Soldbuch 2. Panzer Division Wounded + EK 2 Normandy 1944

First issue Soldbuch to Obergefreiter Grabler.

The Soldbuch opens at September 1940 with Kraftfahr ersatz Abteilung 17. After his basictrainings he became part of the Divisions Stab 2. Panzer Division.

With the 2. Panzer Division he took part in the campaigns at the Balkans in 1941 and from Oktober 1941 onwards on the Eastfront as part of Heeresgruppe Mitte. The Division was involved in the battles towards Moskow and in 1943 it fought at Kursk.

After the heavy losses on the Eastfront it was sent to France to rest and rebuilt.

1944

Commanded by aristocratic Heinrich von Luttwitz, it was stationed at Amiens for refitting from January of 1944 as part of 15. Armee.
On the eve of the invasion, the 2. Panzerdivision was several hundred men over strength and reported 94 operational Panzer IVs and 73 Panthers; a very strong division. In preparation for the invasion, the 2. Panzerdivision was put under direct command of Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel. Only four divisions (2., 21., 116. and 130. Panzer Lehr Panzer divisions) were given to Rommel who suggested that the key to counterattacking the invasion, no matter where it came, was to have Panzer divisions rolling onto the Allied positions before they could establish a strong beachhead.

The rest of the Panzerwaffe would be held under Hitler’s direct command, to counterattack a possible second invasion site.

However, Rommel’s control would still not be enough to get the 2. Panzerdivision into position until 13 June. The division was forced to detour approximately 160 miles through the French countryside due to bridges destroyed by Allied air strikes and Allied air superiority, which made panzers moving during the day the equivalent of a suicide mission. Lead elements supported Panzer Lehr and SS Schwere Panzerabteilung 101 in the attack on Villers-Bocage. Several of the 2. Panzerdivision’s tanks were lost, but the village was recovered from the British 7th Armoured Division under the onslaught of the three tank forces coming from its north, south and east sides. That evening, elements of the 2. Panzerdivision were used at a gap in the German lines near Caumont, with preparations to launch an attack the following morning. However, the attack was never launched as a bombardment of Allied air, artillery and naval guns opened on their start positions.

map taken from the book “Invasion Normandy 1944” by G. Bernage.

map does not come with the item and is for reference only.

After being stymied at Caumont, the rest of the division finally caught up to its forward positions a week later. The 2. Panzerdivision was finally able to form a coherent fighting force. For the rest of June, the 2. Panzerdivision operated in and around Caumont. The Panther battalion was detached to help stop the British Operation Epsom. Division reports indicate that the Panthers alone were responsible for 53 destroyed British tanks and 15 anti-tank weapons in a single day.

In the third week of July, the 352. Infanteriedivision relieved 2. Panzerdivision, but the rest was short lived. Strength reports indicate it was rated “Kampfwert I”, which indicates the ability to take on any offensive mission. Operation Cobra began on 25 July and the tanks of the 2. Panzerdivision were too valuable to let sit idle while the Americans broke through the German lines. On 28 July Fieldmarschall Guenther Hans von Kluge ordered the 2. Panzerdivision into action against the Americans from its position near Caen. Crossing the Vire River, the 2. Panzerdivision took a position at Tessy-sur-Vire, flanking the American breakout. They helped stop the US XIX Corps near Troisgots, but soon had to withdraw because of the threat of envelopment by American infanty.

Operation Luttich

Despite of delays, the attack was launched on a foggy morning on 7 August. The fog allowed 2. Panzerdivision to penetrate 7 miles into Allied lines before being stopped by Combat Command B of the US 3rd Armored division. The Panther battalion had reached St. Barthelemy, just north of Mortain, an American strongpoint. As the Panzer V tanks inched through the village, the American ambush began a stretch of intense fighting. The Panthers did not retreat, Luttwitz was determined to bludgeon his way through the town. In spite of the anti-tank guns and bazookas arrayed before the Panther battalion, they reached the other side of St. Bathelemy two intense hours later. Advancing out into clear terrain, it was not long before a flight of approximately 20 Typhoon fighter-bombers spied the concentration of German armour and pounced, sending them back into the relative safety of the village. American counterattacks were vicious and strong, and by 9 August, 2. Panzerdivision found itself back at its start positions.
Shortly after the failure the Division had to escape from the Falaise pocket.

On 28 August 1944 he enters a Reserve Lazarett in Rengsdorf, Germany. He got wounded by schrapnel, most probarly early or mid August.

For his first wounding he was awarded the Wounded badge in Black on 23-9-1944.

For bravery shown in Normandy he was also awarded the EK 2 on 17-10-1944.

Shortly after he was dismissed from the hospital and went to an trainingsunit; Panzer ersatz Abteilung 4 based in Vienna.

Early 1945 he became part of Panzergrenadier Regiment 112 of the 20. Panzergrenadier Division. The Division fought on the Weichsel - Oderfront. Here it defended the city Kielce in Poland and withdrew towards the area of Łódź.

On 16 February 1945 he enters an hospital in Geiersberg for a second wounding by schrapnel.
On 1-5-1945 he was released from the hospital and must have been taken POW shortly after.

Used condition, some pages are loose but it’s complete.

Awards

- Ostmedaille

- Kvk 2 with Swords

- Wounded badge in Black

- EK 2

He received an Pistol.

code: C25370