The 293rd Infantry Division was a German infantry division in World War II. It was formed on 2 February 1940 and was sent to Belgium in June of 1940 then sent to the English channel in France in July in preparation of Operation Sea Lion. In November it was assigned to Nantes then sent to Poland in march 1941. It took part in operation Barbarossa and it fought at Brest-Liovsk, Pinsk, Kiev, and Bryansk and defended against the soviet counter offensive in late 1941 and early 1942. It occupied a section near Mzensk from February to September 1942 It fought in the battle of Kursk and Bryansk and took heavy casualties in September at Kharkov. With such losses it was downgraded to Division-Gruppe 293 in November 1943. It was eventually destroyed at Jassy, Romania in August and September 1944. The remnants of the division served as the basis of the 359th Infantry Division and the Divisions-Gruppe 293.

Commanding officers

Generalleutnant Josef Rußwurm, February – 4 June 1940

Generalleutnant Justin von Obernitz, 4 June 1940 – 19 February 1942

Generalleutnant Werner Forst, 19 February 1942 – 10 January 1943

Generalleutnant Karl Arndt, 10 January 1943 – 20 November 1943

References

Tessin, Georg (1974). Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939–1945. Neunter Band. Die Landstreitkräfte 281–370. Biblio-Verlag, Osnabrück. .

293rd Infantry Division

External links

Axis history

Lexikon der Wehrmacht

Infantry divisions of Germany during World War II

Military units and formations established in 1940

Military units and formations disestablished in 1943

293rd Infantry Division