entire front collapsed. On 20 April, after holding the line for eight days, Müncheberg, together with its neighboring formation 11.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nordland
fell back into Berlin itself.
The division halted for a ferocious rearguard action in the village of Müncheberg, inflicting more heavy losses on the advancing Soviets. Despite this, the Soviet advance did not slow and the division was pushed back into Berlin itself. The remnants of the Müncheberg were positioned in the north-eastern sector of Berlin, north of the River Spree. By this stage, the division retained roughly a dozen tanks and about thirty halftracks
.
On 25 April, General der Artillerie Helmuth Weidling
, the recently appointed commander of the defence of Berlin, ordered Mummert to take command of the LVI Panzer Corps
, command of the Müncheberg being handed over to Colonel (Oberst
) Hans-Oscar Wöhlermann
, the artillery commander (ArKo) for the city. On 26 April Müncheberg, along with Nordland, was ordered to attack towards Tempelhof Airport
and Neukolln
. With its last ten panzers, the Müncheberg at first made good progress against the surprised Soviets, however fierce defensive fire and several local counter-attacks soon halted the advance.
Around noon on 26 April Wöhlermann was released from command and Mummert was reinstated as commander of the division. The following is from the diary of an officer with the Müncheberg Division and describes the evening of 26 April.
On 27 April, very early in the morning, Hitler ordered the flooding of the Berlin underground to slow the advancing Soviets. Hitler's order resulted in the drowning of many German soldiers and civilians who had taken refuge in the tunnels. The diary of the officer with the Müncheberg Division went on to describe the flooding.
As the division was engaged in desperate fighting in Wilmersdorf
, the encirclement of Berlin was completed and the remnants of the Müncheberg were trapped. The diary of the officer with the Müncheberg Division also described the "flying courts-martial" prevalent at this time.
On 30 April, Hitler committed suicide. The Müncheberg, German 18th Panzergrenadier Division along with a few Tiger IIs from schwere-SS-Panzer-Abteilung 503 were engaged in heavy fighting near the Westkreuz and Halensee
train stations and on the Kurfurstendamm
. By 1 May the division had been pushed back to the Tiergarten
and was fighting to defend the Zoo Flak Tower
, the shelter of thousands of civilians. The Müncheberg's last operating panzer, a Tiger 1, was abandoned on the Unter den Linden
straße a hundred yards from the Brandenburg Gate
.
Mummert was determined to lead the survivors of his division in an escape to the west, through the suburb of Spandau
. Ignoring Weidling's calls for a cessation of hostilities, Mummert ordered the breakout attempt to get underway. Late in the day he went missing during heavy fighting, surfacing years later in a Soviet Gulag
. The remnants of 18th Panzergrenadier joined the escape attempt, and both divisions attempted to battle their way to the west and surrender to the Americans. By 3 May the divisions had reached the Charlottenbrücke crossing the Havel River in Spandau. The bridge was under heavy Soviet artillery fire, but the few survivors of the Müncheberg attempted to cross the carnage of the bridge. Those who made it across the bridge found that they were surrounded by the Soviets, and on 5 May the division, which was now the last organized formation in Berlin, disintegrated.
Several small groups of men had managed to reach the Americans, but the majority of the survivors faced an uncertain fate in Soviet captivity.
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
panzer
Panzer
A Panzer is a German language word that, when used as a noun, means "tank". When it is used as an adjective, it means either tank or "armoured" .- Etymology :...
division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
which saw action on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
around Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Formation
Panzer-Division Müncheberg began forming on 8 March 1945 in MünchebergMüncheberg
Müncheberg is a small town in Märkisch-Oderland, Germany approximately half-way between Berlin and the border with Poland.-Geography:Prior to 2003 the area today covered by Müncheberg was organized as the so-called "Amt Müncheberg"...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The majority of the division's staff and panzer troops were drawn from the 103.Panzer-Brigade, which had been dissolved three days before. Major General of the Reserve (Generalmajor der Reserve) Werner Mummert
Werner Mummert
Werner Mummert was a German officer during both World War I and World War II. Mummert was born in Lüttewitz/Saxony. He first joined the German Army in August 1914 and became a Lieutenant of the Reserve , Sachs Karabiner Regiment in 1916...
, the commander of the 103rd Panzer Brigade and a highly decorated veteran, was placed in command of the division.
Despite its being severely understrength and an ad-hoc formation, the Müncheberg Division eventually received small amounts of the latest in supplies and equipment, including several Panther (Type G) tanks
Panther tank
Panther is the common name of a medium tank fielded by Nazi Germany in World War II that served from mid-1943 to the end of the European war in 1945. It was intended as a counter to the T-34, and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV; while never replacing the latter, it served alongside it as...
equipped with Sperber Infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
(IR) systems, as well as a company of Panzergrenadier
Panzergrenadier
is a German term for motorised or mechanized infantry, as introduced during World War II. It is used in the armies of Austria, Chile, Germany and Switzerland.-Forerunners:...
s equipped with Sperber IR systems.
In addition, the division received several of the superheavy Jagdtiger
Jagdtiger
Jagdtiger is the common name of a German tank destroyer of World War II. The official German designation was Panzerjäger Tiger Ausf. B. The ordnance inventory designation was Sd. Kfz. 186. It saw service in small numbers from late 1944 to the end of the war on both the Western and Eastern Front...
s, as well as several Tiger II Ausf. Bs, and the last five Tiger 1 Ausf. Es to be sent to the front. By 12 March the division's strength was still only 6,836 men. On 18 March the men from an infantry battalion of the 1.SS-Panzer-Division Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler were used to bolster the division's strength.
As the advancing Soviet forces neared Müncheberg, the partly formed Müncheberg Division was ordered to move east as the mobile reserve for Infantry General (General der Infanterie) Theodor Busse
Theodor Busse
Ernst Hermann August Theodor Busse was a German officer during World War I and World War II.- Career :...
's Ninth Army
German Ninth Army
The 9th Army was a World War II field army.The 9th Army was activated on May 15, 1940 with General Johannes Blaskowitz in command.-1940:The 9th Army first saw service along the Siegfried Line when it was involved in the invasion of France...
. The Ninth Army represented a significant part of Colonel General (Generaloberst) Gotthard Heinrici
Gotthard Heinrici
Gotthard Heinrici was a general in the German Army during World War II.-Personal life:Heinrici's was born in Gumbinnen , East Prussia, on Christmas Day, 1886, to Paul Heinrici, a local Lutheran minister of the Prussian Church, and his wife Gisela, née von Rauchhaupt, who was of recent Jewish descent...
's Army Group Vistula
Army Group Vistula
Army Group Vistula was an Army Group of the Wehrmacht, formed on January 24, 1945. It was put together from elements of Army Group A , Army Group Centre , and a variety of new or ad-hoc formations...
(Heeresgruppe Weichsel).
Panzer-Division Müncheberg arrived at the front in Cottbus
Cottbus
Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :...
on 22 March.
Baptism of fire – Küstrin
The town of KüstrinKüstrin
Before 1945 Küstrin was a town in the former Prussian province of Brandenburg in Germany, situated on both sides of the Oder river...
lies roughly 70 km to the east of Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. German dictator Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
had declared that the town was to be a fortress (Festung
Festung
Festung is a generic German word for a fortress. Whilst it is not in common usage in English it is used in a number of historical contexts involving German speakers:* For historical fortresses in Austria, Germany or Switzerland...
). Unlike other so-called fortress towns and cities, Festung Küstrin actually was a fortress. Frederick the Great had been imprisoned there by his father in the 1720s. The forces of Marshall Vasily Chuikov
Vasily Chuikov
Vasily Ivanovich Chuikov was a Russian lieutenant general in the Red Army during World War II, twice Hero of the Soviet Union , who after the war became a Marshal of the Soviet Union.-Early life and career:Born into a peasant family in the village of Serebryanye Prudy, he joined the Red Army during...
had reached the outskirts of Küstrin
Küstrin
Before 1945 Küstrin was a town in the former Prussian province of Brandenburg in Germany, situated on both sides of the Oder river...
on 31 January and had immediately been committed in efforts to secure a bridgehead across the Oder
Oder
The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
. Bridgeheads were established to the north and south of Küstrin, but the Soviets could not consolidate their bridgehead until Küstrin was captured. The Soviets, hesitant to attack the well defended fortress, began attempts to surround Küstrin and thereby render it impotent.
Despite repeated Soviet attacks, the narrow strip of land between Busse's 9. Armee and Küstrin, dubbed the Küstrin Corridor was kept open. On 22 March, as the Müncheberg reached the front, a major Soviet effort to sever the corridor went into action. The Soviet plan was complicated, consisting of an inner and outer encirclement. The inner encirclement succeeded quickly, and the corridor was cut. Müncheberg went into action on 22 March alongside General der Panzertruppen Karl Decker
Karl Decker
Karl Gustav Adolf Decker was a German general in the infantry, serving during World War II. Trapped in the Ruhr Pocket, Decker committed suicide on 21 April 1945. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
's XXXIX.Panzerkorps. Over the next three days, Müncheberg, together with the 25.Panzergrenadier-Division
25th Panzergrenadier Division
The 25th Panzergrenadier Division fought in the central sector of the Eastern front from June 1943 to July 1944. It was destroyed in the encirclement east of Minsk and reformed in October 1944. It then fought in France between October 1944 and January 1945 and in eastern Germany January to May 1945...
was to claim 200 enemy tanks destroyed. Despite this, by 25 March the outer encirclement was completed, trapping several German units including a platoon from the Müncheberg.
On 27 March, the Germans launched a counter-offensive aimed at re-opening the Küstrin Corridor. Müncheberg was subordinated to XXXIX.Panzerkorps for the attack. Despite inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy, the corps was unable to break through to the city. A Soviet counter-attack hit the 20.Panzergrenadier-Division and soon the attack was in disarray, with elements of the 20.Panzergrenadier falling back in a disorganised rout. The Soviet artillery caused heavy casualties among the retreating Germans.
After the failure of the Küstrin counter-attack, the exhausted Müncheberg was pulled out of the line to be refitted.
Seelow Heights
During this refit period, a panzergrenadier company and a company of Panther ausf Gs were sent to Panzertruppenschule IIPanzertruppenschule II
Panzertruppenschule II was the second of two major schools set up by the German Panzerwaffe in World War II to train German armour officers to operate Panzers...
at Wünsdorf to be refitted with the Sperber-IR equipment. The formations were returned to the division on 7 April 1945. By now, the Müncheberg was dug in at the 'Hardenberg Positions' on Seelow Heights
Seelow Heights
The Seelow Heights are situated around the town Seelow, about 90 kilometres east of Berlin and overlook the Oderbruch, the western flood plain of the River Oder which is a further 20 km to the east....
.
The IR equipped company, I./29.Panzer-Regiment under the command of Oberleutnant Rasim, together with the supporting IR capable panzergrenadiers under Hauptmann Steuer, launched a night attack towards Soviet troops entrenched on the Reitwein Spur. This was one of the first uses of Infrared in combat and the attack, although limited, was a resounding success.
On 16 April Marshall Georgi Zhukov launched a massive assault across the Alte Oder aimed at capturing Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. From this date until the end of the war, Müncheberg was in constant combat. Zhukov, launching his attack at night, had set up searchlights which were to illuminate the German positions in the pre-dawn darkness. Instead, they silhouetted the advancing Soviet tanks and men, and enabled the entrenched Germans to hold the heights for several days. The division, equipped with several self-propelled 8.8 cm and 12.8 cm anti-tank guns, caused heavy casualties on the advancing Soviets in what was to be known as the Battle of Seelow Heights.
Over the next few days, Zhukov threw thousands of troops and tanks against the entrenched Germans, who managed to rebuff each assault. On 19 April the 9.Fallschirmjäger-Division, on the Müncheberg's right, finally cracked and the entire front collapsed. On 20 April, after holding the line for eight days, Müncheberg, together with its neighboring formation 11.SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nordland
11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland
The 11th SS Volunteer Panzergrenadier Division Nordland, also known as Kampfverband Waräger, Germanische-Freiwilligen-Division, SS-Panzergrenadier-Division 11 or 11. SS-Freiwilligen-Panzergrenadier-Division Nordland, was a Waffen SS, Panzergrenadier division recruited from foreign volunteers...
fell back into Berlin itself.
Berlin
- See also Battle in BerlinBattle in BerlinThe Battle in Berlin was an end phase of the Battle of Berlin. While the Battle of Berlin encompassed the attack by three Soviet Army Groups to capture not only Berlin but the territory of Germany east of the River Elbe still under German control, the Battle in Berlin details the fighting, and...
The division halted for a ferocious rearguard action in the village of Müncheberg, inflicting more heavy losses on the advancing Soviets. Despite this, the Soviet advance did not slow and the division was pushed back into Berlin itself. The remnants of the Müncheberg were positioned in the north-eastern sector of Berlin, north of the River Spree. By this stage, the division retained roughly a dozen tanks and about thirty halftracks
SdKfz 251
The Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track was an armored fighting vehicle designed and first built by Hanomag company during World War II. The largest and best armored of the wartime half-tracks, the Sd.Kfz. 251 was designed to transport the panzergrenadiers of the German mechanized infantry corps into battle....
.
On 25 April, General der Artillerie Helmuth Weidling
Helmuth Weidling
Helmuth Otto Ludwig Weidling was an officer in the German Army before and during World War II...
, the recently appointed commander of the defence of Berlin, ordered Mummert to take command of the LVI Panzer Corps
LVI Panzer Corps
LVI Panzer Corps was a tank corps in the German Army during World War II.This corps was activated in February 1941 for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, which commenced on June 22, 1941...
, command of the Müncheberg being handed over to Colonel (Oberst
Oberst
Oberst is a military rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and Norway. The Swedish rank överste is a direct translation, as are the Finnish rank eversti...
) Hans-Oscar Wöhlermann
Hans-Oscar Wöhlermann
Hans-Oscar Wöhlermann was a German officer during World War II.Towards the end of the war, Wöhlermann took part in the Battle of the Seelow Heights and the Battle for Berlin....
, the artillery commander (ArKo) for the city. On 26 April Müncheberg, along with Nordland, was ordered to attack towards Tempelhof Airport
Tempelhof International Airport
Berlin Tempelhof Airport was an airport in Berlin, Germany, situated in the south-central borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg. The airport ceased operating in 2008 in the process of establishing Schönefeld as the sole commercial airport for Berlin....
and Neukolln
Neukölln
Neukölln is the eighth borough of Berlin, located in the southeastern part of the city and was part of the former American sector under the Four-Power occupation of the city...
. With its last ten panzers, the Müncheberg at first made good progress against the surprised Soviets, however fierce defensive fire and several local counter-attacks soon halted the advance.
Around noon on 26 April Wöhlermann was released from command and Mummert was reinstated as commander of the division. The following is from the diary of an officer with the Müncheberg Division and describes the evening of 26 April.
"Scarlet night. Heavy artillery fire. Uncanny silence. We get shot at from many houses. Foreign workers, no doubt. From the Air Ministry comes news that General Erich BärenfängerErich BärenfängerErich Bärenfänger was an officer in the German Army during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
has been relieved of his post of commander of the Berlin garrison. One hour later we hear that General Weidling is our new commander. General Mummert takes charge of the Tank Corps . . . "
On 27 April, very early in the morning, Hitler ordered the flooding of the Berlin underground to slow the advancing Soviets. Hitler's order resulted in the drowning of many German soldiers and civilians who had taken refuge in the tunnels. The diary of the officer with the Müncheberg Division went on to describe the flooding.
"New command post: Anhalter subway station. Platforms and control rooms look like an armed camp. Women and children huddle in niches and corners. Others sit about in deck chairs. They all listen for the sounds of battle . . . Suddenly water starts to pour into the station. Screams, sobs, curses. People fighting around the ladders that run through the air shafts up to the streets. Masses of gurgling water rush over the stairs. Children and wounded are abandoned and trampled to death. The water overs them, rises three feet or more and then slowly goes down. The panic lasts for hours. Many are drowned. Reason: On somebody's orders, engineers have blasted the locks of the canal between Schoeneburg and Mockern Bridges to flood the tunnels against the advancing Russians. Meanwhile heavy fighting has been going on above ground level. Change of position to Potsdamer Platz subway station in the late afternoon. Command post on the first floor, as tunnels still under water. Direct hits on the roof. Heavy loses among wounded and civilians. Smoke pours in through the shell holes. Outside, stacks of Panzerfists go up in the air. Another direct hit, one flight below street level. A horrible sight: Men, soldiers, women, and children are literally glued to the wall."
As the division was engaged in desperate fighting in Wilmersdorf
Wilmersdorf
Wilmersdorf is an inner city locality of Berlin, formerly a borough by itself but since Berlin's 2001 administrative reform a part of the new borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf.-History:...
, the encirclement of Berlin was completed and the remnants of the Müncheberg were trapped. The diary of the officer with the Müncheberg Division also described the "flying courts-martial" prevalent at this time.
"Flying courts-martial unusually prominent today. Most of them very young SS officers. Hardly a decoration among them. Blind and fanatical. The hope of relief and the fear of these courts bring men back to the fighting. General Mummert refuses to allow any further courts-martial in the sector under his command . . . He is determined to shoot down personally any courts-martial that appears . . . We cannot hold the Potsdamer Platz and move through the subway tunnel to Nollendorferplatz. In the tunnel next to ours, the Russians are advancing in the opposite direction."
On 30 April, Hitler committed suicide. The Müncheberg, German 18th Panzergrenadier Division along with a few Tiger IIs from schwere-SS-Panzer-Abteilung 503 were engaged in heavy fighting near the Westkreuz and Halensee
Halensee
Halensee is a locality of Berlin in the district of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Until 2004 the former neighbourhood established about 1880 was part of the Wilmersdorf locality, and until 2001 of the same-named former borough...
train stations and on the Kurfurstendamm
Kurfürstendamm
The Kurfürstendamm, known locally as the Ku'damm, is one of the most famous avenues in Berlin. The street takes its name from the former Kurfürsten of Brandenburg. This very broad, long boulevard can be considered the Champs-Élysées of Berlin — full of shops, houses, hotels and restaurants...
. By 1 May the division had been pushed back to the Tiergarten
Tiergarten
Tiergarten is a locality within the borough of Mitte, in central Berlin . Notable for the great and homonymous urban park, before German reunification, it was a part of West Berlin...
and was fighting to defend the Zoo Flak Tower
Flak tower
Flak towers were 8 complexes of large, above-ground, anti-aircraft gun blockhouse towers constructed in the cities of Berlin , Hamburg , and Vienna from 1940 onwards....
, the shelter of thousands of civilians. The Müncheberg's last operating panzer, a Tiger 1, was abandoned on the Unter den Linden
Unter den Linden
Unter den Linden is a boulevard in the Mitte district of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is named for its linden trees that line the grassed pedestrian mall between two carriageways....
straße a hundred yards from the Brandenburg Gate
Brandenburg Gate
The Brandenburg Gate is a former city gate and one of the most well-known landmarks of Berlin and Germany. It is located west of the city centre at the junction of Unter den Linden and Ebertstraße, immediately west of the Pariser Platz. It is the only remaining gate of a series through which...
.
Mummert was determined to lead the survivors of his division in an escape to the west, through the suburb of Spandau
Spandau
Spandau is the fifth of the twelve boroughs of Berlin. It is the fourth largest and westernmost borough, situated at the confluence of the Havel and Spree rivers and along the western bank of the Havel, but the least populated.-Overview:...
. Ignoring Weidling's calls for a cessation of hostilities, Mummert ordered the breakout attempt to get underway. Late in the day he went missing during heavy fighting, surfacing years later in a Soviet Gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
. The remnants of 18th Panzergrenadier joined the escape attempt, and both divisions attempted to battle their way to the west and surrender to the Americans. By 3 May the divisions had reached the Charlottenbrücke crossing the Havel River in Spandau. The bridge was under heavy Soviet artillery fire, but the few survivors of the Müncheberg attempted to cross the carnage of the bridge. Those who made it across the bridge found that they were surrounded by the Soviets, and on 5 May the division, which was now the last organized formation in Berlin, disintegrated.
Several small groups of men had managed to reach the Americans, but the majority of the survivors faced an uncertain fate in Soviet captivity.
Commanders
- Generalmajor der Reserve Werner MummertWerner MummertWerner Mummert was a German officer during both World War I and World War II. Mummert was born in Lüttewitz/Saxony. He first joined the German Army in August 1914 and became a Lieutenant of the Reserve , Sachs Karabiner Regiment in 1916...
(9 Mar 1945 – 25 Apr 1945) - Oberst Hans-Oscar WöhlermannHans-Oscar WöhlermannHans-Oscar Wöhlermann was a German officer during World War II.Towards the end of the war, Wöhlermann took part in the Battle of the Seelow Heights and the Battle for Berlin....
(25 Apr 1945 – 26 Apr 1945) - Generalmajor der Reserve Werner MummertWerner MummertWerner Mummert was a German officer during both World War I and World War II. Mummert was born in Lüttewitz/Saxony. He first joined the German Army in August 1914 and became a Lieutenant of the Reserve , Sachs Karabiner Regiment in 1916...
(26 Apr 1945 – 9 May 1945)
March 1945 – Küstrin counterattack
- Panzer-Regiment Müncheberg – Oberstleutnant Kuno von Meyer
- Panzer-Abteilung Kummersdorf) – Hauptmann Horst Zobel
- I./Panzer-Regiment 29 - Major Marquad
- Panzergrenadier-Regiment 1 Müncheberg – Oberst Goder
- Panzergrenadier-Regiment 2 Müncheberg – Oberstleutnant Werner Rodust
- Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment Müncheberg – Oberstleutnant Martin Buhr
- Panzerspäh-Kompanie Müncheberg
- Panzer Pionier Kompanie (mot) Müncheberg
- Feld-Ersatz Bataillon Müncheberg
- Panzer Nachrichten Kompanie Müncheberg
- Panzer Versorgungstruppen
April 1945 – Battle of Berlin
- Panzer-Regiment Müncheberg
- I./Panzer-Regiment Müncheberg
- II./Panzer-Regiment Müncheberg
- Panzergrenadier-Regiment 1 Müncheberg
- Panzergrenadier-Regiment 2 Müncheberg
- Panzer-Artillerie-Regiment Müncheberg
- Panzerspäh-Kompanie Müncheberg
- schwere Panzerjäger Abteilung (mot) 682
- Heeres Flak Artillerie Abteilung (mot) 301
- Panzer Pionier Kompanie (mot) Müncheberg
- Feld-Ersatz Bataillon Müncheberg
- Panzer Nachrichten Kompanie Müncheberg
- Panzer Versorgungstruppen