10th Pz.Div. in Africa Wehrpass
Christopher
FROM DOUG NASH:
Afrika-Marsch Batillone and Tunis Feld-Batillone
In order to regulate the movement of badly-needed replacement (Ersatz) troops for Panzer-Armee Afrika, the Ersatzheer during the summer of 1942 decided to exercise more control of Marsch-Bataillone destined for North Africa. A total of 71 of these Marsch-Btle. were envisioned, but only some 33 were formed and moved to the Theater of Operations. The rest were diverted to other destinations in the Mediterranean, such as Corsica and Crete in order to rebuild old Divisions (such as the 22. Luft-Lande) and to build new ones. Titled Afrika Marsch-Btle., very little differentiated them from other Marsch-Btle. destined for other places, such as the Eastern Front. These battalions generally consisted of the same number of men as any other Marsch-Btl. (between 800 and 1,000), were equipped only with light weapons, and organized with between 3 and 5 Kompanien. What was different, of course, was that they were screened for tropical service, issued tropical clothing and equipment, and given inoculations for the diseases endemic to the area. They were composed of a mixture of new recruits, veterans recovering from wounds, men transferred from disbanded units, and volunteers, such as those described by Jan in his posting. Evidence indicates that Afrika-Marsch Btle. A1 – A13 made it to North Africa and joined Pz.Armee Afrika without incident, prior to Montgomery’s El Alamein Offensive.
With the defeat of Rommel at El Alamein and the need to build up a new bridgehead in Tunisia due to the Allied landings in Northwest Africa on 8 Nov, the Wehrmacht once again was forced to turn to a series of expedients in order to meet a serious threat that demanded immediate and forceful action. With typical practicality and efficiency, in North Africa the Wehrmacht took units from wherever they were available – Southern France, Italy, the Balkans and so forth – and moved them via sea and air to the French-held ports in Tunisia beginning on 11 November. The larger units, as you all know, such as 10.Pz.Div, 334.Inf.Div, KGr Schmid of the HG Div., and Div.von Broich (which was created from scratch), were brought in piecemeal in the rush to push units out as far west as possible in order to intercept the rapidly approaching Allies.
Since the larger units, initially placed under the control of XC. Korps then PzAOK 5, still lacked sufficient men to hold a defensive perimeter (and would take a few weeks to arrive with all of their equipment in any case), OB Süd (Generalfeldmarschall Kesselring) decided to rush troops from the replacement pools being set up for Pz.Armee Afrika and send them to Tunisia instead. This was the most practical solution, since these men, with only light arms and no transport, would only have been a burden to Rommel, who was retreating slowly through Libya and had no time to stop and reform his units.
The first battalions sent to Tunisia were Afrika-Marsch Btle. A17, A18, A20, A21 and A23. Flown in to the airfields in Tunis and Bizerte, they were re-designated as Tunis Feld-Btle. T1, T2, T2, T4 and T5, respectively. The first four were initially used as the Tunis defensive garrison, but were quickly pushed out to continually widen the perimeter around this key sea and airport, while Feld-Btl. T5 was used to secure Bizerte (as did some elements of Feld-Btl. T1). These units were equipped at first with small arms and machine guns. Gradually, they were provided a greater establishment of heavy weapons, but due to their improvisational nature, they never reached the same standard as regular battalions in infantry or Panzer-Grenadier regiments. However, they provided an enormously vital addition to the German bridgehead in Tunisia and it is safe to say that without them, General Nehring and later General von Arnim would not have been able to establish the bridgehead at all. With the addition of these badly-needed men, the German bridgehead was more or less secured by 28 November, thus enabling the new PzAOK 5 to survive long enough until Rommel’s PzArmee Afrika was able to link up with it in January 1943.
The other remaining Afrika Marsch-Btle. were parceled out among other German units as well as to Italian Divisions, in order to serve as “Korsettenstange” to insure that they carried out their defensive responsibilities and to stand up to Allied attacks. Feld-Btle. T3 and T4 were quickly incorporated into Pz.Gren.Rgt. 160, part of Division von Broich/von Manteuffel, These two battalions and the other three Feld-Btle. seemed to have enjoyed a slightly higher number of heavy weapons and equipment than the other Afrika Marsch-Blte. and appear to have been used in a number of offensive operations, such as the Battle of Faid Pass between 30 January and 4 February 1943. The Afrika Marsch-Blte. seemed to have been less favored than Feld-Btle. and were in actuality little more than “Alarmeinheiten,” a true “Verlorene Haufen” of Orphans who were passed frequently from one higher headquarters to another, being “Verheizt” since they had no Division headquarters to look out after them. Like the rest of Heeresgruppe Afrika, the survivors of these units capitulated on 12 May 1943. Most of their histories were never recorded, though the report of Feld-Btl. T2 is believed to be in the Bundesarchiv-Militaerarchiv in Freiburg.
A listing of known Feld-Btle. And Afrika Marsch-Btle. that served in Tunisia from 11 Nov 1942 until 12 May 1943 are shown below, as well as the higher headquarters they served with. Note that for some of these battalions, they were moved frequently around the Tunisian battlefield so that today, it is virtually impossible to track their movements.
A14 Diverted instead to Crete for 22. (LL) Division Nov. 42
A15 Same as above
A16 Not mentioned in records
A17 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T1, assigned to Div. von Broich/Manteuffel
A18 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T2, assigned to KGr Pfeiffer (PzGR 104, 21.Pz.Div.)
A19 Not mentioned in records
A20 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T3, assigned to PGR 160, Div von Broich/Manteuffel
A21 Resesignated Feld-Btl. T4, assigned to PGR 160, Div von Broich/Manteuffel
A22 Assigned to Ital. Div. “Superga”, fought at Ousseltia and Khairouan
A23 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T5, assigned to GR 756, 334 ID and KGr Schmid (HG)
A24 Assigned to PzGR 69, 10 PzD then KGr Schmid (HG)
A25 Assigned to Div. “Superga,” then GR 756 (334 ID), then KGr Schmid (Khairouan)
A26 Assigned to Div. “Superga,” fought at El Hammam
A27 Defense Sector Khairouan
A28 Defense Sector Ousseltia and Khairouan
A29 Defense Sector Ousseltia, then fought with 21 PzD at Mezzouna
A30 Assigned to Div. von Manteuffel
A31 Not mentioned in records
A32 Not mentioned in records
A33 Assigned to KGr Schmid, (HG)
Feld-Bataillon "T" [Tunis] Ritterkreuz recipients:
Koch, Karl, 10.05.1943, Hauptmann, Btl.Fhr. Feld-Btl. “T 4” [Feld-Btl Tunis 4 / Pz.AOK 5] / DKiG
Herr, Wilhelm, 08.04.1943 (1670), Leutnant, Kp.Fhr. 4./Feld.Btl. “T 5” [Feld-Btl Tunis 5 / Pz.AOK 5]
Mrusek, Ewald, 24.03.1943, Stabsfeldwebel, Zg.Fhr. 2./Feld.Btl. “T 1” [Feld-Btl. Tunis 1 / PzAOK 5]
I found this vignette in Paul Carrell's Foxes of the Desert, page 319:
"The first German landing in Bizerta (on 11 Nov.) was also in the nature of a bluff. The 16th Infantry, which was to be transferred from Laibach (Llubljana) via Athens to Rommel's front was hastily diverted to Rome. There, the C-in-C South (Kesselring) transformed it into the 1st Tunis Field Battalion. Lieutenant Werner Wolff, with No. 1 Company, reinforced by the Ahrendt Parachute Engineer Column, landed on the Bizerta airfield with supplies. It had left the formation, and, together with two parachute sections of the Ahrendt column, had more or less capture Bizerta airfield."
Afrika-Marsch Batillone and Tunis Feld-Batillone
In order to regulate the movement of badly-needed replacement (Ersatz) troops for Panzer-Armee Afrika, the Ersatzheer during the summer of 1942 decided to exercise more control of Marsch-Bataillone destined for North Africa. A total of 71 of these Marsch-Btle. were envisioned, but only some 33 were formed and moved to the Theater of Operations. The rest were diverted to other destinations in the Mediterranean, such as Corsica and Crete in order to rebuild old Divisions (such as the 22. Luft-Lande) and to build new ones. Titled Afrika Marsch-Btle., very little differentiated them from other Marsch-Btle. destined for other places, such as the Eastern Front. These battalions generally consisted of the same number of men as any other Marsch-Btl. (between 800 and 1,000), were equipped only with light weapons, and organized with between 3 and 5 Kompanien. What was different, of course, was that they were screened for tropical service, issued tropical clothing and equipment, and given inoculations for the diseases endemic to the area. They were composed of a mixture of new recruits, veterans recovering from wounds, men transferred from disbanded units, and volunteers, such as those described by Jan in his posting. Evidence indicates that Afrika-Marsch Btle. A1 – A13 made it to North Africa and joined Pz.Armee Afrika without incident, prior to Montgomery’s El Alamein Offensive.
With the defeat of Rommel at El Alamein and the need to build up a new bridgehead in Tunisia due to the Allied landings in Northwest Africa on 8 Nov, the Wehrmacht once again was forced to turn to a series of expedients in order to meet a serious threat that demanded immediate and forceful action. With typical practicality and efficiency, in North Africa the Wehrmacht took units from wherever they were available – Southern France, Italy, the Balkans and so forth – and moved them via sea and air to the French-held ports in Tunisia beginning on 11 November. The larger units, as you all know, such as 10.Pz.Div, 334.Inf.Div, KGr Schmid of the HG Div., and Div.von Broich (which was created from scratch), were brought in piecemeal in the rush to push units out as far west as possible in order to intercept the rapidly approaching Allies.
Since the larger units, initially placed under the control of XC. Korps then PzAOK 5, still lacked sufficient men to hold a defensive perimeter (and would take a few weeks to arrive with all of their equipment in any case), OB Süd (Generalfeldmarschall Kesselring) decided to rush troops from the replacement pools being set up for Pz.Armee Afrika and send them to Tunisia instead. This was the most practical solution, since these men, with only light arms and no transport, would only have been a burden to Rommel, who was retreating slowly through Libya and had no time to stop and reform his units.
The first battalions sent to Tunisia were Afrika-Marsch Btle. A17, A18, A20, A21 and A23. Flown in to the airfields in Tunis and Bizerte, they were re-designated as Tunis Feld-Btle. T1, T2, T2, T4 and T5, respectively. The first four were initially used as the Tunis defensive garrison, but were quickly pushed out to continually widen the perimeter around this key sea and airport, while Feld-Btl. T5 was used to secure Bizerte (as did some elements of Feld-Btl. T1). These units were equipped at first with small arms and machine guns. Gradually, they were provided a greater establishment of heavy weapons, but due to their improvisational nature, they never reached the same standard as regular battalions in infantry or Panzer-Grenadier regiments. However, they provided an enormously vital addition to the German bridgehead in Tunisia and it is safe to say that without them, General Nehring and later General von Arnim would not have been able to establish the bridgehead at all. With the addition of these badly-needed men, the German bridgehead was more or less secured by 28 November, thus enabling the new PzAOK 5 to survive long enough until Rommel’s PzArmee Afrika was able to link up with it in January 1943.
The other remaining Afrika Marsch-Btle. were parceled out among other German units as well as to Italian Divisions, in order to serve as “Korsettenstange” to insure that they carried out their defensive responsibilities and to stand up to Allied attacks. Feld-Btle. T3 and T4 were quickly incorporated into Pz.Gren.Rgt. 160, part of Division von Broich/von Manteuffel, These two battalions and the other three Feld-Btle. seemed to have enjoyed a slightly higher number of heavy weapons and equipment than the other Afrika Marsch-Blte. and appear to have been used in a number of offensive operations, such as the Battle of Faid Pass between 30 January and 4 February 1943. The Afrika Marsch-Blte. seemed to have been less favored than Feld-Btle. and were in actuality little more than “Alarmeinheiten,” a true “Verlorene Haufen” of Orphans who were passed frequently from one higher headquarters to another, being “Verheizt” since they had no Division headquarters to look out after them. Like the rest of Heeresgruppe Afrika, the survivors of these units capitulated on 12 May 1943. Most of their histories were never recorded, though the report of Feld-Btl. T2 is believed to be in the Bundesarchiv-Militaerarchiv in Freiburg.
A listing of known Feld-Btle. And Afrika Marsch-Btle. that served in Tunisia from 11 Nov 1942 until 12 May 1943 are shown below, as well as the higher headquarters they served with. Note that for some of these battalions, they were moved frequently around the Tunisian battlefield so that today, it is virtually impossible to track their movements.
A14 Diverted instead to Crete for 22. (LL) Division Nov. 42
A15 Same as above
A16 Not mentioned in records
A17 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T1, assigned to Div. von Broich/Manteuffel
A18 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T2, assigned to KGr Pfeiffer (PzGR 104, 21.Pz.Div.)
A19 Not mentioned in records
A20 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T3, assigned to PGR 160, Div von Broich/Manteuffel
A21 Resesignated Feld-Btl. T4, assigned to PGR 160, Div von Broich/Manteuffel
A22 Assigned to Ital. Div. “Superga”, fought at Ousseltia and Khairouan
A23 Redesignated Feld-Btl. T5, assigned to GR 756, 334 ID and KGr Schmid (HG)
A24 Assigned to PzGR 69, 10 PzD then KGr Schmid (HG)
A25 Assigned to Div. “Superga,” then GR 756 (334 ID), then KGr Schmid (Khairouan)
A26 Assigned to Div. “Superga,” fought at El Hammam
A27 Defense Sector Khairouan
A28 Defense Sector Ousseltia and Khairouan
A29 Defense Sector Ousseltia, then fought with 21 PzD at Mezzouna
A30 Assigned to Div. von Manteuffel
A31 Not mentioned in records
A32 Not mentioned in records
A33 Assigned to KGr Schmid, (HG)
Feld-Bataillon "T" [Tunis] Ritterkreuz recipients:
Koch, Karl, 10.05.1943, Hauptmann, Btl.Fhr. Feld-Btl. “T 4” [Feld-Btl Tunis 4 / Pz.AOK 5] / DKiG
Herr, Wilhelm, 08.04.1943 (1670), Leutnant, Kp.Fhr. 4./Feld.Btl. “T 5” [Feld-Btl Tunis 5 / Pz.AOK 5]
Mrusek, Ewald, 24.03.1943, Stabsfeldwebel, Zg.Fhr. 2./Feld.Btl. “T 1” [Feld-Btl. Tunis 1 / PzAOK 5]
I found this vignette in Paul Carrell's Foxes of the Desert, page 319:
"The first German landing in Bizerta (on 11 Nov.) was also in the nature of a bluff. The 16th Infantry, which was to be transferred from Laibach (Llubljana) via Athens to Rommel's front was hastily diverted to Rome. There, the C-in-C South (Kesselring) transformed it into the 1st Tunis Field Battalion. Lieutenant Werner Wolff, with No. 1 Company, reinforced by the Ahrendt Parachute Engineer Column, landed on the Bizerta airfield with supplies. It had left the formation, and, together with two parachute sections of the Ahrendt column, had more or less capture Bizerta airfield."
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